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.

Prepping is a spectrum and I think more people just think of the full on zombie apocalypse end of it rather than the (presumably more commonplace) type who have extra tins and prep for more ordinary stuff like bad weather or illness

We are considering movable plants for ex's house. (Patio trees) and will continue developing our container gardening. (It's rented and slabbed) I emptied my compost bag out removed the plastic containers, and refilled it in layers of woody prunings and composting food waste. I only found evidence of a couple of banana skins which was interesting as I reckon it's half made up of banana skins as DD eats a lot of bananas.

It is possible to compost on slabs if you put a layer of soil in the bottom. (RHS website) We put in the used compost from herb pots and some of the dead leaf detritus with added worms that ex has in his garden from local trees.

I use our window sill to grow tomatoes. Start early in the year and got a good crop.

I grew up in quite a rural area and the one road in / out was prone to flooding. Sometimes if we'd had heavy snow we would get snowed in. We'd never be cut off for longer than a few days but we had an extra freezer in the garage, a good stick of tinned food and some battery powered torches, lamps, radio in case of a power cut. My mum still lives there and joked, when Lockdown hit, that she didn't need to panic but as she preps for it every year. Whether you call that prepping or just organising your life to suit your circumstances, I don't know.

@Bigoldhag thank you, you summed up where I am. Marauders would walk over me, but the comfort from having done what I can, is a comfort in the wee small hours of the morning

It depends on the level of the prepping involved.
Some people’s prepping makes them look very paranoid and potentially mentally unstable. Think off grid ranches protected by a very paranoid man with an automatic weapon.
Having in a months worth or food, toilet roll, cleaning supplies and medicines. Is very sensible if you can afford it. Along with some water and perhaps some back ups for power cuts or loss of heating. This has been proved to be a good idea a number of times over the last 18 months.

It's really not that long since the pioneers. Leaving aside the part where the land wasn't actually unoccupied, the opening up of new frontiers with hardships and natural disasters will leave a different print on the culture. In the UK we simply don't get snowed in for months, have tornadoes etc and are a lot closer to our neighbours. Of course there are plenty of urban temperate places there too, but it is a very very big place.

I think in America people are more self sufficient, less dependent on the state to do things for them, especially away from the big cities.

And a lot of them do seem to be barmy.

I always have enough in so if "something " happened we'd be OK for a month or so, even if the diet got a bit monotonous.

Apocalypse and I want to be first to die. No interest in surviving that.

I think there's a MUCH greater community spirit in the US compared to here! But the approach seems different. Giving to the community, donating to political organisations, being active on the school board is your duty as an active adult person. The expectation is that you will be skilled and independent enough to contribute, not to take from the community.

They are bigger on self sufficiency than we are, if you have a sudden big medical bill, or made unemployed, or some extreme weather event comes through, you are pretty much on your own.

Also all my American friends have big houses, so plenty of space for bulk buying. Huge useable basements, and walk in pantries make it a lot easier.

@QueeniesCroft is right. As someone who used to live in a section of the US where hurricanes, tornados, and small power outages aren’t completely uncommon, most people I knew who did any sort of prepping did it UK style, meaning the usual extra couple of tins and batteries. The last thing you want to do when the media starts panicking about the dreaded “H” word is go anywhere near a petrol station or store. What the rest of the world sees are the extremists because who doesn’t like reading about an over the top situation? Most of us are quite normal!

A lot of people have basements and therefore the space to store things, there is more extreme weather in the US, people can live way more remotely, power lines being above ground and the way substations are built means you can go days without power, even in urban areas. But mainly I think it’s the basement thing. Even my basement is well-stocked because, well, why not? It’s nice to think we don’t have to ever go out for anything if we don’t want to and when Covid hit, we knew had plenty of supplies that could keep us going for a good while.

@Plexie

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.

This!

@IactuallyHateMN

Because Americans are barmy

This ^

i have a full freezer and i have to eat the contents, it is my mission. i find it frustrating that it is so full

I’d rather be barmy than dependant on the state.

It doesn't help that s lot of people in the UK don't understand what prepping is and think its the same as panic buying. There were SO many threads in March 2020 of people saying "you preppers are making for shortages worse" and getting all irate when someone tries to explain the difference.

I used to live in the UK and there is a general lack of prepping in all areas of life.

I think it might have something to do with the fact that it is so built up, and settled society has been there for long enough that all dangers seem to have been dealt with. There is a general feeling that wherever you go, and whatever you do, there will be some way to sort out any life threatening problem that occurs, without you needing to prepare for it in advance.

That is a generalisation, of course, and you do get people who prepare for things, especially in very rural areas, but they are in the minority.

I live in rural Australia and the idea that a deadly snake could be in my kitchen right now, or that there could be a flash flood that destroys my home, takes out the power and water supply, and cuts off all supply routes to our town during every wet season, or that if I drive to the next town over I have to take a bush trail with no phone signal or fuel stops along the route, seems to absolutely terrify my British friends. To me I just think... I know that those things could happen, so I am prepared for them. It takes almost all of the danger out of them.

