What is coming?

[gadget99]

Hi all,

So being a bit of a paranoid person myself. I would like to get a sampling of the opinions of this community.

Understanding that we here are all prepping for something.

I have two simple yet complex questions.

What are you prepping for and how long do you believe you have before it happens?

To put my two cents in I will list my stuff.

1. EMP event via solar storm - Can be any day now
2. Pandemic of any sort - within the next 2 - 4 years
3. Nuclear War - Getting more and more likely again.
4. Economic Collapse - By rights could happen in the near future, yet hard to predict.

As a prepper I am not freaking out about these. The reason is due to my being a prepper.

Thanks

Rob

[special-k]

Zombies!!!   

But seriously,
#1 *certain*  Economic collapse
#2 *likely*  Pandemic
#3 *possible*  CME event (Solar EMP)

[APX808]

I prepare for economic collapse, I have seen many of those in my lifetime already and we are about to suffer another one.

[Burt Gummer]

1. Global currency collapse.
The fiat money scam's ultimate outcome.

Leading to:

2. Civil unrest
No agreed on price structure will cause extreem shortage of basic goods and people will be (rightfully so) upset. protest, riots, looting.

Which will be responded with:

3. Martial law
But will only be able to be enforced in the main urban areas. because without currency the police will be pressed into service.

Then will require a:

4. Government Coup / Transformation / De-evolution
A "solution" of a replacement currency will be offered that sounds real nice but will still involve the the user not holding any capital. (fiat)

Finally leading to:

5. Armed resistance / revolution.
Fool me twice, shame on me.

[Alex1992]

Me I'm prepping for economic collapse, earthquake, tornado anything that could make my life not fun and maybe zombies 

[brat]

Economic collapse (like Burt explained which was excellent  ), pandemic and electrical grid failure. I figure if I can get ready for these, I'll be ready for the mother nature thing, other than a direct hit by a tornado. Then I'll have to punt most likely.   

[JoJo]

1- What scares me most of all is an EMP, whether solar or man made. I think if a man made EMP was used it would be at Niagra Falls, Hoover Dam or the Tennesee valley Dam where it would cause the most electrical disruption. 

2- Martial law in the next two years. Guess what I mean by that?     

3- Financial colapse. 20T dollar debt. 

[JohnyMac]

Mmmmm.

I think a "perfect storm" of sorts. What do they call that - A Black Swan event?

Maybe:

Stock market 20-40% correction + More severe winter then last years with the power grid partly going down. I read somewhere that in January of 2014, we were one power plant away from rolling national "brown outs" + A run on the banks = The Perfect Storm.

Insert event + event + another event = SHTF

I think that the USofA can survive one or two bad events but not three all relatively at once. I would think that the UK, EU, Africa and Argentina are in the same boat.

On another note (Thx for starting this thread gadget99 ): There is something in the air though. I have had more and more friends and acquaintances bring up concerns about food, safety and money. Many of those people use to ridicule me.   

"Prepare for the worst and pray for the best."

[KillJoy]

I prepare in general for the unexpected. Whether that be my vehicle breaking down and having to hoof it 31 miles home, a localized storm that knocks power out for a week, etc....etc....

I've started to ask my older friends and colleagues in casual conversation if things have ever been this bad before. 20-40 years ago. The culmination of world events that are happening all at once these days. Every single one of them took a second to think, and all shook their heads and said no. It's hard to say what is coming.

EMP is my biggest worry, whether it be caused be CME or man. It has the most potential to be the killing blow to this nation. All other scenarios can be played out to some sort of quasi-positive outcome in the long-run. But EMP...there is no positive ending. I'm with JM in agreement that it would most likely be a series of events. a one-two punch Haymaker.  My biggest fear would be an EMP event occuring on a workday in the dead of winter. Families separated at their jobs, kids at daycare, miles away from home. Freezing temperatures, hiking miles in the snow back home hoping your wife and children will rendezvous with you there. Let's face it. Whoever has planned it out has already figured out that maximum effect would be on a workday in the winter season. I don't see this happening on a summer weekend night.

