I’ve been interested in this whole prepping thing for the past couple of years, and I noticed something: A lot of people seem to look down on it. The words “prepper” and “prepping” sometimes get negative reactions, and it got me wondering–why’s that?
It feels like some people see preppers as paranoid conspiracy theorists or just plain weird. But when you think about it, there are a ton of reasons to prep, like natural disasters (earthquakes, storms) or a bad economy. Prepping doesn’t necessarily equate to being a bunker-dwelling hermit, right?
What do you guys think? Why do you reckon “prepper” and “prepping” get a bad rap? Is it just how the media paints it, or is it something else? Any of you gotten weird looks or comments? How do you deal with it? And do you think folks are seeing preppers differently now with all the stuff going on in the world these days?
It’s probably a connection to the “survivalist” mentality, which is commonly seen as “buy countless guns, live in the woods, kill anything that gets too close.” Survivalists got a bad rap back in the 90s, and it has stuck around. Of course, there have been a number of groups since then that haven’t helped the image. Think Ammon Bundy and the Montana Freeman who were actually just a bunch of Sov Cits.
My idea of “survivalist” is someone who has the knowledge to live off the land (or whichever situation you’re in) with minimal or only the essential tools. I guess there are some negative connotations to survivalism.