I grew up relatively rural (half a mile outside the local village but that only had a small corner shop and a couple of pubs). We drove to the city 25 miles away weekly for a big supermarket shop (most people only went to the local town 10 miles away) and DPs went to the cash and carry a few times per year as well. DF grew a lot of veg and some fruit in the garden, DM would occasionally buy half a cow for the chest freezer, and we would get boxes of apples from a fruit farm as part of Sunday outings every couple of months.

We went through a lot of power outages, some lasting days. So there were kerosene lamps, lots of candles, a gas bottle emergency cooker, open fires etc.

But we also went through periods of very low income (DFs job didn't pay for 18 months, the entire country was on its knees at the time) so being relatively self sufficient was important. DM was bed bound for an entire summer when I was still in primary school (eldest of 6). The washing machine occasionally broke down or completely failed and we had to hand wash everything until it was fixed or replaced, including 2 in cloth nappies.

Many years ago, I watched the Louis Theroux documentary on US survivalists. Being Louis, it was extreme and quite scary - the mindset - the weapons, the amount stored. I think that's where the stereotypes originate.

But I'm generally aghast by the attitude towards guns and hunting by some in the US.

It's hard to compare two vastly different countries.

Sorry, posted too soon.

My point is that we grew up having to be self sufficient and having a decent larder and other supplies. And being prepared to sort ourselves out first with most emergencies.

Now, I live in the suburbs of a large city, but have a very busy lifestyle with long hours at work. We have had significant power cuts, loss of water for weeks on end, and the disruption to supply chains of COVID and brexit to deal with, and we are in a good spot high up a hill and not near rivers but there has been very significant flooding very close to us (less than 2 miles away on the other side of the hill).

So while it might not be the norm totally in the area, I have quietly thought about a lot of things. I have built up specific camping gear so that it has use at home if needed, and while I keep most in a storage unit about a mile away (lack of storage here), I keep the 1 ring gas stove, mini bbq and camping pots/kettle in the shed here, and torches and power banks and portable solar panel in the house. Our rain butt out the back was very useful for toilets when the Beast from the East caused so many leaks in the water system that we had no water at all for 5 days and very very reduced water (none by day and 30% pressure at night) for another 5/6 weeks while they repaired the worst leaks in the system and waited for rain to partially refill the reservoirs.

So the fact that you live in a built up area does not rule out having emergencies happen that you need to react to.

I’m in the US - actually Utah and believe me people can/do think preppers are loons! I personally think our weather conditions can be very harsh and it’s good to prep for weather disasters. I’m not Mormon and I’ve heard about the storehouses and processing plants but never in a million years would utilize them for the one reason you’d practically have to convert to use them! The first thing you’re asked here is if you are LDS - if so, or hint at any kind of interest you will have a million friends right off the bat - if not, you will never see them again!
Anyway, I don’t talk about my preps for fear of people thinking I’m a right wing nutter!

Haven't rtft, but I always have a month or two's worth in. Actual prepping is so weird though, because at some point, in the event of armageddon, that will all run out too. Then what?

The US has more extreme weather events

The US has more people living in quite isolated locations as it’s massive

Lots of US homes are bigger than ours, due to them having more space overall. I suppose it makes it easier to store loads.

In the UK, we’re far too worried about conforming to the prevailing Twitter/social media view. Just do whatever you want to do and screw anyone who whinges about it (unless you are doing something illegal!)

Has anyone ever considered the purely Comercial driving force here?

The outdoor recreational life is big in America (Camping, trail walking, hunting, and fishing). Here in the UK, we moved away from camping/hillwalking to sunning ourselves on a Spanish beach, hence why it is easier to buy a foreign holiday than a tent in the average UK high street.

There is only a big Prepping/Survival movement when there is a demand driving it. A lot of the "toys" stems from the Outdoor recreational market and good advertising has grown that market. An example of this would be the Computer gaming market in the UK, Honestly, I had no idea that a charging cord that glows when it is connected would improve the middle son's skill level, but I'm reliably informed (by middle Son) that not only that it will, but it could even be a lifesaver if he needs to leave the room after dark.

The Americans have no more monopoly on "Barmy" people per head of population than any other country, with the possible exception of the Fins, it's just there are more of them and MSM likes to create a story, I have met and talked to quite a few "Colonials", the loner living in a bunker waiting for black helicopters is the minority. Most are very community-minded and when a disaster (personal or community-wide) hits they are often the first to offer help.

Remember a lot of the ideas and skills you see are taught in youth groups in the UK. Outdoor camp craft and pioneering skills are all on the menu if you know where to look, one youth group even has the Moto "Be Pepared"

The houses are bigger. I'd struggle to store a month's worth of toilet roll, let alone a years worth. I haven't got space in my garage to store 40 bottles of ketchup etc.

Also all their food has corn syrup in it so will outlast an ice age/nuclear blast.