Why is Prepping more acceptable in the US, than in the UK?

[wolfstarling]

I have been interested in Prepping for a few years. I remember trying to get my DH on board and we fell about it.

I predicted troubles with Covid and had supplies in place well before it became a worry over here and then my DH began to take me a bit more seriously!

Why is it seen (like a thread on here atm) almost like you have a mental health illness to ever consider it and in the US a perfectly reasonable thing to do?

Since the Pandemic people are now not slating the Preppers on this site so much but initially even getting a Prepper's place on Mumsnet came with a lot of ridicule and abuse.

Because Americans are barmy

There's a big difference to having a well stocked cupboard with a few extras incase of a snow storm in winter compared to "prepping" for an actual nuclear winter.

Saying all of that though, I am tempted to be a mini prepper

Maybe because the geography of the US is more likely to result in the need for prepping? Eg living in remote areas and being cut off in harsh winters; hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes.

If you lived in, eg, a remote glen in the highlands or one of the islands of Shetland, it wouldn't be surprising if you prepped for bad weather etc. Bit odd if you lived in Edinburgh though.

Well it is actually possible (and in some places necessary) to live off-grid in the US in a way it isn't in the UK. Even in that recent high profile murder, a suspect has literally disappeared into a national park and despite a policy manhunt its widely agreed he could be gone for a year. You can get permission to build cabins in the woods and in remote areas that wouldn't be possible, and if you choose to live there, you would basically need to be self-sufficient. So, having weapons for hunting wouldn't be bizarre.

I think there's a difference between that and the kind of extreme prepping that can happen in the UK with people buying crossbows etc etc while living in a suburban semi because they imagine there will be a political uprising. I lurk on these threads and like the idea of being prepared for weather crises, being more self sufficient, thinking about what we'd do in different types of emergency.. But I don't think there's any world in which I will be able to 'defend my stash' in the event of massive civil unrest/zombie apocalypse. Whereas maybe if I lived on a ranch in Colorado and had the capacity to forage/hunt/grow my own food and realised with a few adjustments I could go entirely off grid I'd be approaching things v differently

I think it has more to do with the level of prepping, here I view people who prep (and I have done it in a minor way myself) as those making sure they have sensible food and household supplies in excess for a rainy day/month/pandemic. My probably biased view of the US prepping community is that it's rather more apocalyptic and involves guns and being prepared to face off against the army. So if that's all you've come across in the media (and it's likely that it is, certainly has been for me) then it all seems a bit extreme, so you're not as aware of the simpler keep extra stocks in approach, especially given most people over here, who might be considering prepping, don't have as much antipathy for the government.

You can't prep the same way in the UK as the US. There's no point comparing.

If the world went to shit I'd have a small amount of time to move outside of a nuclear power plant blast radius. It's probably not doable where I am. So I prep for uncertainty with food and shit.

I'm not particularly arsed if people find that threatening to their peace of mind or makes them anxious. Which is mostly where the scathing threads stem from.

I believe LDS/ Mormons are strongly encouraged to prep, by their church, so certainly for places like Utah there’ll be a lot of Preppers!
I read on another forum that they have dedicated days where they go to use communal “canning” facilities. So basically preserving what food they are able to in air-right jars. The church ladies give them advice, lists of what to stash away etc

As well as all of the above, there's also the religious aspect. For example Mormons, of which there are loads in the US including lots of prominent politicians etc - encourage self reliance. And there are many Mormons who see preparedness/ prepping as an article of faith, and who have min 1 yrs food on hand.

A lot of America is 'small town' probably wrong phrase, they're not close to supplies like we are here, they have tornadoes and hurricanes.

The thing is you can start of with a few extra cans and then you read a standard Prepping Guide and realise you need 1400 lites of water stored and a means to utilise grey water! That's before we get started on to self defence, bugging in and bugging out.

I feel The Good Life approach in the UK is the only acceptable way to get anywhere close.

Americans also think it's fine for everyone to own a gun.

Totally different mindset.

I think there's more of an 'each man for himself' attitude in the US, (this also goes with gun ownership) whereas in the UK we have more of a community spirit.

Maybe it's to do with the way America was colonised?

Certainly I've never prepped in Britain, nor ever needed to, and I saw so many people helping out their neighbours during lockdown, it was heartwarming.

