History has shown when people get hungry enough they will turn to cannibalism . Stalingrad and the Donner party trapped in the Sierra Nevada mountains just thrown out as a couple of examples . Most non preppers don't have the mind set or skills to survive when the stores close . The obvious food source is to eat other people . How prevalent will this become with the power grid down ?
In the major cities, folks are going to start looking like Long Pork, very quickly. When the looted stores / businesses do not re-open, then all these starving folks are going to be screwed. No fuel, no means of transportation and no food, water or sanitation. Now add in no law enforcement and what other choices to these folks have? No crops, very limited land, no seeds and no applicable skills. Being a Liberal Arts major is not going to help.
I don't think the average bloke on the street is going to be much of a problem, but I do think that there will be those that will readily turn to cannibalism in order to survive. These will probably be the most dangerous people we may have to deal with post TEOTWAWKI, because they are not just after what you have, they are after you! There may well for some be no point at which they will say "This is not worth it". They will eat their dead comrades & dig in until they either get you, or they are all dead. These are the real life zombies. Keith.
October 1972 an Uruguayan Airforce flight crashed with a rugby team aboard. Twenty-eight of 45 survived the crash and 72 days later 16 were rescued. They only survived because of cannibalism. If you died and you were the only food your family had, would you want them to eat you or die. I'd prefer that they poop me out and wrote a book about it. Somebody hunting me for dinner better be prepared. I won't be a volunteer for them.
Survival is not for the sensitive. You will need to do what ever is required to keep you and the family alive. If I have been such a poor prepper and provider, that my family needs to eat me (after I have died, hopefully) then so be it.
I think cannibalism in a prepping sense is a non starter, if one has to resort to it to survive then they have failed as a prepper/survivalist. whether the masses will resort to it when they have no food is another question, I think the ones that will are low in number, and probably intellect too!
Do any of you remember when Sandy hit the Northeast coast a few years back. Everyone was warned to prepare for it. They all were told to store food as well. Within 3 days people were dumpster diving for food. This is a picture of Sandy victims.
I saw that, I also remember one lady who when interviewed said "I have no food in the house" that was 24 HOURS after the storm. people eh? we have people like that here too, during a power cut one guy said "its like living in the middle ages!" no its not you idiot its just a power cut.(it had been less than ONE DAY at this point).
Turning to Cannibalism? I know it has been done in the past, but the thought is so repulsive to me I can't even fathom it. I think I would take a Bible; find a spot on the highest mountain available; make peace with God cash in my own chips.
What if you prepared well ahead of time, and stored lots of food, but this happens?: What good is a house full of food if you can't use the house?
Why build in a flood plane? If you are counting on the dikes or dam to hold back the waters, then you have chosen to live in a future disaster zone. We all know it is not IF but WHEN. In locations like this, store small amount of MRI's in the attic and an inflatable boat. Sooner or later you are going to need them.
Are we really sure that the eating of Spam is not cannibalism? I once opened a can of Spam and something looked back at me. At first, I recoiled in horror. But then again the Spam was bacon-flavored, so I just fried it up anyway.
You should know if you are building in a flood plane, but there are no guarantees that it won't change. We have lived in the same area for over 40 years. Survived several floods that never caused us anything but a minor inconvenience. Through three houses we have never been in a flood plain, and still aren't. We even survived what was supposed to have been a 500 year flood. Well 17 years after the 500 year flood we had flood damage we had never seen. Houses across the street from us that had been high and dry now had 3-4 feet of water in their basements. What changed? A town to the west of us build a levee that was supposedly three feet higher than what was allowed. Everything I have read says a levee will cause damage or change things that are upstream; not downstream, so what changed. I agree with the consensus that there are only two kinds of levees; those that have failed, and those that are going to fail. I would hardily agree. Do not build in a flood plane, but Mother Nature is going to do whatever she wants. This is her planet, and we are lucky to be on it.
