Community or rural
Posted by gingerbreadchase@reddit | preppers | View on Reddit | 13 comments
Community or rural
Would you choose:
- Stay in a suburban area where I know people but all my friends are at least 30 minutes drive away. My immediate neighbours mostly keep to themselves and I hardly know them.
Or
- Move to a rural area that is less densely populated?
Natural disasters are not that common here (so far). My biggest fear is civil unrest, when the masses lose their jobs and everyone is hungry. I am not armed, don't have a dog. Not sure how I can defend my property and young kids.
Less_Subtle_Approach@reddit
My vote is for staying in the suburbs. Security through obscurity is never a great strategy. If you're going to be personally helpless, better to live somewhere the neighbors can hear a commotion and hopefully intervene for you.
stephenph@reddit
Depends on the suburb, a long established residential area with longtime residents can be just as closed to new people as a rural community in my experience. Yes you are closer to things, but you are also one face amongst thousands while in a rural community your reputation precedes you.
canoegal4@reddit
Don't move to the country expecting city life.
gonyere@reddit
And, please don't move out here... And then complain about neighbors animals smelling.
Mediocre_Ad_6020@reddit
What is better for your lifestyle now? Where do you want to live? What works best for your career? Maintaining relationships with your friends and family? I think it's best to prep within your life rather than uproot it to prepare for something that may never come to pass. I think you're also likely to be more successful with the preps you do put together if you aren't trying to adapt to a new way of life at the same time.
There are things you can do where you are today to protect yourself. Dogs and guns aren't restricted to rural areas. If you are up for the responsibilities that come with them, get a dog, get a gun. And do what you can to get to know your neighbors wherever you are.
That being said, I think what a few people have already said is correct, for a short term disaster where help is coming and ppl will help their neighbors more, better to be a bit closer to civilization and those resources. For long term disaster, rural, with land on which to grow stuff and distance from unrest, is likely better. But the outsider effect is real.
We live in the suburbs of a large city and have a rural cabin that can be converted to off grid if needed. We have made an effort to get to know people up there. We attend church, patronize businesses in the area, and I've been able to do some work locally. Our family has helped our neighbors out when we've been able to. This has earned us a few friends, but I can still tell that we aren't really considered fully part of the community. Even people that seem to like us still clearly think we're odd city people/not like them. Hopefully they like us enough and know that we can be mutually helpful to each other in a disaster to overcome this. But I do think that the people who think they can just show up/move to a rural area and survive in a disaster don't fully understand this phenomenon.
berlenba@reddit
Without a dog or firearms, crossbow etc, you will not be able to defend your property and young kids. Worse comes to worst, I’m sure you’d do whatever you needed to protect your family. Don’t deprive yourself of that option by staying unarmed.
Also my vote is rural. Self sufficiency is what will get you through the short term events. Community for more long term scenarios I think
premar16@reddit
the are issues that go with rural communities this sub tends to ignore. In most rural places if you haven't lived there for a few generations they will always see you as an outsider. In some rural places they are extremely uncomfortable with people who are different in any way. In many places it may seem like they have less crime but sometimes the crime the small town/rural community is just largly unreported. Small towns do have small town corruption dealing with a big fish in a small pawn. There are few places that are the setting for different kinds of drugs activity that being in a remote area protects them from prying eyes.
nakedonmygoat@reddit
Unless you're expecting a doomsday scenario, any civil unrest is most likely going to be confined to stores and perhaps public buildings before cops and the military put a stop to it. It's unusual for widespread looting to happen in residential areas, especially the suburbs.
But if you're anticipating a true "no help is coming again, ever" scenario, rural is the way to go. Just be prepared for a very different lifestyle, depending on how rural you are. Even in "normal" times, you may be far from a hospital, school, or grocery store, for an event that might not happen in your lifetime. And it may be a while before you're considered part of the community. If you and your family are up for that, though, go ahead and start scouting properties.
Independent-Exit7434@reddit
Pros and cons to both. Rural probably has a bit more of the communal thing baked in because they tend to need to be more self sufficient, relying on those nearby more so than public services and infrastructure.
BallsOutKrunked@reddit
Yup. I'm just an emt but end up being called for all kinds of stuff. "Bro, I didn't go to medical school" I end up saying a lot.
FormerNeighborhood80@reddit
We will stay home unless we have no other choice. Wildfire, tornado would cause us to have to go but otherwise we intend to stay home. We live in the furthest suburb of a large town doubtful we would have social unrest here.
GunnCelt@reddit
We moved from the Denver metro area, a town with a population of 127,000 to a town with a population of 350 in rural southern Illinois. We’ve been here nearly three years and are active in our community. We’re still viewed as outsiders. But, this was expected and are working through it. We wouldn’t change a thing
gilbert2gilbert@reddit
Rural community