Blake Dowling
Are you ready for a disaster?
When I was growing up, I read books like Alas Babylon (story in Florida), Warday and Out of the Ashes — all with a theme of post-nuclear war America.
The Hardy Boys just didn’t do it for me.
Plus, it was the ’80s and we lived every day with the threat of those in Moscow deciding whether to destroy the earth or not (they are at it again), so it seemed appropriate reading. These books were an early crash course in doomsday prepping for me — it’s interesting to see what prepping has evolved into in 2022.
There are prepping TV shows and conferences, and you don’t have to look hard for materials — you can buy 60 days of emergency food at Home Depot.
It’s gotten so mainstream even the Kardashians have endorsed bug-out bags and survival kits for functionality and style.
Gone are the days of preppers stereotyped as militant types. One of President Barack Obama’s former innovation advisers, Silicon Valley executive John Ramey, discussed his thoughts as an expert in preparation for this week’s 60 Minutes.
His advice? Be ready to be your own first responder in a crisis.
There are lots of obvious reasons survival gear is becoming mainstream as yet another storm is barreling down on Florida this week.
Not to mention pandemics, fires, and cyberattacks on our infrastructure, each making the reality of being without the basics a genuine possibility.
For us in Florida, storm-related power outages are a reality every year. One doesn’t have to look back far to North Florida’s last multiple-day power outage: Hurricane Hermine, three days without power; Hurricane Michael, it was four days.
As for statewide, throw in the toilet paper shortage of 2020, no gas available following the Colonial Pipeline cyberattack, and the devastation of Hurricane Ian just this year and you can see why it’s important to be ready for anything.
Too many Americans are like me in 1998. I was riding out a storm in Destin with a band I was on tour with — the Charlie Mars Band. Our day of disaster prep went like this: Play golf on the water, watch the storm come in, and go by the convenience store to gather chips, Duncan Hines cake mix and ravioli (and beer).
Despite the storm not being severe, our power went out fast. So, we ate chips and drank beer.
I think Charlie wrote a song as we stared at the goods that required power to cook.
Luckily, that situation was mild, but when the real thing hits, it’s no joke.
Water, food, meds, a full tank of gas, cash, comfortable shoes, and communication tools — these are the things you need to be thinking about. A full checklist is available from the State of Florida.
There are certain levels of preparedness.
For a million dollars, you can go ahead and pick up a doomsday condominium in Kansas and ride out a storm, war or pandemic. You may have seen this on 60 Minutes; they turned an old missile silo into a luxury prepper’s paradise, with a gun range, pool and theater to make sure their guests are pampered in any situation.
The facility’s owner also reiterated that preppers these days come from all ends of the country and political spectrum with any pre-existing stereotypes going out the window. He also mentioned all the residents showed up at the bunker during the pandemic, so it is battle tested.
I think a bunker would be a hard pass for me but there is certainly nothing wrong with having some necessities in the car and house when needed.
Personally, a solar-powered phone charger is a no-brainer; you can get them cheap anywhere.
If you’d like to learn more, Elkton, Florida has a summit in April 2023 where you can check out more details on self-reliance and disaster preparedness.
They have some really cool firsthand discussions on gardening, gun safety, hunting, and lots of other workshops.
Just like in the ’80s, the Russians are threatening the world yet again with nuclear weapons. While we would assume the idea of mutually assured destruction would keep even the most unstable world leaders (see Vladimir Putin and the North Korean guy) to not even think about pressing the button. But who knows how a madman or woman sees things?
As you read this, Swedish scientists say there is a 17% chance of a global nuclear war. If you want to read more and not sleep tonight, dive in here.
They also say (in theory) solar flares could wipe out our power grid with an electromagnetic pulse, like what a nuclear weapon does when detonated in the atmosphere; plus, of course, let’s not forget cyberattacks against our infrastructure.
Today’s column may not win the Feel-Good Column of the year, but on the plus side, the odds of a worldwide catastrophe are low.
On the negative side?
Odds are very high that a fire, hurricane or another pandemic could arrive on your doorstep any second. So, let’s confirm you have more than Duncan Hines Cake mix and beer in the house.
Hopefully, you will be more prepared for the next disaster than 1998 me.
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Blake Dowling is the CEO of Aegis Business Technologies. He can be reached at [email protected].
