So S.H.T.F, sun flare (no electric), astoroide impact, zombie apocalypse which of your 7 non prepers do you eat first
the youngest (sweetest) or the fattest (lard)
I just wondered how many of you........
- Thread starter Dave
- Start date
So S.H.T.F, sun flare (no electric), astoroide impact, zombie apocalypse which of your 7 non prepers do you eat first
the youngest (sweetest) or the fattest (lard)
So S.H.T.F, sun flare (no electric), astoroide impact, zombie apocalypse which of your 7 non prepers do you eat first
It would be the slowest surely?
Tonyuk
I'm not convinced that either scenario is likely but if either or both were to happen, I'm not convinced that the UK will be transformed into North Korea in a timescale that would preclude a bulk delivery of fresh, in date supplies from Tesco/Asda/Iceland/Ocado etc.
IMHO keeping a couple of weeks worth of supplies makes perfect sense and I'd love to have a go at genuine self-sufficiency but keeping a years worth of dried and tinned food (there's no point in having stuff in the freezer if the "SH7F" as I believe people say, unless you've got a genny (plus at least one back up) and enough diesel to run it for a year) seems odd.
Its worth bearing in mind that despite the very determined efforts by the Kriegsmarine and Luftwaffe to disrupt imports of food, no one in the UK starved between 1939 and 1945. I suspect that the generation that survived that conflict (sadly my grandfather, a RN signaller died on convoy duty) and the genuine hardships of the 1930s would be bemused at the concerns of 21st Century "preppers" in an era when food has never been as cheap or as plentiful and although times are tough, objectively, the risks of nuclear destruction, industrial anarchy etc. etc. are as low as they have ever been. On the other hand, I suppose our/my grandparents' generation didn't have "experts" on the internet and zombie apocalypse stories to worry them!
But hey its (still) a free country and I'm genuinely interested why the OP, Dave feels the need to hoard a years worth of food?
I'm not convinced that either scenario is likely but if either or both were to happen, I'm not convinced that the UK will be transformed into North Korea in a timescale that would preclude a bulk delivery of fresh, in date supplies from Tesco/Asda/Iceland/Ocado etc.
IMHO keeping a couple of weeks worth of supplies makes perfect sense and I'd love to have a go at genuine self-sufficiency but keeping a years worth of dried and tinned food (there's no point in having stuff in the freezer if the "SH7F" as I believe people say, unless you've got a genny (plus at least one back up) and enough diesel to run it for a year) seems odd.
Its worth bearing in mind that despite the very determined efforts by the Kriegsmarine and Luftwaffe to disrupt imports of food, no one in the UK starved between 1939 and 1945. I suspect that the generation that survived that conflict (sadly my grandfather, a RN signaller died on convoy duty) and the genuine hardships of the 1930s would be bemused at the concerns of 21st Century "preppers" in an era when food has never been as cheap or as plentiful and although times are tough, objectively, the risks of nuclear destruction, industrial anarchy etc. etc. are as low as they have ever been. On the other hand, I suppose our/my grandparents' generation didn't have "experts" on the internet and zombie apocalypse stories to worry them!
But hey its (still) a free country and I'm genuinely interested why the OP, Dave feels the need to hoard a years worth of food?
Nomad.. Dave's told you the answer already.. why are you still asking.
And if you are referring to me with.. (there's no point in having stuff in the freezer if the "SH7F") I'm not storing a years worth of food in my freezer. I freeze the fish i catch when i go fishing and freeze some of the meat i buy.
I'm not convinced that either scenario is likely but if either or both were to happen, I'm not convinced that the UK will be transformed into North Korea in a timescale that would preclude a bulk delivery of fresh, in date supplies from Tesco/Asda/Iceland/Ocado etc.
IMHO keeping a couple of weeks worth of supplies makes perfect sense and I'd love to have a go at genuine self-sufficiency but keeping a years worth of dried and tinned food (there's no point in having stuff in the freezer if the "SH7F" as I believe people say, unless you've got a genny (plus at least one back up) and enough diesel to run it for a year) seems odd.
Its worth bearing in mind that despite the very determined efforts by the Kriegsmarine and Luftwaffe to disrupt imports of food, no one in the UK starved between 1939 and 1945. I suspect that the generation that survived that conflict (sadly my grandfather, a RN signaller died on convoy duty) and the genuine hardships of the 1930s would be bemused at the concerns of 21st Century "preppers" in an era when food has never been as cheap or as plentiful and although times are tough, objectively, the risks of nuclear destruction, industrial anarchy etc. etc. are as low as they have ever been. On the other hand, I suppose our/my grandparents' generation didn't have "experts" on the internet and zombie apocalypse stories to worry them!
But hey its (still) a free country and I'm genuinely interested why the OP, Dave feels the need to hoard a years worth of food?
Do not forget that UK was kept from starving by US shipping free food. Without those shipments the outcome of the war would be quite different.
