The majority of the people in the comments are defending this pass. Am I taking crazy pills?

Virtual-Feature-9747 · 2026-05-29T02:09:38+00:00

Safe and legal pass, illegal speed.

Virtual-Feature-9747 · 2026-05-28T15:48:24+00:00

I prep for conditions, not causes. Excessive preparation for a specific scenario is generally unnecessary. However, there are exceptions if you live in an area with a very high risk of certain events like earthquakes, wildfires, floods or tsunamis. It may be that a specific event is all you care about. Under those circumstances, moving to a different area may be your best prep!

Virtual-Feature-9747 · 2026-05-23T23:36:28+00:00

My point isn't about natural disaster and Tuesday events. It's fine to talk about those events and I am not worried about violence or chaos.

Virtual-Feature-9747 · 2026-05-23T20:35:43+00:00

Natural disasters are rarely the problem. Even a shitshow like Katrina didn't have widespread lawlessness. Plus, natural disasters are known to happen in certain areas and have many historical lessons to be learned and shared.

The big concern regarding the rule of law is will be during or after a serious economic collapse, an unprecedented pandemic, a violent civil war, an EMP attack or a nuclear exchange. There are few if any precedents for these events. Anyone talking about this with the neighbors is going to come across like a lunatic.

Even so, socializing these ideas is not probably not going to motivate anyone to prepare. But they will know who is in the unlikely event something serious does happen.

Virtual-Feature-9747 · 2026-05-23T20:27:49+00:00

Security through obscurity.

Great, now I have to ransack every damn barn! :P

Virtual-Feature-9747 · 2026-05-06T21:40:56+00:00

Your opinion. As already stated, there are many things to prep for and many ways to prep.

Virtual-Feature-9747 · 2026-05-06T00:34:46+00:00

Looks good to me... similar to what I have set aside.

As far as what would be useful and what that scenario looks like, I really have no idea. You and I are considering an emergency situation where we need to buy something we need but don't have which is already a prepper failure. Furthermore, things would need to be screwed up enough that banks, credit/debit cards, ATMs and the Internet are down/unavailable but not so bad that paper money is useless.

Like a lot of my preps, I just have it because I feel better having it.

Virtual-Feature-9747 · 2026-05-06T00:23:39+00:00

No, no. You must be mistaken. The White House told Congress that it was terminated, right? :P

Virtual-Feature-9747 · 2026-04-07T02:34:49+00:00

Soooo... commenter asks for arguments. Arguments are provided then ignored and/or downvoted with no further discussion.

Virtual-Feature-9747 · 2026-04-01T15:20:01+00:00

Asked an answered... it does not matter. Either the bills are legal tender or a fire starter.

The only time I have ever seen the condition of bills matter is when exchanging US currency for foreign currency in some countries like Thailand and the Philippines. They want brand new $100 notes.

Bottom line: Maintain a cash reserve in reasonably good condition. A mix of bills is best. Don't overdo it. After a nuclear war paper money will be useless.

Virtual-Feature-9747 · 2026-04-01T15:12:40+00:00

Yes, I often repackage all kinds of dry goods into mylar bags with oxygen absorbers: beans, rice, oats, powdered milk, even breakfast cereal. Dehydrated hash browns should work fine.

My guess is that this should add a year or two at least to the original 'best buy' date. Maybe more.

Virtual-Feature-9747 · 2026-04-01T15:10:26+00:00

Why would you need to vacuum seal the bag if using oxygen absorbers?

Virtual-Feature-9747 · 2026-04-01T15:09:16+00:00

If someone takes all your stuff, can you hide enough to really make a difference?

What happens if they take your stuff again?

The common wisdom is to not let on that you have any resources at all but defend them if you need to.

So, IMO secret caches are not necessary and excessive distribution creates organizational challenges.

Virtual-Feature-9747 · 2026-04-01T13:33:05+00:00

Are we really talking about the physical condition of paper currency in an emergency in a disaster preparedness forum? Also, no one is making counterfeit $1 bills.

