I'm not unsympathetic but the time to build an ark is before the rain starts. With so many living paycheck to paycheck it can be challenging to build up stores of things you need but in many cases it's not the money as you've noted. Psychologically it's a stretch for a lot of folks to prepare for things that are, in their minds, 'black swans'. But having some preparation isn't just for the zombie apocalypse, it's handy for common emergencies (winter storms, layoffs, etc).

Who knows- maybe in a few months whoever survives and looks back at this thread will say I was pollyannaish but I don't think it's going to go to guns. Folks won't need an AR to repel boarders coming to take their TP. That said, I have my firearms and a good supply of the ammo calibers I use the most (9mm, 5.56, 12ga). Be prepared is the saying!

It's funny. I don't consider myself much of a "prepper". My focus when joining Equipped.com was on outdoor activity preparation, getting found, and short-term survival. Still, we've always been quite self reliant, and this recent COVID19 event really hasn't had much impact on us, especially now that we're retired and living in a rural area. Certainly a contamination of our well would mess things up badly for us and our horses.

With that said, I will say I'm a bit worried about the availability of hospital services for us now that I hear we are also in peak flu season. Our goal is to be two of those people who never get it, and we'll work hard toward that goal by following CDC guidelines.

This reality check will make the most prepared not feel that way.

I was thinking about the gun situation.
and yes there are runs on gun purchases and runs on ammo, you can't find a single common round (9mm, 223, 45ACP) and Cheaper than Dirt has been accused of price gouging.

and while my first thoughts was that there was no need for such things that this would be mostly stay in place and just weather it out. But a little research shows that Grocery stores in the UK have asked for security, and some unrest has bean spoken of in Germany. but that is all just hearsay.

To be honest it s my hope and desire that this will all just be a stay in place and the biggest issue is that people will have cabin fever a lot.

Having retired mid-last year I've had time to indulge in new hobbies such as ham radio and it was because of many of the ideas from here and those ideas are keeping me busy. It's funny in that I sort of evolved into a "prepper" at some point. I originally found this site because I was always doing training (Criminal Justice/LEO environments) and way back in the past, a couple of decades ago I had to put together a "survival workshop". This site helps me stay current and up to date.

So back three decades ago or so, I found a Doug Ritter type consultant who helped build the course curriculum and deliver it to my audience. This was for South Dakota conditions and we were working on coping with winter and getting stranded - think Game Wardens, Troopers, Deputy Sheriffs and small town cop types and a huge number of the DOT plow operators. We spent the late summer and fall flying around the whole state doing these workshops and I learned a lot about what to do and not to do - both in life situations and in classroom presentations.

Fast foreword to today and I found this wonderful source of information, conversation and just good folks. While I don't have an Ark and will need to 'shelter' in-place for the most part - the original ideas from long ago are still being reinforced and expanded on by being a part of all this. Thanks to one and all!!

Paul -

Oh yeah - the fun/funny stuff and spirited discussions are great!

I'm an optimist on some levels which is funny because I'm a cynic on a day to day basis. What is the old saying? Be polite but have a plan to kill everyone you meet? The media loves stories about people going all Mad Max but my experiences have shown folks pull together in a crisis. Of course, I've not see one quite like this.

I'm a self-described gun nut, and at age 50 I've seen this movie a few times. The ammo panics of the past have been self inflicted and this probably no different. But just since I've seen it before and because I like to shoot, I have ammo on hand, plenty in the calibers I use the most. While I don't anticipate any "Book of Eli" or "The Road" situations to pop up I am pretty well armed and stocked up.

One of my best friends is a hardcore prepper. I am not. As was noted above, I was drawn to ETS for the wilderness survival information. My being relatively prepared just stems from growing up in the country where this stuff was just common sense.

First of all, hello again. It's been a while.
Glad to hear of your lessons learned.

I'd like to knock down a few of your concerns, in a positive fashion.

If we look to Italy as the "this is as bad as it's going to get" it's pretty ugly...BUT.

For most people, life is just...boring. The food supplies are fine. The medical equipment supply lines, not so much. But there are so many people wanting to help in some way. Are you sewing medical masks? Are you 3D printing ventilator valves? Are you STAYING OUT OF THE WAY?? That's what you need to do.

As far as energy, water and telecom, no, that's not a real risk. Same with logistics. The cows will get fed the milk will get supplied, etc. etc. America is a net food exporter.
Also, FWIW, you can wipe your ass with a washcloth and clean the cloth in soap and water. That's how cloth diapers work and you don't actually need TP if you have some washcloths.

Do you know what you need to worry about? A natural disaster overlay on this whole thing. A hurricane. An earthquake. Something like that. But the Pandemic itself - it's already ending in Asia, and it will end in Europe and it will end here.

I suggest you turn off the TV, get a good book and a nice glass of wine or something and take a break.

Now that's the way to think! Great!

Good points! Nice to you around these parts again, MartinFocazio!

As we have plenty of TP and ammo, just because, my biggest concerns revolve around other things. The calls for "friends" who have suddenly decided they need to arm themselves are annoying, but...

I put "friends" in quotes because all my good friends already own firearms and most have trained to one degree or another.

Best story was a friend who is a serious collector, and occasional dealer, of NFA firearms. As in, he buys ammo by the pallet, if you get my drift? One of his neighbors who has previously shown his significant disdain for my friend's interests knocked on his door and asked whether he could buy a firearm from him. My friend told him he only had one to sell, an M1919A2 and it would be $25K CASH up front and he'd have to wait about 7-9 months to take delivery, assuming he passed the background check including fingerprints. He said the expression on the guy's face was priceless.

In any case, the point is, prepare ahead of time. A crisis is not the time to prep, it's the time to be glad you did. How many will heed this lesson they learned? Not that many if history is any guide, although I expect many will make sure they have a month's supply of TP on hand going forward. ;=)