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Where people wait politely for days in line for their turn at all of life's essentials. "Sri Lanka, with 70.2% of the population identifying as Buddhist. Of the remaining Sri Lankan population, 12.6% identify as Hindu, 9.7% identify as Muslim and 6.1% identify as Christian." Perhaps its because there are so few christians with AR-15s running around.

SHTF is a long time fantasy for many in the US. And it means something different for everyone. For older conservatives, it means a failure of everything that frightens them - the internet, EV's, solar power, trans people, liberal democracy, Whoopi Goldberg etc etc. It's a return to an earlier time, where family was central, where kids played outside without a care in the world, where a strong white man got respect, where your source of news was a newspaper you bought, where women and blacks knew their place and weren't trying to be men. It's a return to their nostalgic youth. MAGA is an example of this desire. (This is, of course, an illusion of a past that never existed - but it's a powerful illusion for many.) For gun fanciers, it means that THEY are finally in charge. All their lives they have associated guns with power, only to be frustrated by a world that values achievement, money, power and justice over deadly force. Once SHTF and police/the courts go away, then they are in charge. They don't need to worry about food; they will take yours. They don't need to worry about reprisals, because they have fearsome weapons that will give them all the power they ever wanted. They don't need to worry about anything any more, because the world has been rearranged to put them at the top. For religous conservatives, it means the Second Coming. (Note that Ron has said that these two don't actually coincide.) For them, it is an end to people who doubted their beliefs and sacrifices; it will be Jesus coming back to smite everyone who's not a believer, and who hasn't sacrificed and toiled like the Chosen People. No more secular government, no more Muslims or Wiccans or Hindus. And for many believers, no more of the "wrong" type of Christianity. There's a dozen different scenarios of how this plays out. Oddly most of them aren't much like what's written in Revelations, since that's pretty horrific for believers and sinners alike. For survivalists, it means validation that their paranoia and efforts to prepare haven't been in vain. It's a big middle finger to all the people who told them that they should be prioritizing their families, their careers, their health etc over getting ready for SHTF. There's a large overlap with the gun people here. For others it means a fresh start - an end of whatever part of their life has been dogging them. Alcoholics will no longer have access to alcohol, and addicts won't be able to get their fix. People with failed relationships, criminal pasts or horrible family situations could have all that erased with the drop of a hat (or an asteroid) and see a fresh start in a world where _they_ might come out on top due to their charisma, strength or force of will. To a large degree, many of these people share part of the same ideology of one type of suicide victim - the sort that believes "once I kill myself, they will all be sorry for what they did!" These SHTF supporters don't want to die, but do share the belief that the world ending will be a GOOD thing for them, and that all the things that make their lives possible (water, health care, food etc) will sort of take care of themselves, or will be amenable to a simple, easy solution (i.e. taking that rich fuck's food who gave me shit about all my guns.) And their detractors will either perish or be easy pickings. The amazing variety of doomsday movies/novels/series plays into this. There's a very large contingent in the US, for example, who loves to see LA destroyed; there are literally dozens of movies depicting exactly that in great detail. These movies often go into detail on who ends up on top and what challenges they face, which is part of the fantasy for a lot of these types. However I find books to do a much better job considering all the changes and adaptations that might come about. Some notable books include: One Second After, a book about an EMP attack. It contains a fairly standard ex-military hero who saves his whole town from evil government minions. Good description of how society rebuilds. The Slow Apocalypse, a book about running out of oil. A fairly realistic look at a disaster where an oil-eating bacteria gets loose in the oilfields of the world. (And stars Lake Elsinore, which is a cool connection for skydivers.) Earth Abides, another attempt at a realistic end-of-the-world scenario where most people are killed off by a pandemic. Especially interesting since it was written in the 1940's and thus brings an 80 year old perspective to the issue. The Stand, a Stephen King book that, while it has his usual horror stuff in it, has a fairly believable background of what the Earth looks like after a similar plauge, and how society rebuilds itself. Lucifer's Hammer, a book about an asteroid impact that almost ends civilization. A long description of what such an impact would do to the US and the people who live here.

How about not living the one life you can be certain you have in gleeful anticipation of an apocalypse or reasonable facsimile thereof? You or Ron, in fact no one, has any track record or factual standard to believe what you apparently believe. No matter, waste your one life if it pleases you so much. While you are assembling your network of cave habitats in fear of unfounded concerns, I'll be traveling the world, seeing new things, meeting new people and just trying to enjoy my life. You're still alive, man, it's not too late to shake off what limits you.

Don't really have high hopes for this thing... Slight chance we learn something new.. https://www.oregonlive.com/entertainment/2022/07/the-unsolved-case-of-skyjacker-db-cooper-is-explored-again-in-new-netflix-documentary-series.html

An accumulation of shit. The guy with the fan. Someone downwind?