A student who has spent the last six years preparing for the apocalypse has detailed his meticulous planning, which includes taking a bag of emergency supplies with him wherever he goes.
Alex Mason, 17, who is a doomsday prepper – someone who is actively preparing for a global catastrophe – stockpiles food such as rice and canned goods, has taught himself impressive survival skills and even set up an Instagram account with his friend Myles Allen, 17, to spread the word.
Explaining why he believes the world is heading for impending disaster, Alex, who is from New Hampshire, said: ‘All you need to do is look around you at the state the world is in today, to see how many things can go wrong.
‘I take an emergency backpack with me everywhere I go full of supplies like water, first aid items and enough food to last me a couple of days so I can get home safely.’
Alex and a handful of his friends first got into prepping – or survivalism – around six years ago, after seeing continued news coverage of atrocities happening all over the globe.
He continued: ‘It struck me just how many ways it could all go wrong. I had no idea at the time there were people out there actually preparing for this stuff, but as I researched, I came across a few survivalists.
‘I realized there was this whole community out there.’
Since then, Alex has busied himself preparing for the end of the world in as many ways as possible.
Rather than limiting himself by preparing for specific scenarios, such as world war or natural disasters like some preppers, he tries to be as broad as possible.
Scouring YouTube and Instagram for tips, he is largely self-taught in survivalism, and has mastered skills like first aid, bushcraft – which includes fire starting and shelter building – and how to forage.
He has also taken self-defense classes and learned how to build basic snares to trap animals.
As soon as he gets his license, he will learn how to hunt, hoping this will make him entirely self-sufficient.
‘There’s a prepper saying – SHTF. It stands for s**t hits the fan. When that happens, you’re not going to be able to call a plumber, or a builder, or anything like that,’ he said.
‘You need to know those day-to-day skills. It’s almost like preparing yourself to start all over again from scratch.
‘Some preppers spend hundreds of thousands on getting things ready, but I’ve actually barely spent anything, apart from on my food stockpile. It is possible to do it for very little money.’
In November 2014, Alex and Myles set up an Instagram to share their experiences with the world.
Their posts chronicle their adventures from when they first started out and were relatively inexperienced in survival skills, to where they are today – completely and utterly able to fend for themselves.
‘We post a lot on the Instagram to help other people, sharing tips and reviewing equipment,’ said Alex.
‘We also share our own experiences. We venture out a lot overnight to put our skills to the test, which has been hugely educational.
‘When we first started out, we ventured in the woods one freezing night, and the temperatures dipped well below freezing. We didn’t have the correct equipment at all, so we learned a lot from that about how important it is to be prepared.’
Although Alex’s friends and family all support him and say they understand his reasoning, he has faced some negativity online.
He continued: ‘Myles runs the Instagram with me and we kept our identity hidden at first.
‘Then, we decided to reveal who we were, as we realized how many other people out there understand prepping, and are doing it themselves.
‘Some people call us insane and mock us, but there’s also a lot of support.
‘You’ve only got to look around you to understand where I’m coming from.’
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-5289075/Doomsday-prepper-teen-prepares-apocalypse.html#ixzz54ewUhej2
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“…Since then, Alex has busied himself preparing for the end of the world in as many ways as possible….”
Did he say he was preparing for the “end of the world”, or did he say “‘All you need to do is look around you at the state the world is in today, to see how many things can go wrong”??
The kid made a perfectly sensible, and rational statement, but the Daily Mail rag had to make him look like a lunatic by calling him a “doomsday prepper”, and claiming he’s preparing for the “end of the world”.
He’s preparing for an economic collapse, and anyone with a basic knowledge of economics or history knows it’s a wise thing to do.