Endgame: how Australian preppers are bugging out and hunkering down

Re:Endgame: how Australian preppers are bugging out and hunk... by ThinkingGuy on Monday October 29, 2018 @11:40AM (#18328366)

"He acknowledges there might be stigma attached to the word 'prepper' but stresses it is just about being prepared – whether that is for the armageddon or just for a flat tyre is up to the individual."

In the US, at least, I recall the term 'prepper' coming along relatively recently, as a softer, more friendly-sounding replacement for the previous term, "survivalist," which had acquired a connotation of "irrational, paranoid gun hoarder type."

Is this a case of the "euphamism treadmill" in action?

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Re:Endgame: how Australian preppers are bugging out and hunk... by manfredo on Monday October 29, 2018 @11:52AM (#18328481)

I guess one should reserve whatever connotation that comes with the word "prepper" until after hearing about the event for which this person is preparing. Preparing for many natural disasters (earthquake, tornado, hurricane) is very sensible for people who live in said areas. Some man made situations (infrastructure failures, fires, etc.) as well.

I don't know if it's a case of euphemism treadmill. The older term, "survivalist" doesn't seem to have the same negative connotation (but does have the different connotation of focusing more on survival in nature rather than survivng disasters in society).

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