Article emphasizes being prepared

[Il Duce]

Saw this this morning in the paper on the front page nonetheless.

http://timesfreepress.com/news/2011/jun/13/it-can-happen-you/

[RobertNashville]

Not a bad article....I'm still working on both my disaster preparedness as well as adding to my home security but I've definitely made some real progress over the past 18 months or so. I can't help but worry sometimes about family and friends who I know haven't prepared - it's difficult sometimes to resist the urge to take them by the collar, look them in the eyes and say "why haven't you prepared"...of course I don't do that and if I did it would probably do more harm than good!

[gregintenn]

Pretty good article. The more I read about being prepared, the more I realize that we're more prepared than most people. It is a product of being raised in a rural area. Most people around us have guns and ammo, can garden vegetables, have freezers full of food, etc. A lot of us enjoy camping, and many camping items will help in being prepared as well. We've had several events in the last few years that left us without power for several days, as well as restricted travel for several days as well. My family didn't do without anything. I suppose that's what it is all about. A person could drive themselves crazy trying to prepare for every scenerio they could dream up, but being prepared for common inconveniences isn't that hard to do.

[Jonnin]

They don't have a gun/ammo in their supply list. Instead they try to guess at how much food you should store... nothing wrong with a few days supply of food, but what then?

Otherwise pretty good, just found that omission very odd given the looting that took place after the tornados and the possible need for hunting.

[peejman]

Good article and it re-reminds me that I'm lacking in several areas. I do think that this kind of preparation is good for minor to moderate problems. If a major event (tornado/hurricane) comes through and blows everything away as has happened recently... well, all my supplies would be gone too.

[hkgonra]

I don't see why everyone doesn't have at least a 6 month supply of food on hand at all times. In fact if you do it right you will save a ton of money. Buy things you would normally use when they go on sale and buy in bulk. The last time tomato sauce went on sale for example, It is normally $1.50 -$1.75 a can. Kroger had it for $.49 a can and I bought 120 cans. We will use it in under a year, probably close to 6 months and it doesn't expire until Dec 2012.

[peejman]

I don't see why everyone doesn't have at least a 6 month supply of food on hand at all times. In fact if you do it right you will save a ton of money. Buy things you would normally use when they go on sale and buy in bulk. The last time tomato sauce went on sale for example, It is normally $1.50 -$1.75 a can. Kroger had it for $.49 a can and I bought 120 cans. We will use it in under a year, probably close to 6 months and it doesn't expire until Dec 2012.

I'd bet most people don't have 6 days of food on hand. We keep a reasonable supply of canned goods on hand, but I doubt I have storage space for 6 months of food.

[Jonnin]

Storage space is the answer. 6 months of food for a family of 4 is a fair amount of space.

[mikegideon]

What is going to happen that would require 6 months worth of food? I've been to several disasters, and haven't seen anything like that yet. It would have to be geographically large enough to wipe out all sources of relief.

[hkgonra]

What is going to happen that would require 6 months worth of food? I've been to several disasters, and haven't seen anything like that yet. It would have to be geographically large enough to wipe out all sources of relief.

Losing a job, economic collapse , hyper-inflation .....

Just skimming the surface.

Guest Post: What Are The Social Implications Of Economic Collapse? | zero hedge

[Guest brandon_pitt]

I don't see why everyone doesn't have at least a 6 month supply of food on hand at all times. In fact if you do it right you will save a ton of money. Buy things you would normally use when they go on sale and buy in bulk. The last time tomato sauce went on sale for example, It is normally $1.50 -$1.75 a can. Kroger had it for $.49 a can and I bought 120 cans. We will use it in under a year, probably close to 6 months and it doesn't expire until Dec 2012.

According to some, we are all suppose to expire Dec. 2012 if you are into that stuff.

[Guest brandon_pitt]

Good article. I have some work to do.

[gregintenn]

What is going to happen that would require 6 months worth of food? I've been to several disasters, and haven't seen anything like that yet. It would have to be geographically large enough to wipe out all sources of relief.

Unemployment?

[Jonnin]

Unemployment?

In that case, just have 6 months of pay saved up, and save the space in your fridge.

Ive always tried to keep 3 months pay saved but ATM I do not, thanks to a variety of problems this past year =(

[gregintenn]

In that case, just have 6 months of pay saved up, and save the space in your fridge.

Why not both? The thing is that I can't predict what's coming down the pike. I'm not all that old, and I vividly remember several occasions; snow, ice storm, tornado, flood, etc., where it was several days before I could get to a grocery store, gas station, or McDonalds. I don't pretend to believe that these were worst case scenerios. On a couple of occasions, if I hadn't had a chainsaw and plenty of gas, these times would have been extended for my neighbors and myself. Preparedness has proven to be a valuable commodity to me so far. If you decide you have way too much food on hand, you can simply eat it. As I said before, living in a rural area has probaby skewed my view, but it works for me.

Edited June 15, 2011 by gregintenn

[RobertNashville]

In that case, just have 6 months of pay saved up, and save the space in your fridge.

Ive always tried to keep 3 months pay saved but ATM I do not, thanks to a variety of problems this past year =(

I'll add my $0.02 here.

The problem with just having an emergency fund/handy cash is that there is an underlying assumption that there will be adequate supplies available to buy with your emergency fund dollars which may not always be the case (of course, you may have to get well away from the "disaster zone" to reach an area that's unaffected).

Assuming there there will always be adequate supplies "somewhere" that you can get to is not all that dissimilar to the assumption that you'll likely never have to go through a disaster in the first place...most people never never experience a disaster where food, electricity, etc. is cut off for an extended period (or worse) but some do. As the old saying goes, if I may be allowed to paraphrase, "better to be prepared and not need it than to need it and not be prepared".

I hope I never need my emergency supplies...just like I hope I never have to fire my weapon at another human being/take a life but I prepare for both possibilities just the same.

As to the refrigerator; the food I'm buying doesn't need refrigeration - doesn't even need hot water to prepare the meal for that matter.