Prepping and General Emergency Preparedness - Preparing for the worst, hoping for the best.

[Vingle]

If you had a baby, a grandbaby, or knew someone who did, you'd be really fucking glad you stocked baby formula right now.

Isn't mothers supposed to produce milk naturally? The deal with Nestle in Africa, was that they used formula long enough for the natural production of milk to stop. Or am I missing something?

 

[StrawberryDouche]

Isn't mothers supposed to produce milk naturally? The deal with Nestle in Africa, was that they used formula long enough for the natural production of milk to stop. Or am I missing something?

You're missing everything.

 

[Vingle]

You're missing everything.

Well, I'm asking what I'm missing.

 

[StrawberryDouche]

Well, I'm asking what I'm missing.

The answers to your questions should be the function of critical thinking-

Why can't every woman breast feed? Why do adopted babies or those in foster care need formula? Why can't a new mother who needs to bust her ass every day to support the baby pump breast milk on her 20 minute break at Subway?

Secondly, I don't give a fuck about Africa.

Ands also? Also, women don't need to justify how or what they feed their babies.

Come on now.

I'd rather this thread not turn into the politics of breast feeding thread.

 

[Bunny Tracks]

Well, I'm asking what I'm missing.

To put it simply, sometimes women just can't. Either they can't make enough, or have mastitis, or have nipples that make for difficult feeding, or just don't end up making any at all, etc.

Yes, women usually do produce milk naturally when they have babies, but sometimes it just doesn't happen, and sometimes, like with most things in life, comes with difficulties that need outside help. Formula was made to help with those difficulties, and because of it, infant mortality rates went way down. Reminder that there used to be a profession just for nursing babies back before this because mothers being unable to produce their own milk was such a big issue.

Breastfeeding (the innerworkings of it at least) is something that is actually quite complicated. A woman can't just turn her breasts on and off like that. That's not how it works. Not to mention that some babies require dietary aid that can't just come from breast milk alone, and sometimes the mother herself has those issues, and it isn't safe to nurse her baby because of them.

The Nestle incident was the result of vile marketing tactics that directly took advantage of women who had trouble breastfeeding, and as result, a fuckton of babies died. Basically, Nestle lied to the women about everything, and the babies died because the water their mothers would use to make the formula with wasn't clean, and shit. At least, that's the extent of my knowledge about it.

Anyway, sorry to derail the conversation. Just thought it'd be better to explain shit because sometimes people just don't know any better.

 

[Vingle]

To put it simply, sometimes women just can't. Either they can't make enough, or have mastitis, or have nipples that make for difficult feeding, or just don't end up making any at all, etc.

Yes, women usually do produce milk naturally when they have babies, but sometimes it just doesn't happen, and sometimes, like with most things in life, comes with difficulties that need outside help. Formula was made to help with those difficulties, and because of it, infant mortality rates went way down. Reminder that there used to be a profession just for nursing babies back before this because mothers being unable to produce their own milk was such a big issue.

Breastfeeding (the innerworkings of it at least) is something that is actually quite complicated. A woman can't just turn her breasts on and off like that. That's not how it works. Not to mention that some babies require dietary aid that can't just come from breast milk alone, and sometimes the mother herself has those issues, and it isn't safe to nurse her baby because of it.

The Nestle incident was the result of vile marketing tactics that directly took advantage of women who had trouble breastfeeding, and as result, a fuckton of babies died. Basically, Nestle lied to the women about everything, and the babies died because the water their mothers would use to make the formula with wasn't clean, and shit. At least, that's the extent of my knowledge about it.

Anyway, sorry to derail the conversation. Just thought it'd be better to explain shit because sometimes people just don't know any better.

Thanks, I actually didn't know this.

 

[sperginity]

Reminder that there used to be a profession just for nursing babies back before this because mothers being unable to produce their own milk was such a big issue.

even before money I am sure that women that did this to help each other out got extra food & favors in return. a huge benefit for a socially cooperative species. part of prepping needs to be having some people to trust and reach out to.