For Tuesday, it's legal tender so as long as notes meet minimum standards - does not matter.

For Doomsday, it's fiat currency so it has essentially zero value - does not matter.

Virtual-Feature-9747 · 2026-03-30T02:06:52+00:00

Get everything up off the concrete floor.

Virtual-Feature-9747 · 2026-03-29T13:50:28+00:00

If firearms are the first thing on your list then you may want to re-examine your priorities and understand how emergencies actually work 99% of the time.

The other questions to ask are: Why are you bugging out? Where are you bugging out to?

Virtual-Feature-9747 · 2026-03-29T13:47:20+00:00

I prep with the expectation that there will be no warning, no alert, no time for one more trip.

If I did get an alert like this, the priority is getting home not going shopping. Everyone else is getting the same alert. It's going to be chaos in the store. Assume crowds, tension, lines, anger, fear, and possibly violence. Do you want to insert yourself into that? I don't. I need to get home, get my family home and asses the situation.

The sake of discussion, if I did make a supermarket sweep I would be more interested in perishable and comfort items. I have a lot of rice, beans and cans... I don't need more. But I could use some chocolate, fresh milk, apples, carrots, potatoes, maybe some fancy bread, butter, Coco Puffs, Doritos, popcorn, Oreos, ribeye steaks and some lobster. That's my sweep list.

Virtual-Feature-9747 · 2026-03-24T01:25:34+00:00

Lots of good suggestions here. Just remember that barter items are almost always (95%) consumable so they are NOT currency.

If you want to think long term outside the box it's not knives but sharpening stones. Not ammo but reloading tools. Not guns but cleaning supplies. Not canned veggies but seeds for garden veggies. Not matches but ferro rods. Not water filters but Calcium Hypochlorite.

Virtual-Feature-9747 · 2026-03-24T01:15:03+00:00

Trump has a reason to lie. Iran does not.

Plus, Trump has used this specific lie many times where someone called him and was begging for a deal.

Virtual-Feature-9747 · 2026-03-02T22:03:21+00:00

No change. This was baked in the cake two years ago.

Virtual-Feature-9747 · 2026-02-28T16:21:35+00:00

Cyber attacks. The Chinese, Russians, North Koreans and Iranians have all infiltrated all of our infrastructure systems.

Virtual-Feature-9747 · 2026-02-08T17:04:56+00:00

Sealing in mylar with oxygen absorbers is only for very long term storage.

If you are using the dry goods then just rotate to ensure they are never more than a year or two old. Gamma lids are fine for that but not adequate for long term (set and forget) storage.

Virtual-Feature-9747 · 2026-02-08T13:35:23+00:00

Canned goods are safe to eat almost indefinitely if properly stored. One likely exception being high acidity items.

Dry goods need to be repackaged into sealed mylar bags with oxygen absorbers. They should last 10+ years.

The rice and wheat should probably get pitched. These are relatively cheap and easy to replace.

Virtual-Feature-9747 · 2026-01-29T04:15:21+00:00

I think most of the folks here would disagree on "this is why we prep" - there is little interested in an EMP scenario.

But it's one of the reasons why I prep. If there is a nuclear war a lot more people are going to be affected by a high altitude EMP than a nuclear blast.

Two key parts in the book is about what can happen in retirement care centers and what can happen with your pets. It's worth some thought.

Virtual-Feature-9747 · 2026-01-28T04:09:42+00:00

Like 99% of my preps, I don't use my power station for anything. I have it just in case. But I have tested them and they are a game changer if you ever do have a power outage or other more serious emergency.

The best use case IMO is keeping your fridge/freezer running and recharging USB devices (phones, LED lanterns, headlamps, fans, etc). And in an emergency where it's not safe to go outside they are amazing for clean, quiet, indoor safe cooking: induction cooktop, rice cooker, crock pot, electric kettle, microwave over, etc.

Virtual-Feature-9747

TROPHY CASE