My parents lived through the war, they lived in the central part of Europe. Food shortages, fuel shortages, British and US bombs.
The shortage of food made people eat stuff they did not touch before the war, or since.
One more long lasting psychological effect was ( and is, as they are still alive) that they always had and still have an excessive stock of non perishable goods. Kilos of sugar. Kilos of rice. Just in case.
And do not forget that any country can turn from a peaceful, democratic heaven on Earth to a totalitarian hell in a very, very short time.
Or be in war in even shorter time.
I'm not a fanatic believer in a looming zombie apocalypse or a total world collapse either. That said there are some more realistic scenarios to store at least a few weeks food (FEMA even recommends about a 3 week supply of food, water, and personal meds) In my particular area the major expectation is hurricanes but in other parts of the country (or the world for that matter) other natural disasters are equally possible: floods, earthquakes, wildfires, etc.
I might also add that I also stock up on items that I find at a particularly good price in order to save money. I stated earlier in the thread that next week I'll be stocking up at the commissary case-lot sale; largely to save money in the long run although the timing of the sale coming this near the start of hurricane season isn't lost on me.
I might also add that some people have religious reasons for stocking which some might find awkward to mention on a public forum (the Mormons encourage a 2 year supply for example) I'm not Mormon, but having several friends who are, it's easy enough to understand the possibility.
I might also add that I also stock up on items that I find at a particularly good price in order to save money. I stated earlier in the thread that next week I'll be stocking up at the commissary case-lot sale; largely to save money in the long run although the timing of the sale coming this near the start of hurricane season isn't lost on me.
I might also add that some people have religious reasons for stocking which some might find awkward to mention on a public forum (the Mormons encourage a 2 year supply for example) I'm not Mormon, but having several friends who are, it's easy enough to understand the possibility.
Same here, we need a little supply in case we get hit by a hurricane.
Cayman is in the Hurricane Alley, and we are well overdue for one!
Interesting about the Mormons. What is the reason they have a such large emergency supply? 2 years supply is rather lot!
Cayman is in the Hurricane Alley, and we are well overdue for one!
Interesting about the Mormons. What is the reason they have a such large emergency supply? 2 years supply is rather lot!
In this day and time, I'm more concerned about natural disaster than any human-led disaster.
We had 4-6 weeks with _no_ electricity. The wild fire burned the line for many miles.
McBride set up freezer trucks, bring your food in labelled boxes and in it went.
All the same, I am also fully prepared to defend my stash. That, in the end of times, may need to be the more important response.
We had 4-6 weeks with _no_ electricity. The wild fire burned the line for many miles.
McBride set up freezer trucks, bring your food in labelled boxes and in it went.
All the same, I am also fully prepared to defend my stash. That, in the end of times, may need to be the more important response.
Mormon history here includes a lot of persecution from others and they formed their own separate nation for a while before Utah was admitted to the Union. Maybe that corporate memory has something to do with it but, as I said, I'm not Mormon so I'm not too sure where the quantity comes from. I know a few decades ago when I first became close friends with some Mormons I served with, it was only one year but was later doubled.
I suppose it's splitting hairs but most 32 caliber muzzle-loaders I've heard of were/are rifled. Those were the squirrel guns and as such needed to be more accurate (withing the practical range)
Where the Hello did the .32 come from?
I'm pretty happy with a o/u x .775 cal. and 6 flats of ammo.
I'm pretty happy with a o/u x .775 cal. and 6 flats of ammo.
All Dave said was "just in case". Since he volunteered information about his food stockpile on a public forum, I was genuinely curious as to what scenario he has in mind.
I wasn't. My point was that its hard to envisage a scenario where it is impossible to buy food for weeks or months but electricity (and other services) are not also interrupted. Therefore if you feel that the threat to yourself and family warrants stockpiling a year's worth of food, it had better be non-perishable.
Storing food is all well and good for that length of time but I would imagine that most folk would struggle with the water side of things.
Actually it was having a read of a preparedness manual from the church of latter day saints. [Mormons] that prompted me to post the question, funnily enough.
https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B_ob38lmWa5TSmhOV3lnWmN4aHM/edit
You are ignoring the role of rationing in ensuring that the food that was available was fairly distributed had in; (a) ensuring that no one starved and (b) promoting a genuine "in it together" spirit whereby people got what they needed to survive and fulfil their role in the war economy and/or armed forces and (as far as was realistically possible) eliminating the sense of injustice caused by hoarding and profiteering.
Lend-lease munitions, food and fuel supplies from the US certainly played a crucial role in keeping Britain and the Commonwealth in the ring particularly during the early war years when they were fighting alone but it certainly wasn't "free"! IIRC, in addition to the wholesale transfer of naval bases, radar, aircraft engine (piston and jet) and other technology where Britain was significantly ahead of the US in the early war years, Britain made its last cash payment for US Lend Lease assistance less than a decade ago.
