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Rise Of The Preppers: 50 Of The Best Prepper Websites And Blogs On The Internet

Michael Snyder
February 1st, 2013
The Truth
Comments (111)
Read by 6,598 people

Are you preparing for the collapse of society? If so, the truth is that you are definitely not alone.

The number of preppers in the U.S. has absolutely exploded in recent years.

It has been estimated that there are now approximately 3 million preppers in the United States, and “Doomsday Preppers” is currently the highest rated show on the National Geographic channel.

In fact, you could be living next to a prepper and never even know it.

All over America, families are transforming spare rooms into long-term food storage pantries, planting survival gardens, unplugging from the grid, converting their homes over to alternative sources of energy, taking self-defense courses and stocking up on just about everything that you can imagine.

The re-election of Barack Obama and other recent events seem to have given the prepper movement even more momentum.

For example, in January the U.S. Mint broke all kinds of records and sold nearly half a billion dollars worth of gold and silver coins to the public.

Not only that, Americans bought enough guns during the last two months of 2012 alone to supply the entire armies of China and India. When it comes to prepping, nobody can match the passion that Americans put into it.

So what are all of these people prepping for?

Well, the truth is that no two preppers have the exact same motivation.

There is a general consensus among preppers that our world is becoming increasingly unstable, but when you sit down and talk with them you find out that there are a whole host of different civilization-killing events that various preppers are concerned about. Some are preparing for the collapse of the economy.

Others are extremely concerned about the potential for crippling natural disasters and catastrophic earth changes.

To other preppers, the rise of the “Big Brother” surveillance grid that is being constructed all around us is the greatest danger, and many of them warn of the tyrannical agenda of the New World Order.

Terrorism, killer pandemics, EMP attacks, World War III, martial law, solar megastorms, asteroid strikes and societal chaos are some of the other things that many preppers are worried about. There are even some preppers that are not worried about any “threats” at all – they just want to get “back to the land” and want to become less dependent on the system.

Whatever the motivation, it is undeniable that the prepper movement has gotten very large and that it continues to grow.

In fact, there was a recent article in the New York Times about preppers that was actually written by a prepper entitled “The Preppers Next Door“…

To the unprepared, the very word “prepper” is likely to summon images of armed zealots hunkered down in bunkers awaiting the End of Days, but the reality, at least here in New York, is less dramatic. Local Preppers are doctors, doormen, charter school executives, subway conductors, advertising writers and happily married couples from the Bronx. They are no doubt people that you know — your acquaintances and neighbors. People, I’ll admit, like myself.

I was absolutely amazed that one of the key mouthpieces of the establishment, the New York Times, would publish an article that was mostly positive about preppers, because the truth is that prepping is essentially a huge expression of a lack of faith in the establishment.

Even the article admitted as much…

PREPPING IS THE BIG SHORT: a bet not just against a city, or a country or a government, but against the whole idea of sustainable civilization. For that reason, it chafes against one of polite society’s last remaining taboos — that the way we live is not simply plagued by certain problems, but is itself insolubly problematic.

And that is exactly right. There are millions of us that are entirely convinced that the world around us is becoming increasingly unstable and that “the system” will not be there to take care of us when everything falls to pieces.

With each passing day, even more Americans lose faith in the system and begin prepping. If you are one of those new preppers, there are actually dozens of great websites out there on the Internet where you can get an education about prepping for free.

The list of websites and blogs that I have compiled below contains more articles and resources than you could ever possibly need. Hopefully many of you will find this list to be extremely helpful.

The following are 50 of the best prepper websites and blogs on the Internet…

1. Survival Blog
2. American Preppers Network
3. The Survival Mom
4. SHTFPlan.com
5. Survival 4 Christians
6. Urban Survival
7. Backdoor Survival
8. Off Grid Survival
9. Modern Survival Online
10. The Survivalist Blog
11. The Suburban Prepper
12. The Great Northern Prepper
13. Prepper Website
14. The Survival Podcast
15. Doom And Bloom
16. Provident Living Today
17. Prepper.org
18. Prepared Christian
19. SHTFblog.com
20. Survival Cache
21. Modern Survival Blog
22. Rural Revolution
23. Preparedness Advice Blog
24. Prep-Blog.com
25. Survival And Prosperity
26. TEOTWAWKI Blog
27. The Neighbor Network
28. The Apartment Prepper
29. Armageddon Online
30. The Berkey Guy Blog
31. The Home For Survival
32. My Family Survival Plan
33. Prepography
33. Prepper Dashboard
34. Bacon And Eggs
35. SHTF School
36. Canadian Preppers Network
37. Maximum Survival
38. Survivor Jane
39. Prepping To Survive
40. SaltnPrepper
41. SGTReport
42. SHTF Wiki
43. Jewish Preppers
44. Survival Magazine
45. Survival Week
46. Prepper Forums
47. Survivalist Boards
48. Tactical Intelligence
49. The Prepared Ninja
50. Common Sense Homesteading


The sad truth is that our world is becoming increasingly unstable in a whole bunch of different ways and we all need to learn how to prepare for the difficult years ahead.