Financial collapse, worrisome, but the "experts" have been soap-boxing that it would happen for the past 6 years. Sure, it might have a higher probability of happening; but it has taken on a Y2K element in my opinion. If it were to happen, I see more localized strife and conflict. But at the end of the day, people have made it out the other end of financial collapses time and again...perhaps changed, but still alive. And at least there is still communication happening, unlike EMP.

Pandemic, bad news. But commit to social isolation and distancing and one could ride it out until it burns itself out as all pandemics have. And again, at least comms are up.

Nuclear war. Honestly not very worried. All super powers are very much aware of the mutual destruction concept of nuclear war. Nobody wants it. Most likely scenario seems to be some disgruntled rouge state launching a few at us. Why hit CONUS with warheads guaranteeing your destruction and overall loss, when you could just detonate 1-4 in the upper atmosphere at instantly win the "war" in one move. 

[Kbop]

I'm prepping for any black swan event - from the apocalypse to zombies.
when do I think it will happen - no clue - I hope never.

[thatGuy]

I'm with Burt.

[USMC0331]

Id say Burt hit the nail.

[Burt Gummer]

Aw shuks guys.
Keep in mind that my line of events is only one possible route that events might take us.
If I might use an analogy, look at your personal prepping  watershed moment as the first crack in a pane of glass. There is no telling where the splinters will travel too, or branch out from each other.
During during a currency collapse personal hygiene will suffer severely on the affected population and which might create a pandemic on a scale previously not thought of. Which could also affect step 4 splintering current political bodies, which like the dissolvement of the USSR could allow a lot of nuclear assets to fall in more unstable hands.

[JohnyMac]

Seems to be a Mystery Respiratory Virus hitting US teen age group of folks.
 

[thedigininja]

To me being a prepper is about covering all my bases. From everyday problems like sudden unemployment and car trouble to the possibility of global social collapse (which I don't think is too far fetched due to the ever declining economic situation).

However economic collapse and social unrest (my country has a well known history with that) are definitely at the top of my likely scenarios list. My lack of faith in our nearby nuclear power station is also up there.

As for when. To me prepping is like health insurance, you hope you'll never need it and can't be sure you ever will but you make sure you have it anyway.

[TrailingSpouse]

I'm prepping for any situation where I need to be self-reliant.  Basically I don't like relying on others - so I think that refers to life in general. Prepping is a way of life - a philosophy :p I've always been a prepper.

There's too many possibilities to list. At one level its a car breakdown in the middle of nowhere, a medical emergency or a home invasion. At the other end its TEOTWAWKI. The UK for one is living beyond its means - we depend on too much - oil, electricity, imported food, etc etc etc.  The system is too brittle.  And I don't think that those in charge are ready, or willing.  Mainly people have their heads in the sand - party because the truth is kinda hard to contemplate. Economic collapse, peak oil, climate change, pandemic, nuclear war or accident, environmental disaster (etc etc etc) its all possible. My only hope is that the collapse is a slow one. But I think collapse is inevitable - and to be completely honest, in some ways desirable.

A couple of things early in my life got me thinking:
1. As a teenager watching the BBC TV film 'Threads' (1984)- a post nuclear scenario - I swore then that if something like that happened, I would be ready.
2. I took a first aid course as part of a mountain leadership certificate.  Every other bit of advice was "call for an ambulance".  Screw that!

No.2 has been a big deal for me. I don't like being told what to do. My young daughter used to choke on her food a lot.  "Try a few slaps on the back, then the abdominal thrust, then if that don't work - call an ambulance." What if there's no reception or a traffic jam?  I'm supposed to  watch her die? Fuck that!  Instead…. as a prepper... I took a bunch of first responder, pre-hospital, ALS type courses - did the research, purchased the kit:  a whole bag just for airway management!  Its overkill in some ways, and I still I worry when she chokes - but at least I could give it a shot now And I could cover a bunch of other  ALS situations too.

Too much to say really.  I don't buy insurance (although my wife does hehe): instead I take responsibility, I train, I equip, I prepare.

