Talking about preparedness is like talking about sex – you either embellish and exaggerate because you want to impress, or youre into some pretty wild and bizarre stuff and you downplay it to try to sound average.
I mention it because every so often I’ll be talking to someone and they’ll mention their friend of a friends cousin who has a neighbor who knew a guy who….has an underground concrete missile silo, a garage full of armored cars, a railroad car full of food, a key to the National Guard armory and his own gas well on the property. Someone, mighta been Jeff Cooper, said that when someone tells you about how big the crocodile that almost killed them was you get the real size by dividing the reported size by two and adding three feet. I suspect preparedness is a bit like that. Divide the divulged quantity of [food/ammo/fuel/acreage/group size] by three and add three to come up with a more realistic number. Crazy Louie’s 24 month food supply? 11 month. Gino’s 100k of ammo? 36k. Donna’s 150 acre homestead? 53 acres.
I mention it because I had such an encounter yesterday with a customer who was telling me about how he’s working with a buddy of his on his buddy’s aunt’s acreage. The aunt, he says, is ‘Mommy Warbucks’ in terms of having a good bit of money. She’s building an ‘off grid’ house. I said great, more power to her. He said it doesn’t stop there. According to him, she has a 1000 gallon underground propane tank, took delivery of a truckload of buckets of food, has ‘plenty of ammo’, a couple 2500 gallon cisterns, etc, etc, and is gearing up for a projected core group of twelve family members. He calls it her ‘Doomstead’. (Get it? It’s a homestead for doomsday – Doomstead.) I didn’t want to get into specifics but I think her particular flavor of apocalypse was Yellowstone caldera.
Overlooking for a moment the extremely catchy term of ‘doomstead’, it sounded like quite the operation…if it were true. I’ve met folks who talked a great lifestyle but didn’t have much more than a couple cases of ammo and some bags of rice, and Ive met some people who youd never guess were ‘into the scene’ but had some hellaciously well squared-away preps. And, yes, a few with genuine honest-to-Crom concrete underground bunkers. (One cleverly disguised with a brick barbecue to conceal the ventilation.) I know, with absolute certainty, that there are folks out there with awesome concrete houses, capacious basements, mini-hydro systems, racks of rifles, and industrial shelves stacked to the ceiling with freeze drieds. I like to think that this woman really does have her ‘Doomstead’ as my customer described…more likely its something far less ambitious though. But, so what? Even the lowliest van-down-by-the-river survivalist is still ahead of the curve if for no other reason than because even if he doesn’t have the goods, he has the attitude.
I’m sure theres folks that would jump on the ‘yuppie survivalist’-bashing bandwagon if this Doomstead story were actually as it was related to me. (‘Yuppie survivalist’ being code for ‘makes more money than I do, dammit’.) Hey man, if I had the money I’d have my very own heavily-armored and tastefully-appointed doomstead out in the sticks. When The Day comes there won’t be any commendations handed out to the guy that made it through with the least amount of gear…I got no problem spending money for what I think is a good and important cause – continued safety and security.
Back to our friend at the Doomstead, I told him that if Mommy Warbucks was in need of some gear or freezedrieds to let me know and Im sure we could work something out. Who knows, it might turn out that there really is some matriarch out there feathering her nest with concrete and concertina while dispensing copious amounts of cash. If it isn’t true, it’d be nice to think it is.
I look at it this way, preparedness is a great hobby that you really hope you never need. Plus there are much worse hobbies to spend ones’ money on.
Steelheart
Some folks have a tendency to exaggerate. Those folks will exaggerate in terms of sex or fishing or preparedness or whatever else.
Yeah, Doomstead is really catchy. To bad the old lady let that loudmouth hear about it.
I haven’t met many (in person) who go into detail about impressive preparations. Online there are some folks who have small camp trailers out in the woods, 100 cases of TP, and an AK-74 who think they’re survival gurus. Meh. Same types always harping on “yuppie” survivalists. Unless the site is far, far from any sort of population, not being in a group would probably be suicide.
My brothers and I have been doing a little to get our parents place in rural Nebraska in better shape. Some pasture, woods, a creek (wouldn’t drink the water, though), etc. We’re thinking about a 20′x20′ storm cellar/supply basement build off one of the sheds since we don’t have the needed cool, dry place for longer term storage of food/ammo/fuel/etc. It’s slow going. We’d probably get by (with a little help from the several other relatives we’d expect to show up), but just, at least w/o more preps. Never ends.
