Are You Stocked Up Yet? Time Is Running Out

Originally posted by ErasureheadI have to thank you all for helping the economy during these tough times by running out and making all these unnecessary purchases. Your help is greatly appreciated. Keep up the good work.

Well good for you for catching on I would applaud you for the observation...

What better way to stimulate the economy and soften the blow than to get people spending money on essentials and real products instead of frivolous useless things?

Keeps things moving, while people learn a little bit about how to fend in any emergency and at the same time learn to shop when prices are low...

Calling being prepared and sharing knowledge fear mongering... well shows who the fool really is

So run along little grasshopper... the ants have work to do

I have a huge belly that will last me a long time. Do like me, stock up on body fat and you can transport it much easier than a bag of rice.

www.care2.com...
This site has some good groups that discuss, in great detail, the in's and out's of surviving 'out there.' Even some good points for those who are stuck in big cities with no real fishing or hunting options.

reply to post by governmentsecrets

guess what ? nothing is going to happen. nothing ever happens. we all want to be a part of history. we all thought y2k was going to be IT. and now, it ain't gonna happen. so stop spreading fear. stop spreading ignorance. it's only as bad as you make it.

Really? Then you had better tell that to Joe Biden, because he just said that this country is going to face a crisis within 6 months of gigantic proportion:
blogs.abcnews.com...

ABC News' Matthew Jaffe Reports: Sen. Joe Biden, D-Del., on Sunday guaranteed that if elected, Sen. Barack Obama., D-Ill., will be tested by an international crisis within his first six months in power and he will need supporters to stand by him as he makes tough, and possibly unpopular, decisions.
...
"And he's gonna need help. And the kind of help he's gonna need is, he's gonna need you - not financially to help him - we're gonna need you to use your influence, your influence within the community, to stand with him. Because it's not gonna be apparent initially, it's not gonna be apparent that we're right."

Sounds to me like we had better be dusting off the old bomb shelters. Or could this be opening the FEMA camps?
Who knows, but it's obvious that Joe slipped up again, and let the cat out of the bag, because at the end, he says"

"We do not have the military capacity, nor have we ever, quite frankly, in the last 20 years, to dictate outcomes," he cautioned. "It's so much more important than that. It's so much more complicated than that. And Barack gets it."After speaking for just over a quarter of an hour, Biden noticed the media presence in the back of the small ballroom.

"I probably shouldn't have said all this because it dawned on me that the press is here," he joked.

Originally posted by zorgon
Calling being prepared and sharing knowledge fear mongering... well shows who the fool really is

Nobody said that being prepared and sharing knowledge is fear mongering. I agree that being prepared is a good thing. I do have a problem with the OP stating that "This is the real thing..only 3 days supplies left are stores." That is fear mongering.

We've made it routine to stay well-stocked enough to sustain ourselves & our animals (don't forget the cat litter! In a pinch or to be frugal, sand is pretty cheap even though it's messy...might be a good idea to have a pile covered with a tarp) for at least 6 weeks, but we're gonna ramp it up to have several months' worth of supplies.

What REALLY worries me is how people will react when they are not able to shop & consume to their hearts' content. We've been thru several hurricanes in the past few years and have experienced being without luxuries like electricity for 5-7 days and having major damage to infrastructure & businesses (grocery/dept stores).

During these times, even though we were warned to "be prepared" to be self-sufficient for at least 7 days, I personally witnessed quite a few folks around here (Louisiana) who went absolutely BONKERS after a couple of days of grocery & department stores being closed...they were hysterical about being unable to "spend," even though they had everything needed to sustain themselves.

If resource slowing/stoppage happens on a large scale, even if it doesn't involve necessities, you can bet that quite a few pampered nitwits will lose their you-know-what and go berserk.

Originally posted by ezziboo
...(don't forget the cat litter...sand is pretty cheap...

Kill two birds with one stone.

Eat your cat.

