Being prepared or HOARDING?

[Ldychef2k]

Absofreakinglutely.

I make the investment of time and money to make sure my family and I are covered. I encourage others to do the same. If they don't, they have made that choice and it is not my responsibility to take care of them.

I completely agree....regardless if it is peace time or war time. If my neighbors or relatives want to spend their paycheck on cigarettes, designer clothing, vacations and trips to the hair salon while I spend mine on mass quantities of honey, dried vegetables, beans and lentils, meat, butter, dried corn, quinoa, and salt, why am I suddenly a bad guy and a hoarder when times get tough?

 

[Sunny]

You guys and gals have seen my pantry. I'd STILL be in jail for hoarding!!


http://pic40.picturetrail.com/VOL264/2074170/10842722/356603775.jpg

Wow! Fast forward about 20 years; picture all that food spoiled, black and disgusting in the jars and you have a picture of what's in my spring house. I'm sure the good farm wife that lived here canned everything that came her way without thought about their ability to consume it. I'm in a real quandry about what to do with it. I hate to waste the jars but the thought of opening all of them and disposing of the contents is pretty sickening too. ARGH! I can't decide what to do.

My aunt owns a farm that used to belong to her husbands mom. And she canned lots of stuff. And it sat for years beyond use. Just because she couldnt get to the food cellar any more. She got to old to walk there. And the people that cared for her never went out to get her canned stuff. they just bought stuff from the store for her. So when my aunt and uncle took over the farm. They bought 2 pigs and feed the pigs all the outdated canned food. Some very good bacon from them pigs.

I think it dumb that you can get in trouble for being prepared. I do think they went slightly over board. But hey. They might have been going to help out other family members with food to.

 

[Grumpy Pumpkin]

I thought hoarding was only bad with cats?!?! Now food, oh boy!! If you are not selling it to starved countries for crazy high prices. And if your home is hygenic (I mean cleaned on a regular basis and you don't have to swat the roaches out of your recliner first to sit down) then why not? Especially foods you cannot grow yourself, flour, salt, sugar. I do see how large quantites of food kept in gross conditions could cause a health hazzard, especially living in a town house or condo. But if you are hygenic enough to keep the mass majority of critters out of your house (a few always seem to get in) then what is the issue? It is little freedoms like this that we need to be on high alert about. Can you imagine going to jail for too much food? Oh boy, what is the point of all this?!?!

 

[VT-Chicklit]

Things that I purchase or put up when there are no shortages, are no ones business but my own! If there are shortages and you catch me buying up large quantities of items that are rationed, you then can have an issue with my taking more than my fair share! Anything that I have purchased or put up prior to the shortages should not factor in to hoarding because I did not prevent anyone from being able to purchase what they needed at that time. I had forethought and prepared, if others did not . . . that is not my problem. There is a reason why there are people who are not rich ,yet they can make it through hard times without loosing everything and having to go hat in hand to the government. The reason is that they think ahead and prepare. They do not live for the short term gratification that they can get from blowing their money and time on video games, big screen TV, houses larger than they need and cant afford and so on . . . they live comfortably but prepare for the lean times. My father always said when times got tough "I hope you have a comfortable saddle because it is going to be a bumpy ride"

 

[patandchickens]

I have a problem with this idea of "if other people haven't stored up enough stuff for themselves then tough turkeys, it serves them right". While there are certainly people who could be stocking up if they wanted to, there are ALSO some fairly large groups of people for whom this is not so much of an option:

People too young to have lived independantly before An Event are not going to have much or any stored food (and it is not *their* fault if their family did not, or could not, do the same). I include both children and young adults who have only moved away from home in recent years.

People with no long-term residence find it somewhere between difficult and impossible to store lots of stuff up... like if you travel, or move a lot, or change residences every year or so and don't have a lot of money for moving expenses.

People in tight housing, like small apartments or shared houses, are going to be limited in how much they can store up.

And of course people who just can't AFFORD to buy lots of extra food (and in some cases the storage supplies that would have to go with it) are going to be 'stuck' too.

Finally, my other problem with the idea is that it does not even remotely fit what I see as ethical or (remember I was raised Catholic) "Christian" behavior. At best it is very Old Testament, and I dunno even about *that*.

