A Brit's Article On A Preppers' Kit

 From the Daily Mail: "Want to survive the apocalypse? From energy bars, gas masks and freeze dried food, doomsday 'prepper' reveals everything you'll need if the world ends as government unveils website advising Brits on how to get ready for an emergency." The article begins by noting that due to increasing threats of war, floods, prolonged power outages and cyber attacks, the UK Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden is advising the public to maintain a three day supply of food, water, some type of lighting, and other supplies so they don't need to leave their homes--essentially a 72-hour kit. "Whitehall sources insisted that the plan was not designed to create a nation of US-style survivalists"--after all, the purpose is to keep them from dying due to government incompetence in constructing and maintaining infrastructure, not relieve them of being dependent on the government. 

   "But Justin Jones, from UK Prepping Shop in London, believes the government has acted 'too late' and warned the threat of wars, cyber attacks and even solar flares meant it was important to take precautions." Thus, he provides a list of 10 items for a 72-hour kit (or a bit longer):

1. First aid kit, because the hospitals may be closed or full up with people from a new pandemic.
2. Water purification tablets (over storing bottled water--which might make sense in a wet climate as I understand Britain to have).
3. Emergency food (Jones recommends canned foods for short term storage and freeze dried for extended periods).
4. Energy bars (because they are easier to deal with if you are on the move than stopping to heat or cook something).
5. Generator (to keep a freezer or refrigerator going). 
6. LED flashlight.
7. Multiband radio (for news or announcements).
8. Heavy wool blankets (for when the heating is off).
9. Gas masks (for dealing with nuclear fallout or pollution thrown up by other big blasts).
10. Bug out bag for the car.

    It was interesting to me the number of comments to the article from readers (and the headline editor!) that can't seem to distinguish between more ordinary disasters like floods, extended power outages, terrorist attacks, or other short term disasters for which this type of kit is intended for, versus the "end of the world" scenarios presented by a total nuclear war or some civilizational killing disaster. True binary thinking in action. 

    I was also impressed by the number of people that said that they would rather die than be a survivor. I'm not shocked, though. Bruce D. Clayton, in his book Life After Doomsday, related going to meetings where people expressed the same sentiment about nuclear war, assuming that survival would just mean a prolonged death from radiation. Although I can't tell from the comments to the Daily Mail article whether those making those comments just believed they would die anyway, or if they just couldn't bear going on living without their smart phones and Tik Tok.