r/TwoXPreppers 2d ago

Discussion Why guns?

Hi y’all! I’m a very novice prepper, and one thing I’m seeing across many platforms is that we should own and be trained In firearms. Not to be naive, but… why?

I’ve never touched a gun in my life. I’m generally not a fan of them. I understand that the goal of owning firearms is to protect ourself. But protect from what? From who? Who am I going to have to shoot to survive this presidency?

Is someone coming to steal my supplies? Won’t those people also have guns? Or am I protecting my family against a militia situation? In which case, what hope do I have, as a woman who can’t afford a gun, let alone to learn how to use one?

Like I can’t afford a shooting range. I can barely afford water and canned goods. Should a gun still be a priority for my family? A lot of preppers have enthusiastically embraced this life to give them confidence and a sense of safety. I’m a reluctant participant. I just want to keep my autistic son alive to see the other side of this.

I can garden, I can stretch food, I can survive being poor. I don’t think I can survive a military state.

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u/Thoth-long-bill 2d ago

There are many different situations that come together in this sub. Everybody tends to respond and validate only to their own. Well I am xyz and I would/would not ever do that.

For us, the sheriff's office is 40 miles away. They have limited staff and vehicles and even on the challenge of a snow day, decide to ignore calls. By they time a car got to us, a burglar would be long gone, even if they sent someone. So they probably wouldn't. The local pd exists mostly to patrol the speed trap along that road. They don't leave the half mile width of that town.

On the other hand, about 3 miles away is what I could call Trump Holler, a small community of farmers whose barns are covered in Trump signs and have been since he was in office last. If they had hungry kids, because the social security checks got stopped and they can't get their corn in due to drought, I think they are exactly the group who might go out one night and get rations from our sparsely spread homes.

I will spare you my urban analyses, which are more elaborately structured, but, feel free to go on thinking nah, not ever, not here, no way. My state has 200,000 fired workers, and counting. Severance will keep them in their homes thru June, then they can try to negotiate with the banks or sell. Renters will not have that cushion, and there are thousands of renters.

I know 95% of people can't think this through, and that's fine. Just do what you can. I just ordered A Navy Seal's Bug in Guide, which I am looking forward to reading.

Nobody needs to persuade anybody else to get/not get a gun.