I don't think it's impossible in the UK just expensive. I wouldn't be surprised with all the basement digging and excavation in big white Central London houses with millionaires and billionaire wonders to have lead lined basements with a stash of all sorts incase of WW3/ nuclear/ biowarfare attack

The average home in America has the space for this ie basements, we simply don't have that luxury in the UK

Wonders was meant to be owners

Culture. We have the welfare state, the NHS etc. USA is more work for your own survival and you have to look after yourself and your family otherwise no one will. Given the pioneers literally had to store everything for winter and only drove to the store a couple of times a year, then they had to be self reliant. That mentality has continued. (See also pp re Mormons.)

Huge country with many more challenging landscapes and weather patterns than here in which preparing would be seen as prudent rather than a bit odd?

I think it's difficult to be sure if prepping etc is seen as more normal/acceptable in the USA, because we don't get to see much of what the average person thinks- we're more likely to see the extremes, because that's more interesting!

My husband used to laugh at me and my store cupboard. About 8 years ago, I had a strong urge to build up a store of basic foods, to make sure there was no repeat of a time when I'd had to really struggle to feed my family. He isn't laughing now! I don't buy and then not sure the stuff, I just buy in bulk so that I have stores for a long time. In the last few years, we've had the pandemic, frequent (and current) ferry cancellations with no notice, extreme weather, general food shortages (locally, mostly due to ferry problems). I've coped and just had to bake more than usual, but others have been really struggling (I share what I have with my neighbours, I don't just gorge and chuckle!).

It's part of a wider lifestyle change, though. I'm not expecting a zombie apocalypse, I just want to be able to sustain my fairly modest lifestyle and not rely on supply chains not collapsing. I grow my own vegetables and have been very glad of it this year. We opened up the old well, because the water supply became unreliable and will shortly be repairing our boat. We had a supply of eggs last winter because our hens never stopped laying, which helped too.

What we are doing now isn't really prepping though, it's more a response to current difficulties. What I did previously was (I suppose) prepping, although I feel like I should say that no firearms were involved! I'm an absolutely awful shot and me having a firearm would not be helpful to anyone except my heirs.

Its a weird one, isnt it and definitely down to a particular culture they have.

I see my prepping as being ultra organised. Its not about apocalypses and government distruption but about weather, ill health, personal financial distruption and things that pop up like COVID and Brexit.

Like a previous poster said - I wouldn’t be protecting a hoard if someone broke into my house and if there was an apocalypse I’d be dead at day 2 🤣🤣

My focus falls on food, ability to do tasks in my home/car myself, home supplies (bulbs/first aid/candles etc) and keeping my current status quo if my income dipped or we went into a sudden lockdown.

I do wish there were more Youtuber/bloggers in the UK on this vein though!

*lockdown I mean COVID related etc

In Sweden everyone is encouraged to be prepared. They have a manual given to all citizens. After the last panic buying spree Ive now made sure I have a small supply of GF food as it all vanished the last time. Im determined not to be caught out again. Apart from anything else I was unable to leave the house during the winter for about 3 weeks as nowhere was gritted and the place was like an ice rink. So being prepared is the way for me now, but no, not doomsday prepping. I would not depend on this government to help me with anything. From 2015 pandemics were discussed by both politicians and scientists, yet our government had diddly squat in place.

Queenies croft and Bigold hag- really good posts and I think your approaches are sensible. If you live in a rural area- yes, Id definitely be prepping.

I guess I'm a mini prepper. I always have around a months worth of food in plus backups of cleaning stuff (because I buy stuff on offer)
And I have a mini hospital bag packed to grab if needed. That's about it

It’s not more acceptable? It’s just a huge country so it’s simply easier to find people that share your opinion, no matter what the opinion may be. Where I lived basements were a feature of almost all houses and they were commonly finished into fancy TV rooms with wet bars and maybe kids playrooms. No one I knew actually stored large quantities of food down there. I’ve heard some of my American colleagues talking about prepping and they were not particularly kind. If I had lived in rural Texas then I imagine it might have been a different conversation. You can’t reasonably suggest that Americans come close to having a singular viewpoint on something like this. For every American prepper there’s probably a city dweller who has never cooked a meal at home, not mention the number of Americans living below the poverty line that can barely scrape the next meal and to whom the idea of a few extra cans is unfathomable. I’m sorry people have said some unkind things to you about your prepping though, it sounds like it’s working out great for you.