What is the definition of a fanatic? Somebody that is into something more than you are! Yup, it is definitely like the definition of pornography granted to us by United States Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart: I’ll know it when I see it.
I got thinking about all this while taking my CERT class. The instructor was a fireman who also is part of the bio-hazard team for the city. He was telling us that he has supplies on hand for a couple weeks, and that he’s seriously considering building a shelter because of what he knows … but anyone who has prepared more than that is a nutter. (Personally, I feel anyone who would volunteer to be on the bio-hazard team and be so excited about it is also a nutter!)
When I watch Doomsday Preppers (thank you Hulu for bring it to me), I think of nutterness.
And of course there are two reasons for this: 1) National Geographic channel chooses the people it highlights for their extreme behavior and then edits things to make it look even crazier, and 2) which is even more important because it deals with me, these people are way more into being prepared for an emergency than I am! Deep down am I secretly a little jealous of them? Well, maybe having a house big enough to store more things!
Some say that shows like this give the impression that you have to be wealthy to be prepared. If you listen, though, many of these people have spent their retirement savings on these supplies. It’s all a matter of priorities. Once again, it is so easy to judge someone else’s action based on our own priorities.
I found it really funny that The Simpsons‘s episode on Sunday dealt with prepping. I guess the movement has gone mainstream! Okay, maybe it wasn’t the most flattering portrayal, but it was less nutters than Doomsday Preppers.
Have you seen Doomsday Preppers? or What is your definition of a fanatic?
Grown Up, Now What? 
Tammy, I haven’t seen Preppers but my son, in the Air Force, is obsessed with it. He’s currently in Germany but says when he gets back stateside he’d like to look for some property in Montana and get himself all prepared to be able to subsist. My son in Oregon impresses me with his ability to do so – he fishes the rivers there, he forages for mushrooms – some fancy that he sells to local restaurant owners, grows a lovely garden, shops mostly at 2nd hand stores and rides his bike everywhere. I know bomb shelters and ammunition and the likes are also part of Preppers – I’ll have to watch it.
I like your definition of a fanatic – someone who is more into something than I am. Hee – hee. Of course.
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How wonderful that you have raised men that can take care of themselves.
To be good tv, Preppers is definitely the extremists among the fringe group. But it is entertaining tv … and it puts my tiny shelf of supplies into perspective. See I’m not like them! 🙂
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I like your definition of a fanatic. Often it seems true that someone who is more obsessed with something than you could be taking it too far. It’s all subjective.
I’ve never heard of that show, Doomsday Preppers, but I imagine it’s a lot like Hoarders where people get way over the top. I’ve met plenty of people who think doomsday is just around the corner, but no one I’ve known has actually gone hardcore with preparation for it. Would those people be nutters too or do you need to actually go all out preparing for the end? That’s making me wonder now.
Anyway, I remember back to the Y2K thing and seeing people buying tons of water and food preparing for the end. It was a sight and all for nothing. Makes me wonder what kind of end these people are preparing for.
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You should watch the show at least once. They all have different types of catastrophes that they are preparing for: dormant volcanoes erupting, economic collapse, pandemics … the list goes on and on.
I think to be a fanatic, you have to have action, but to be a nutter only involves holding strong views that I don’t. 🙂
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I have seen that show and thought it was a little nutters, myself. However, I did start to think about what would happen if I wasn’t prepared and I needed to be. Of course, it was fleeting, as we haven’t prepped, nor will we. From lack of funds and space. (Don’t you just love the way tv loves to make people look even nuttier than they are for ratings?)
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Glad to see that I’m not alone in my definition of nutterness. I have some things prepared, but like you, space is a concern. Oh yeah, and I still haven’t found a money tree. I’ll keep looking.
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