History of "SURVIVALISM".

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Sourdough

"Eleutheromaniac"
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In a cabin, on a mountain, in "Wilderness" Alaska.
I think the "difference" between pre-1980 and post-1980 is the actual "doingness". Pre-80's the focus was on actually doing things.

Another difference is pre-80 they/"we" fully expected "something". I don't feel that currently in the prepping community.
 
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Sourdough said:
I think the "difference" between pre-1980 and post-1980 is the actual "doingness". Pre-80's the focus was on actually doing things.

Another difference is pre-80 they/"we" fully expected "something". I don't feel that currently in the prepping community.
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I've been waiting for the other shoe to drop since Y2K. I know it will happen but I can't predict when. I think it will be like a car accident, all of a sudden we'll be in the middle of it.
 
Interesting reads Sourdough. Tappan and the other writers of the 70s certainly influenced me, but mostly it was my parents. Although they probably never thought of themselves as preppers, they both lived through the Great Depression in very rural Appalachia and this perhaps what motivated them to be self sufficient with strong motivation to keep the pantries stocked deep.
 
Short read, whole books have have said less.
But farming & homesteading are all about storing for six months to a year. This is because of to much or not enough rain, early frost.
 
joel said:
Short read, whole books have have said less.
But farming & homesteading are all about storing for six months to a year. This is because of to much or not enough rain, early frost.
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At another site, long ago and far far away, someone posted that we should have at least a year and a half of food. Their premise was that when the SHTF it could be up to a year before your next harvest depending on when things went down. If the SHTF in the summer you can't plant till next spring and harvest over a year later. If you have a bad crop the first year you might need a couple of years stored away.
 
Caribou said:
At another site, long ago and far far away, someone posted that we should have at least a year and a half of food. Their premise was that when the SHTF it could be up to a year before your next harvest depending on when things went down. If the SHTF in the summer you can't plant till next spring and harvest over a year later. If you have a bad crop the first year you might need a couple of years stored away.
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I strongly agree.

Even fruit and nut trees may not be enough if the timing is perfectly wrong.

Spuds in the ground are the only thing that comes to mind that can be harvested in an emergency with no warning. But then again keeping potatoes in the ground is yet another form of food storage.

Ben
 
Caribou said:
At another site, long ago and far far away, someone posted that we should have at least a year and a half of food. Their premise was that when the SHTF it could be up to a year before your next harvest depending on when things went down. If the SHTF in the summer you can't plant till next spring and harvest over a year later. If you have a bad crop the first year you might need a couple of years stored away.
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Neb said:
I strongly agree.

Even fruit and nut trees may not be enough if the timing is perfectly wrong.

Spuds in the ground are the only thing that comes to mind that can be harvested in an emergency with no warning. But then again keeping potatoes in the ground is yet another form of food storage.

Ben
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This is why perennial crops like asparagus, greens(if your climate lets you garden year around) are great to fill in for poor annual crops.
Potatoes, carrots, turnips/beets, sunchokes are all root crops that will store under ground with a deep mulch & a blanket of snow.
But you have to plan & plant double, so that they will last from September till May.
 
I agree, but IMHO we are the proverbial frog in the frying pan. We are seeing the world turn upside down for years, and we are all scratching our heads and wondering how we got here. I feel like we are the sane few trying to keep the old values.

Great links, Sourdough. Thanks for sharing.
 
I've actually always really enjoyed the history of different trends. Including our own. I'd love to read a comprehensive breakdown of what happened to 'us' over the last five years. Its been a rollercoster, which has led to our current survivalism 'dark ages'

I was born about 15 miles from Mel Tappans homestead...in the 70s....so I never had a chance. ;)
 
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I wish those early in the prepping learning curve, would study the books from the 50's through early 80's.

I fear a shockingly high percentage have their prepping program built on a flawed foundation.
 
The easiest way to flaming piss-off 97.5% of those on prepping forums, is to simply point out that when the SHTF they currently have intentional but themselves and their most dearly loved ones in extreme danger, simply because of their physical location.
 
I remember a particular guy who was prepping in a basement apartment in suburban NewYork city, which is all well and good but he was asking questions like how much firewood would he need for a year, etc.

I could not get through to him that if the power was out in NYC for a year, freezing to death would not be a problem.
 
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