When I was in high school one of my friends dads was a little radical, well, he was a lot radical.
The guy busted holes in the walls of his house, then stuck a rifle into the hole. He said if the feds ever come to get him, he wanted a firearm within reach. So there was a gun in the wall of every room.
My buddies dad worked as a small engine repair man. He had a shed behind his house were he would fix lawn mowers and boat motors. I think this had something to do with making below a certain amount so he did not have to pay income taxes. He stayed armed just about all the time, even in his house with a Colt 1911.
One story he told me - years ago he was away from home working on a construction job. Instead of renting an apartment or hotel room, he slept under his car.
This was about 22 years ago, I wish I could remember all the stuff he told me. The guy lived in a constant state of paranoia and readiness.
I ate my first peanut butter and honey sandwich at his house - and I still eat them today.
About 3 years ago I saw the dad at a local grocery store. Man he looked rough. He looked like he was homeless, his hair was in a tangled mess, his clothes were dirty looking and he had a strange look in his eyes. He is not homeless as I know where he lives and I see his car parked there. I did not speak to him, maybe I should have, maybe I am glad I didnt.
IMHO one of the differences between this man and some (probably most) of the preppers here is that he let his desire to be prepared get in the way of his everyday life. His ability to function 'normally' (hate using that word but i cant think of a better one) was impaired by his beliefs and practices of being prepared. Im not saying it cant change your life because I think ever since I started thinking about survival and prepping my life hasnt been the same but then again I think this is for the better.
it seems that there may be similarity between being paranoid and prepared because one of the reason I prepare is because I believe there is a lot of uncertainty in our world and country and I want to be able to survive if something takes a bad turn, not to mention other smaller scale problems like having your car break down or getting stuck in a snow storm etc. in other words you have to be aware of possible 'bumps in the road' and act accordingly. to me being paranoid about these kinds of situations would overtake your ability to act rationally for example not being able to hold down a job and last I checked you needed at least SOME cash to stay decently prepped...
What does everyone think?
Kid_M
Isn't it a trip Kevin what time does to some folks? I've seen similar situations too, where because of life circumstance/ or life choices some people just get all tore up and just steadily go down hill and other folks it doesn't affect at all. I'm always checking myself should I get off this damn computer and go for a walk (exercise) should I have seconds at supper, should I have a beer tonight? As I get older I view time in a very different light.
Maby the government did get to him and tried to brainwash him. Maybe they did brainwash him and forgot to add the cleaniness thing back in his mind... Think of the possibilities.
i think that we all know someone who goes to the extreme. its could be because of an addictive personality or an undiagnosed mental disorder. as for having weapons when the govt come, i dated a girl in highschool and got to know her dad and her family. he built a extra shed outside of the house with a temperature control just for his gun safe and ammunition. and when i say safe and ammo i mean at least 200 guns and tens of thousands of rounds. some people put far too much emphasis of the bullet part of bullets, beans and bread.
Some of my family thinks I'm a little wacko I think. My mom came over for Thanksgiving a few years ago and saw my food stores. I had enough to live off of for better than a few years at the time. She asked me if I was expecting the end of the world or something.
All in all I'm probably more paranoid than most but I don't think it is unwarranted. I have seen first hand the abuses of power by law enforcement. I don't have guns in the walls or anything but I live in a state of a little less than fear of them.
Ive seen them enter homes without a warrant and make up a story to cover their asses when it was over and nothing was found.
Ive seen them arrest someone on charges that they knew were false, then destroy the records of the arrest and take the poor stooge out and let him out on the highway and swear they never arrested him when it was over.
Ive seen them confiscate firearms and sell them on the black market. Actually I know of two former sheriffs where I live who ended up getting in trouble with the ATF for doing that. Both avoided jail time though.
Kev let me say this some of the GI's who came home from the WARS saw things after they came home that scared them. This may be the case, My uncle was a WW2 Marine Major. When he died in 1980 he had no children, so I had to cleanout the house. His garage was 8 ft longer outside than inside, what we found was he was preparing for SHTF. You couldn't even tell about him, clean cut. Your friends dad is the EXTREME case. Just pray for him.
i think that alot of people could give better advice than i can, but I have seen a few of my like minded friends who really lose touch at times, if it werent for our closest friends we trust, some of them may never return.
the thing i am trying to say, is that sometimes we get all wraped up in all the intel we are trying to assimulate, trying to keep an edge and one step ahead of the four horsemen.
The key is sometimes to stop, rest and focus on things like freinds and family, to leave the "frontlines" for some RandR.. rest and reality.
sometimes, someone has to grab us by the neck and tell us to step away from the fire.
maybe he didnt have the luxury of finding like minded friends who he trusted and he could listen too when the stress overcame him...
maybe he suffered from all the years of being a lone wolf, it's hard to keep watch all the time.
