Antibiotics
My guy. That was the precise thing most of our ancestors struggled their whole lives to get out of.
Moving to a rural area and realizing how fucking hard it is.
The hill I will die on: rugged individualism as strength in a post-disaster world is a lie that is sold to appeal to ego in an individualistic society, and also to prevent the formation of community.
That doesn’t apply to many existing rural communities, who of course know better.
It is an unfortunate truth for introverted autistic loners like me that Community really is key to survival.
Hello fellow introverted autistic loner. I hope you find a community that suits you and what level of engagement you are able to have. It may not surprise you to know there are plenty of autistic rural people lol 😅
What? You mean prepping isn’t just another form of participatory consumerism?
That too! Why not also make money from it?
I like enough of the civilized world that I’m still willing to participate in it, despite being relatively removed from a lot of it.
Also, living in the woods in a lot more work than people think it is and I’m lazy.
There are fewer than 10,000 people who, if they just like weren’t around anymore, would inprove everyone’s quality of life like ten fold. I cling to the hope that one day enough of us will realize that and save the world.
You realize that’s entirely cope right.
Some dead rich people just means their money will go to their kids/family, it’s not going to you in any way ever other than through changes in tax law and enforcement. And well, if you’re already middle class, you won’t really see any benefit because you already generate more taxes than you consume.
Further dead rich people and more tax money won’t fix the massive inequalities and inefficiencies and corruption that makes government and social policy so limited and ineffective in many places.
The idea is that watching what happens to those 10,000 discourages replacements. But of course it’s cope. Fortunately, I don’t live in the US so am at least insulated somewhat. I’ll be dead before things get too gnarly. And no kids. Good Lord, no kids.
Fortunately, I don’t live in the US so am at least insulated somewhat.
The rise in authoritarianism and surveillance is worldwide, the US is just where the people funding it live. You’re barely insulated now, and will be much less so if they succeed.
i don’t think you understand how people work.
I’m in the woods right now, waiting for you to come help cut firewood and get next year’s garlic and potatoes in. December-Febuary I’m gonna go be homeless somewhere warmer though. For real, if you want a taste of woods life and are able to pitch in hmu. “Other people” are kinda the main thing missing from the equation atm
not having to shit in a hole in the ground
As long as your soil will percolate, a septic system isn’t difficult to build. You just dig a trench leading to a hole, fill the hole with plastic buckets or 55-gallon plastic drums cut up and arranged correctly, then run a correctly sloped PVC pipe to the septic tank you just built. From there, you connect to your fixtures to the drain pipe as needed.
The difficult part is getting the tools and equipment to do all that out to your location. The bigger the tools you use, the faster and easier the work will be, the it will also be more challenging to get it in and out. Basically, a shovel is a lot easier to carry than a backhoe, but a lot less pleasant to dig with. Same deal with a reciprocating saw, battery, charger, and solar setup, versus a hacksaw.
except all of that requires a civilized world to produce.
excluding basic hand tools
The only woods where I could do that in my country are part of the Amazon , and the uncontacted tribes living there are not exactly friendly
Ticks. Also, probably, my wife and progeny.
It is impossible to gather food for yourself. We don’t live in pre-civilization or even the wild west. Everything is owned by someone, regulated, etc.
How do you expect to feed yourself? Not like you can just gather all day and get lucky hunting.
It is objectively harder to ‘live on the land’ then it was centuries ago. Borderline impossible, especially if you want to… you know live and interact with people.
I have a wife and cat to look out for, hard to do that when I can’t pay rent.
Mostly that I like the civilized world.
Like don’t get me wrong: Nature hikes? Camping? All great. National parks are a treasure. But I will freely admit I rather enjoy little comforts of modernity like “clean water just comes out of the tap when I turn it on”, “fresh food is a 15-minute walk to the grocery store away”, and “the spinny machine makes my clothes clean while I do other stuff.”
I complain about the modern world petty often, but damn some of it is nice. The other day, the dishwasher was running, the washing machine and dryer were going, the robot vacuum was doing its thing, the litter box was cleaning itself, and I was just sitting there with a beer and a good book.
Imo, either this is your answer, you’re a hypocrite, or you live in the woods.
Living in the woods alone without food input from civilization is incredibly hard if not impossible.
Realistically you’d need like 10-20 people to help out, livestock, a field to grow cereals, large garden and a vegetable field, just to keep everyone surviving.
A mortgage and a family.
Volunteering at the native plant garden in the park. Just enough of a hit to keep me going.
I had enough with where this society is going and I no longer want to be part of it. But I like:
- fine spirits
- good food
- cooking nice steaks
- eating in restaurants
- drinking in bars
- traveling to places that are exotic or interesting to me
- traveling to places where it’s just nice to wind down
- swimming in tropical waters
- hiking snowy mountains
- driving
- listening to hi fi music
- reading books
- doing video calls with friends and family
- being able to follow my curiosity and learning new things
- playing video games
- being able to take my dog to the vet
- providing my kid with good education
- keeping my kid safe from injuries and diseases
- seeing a doctor when I get sick
- access to a dentist, a pediatrician, a barber, an ER when necessary
- taking a shower
- hot tubs
- having a washing machine, a dishwasher and a refrigerator in my house
- having heating and air conditioning
And probably a bunch more stuff because of which, while I truly enjoy being in nature, I keep choosing living in a city and going to work instead. The common thing with all these items that you need money for each. The only ethical way I know of for making money is working hard and building a career relentlessly for decades. if you’re lucky. There are no guarantees.
I’m not sure if it’s worth it, but I do know for sure I couldn’t give all of the above up, as long as I have a choice.
