How is the S going to HTF?

[thug the bunny 0]

So, prepping is becoming more and more of a popular topic. However, I find the ways that people think SHTF is going to happen range from from improbable to silly to stupid. Zombies? Really? I know most folks talk about zombies with tongue in cheek, but there are many who really believe it can happen.

 

Personally, I believe the 'zombies' I will need to protect my family from will be poor, starving, desperate people looking to take whatever they can from whomever they can. The only realistic SHTF scenario I can think of is the inevitable collapse of the dollar due to the infinite greed of our government the government's real boss - the banks. We already had a little preview into what is coming with the collapse of 4 of the world's largest banking/investment firms. No fiat currency in history has ever avoided complete devaluation and collapse, and the US dollar will be no exception.

 

However, that being said, I don't believe that hyper-inflation and devaluation will mean utter destruction, chaos, and anarchy forever. The other countries whose currency collapsed are still here, and the US will survive also (although those other currencies did not have most of the world's economy tied to them as does the US dollar). I belive we will have very hard times during which there will be elevated crime and there may even be occurences of martial law and police states. Guns will play a vitale role in self/home defense and obtaining food. Value will shift from the dollar to things like food, water, gas, silver/gold, weapons and ammunition. It is hard to predict how things will work out, however I think the government will re-invent itself in a better version and we will experience a renaissance eventually.

 

 

[alowerlevel 77]

[CMJeepster 2,780]

Godzilla, but Dave Chappelle will save us all.

 

[thug the bunny 0]

Collapse of the electrical grid..........

 

*CAN* and quite possible *WILL* happen...........

 

I have heard that one. How can the ENTIRE electrical grid collapse? And, can't they fix it?

[BlueLineFish 615]

Personally...i think it will be a global economic collapse. But zombies would be awesome

[ReadDude 0]

the dollar collapse and breakdown of normal economic normalcy is I agree the primary scenario.  Ironically, the worst case scenario of that model looks a lot like Zombie but instead of the undead you just have starving mobs with no plan but to eat!

 

anyway, self-defense over the long-term including cooperative arrangements are likely to be valuable as well as tangible assets that can be eaten, traded and consumed until the economy can re-stabilize are the keys.

 

I read a very good article on zero hedge a few years ago by one of the major posters there who lived through the breakdown of Soviet/Russian system in the early '90s. That would be a good model to study if you want to be a practical prepper.

 

A key part of that article pointed out that the state infrastructure doesn't evaporate, it is simply enlisted in a new and often sinister role. If possible have friends who are the police, fire, commissioner, mayor, etc. as it becomes more tribal and territorial as central power disintegrates, these positions have tremendous if only transitional power.

[mipafox 438]

My money is on Ray Ray.

[WVisHome 0]

My vote is for economic collapse too.

Although don't rule out any major earth shattering events like a meteor strike, a super volcano or a massive solar flare. 

 

 

 

Or.....wait for it....

 

 

 

 

Nanobots.

[NicePants 58]

My money is on Ray Ray.

 

[alowerlevel 77]

Personally...i think it will be a global economic collapse. But zombies would be awesome

 

 

[1LtCAP 4,264]

as long as people/businesses are willing to accept that green stuff we call money, in exchange for a product, or service, the economy will continue. as long as people are willing to trade produce/service for product/service, the economy will continue.

 

the electric grid is old and outdated. what they're updating, they're depending(from what i understand) totally on computer control. this can/will turn out bad for us someday. the entire grid doesn't have to go down to cause chaos, but rather a big enough portion of it can cause a good amount of chaos.

 

 zombies? meh.

 

 natural disasters. that's what i think's gonna fark us over, but again, it'll be localized, not nationwide, or worldwide.

[TheLugNutZ 21]

Remember, we are "due" for a large solar storm, which would cause a natural EMP.  Last one was over 100 years ago...  If we had a similar sized one this day and age, it would kill pretty much our entire grid.

[raz-0 1,259]

I have heard that one. How can the ENTIRE electrical grid collapse? And, can't they fix it?

 

This is my best recollection on this topic, my numbers may be off. 

 

Celestial event, EMP, or sabotage. We have about 90 really big transformers in the US power grid that are hard to replace. By hard, it means about 1-2 per year are produced to deal with global demand, and capcity to produce more does not exist. To the best of my knowledge, this is domestic production, and not global, worldwide we can produce IIRC about 9. 

 

When speaking of "it's not if, it is when", you are dealing with the celestial event end of things. Likely affected areas is between 25-50% of the surface area of the planet. Worst case scenario for US exposure to such an event, assuming current political standing and purchasing parity, we are looking at approximately 12 years to restore the grid to the current state. That's some pretty simplistic math, as likely there would be serious incentive to both ramp up production capacity in face of such an event, and to rebuild the grid in a different manner with more local co-gen, higher interconnectivity, etc. But you'd be looking at at least 5 very hard years for the nation. 