I admit to the paranoia. And I tell people that say that that I hope they're right. But deep down I know inevitably SOMETHING will happen, and probably some good will come from it. eventually.
ya like some of you are saying this is how the public views us survivalist my dad always trying to get me to stop trying to learn all this stuff about survival he thinks exactly what that guy was all he thinks is that we just stock weapons and wait for a big government revolt, sometimes his attidtude toward it really makes me mad
Even when i'm getting supplies and what not, i just write myself off as a camper, its simply alot less bullcrap to deal with then constantly explaining oneself to one sheep after another why its not necessarily a bad idea to prepare for such things.
Ditto. I'm taking a tell no one anything strategy. Not only from a "who's house are they coming to" but also from the stigma. I only buy bulk at the local Sam's Club because no one even looks at you funny for having 50 lb bags of stuff because they assume you own a Resturaunt or some other business that bakes a lot of stuff.
I am not a survivalist because they are wackos. Instead I just like to hunt, collect guns, fish, garden, can food, etc. and I tell no one about our extra pantry.
My Mom thinks Dad and I are a bit off bubble with the whole prepping thing. But My Dad grew up with Grandparents that lost everything during the great depression and on a tight budget during and after WWII in a single parent home.
My Dad knows what it's like to have to patch your own shoes or see your Mom go with little or no dinner cause money is not there.
Sometimes it's just a matter of perspective. Sometimes someone will ask me why I have all this stuff, I just ask them have you ever lost your job? What did you wish you would have had to make things easier for yourself. On the top of my list is being out of debit,having 3 months or more of food,having meds and first aid gear on hand, having gear to go fishing/hunting.
I have met a number of Anti-government, white supremist and separatist, religious supremist even neo Nazi all coming with the attachment "survivalist". Some of these people where very knowledgeable but very few where well rounded in their view of survival. Nearly always, their "extreme" philosophies seemed to get in the way practical survival considerations.
Some of these where addictive or obsessive personalities, who can not seem to help going to extremes. I worked with a guy who obsessed with "Mongol Invaders" coming. He prepared his home with foxholes, trenches and loopholes like he had used in Korea. One day he just snapped and began marching around his house with a loaded M1. His best friend, whom I also knew, tried to talk him out of the gun and he killed him. The police swat came and then killed him? He also clamed to be a "survivalist" but clearly was not.
A Survivalist is one who gets his family through what ever catastrophe over takes us; alive, physically and spiritually, and working toward recovery.
I agree with this completely. It is just too bad that the term "survivalist" brings such different things to others mind. When in reality a survivalist is in most cases the complete opposite of what springs to mind for your average sheep when the word comes up.
Balance is the key. Fear can consume people.control also consumes people too.
a site like this can bring forth checks and balances that are need to keep us in the right frame of mind
I hate when the media calls extremists survivalists. I think the concept of a real survivalist is beyond their comprehension, or too much outside the American Idol mentality, to give a real report on.
The common misconception is that people think that if you are prepared for anything, than you are welcoming it. The man doesn't want you self reliant hence why people are brain washed to think someone with a concealed carry permit is looking for a shoot out,or that someone prepared to survive is wanting a mad max like scenario. However the people trained in these areas are in better control of a situation.
I guess this is way off the feeling throughout this thread but for me.. There's no society I'd rather be part of than one a self-sufficient mountain retreat packed to the brim with gun totting "radical survivalists". I'd let my hair go wirey, wouldn't bother me.
I don't consider the total rejection of state authority, regulation, taxes, licensing and the overt declaration it would be defended to be a "mental illness" either. Sure there's many psychiatric terms but these were otherwise known as being selfishness, rude, impolite or a short-term thinker before a science of behaviour was practically invented and used to mould the masses. I'm not a Tom Cruiser, but without a doubt constructions on mental health are used to demonise certain individualistic behaviours and devalue certain worldviews. Nobody wants to be tarred and feathered as a nut, so that works fairly well for collective society hey. As a historian I take with a spoonful of sugar any notion of normality, as I know it was conjured up during other times and often for the benefit of the few. We learn most normalities as custom, from infancy upwards, not by judging them as self-evident truthes around us.
If you want to seek other dangerous definable psychiatric problems then look at MNC executives or national leaders. It's impossible to get that far, in this world, without being a complete "sociopath". Difference is that their kind of money grabbing sociopathic behaviour is collectively condoned, whereas getting off the grid and staying there is not. One type is an "adapted sociopath" and the other is not.
Survival mentality is a powerful phrase. The tale of the ant and the cricket come to mind. I would much rather be the ant! I run situation/reactions through my mind constantly. I hope this will better prepare me for anything that does go wrong. I think my wife is finally getting the idea that we can pickle and can food for an uncertain future. I plan on teaching my daughter as much as I can. My legacy to her will be a self-sufficient mindset with great confidence in her abilities. I don't look over my shoulder alot but I do check the rear view mirror often metaphorically...
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