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Doomsday Prep for the Super-Rich

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Re: Doomsday Prep for the Super-Rich

#121

Post by antisthenes »

awfgylbcxhrey wrote: post #37
analogmemory wrote: post #27

I find it curious that people prepare for a "Doomsday" scenario. I can fathom a localized catastrophe like an earthquake, or extreme weather, or even a horrible bomb attack. But the extreme examples seem more related to our entertainment consumption than based on a real reality. I feel like we're more likely to die from old age than anything from space or zombies. Maybe I just can't do the level of paranoia that some…

I don't know why you've been downvoted, since IMO you raise a valid point. I've known a few prepper types. They had plans for escape rooms, a significant cache of weapons, some ammo, and a few MREs in the closet. Nobody had more than maybe a few liters of water per person in the home, and when I asked about an escape plan (e.g. there's a fire, get out and meet at John's house on the next street over) they looked at m…

I agree. The best investment for a doomsday scenario is to invest in yourself and your own skills first: get in shape, learn basic farming, wood/metalworking to make and repair tools, animal husbandry, basic first aid skills, learn geography and where clean water sources are, etc.

The 2nd best investment is to invest in your community and friends, because survival as a group is much easier than being a loner.

Stockpiling supplies I don't think is very relevant until signs of the collapse are obvious. A lot of medicines and some fuel don't last very long either, afaik.

Re: Doomsday Prep for the Super-Rich

#122

Post by Hydraulix989 »

rb808 wrote: post #33
FLUX-YOU wrote: post #3

It must be great to be known as a doomsday escape haven like New Zealand. When the world actually goes tits up, you have a whole bunch of rich people bringing supplies and survival gear to your country for you to take.

From what I know of New Zealanders they still are very egalitarian and generally hate wealthy billionaires. I think if these rich people actually move there they'd regret it.

How do they view Kim Dotcom then who has a giant mansion there with Mercedes cars with license plates like GOD, HACKER, CRIMINAL?

Re: Doomsday Prep for the Super-Rich

#123

Post by arethuza »

arouqa wrote: post #114
arethuza wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Maintaining the loyalty of those you invite to protect you can be a bit tricky - according to one source that's how the Anglo Saxons were invited to what became England to help protect a post Roman society of Britons from attacks from what is now Scotland (Picts and Dalriadic Scots): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anglo-Saxon_settlement_of_Brit... I'd expect the loyalty to a rich employer would last right up to the po…

There needs to be a sense of shared purpose. I would think the easiest way would be to start a religious sect, as this would give you non-monetary legitimacy, akin to a modern day Mandate of Heaven or Divine Right of Kings. Or if religion isn't your flavor, then some type of philosophical/political/national organization. However, I think it works better with religion because of the afterlife component. It would also…

I wonder if something like the Cartasian Maths from Anathem might work?

Re: Doomsday Prep for the Super-Rich

#124

Post by semi-extrinsic »

f- wrote: post #4

The last time this story made rounds on HN, quite a few readers were ripping into the people described in the article, and it sure feels good to do so, but... I don't know about you, but if I had more money than I conceivably ever needed, I sure would contemplate having a helicopter on standby and a luxury compound in some scenic part of the world. You know, just for fun, just in case. In fact, I suspect that once yo…

Read your prep article. While interesting and pretty exhaustive, I have some pointers for improvement:

* needs shortening (it's too long-winded)

* a note that it mainly applies to the US when it comes to economy/lack of social safety net; e.g. you mention that governments won't help you in case of a financial crisis and big increase in unemployment, but you also point out this happened recently in Greece and Spain - obviously all those people weren't preppers, yet they are still surviving

* for several of the natural disasters you mention (e.g. Katrina and the European heat wave), most fatalities were old and sick people, which you can't really prep against (being old)

* the Fukushima mention is weird - at least 100x, maybe 1000x more people died from the earthquake and tsunami than from the nuclear accident, even when you take into account future cancer deaths

