Are Preppers Really Hoping for SHTF?

A surprising question you may hear is “Do preppers wish for SHTF?”. Wait? Do people really ask this question?

Yes some people do ask this question because myths have been created by TV and society about preppers and survivalists over the years, so this is a very good question to ask and I will answer it.

Humans survived so long because our ancestors were creative and formed groups that looked after one another. Even now we can not survive in a civilisation without cooperation, and even when this civilisation falls people will go back to creating groups to survive.

A mammoth was not killed by one person, it took a group. A company doesn’t function with just one person, it needs employees that work within a group to run a fraction of said company, to win the bread for everyone’s table.

We survived because we learned to farm and cultivate, but also how to preserve food, and stockpile it for emergencies, which makes our ancestors preppers and some of us have taken that torch and added to it in order to pass the torch along to the next generation.

No, the vast majority of preppers do not hope for SHTF. Most preppers are just ordinary folks worried about their future and their families, and what to have a safety net should anything bad happen to them.

What is SHTF?

SHTF is an acronym (best left for a search engine). A SHTF situation means it’s bad and it spreads everywhere, which can be anything from a biological agent, like a virus, to an invasion from a hostile threat, to an EMP of some kind. There are more reasons people prep beyond this, including global financial collapse.

Events in history tend to repeat themselves, and every civilization that became an empire crumbled in the blink of an eye.

Humans learn and try again, each time they rise and each time the sun sets on that empire. “Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it” or the original quote “Those who can not remember the past are condemned to repeat it” quotes associated with the writer and philosopher George Santayana.

However, if our modern civilization crashes the fallout is greatly increased than with past empires as modern people rely on shops to supply them with their needs as they are not self reliant.

Speaking of modern civilization, most people have and still will mock preppers. Then the pandemic hit and those same people who mocked us complained of not being able to get supplies, while preppers were able to survive better because they were prepared with all they needed when shops could not deliver supplies.

The Myth of Prepping and Prepper Statistics

The myth of all preppers hoping for a SHTF situation every day when they wake up most likely comes from reality TV shows where the prepping stories needed to be pushed down a dark road for some good television viewing, as you read on you should learn why this is a myth and not all preppers want to live in a post SHTF scenario.

I prepare for a lot of situations, but that does not mean I want a zombie plague to happen, nor would I want a total collapse of the global financial markets to happen.

That’s not what I want, as modern life is much easier to live than having to survive when in a SHTF situation.

Let’s look at some FEMA and Cornell University stats:

• In the US alone there were previously about 7 million households before 2020, and that number is set to rise in the coming years, the rise being projected at about 10% after 2020.
• A survey held by FEMA stated that 31% of preppers are women, and that number will most likely rise.
• There are two groups that do not report prepping in the US: the Disabled, and Pacific peoples.
• Self-reliant folks can make around 10% more income per year, and that is why many leave the city and head into the countryside, the rural areas, and start living off the grid.

Quo desiderat pacem praepret bellum or “Let him who desires peace prepare for war.”

Publius Flavius Vegetius Renatus, a roman military writer

The words “war” and “peace” can mean different things to different areas of life. From work to leisure, as long as you’re strong physically and mentally you will survive what is thrown at you, as you are prepared for anything.

Each country has a military, but we do not seek to use them as the aggressor, but rather in defence of ourselves and our allies, and they stockpile everything and have bunker complexes, they keep strong to maintain peace.

They say a civilization is only three meals away from chaos and eventual collapse, this is why preppers stockpile food and water for in some form, the need to provide takes many forms and for many, especially those with a family will turn to stockpiling in some form.

We prepare to survive as best we can, as when a SHTF situation arises.

Infrastructure is one of the first things to go, nothing gets produced and nothing is on the shelves of any shop or supermarket after they are cleared by hordes of people desperate to get as much as they can, preppers do not want to be left behind, or wanting and having to fight the unprepared for remaining shop supplies.

We preppers stockpile everything we think we need in order to survive at least the initial chaos, while we create and keep adding to our survival toolbox by learning skills that will be needed to survive any situation or close to it.

Who Can Be A Prepper?

Preppers live a modern life, and they can be anyone and work any job, hold any career, like writer or CEO of a company, they may run a YouTube channel or run their own prepper supply shop/website. They have families of their own, and need money to provide.

Just because we learn to shoot, learn to fight close-quarters or have a penchant for being able to design a weapon from plumbing pipes and related parts or from a filing cabinet drawer slide, door hinge and paracord does not mean we want to leave society.

In fact, that’s quite the opposite: those skills can be translated to daily living like exercise, or a passion for the outdoors.

Many preppers are working to keep civilization going and contribute to its upkeep so it survives as long as possible. For many being a prepper is a backup plan to keep the modern economy going, thus keeping civilization going for as long as possible.

They might even be doctors that have come into contact with a civilisation ending virus and are working around the clock to find a way to beat it before time runs out.

They might be connected to the law, military or emergency services and will try to do what they can within their careers to stop whatever is trying to become a SHTF situation rather than run and bug out.

Not all preppers want a SHTF situation to come to pass, we might prepare for such an event, however, we do not want to see a SHTF situation arise. f we can stop it we will.

Final Thoughts

There are some people that want a SHTF situation to pass, but some of them do not know what they are asking for and would probably freak out at their first contact.

Some have become so sick of what’s happening in society for one reason or another and desire a SHTF situation. Others feel they would prosper more in a SHTF situation.

The current worldview held by many might look bad, however, at least you can charge your phone and access a streaming app for entertainment to remove yourself from the bleak worldview.