Prepping Terms And Phrases

Today is the first official day of the Scripps National Spelling Bee. Here are some common phrases and acronyms used in the prepping communities.

2A: Second Amendment

72-Hour Bag: A bugout bag that is designed to last you three days

100 MPH Tape: A type of very strong duct tape

550 Cord: Paracord

AHBL: All H**l Breaks Loose

ALICE: All-purpose Lightweight Individual Carrying Equipment

Alpha Strategy: Storing extra supplies for the purpose of bartering

ARES: Amateur Radio for Emergency Service

Big Berkey: A brand of family water filtration systems

BLOB: Blackout Bag

BOB: Bugout Bag

BOL: Bugout Location

BOV: Bugout Vehicle

BSTS: Better Safe Than Sorry

BUG: Backup Gun

Bugout: Evacuating from a dangerous situation

Bugin: Staying indoors during a dangerous situation

Bushcraft: The art of learning skills that can help you survive in the wild

C-Ration: Combat Ration

Cache: A collection of survival supplies buried or hidden along your evac route

CERT: Community Emergency Response Team

CME: Coronal Mass Ejection, a massive solar flare that causes an EMP

CUSH: Could Use Some Help

Doomer: A hardcore prepper who believes disaster is coming and chaos will ensue

EDC: Everyday Carry

ELE: Extinction Level Event

EMP: Electromagnetic Pulse

EOD: End Of Day, sometimes called End Of Times

EROL: Excessive Rule Of Law, or Police State

Evac: Evacuation

FAK: First Aid Kit

Faraday Cage: A metal device that shields electronics from EMP strikes

FIFO: First In, First Out

Food Insurance: The emergency food stockpile you have at home

Gamma Lid: A food-grade airtight lid used to cover buckets that store food and water

Genny: Generator

GHB: Get Home Bag

GOOD: Get Out Of Dodge

Grid Down: the power grid is down causing a blackout

HAZMAT: Hazardous Material

Ham: An amateur radio

HEMP: High-Altitude Electromagnetic Pulse

Homestead: An isolated home that is off-grid and self-sufficient

ICE: In Case of Emergency

INCH: I'm Not Coming Home

JIC: Just In Case

KISS: Keep It Simple Stupid

Larder: A pantry where you store your emergency food and supplies

LEO: Law Enforcement Officer

LOS: Line Of Sight

LTS: Long Term Survival

MAG: Mutal Aid Group of like-minded preppers that have each other's back

Molon Labe: A Greek term meaning, "Come and get them". This phrase often refers to firearms

MRE: Meals Ready to Eat

Mylar Bag: A foil-like bag that serves as a barrier between the food inside of it and direct sunlight outside of it

Nav: Navigation

NBC: Nuclear, Biological, Chemical

OPSEC: Operational Security

Off-Grid: A lifestyle choice where you do everyday living tasks without being connected to public utilities like the power grid

PACE: Primary, Alternate, Contingency, Emergency plan

PDW: Personal Defense Weapon

Pollyanna: Someone who denies a major disaster will occur, also called zombies

Potable: Drinkable

Preps: Another word for your emergency supplies

Prepper: A normal person who strives to be disaster-ready

Rendezvous Point: A pre-determined location where your family, friends, and group members plan to meet in the event you all become separated

Rule Of Three: Also called the 3 rule. This means you can't survive 3 minutes without air, 3 hours without shelter in harsh environments, 3 days without water, and 3 weeks without food

SA: Situational Awareness

SAR: Search And Rescue

SCARE: Social Chaos And Response Emergencies such as a riot

SERE: Survival, Evasion, Resistance, Escape

Sheeple: People who are largely unprepared and follow the crowd. They know disaster is coming, but swear the government will save them

SHTF: S**t Hits The Fan

Supervolcano: A Volcano that has a VEI ( Volcanic Explosivity Index) over 8

TBTF: Too Big To Fail

TEOTWAWKI: The End OF The World As We Know It

TOPO: Topographical Map

Two Is One, One Is None: You'll need to have two of the same pieces of critical survival gear because there is a good chance that one will break at the worst time

WMD: Weapons of Mass Destruction

WROL: Without Rule Of Law

YOYO: You're On Your Own