You know what guys, if there were ever a severe emergency in which anti hoarding laws were invoked, I do not think you would really be worrying much about it because I absolutely betcha that either the gov't would be going after people buying up stuff *at the time*, or if things had progressed past that stage, then you would not be worrying about the gov't coming knocking on your door so much as you'd be worrying about the tribes of armed bandits going around killing everyone, which is about what'd be happening by that point.

It's fun to grandstand and speechify about things like this, but realistically, if it ever came to pass the way some people are saying, you would have MUCH bigger problems on your hands.

JMHO,

Pat

 

[Wifezilla]

Anything that I have purchased or put up prior to the shortages should not factor in to hoarding because I did not prevent anyone from being able to purchase what they needed at that time.

And of course people who just can't AFFORD to buy lots of extra food (and in some cases the storage supplies that would have to go with it) are going to be 'stuck' too.

I am NOT a wealthy person. I can, however, buy a couple of bags of lentils or a bag of dried tomatoes, some salt, etc... each week when I buy groceries. I have very very slowly been building up a store of food. It isn't much at this point, but it is better than ZERO. How many people wouldn't be able to go 2 days without a trip to the store?

Finally, my other problem with the idea is that it does not even remotely fit what I see as ethical or (remember I was raised Catholic) "Christian" behavior. At best it is very Old Testament, and I dunno even about *that*.

If I am prepared, I am one less person in need during a crisis. If I choose to help someone else, that is my choice. Big difference between individuals helping each other (which is what would happen in my neighborhood and among my friends) and the government taking the hard earned belongings of private citizens. Thinking ahead is not a crime nor is it immoral. It is also not an excuse for others to steal from me whether or not they do it themselves or use the government to do it for them.

 

[ohiofarmgirl]

I thought hoarding was only bad with cats?!?!

wait - cat hording is bad? drat...... what am i gonna do with all these cats......

i'm with VT-Chicklit. if i take the time and money and forethought to be prepared and someone else doesnt? well geez not sure how i'm the bad guy for that.

 

[Ldychef2k]

My income puts me at just above poverty level. I am also partially disabled. For those and other reasons, I fall into the demographics described. Yet, with ingenuity, thrift, and just plain old hard work, I have stockpiled enough food and supplies to carry me and my family (eight total) through six months of no income at all. I started in June.

If one comes across a person or family in need, it should be a personal decision what, if any, aid is given. Charitable work cannot and should not be mandated.

 

[noobiechickenlady]

If I am prepared, I am one less person in need during a crisis. If I choose to help someone else, that is my choice. Big difference between individuals helping each other (which is what would happen in my neighborhood and among my friends) and the government taking the hard earned belongings of private citizens. Thinking ahead is not a crime nor is it immoral. It is also not an excuse for others to steal from me whether or not they do it themselves or use the government to do it for them.

My income puts me at just above poverty level. I am also partially disabled. For those and other reasons, I fall into the demographics described. Yet, with ingenuity, thrift, and just plain old hard work, I have stockpiled enough food and supplies to carry me and my family (eight total) through six months of no income at all. I started in June.

If one comes across a person or family in need, it should be a personal decision what, if any, aid is given. Charitable work cannot and should not be mandated.

My family is also below the poverty level. I'm just starting to get intense about it, but I am already suprised by the amount I've been able to put up. A couple dollars here and there adds up over time. A couple of bags of beans instead of the 12 pack of sodas. A bag of rice instead of a magazine. I shop Scratch & Dent stores for boxed goods & pasta. I barter with friends for extra groceries. A friend often pays me for babysitting & rides to places with grocery money. That is the money I use to buy stuff at the farmer's market & dry or can. We refuse to get on government assistance, even though we qualify. One less place for Big G to stick their nose in my business.

On the other hand. The gumdrops were a little much...

 

[Ldychef2k]

I wanted to also mention the wisdom of not putting all your eggs in one basket. That has two meanings: One, spread your spending around, If you decide to spend X amount of dollars per paycheck, pick two or three things, not just one, to buy. Should TSHTF unexpectedly, you will not be stuck with 20 pounds of flour and no canned foods, or whatever.

Also, if you REALLY get into storing supplies, try and find a secondary location for a portion of each thing. If a disaster strikes or something else causes you not to be able to stay where you are, you willl have a well stocked secondary location.