Why people do NOT prep

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Alphonse

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Hey guys. Sorry if something similar has been posted. I did a search and nothing showed up. I'm also on my phone so who knows. Anyways! I want to pick the forums brain here. Why is it that people don't prep? I mean there is the obvious answer of they don't believe in any apocalyptic stuff or they just aren't threated by all the sh!t happening right now. What do you guys think? Is there more to it? It can't just be a black and white situation of believing and not believing.

The reason I say there is more to it is simply because this isn't beleieving in aliens or Bigfoot (which you can do and I support it). For a lot of preppers our concerns aren't just conspiracy theories but things people truly believe in. There is believing in something then there is making a lifestyle out of that belief. I think prepping goes far beyond just believing and not believing. What do you guys think?
 
Why is it that people don't prep?

I think you hit the most common reasons, but those and some others.
1. People don't believe anything drastic will ever happen in their lifetime. (so a waste of time, money, and effort). I think this is the largest reason.
2. People are more concerned with daily survival and life in the present. (probably the second largest reason).
3. People have faith that the authorities will be able to assist in any localized disaster.
4. They don't want others thinking they are "weird"
5. Some people are all or nothing. If they can't build a bunker, they figure why bother with little measures.
6. Some folks just don't want to struggle without their comforts. They'd rather go perish with the masses.
 
most people believe "it will never happen", and if it does "the govt will save us", they are too preoccupied with their own little lives to give it any more than a passing thought, if at all, they are more concerned with what they are doing tomorrow or next week to worry about what might happen in the near future, any kind of preparing is seen as "geeky" or weird. if you asked them, most would say" I don't want to survive if I cant have, my mobile phone, internet, facebook, coffee to go, foreign holidays, current lifestyle/salary...etc etc"
 
take my mom for example..she was born in the 1930's.so she was brought up in a world where ppl believes the government will help out and take care of us when things go wrong.then there's what gazrok and bigpaul pointed out.their more concerned about everyday life then anything else.cell phones computers internet reputation what clothes their gonna wear just so they can fit in..right type of weird hair cut to fit in..their jobs.their next pay check. where their gonna eat out at for lunch and/or suppr just so they dont have to cook it..whats on tv.what movies or music they have on cd..
 
most people believe "it will never happen", and if it does "the govt will save us", they are too preoccupied with their own little lives to give it any more than a passing thought, if at all, they are more concerned with what they are doing tomorrow or next week to worry about what might happen in the near future, any kind of preparing is seen as "geeky" or weird. if you asked them, most would say" I don't want to survive if I cant have, my mobile phone, internet, facebook, coffee to go, foreign holidays, current lifestyle/salary...etc etc"
Think you hit it on the nail bigpaul!! People are just to concerned about the 'now' and not long term. They do not want to have to give up whatever to spend on things that they would need to 'prep' and expect the government to step in and save them all and at our countries expense. People need to wake up on this one and look at how the governments response to past tragedies have played out. And there is no way that they can provide for everyone in a SHTF situation. There is only so many supplies and so much food in reserve for these types of situations.
 
in Britain there are no "emergency" food stocks, that was all done away with long ago, now there is only what is in the supermarkets and the distribution centres, not sure how much that is but shared amongst 64 million people its not going to go far that's for sure.
 
I think you hit the most common reasons, but those and some others.
1. People don't believe anything drastic will ever happen in their lifetime. (so a waste of time, money, and effort). I think this is the largest reason.
2. People are more concerned with daily survival and life in the present. (probably the second largest reason).
3. People have faith that the authorities will be able to assist in any localized disaster.
4. They don't want others thinking they are "weird"
5. Some people are all or nothing. If they can't build a bunker, they figure why bother with little measures.
6. Some folks just don't want to struggle without their comforts. They'd rather go perish with the masses.

These are some very good points and I definitely agree with all of them.
 
most people believe "it will never happen", and if it does "the govt will save us", they are too preoccupied with their own little lives to give it any more than a passing thought, if at all, they are more concerned with what they are doing tomorrow or next week to worry about what might happen in the near future, any kind of preparing is seen as "geeky" or weird. if you asked them, most would say" I don't want to survive if I cant have, my mobile phone, internet, facebook, coffee to go, foreign holidays, current lifestyle/salary...etc etc"

That is so funny that we can't live without those things even though they are very new concepts when you consider human history. I must admit I am very into my iPhone, video games, tv, internet and all of that. I am not going to pretend I am not however, I think there can definitely be a good balance. It sucks that some people can't find a balance.
 
take my mom for example..she was born in the 1930's.so she was brought up in a world where ppl believes the government will help out and take care of us when things go wrong.then there's what gazrok and bigpaul pointed out.their more concerned about everyday life then anything else.cell phones computers internet reputation what clothes their gonna wear just so they can fit in..right type of weird hair cut to fit in..their jobs.their next pay check. where their gonna eat out at for lunch and/or suppr just so they dont have to cook it..whats on tv.what movies or music they have on cd..
Yeah I definitely agree. I made a comment to bigpaul about how I think it is very possible to have a good balance. You can definitely be into that stuff and still prepare for the future. As there are definitely a lot of people that do.
 
