Can we please stop the snowstorm panic shopping?

It’s Saturday afternoon as I write this, and a blizzard is coming. A questionable at best storm possibility developed into a near worst-case scenario. Up to 20 inches of snow could fall in Monmouth and Ocean counties, with it possibly falling at 2 inches per hour in some areas. By the time you’re reading this, we will know how it all played out.

There’s one certainty. Stores are slammed. I’ve already heard from many people across the state that grocery stores are packed and shelves are going bare.

I know it’s hard, but can we please stop panic buying?

We do an excellent job (usually) in New Jersey with clearing our roads and making travel possible. Even in a blizzard, even if it’s a full two or even three days you’re snowed in, can you honestly say you don’t have enough in your fridge and cupboards to get by if you absolutely could not get to a store? Granted, it might not be the cozy, fun comfort food you want for a snow day, but is that worth the self-fulfilling prophecy of panic shopping?

SEE ALSO: Does NJ law really allow 24 hours to clear snow from vehicles?

Oh, and it’s exactly that. By panicking that maybe there won’t be enough milk, bread, and toilet paper left if you don’t go stock up, then there damn sure won’t be any. The supply chain works on predictable human consumption and works well. We normally don’t even think about it because the system works like a science. When you suddenly overbuy and when five days of shoppers unnecessarily show up all on one day, it shuts the system down. You’re making this happen by worrying it will.

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Now maybe you won’t have your grilled cheese with tomato soup. But can you honestly tell me you don’t have a box of Saltines, some peanut butter, one or two bags of rice left on that high shelf? Do you really not have half a bag of Goldfish crackers left and maybe two or three cans of tuna fish in the way back part of the cupboard?

We’re so spoiled in food accessibility in this country that we don’t have the most basic survival instincts anymore. You probably have enough in your home right now to get through a few days. When big storms are coming, if you absolutely must go to a store, don’t panic. Buy a 4-pack of toilet paper. Don’t buy three 36-roll packs. If you do, you’re the cause of the very thing you’re afraid of, not the storm.

Stay safe.

Opinions expressed in the post above are those of New Jersey 101.5 talk show host Jeff Deminski only.

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