[gadget99]

I am in agreement on prepping as a lifestyle, understanding that most likely we can never fully predict what can or will happen.

I guess my best prediction is that a series of events will conspire to cause a bit of a perfect storm. Causing a cascade into a SHTF situation.

Has happened before and will again.

The crux of the the question is when?

We shall see.

[JohnyMac]

Bad winter coming our way in North America 2014-15.

[Reaver]

Hopefully all of it

[JohnyMac]

Naaaah, not Florida 

I use to sit in the cockpit of my sail boat with a nice woody Chardonnay, while living in Ft. Pierce; while my family was being dumped on and freezing their butts off. 

[graynomad]

I've given up trying to guess what will happen, so I'm just trying to get to the point where I don't depend on anyone for anything. Looking back I've always done that to varying degrees anyway, for example the last 14 years living on the road has forced a high degree of independence but now I'm "homesteading" I can ramp that up even more.

OK I will have a guess, my (fiat) money is on financial collapse, if it holds off for 1-2 years I doubt I'll care much, but I need a little time. Even now a collapse would have little direct effect on me, but the side affects (if it degenerates to no ROL etc) would eventually.

OH, and winter around here just means I have to wear a t-shirt and lose some of my tan

[DMCakhunter]

Great discussion. Good to see what concerns everyone.

My concerns are:
Severe weather - tornado, high wind, floods and the lack of services afterwards (water, utilities, food & fuel).
Environment events - earthquake, wind driven fire. Volcano-not so much.
Health events - while there is concern about new strains of bugs, I am most concerned about lack of good health care due to obama care. Many good doctors closing up shop. Not sure there will be enough good ones left.
We are already in a financial decline due to the devaluation of the dollar. Just a matter of time before it comes to a head. I am planning on a global depression starting around 2030 that will last around 10 years.
Government regulation of my hobbies and items that I own.
Home grown malcontents that that adopt the jihadi mentality.

[Nemo]

Naaaah, not Florida 

I use to sit in the cockpit of my sail boat with a nice woody Chardonnay, while living in Ft. Pierce; while my family was being dumped on and freezing their butts off. 

I agree with you JM.  Used to live in Dade City Fl.  45mins N of Tampa.  Had family down for Christmas one year.  They came from Pittsburgh area.  The house got so warm I had to turn on the AC for them.

Nemo

[JohnyMac]

First...Congrats Nemo on your 100th post 

Second...DM, I do not have a crystal ball however I do not think the SHTF will hit 15 years from now - I think it will be sooner than later. Good list of possible scenarios though. I truly think that natural disaster (s) will be part of the equation. That is why I have prepped for a natural disaster first.

Last...I wrote earlier that I have witnessed an uptick of concern from new people coming to the prepper way of thinking. I also feel in my bones that something, figuratively speaking - Is in the air. Have you experienced this too? Are you smelling/feeling it?

The uptick/feeling might be to what is happening around the globe, I don't know. Just writing out loud here

[Well-Prepared Witch]

I prep for, in order of (IMHO) most likely to happen:

* short term power outages due to storms/equipment malfunctions/etc.
* self-sufficiency as a moral goal (as in my personal value system I think it's something morally to be wished to lower your carbon footprint, your drain on the grid, etc.)
* job loss of myself or Mr. WPW for an extended period for whatever reason
* economic and environmental refugees/societal change and chaos due to Climate Change affecting arable land, livable land (especially coastal regions that will be under water), and growing zones messing with food availability
* peak oil
* another Great Depression/hyperinflation
* pandemic with 30%+ death rate in the US
* civil war due to the Religious Reich continuing its fight to remove the rights of women, minorities, and non-Christians (yes, I know this will be inflammatory with this crowd, but it's something that scares me as much as tea partiers are afraid of the gubbmint coming to take their guns - and as likely to happen )

I think there is/will be a lot of overlap (for instance, the effects of Climate Change will cause a lot of chaos, which could lead to a depression, or large population migrations due to water shortages making places like California and Nevada unlivable deserts allowing pathogens to travel easily along with refugees and facilitate a bug that could mutate and start decimating our population, etc.).