Unfortunately, most Americans simply are not prepared for much of anything.

For example, a large percentage of Americans do not even have enough savings to get them through a single financial emergency. According to one recent report, approximately 44 percent of all households in the United States are just one unexpected event away from financial disaster.

Most American families do not have much food stored up either. One recent survey discovered that 55 percent of all Americans have less than three days supply of food in their homes.

Could that possibly be accurate? Do people really keep that little food in their homes?

Another survey asked Americans how long they think they could survive if the entire electrical grid went down and there was no more power for an extended period of time.
Incredibly, 21 percent of those who responded said that they would survive for less than a week, and an additional 28 percent of those who responded said that they would survive for less than two weeks. Close to 75 percent of those who responded said that they would be dead before the two month mark.

So who are the crazy ones?

Are the people trying to become more independent and self-sufficient crazy, or are the people who have complete and total faith that the system will take care of them no matter what happens actually the crazy ones?

I don’t know about you, but I would prefer for myself and my family to at least have a chance to survive if society melts down for some reason.

What about you?

Are you a prepper?

Do you know some preppers?

Do you believe that people should be prepping?

Please feel free to post a comment with your thoughts below…


Rise Of The Preppers: 50 Of The Best Prepper Websites And Blogs On The Internet

http://www.alipac.us/f19/garlic-even...7/#post1326548

From Chicks to Laying Hens–A Step by Step Guide

Keeping chickens is easy–and I highly recommend it! To give easy a reference point, having done both I’d say chickens is way less work than a dog, but more than a cat. You only need to consider a few factors to successfully raise hens from chicks, which I recommend over purchasing full grown hens because chicks, while they are actually a fair bit of work (think puppy) are cute and fun to watch grow up. Besides, they grow up Very Fast. Like in 3 months. And if you buy full-grown hens or pullets (adolescent female chickens) off Craigslist, you never know what you are actually getting. We have been majorly underwhelmed. We ended up with 6 cockerels (young roosters) and 2 hens from one purchase of supposedly pullets-only, and 2 very stressed and sick pullets from another transaction, and birds a fair bit older than advertised in a third.

Sometimes I am a slow learner. If you want to buy pullets or hens, do so from someone you know.

All chicks need is feed, water, a warm place to live and cleanliness. But before you bring any of these cute fluff balls home (and have I mentioned stinky?) read through this step-by-step guide and be prepared for them.

I’ll assume before you head to your Wilco store–or equivalent, you will know where your chickens will be housed once they outgrow the brooder box. If not FIGURE THIS OUT FIRST! It is very tempting to bring home chicks once you go look at them. Especially if you take your children with you–which I recommend. While you don’t have to have your coop built/bought/assembled, coop time will come upon you quicker than you’d imagine. If you are building or assembling a coop, give yourself twice as much time as you think you’ll need.

In another post I’ve talked about breed selection, which you should consider, too, although you might find yourself purchasing whatever is available–and that’s okay, too. They all scratch in the dirt, cluck, roost, dust bath, vie for a position in the pecking order, and lay eggs!

So let’s assume you’ve made the leap–that is, decided your breeds, figured out their final home and the little birds are either in transit via the post office (only likely if you are getting 25 or more), or chirping and cheeping away at your local farm and feed store, hoping for adoption.

Remember: care of chicks is not difficult even if I spend more than a few words talking about each requirement.

STEP ONE: Things To Gather BEFORE your chicks arrive. Yes. BEFORE.

1) A brooding box/pen/cage. We start with a big plastic tub for 25 chicks, which they’ll outgrow in a week. We’ll use it to hold 40-50 pound bags of feed later. If you have 3-6 you can keep them here for a 2-3 weeks. A cage for mice or birds or maybe rabbits can work well, too, and will give your chicks more to look at then plastic walls. Since ours are only here a week or two, a tub works for us.



2) Chick feed. It is important to feed your chicks food intended for chicks and not adult birds. We get ours from Buchanans Feed Store in McMinnville, though Wilco or any place that sells chicks will also sell feed and all these other supplies. I imagine pet stores will be getting into this market if they haven’t yet.

