HarshGeometry, I think your dead on in that observation. I share the same opinion as you do to that end. I think as Leon has done you can break it down into sub catagorys from there as he eluded to.
I dont plan on any one event or problem. There are several I can see happening down the road at the drop of a hat. I live in Tornado Alley! Its a very real possibility here where I live. Severe weather here can happen really quick with little prior warning. Just 3 years ago I got caught outside in the field when a Tornado touched down just a couple hundred yards away before we had a chance to beat feet for shelter or even a ditch to hunker down in. I think we had something like 13 touch downs that day in the surrounding area. Severe Ice Storms are usually an issue here 2-3 times a year and while most are over in 2-3 days we have had them last for a good 2 weeks at a shot. We usually loose power, travelling the road ways is insainlely stupid as these people here dont have chains and dont know how to drive on that crap. Stores are raped clean with in a matter of hours just before we get hit. Torrential down pours that cuase flooding if we have a wet season can definitely be an issue. I have had to evacuate to higher ground on occasion in some of the locals where I have lived around the lake area here. Before the current financial crisis I have been unemployed for extended periods of time and had it not been for my stash of supplies I would have been totally screwed 8 ways till Sunday. The going was tough but it wasnt nearly as tough as it would have been without my stash of food and supplies! Then there is the high possibility of a Financial collapes as the world as well as the US struggle to right itself. I dont see Akmound Madinanutjob nuking the US any time soon as a high probability. I dont see a pandemic break Out of SARS or Ebola being all that high of a possibility. I dont think a World War will break out anytime in the next couple of weeks. But really who knows for sure...
What I have tried to do is prep as best I can for the things I think are most likely to effect me directly and look at ways I can be more self sustaining and less dependent of the infrastructure that so many Americans have become entirely too dependent on. If you can put yourself in a position where you have food, water and shelter, your likely to find yourself sitting pretty good, especially when you compare yourself to others around you who are sheeple. Here is some things I have done in addition to just simply stock piling things (space is a primium here and I dont have a lot of it!)to put myself on more solid ground.
I didnt just get a couple of #10 cans of heirloom seeds and think to myself if the SHTF Ill just plant a garden and in a couple weeks be fat dumb and happy. No despite my small lot I actually have a few raised garden beds and garden about half my food from them! Not only does it save me money now it gives me the valuable skill and knowledge I will need if there is a day where gardening enough to eat is the difference in life or death. The wrong time to learn is when you got to learn while you burn so to speak.
I didnt go and buy a few cases of bottled water. No I bought a 350 gallon tank and filled that baby up! I also live 100ft from a huge Lake! Unless the water becomes toxic Im not going to run out of water for a while. Yes I have the means to filter a awful lot of water as well if I need to.
Meat for protien. I live next to a well stocked lack thats a good fishery. Im a good enough and skilled fishermen that if I aint catching any thats a good clue your time is probably better spent at home watching another football game and drinking another 12 pack of beer. I have no illusions that with enough fishing pressure from a hungry public the pickings could get a little slim. Thats why I also have Rabbits and put a few in the freezer from time to time. Its not a big operation but I do have enough breeding stock and enough material on hand to quickly expand the operation to a more sustainable size quickly. Again while I wait for the S to HTF, I can again defray a lot of my cost for shopping at the grocery store for food.
Now dont get me wrong with all of this going I have to have a way to protect it from being raped, pillaged and looted in a society WROL. I aint Rambo but I think I got this pretty well covered adequately too. I have enough guns to arm myself and a pretty good number of "friendlies" that may be joining me. While I cant support an insurgency, if the LA Riots ever come to my neck of the woods they will quickly decide it might be better to go somewhere else where the pickings will be much easier than they would be here. I have a good bit of ammunition to back it up. While I have a lot of ammunition, Im a reloader and have the components I need to reload ammo for a long time to come even if I couldnt procure more components in the future. Then again I might not survive the first confrontaion. In that case I guess I really dont need anything then do I?
Thats not all I have done, plan to do or will do. But it does give you and idea of where I am going and where I am coming from. Its not perfect but I think its a lot better than what most other folks have planned. It would be interesting to see where others here plan on doing.