Survival and Emergency Preparedness

... is that people need them more than ever. With inflation, covid, robotics, artificial intelligence, climate change, migrants, social unrest the knowledge on how to cope is needed more then ever.

People like FerFal are needed more then ever, yet he has stopped posting.
http://ferfal.blogspot.com/2020/

The old Y2K section on GT had a brief surge of interest prior to Y2K. When that turned out to be a non-event it pretty much turned into a ghost town. Literally many months would go by without a single post. Eventually became the Survival section or whatever it's called and had a brief time of activity but that dwindled as well. You'll get an occasional spurt but it simmers down pretty fast. Kinda why this forum was founded. Keep active with each other and have all the info a bit better organized.

Unfortunately, not everyone came over. One guy is almost violently opposed to joining the board for some really weird reason. It's like if it's not on GT he doesn't want to see it and doesn't want anyone else to see it either. Someone once asked a question and I posted a link to whatever the topic was here. Not trying to 'advertise' the forum but we already had an extensive thread on it with a ton of information the guy was asking about. And my whole thinking process on this is that we're a community and that means helping and sharing. Well, this guy went nuts! Complained that the information should only be posted on GT. I asked him how I was suppose to post multiple pages of information, much by other members into a single post just to satisfy his weird obsession? I said it nicer of course but that's what I was thinking. Anyway, he went on and on and on about it. I told him we're all here to help each other and who cares where the information is stored, the guy now had access to it. Not like it was going to bring down GT. He still continued to be pissy and eventually reported it to a mod. Nothing happened as I recall. That was years ago and he'll still occasionally show up in a thread I've started with some weird, sarcastic remark.

The point is that you've got a few like that in the 'community' to deal with.

Would I like to see the board grow a bit? Yes, I would. I'd love to have another dozen or two active posters. That's just the way of it I guess.

Part of the issues is the world has changed.

Preppers are analog guys - food, house, tools, things you can hold.

Today people are digital - their phone is their life and the reliance on gov't. Preppers have seen how fragile the world is. Digital has faith in technology and the gov't.

A slow motion crash is happening - look at all the people going to food banks - that is why it doesn't get attention. People and the media says great; look at all the charity.

Remember the gas shortages of the 70s with odd/even getting gas? We rely on and use much more gas then then. There would be gun fights everywhere if that happened today.

aerynsun wrote: ↑Thu Dec 30, 2021 2:20 pm Today people are digital - their phone is their life and the reliance on gov't. Preppers have seen how fragile the world is. Digital has faith in technology and the gov't.

As with anything, it has to be made personal to the person. I can 'tell' someone something and they may or may not 'get it' but if they have a light bulb moment as see/accept the value for themselves they are more likely to get off the phone and put some effort into being proactive. All we can do is lead by example and offer them the benefit of our experience/research.

Some of the responsibility falls to us for forwarding the tribal knowledge. With that in mind I would ask, 'who here has invited someone to the board'? Are we trying to increase board membership and bring folks to a platform where they can do their own research and ask questions or are we comfortable with having a small club house?

Great point Dave. Its like when people laugh at my bag, but then see me pull almost any immediately needed item from it.

Kid at a soccer game busted a shoelace. Out came the paracord. No problem

Here is a sad story though; On a Scout camping trip...everyone was like "I'd love a Starbucks right now"
- I whipped out my Esbit and made a cup of Verona w/ Cream and sugar in a few minutes.

Do what you do. Others will see. Some will learn. You can't force it.

1. I liked the reference to analog and digital.
2. It is very hard for people to go outside their experience. Moreover, there only so many hours in a day
Examples. 50 years ago, the Army did a review of casualties in Vietnam. About 1/2 of the casualties were of people on the first 30 day sweep, so the "jungle walk", in country training was implemented. A separate study learned that there was a correlation between reduced casualties and rank in the boy scouts. Few among Eagle Scouts. A bit more among Life Scouts. As a former Eagle Scout and enlisted man, I knew why - you took responsibility for learning more survival skills.

A couple of us talked a firearms instructor into taking a man tracking course. He had been a sniper. The course was held in an area where it had not rained in more than two years. We told him that he would be taught how to track someone 6 miles without seeing one complete foot print. He learned and said he had not thought it was possible. Why? Because it required him to go outside his experience.

So, when someone goes around with his nose in a cell phone all day and doesn't have to fix the car, sharpen a knife, start a non automatic barbecue, camp outdoors or fix a lawn mower (but has a gardener), the survival websites get less traffic.

At one time, I worked for IBM. The instructors wanted us to learn to program in machine language. We refused. No programmed anymore in machine language, but the instructors had learned. I learned how to program in a number of languages. However, I haven't programmed in any for the last 30 or more years. Same thing. Only so many hours in the day and some skills not needed to be able to function in modern society. However, I am going tomorrow to the Credit Union. I can log in on my lap top to the Credit Union. I can't do it through the App on my new cell phone with the same log in information. Need to learn why not.