3) Chick grit. Chickens typically consume dirt and pebbles as they eat, and these are necessary to help break down their food. Since chicks are not outside for the first 5 weeks (in our case more like 6-8 since we get them in December) they need grit as a supplement added to their food. Adult birds that are not raised outside will continue to need a grit supplement.

4) Pine shavings or equivalent. Avoid hardwood shavings like oak, as they can be toxic to chicks. I’d avoid shredded newspaper, too, though some people use it. The ink will dirty your chicks, and it seems an unsatisfying bedding choice for new chicks.

5) Paper towels (non-bleached, plain) for the first 2 days. If you use newspaper be sure to shred it or chicks will slip on the surface. Slipping is problematic for proper foot development, so go with paper towels.

6) Water and food dispensers. Those pictured are specifically for chicks. They will need something bigger in about 5 weeks. Though again, if you only have three or four birds, the watering can pictured could work if you swap out a quart jar, but even with a quart jar you’ll have to fill it frequently.

7) Light with a 100 watt bulb if chicks will start in your home somewhere (a laundry room works well), or some heated area. Otherwise, get a heat lamp as well as a white light. If you plan to put them in your garage in early spring, you will still want a heat lamp.

Thermometer (not essential, but handy).

STEP TWO: Set up before the chicks arrive

1) Place about 1/2 inch of shavings in the bottom of your brood space and cover with one layer of paper towels. If you have a cage, lay a plastic bag or old shower curtain down to protect the floor. With our tub we put an old towel down. Partly it marks off chick space from other space. Consider “chick space” dirty. That is, hands should be washed well after entering “chick space”….

2) Put the filled feeder and water directly on the bottom of your brood area for a day. Once the chicks are actively eating and drinking, put a block of wood under the feed and water to raise them a bit. This will keep them cleaner. Separating the water and feed will also help keep both cleaner.

3) If chicks are brand new–that is, they have not had anything to eat or drink yet (most likely if they have been mailed to you), then mix 1/4 c. sugar with a 1 quart of warm water to dissolve. Use this water the first couple of days. The sugar will give the hungry and thirsty chicks an energy boost, and they’ll be inclined to drink because–well, sugar water is just SO tasty! After the second day use tap water. If chicks come from a farm and feed type store and are at least a few days old you can omit the sugar water.



STEP THREE: When Chicks Come Home

1) If the chicks have come in the mail they will be stressed, thirsty, and cold. So take them out of the box one at a time, dip their beak in your sugar water and set them down by the water. I keep the feed next to the water the first couple of days to be sure they find them both. You may need to dunk their beaks in the food too, if they aren’t finding it. Check them periodically to be sure they are eating and drinking. Occasionally you’ll need to double dip (I think of this as a baptizing of sorts–calling these chicks to life…) a chick who only wants to sleep. BUT sleeping is what they will do a lot the first couple of days.

If the chicks are coming from Wilco (or equivalent), they will be excited to explore their new area, and all you need to do is show them the water and feed. They will likely find them on their own, but set them down in front of it regardless, especially if your feeder looks different from the one in the store.

2) Hang your white light over the brood box. We put a screen on top of our tub and set the light on the screen–you can figure out another system, but you will want to cover the brood box by week 3. Follow these guidelines for temperature:

The first week keep the area beneath the light between 90-95. Every week decrease that 5 degrees by raising the light about 3 inches. By week five you’ll be at about 75 degrees, and depending on time of year, may not need a light anymore. If it is winter, keep their space above 60 at night for another few weeks until their chick fluff is fully replaced by feathers.

Chicks will communicate whether they are too hot or too cold by how they cluster. They will be inclined to collapse into a pile to sleep, but if they spend nearly all the time heaped up under the light they are too cold. If they are spread out away from the light they are too hot. If they are panting, they are too hot. In those cases, raise the light, or if you are using a heat lamp, switch to a 100 watt white bulb. This is why a thermometer is optional. Chicks communicate very well. Especially at this stage.

STEP FOUR: Things to Check in the First Week:

1) Observe to see that they are all drinking and eating. Feel free to hold them, but not overly much the first week. But handle them after that if you want hens that will tolerate petting! Certain breeds are also more amenable to petting than others.

2) When you pick them up, check their vent to be sure it is not plugged with poop. (Anatomy lesson: the vent is used for everything: pee-poop–urine and feces are mixed for chickens, and egg. Maybe disgusting, but true.) We only had this happen with one shipment–which arrived in bad shape. We lost five of the chicks in the first 24 hours, and about 5 of them had plugged vents over the first week. To clear, soak their bum in a small bowl/container of warm (not hot) water. Try not to get any more of the chick wet than is necessary. The poop plug will soften so that you can scrap it away gently. Dry chick and immediately put back in warm brood box. I used a yogurt container which I then recycled. THIS BEARS REPEATING: ALWAYS WASH YOUR HANDS AFTER HANDLING YOUR CHICKS. Not only when you’ve been cleaning pasty butts!