Forgot to add; have heard one person give me the scary details of his survival plan – just take what he needs. He has a few weapons, prior military (deployed, used to weapons). Said he’d just take what he needs should the time ever come.
Two good lessons; (1) don’t tell people about your preps if they know you/can find you, and (2) be prepared for people like him.
“Doomstead”. Nice phrase. Of course, as it spreads through the survivalist/prepper community, you know somebody will start a blog, claiming they created the concept, then they’ll do a rehash of basic knowledge, then publish a book…. Actually, the main problem with building a “Doomstead” is in its size and complexity, neccessitating a large amount of contractors, cement guys, well diggers, etc. This will lead to “leaks” by the “Doomsteaders” temporary employees, and since they know its location when TSHTF, guess who will be the first to head towards it?
But one trend that disturbs me is the (for want of a better word) the “Class Warfare” that seems to be spreading among the S/P people. “My ranch in the Rockies can withstand the Golden Hoardes better than your trailer in the Smokies! Oh Yeah? Well, I’m good to go right now while your still waiting on your $10,000 25KW multifuel generator to be shipped in from Dallas and still needs to be hardwired into your Bunker!” Friends, chill out. This is beginning to sound like those bad “Chop Sockie” flicks from the ’70s where you hear “My Kung Fu can beat your Kung Fu!” I learned a long time ago that, anytime I felt I had all the answers, then it was time for me to start learning again, or else my “Mr.Know-it-all” atttitude would put me on my kiester real quick. Is not the main thing to start prepping now, and keep going until you you reached your own personal limits? Poor people can’t afford a “Doomstead”? Fine. then get a trailer. Got more money than God? Then build a Castle. Your life, your needs, your choice, your budget. Just start prepping.
As for that guy who has that “I’ll just take it all”, well, I’m not worried about him. See, that guy is going to run into some Professional group of thieves and murderors like the Crips, the Bloods, MS-13, etc. right after the balloon goes up, unless he runs into people who are prepped for his kid beforehand. Yes, he’ll hit some people who “don’t believe in guns”, and blood will be spilled. But then he runs into another Combat Vet, or Street Cop, or Pissed Off Grandma whose been shooting her Pappys 12 gauge for 30 years… those fools tend to be dangerous in the begginning, but also tend to be regulated as the “New Normal” comes along. Take care all, prep now.
The “Ill take it “groop won’t last long
The guy who plans to “just take it” could end up hitting the wrong house and that’d be the end of it.
Or he could hook up with a few others like himself and become a pro looter…
Working on my own stockpile while trying to keep it as low-profile as possible, my biggest fear is some low-life showing up to capitalize on my foresight. They better get me quick – they won’t get a second chance. On the lighter side, I know that any doomstead has its vulnerabilities, and I keep trying to think like “criminal” to tighten up the security on mine. A chain is only as strong as its weakest link.
“he has the attitude”
I believe that is the foundation for survival. Probably more so than anything else.
History has shown that in a dog eat dog world, the biggest and meanest dogs survive.
Humanity regresses in those scenarios.
The soft wither.
Oh yeah,
As far as underground facilities.
There is radar that can “see” underground now.
Ubove ground? There are people that are pushing for the use of unmanned drones within in the US right now.
Google ;FAA Unmanned drones.
Those can range in size from small aircraft size, to the size small enough to fly into your window.
They are often remote controlled. Stop the contoller and the drones becomes misguided.
Problem is, the controllers may not be local to you. Could be on the other side of the country. Depends on the type of drone, who is controlling it, it’s purpose, its size and range, if armed, etc. They could be as close as the next door neighbor, or not
. One problem is it would only take one Predator size drone crashing into a school or airliner or similar to bring down a lot of .gov careers. This isn’t the wide open country area like where they are being used currently. They still catch flak when one crashes into a hut over there. Imagine it here. Heads would roll, possibly for real, I think. Might touch off the festivities, even. Who knows.
” as it spreads through the survivalist/prepper community, you know somebody will start a blog, claiming they created the concept, then they’ll do a rehash of basic knowledge, then publish a book…”
That would be me, and I started in the fall of 2008. I’m proud to know that my blog has #1 ranking on the doomstead term. I did it the honest to goodness way, without premeditation or gaming the system. I just used the term in context day in and day out. I didn’t coin the term but I’ve probably helped popularize its common use in doomer circles more than anybody else.