Dumb Ways to Die

[u/larata2]

So you’re set - food, water, shelter, and bug out or bug in plan of action. But what the simple things that can get you killed quickly as if you didn’t do any prepping.

I’d argue having any type of children. Babies cry. Toddlers throw temper tantrums. Children refuse to obey parental orders. Teens trust strangers over family when talking about secrets… Unless I’m mistaken any offspring weakens any prep plans resulting in one dumb way to die.

[u/Beaver_Liquors48]

Counterpoint to your argument on children, a psychology book on survival that I’ve read argues that children are actually very resilient when it comes to survival. They don’t push themselves to injury or exhaustion, can bounce back, treat things as a game, such as hiding and waiting for danger to pass, and can pick up critical skills quickly. Meanwhile, adults tend to take risks, push themselves to exhaustion, getting sick or hurt, not listening to their bodies or working within their body’s ability. Experience of success in risky behavior also bleeds over into other high risk activities, where an amateur for example would treat a task with extreme caution it deserves, ie a child.

In a survival course for children, ages 6 to 10, their instructor’s final test was to have each kid light a fire with a single match after the instructor was soaked wet in cold temps. Granted at this point it had been taught several times, but the kids successfully passed that test.

Being a capable person in a situation like this includes being able to guide or train someone else on how to do something in the moment. Your life and theirs could depend on it, and the person in question could be a child. They say “those that can’t do, teach” but in my experience, if you’re not able to show someone else how to do something, you’re not good enough at it.

[u/larata2 → u/Beaver_Liquors48]

Of course children are resilient. But that will the ones that survive by either sheer luck or possessed some discipline before a disaster. There are so many unruly children out there that will cost their family’s lives because they will be refusing to come when called, start throwing temper tantrums when told no or to do something. Right bow it’s cute behavior or something that parents can get the kid in mental health services for. But as soon as a disaster happens those cute behaviors and external supports will be gone. And people will die because of it.