 

Also zombies are a metaphor for people who just want to kill you for something you have that show up in relatively large numbers. At the most basic level, this would be nutritive value.  

[thug the bunny 0]

Good stuff, keep it coming!

[jrfly3006 42]

Major earthquake in Northeast.. Something our infrastructure really ISNT prepared for at all

[Bob2222 317]

Argentina's economic collapse in 2001:

 

http://ferfal.blogspot.com/

 

I've felt that the S has been hitting the fan in cities like Camden, Newark and Trenton for years, if not decades.

 

How did you fare with Superstorm Sandy?

 

I just came back from the beach -- so I'm reasonably close in. I had freshly brewed coffee (without electricity) the morning after Sandy, and I didn't even think about opening the safe.

 

As I read, life was definitely not very pleasant in many urban high-rise apartment buildings.

 

 

 

[BlueLineFish 615]

This makes me want to prep even more. After watching the new Red Dawn movie I went home and loaded all my AR mags and stashed them in an ammo can.

[Purple Patrick 638]

Please let it be zombies

 

 

Sent from my hidden under ground bunker between Taco Bell and the dry cleaner

[1563621 388]

Economic collapse. I am keeping plenty of 22, Lots of squirrels in the yard.

[Shocker 151]

[1563621 388]

Keep the 12 ga for the deer and the ZOMBIES!!

[Tack Tickle 0]

I'd have to go with either the electric grid going down, which is very possible with all of the hackers dumping back door coding into our electric infrastructure. "They" (Korea, China, etc) have been systematically testing our hacking defense time and time again.

 

OR some kind of natural disaster like a solar flare taking out our grid...

[PDM 91]

Total breakdown from economic collapse seems highly unlikely.  Even a great depression type scenario, which is not at all unlikely, does not necessarily lead to complete social breakdown.  We came through the great depression intact, Germany survived hyperinflation (until Hitler started a world war), there is social unrest in Greece but it has not descended into anarchy, and most countries in the world are much poorer than the US yet manage to hold together as societies.  Things may get unpleasant -- perhaps quite unpleasant -- but we are one of the richest countries in the world and I don't forsee a Mad Max scenario from the economy alone.

 

I'm most worried about a severe but localized or regional weather event.  For example, imagine if hurricane Sandy had been a category 2 or 3 storm rather than a mild category 1 or tropical storm.  Most of NJ would have been without power or gas for months and there might well have been food shortages.  I have no doubt there would have been widespread looting and unrest at some point (remember how testy people got after 1 week with gas rationing).

 

Second on my list is a collapse of the electrical grid -- either from terrorist attack or solar flare.  That could indeed be a long term SHTF/survivalist scenario.

 

Third is a flu pandemic or bio weapons terror attack.

 

All the other scenarios -- mega volcano, mega east coast tsunami triggered by an landslide in the canary islands, asteroid impact, etc are certainly possible but don't seem as likely.

[e80hydro 120]

Giant asteroid.

[jackandjill 683]

Regardless of what/how S is going to HTF, in an environment like NJ, is highly likely that powers be will come door to door to grab firearms.

It happened before (Katrina) and it will happen again. And we all heard " .. rather be judged by peers than carried by 6".

 

But whats your practical plans to survive the confiscation before actually surviving the SHTF ?

[Shawnmoore81 623]

Major economic collapse. At this rate it will happen. Government then tries to seize control.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

[JackDaWack 2,895]

We have already seen a solar flare massive enough to knock out the power grid on a massive scale, maybe the entire earth.. But we didn't have a power grid back then in the 1800's... It CAN happen HAS happened and it WILL happen again... the question is when? nothing we do will save the grid, all we can do is prepare to fix the components that blow and have them ready to go. current estimates are around 10 years to get the grid back up and running considering we arent anywhere near prepared for something like that.

[raz-0 1,259]

Major earthquake in Northeast.. Something our infrastructure really ISNT prepared for at all

Not is the geologic structure of the area likely to provide anytime soon.

 

Otoh there is the risk of the cliff face in the uk calving and causing a big tsunami.

[jrfly3006 42]

Not is the geologic structure of the area likely to provide anytime soon.

 

Otoh there is the risk of the cliff face in the uk calving and causing a big tsunami.

I've learned to never utter the words "not likely" when referring to mother nature.. She can wipe us off the earth in minutes if she so pleases..

[WVisHome 0]

Not saying it would happen....but after experiencing that earthquake a year or two ago, and seeing how far it travelled.....a magnitude 7 quake on the east coast would level almost every major city.