Most Depressing Question Ever

Hello, this is the most depressing existential thread ever.
Only people with self-distance, strong belief and calm inner sense should read and reply to it...
If you really think about this topic to come, you might be very depressed.

If something happen, say, something rather devastating for times to come; how many of you would be done for?
I mean, have your absolute worst case scenario displayed for your inner eye, and picture what you would do and how likely the chances for survival are.

For me, personally; I have like one (1) pretty lame evacuation plan. It is not too far away, you could walk there. Without any cataclysm/major upheaval going about, it would take you a day or so. I deem it rather safe after much research. If only "social disasters" was to happen (massive riots, total destruction of the state), I can easily sit it out on my location.
But there are other scenarios that make me realize that if something major, something really, really bad would happen... I guess I would be pretty damn done for...

In general, we are very well spared from major natural disasters, there could be floods of course, but I am located high up, there could be storms and such, but not as bad as on the west coast...
But this other threat is a problematic one:
Being located on the coast of the Baltic sea, we have numerous outdated nuclear plants in the vicinity.
In 1986 when the Chernobyl plant went off, we could measure the fallout on our soil, and it was severe, especially in northern parts of Sweden. Berries and mushrooms could not be picked for years, wild game could not be eaten... And Chernobyl is very far away from us... This was long time ago, but substantial radioactive pollution still remains in the areas worst affected. We have exact copies of that plant in Lithuania and in the St. Petersburg area. Oil and gas is becoming expensive and more scarce, they turn those bastards up on high speed....
These disasters are known to be swift, silent and extremely deadly. The plant goes crazy, meltdown impossible to avoid, wind direction straight into my face, might be storming even and keep doing so for a week (normal weather), rain...total pollution. For miles. For thousands of years...
Yeah, I would be pretty done for. I live in a city with roughly 2 million inhabitants, suburbs included....great stuff.
What warnings in advance would I have? Can I have one hour or less? I would barely make it half-way to my location. Traffic would freak out totally, people would have a very hard time complying. Our government SUCKS on dealing with such issues. I understand that any effort would be well intended, but I rely the least on their intervention saving my life.
It would be impossible to go out doors, for weeks. All water would polluted. Evacuation would be extremely hard and slow.

I guess that if so is written on your path, there is no avoidance of fate.
I will not go down without a fuzz though! If something happens, I will go out BLAZIN'!!!

Take a look at your local situation.
Ice Storms that last for months on end, maybe longer that the season even.
Major earthquakes, unprecedented since the beginning of the planet.
Volcanic eruptions, maybe series of them. Might have global impact.
Draught so severe, fresh water is a scarce luxury.
Floods and tsunamis or mudslides.
...or whathave you.

If you picture yourself in the midst of it. Do some research even:
How bad was it last time my area was affected?
How bad was it the "worst ever"-time it affected my area?
How much time in advance did the alarms go off, if any?
How much have warning systems been improved since then?
Did the warnings help much, or did it just become mass-hysteria?
If you ask yourself, are you actually done for?

I don't say that it is very likely that you would be affected, now even ever, but who knows?
Worst case, for the whole lot of us, would be a global disaster where no refuge is to be found at all. Still, wonderful opportunity to go out blazin'!!!

Would be interesting to see how many of us lives on "borrowed time" just like I do!

Thanks for your attention, peace be with you.

Sorry but I really do not understand the point you are trying to make, you are trying to adress every issue at once which is completely unfeasable ( for me anyway)

Ok, maybe it should have said:

Take a look at local situation does any one of these fit in?

Or what?

The topics for discussion are:
1. What is you local fashion of "disaster", what is your major concern?
2. If worst case of the above mentioned would happen, would you be done for?

Is that better?

reply to post by Raud


Ive pondered on these kind of things many times. But the best thing i found to do, was, to just lighten up. Thinking about doom and gloom and whether we will survive it or not, just adds to the negativity.. find the beauty thats left in the world and enjoy it. We all have a choice, and there are lessons to learn in every situation, no matter how bad. We cant worry about something we have no control of. Meditation is the key i feel.

Personally, I have only realised these last 12 months that I have been willingly yet unknowingly dependent on "the man". And in any event of national disasters, civil war, rioting on your doorstep then I would be absolutely screwed. Even though I have been enlightened as to my dependancy, I have yet to make any plans to secure a safe and survivable future for myself - which is stupid - you can't think what you know to be true if you are not going to make wise preperations but that's the way I have always been, running with the flow. It's time to change in that respect.