Originally posted by MagicaRose
reply to post by Symbiote

 

Thanks for the info but how does a couple of senior citizens stock up on food on a small fixed income?

Lose the cable television.

Barring that, hit up the Salvation Army type places for food. You would be surprised how many charity organizations will hand you off a bag of canned goods.

When you stock up don't forget to go and get the booze and lots of it. If you have kids don't forget some hard candy and board games. Oh, don't forget lots of condoms. Don't want to knock up your Mrs. if there is martial law.

Originally posted by Sillyfool
Oh, don't forget lots of condoms. Don't want to knock up your Mrs. if there is martial law.

And don't forget, latex is waterproof.

Wash them out and you can re-use them.

I have been planning this for over a year now and the best advice I found came from Holly Deyo's book "Dare To Prepare"; also there are some good survivalst blogs to learn from(Survivalblog.com,Steve Quayle,etc)

I have recently ventured into hydroponics and raising chickens(free eggs,woohoo). Buying a dehydrator is also important.

I am trying as much as possible to become self-sufficient. Do not rely on the grid or government to save you. We are entering a time of 100+ Katrinas-not fearmongering,just reality. Take your head out of the sand while you still have time.

John 3:16

Ive been watching the economice issues and it seems that were kind of in a stagnant period, like the inside of a hurricane , the first winds and rain happen then once your in the eye it all settles down... for a short while, then the rear side hits you and like katrina etc its the second half that really destructive..

So, i say while we have this short lul, check out your stockpiles and use the added time to top it off and maybe add some perks for the events to come shortly.

I have added some not so survivalist type items to my stash lately, and this week ill be adding for more long term stuff, bunch more rice and ammo and just other stuff that cant hurt to have around no matter the situation. Maybe it will be the second stash for it it get really bad, the keep you alive but not necessarily comfortable stash, lots of beans and rice maybe some more bulk canned goods.

Ill go shopping and see what ends up in the cart.. maybe hit a store i usually dont go to and see what great items thay may have that others didnt..

Take the added time during this lull to diversify your stockpile, i think when this mess comes down its going to be a hard crash .. really hard.

I've really enjoyed this thread.... one of the best on ATS yet.

I've done the stocking up on canned goods, dry goods, medicines, etc. I also have a large garden, have been canning for years. However, I've learned lots on this thread!

I've had nothing of interest to add to the conversation until now:

Originally posted by zorgon
Yup and the shelves at Food 4 Less on Friday were noticeably not full with 10 pound bag of spuds $4.65 :wow;

I work in the retail grocery industry.... fresh produce to be exact. There were a few posts regarding shortage issues so I'd like to address that as well is your "find" on spuds.

Regarding the potatoes. What you were seeing last month was a conversion from "last years" potatoes to "new" potatoes. We usually see a bit of a shortage (or "outs" as we call them) where the wholesalers are low on product and will simply not ship. What I saw this season was not only excessive "outs" but a HUGE fluctuation in price. One week, my 10# Red Wisconsin Potatoes were 4.99. The next week they jumped to $6.99. The week after, they were a whopping [bold]$8.99[/bold]

What I'm also seeing is a lot of quality issues. Rusty head lettuce, wet rotting carrots, soft fruit rotting from the inside, splitting bananas, and rotting onions. This is not a supplier issue since I don't use just one supplier. This is industry wide in my region.

Back to pricing, the prices are fluctuating astronomically. One might think that this is simply the change of seasons, but I don't think so. The same product, grown in the same place, shipped from the same place will be double the price this week from last week.

All of this leads me to believe that we are looking at a precurser to a produce shortage. I believe we not only have a shortage in product but a shortage of transportation.

I'm not an expert by any means, so if I'm wrong, don't shoot the messenger.

Forget "lead," if I could figure out how to can bananas, I sure would and barter those. They soon will be worth their weight in gold. Trust me on that one.

Edit to add: A few more things that we were "outed" on by our suppliers over the summer were Fruit Fresh, Lemon Juice, and canning lids. Lemon Juice finally came in last week!