 

[Pissmaster]

No, I don't prep and find preppers to be Boomer tier clowns most of the time. I have some flashlights, batteries and the usual over the counter medical stuff people have. I also have some extra food. But I don't do any of that long term prepping for a whatever doomsday event Boomers doom-splain about all the time.

This prepper shit goes all the way back to the days of Y2K and the hysteria that hoax caused. I often joked that some whacked out Boomer somewhere still has old cans of baked beans, MRE's and jugs of stale water down in their basement from Y2K.

Then in the early 2010's you had all the retards prepping for a zombie apocalypse. So far, I have yet to see a single prepper tard that isn't some obese boomer. Like the people who go on about prepping and are 300 pounds and can't even walk to their fridge without getting winded. The first week of depending on their prepper stash they would eat it all. It's absolutely ridiculous.

I am not talking about people prepping for an actual disaster like a hurricane, earthquake or wildfire. Yes, get some stuff for that. Prepare and if the local authorities say leave you should. Especially if you are in an area of the country gets hit hard by those kinds of disasters. I don't live in a state that does. In the mid 2000's we had a hurricane come up the East Coast. I ate a couple cans of cold Beefaroni and took a cold as shower. I didn't have power for 3.5 days. It was hot as shit. But I made it through.

The rest of us are looking at you like:

 

[Tacitus Kilgore]

If you had a baby, a grandbaby, or knew someone who did, you'd be really fucking glad you stocked baby formula right now.

When they locked us down for two weeks and the shelves went absolutely bare, guess who had flour and yeast and everything when no one else did.

If you don't see the shelves going bare again, you're not paying attention. If you have the kind of money where hyperinflation doesn't affect you, then God bless.

I don't have kids. Like most millennials I can't afford to have kids.

I went through the lock down and I never once engaged in any panic buying. I survived. I was in a store the other day, and everything was fine supply wise. I could find whatever I wanted.

The US isn't suffering from hyperinflation at all.

 

[sperginity]

I don't have kids. Like most millennials I can't afford to have kids.

I went through the lock down and I never once engaged in any panic buying. I survived. I was in a store the other day, and everything was fine supply wise. I could find whatever I wanted.

The US isn't suffering from hyperinflation at all.

genuine question: why do you post in this thread? You are opposed to the topic on principle and are unlikely to convert anyone in the thread to your view point.

 

[Tacitus Kilgore]

genuine question: why do you post in this thread? You are opposed to the topic on principle and are unlikely to convert anyone in the thread to your view point.

I wanted to.

 

[General Disarray]

OK so we've just gotten a large chest freezer *hallelujah!* I have a lot of stock insofar as jars for freezing but I am overwhelmed with the varieties of vacuum sealers. I read the OP in re: mylar for storage, but if anyone has a good suggestion for a budget sealer, and if the mylar bags Strorbs linked to in the OP would be compatible. Thank you in advance and sorry if it's been answered already, kinda in a whirlwind as I got a new dishwasher too and it's like Christmas over here.

eta: I love love love the old '60's Ball canning guide my mom gave me and will start eyeballing pressure cookers.

 

[StrawberryDouche]

OK so we've just gotten a large chest freezer *hallelujah!* I have a lot of stock insofar as jars for freezing but I am overwhelmed with the varieties of vacuum sealers. I read the OP in re: mylar for storage, but if anyone has a good suggestion for a budget sealer, and if the mylar bags Strorbs linked to in the OP would be compatible. Thank you in advance and sorry if it's been answered already, kinda in a whirlwind as I got a new dishwasher too and it's like Christmas over here.

eta: I love love love the old '60's Ball canning guide my mom gave me and will start eyeballing pressure cookers.

From what I understand, most heat sealers on the vacuum sealers will not work on Mylar. You need an impulse sealer. They also will not pull a vacuum because Mylar is not embossed.

HOWEVER

Most people, myself included, use either an iron or a hair straightener to seal Mylar bags. Either of these things you would use on the hottest setting. With the hair straightener, you want to glide it. With an iron, you want to lay the edge along something hard. A lot of people use a 2x4 or similar. If you have a tile floor, you can just do that.

Congrats on the freezer! That's very exciting!

