The Lexicographer's Rules

I fear the stupidity of my fellow New Yorkers more than I fear a dirty bomb, another plane rammed into a building, or anything like that.

More than half of the survey’s respondents (53 percent) said that if they had to flee New York after a disaster, they would drive or take taxis. The report noted, however, that streets would likely be choked with traffic. Fifteen percent said they would ignore any orders to evacuate.

Not in the report:

—When their food and water supplies run low, 38% will order more from Fresh Direct. 18% will call the corner Chinese joint for more General Tsao’s chicken.

—If electricity fails, 32% will run an extension cord from a neighbor’s house. 62% will check the NYC government web site for government announcements about power restoration.

—If they run out of money, 43% will keep trying ATMs until they find one that works. 7% will steal extra cash from the drug dealers down the street. 19% are stockpiling cartons of cigarettes to use as currency.

I have enough canned goods, dry food, and water to last me a week. If the Warriors can make it from the Bronx to Coney Island overnight while pursued by gangs of angry New Yorkers, I figure a week is plenty of time for me get out of New York City and deep into Pennsylvania.

Preparedness is good. We’ve been pushing go bags at Making Light for a while now.

What I notice about the City of New York is that it has literature on emergency preparedness, and hands it out to the general public. The city also worries about how many of its people are clear on the concept. Meanwhile, the feds make all that noise about terrorism, but do you ever see them making a genuine effort to get everyone to pack go bags and have a stash of water?

Teresa, you and Patrick are part of the reason I have my own act together at all. Your posts about go bags have been very helpful (although being here for 9/11 and the blackout pushed me to act, too).

I agree that the NYC government does more than most places to make people more alert without invoking undue fear. I wish it was more effective, however. Maybe we can get Stephen King to release for free the pages of “The Stand” about getting through the tunnel under the Hudson to make people realize that driving in time of disaster is a bad, bad idea. And then top it off with the pages from Pournelle & Niven’s “Lucifer’s Hammer” about the relatively quick resort to cannibalism by those who were unprepared for the disaster in that book.

After Katrina hit last year I realized our government was going to do very little for those of us in need when we need it. I built a supply kit but have not invested in a “go bag” yet. I figure if I needed to I could fit most of my emergency supplies in my camping/hiking backpack as well as my backpacking tent, lights, emerency radio, etc.

I also make use of empty gallon water jugs and have about a dozen of them filled for emergency use, stacked in a corner.