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Did your grandmother's family have a tractor? If so, where did it, and the fuel, come from? Were they using artificial fertilizers? 80 years ago was 1936 and fo
by dalke 11y ago
Did your grandmother's family have a tractor? If so, where did it, and the fuel, come from? Were they using artificial fertilizers? 80 years ago was 1936 and for her to remember things it was more likely during WWII, so they most certainly weren't using guano.
Did she go to school by school bus? Did the family buy things through the Sears catalog, or did her parents or friends drive into the city for shopping? The clothing they made - did they weave the fabric themselves, or buy it? Who made the canning jars, and the seals? Did they produce their own salt? Did they do everything by firewood, or did they use gas or electricity to cook the vegetables for canning?
But those are side-details, mostly to get you to thinking about the things she might not have told you about.
Consider the Great Mississippi Flood of 1927, which (quoting Wikipedia):
> destroyed many homes and devastated the agricultural economy of the Mississippi Basin. Many people were forced to flee to the cities of the Midwest in search of work, contributing to the "Great Migration" of African Americans in the first half of the 20th century. During the flood and the years after it subsided, it became the subject of numerous Delta blues songs, including "When the Levee Breaks",
I believe a goal of "prepper culture" is to be able to survive something like that significantly better than the pre-WWII American farmer household did, so I don't think these are the same cultures. There's overlap, certainly, but there's also overlap with modern urban life - my urban relatives in Florida have hurricane plans, which includes stocking reserve food, water, gas, etc., having storm shutters, trimming the trees before the season starts, and more.
Thus, if the overlap is enough for you to think that "prepper culture" is the same as pre-WWII American farm values, then I'll argue that it's also the same as modern urban Florida values, and thus rather meaninless - there aren't many TV shows on preparing for hurricane season.
> My point is that the reason why you don't see this in europe isn't because the behaviors are different but merely because the advertising techniques are different in America so the lexicon is different.
Another possibility is that humans, when they are insecure and threatened, often react by withdrawing and becoming defensive. The US does not have a good social safety net, so many people are worried all the time, about their job, health care, family, and retirement and possible lack thereof. Scared humans are more easily led, and many a firebrand have been able to take advantage of that fear for political and economic gain.
While if there is a strong social safety net (as in many places in Europe), and you believe the government will be effective at responding to a natural disasters, then there's less need of a belief to take on the heavier burden of individual planning.
- hackercomplex 11y ago> there aren't many TV shows on preparing for hurricane season. You're making my point for me. Statistically speaking hurricane prepping is much bigger deal in America than survivalism but yet the TV media campaign leaves outsiders with an exaggerated impression of the situation. Some think this occurred just because it makes for good TV, but I think it's also part of a larger campaign to sell more hamburgers and wal-mart stock. > While if there is a strong social safety net (as in many places in Europe), and you believe the government will be effective at responding to a natural disasters, then there's less need of a belief to take on the heavier burden of individual planning. I don't think that the social safety net is as strong in Europe for the exact reason that you think it is. In other words in Europe nobody has a choice but to rely solely on the government to stabilize the situation after a major emergency because they don't have the firearms they would need to restore peace on their own. In America however it's a different story because hundreds of thousands if not millions of veterans currently own rifles strikingly similar to those they carried in the armed forces, lacking only the full-automatic selector switch. Their brothers, sisters, parents, friends, and neighbors who did not serve in the military are often just as familiar with the weapons, if not the tactics. Many of these Soldiers and Marines have special operations training. They are former warriors with experience at conducting irregular warfare and counter-terrorism operations in dangerous urban environments. In the Middle East these troops were frequently tasked with restoring order to urban areas exploding in internecine strife. Today these former military men and women understand better than anyone the life-or-death difference between being armed and organized versus unarmed and disorganized. One could even say it's part of our culture. That's a real social safety net in my view, and since we have this safety net we like to enhance it, by taking simple steps to be more prepared, while in Europe I get the feeling that some people feel like 'why even bother' ?
- Pamar 11y agoI am European. I think that you are right about the fact we expect to rely on government support more (there are civilian groups for emergency, but when they "mobilize" they report and take orders from government representatives, at least in my country). What I find a bit odd is the fact that you seem to imply that "having access to firearms" is really the main priority. Ok, there is a flood and we are forced to take refuge on the roof of our houses. When (if) someone comes to rescue us do we go with them because they have rifles, or because they have a boat, food, first aid, and a plan about how and where to take us until the flood subsides?