They made me this way godammit and I have allowed it to happen.

I suppose if something occurs in the immediete future that poses a huge threat to mankind, I would have to go to a friend who IS prepared for catastrophe, you know the drill, growing his own food, generated power etc Though it's a scary scary thought that 90% of the population could be completely helpless. I hope it doesnt come to this and I wish I didnt know better.

@Merkabah

Bah!
Can't you take the pressure? Do you succumb to it that easily?
Ah, ignorance! Such a sweet, and to me unknown, bliss...
Just kidding...

I am not depressed at all, I have strong faith and little worries.
But I warned you in the beginning there, did it not?
No joke this is a depressing issue sometimes.
If you can't take the pressure, that is!

[edit on 20-1-2009 by Raud]

reply to post by Raud


Having researched armageddon for more than a few years I can say I think about it often and am not depressed by it.

Life is one great tragedy one would say, but one must experience a tragedy to be able to appreciate the paradise that awaits.

We are all in danger of physcially being 'done for' at all times, what about spiritually?

I personally am not afraid of being killed in a car accident or worst case scenario dying in a car accident while trying to escape a river of magma as it pours down the street from an unexpected volcano eruption.

Physical pain is but a short time, I guess the real question is,

'Do you fear death?'

Not me.

reply to post by ichienkai


Yes, it is a sour insight...

I sure as hell don't hope anything will happen. And the prognosis looks ok, I guess. At least right now... Eeeh...
But I must be very open minded and realize that there are very serious threats all around us. How many times have one not heard:
"It could happen today, it can happen in 1000 years..."
Well?

The best thing to do in any case is to play it cool. Panic helps no-one.

I think about these types of scenarios all the time. I think the degree of the situation will determine my actions. If there is a breakdown of society but we are allowed to stay in our homes, my family will be fine. I can grow food, have usable water supply and game for meat.

If the big brother we're all going to the concentration camp event takes place, well I don't know. Keeping my family together and alive would be my first priority - I'm no hero and don't want to be at this point in my life.

As for nuclear accidents - well we don't have any near enough to be considered a threat, and don't really feel we would be worth a terrorist targeting.

I am here by choice though. California scares me. Too many people, too little room and too many potential problems. If your environment puts you at a disadvantage, change it!

Originally posted by Razimus
reply to post by Raud

 

...dying in a car accident while trying to escape a river of magma as it pours down the street from an unexpected volcano eruption.

Physical pain is but a short time, I guess the real question is,

'Do you fear death?'

Not me.

You would be goin' out blazin!!!


I agree with you totally.
Soldiers don't go through all hell thinking that they themselves will get shot, do they?

reply to post by Raud


I offer you some advice.

Ask yourself the question or questions.

Why do you fear?

What is it you fear?

Really look deep within yourself and answer those question.

If you cannot find an answer then you are looking in the wrong place.



[edit on 20-1-2009 by XXXN3O]

I have no fear of the future.
I welcome all that might happen.It might even be a good thing.
Be strong and be positive and be ready.
As the saying says...accept the things that you cannot change.
Its not depressing,its reality so its a matter of how you handle it and cope.

while what you say is scary, consider this...

When a star dies it sends a blast of gamma radiation at super high concentration out of it's poles - this massive blast travels through space at a huge speed and should it happen to be in line with earth we are all -instantly- dead.

The earth has a very complex core of molten metal which is under great pressure below the crust, should something cause a large fissure to open up in the crust enough magma will flow over the earth to devour everything in thousands of degrees of heat. This has probably happened before, if something hit the earth or enough nukes went off this will happen.

or

you could be laying in bed sleeping when a previously unknown underground river could have worn away enough of the ground below your house to open up a sink hole 60feet across and 90 feet deep.

you could be reaching for a packet of fat free pasta sticks when the electrical charge which controls your heart fibulates, the muscles cease up and you collapse in a heap.

We could die any second either en mass or alone and helpless - the only thing we can do is enjoy life as it happens and prepare best we can for the future. I have camping equipment and the skills to survive most sitx situations, but then i like camping and use the kit anyway - life is fun, enjoy it while it's here -to be honest i think i would probably enjoy a sitx more than i enjoy work but meh, i'll regret thinking that if it really happens.

