10 Things Most Preppers Don't Need

When I read some prepper boards I find that some people have a "Rambo-esque" take on being prepared.  Instead of health and financial fitness that would benefit them in nearly every disaster situation, they focus mostly on gear, and expensive, probably unnecessary gear at that.  Here are the things that should be on the bottom of your prepper gear list:

1. Gas mask.  Many people think they need a gas mask in order to be prepared.  Most people actually don't need a gas mask and don't realize that for many poison gas uses, you need to have the mask in hand when the release happens.  You will need a bunch of filters which expire, you will need to ensure your mask fits properly, and you will have to know that the release has happened (it usually takes a while to ascertain this unless you are in an enclosed area during a sarin release in which case you will probably be dead before you put your mask on).
2. Night vision goggles.  If you absolutely need night vision goggles, you've probably already been issued them.  Other people buy them for hunting/SAR purposes.  Most people don't need them and they will sit on a shelf forever when the money could have been spent on more important things.
3. A complete arsenal of firearms.  Do you want a collection of firearms that looks like this?  I certainly wouldn't turn it down if someone was handing out every gun ever made but is it necessary for survival?  Nope.  Having a few useful firearms is what every prepper needs.  With a few firearms for all of your preparedness needs, it makes them easier to store, easier to care for, easier to stockpile ammo for, easier to evacuate with, etc.
4. Pounds and pounds of gold and other precious metals.  It's good to have some gold and precious metals, it probably isn't a great idea to have lots and lots of the stuff.  You need to store it, protect it, and if you evacuate, take it with you.  Plus if word gets around about your stash you will be a huge target for robbery.
5. Enough MREs to last the next several decades.  Having a pallet of MREs in the off chance that you will eat them for years is a pretty big waste of money.  Most likely you will rarely if ever use them so stockpiling "real" food that you can rotate into your family's regular food supply makes much more financial sense.
6. High-end (think expedition-level) gear that will only be used in the event of a disaster.  There is a lot of nice gear out there--$500 sleeping bags, $400 backpacks--but unless you absolutely need these items and use them regularly, less expensive gear will work just fine and save you a lot of money as well.
7. A ghillie suit.  You have to buy it, you have to store it, you have to have several depending on your environment, and the chances of absolutely needing it is low to never unless you are a hard-core paintballer.
8. Tens of thousands of dollars in cash stuffed in your mattress.  It's always good to have some cash on hand.  Too much cash, however, has the issue of needing to be safely stored, being easily stolen, could catch on fire if your house goes up in flames, may be useless depending on the fiscal/political climate of the disaster, and using it in any great quantity will put undue (federal) attention on you.
9. A stockpile of schedule 2/2N drugs and enough PM/MD-use-only medical supplies to outfit a hospital.  If you are going to stockpile medical supplies you need to know how to use them and many supplies have expiration dates.  Stockpiling unprescribed narcotics and other controlled drugs in quantity can get you arrested--and sent to prison for quite a while--for trafficking.
10. Other things that will get you arrested.  The movies make it look like C4 is a useful and necessary item, the news makes it sound like using plutonium for poisoning a political rival is a thing to do, in reality, having any highly controlled explosive or poisoning substance will get you a swift visit by the FBI/BATF and several other organizations as well as a swift trip to prison.  Better to improvise from legal-to-have items.

Obviously if you have more money than you now what to do with and like hard-core prepper gear, by all means, go shop to your heart's content.  For most financially average people, there are way better things to spend your hard-earned cash on than flashy but generally unnecessary stuff.