They're called preppers today, but those enthusiastic about preparing for uncertain times at one time in the nation's history were simply called pioneers.
As men, women and children of European descent spread out across a new nation, they faced a frontier on which there were no law enforcement officers or ambulance crews or firefighters to call in an emergency. When it came to eating, there weren't any Neighborhood Markets or Harps Foods around the block. Considering the uncertainties of the future and working to reduce their possible bad effects were just a way of life. If one waited until winter set in to start thinking about how to stay warm, he was as good as dead.
What’s the point?
Preparedness is smart for everyone and requires some attention to the uncertainties of the future.
If a big natural (or unnatural) disaster happens, it doesn't take long for many of us to figure out how comfortable we are with the conveniences of everyday living in the 21st century. We rely on smartphones not just to communicate, but to show us how to get around. We assume our usual gas station on the corner will always have a ready supply. We figure a trip to the local grocery store or fast-food joint will take care of the next meal.
Sometimes it takes a crisis to dislodge us from those comforts. For some in Northwest Arkansas, it was the ice storm of 2009. For thousands upon thousands in 2005, it was Hurricane Katrina. For Robert Porter, it was the destruction of a tornado that tore through the Fort Smith area in 1996. Nothing like watching the house you're in fall apart around you.
Porter and hundreds of others are part of something called the Arkansas Preppers Network, one of a variety of resources that attempt to connect like-minded people who want to become self-reliant. It's not that they eschew modern conveniences, but they do imagine what life would be like without them and how one might live under such circumstances.
It is safe to say many, if not most, Americans choose the "don't worry, be happy" path of life, so it's not unusual for preppers to be characterized as a bit, well, nutty. Television shows about prepping tend to focus on some of the extremes, so it's an easy mistake to make.
But keep this in mind, too: The Department of Homeland Security will recognize September as National Preparedness Month, with a theme "Disasters don't plan ahead. You can." It operates the website "Ready.gov" specifically to spread the word about preparedness. The American Red Cross devotes considerable resources to education about preparedness, from essential supplies for first-aid and survival kits to the kinds of medical skills one might need in an emergency.
The Boy Scouts of America have long had the motto, "Be prepared."
There really is nothing new about the idea that people shouldn't just sit back and depend on someone else to take care of them in case of disaster. Certainly the folks who proudly wear the tag "prepper" are far more serious about it than most, but everyone should be giving regular attention to the kinds of situations they're likely to face. In Northwest Arkansas, we don't need to prepare for hurricanes, but what about the aftermath of a tornado? Or, as in 2009, a destructive ice storm that left thousands of homes without power in the middle of frigid temperatures?
Every person has to decide for himself what preparedness looks like. And it's healthy to keep in mind that "prepping" has spawned an industry of sorts that is willing to sell all sorts of gadgets and gear that might ultimately prove unnecessary or even useless. As with everything, it's good to maintain a healthy dose of skepticism on those kinds of solicitations.
Prepping doesn't have to mean buying a plot of land in the Ozark Mountains for burying old storage containers that will serve as housing after World War III. But there's little question most of us fall short in the area of preparedness. September, as National Preparedness Month, will be a good time to evaluate just how prepared one is to be self-reliant in the face of turmoil and adversity, whether that's brought on by a natural disaster or a man-made one.
Commentary on 08/22/2017