* needs more discussion of how to prepare for/handle situations when no water, toilets and toilet paper are available - how to build a latrine outdoors, how to conserve limited toilet paper supply, the hygienic setup and use of slop buckets indoors, and how to manage without toilet paper, water and soap

* no mention of learning how to conserve food and keeping jars and salt/sugar/vinegar/etc around for this purpose

* no mention of stockpiling diaper rash cream (can be vital when you can't shower for weeks), Vaseline, and blister bandages as well as womens' stocking socks (for avoiding blisters on long hikes)

* no mention of getting a high-durability water filtration system (like the Sawyer water bottle, 3.7 million liters durability of cleaning bacteria and parasites from river water)

* AM/FM radio should be crank powered

Re: Doomsday Prep for the Super-Rich

#125

Post by patch_collector »

antisthenes wrote: post #121
awfgylbcxhrey wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't know why you've been downvoted, since IMO you raise a valid point. I've known a few prepper types. They had plans for escape rooms, a significant cache of weapons, some ammo, and a few MREs in the closet. Nobody had more than maybe a few liters of water per person in the home, and when I asked about an escape plan (e.g. there's a fire, get out and meet at John's house on the next street over) they looked at m…

I agree. The best investment for a doomsday scenario is to invest in yourself and your own skills first: get in shape, learn basic farming, wood/metalworking to make and repair tools, animal husbandry, basic first aid skills, learn geography and where clean water sources are, etc. The 2nd best investment is to invest in your community and friends, because survival as a group is much easier than being a loner. Stockpi…

Stockpiling to an extent makes sense, in my mind. Things like food and water to last at least a few weeks, ideally months or a year, are quite practical. Because the moment a problem is obvious, it's too late to get them. If you've ever lived in a hurricane area and let your toilet paper supply run low before an event, you'll know what I'm talking about ;) Alternatively, if you've ever been sick and not wanted to leave the house for a week, or lost a job and wanted to limit what you're spending, etc.

Also, stockpiling should be done smart. If fuel doesn't last long, make sure you're using things like fuel extenders to keep them usable. And ideally, make it part of your daily life. Stockpiling 5 or 500 gallons of water in your apartment or house is a great idea (when the water main breaks after an earthquake, would you rather be the person who can help others because you know you're taken care of, or the guy who's fighting off dehydration while he waits for the red cross to arrive?), but keep using it. Don't buy one of those blue tanks and just leave it in a corner, buy 10 and use them, replacing them as you use them. Same thing with food, and fuel.

Going to extremes, of course, give you diminishing returns (like anything). So stockpiling several million rounds of ammunition and more medicine than can be used before it expires doesn't make much sense.

Re: Doomsday Prep for the Super-Rich

#126

Post by erikpukinskis »

jessriedel wrote: post #115
erikpukinskis wrote: post #111

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why do you think it is so unlikely that you could do some good in your community that would come back to you in a way that makes your own life more stable? I am pretty sure there are lots of people in my city who are watching my back because of kindnesses I have extended.

We're talking about civilization / the world, not your local community.

What's the difference? My community is part of the world, so if I change it I change the world.

Also, changing your community is the first step to changing your city, is the first step to changing the region. At each step my same assertion applies: there is a path for having an effect. Consider changing your community "changing the world by induction".

Re: Doomsday Prep for the Super-Rich

#127

Post by EdHominem »

splintercell wrote: post #99
Florin_Andrei wrote: post #91

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> A group of centi-millionaires centi- means 1/100. So those are people whose net work is about 10k. The author probably meant hecto-millionaires. Or deci-billionaires.

https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/centimillionaire

"You've found a word that is only available in the Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary. To view the full definition of centimillionaire, activate your free trial today."

Heh, premium words. What good is a dictionary that only lists the common words? We know what those ones mean...

After piercing the paywall, I can see they've wrong. Centa, centi. Not the same.

And they charge for that?

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