Like minded people

Like minded people are VERY hard to find and in a lot of ways, harder to get to trust. Like minded people have skill sets "ordinary" people dont. For example, I could take a majority of people from this site into a house and walk them through the common areas and back outside. I guarantee you many will have done the following. Taken a mental note of entry and exits, layout, resources they could use, and have a basic idea of the people who live in that house. That is with a 2 minute walk through of common areas in a home (there are more things but you get the idea). Bringing like minded people into your home shows a huge level of trust between preppers. Even discussing prepping with someone in your local area is a potential OPSEC issue. What if after a while the person turns out to be a jerk and you dont want to associate with them anymore? Now you have someone out there with knowledge of you, your preps, and how you think. Big thing is to be very careful when searching out for like minded people locally, it is always great to have people around to discuss things with and trade ideas with but be cautious and dont volunteer information.

 

Bullets are cheap.

 

I am with Andy on this, but a little more positive. Grow a garden and learn everything you can about preservation. Learn as many skills as you can manage. I have an A-list, a B-list, and a C-list of items posted on my refrigerator. Every time I go to the market, I buy either one A-item, two B-items, or 3 C-items. These are not big purchases, just makes sure that I make optimum use of the gasoline that I waste going to the store by adding to my long term preps. I gave up wasting my breath looking for validation from my family and peers way back when. My greatest validation came in the wake of Hurricane Andrew.

 

In some ways, a lot of us don't talk to anyone about our prep's, except maybe on these sites. I really don't want friends and neighbors knowing what we have stored or put away. Then , should something happen, they won't necessarily head here for food and whatever they need. Of course if they do show up, maybe a can of pork and beans and a kick in the butt. Am I cold blooded ? You better believe it. Talking to people about beginning to prep , is like trying to convert puglosie into being a Ron Paul supporter. Ain't gonna happen, so why bother ?

 

Everyone is right. It is impossible to convince most people to prep. Most of my own family are ill prepared for daily life most less any other situation. Was highlighted recently when I mentioned using home canned tomato sauce to one of my sisters. Her response: "If I want tomatoes, I'll just go buy them". I try to plan some extra for family. My neighbors know nothing of what I do. Since I work 3rd shift most are gone when I'm out and about. I have pegged a couple that I might could trade for work or extra security. Most are too unobservant to notice anything out of the ordinary. Fortunately for bulk purchases I have found a company in a neighboring city that will deliver to a public pickup point nearby. As for the few neighbors that concern me, I try to look like a difficult target without looking like I have something to protect. Buy the way, while you may not trust them with all your details, those public pickup points are a good way to meet some like minded people away from your home. A little bit of opsec mixed with a little bit of networking.

 

I've put away some extra for neighbors I figure haven't, so when it comes time for handouts ( and it will ), I can. Sure hope they like pinto beans 'n rice....ahahahahaa.....cause I built a wood box my tractor will barely lift, and put 40-5gal buckets of beans and white rice away for them....to be doled out one scoop at a time.

That stuff is dirt cheap right now, and could be priceless down the road.