3) Turn off the white light every day 2-4 times for about 20 minutes at a time so they are not constantly under white lights. Imagine if you had to live and sleep under a bright white light 24/7…!

4) Add chick grit to the feed after the first few days. Mix your feed and grit together at this point. The ratio of feed to grit is 20:1. So 20 pounds of feed mixed with 1 pound of grit will keep you from having to make the calculation every time you feed them.

5) You’ll change the paper towels a couple of times a day the first day or two on account of the poop. Once you stop using paper towels, add new shavings on top of the old ones every few days as needed. If you are using a heat lamp you’ll notice the lamp dries the poop and reduces the smell. If you are using a white lamp, you will likely want to replace the shavings every few days. When the smell is strong–it’s time to replace them. For your sake, but also for the chick’s health.

STEP FIVE: Things to Do in Week Two or Three:



Mostly Continue what you’ve been doing, but you will notice they will muck up their water (so change it frequently–and depending on how many chicks you have, you might want to graduate to a quart jar for water), and you’ll be surprised how quickly they will go through feed.

Clean their water jar at least once a week with a vinegar/water solution. You’ll notice it gets to feeling slimy, and vinegar will keep it clean.

By the end of week two we move our birds to a bigger space–but that means moving them to the cold garage since we get our birds in December. So we add a heat lamp at that point, and leave both a heat lamp and a white light on during the day, and then turn off the white light at night. If you just have 3-4 chicks you’ll likely be able to keep them in your original space for the full 5-6 weeks unless the smell drives them or you out of the house! Better them than you! Since it takes five to six weeks for them to get their warmer set of feathers, heat continues to be an issue even after they appear to be awkward gawky teenagers.



Here’s our 2nd space–which fits 25 chicks well. We keep it well insulated. Foam pads fit in the sides and I use our backpacking pads and a few towels besides as insulation on the top and front.
Add clean shavings every few days on top of the old ones. I lift the top and take the opportunity to hold them when I add shavings. Mostly they spend week three well insulated like the photo to the left shows. As they get older (and more feathered) I open up a space for them to see into the garage, and eventually open the front up most of the way during the days before we move them from here to the hen house.

More to be added as this set of chicks continue their journey from toddlerhood (where they are now) through adolescence, to adulthood. I’ll use a separate posting for future steps. Good luck!

http://preservinglifeatferncreek.com/?p=123

FEB04

Blueberry, Strawberry & Jicama Salsa Recipe

Recipes
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twopeasandtheirpod

These combination of flavors complement each other perfectly… enhancing each element creating layers of taste. This is one is now a all time favorite in my household.

Click here: Blueberry Strawberry & Jicama Salsa | Blueberry Salsa Recipe | Two Peas & Their Pod

Stocking Up On Memories

TJ Miller
February 4th, 2013
Beyond Collapse
Comments (165)
Read by 6,622 people
This article has been shared for your reading pleasure by TJ Miller, a long-time contributor to our web site often posting under his online moniker of ‘Odd Questioner’. TJ is the author of the comprehensive and must-have guide Beyond Collapse: Surviving and Rebuilding Civilization from Scratch. You can read an excerpt from the book here. You can also follow his regular thoughts and musings at the Beyond Collapse web site.

Yesterday, I came across something that, while simple, turns out to be pretty profound; it was enough that I got to thinking beyond that.

You have folks that stock up on almost every conceivable thing – bullets, food of every sort, tools, and whatever the big sites have managed to scare them into either buying, building, or improvising. However, that one little post has brought something to light that few preppers ever bother with in their rush to get out ahead of doomsday: Stocking up on good memories.

Certainly, this is covered in the book, and multiple times – enjoying life is a prime reason that we as humans live (right behind reproduction), and one really does need to enjoy civilization while it is still around – else why the hell would you want to bother trying to rebuild it?

There are too many out there who have their heads down, openly eschewing the world as we know it entirely. Some avoid it because they’re fixated (way too much) on whatever their pet prophesy happens to be. Some can’t because they’re too busy working on top of getting the preparations down. Some aren’t able to because they reason that buying an AR-15 before the government bans them all is more important than taking the kids out on a one-in-a-lifetime trip to Yellowstone.