 

[General Disarray]

From what I understand, most heat sealers on the vacuum sealers will not work on Mylar. You need an impulse sealer. They also will not pull a vacuum because Mylar is not embossed.

HOWEVER

Most people, myself included, use either an iron or a hair straightener to seal Mylar bags. Either of these things you would use on the hottest setting. With the hair straightener, you want to glide it. With an iron, you want to lay the edge along something hard. A lot of people use a 2x4 or similar. If you have a tile floor, you can just do that.

Congrats on the freezer! That's very exciting!

Sweet, as I have an old curling iron I never use lol. How clever you are, and thank you for the info!

PS: miss your reeecaps on the Amy thread

edit: apparently the deep pockets of the steak-loving man require that I purchase fancy machinery. It's a guy thing, I must abide. Help appreciated, will avoid Amazon. I refuse to ruin good food over the long-term.

 

[RollerGator]

What's the point of prepping when I can just find a prepper, bonk him on the head, and take all his stuff?

 

[StrawberryDouche]

edit: apparently the deep pockets of the steak-loving man require that I purchase fancy machinery. It's a guy thing, I must abide. Help appreciated, will avoid Amazon. I refuse to ruin good food over the long-term

As far as the vacuum sealer goes, I too got overwhelmed and gave up trying to choose one. All the reviews are so mixed. Someone I know has the FoodSaver and loves it, someone else I know hates it.

Whichever one you choose, make sure it has an external hose port, though. That way you can get the jar attachments if you want.

What's the point of prepping when I can just find a prepper, bonk him on the head, and take all his stuff?

That's what the ammo's for, baby!

 

[RollerGator]

That's what the ammo's for, baby!

My ammo now!

 

[sperginity]

I am trying to incubate some chicken eggs because none of my hens are broody & I am worried they might be getting too old to keep providing eggs,
It is a real small incubator and I gotta turn em' manually. I don't want to order eggs from a catalog, I want to get competent at raising chicks from the flock. I think I had the temp too low for the first batch (I had like 5 eggs). It is set to 38 now.... I know the hatch rate is like 50% even if you do everything right so it is possible that the first batch was just bad. I would love any advice. Something I can candle the eggs with properly is coming next week.

 

[Casket Base]

For my fellow rentfags: I planted a bunch of herbs and cherry tomatoes in a tiered planter. The trade-off for saving space is poor drainage so be mindful when watering and don't leave it out in heavy rain.


Everything I planted in this is doing okay so far. I also tried to grow carrots in a potato bag (one of those tarp ones with the handles) but they wilted in a recent heat wave. The cherry tomatoes are doing very well, so some of the seedlings might get transferred to the bag. Waste not, want not.

I grew everything from seed, so if you get plant starters instead they'll do even better.

Herb list:
- basil
-parsley
-shiso aka japanese mint
-cilantro
-chives
-scallions

On foraging: I recently found some wild strawberries in a nearby park. They're still in flower mode, so I'll be back to check on them soon. Just wanted to reiterate the point that nature always finds a way, so scout out anything that might be growing in your area even if it's developed.

Some observations: many of my neighbors are starting gardens this year. I'm talking boomers, who have lived here for years, digging up their front lawns to grow vegetables like squash, potatoes, carrots, etc. With the recent news of an impending wheat shortage, I've noticed pasta is in even shorter supply. There were weird gaps in what was available before (like the "pot spaghetti" being in stock while regular spaghetti was not) but now entire shelves are bare. I stocked up on flour, but still look just in case and it, too, is absent.

I'm not out to twist people's arms into prepping, but if you don't have a plan B already you're behind the curve. Better safe than sorry.

If you think you're just gonna steal shit when SHTF, I have a bridge to sell ya.

 

[Blasted Heath]

This prepper shit goes all the way back to the days of Y2K and the hysteria that hoax caused. I often joked that some whacked out Boomer somewhere still has old cans of baked beans, MRE's and jugs of stale water down in their basement from Y2K.

Late but this reminds me of a late relative of mine, who prepped a little too much for Y2K and kept most of the supplies. Guess who had all the toilet paper when covid hit and people panic-bought all of it...old fart had the last laugh!

Edited because I'm a computer illiterate noob