‘Many vulnerabilities’: If you can’t buy groceries or medicines, what will you do?

If you can't buy groceries or medicines, what will you do?

The U.S. government states on ready.gov: "After an emergency, you may need to survive on your own for several days. Being prepared means having your own food, water and other

supplies to last for several days. A disaster supplies kit is a collection of basic items your household may need in the event of an emergency." The assumption is that government help will arrive quickly.

Meanwhile, the Pentagon's FORTRESS initiative, unveiled Sep 30, calls for major military installations to sustain operations independently for at least 90 days, without relying on civilian power grids, water supplies, fuel deliveries, or vulnerable supply chains.

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"Governments across Europe and Asia are increasingly encouraging citizens to maintain emergency supplies, including food, drinking water, medication, batteries, cash, and hygiene essentials" for "several days" or "at least one week."

I really don't like making posts like this one, but, something appears to be happening with emergency preparedness messaging around the world, and I think it's worth paying attention to.

Governments across Europe and Asia are increasingly encouraging citizens to maintain… pic.twitter.com/HMweKeuXrh

— Tom Thompson🛸 (ＣＯＲＴＥＸ ＺＥＲＯ) (@Cortex_Zero) October 27, 2026

No specific concerns are cited, but there are many vulnerabilities. Geopolitical instability disrupts supply chains. In addition to physical destruction, there is the threat of cyberattacks on essential services. Hackers using AI can efficiently search for software vulnerabilities.

An escalation in the Iran conflict has repeatedly been threatened. The asymmetry in electricity generation is instructive. While damage to the U.S. centralized grid could cause widespread havoc, Iran is much more resilient because its capacity is widely distributed. Strikes on substations could cause temporary, localized outages, but it is believed that they can be replaced relatively quickly. A coordinated attack on a small number of critical nodes in the U.S. could trigger coast-to-coast blackouts lasting months. Critical components must be imported, and there are already backlogs lasting months to years.

If you have been procrastinating on preparedness, today is the time to start. If you have already collected some supplies, reevaluate them today. If feasible, you might want to invest in a generator.

Additional information:

• An emergency medical kit.
• Nuclear War Survival Skills by Cresson Kearny: invaluable advice for any type of emergency: food, water storage, first aid, expedient shelter
• Radiation detection and monitoring; what to do if a nuclear attack is imminent.

Jane M. Orient, M.D.

Jane M. Orient, M.D., executive director of Association of American Physicians and Surgeons, has been in solo practice of general internal medicine since 1981 and is a clinical lecturer in medicine at the University of Arizona College Of Medicine. She received her undergraduate degrees in chemistry and mathematics from the University of Arizona and her M.D. from Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons. She is the author of "Sapira's Art and Science of Bedside Diagnosis"; the fourth edition has just been published by Lippincott, Williams & Wilkins. She also authored "YOUR Doctor Is Not In: Healthy Skepticism about National Health Care," published by Crown. Read more of Jane M. Orient, M.D.'s articles here.