Although largely airbrushed from history during the cold war, Britain's role as a donor of military supplies to the USSR was crucial in turning the tide in 1941-42. They don't appear in Soviet news reel footage showing the Red Army in action but a significant proportion of the tanks and planes defending the gates of Moscow in the winter of 1941-42 were built in British factories (themselves suffering nightly bombardment from the Luftwaffe) and transported to the USSR on perilous Arctic and Mediterranean convoys. Later in the war, the bulk of Canadian tank production went to the USSR and as is more well known, the Red Army and its supplies rode to Berlin in US made trucks.
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/233524251_British_Lend-Lease_Tanks_and_the_Battle_for_Moscow_November-December_1941-A_Research_Note
The lesson I take from all this is that if the world goes mad and degenerates into chaos, rather than pulling up the drawbridge as demanded by the isolationists in the US who opposed Roosevelt's Lend Lease plans, (or sitting on a stockpile of pasta and beans with a shotgun on your lap) and hoping it all passes you by, it is better to get stuck in and share what resources and skills you have with family, friends and neighbours and work together to restore order. I'm not religious but from what I've heard about the guy, I think I know what Jesus would do.
I completely understand that - you may recall the documentary that the BBC made years ago about Mr Trebus a lovely old guy, originally from Poland whose wartime experiences made him a compulsive hoarder.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edmund_Trebus
My point was that although hoarding of food and supplies either in moderate or extreme amounts may be understandable among the generation(s) that grew up during times of genuine hardship, it is the current generation which by comparison has little to fear and access to more food than is good for it that is obsessed with preparing for a zombie apocalypse and similar "end of days" scenarios.
To me the idea of religious groups hoarding food which seems bizarre - surely for the truly devout, a couple of tins of tuna and five packs of crackers should be ample!
I think most people with a bit of common sense and a reasonable knowledge of current affairs and history can make an objective assessment of the short or longterm risk of the country they are in turning into a "totalitarian hell" or go to war and make appropriate preparations or not as the case may be. FWIW, a few years ago I was in northern Jordan hoping to drive to Turkey via Syria during the early stages of the conflict there and after weighing up the risks decided not to. I've also lived and worked off-grid in a remote corner of an African country where interruptions to fuel, electricity and food supplies were regular occurrences and always made sure that I had enough reserves of essentials. Back in the UK, although I stock up on my favourite breakfast cereal when its on offer, fill up with diesel when its cheap(er) and sometimes succumb to the temptation to buy my own bodyweight in chocolate for a fiver at the Cadbury factory shop (a relative is a Cadbury pensioner so she has privileges
), but otherwise, I'm pretty relaxed about the risks of interruption to essential supplies and services.Although I remain curious as to his motives and the practicalities of his storage arrangements, I respect Dave's right to stockpile supplies and to be coy about his reasons for doing so I'll get my coat (actually, the very nice shirt, I bought from the OP) and bow out now andy leave the "usual suspects" to debate the appropriate weaponry for despatching hungry neighbours, zombies etc.
Sorry Nomad. Im afraid I dont have some deep dark belief, for hoarding a years supply of food. It just seemed like a good idea at the time, as I already had a vaccum sealer and a load of Mylar bags. It was quite easy really. I just went out and bought 100 tins of spam, Couple of huge jars of peanut butter, 50kg bag of basmati rice, from local supermarket, and a 50kilo bag of kidney beans from the same place, and vaccum sealed them in mylar, and put them in plasterers white tubs. I also have a steel cupboard Ive thrown a few other things in to. Just in the back of the shed.
A serious food shortage is not that unusual, I dont think.
TBH I dont know why I did it. I just had this feeling, like I needed to to do it. Its by no way a complete list.
I could also add to that wheat, in large sacks, straight from the farmers fields. As I have a handheld grinder.
Its not like it could never happen in Britain you know. Its already happened twice in Germany during the twentieth century.
Thanks for the interesting post though.
Im afraid I dont have some deep dark belief, for hoarding a years supply of food. It just seemed like a good idea at the time, as I already had a vaccum sealer and a load of Mylar bags. It was quite easy really. I just went out and bought 100 tins of spam, Couple of huge jars of peanut butter, 50kg bag of basmati rice, from local supermarket, and a 50kilo bag of kidney beans from the same place, and vaccum sealed them in mylar, and put them in plasterers white tubs. I also have a steel cupboard Ive thrown a few other things in to. Just in the back of the shed.A serious food shortage is not that unusual, I dont think.
TBH I dont know why I did it. I just had this feeling, like I needed to to do it. Its by no way a complete list.
I could also add to that wheat, in large sacks, straight from the farmers fields. As I have a handheld grinder.
Its not like it could never happen in Britain you know. Its already happened twice in Germany during the twentieth century.
Thanks for the interesting post though.
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