Survivalist vs Survivor: Which are you?

Fact: Very few of us are actually surviving anything.

Think about that for a moment. The vast majority of us are merely developing knowledge and skills that would make our lives much more pleasant and endurable in the event of a cataclysmic event of some kind. We are not survivors. We are merely doing our best to prepare to survive if we have to. So why all the self-righteousness that I see so frequently from so many “survivalists”? The looking down their nose at those who are not as “hard core” as they are? Why do some resort to name calling like “arm chair survivalist”?

I get it… Having every episode of Survivorman at home on DVD does not make you a “survivalist” or self-reliant. And sure… everyone thinks that their way is the best way. And because of this they belittle others who do it differently than they do.

You don’t have to be living in a "spiderhole" drinking your own urine and eating grubs to be a bonefide survivalist. In fact... you don't have to prove anything to anyone at all. Disaster preparedness is not about earning the approval of others. In fact, quite the contrary.

Even camping and backpacking enthusiasts are doing this without even realizing it. So are hunters and fishermen. Don’t you think that spending time in the woods and learning how to make yourself comfortable in it and actually enjoying time spent in the wilderness before you have to… that isn’t going to help you in a survival situation? Knowing how to catch a fish or bring down a deer? Those skills wouldn’t probably come in handy in a survival situation?

Mastery of firebow and/or hand drill skills, while impressive, will arguably not get you through the apocalypse anymore than knowing how to use a lighter. make you a survivalist?

There is no place for piety or self-righteousness in survivalism. Those qualities come from of arrogance, and arrogance gets you hurt or killed.

Recently I have read some rantings from various individuals who seem to believe that “prepper” is just a watered down PC version of “survivalist”, or people who spend time in the woods camping and backpacking are inferior to true survivalists, etc. My thoughts? Who cares about the semantics and the true meanings of these fairly meaningless terms?

I think one of the main reasons military and former military are so comfortable and capable in the “survivalist” realm is that they are equipped with so many experiences, skills, and understandings that most of us are not. They are forced to push themselves to the limit. They know what their bodies can endure and what they can’t. They are forced to go without sleep, live in all sorts of terrains and climates, and simply pushed to the limit both physically and mentally. Soldiers know themselves in ways that many of us don’t.

My point in all of this? Survivalist, prepper, backpacker, hunter, family camper, fisherman, bushcrafter… it doesn’t matter. Why waste time trying to define yourself or others when you would be so much better off just developing skills, learning, spending time in the woods practicing what you have learned, seeing what you are capable of, what you are not, and push your limits a bit and learn from your experiences.

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