Social Security and Medicare: They may collapse. I've heard 2012, but I don't believe it would be that soon. Could be, though. If you, or any of your family are connected with them if both collapse, you'll be afftected. The less you are dependant on any government program, the better.
The Economy: America is in severe debt, up to our ears. As the deficit continues to grow, some economists are predicting that foreigners may lose faith in the American dollar, pull their money out, and we'll be in an instant Depression. If you’re near a large population center, you could be in for trouble from desperate people pouring into the countryside.
Terrorism: Terrorism could visit America again, possibly in the form of a biological attack which could require us to hunker down in our homes for months. A 'dirty bomb' could require us to evacuate for an extended period. A chemical attack would be less server, unless it landed in our own town.
Rising Crime: Crimes obviously occure most often in bigger cities, but it's also rising in the country side. The farther out you live, the safer in this case. But there are lost of self-defense measures you can take, for example being properly trained in the use of a gun.
Inflation: It would probably be the government's weapon choice to battle the coming insolvency of Medicare and Social Security, mentioned above. If inflation reaches 21%, as it did in the Carter years, you're going to look pretty smart with a garage full of survivalist items, such as generators, 1 year supply of food and other supplies. Inflation is already affecting selected items, such as plywood, which jumped to $7 a sheet a few months back. It's hard to build a home, addition, or anything else without plywood.
Illness: What if a deadly epedimic, like the 1918 flu, came back, and there is no vaccine to help your family? You may have to stay home in order to elude the deadly illness. Do you have enough food and supplies to do that? On a personal basic, if your breadwinner falls ill, who or what keeps the family going? If the main wood chopper falls ill, who cuts the wood for your wood stove? It's already tough enough as it is with a sick family, but it's much tougher having it complicated by having too little food and other neccessities in the house.
Personal Econmic Meltdown: You could personally fall on temporary hard times with the loss of your income. Are you prepared to weather such an event until the income starts flowing again? If you're making good money now, pay off your debt, put your money away, either in a bank or in a drawer. These days, your drawer pays you almost as much interest as your bank. :wink2: Maybe even pay up your mortage a few months in advance if you have one. That 'll also cut down on your interest payments. Stock up on food. Not only is it like having money in the bank, but it's a good hedge against rising food prices.
Severe Winter: No one knows where the prices of oil & gas are going (except up), so it's a good idea to keep extra fuel on hand around your house. Keeping a big tank of gas is a good idea, though even with a gas stabilizer added, the gas tends to get stale. But, we do keep vehicles full of gas and we have several 5-gallon cans of Stabil-treated gas.. plus oil and lubiracnts to take care of the chain saw and other 2-stroke implements. Also, we probably have about 3 years supply of wood for wood stoves and fires for heat. If there is an electric blackout we have backup propane lights in several rooms. I'd think one of the best ways to deal with a fuel shortage in a cold winter is to simply stay home with your ample supplies and enjoy the wood stove. Of course, I wouldn't know for sure, I live in West Texas.
Preparedness is cost effective, convenient, healthy, and fun. There’s nothing like coming home from Lowe's, Home Depot & Sam's with a truck load of food and supplies you’ve bought at the much cheaper bulk rate prices. Seldom do we run out of anything no matter what we decide is for dinner. Everything is dated and rotated in with the new supplies, so it is very unusual for to have to throw anything away. Also, we carry lots of frozen kale (I love kale soup...) and stored pumpkins (...and pumpkin pie) put away from this year’s garden. Personally, I want a ranch, then the possibilites are endless. Having a huge garden and a bunch of chickens, so I can eat lots of pesticide-free food and phytochemical-rich eggs. Mm.
I haven’t even come close to covering all the reasons to practice preparedness, or all the ways you can do it and have fun doing it. Plug in your own reason. Preparedness is really a way of life, just like losing weight or staying in shape. You have to want to do it. If you just store a bunch of stuff, it’s going to eventually go bad and you’ll end up throwing it out. This thread was just intented for you to take a closer look at becoming prepared for the worst. I know it's all over the place, but bare with me, I tried. Look around at the uncertainties in the world, and see if practicing preparedness in some form might be a good idea for your family.
eace2:
