By Alexei Summers (The Cascade) – Email
Print Edition: June 6, 2012
In 1945, the USA sent an airplane on a mission across the ocean. It was no ordinary plane. The plane was a Boeing B-29 Superfortress. It flew higher than most planes, and its cargo was like nothing ever seen before. The plane was named the Enola Gay, and when it reached the city of Hiroshima, Japan, it released its nuclear arsenal, and the famous Little Boy rolled out of the aircraft and incinerated the civilian city below.
So started the Cold War.
By 1949 the Soviets followed suit and developed an atomic bomb of their own. This scared America silly, and the first sets of survivalists were born. They had the smart idea to build massive fallout shelters – mansions underground, to sustain a comfortable life in case the Russians ever decided they wanted to attack and invade.
Recently, I’ve been window-shopping for a fallout shelter online. A few houses in North America still have them, if the home’s previous owner was a smart enough to prepare for the worst. They are expensive – but for your safety, you can never pay enough. It’s not only nuclear bombs that people fear. There is a group of survivalists that believe a potential zombie outbreak may be imminent – a load of guff, really. The recent attack on a homeless man, whose face was eaten during the attack, received wide coverage as it was seen as evidence for the outbreak of the undead.
Anyways. Let’s not deny it. There’s also a certain thrill to the end of the world, isn’t there? The real rush of excitement a lot of people get when thinking about the apocalypse is because of the lawlessness. Free from all system of government—it is simple life of humanity living like the basic primal animals they truly are—fighting to survive. It’s society’s death-wish. The world is a dark, dangerous place, and we all want to be truly free deep down inside. Because of that the apocalypse at some times can make things seem pretty appealing.
My advice is this: it’ll happen. One day, somebody is going to be very stupid. Judging from what I’ve been hearing in the news about North Korea lately, it’ll probably have something to do with them. Invest in building a place that can keep the radiation out, or zombies (if that’s your thing). Stock it up with foods, medical supplies and a firearm if you have one. You’re going to be there for a long time. Of course, if you’re rich and lazy, you can always go buy a pre-made one. Those old shelters work – they can take a formidable attack. However, be prepared to dish out a ridiculous $2 million for one of them. After that you’re all set to survive 35 years underground in your new home.
We all secretly want to see the world crumbling down around us. It gives us pleasure to prepare for the ever-anticipated apocalypse. So go on, plan ahead.
