Disturbing actions: prepper billionaires

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ThirstyBarbarian said:
Plenty of civilizations have fallen in the past due to invasion or natural catastrophe, and I’ve wondered about what happened to the city dwellers in the aftermath. Most of us have jobs that are not related to directly producing food or trade goods, especially if you had to switch to doing it by hand. And that’s been true for at least some city dwellers throughout history. What happens to them when the market for their specialty is suddenly gone and the only thing that matters is food?
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It won't be a good outcome for them.
 
mh9162013 said:
This reminds me of the book and movie, The Road. I think it shows a fair outlook on what a post-apocalyptic world will is more likely to look like.
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The Road was a pretty hardcore take on a post-apocalyptic world. It would be difficult to say if it’s realistic or not. The author has a reputation for a cynical opinion of human nature, and it really comes through in The Road. In the real world, one thing that seems to happen in disasters is that often people come together and help each other out. Of course, that’s for normal disasters with an end in sight. Maybe if it went on long enough and it was clear most people would not survive, then perhaps it would devolve to The Road.
 
ThirstyBarbarian said:
Maybe if it went on long enough and it was clear most people would not survive, then perhaps it would devolve to The Road.
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I think The Road took place 7+ years after the SHTF event occured. So even the most prepared people were running out of supplies. It also took place where practically nothing could grow, which added to the misery.
 
mh9162013 said:
Any amateur radio enthusiasts here? You might be pretty useful when SHTF...
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certainly might seem that way. ARRL promotes amateur radio "emergency comms" as functioning in last resort. But there's huge disagreement about that nationally. Personally I think they should de-emphasize it. True, some localities appreciate the hams, but most organizations, including FEMA, do not want non professionals in the way of the real ER crews.

For ordinary folks: get a few top quality GMRS handhelds. No test required for the FCC license. Practice using them. Coordinate with your neighbors. Make everyone practice calling in to a moderated net once a week. Keep spare batteries (AAs usually).

remember what the Cajun Navy did with cell phones. If the cell towers don't lose power, maybe that is the easiest way for regular folks to communicate.

all the comms are going to be local, or regional. I'm not getting on short wave to call for help. "Hello, Argentina? Hey, we just had an earthquake, can you send some water?"
 
cls said:
I would like a batch of mead, dry, maybe a little orange and clove, for xmas.

too bad the Hoptech place closed a couple months ago.
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In college some roommates and I made 5 gallons of mead. None of us were that crazy about it. But if we have a legit apocalypse, I won’t be that picky.
 
cls said:
ARRL promotes amateur radio "emergency comms" as functioning in last resort. But there's huge disagreement about that nationally. Personally I think they should de-emphasize it. True, some localities appreciate the hams, but most organizations, including FEMA, do not want non professionals in the way of the real ER crews.
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Oh, if amateur radio operators became highly valued people, I imagine it would be in a situation where there was no longer organized first responders. I'm talking season 5 of The Walking Dead or The Postman type of situation.
 
You probably have to make some assumptions about the apocalypse. If it's something like global nuclear war which will destroy plant and animal life across entire continents, then you may as well be on the surface and die early. You're not going to survive later. Probably something similar for a general environmental collapse. If there's nothing to hunt and it's hard to farm, you're not going to have a good life.

For general breakdowns of social order, you're probably best off just buying an island in a reasonably productive part of the sea. Easier to defend than a land-based bunker, especially if it has mostly rocky shores. Boats for local fishing can be human powered pretty easily. An aluminum boat will last a looong time if you treat it well. And on the plus side, the island is a nice place to be before the SHTF. For pandemics/massive computer shutdowns, probably the same.

Some random piece of desert is going to be an absolutely terrible place to live post-apocalypse.

