Since the 2014 midterms happened just a few days ago, I had some thoughts regarding the politics of prepping. In a sense, this will represent the denouement of both the political season and the recent Prepper Fest AZ expo in Scottsdale.

My observation is that the preparedness movement represent one aspect of a larger political and social change that is going on within the United States. I say this because of a number of macro-level trends that are evident. These include:

• Greater firearms ownership.
• Increasing popularity of home-schooling and online education.
• Emergent grass-roots political movements (ex. Tea Party).
• Ongoing distrust of government and official institutions.

There are other components, but those are some ones that come immediately to mind. What all this points to is regular people are in-sourcing more aspects of their lives as trust in the Post War blue social model erodes. Part of this is out of necessity but I think most of it is due to citizens becoming more aware of how fragile civilization is.

So it is no surprise that there were politically-oriented organizations at the fall Prepper Fest AZ. Yes, there were the Birchers and the anti-GMO folk there but for the most part, the other political exhibitors were grounded in reality and the current zeitgeist. For example, there were Scottsdale and Northwest Valley Tea Party Patriots. Both seek to educate and motivate people to get more politically involved in promoting free market and pro-liberty ideals. This is in-line with what many in the prepping community already believe so its a naturally good combination. Both patriot groups represented themselves well and were pleasant to visit with.

One that I was not very familiar with was Project Appleseed. This organization teaches both marksmanship and citizenship at weekend camps across the USA. Its a great way to get involved, get outside, get smart, and get trained by experienced instructors. Its something to look into, especially if you want to get your family more involved in shooting rifles.

FairTax was there too. This group advocates repealing the 16th Amendment and eliminating the IRS in favor of a flat, national sales tax. While I think replacing the current tax structure would be difficult right now, FairTax does lay-out an alternative. My opinion is that some states will adopt this form of taxation in order to become more competitive.

The Center for Self Governance was in attendance too. They conduct classes to educate citizens on how to become more effective in republican self-governance. The goal is more citizen involvement in government rather than ceding more control to elected and unelected officials. Instead of complaining about government, The Center for Self Governance shows how regular people can effectively organize and change politics. Engaging through the process and institutions is how lasting change can become reality.

These are increasingly mainstream ideas as Tuesday’s election results demonstrated. While many in the prepping movement could use some coaching and refinement to make themselves more acceptable to Middle America, many of the political fellow travelers have learned how to broaden their appeal. What’s apparent is that the politics of prepping are increasingly mainstream and popular.