Preparedness for when

bubbs

I live in a static caravan, but we do have central heating and double glazing yes if it gets cold takes a while to warm up but in the winter we have oil filled rads on timers for he before we get up and before we get in from work so its not freezing

S_Wales_Saver

Anyone living in South Wales that hears an explosion, sorry its me not getting to grips with the pressure cooker!

Elaine[/QUOTE]

Help :eek: living just below Elaine I'll duck 'n run tomorrow lol

daftmummy

:wave::wave: hello delurking from a spell away under my quilt just reading posts. Had a bit of a low period like to go into my shell a bit but on the up now. Kids are fine settled in school and have some new additions to the family! Hens called Hennie and Penny and tiny.

Lovely to see the same friendly people and some new. RE winter and power cuts we will have one this week due to replacements repairs. I'm tapping the freezer so kids don't open it and doing stew as I have a gas hob. I will be cleaning and hoover ing my gas fire to get rid of the dust and testing that you can light it with a match ( thanks for tip to check )

I'm Will do my fluffy pjs shop at primarmy this week as I always get kids ones early as they sell out their size and little legs gets the hand me downs. Have coats washed and ready with hats for winter. Made a not to self to locate the condenser pipe from boiler in case of bad weather.

I'm ok with the snow as I have supplies and once hubby was away in 2012 and I was alone with kids at home when the snow came. I had two lamps all ready and glow sticks (thin ones from 99p shop ) which I blutack to the top of bathroom, bedrooms and lounge programmes so if ever power cut happen I could get light so kids didn't panic if lights went out sudden (learnt from experience of holding a new born and toddler freaking while I headed to draw in kitchen for torch). My supplies are a bit low so making jam and chutney for stock. Starting to bake to save some pennies for snacks.
Lovely to pop back will make effort to post not just read.xxxx

moneyistooshorttomention

GreyQueen wrote: »

If the SHTF in a really really major way (and I hope not to see it, btw, for all our sakes) there will be a great number of people whose passivity instead of any productive action will be accompanied by major griping and complaining.

Trouble is, the rest of us will be busily shifting for ourselves and there will be a limited audience, and very limited patience, for all this guff. I wonder how long people will sit waiting for the cavalry to arrive before they realise that help isn't coming in a timely manner, or coming at all?

There is a snag with this. I understand what you are saying. The snag, however, is that there are some people out there (don't know what proportion of the human race in all honesty) who genuinely have "done their bit and paid their way" throughout. Always worked full-time (bar ill health preventing them from doing so)/always paid their taxes/done a lot to "help Society"/etc and therefore are due (by any remotely fair criteria) to receive an appropriate "reward for effort" and I don't think its at all unreasonable, in those circumstances, to complain volubly if that "reward" is withheld. Herein lies appropriate cause for sympathy for such people on the one hand and what do people who know they have genuinely "earned/paid for" what they need/expect cope mentally with having been diddled (paid the costs and didn't get the goods in return) iyswim.

I can well understand it would be very difficult to get your head round not having what you definitely knew you had genuinely "paid and worked for" and genuinely wonder how it is envisaged such people would cope (equivalent to having paid full-price into the shop for your goods and then finding that the shop-owner turned round and refused to hand them over when you actually went to claim them).

I can see that you are one that has always "paid your way fully" (ie were prevented from doing a full-time job courtesy of ill health, but have done what you could within your health limitations to "pay your way" and "do your bit") and wonder how you personally would get your head round "not getting the (bought and paid for) goods". I'd be interested to know if anyone in that position has figured out whether they would try to "get their head round" it and what they envisage would happen then in that respect. It would be very very mind-blowing to know you'd been diddled basically.

GreyQueen

I pay into the local government pension scheme. It's been reworked recently and I expect that it'll be reworked yet again before I get to draw it, if I'm spared, and my pension age is the best part of 20 years hence. I think the grubbyments won't be able to resist looting it.

So why do I pay in? Because of my age and because if I opted out, I'd pay more income tax and national insurance than I do now, and what was left would be insufficient to do anything useful with - circa £20 a month isn't going to contribute to much of a Plan B. But if I was in my early twenties, I would opt out like a shot.

The trouble with entitlements, even hard-earned and long-anticipated entitlements, is that they rely on a functional state and a stable economy.

If the world suffers a major catastrophe along the lines of an EMP frying a large part of our comms, Viejo Cumbre falling into the Atlantic, Yellowstone blowing its top, a pandemic which kills a large section of the population, life as we know it won't continue. Even if we re-visit a major Depression, or are beggared in a war, they could be in jeopardy.

