6 Reasons You're Picturing the Post-Apocalypse Wrong

The title belongs to the original article.

I came across a pretty entertaining article about an off the grid community in California. The search feature shows this community was discussed a few years ago, but this is a new article.

Once upon a time, there was a military base named Camp Dunlap in the depths of California's confusingly named Colorado Desert. It shut down in the late 1950s and, within a decade, a trickle of people started moving in. It acquired the name "Slab City," and for 50 years, it has existed without laws, running water, or trash pickup. There are no police in Slab City and no electrical grid either. In short, it's as close to life in a post-apocalyptic wasteland as you'll find in this world.

I don't think the title is totally accurate, since these people live here by choice, but I do think movies go overboard on the roving gangs of cannibal child rapists.
Of course the situation would differ depending on what wiped out civilization as we know it.

Slab City -- a town with about 200 residents year-round, and maybe 2,000 residents at the peak of the winter rush -- has three libraries (two private, one public), a skate park, a couple of bars, a restaurant, two churches (one of which apparently sells meth), an open stage, and a shooting range. You can read until you get tired, hit up the meth church, ask forgiveness for doing so much meth, then take in a show, and end the night by emptying a machine gun into a target with your dad's face taped on it. See? Slab City may be small, but it has everything you need for a nice Friday night out on the town.

East Jesus ("Not a religion, do not worship" is their slogan) functions as the proof-of-concept for a functional post-apocalyptic society. There was ample electricity from the solar panels, a full kitchen, fans, beds and permanent buildings, all made out of trash and all surrounded with desert art (also made out of trash). There were a few cars parked out front (covered in trash) and of course, plenty of trash.

There's a great pic of a sculpture made from discarded televisions in the link.

East Jesus makes recycling awesome and useful in a visually spectacular way. Almost everything is built from stuff someone else discarded -- including the electronics. East Jesus has a battery bank made up entirely of expired batteries from telecom companies, who throw away their batteries when they begin operating at less than 80 percent capacity.

Hopefully, in a true post apocalyptic society people would aspire for more, but if nothing else, this is an interesting read, and I thought discussing our opinions of how the real deal might differ would make a fun ATS topic.

According to the article, the land is up for sale by the state so this place most likely won't be around much longer.
Read the full article
There's also a Vice video about slab city. It seems anyone who brings enough beer and smokes is welcome to go out and make a documentary. Might be a fun project for our youtuber members.

I read this yesterday on Cracked.com, it's pretty cool that these people have made a functioning community basically off the grid. Sad that they might be evicted if the land is sold though.

Interesting place.

Curious about 2 private libraries and 1 public tho. I wonder what kind of books they have in the private ones?

Peace

I wonder how "off-grid" one really can get. I don´t mean the occasional fun things like accessing the internets, but getting all kinds of supplies and services from the conventional society.

a reply to: JessicaRabbitTx

I don't think the title is totally accurate

Cracked titles are inaccurate at best.

The last part of the article is disheartening-these folk have developed a nice community and the land that they live on could be pulled from under their feet-And for what reason? Slab City is hardly prime real estate, perhaps the fact that the town is located near a testing range might have something to do with it.

Apparently Rachael NV is under threat as well-and if that's true we could be witnessing the birth of the largest no fly zone in the world.

originally posted by: Thecakeisalie
a reply to: JessicaRabbitTx

I don't think the title is totally accurate

Cracked titles are inaccurate at best.

The last part of the article is disheartening-these folk have developed a nice community and the land that they live on could be pulled from under their feet-And for what reason? Slab City is hardly prime real estate, perhaps the fact that the town is located near a testing range might have something to do with it.


Apparently Rachael NV is under threat as well-and if that's true we could be witnessing the birth of the largest no fly zone in the world.

Apparently there have been incidents of scrappers entering the range to collect shell casings and such. This may have something to do with the impending sale of the land. Generally the military doesn't take kindly to trespassing on their property.

a reply to: Pirvonen

I wonder how "off-grid" one really can get.

Go there… if you pull up with a pick up truck filled with pallets, jugs of water and tarps, ponchos, batteries, lighters, candles, they'll be grateful.

Lets see, for starters… no thankless underpayed job to spend your whole day wishing you were some where else at. Nor rent, utilities, taxes, insurance, interest on loans, alimony, fines, car payments, mortgages…

When one of them gets sick they probable find the grid real fast. Not to many antibiotics or surgeons off the grid.

originally posted by: JessicaRabbitTx
The title belongs to the original article.

I came across a pretty entertaining article about an off the grid community in California. The search feature shows this community was discussed a few years ago, but this is a new article.

Once upon a time, there was a military base named Camp Dunlap in the depths of California's confusingly named Colorado Desert. It shut down in the late 1950s and, within a decade, a trickle of people started moving in. It acquired the name "Slab City," and for 50 years, it has existed without laws, running water, or trash pickup. There are no police in Slab City and no electrical grid either. In short, it's as close to life in a post-apocalyptic wasteland as you'll find in this world.