Once Upon A Future Time…

It’s been 45 years since The Big One. Your little community has managed to come together, and in spite of all the death, destruction, and various other hardships, things have become stable, and look to be growing for your little town. Your little group of survivors have turned what used to be an elementary school into your community buildings, and converted its wide grassy fields into a farm from which most of you garden off your own plots and eat. The playground became the market, which has become quite prosperous in the past 10 years. Everyone is reasonably well-fed and relatively happy, and have made their homes and fortifications among the houses along the periphery of the school property.

As the oldest resident, you wound up being the village elder of sorts. At 66 years old, you are among the last to have lived as an adult during the pre-collapse era. Once a week, you sit by the side of the building after church. Almost all of the kids (and not a few adults) all gather around, listening to your stories of life during “The Magical Times”. What exactly do you intend to tell them there, Mr Storyteller? If your answer involves talking about prepper websites and books, and how you packed all your stuff in preparation, then man – is your town ever going to be boring! If your answer involves made-up conspiracies and the greatest editions of The Tinfoil Bulletin? That’s even worse, and I wouldn’t blame the kids for blowing you off and going somewhere else to play. Most of the kids would think: “What a miserable effing experience! No wonder the world blew up – they deserved it!”

Now what if your stories told of wonderful things – wild-but-accurate descriptions of amusement parks, of driving for hundreds of miles in one day just to see a beautiful valley? What if you could tell them of magical gatherings of people to light a Christmas tree, or to celebrate a new year? What if you could tell them of the time you walked the streets of cities across the ocean, and how you got there in less than a day by flying? What about all the basketball games you and your long-dead friends once attended, and how you and thousands of other people shouted and cheered as one? You could even tell them about the games you would play on a box, and play against people from all around the world. Then there was the time you went on this giant ship and sailed to some cool island…

Memories: More Important Than Most Other Preps

As you might have noticed by this point, there’s more to preps and gearing up for a civilization reboot than just stacking, racking, and packing. There’s more to it all than just getting good at the rifle range.

There is civilization itself. It contains a vast catalog of really awesome stuff to see and do. It not only provides you with enough leisure time to prep, it helps give you time to create, to ponder, and to wonder. It has the means to let you do some really cool stuff. While I harp on it in the book, I want to harp on it here, too. Get your ass out there and have some fun once in awhile. I don’t mean fun like in camping and drilling for preps, I mean fun like take a camping trip to a national park. Go out sport fishing some time. Pick a random town on the other side of the continent (or for those in the middle, pick a side) and go play tourist. If you have the means and the world situation isn’t too far gone, pick some spot on the globe and go visit it.

The idea here is that if you’re going to want to rebuild civilization after it’s gone, you need to explain to future generations why they should even bother. That’s where the good memories come in, no?

One Prep, Multiple Benefits

Taking time to make these memories is pretty important for you too, boyo. It does more than provide a lot of cool stuff to talk about, and even does more than help educate future generations. It allows you time to relax a little. It gives you the very needed chance to talk to other people you don’t know, and to get their insights and viewpoints – that alone will force your mind to stretch a little. It prevents you from your own form of normalcy bias… or rather, your growing abnormalcy bias. It helps give you greater insight of your own.

As someone who does prep, I do gain one benefit that most non-preppers never will: I appreciate the things I see – and do so far more than they can ever hope to. In an age where you can see wonders on your television in retina-stretching HD, seeing them for real has an almost transcendental effect. Knowing that it could be gone within a decade or two means that my mind soaks it in just that much more intensely

– I find that my enjoyment of the item, act, and people last long, long after the photos, tchotskies, souvenirs and baubles have broken, faded, or become lost.

I think that if you seriously do prep, you may indeed experience much the same things – you enjoy that which may be gone tomorrow, whereas the typical tourist yawns and wonders when the buffet comes up next.

Your Mission, Should You Decide…

I’d like to close this wee blather with a mission for you: get out there and have some serious fun at least once this year. Plan and take a vacation. Get you and your family out somewhere cool, interesting, and fun. Talk to everyone you meet (just don’t get suckered), and enjoy the hell out of it. Try some new activities, new food, and new stuff. Do something that scares the crap out of you. Don’t forget to buy a cheesy t-shirt of the event.

Most importantly, soak it all up as if it will be the last vacation you will ever get to take. Why? Because you never know – it may well be.

This article has been shared for your reading pleasure by TJ Miller, a long-time contributor to our web site often posting under his online moniker of ‘Odd Questioner’. TJ is the author of the comprehensive and must-have guide Beyond Collapse: Surviving and Rebuilding Civilization from Scratch. You can read an excerpt from the book here. You can also follow his regular thoughts and musings at the Beyond Collapse web site.

Stocking Up On Memories

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