The monies we contributed throughout our lives aren't sitting in a dedicated account with our name on it, ready to be drawn down on. You are relying on the tax being taken off people who are presently young children, or even unborn, even as people in their eighties now deceased were funded by your contributions. They are figures on a balance sheet somewhere, and what you think are your dues can be reneged upon by government decision, or become undeliverable due circumstance

In those severe circumstances, one's entitlements will be irrelevant and grumbling about their loss, or even screaming blue bloody murder about their loss, will be pointless.

There are plenty of people who have fled countries where they were persons of consequence, with land, homes, noble titles, businesses and a lot to lose, because the risk of staying was to lose what is most precious of all - your life.

Nargleblast

Well said, Greyqueen - some people seem to think that if they pay x amount in tax and NI over their working lives then that money is as you say sitting in a bank account with their name on it ready for retirement Utopia.

The taxes I pay today go to.pay for the benefits given to those out of work for whatever reason, and when I hit State Pension Age (66) what pension if any I get will be paid for out of taxes paid by working people at that time. Good reason then to encourage our young to be educated and skilled so they can support us!

All this might seem the statement of the bleeding obvious to most of us, but sadly there are people out there in Cloud Cuckoo Land who believe in the Mighty "They" and who could be in for a shock if TSHTF.

moneyistooshorttomention

GreyQueen wrote: »

There are plenty of people who have fled countries where they were persons of consequence, with land, homes, noble titles, businesses and a lot to lose, because the risk of staying was to lose what is most precious of all - your life.

Fully get your points here GQ.

..and I remember previous comments about people who have fled their country with a lot of money, but cant use that money because its paper money and has been rendered worthless (ie they might as well use it as wallpaper now...because it wont function effectively as money anymore).

There is a matter that could be pondered on for some time, ie as to whether people would choose to stay physically alive OR keep Their Life and the resultant mental chaos in their mind if they didn't automatically plonk for the "stay physically alive" option, but kept right on intending to have Their Life. What will happen to those people (and there will be some) who remain totally wedded to keeping Their Life? Will their minds literally "blow"? Will they turn to crime (even if they are basically honest people) in order to try and keep Their Life? Will they decide that it isn't worth remaining physically alive if they cant keep Their Life?

I couldn't honestly answer which of those 3 things I would do myself personally, whether my mind would "blow", I'd hate myself for turning to crime (and that, of itself, would be a "mind-blower" for an honest person to be forced into it) or decide "blow this for a lark = I'm outa here".

Any guesses as to which of those 3 options those that do know right in their heart of hearts that they honestly HAVE paid their way/done their bit/etc would take or is there a 4th option I cant see (as we've already ruled out "just accepting their (new) lot"?

fuddle

moneyistooshorttomention wrote: »

Fully get your points here GQ.

..and I remember previous comments about people who have fled their country with a lot of money, but cant use that money because its paper money and has been rendered worthless (ie they might as well use it as wallpaper now...because it wont function effectively as money anymore).

There is a matter that could be pondered on for some time, ie as to whether people would choose to stay physically alive OR keep Their Life and the resultant mental chaos in their mind if they didn't automatically plonk for the "stay physically alive" option, but kept right on intending to have Their Life. What will happen to those people (and there will be some) who remain totally wedded to keeping Their Life? Will their minds literally "blow"? Will they turn to crime (even if they are basically honest people) in order to try and keep Their Life? Will they decide that it isn't worth remaining physically alive if they cant keep Their Life?

I couldn't honestly answer which of those 3 things I would do myself personally, whether my mind would "blow", I'd hate myself for turning to crime (and that, of itself, would be a "mind-blower" for an honest person to be forced into it) or decide "blow this for a lark = I'm outa here".

Any guesses as to which of those 3 options those that do know right in their heart of hearts that they honestly HAVE paid their way/done their bit/etc would take or is there a 4th option I cant see (as we've already ruled out "just accepting their (new) lot"?

When faced with near rock bottom there is only one instinct that kicks in and that is to survive. S*d the labels and all that jazz. When it goes awfully wrong you act to survive first then act to maintain that survival and build again.

You can't really ponder how a person will act because it's down to what that 'rock bottom' is but I can tell you that act you will and in a way that is needed to live.

cbrown372

The 4th option is to be thankful for what you do have and don't spend your day feeling jealous of what other people have :beer:

mardatha

Amen cbrown lol