I prefer to worry about more important things such as "how does the snow plow driver get to work when its snowing?"

Originally posted by Raud
Ok, maybe it should have said:

Take a look at local situation does any one of these fit in?

Or what?

The topics for discussion are:
1. What is you local fashion of "disaster", what is your major concern?
2. If worst case of the above mentioned would happen, would you be done for?

Is that better?

The second you are born you know one day you will die, the knack is to try and make the gap between birth and death as long as possible by using whatever means you can. Worrying only drives you to an early grave, planning and preparation give you something positive to focus your mind upon theirby helping extend your life.

I am not afraid for myself. I am afraid for my children, specifically, losing them in a sudden cataclysm or watching them die slowly. Or both parents die in a sudden disaster and the children are left to fend for themselves.

The main worries at my location are:

Interruption of the water supply (if we can't get out, we're doomed)

Earthquake (if severe, we're doomed/homeless - we live in an older home with a raised foundation and a crawl space; it needs an earthquake retrofit)

Riots and looting (possibly survivable, with the exception of devastating house fire)

Nuclear attack (we're doomed if our city is a target)

Yellowstone eruption (probably doomed because this would interrupt the water & food supply - and disrupt transportation)

Bird flu outbreak (possibly survivable if we keep everyone home and bug in)

I am pretty confident that we could survive a depression as long as we have a water supply. We are stocking food, I have seeds, and I know how to grow them. We would have to acquire a goat and some chickens and somehow evade the zoning laws to keep them.

Ideally I'd like to get some rainwater barrels for the rain gutters, a water machine (one that gets water from the air) and solar & wind power.

If you are depressed because, "This is it? is this all there is to life?" then welcome to the human race, if you're depressed because it could all end rather tragically then you need to find hope in something besides man. Jesus says he is that hope, I know I'll get slammed for that but that;s ok, We all die period, some in horrible ways, some at the end of a fullfilled life. We ALL return to the earth, if you want hope, you must hope in something besides man and life as we know it, because that is depressing by itself.

reply to post by Merkabah


LOL of course i can take the pressure!! 7 years of research, down to the most darkest negative possibilities right up to most positive and enlightening possibilities!

I believe in many things, and many of them are the dark dark side of things... i just chose to accept them and concentrate on a more positive outlook for myself spiritually. Our spirit will be the most tested, so im working on mine, and preparing it!

Originally posted by DrumsRfun
I have no fear of the future.
I welcome all that might happen.It might even be a good thing.
Be strong and be positive and be ready.
As the saying says...accept the things that you cannot change.
Its not depressing,its reality so its a matter of how you handle it and cope.

I could not have said this better. This is exactly HOW I feel.

Originally posted by racegunz
"This is it? is this all there is to life?"

I could not have said this better. This is exactly WHY I feel how I do.

All it would take to decimate half the country would be a long-term interruption of utilty services like water and electricity during the Winter. Millions would die from exposure, dehydration, and sanitation related diseases.

Just ask yourself.. without electricity or fuel oil, how would you heat your home? Do you own a wood burning stove, do you have a crosscut saw for felling timber?, do you have access to an adequate wood suppy? Do you even know how to start a fire without an accelerant? It looks pretty easy on tv, but it's not.

Do you have a source of fresh water that you could access if the city or county water stop flowing for a prolong period of time? Do you know how to purify unclean water to make it potable for human consumption? Do you have a means to carry it from the source? If you have preps, do you have enough bottled water to last for at least a 3 months? You need at minimum 3 to 5 gallons/ person/ day for drinking and sanitation. Shut your water off for a week, and the reality of the situation will begin to sink in..

Something as simple as taking a dump or bathing becomes a real tedious affair. you can forget about clean clothes, hot showers,and washing dishes.

These two situation don't even take into account that you'll have thousands of other individuals competing with you for the very same resources. Just observe how people act when word of a blizzard is mention on the news. They immediately rush out to the store and buy up all the bread, milk, water, and can goods they can get their hands on. Are they worried about others having enough, Hell no! It's me, me, me..

I hope you also have a means of defending yourself. When the going gets tough, you can count on your fellow human getting pretty nasty. Ponder that for awhile, and have a great day!


[edit on 20-1-2009 by LLoyd45]