Bob, who lives on the fringes of Washington DC, doesn't want anyone to know he has been stockpiling food. The 69-year-old retired shop owner and basketball coach estimates the chance of serious social disruption as a result of the millennium or Y2K bug, as it is known, is at least 50 per cent.
"If the worst comes to the worst and there is a breakdown in the food distribution system, then I would become afraid of my neighbours if they knew," he says. "And our lousy government is likely to arrest anyone smart enough to prepare as a hoarder."
Over the past few weeks Bob has spent $10,000 (£6,748) on four months of provisions for his family, which includes six grownup children and their children. Most of his purchases have been in the form of "preparedness kits" consisting of canned and freeze-dried food, sold by various companies.
The market for emergency food and equipment in the US is already perhaps larger than might be expected. Don't Get Caught With Your Pantry Down, a Y2K preparedness handbook, claims to list 5,000 vendors of emergency supplies. Typical customers include scientific or surveying expeditions.
Any aircraft flying over Alaska is required to have a two-week survival kit for every passenger.
But the emergence of Y2K survivalists such as Bob has meant normal suppliers are unable to cope with the sudden rise in demand. Emergency Essentials in Utah says orders for dried food have doubled each month since June, almost entirely driven by Y2K fears.
Nitro-Pak, also in Utah, has seen sales increase 450 per cent over last year.
Mr Greg Kunz of Walton Feeds in Idaho, which expects sales of $30 million this year, says the company has one warehouse working round the clock and is building another that will be at full capacity as soon as it is completed.
"Last year, if you had wanted a one-year food kit costing about $1,200 we could have guaranteed delivery in about three weeks. Today we are saying four months, and that could be optimistic," he says.
While the big problem so far is processing the orders, the first shortages of dried and canned food are appearing in the wholesale market.
Supplies of pudding mix are dwindling. Over the past few weeks the price of bulk-dried carrots has tripled while that of powdered butter has doubled.
Mr Chris Clarke, vice-president of sales for Emergency Essentials, says almost all this increase is coming from new customers scared of the impact of Y2K.
"These aren't your normal back-to-the-woods type survivalists," he says. "Normal survivalists don't have this sort of money. We are seeing a huge increase in orders from areas like Georgia and Texas and throughout the Bible Belt. And we are seeing a big increase in orders over the Internet."
A quick survey of Y2K survivalist Internet sites reveals a strong tinge of fundamentalist Christianity. The Joseph Project 2000 website offers "Christian-led non-profit central consultancy" for community preparedness.
Individual pundits such as the Y2K Weatherman make almost daily suggestions. For example, one day he gives a reasonably coherent plan for constructing a Y2K-proof personal financial portfolio, and then on November 10th writes: "God is sovereign so therefore Y2K is God's intention. A loving father disciplines his children and I believe we are about to be disciplined."
Other sites are merely apocalyptic. "All the stockpiled supplies in the world won't help if you spend eternity in hell," warns Annie's Be Prepared page. Plenty of Y2K preparedness urgings are to be found from other sources. Bob in Bethesda is following the advice of the conservative newsletters he subscribes to. "Did you know the CIA circulated a memo several months ago telling their staff to start stockpiling?" he asks.
Some companies are even offering to do your stockpiling for you. Safehaven, a campsite and mobile-home park in Arkansas, is now offering six-month packages for $4,500 that include parking, fuel and food. Its publicity reads: "It's a great place to hunt or fish - or a secure temporary living environment in case of a national catastrophe."
Interestingly, the concept of survival for most Y2K survivalists seems less about dealing with severe deprivation than about suffering the minimum disruption to their normal routines.
Ms Annette Walker, a nurse in Gladsdon, Alabama, is a Mormon who already has adequate food supplies. She is now using her home canning equipment to help others who want to prepare.
"I tell them all you need each day is cup of soy protein or a bowl of lentils. They listen and then ask how they can preserve a year's supply of chicken fingers and chocolate pudding because that's all their children will eat," she says.
