How do you wake up a prepper?

[thatGuy]

Hey Guys,

I've been asked the same question a couple of times now so I wanted to ask what you guys thought.

How do you wake up a prepper? I know of several guys who claim to be preppers but don't have food put away and are surprisingly hesitant to put any away. I think food is one of the most important thing to put up and have sacrificed other areas to do so. I know guys who refuse to get in shape even though it is the single most important thing you can do. I know guys who think 1000 rounds of ammo will get them though, what I want to know is how to get though to them.

[special-k]

So if you're asking how to wake up a "weapons only" prepper,  I would answer don't spend too much time trying.  You should be a able to find out soon in your conversations with them if they have "wolf" intentions or if they just have not thought things completely through.  You simply ask them "what are you going to do for food?"   At this point they will realize their mistake and begin to prep food OR they will in some way expose their "wolf" intentions.  If they do the later,  don't freak out on them, just gather all the intel you can about their supplies and abilities, and also be very deceptive about your supplies and abilities.  There's really nothing you can do to change their personality, or shall I say "character flaw."   

[Reaver]

Just because someone stores more ammo than food doesn't make them a wolf. It really pisses me off seeing that all over the place.

All that means is they are simply ignorant on the entire picture of prepping.

and as for topic, I don't even try.

[goodnightChesty1775]

i wish i knew. fuck get in there face and tell them how stupid they are? well i need more water, food and ammo so i have no room to talk *screaming at myself!!!*

[Kentactic]

1000 rounds of ammo actually may get you by...depending on who you are. imagine being in just one short fire fight where you use up 20 rounds of 5.56, kill 2 guys, your wifes screaming in the background, one of your team members is shot in the leg and now you have to tend to your wounded buddy and then drag the bodies away from your living area... now times that by 50 and you just used up 1000 rounds... still think the worlds worth staying alive for? some guys might only need 1000 rounds before they decide enoughs enough and the bad guys can have it. all depends on the person.

[JohnyMac]

This is how I do it. I'm been "kinda" successful.

I figure out how much of their head is in the sand. Depending on that I take different approaches like:

> One of the spouses is against prepping but the other wants to start. I talk about what my wife
   and I have accomplished when both are around. In most cases it has been the wife that didn't
   want to prep. That is where my wife comes in. She speaks matter of factly and then lets it go.
   More times then not the wife contacts mine and asks more questions. Many times they just run
   into each other at Rite Aid/ Grocery store and the conversation continues.

   Weapons are a REAL touchy issue. I women down the street and I got into a prepping
   conversation while I was stacking fire wood. I got her e-mail account and sent her my wife and
   my basic food prep list. She was stoked and went to the Bishop House with us once and is
   totally on board. Great...but...once I brought up defense she was adamant that the police and or
   army would protect them and the neighborhood. I jokingly debated with her and since then she
   hasn't spoken to us. With that said, I did get an e-mail from her husband asking: "If
   you were to buy one gun what would you get?" I replied, shootgun with interchangeable barrels
   like  a Mossberg. We will see.

> I have given several lectures sponsored by the local RI Tea Party on prepping. They have been
   very well attended 25 -30 folks. In almost every case the folks who attend are spouses. In
   almost every case one of the spouses were dragged to the lecture. In almost every case the
   spouses who were not into it at the beginning of the lecture left with free literature I supplied
   and many have contacted me for more info via e-mail.

   I think that what wins them over is the interaction of 25+ supporting folks. "Yup, we are not
   crazy." 

> I am wotking with a former boss of mine to put a company together. He is a staunch liberal and
   Barry supporter. He knows I am a prepper and gun owner. He use to joke with me and I kept
   smiling and defending my family's decision in prepping.

   One day I picked him up and we went to lunch together. In the back of my cab there was about
   $200- worth of food purchased from BJ's and he asked about it and I told him AGAIN what my
   family thinks is going to happen. Well at the end of the lunch he looked me square in the eyes
   and asked me what I thought was going to happen. You guys know my feeling's on this subject
   but rather then scare him off completely I gave him a best to worst scenario and told him I was
   in the middle.

   Then we spoke about what food to buy and how much. I basically got a commitment to buy 6
   months worth of food. Everytime I see him he says something like, "I got one month put
   away."... "I got two months put away." Just for kicks and giggles on my way to deer camp I
   stopped by his makeshift office and showed him my tricked out AR-15. He was excited to see it
   and asked good questions. I will continue to work on him.

TG, I guess you just can't give up on folks. I also have learned that sometimes you have to change tactics. Not everyone responds the same way. For everybody you can talk into putting preps away you are helping your fellow man.

[rah45]

Great thread, TG, and great info, JohnyMac.