Whether it is luxury or necessity, depends on your survival plans/course of action.
What this points out is, the infrastructure is FRAGILE. Multiple failure points - power to computers (or CB/HAM radios); wire connections and what is used to boost signal to the greater network.
Depending on those, is risky. And as I've said about other SHTF/EOTWAWKI scenarios, nobody knows how it will go down.
First, nobody did much, anticipating FEMA would ride in to save the day. BIIIIGGG mistake. FEMA is government. Government now, no longer even pretends to be neutral servants - it's politicized, and this area's dominant social-political views are not those of the government Woketards.
Second failure, nobody thought to use/try/practice ahead-of-time with CBs or HAM equipment. So it was dead on the bands - only a few trying everything.
Third failure, once they saw no help was coming and FEMA were acting like Nicaraguan government banditos...they found the Internet, even if they had communication, was relatively useless. There was no network; no Alternate Grid communication to any non-Woke volunteer group.
It took a week of panic, and much death, for them to find a way.
Some of this is inevitable. When things go sideways, there's no help for it, no planning. The only effective planning is DISCIPLINE - the ability to keep a cool head, think logically, work as a team with de-facto leaders, whoever emerges.
And with that, being ready for primitive communication and distribution techniques. MULE TEAMS. Nobody's talked about it, but runners on horses or offroad motorcycles, probably have done better than waiting for government to allow Elon to send Starlink for free out there.
THIS is prepping. Able to form a quasi-military chain of command and organization at the drop of a hat. Size up what can be done, what's going to be effective (email won't work, even if you have it, if those you're reaching to, do not have it) and what won't work (waiting for Woke soldiers).
I expect the survivors out of this area, have learned this. But since no one in mediuh is stressing it, I wonder how many others can deduce it.
