Awhile ago, some bright folks who were interested in disaster readiness decided to start a website about preparation. Looking for a theme, they asked the question - "What is the worst case disaster scenario?"The answer, of course, is a zombie apocalypse.
Thus began Zombie Squad, a tongue-in-cheek website dedicated to promoting preparedness and self-sufficiency. A good portion of the population seems to have this fantasy of post-apocalyptic living in a small farm way out in the mountains, but that's really unlikely (any catastrophic event that causes society to collapse will most likely kill you outright, and if it doesn't, it will probably destroy all your carefully laid preperations anyway.) There are your required discussions on "which caliber is best for the PAW (post apocalyptic world)?" as if anyone knows what that's actually going to be like. Finally, you get a few people who don't realize that the zombies are a metaphor, and try to start topics like "what weapon is best for killing zombies - shovel or katana?"
If you take the time to look around, you'll discover a ton of information on nearly everything disaster related. Some of the most fascinating threads are in the "Personal Experiences" section, including some from survivors of Katrina. There's sections devoted to topics as widespread as firearms to personal gardening.
A quick aside on preparedness in general before I continue:
Talking about disaster preparedness makes most people think of bearded men in surplus camoflage eating canned beans in an underground concrete bunker. That's not being prepared, that's being paranoid. What's the point of focusing so much on saving your life that you forget to live it? Also, being prepared isn't just for when the bombs fall - it's for all sorts of unexciting (yet far more likely) scenarios. Off the top of your head - if your power went off tonight, would you be able to create light? Heat? Food? What if it stayed off for a week?
I live in Washington, D.C., which has had in the past year several subway malfunctions and a deadly crash - on a train which I would have been on if I hadn't decided to bike to school that day. It made me think - if I had been on that train, and not disabled in the initial crash, would I have been able to help anyone? I'm an EMT, and while I could have done some basic triage and airway management and probably have improvised some splints or bandages thanks to my Wilderness First Responder training, I would have been alot more effective with some Kerlix rolls and a SAM splint. What if it had happened underground? I didn't carry any kind of light.
Now, I keep a some basic first aid supplies, enough to stop major bleeding, wrap a sprained ankle, and splint a broken bone, as well as a flashlight, some Cliff bars, a swiss army knife, and two liters of water. It all fits in the back pocket of the backpack that has all my Arabic stuff in it, and doesn't weigh much at all. I'm going to be adding a bicycle patch kit and tools soon. Some people think it's funny that I carry all that around but to be honest, I don't really notice it anymore, and having first-hand experience treating people who thought "it would never happen to them," I'd rather err on the side of caution. I mean, I'd rather be trying to stop a bleeding gash on my leg with a proper sterile dressing and bandage, as opposed to a torn up shirt.
Anyway, ZS is not only a great resource for prepping, but it's a fascinating example of internet community. The site's members range from veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan to liberal arts majors from England, and they all get along because of two rules - No Politics, no Religion.
There is no opportunity on the site to discuss either of those two topics, and it's quite impressive how much people from different backgrounds get along when you simply ignore those issues.
It's an online community that approaches a serious topic with humor and intelligence. It promotes volunteer work and raises money for charities. It's about zombies. So check it out.