I don't think the title is totally accurate, since these people live here by choice, but I do think movies go overboard on the roving gangs of cannibal child rapists.
Of course the situation would differ depending on what wiped out civilization as we know it.

Slab City -- a town with about 200 residents year-round, and maybe 2,000 residents at the peak of the winter rush -- has three libraries (two private, one public), a skate park, a couple of bars, a restaurant, two churches (one of which apparently sells meth), an open stage, and a shooting range. You can read until you get tired, hit up the meth church, ask forgiveness for doing so much meth, then take in a show, and end the night by emptying a machine gun into a target with your dad's face taped on it. See? Slab City may be small, but it has everything you need for a nice Friday night out on the town.

East Jesus ("Not a religion, do not worship" is their slogan) functions as the proof-of-concept for a functional post-apocalyptic society. There was ample electricity from the solar panels, a full kitchen, fans, beds and permanent buildings, all made out of trash and all surrounded with desert art (also made out of trash). There were a few cars parked out front (covered in trash) and of course, plenty of trash.

There's a great pic of a sculpture made from discarded televisions in the link.

East Jesus makes recycling awesome and useful in a visually spectacular way. Almost everything is built from stuff someone else discarded -- including the electronics. East Jesus has a battery bank made up entirely of expired batteries from telecom companies, who throw away their batteries when they begin operating at less than 80 percent capacity.

Hopefully, in a true post apocalyptic society people would aspire for more, but if nothing else, this is an interesting read, and I thought discussing our opinions of how the real deal might differ would make a fun ATS topic.

According to the article, the land is up for sale by the state so this place most likely won't be around much longer.
Read the full article
There's also a Vice video about slab city. It seems anyone who brings enough beer and smokes is welcome to go out and make a documentary. Might be a fun project for our youtuber members.

Did you get this from cracked??? I love that site!! Even have the app!!! It was on there site yesterday.


This isn't the only time this has happened without a country going to hell. I'm too lazy to look it up but I think maybe Belgium?? Elected a new prime minister who promised to clean up police corruption. They gave him some crap, so he fired them all!! Every single police officer!! Guess what?? Crime dropped....

Wow thanks for that video, was an eye opener!

I can't believe a place like that exists in America, fascinating. I think if there was some post apocalyptic communities springing up they would probably be more organised and communal, live more like tribes.

a reply to: Entreri06

Yes, I did. I love cracked too. It's as addicting as crack though so I have to limit myself or I'll waste hours clicking through articles.

It's not as "Off the grid" as it's presented to be. I work in the music and film business and we've shot a few projects out there actually AND a production designer we regularly hire lives out there most of the time. There is some leeway on laws but I can say myself that I did see highway patrol on the streets here multiple times. Also adjacent to a military base and they are VERY watchful of the use of firearms + explosives. It's interesting but honestly most of the people there are strung out on drugs and not productive members of society including their own little "post-apocalyptic" community. I love to learn about people so I listen a lot and the stories i've heard there from residents mostly involve a lot of tragedy, loss, and escape. Just my 2 cents to offer.

Lets get on with the mass slaughter then so we all can live in utopia.

I don't think the title is totally accurate, since these people live here by choice, but I do think movies go overboard on the roving gangs of cannibal child rapists. Of course the situation would differ depending on what wiped out civilization as we know it.

Can't really compare.

Even though these folks are where they are, they would still be accountable to the law.

In a post apocalypse situation though, there simply wouldn't be any law, or any worries about such consequences, so yeah, you'll see the roving gangs of cannibal child rapists.

The number one reason I would not call this post-apoc is that they have a choice to be there.

Some may say they had no choice but to move to Slab city as they are misfits. Whether they fit into todays "modern society" or not is irrelevant. They chose to move out there. To me it is more trailer park than post-apoc.

In a true post apocalyptic situation, you do what you must do to survive. Look at war torn nations if you want a good example of that.

a reply to: JessicaRabbitTx

I hope some day I can visit slab city. I wonder if it's considered "safe" for outsiders though.


I love the way of living, I had seen the VICE documentary when it first released and I was amazed this place existed!


The guy driving around on the little cooler... What can I say? If society allowed all people to go ahead with their ideas, we'd live in a crazy world, though a little less violently crazy than the one we live in now, I think!


Or maybe I'm just a hippy at heart and should go live with the rest of them and leave society out of it, I don't know

It's a bit of a junky place in some ways, the OP's quote about machine guns at the range is bunk. You own one of those in Cali. and you're in a world of shizzle with the law.

Post apoc we all live in peace period.

It's a bit of a junky place in some ways

Yep, just throwing cans on the ground, all seem to have no sense of cleaning up after themselves, etc.
You think they'd collect the cans and use some coin from it to buy propane, etc.