We have ordered Powdered milk continuously for the past few months and "outed" as well.

Won't say who the supplier is, just that it is in the top 3.

[edit on 10/21/2008 by sosuemetoo]

Originally posted by cbass
There is a device (hand held water purifier) that you can litlerally put into a stream/river, or a puddle or a toilet, and pump the water into a drinking glass and drink away. Now tha's a must have!!!
Also; Spam ,spam and more SPAM!!!

This is a link to the site that has this device...be sure to scroll down to view the included vidio:

beprepared.com...[[ProductNameURL]]

Good luck!

We are not the only ones
www.msnbc.msn.com...

Find in the story where a company unnamed is stocking up for executives but not employees oh jeez who ever expected that to happen! Probably a bank and they really have money to stock up now!

These have been great suggestions. I applaud everyone for their contributions. One more reason to stock up. There are some indications that we may be involved in a new war, one that makes Iraq look like a picnic. In addition to Joe Biden's comments, Colin Powell has indicated something may be happening around January 22 or so, right after the Inauguration. If that were to happen, there might be rationing. Adding that to what has just been said about potential shortages at food markets, and the potential for hyperinflation, those are now THREE good reasons to stock up.
If nothing happens, then you don't have to do much shopping next year. There is nothing lost by stocking up, but by not stocking up, much may be lost. I say stocking up is a win-win situation for us, and I am doing it.

Dont forget things to spice up the beans and rice, not only will they make it taste better but it will help with digestion. Going from a regular american diet to one of rice beans and high fiberous foods can cause some rather painful stomach aches. Some easy to purchase ones are whole peppercorns that atually come in a grinder bottle now and chile powder, you can also use things like mint basil and thyme fresh or dried. These also are very easy to grow indoors, just remember that the soil only needs to be moist like a damp wash cloth.
owwww kitty found me and climbed up my leggg .
pfft free kittten ..any takers?//. just kidding
Another easy to grow inside vegtable garden is lettuce and spinach, my kids have also grown radishes indoors several times with regular lights. ( the spiral energy efficent ones)

And I, as the OP, thank everyone who has contributed to this thread, even the scoffers I never expected that a heartfelt warning woudl bring out so much information from so many people.

ATS really has some smart people on it and they learned how to share - at least their knowledge.

Now, don't stop - keep the good stuff coming

Many great posts. I have been storing for over 10 years now for any event- storing up on staples is the first most important thing to do, but do not forget salt - humans need salt to survive and its handy for presearving meat. I also suggest vitamins and going as far as barter items like tolit paper, coffie, tea, chocolate, tobacco, paper,pencils,blankets. A water purification system is a must I have a berky and a first need travel size from general-ecology.com. The berky will remove radiation particals. Buy barrels to catch rain water, I make sure I have plenty of warm clothes on hand and a form of heating. If you are on a budget mre`s are cheap and actually really taste pretty good, however you should supplement a little as presearvatives in mre`s cant be wonderful for you for a long period of time. I am currently ready for fallout,earthquakes,volcanos,bio warfare,pandemic and so on. I could go on and on but will just say, do the best you can right now. If you have a family and something happens being unprepared is not a option is a responsibility.

Elderly on a budjet - Purchase mre`s meals in a self contained package. Just the meals themselves not including side dishes are about 1.85 to 2.00 each and less in bulk. The mre heaters can be purchased or just boil water and drop them in to heat.
I ordered mine from the epicenter.com. Many companies do not let you choose the dishes or you have to buy a case of 12 . I chose what I wanted how many and I had them in 2 to 3 days. They are great. So for 2 people say a 30 day supply 3 meals a day you need 180 mre. It sounds like alot but they store well for up to 5 years at a mild temp. I put mine in a 55 gallon barrel to keep any pests out and I can load it in my SUV if I need to leave. Low on cash buy a dozen a month anything is better than nothing at all.