Why we prep
Well Happy New Year to you all! Hope you had a warm, safe and enjoyable time last night. Here at the McLene compound, we celebrated in the usual way by going to bed. Aside from the sounds of the traditional hinterland "emptying the gun" ceremonies (and the rather exuberant distant neighbor who apparently emptied his canon) at midnight, we slept the passage from night to day in pretty much the normal way.
So begins 2018. The world continues to turn and the headline news everywhere (excepting sites like WND) seems to be trapped in the previous decade, with chilly and fake dire-consequence threats from rising global temperatures and California finally legalizing its state flower. And in other foreign news, Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont swears in Bill de Blasio for his second term as mayor of New York. (I'm thinking we should probably open diplomatic relations.)
Everyone is doing their 2017 year-in-review, but surprisingly very few are spending a whole lot of time on the most important event of the previous year: The impossible/don't make me laugh/he's-a-joke stellar success story of President Donald J. Trump. Despite opposition from, well, everyone, Trump did more to roll back governmental power in his first year than any other president in living history, including President Reagan.
WND has a very inclusive list of the president's accomplishments; but to me, one of the most important and longest-lasting results of Trump's tenure is the ongoing destruction of the liberal narrative, and the rightist mental and spiritual rebirth occurring in Real America. From returning Christmas to the "reason for the season" to the daily progressive meltdowns, President Trump has reminded us all that being patriotic is proper; and that, as Barry Goldwater put it, "Extremism in defense of liberty is no vice. Moderation in pursuit of justice is no virtue." In the next seven years, God willing, we'll see the federal government shrink further and consequently more power returned "to the states respectively, or to the people."
So obviously, with the second American revolution just beginning, this whole "prepping" thing is no longer needed, right?
Nope. Sorry to tell you this, but the self-reliance movement is more important than ever for at least a few good reasons. For one thing, the whole point of "Trumpism" is to depend less on coercive government and more on yourself. For another, a cornered dog only fights harder. And finally, it took us 200 years to get to our current sorry state. And in general, people have never been hesitant to vote others into slavery, as long as they get to stay further up the chain.
So I wish you and yours a freedom-loving, take-names, kick-butt year of continuing emancipation.
But keep putting up the beans, bandages and bullets.
And that's one of the reasons we prep.
Last week, I pretty much dumped on most of the "Top Ten" prepper sites as defined by Alexa.com. I felt kind of bad about that, so I went on the Internet and looked at a whole bunch more prepper websites. It didn't make me feel any better. Nine out of 10 self-sufficiency websites are nothing but ad farms.
I suppose that's not surprising. In my life, I've been involved in two innovative concepts developed by first-class minds who invested their own time, heart and soul in their endeavors. In both instances, their success bred lots of imitation, and frequently those copycats made considerably more money than the originators ever dreamed of. But because the imitators' focus was usually on profit over content, quality took a dive; and both original ventures suffered by association.
Today, being an "expert" on something is closely related to marketing skills rather than actual knowledge and experience. With lead articles on supposed prepper sites like "Five unique uses for broccoli" and "Is the home Zamboni right for you?", a whole lot of "experts" are getting monthly checks from ad services without advancing anyone's self-reliance a wit.
Remember, I have no problem with selling ad space or product endorsement. Viva capitalism! But when I see a person trusted to be knowledgeable in any field touting a piece of junk as something that might save a life, it really frosts me. See, I've already used the product, then used the product for target practice and then found a far better replacement. But a lot of folks new to self-dependence shouldn't have to be placed in that position by phony pros in the first place. It damages all of us.
So how do you tell the gold from the gilding?
Well, let me help you out, pilgrim. (But first, this disclaimer: I don't get paid for writing this weekly column. WND has never asked me to tout any product, service or website. Any product, service or website I do decide to endorse is based entirely on my own use and/or lengthy expert observation of said-same, and I receive no income from such endorsements.)
The best sites out there for the prepper are specialist sites. (The single exception to that statement I know of is SurvivalBlog). Specialist preppers are often fanatics about their specialties, and strive mightily to provide their readers with detailed (sometimes mind-numbingly detailed) information on their avocation.
A perfect example of this is Survival Medicine. Dr. Bones and Nurse Amy host a fantastic site with specific medical instruction and advice. Advertising and paid links? Ya sure. But take a look at the left side of the page. Do what I did, and randomly click on one of the categories. No broccoli or Zambonis anywhere. Instead, you see articles like "Seizure Disorders" or "How To Apply A SOFT-T Tourniquet." Talk about prepper news you can use!
Want another example? How about Food Storage Made Easy. This site is the bomb for basics on food preparation and storage. Sure, they sell some cookbooks and planning guides. I don't own any of these products, but considering the quality of the information on their webpage, they're probably pretty good. As an example, check out their "Emergency Preparedness Basics" in the emergency preparedness section. Immaculate.
Now for firearms, you can get a lot of mileage out of The Firearm Blog. While it isn't a prepper blog per se, it's filled with detailed reviews of guns and accessories, many of which will be of great interest to those with a self-dependent mindset. Yeah, a lot of the articles are influenced by the firearms industry; but if you see something you like, read the voluminous comment section at the bottom of each article. Trust me: if the story is leading you on, the gun experts in commentary will set you right.
The point here is that one-stop prepper blogs that actually will provide you with value are few and far between. But that shouldn't be surprising. If you go into Wally World and stock your prepper shelf with the recommended "Best Buys," you'll likely never come across the truly best anything. You can buy your garden seeds at Home Depot, but they won't have much of a supply of non-hybrid seed, or those they do have may not be right for your gardening zone, and the "expert" who stocks them also stocks the paint department.
Be a generalist prepper; but use the best specialty sites for information, education and product selection. And skip the ad-farms … unless of course you really feel the need to own a Zamboni.
Happy New Year. Now get prepared.
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