Think you hit it on the nail bigpaul!! People are just to concerned about the 'now' and not long term. They do not want to have to give up whatever to spend on things that they would need to 'prep' and expect the government to step in and save them all and at our countries expense. People need to wake up on this one and look at how the governments response to past tragedies have played out. And there is no way that they can provide for everyone in a SHTF situation. There is only so many supplies and so much food in reserve for these types of situations.
There is only enough food and supplies for them and the ones they care about to survive for a long period of time. Like you said before look at how they have handled past tragedies.
 
Hey guys. Sorry if something similar has been posted. I did a search and nothing showed up. I'm also on my phone so who knows. Anyways! I want to pick the forums brain here. Why is it that people don't prep? I mean there is the obvious answer of they don't believe in any apocalyptic stuff or they just aren't threated by all the sh!t happening right now. What do you guys think? Is there more to it? It can't just be a black and white situation of believing and not believing.

The reason I say there is more to it is simply because this isn't beleieving in aliens or Bigfoot (which you can do and I support it). For a lot of preppers our concerns aren't just conspiracy theories but things people truly believe in. There is believing in something then there is making a lifestyle out of that belief. I think prepping goes far beyond just believing and not believing. What do you guys think?


In a home with contrasting beliefs regarding survival, some believe (like my love) that too be a true Christian, she must share her meager resources with those who are in need. While she often has learned many skills from me, she believes that she will never use them against another human being (an issue that while I do understand, can't accept). Hence, why she is often placed in positions and in planning in a secondary role. Even during serious crisis's, my spouse has always found the positives in humanity, where I am reluctantly less to believe in her views. Like many of those who have posted above, I feel that in the end, each will have to make a choice. Mine is pretty simple and with my wife, I think with a little discussion, she will come around to my thinking. This is especially true when it comes to the survival of her own children at stake. I think most of the women members will agree that when it comes to the safety of their own children, regardless of children's age, mothers can and will become people with superhuman energy and convictions.

I'd agree with Gazrok on the theory that people simply are caught up in the real life day to day experiences that prevent them from seeing the decline in society and are apt to make excuses/or beliefs that fit the situation. Lastly, with the economy today, some people are simply forced to live from pay check to pay check and cannot or do not have the discretionary resources to aptly prepare for a long-term event. Granted their are a few members in DPF, whom I believe can survive because each day they apply trades of sustainment living because they forced into it by todays economic downturn or have chosen to do so as part of their lifestyle. In some ways, these people will have an edge on some of us (including me, because they are exposed to the challenges of making do with what they have on hand and not influenced by modern logistics to prepare them for an event.
 
in Britain there are no "emergency" food stocks, that was all done away with long ago, now there is only what is in the supermarkets and the distribution centres, not sure how much that is but shared amongst 64 million people its not going to go far that's for sure.
I've heard three days is the average before all supplies are gone without restocking in grocery stores. It amazes me how many people have only that in their homes as well. I am far from rich, so I couldn't just go out and stock up a pantry in one shopping spree. I bought a little extra every time I've gone shopping and over a couple years have built up a pretty good "I just got fired", or any other emergency, supply of the things I commonly use/need. It still amazes me how few people even consider anything beyond today.
 
In a home with contrasting beliefs regarding survival, some believe (like my love) that too be a true Christian, she must share her meager resources with those who are in need. While she often has learned many skills from me, she believes that she will never use them against another human being (an issue that while I do understand, can't accept). Hence, why she is often placed in positions and in planning in a secondary role. Even during serious crisis's, my spouse has always found the positives in humanity, where I am reluctantly less to believe in her views. Like many of those who have posted above, I feel that in the end, each will have to make a choice. Mine is pretty simple and with my wife, I think with a little discussion, she will come around to my thinking. This is especially true when it comes to the survival of her own children at stake. I think most of the women members will agree that when it comes to the safety of their own children, regardless of children's age, mothers can and will become people with superhuman energy and convictions.

I'd agree with Gazrok on the theory that people simply are caught up in the real life day to day experiences that prevent them from seeing the decline in society and are apt to make excuses/or beliefs that fit the situation. Lastly, with the economy today, some people are simply forced to live from pay check to pay check and cannot or do not have the discretionary resources to aptly prepare for a long-term event. Granted their are a few members in DPF, whom I believe can survive because each day they apply trades of sustainment living because they forced into it by todays economic downturn or have chosen to do so as part of their lifestyle. In some ways, these people will have an edge on some of us (including me, because they are exposed to the challenges of making do with what they have on hand and not influenced by modern logistics to prepare them for an event.

