As I read and visit with like-minded folks, one the subjects
that frequently arises is that of need versus want. 

Coffee.  Flowers.  Air conditioning.  Sugar. 
Wool socks.  Antibiotics.  Refrigeration.

Are they needs or wants? 
And who gets to decide?

We do.  We decide
whether to fill our lives with needs or wants and how to distinguish between
them. 

I see preppers judging other preppers based on what they
perceive as needs or wants, and it’s a really bad idea.  What you view as a want, or even a luxury,
may indeed be a crucial need for them. 
And it may be crucial for you as well, even if you don’t recognize it.  Here are some examples:

Refrigeration.  Being
able to keep fresh milk or leftovers cold is often perceived as an
industrialized world want that preppers better learn to live without.  However, for insulin-dependent diabetics and
others who need to keep medications cool, reliable refrigeration is a true
need.  For my type-1 diabetic husband and me, refrigeration approaches prepping obsession. 
I think we’ve got eight options for it now. 

Air conditioning. 
Along the same lines, some people, particularly the elderly,
immunocompromised, and those with some forms of heart disease, risk death if
they become overheated.  They’ve got to
have plans in place for keeping cool.  If
moving to a cooler climate isn’t an option, they need to have generators and
fuel for running the AC, maybe even just a small unit in a bathroom.  It seems like a tremendous problem to me, but
it’s not my problem, so I haven’t
spent a lot of time working through solutions. 
I just think it’s important to recognize that for some people, keeping
cool is a need, not a want.

Coffee is a real addiction for some.  I think coffee addicts are going to be in a
world of hurt when they can no longer satisfy their need.  I don’t envy the headaches that will come
with withdrawals.  But for some people,
coffee can actually be a medicinal need. 
It helps elevate low blood pressure that can occur in the elderly after
a meal.  And it can help asthmatics as
well.  I find it easier and cheaper to
store caffeine pills, but sometimes you need the caffeine to get into the
bloodstream ASAP, and that’s where the coffee comes in.  (A couple of years ago, my local Grocery
Outlet store—I really miss that place!—had a grocery cart full of cans of
coffee for something like 50 cents each. 
It was such a screaming deal that I really struggled with whether I
should buy some for barter.  Ultimately,
I decided I didn’t want to waste the space with a product we didn’t use.  I still wonder whether I made the right
decision.)  For what it’s worth, tobacco
also has a limited medicinal application. 
But I’m not going there today, or ever possibly.  And yes, the cigarette (unlit) does go there. 
Better to prep in other ways. 

Sugar.  As a nation,
we’re a bunch of sugar addicts.  We
really don’t need all that we consume, and we’ll become a lot healthier when we
can’t consume all we wish.  However, it’s
also interesting to hear preppers say they won’t use the recommended 60 pounds
of sugar per year and hear them mock others who store that or more.  Sugar is a preservative.  It makes canned foods and jams last longer.  Sugar (and honey) are also antibacterial
wound dressings.  Sugar feeds yeast so
that breads rise better and/or faster. 
It helps hide the off taste of powdered milk.  I’d call a generous supply of sugar a need,
not a luxury.  And yet, most of us will
be better off with less of it. 

Oil is like sugar in many ways, especially from a
preparedness viewpoint.  We don’t need
all we consume, we’ll be healthier when we cut back, and most say they would
never use that much oil (20 pounds or pints recommended per person for a year).  Like sugar, some cooking oils, especially
coconut and olive, have medicinal uses. 
Mostly oil is valued because it can make so many foods that are
unpalatable raw into something quite delicious when cooked in oil.  And again, like sugar, we can grow our own
here but it takes a whole lot of effort to grow the food and then process it
into oil. 

Wool and other animal fibers.  Those who
live in cold climates are familiar with the value of wool in keeping warm.  What many do not know is the value of alpaca
and angora, which are even warmer, ounce for ounce.  Some people can’t tolerate wool (which may be
related to the shearing, the breed of sheep, or the processing, so fiber from
other breeds of sheep may be more acceptable), and so alpaca and angora will be
more along the lines of a need rather than want for keeping warm.  Angora and alpaca are so much softer, warmer,
and less irritating. 

Flowers versus vegetables in the garden.  Don’t think that the guy who’s growing
flowers is wasting valuable space that could be dedicated to crops.  He may have a plan.  For all you know those could be opium poppies
for pain or honeysuckle or forsythia for antiviral remedies.  They could be nasturtiums for bacterial
infections or warding off cabbage butterflies. 
Even if they are doing nothing else, they could be helping to camouflage
the entire garden as a flower garden instead of a vegetable garden.

We’re all going to have our needs that others will perceive
as wants.  Others will have their needs
that we might otherwise perceive as luxuries. 
It’s not our position to judge.  It
all comes down to how you use it, whether it’s essential for you.  If it’s essential for you, you have to plan
for it.  No one else will do it for
you.