Preppers will die?

I’ve seen this expression in one form or another all over the Internet in the past year or two.  Without pointing the finger at any one entity I encourage you to type the phrase “preppers will die” into your favorite search engine to see just how many articles/videos appear.  I’m guessing this particular phrase is used for shock value, more of an attention grabber than anything.  From what I’ve seen and read the individuals who publish material based on that headline usually lay out common mistakes made by Preppers and how, in a post SHTF world, those will get you killed.  Certainly we all make mistakes, but there are a few reasons the use of that particular phrase to frame a mindset bothers me.

Preppers will die, thank you Captain Obvious.  I mean seriously, there are preppers who are dying right now and SHTF hasn’t even happened.  During combat members of elite units die while completing missions, elite firefighters die while battling fires, why should everyday people who train and stock up for TEOTWAWKI scenarios be exempt from the Reaper?  There are simply too many scenarios and too many dangers in a post SHTF world to prepare for, it is utterly impossible to be ready for everything.  Someone on a ranch in the redoubt with 100 years of food, water and an arsenal of Apache helicopters to protect all of it could fall victim to an infection for which no medicine is available.

You’re gonna die man, and here’s why!  I’m not sure if that is supposed to motivate me?  Dying is unavoidable, when caused by an unfortunate (or preventable) mistake that makes things even more tragic.  Yet how about a more positive message which is solution based, which also incorporates acceptable amounts of risk.  I’ve read about how preppers will die because they let the wrong person into their prepper community, or because they have no idea what real combat is like.  Maybe this is true, but what about teaching preppers how to properly screen candidates or how to avoid most scenarios which would involve a fair fight?  I guess I can appreciate the idea of “giving it to you raw” whereas an author tries to shock someone into change, and while I’m no psychologist I sometimes question the effectiveness of that method.

Does anyone really know what’s going to happen?  There are a few out there in the community who have lived through moderately sustained SHTF in some form or another, and their words should be heeded.  Yet I would argue that nobody alive today has ever lived through a true TEOTWAWKI event in a sustained context, and as such all any of us can do is speculate on what will truly take place.  Let’s say a solar Flare or EMP strike wipes out the grid and power shuts down across the country for 6 months to a year.  If that happens I’m quite sure  that no matter what our starting point is, all of us will be in the learning process for some time, that is if we survive for that long.

Preppers will Survive!  Let’s flip the script for a minute and turn that headline around, we are survivors correct?  There is a reason that we have chosen to walk this path and to prepare for uncertain times.  We understand that there are risks and that there is no way to prepare for everything, and that we will continue to make mistakes (I make plenty of them).  However instead of focusing on the negative we need to focus on what could get us to the next day or even next hour alive.  We should be constantly trying to improve our position, chipping away at our goals and becoming better each day.  Think of it this way, do you think members of the military stand around prior to a mission talking about: “Well intel says to expect at least 30% casualties, so I wonder who in this room is going to die?  Let’s take a votes…”  Or maybe they plan the mission and execute with that knowledge in mind, with the goal of having zero casualties.  If it happens it happens, but the mindset is what’s important.  Stay focused and stay positive!

Link to Story:  http://www.prepper-resources.com/preppers-will-die/