I think her points of view will be really enjoyed in a post SHTF world. In a time when it is pretty cut throat and we do have to really fight to survive I think having her optimism will be very refreshing. However, I can see your point of view and I would say I have more of your type of attitude that hers.
 
people that don't prep aren't my problem, they will be dead within a month or so without back up supplies WTSHTF.
Well for sure, you aren't responsible for anyone whom you do not want to look after. But discussing the way people think and trying to understand different mindsets is a good skill that will still be very useful even when SHTF
 
Lets just say we are in normal times now, we certainly are not in a post-shtf. It wouldn't take much to create a food crises in the developed countries (we already have food riots in some parts of the world) keep in mind we are already in a worldwide food crises as a whole. The developed nations are already strained in meeting food demands for their perspective countries already, we (the US) has a week supply of secured food for US citizens then mandatory rationing will be ordered less then 3 weeks, we in this country are already struggling to meet our food needs as a nation, has anyone notice how often brands and availability changes in the grocery stores? Albertsons, Safeway and Winco here has that problem, we learned not to get comfortable with a certain product because next week or next month it won't be there. Take a look at the numbers below and amplify by 10 in the first week alone in a nationwide crises.

Food insecurity worldwide has been growing!

Food security in the United States is slightly less then stable at the moment, As of 2012 in the US

49.0 million people lived in food-insecure households.
12.4 million adults lived in households with very low food security.
8.3 million children lived in food-insecure households in which children, along with adults, were food insecure.
977,000 children lived in households in which one or more child experienced very low food security.

14.5 percent (17.6 million) of US households were food insecure

People see all the food in the grocery stores believing such catastrophe the likes of the ethiopia famines could ever happen here at the same time refusing to acknowledge the man made 1930s catastrophic dust bowl amongst the 1934, 1936, and 1939 drought on top of another man made disaster the great depression, how short peoples memories are! no, the reason people don't prep is simply 'complacency' and perceived 'availability'. Prior to WWII survival was near the top of the list, today however, it isn't even on a list!
 
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Lets just say we are in normal times now, we certainly are not in a post-shtf, it wouldn't take much to create a food crises in the developed countries (we already have food riots in some parts of the world) keep in mind we are already in a worldwide food crises as a whole, the developed nations are already strained in meeting food demands for their perspective countries already, we (the US) has a week supply of secured food for US citizens then mandatory rationing will be ordered less then 3 weeks, we in this country are already struggling to meet our food needs, has anyone notice how often brands and availability changes in the grocery stores? Albertsons, Safeway and Winco here has that problem, we learned not to get comfortable with a certain product because next week or next month it won't be there. Take a look at the numbers below and amplify by 10 in the first week alone in a nationwide crises.

Food insecurity worldwide has been growing!

Food security in the United States is slightly less then stable at the moment, As of 2012 in the US

49.0 million people lived in food-insecure households.
12.4 million adults lived in households with very low food security.
8.3 million children lived in food-insecure households in which children, along with adults, were food insecure.
977,000 children lived in households in which one or more child experienced very low food security.

14.5 percent (17.6 million) of US households were food insecure

People see all the food in the grocery stores believing such catastrophe the likes of the ethiopia famines could ever happen here at the same time refusing to acknowledge the man made 1930s catastrophic dust bowl amongst the 1934, 1936, and 1939 drought on top of another man made disaster the great depression, how short peoples memories are! no, the reason people don't prep is simply 'complacency' and 'availability'. Prior to WWII survival was near the top of the list, today however, it isn't even on a list!

Wow this is a really good point. I like the evidence that you chose to use. It really makes the statement "the reason people don't prep is simply 'complacency' and 'availability'" make a lot of sense. I think you are definitely right though. It isn't only people not being worries but a lot people also don't have the resources.
 
in the UK if imports of all that lovely cheap food were to stop tomorrow,if we had to be self supporting, given the land acreage available we would only be able to grow enough food for 16 million people, that's 25% of the current population the rest would starve. the general public do not know this, I wonder if they did would they prep? or is it still "it'll never happen"? my money's on the latter.
 
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Many people in the world especially places like the UK believe the state will always protect and feed them, these are usually of the same persuasion as some socialiasts who are encouraged not to think for themselves and to rely on the government to care for all their needs. Oddly enough the best examples of said apathy I have ever come across came from the United States of all places. It was after H Andrew and H Katrina and a Documentary film maker ( Discovery?? ) visits the disaster areas to speak with survivors.

Many American survivors response appear to come across as " With the help of our neighbours / family / friends / god we will rebuild our homes and communities" These folks were normally filmed getting stuck into the process of cleaning up the damage themselves.

But in contrast another section of society another large section of society were recorded saying " The Governor / state / FEDs / FEMA / Military etc are not doing enough to help us, WE SHOULD BE GIVEN more money / food / clothes / shelter etc. These folks tended to be sat on their collective arses waiting for hand outs.

Sadly for me as a Brit we have perhaps a third of our people with the Can Do self help attitude and two thirds of the welfare dependent WE SHOULD BE GIVEN mentality.
 

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