Either way, I can't imagine it would be all that long before the chief of security stages a coup and deposes the billionaire. The billionaire might well survive if he's not too much of a jerk, but he wouldn't be in charge for all that long. In any event, I think it would be ... eye-opening for the billionaire to find out how hard people in hunter-gatherer societies need to work.
 
cls said:
all the comms are going to be local, or regional. I'm not getting on short wave to call for help. "Hello, Argentina? Hey, we just had an earthquake, can you send some water?"
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Well, if you recall, the "fallout shelters" in the 50's and 60's had Gonsett Communicators. These were 5 watt 2-meter AM radios, which means they had the relative power of a modern Baofeng FM handheld, which you can get for $20 on Amazon. They'll get you about 5 to 10 miles, radio to radio, depending upon terrain and your antenna. That said, don't underestimate the value of being able to pull in communications from elsewhere, as well as being able to send messages "out of state", as it were. Some disasters are local and some are regional. For example, an Earthquake might affect a very large area, and you might need to send a signal beyond 20 miles to get help. And yes, I'm a ham radio guy.
 
techrat said:
Well, if you recall, the "fallout shelters" in the 50's and 60's had Gonsett Communicators. These were 5 watt 2-meter AM radios, which means they had the relative power of a modern Baofeng FM handheld, which you can get for $20 on Amazon. They'll get you about 5 to 10 miles, radio to radio, depending upon terrain and your antenna. That said, don't underestimate the value of being able to pull in communications from elsewhere, as well as being able to send messages "out of state", as it were. Some disasters are local and some are regional. For example, an Earthquake might affect a very large area, and you might need to send a signal beyond 20 miles to get help. And yes, I'm a ham radio guy.
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I wouldn't think that you'd need a major doomsday prep site for an earthquake. Even the Big One(s) will "only" devastate a hundred mile radius or so. Any competent billionaire will be able to get a helicopter ride out of that and just go to another house. Likewise, for people like me living in seismic zones, the focus is on having enough supplies for a week or two until FEMA can get supply lines back into cities.

Add On The Beach to books to read, especially if you are considering trying to survive nuclear war.
 
Look, all I can really say is I've got a moderate food storage, the means to protect my family, I decent brain and a good dose of grit. If the ship hits the can, I'll do everything in my blessed power to help those around me and when I go down and the ultra rich are hiding in the horror of the shade and I'm out in the place of wrath and tears, my head will be bloody but unbowed and I'll die happy. I bet there are hordes of people that feel similar but unfortunately, you don't know how you react until you are in the situation and the vernier of civilization is very very thin.
Ken
 
This thread reminds me of a conversation I had with a neighbor. I live out in the country and one day the neighbor took me aside and proudly showed me his supply of dry foods for the “apocalypse”. He then asked how much food I had stored. I calmly told him I had none, but that I had lots of ammo. I winked and said thanks for “prepping my food supply”. 🤣
 
Has anyone seen Love Death and Robots on Netlfix? Episode 1 of Season 3 is a nice satiric look at surviving the apocalypse.

"Three robots walk into the post-apocalypse... and take a whirlwind tour of humankind's last attempts to save itself."

Also has some rockets in the last segment... NSFW FWIW...

Ah looks like you can watch it here even if you do not have Netflix --
https://www.bilibili.tv/TH/video/2041338209
 
Tyeeking said:
This thread reminds me of a conversation I had with a neighbor. I live out in the country and one day the neighbor took me aside and proudly showed me his supply of dry foods for the “apocalypse”. He then asked how much food I had stored. I calmly told him I had none, but that I had lots of ammo. I winked and said thanks for “prepping my food supply”. 🤣
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1662869111858.png
 
Frankly, I'm old enough, broken enough, and probably couldn't survive the aftermath.
Be it nuclear, pole shift, asteroid impact, total volcanic meltdown, social breakdown, disease, or what ever.
If my back would let me, I'd bend over and kiss my ass goodbye and move on.
 
I live within 25 miles of:
The homeport of the Pacific nuclear missile submarines
An aircraft carrier homeport
A major naval shipyard
A solid chunk of Boeing's defense work

I'm not going to survive a nuclear war, even if it was limited to military targets. So that's one less thing for me to worry about prepping for.
 
I'm less than 10 miles from New York City. I can see the Empire State Building from the roof of my house. Of course I was much closer (Jersey City) on 9/11, which was, ah... interesting. Anyhow, I know I live right close to a primary target. Chances are I'll be dead before I even see the flash.
 

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