The end of the world as we know it….
I’ve been thinking a lot about the new report from the ACLU about the militarization of the police & of course one wonders if one of the drivers behind this is a preparation by the government for civil unrest. If it came to “us vs. them” on the ground, would we have a chance? Not at this point, I’m afraid, but if anyone would know for sure, I figured it would be “preppers” so I checked out some of their sites (lots of preppers here in Georgia!) One thing they were bandying about was books to read to get your mind around what total upheaval might be like – they were actually talking about books for kids such as
- 1. The Last Survivors Series by Susan Beth Pfeffer.
- 2. The Eleventh Plague by Jeff Hirsch
- 3. Hatchet by Gary Paulsen
But I’m more interested in mainstream stuff, so I would add to the list: The Stand, by Stephen King, about a disease that wipes out the vast majority of the population, & Lucifer’s Hammer, by Larry Niven & Jerry Pournelle, about an asteroid that hits Earth. Broadening the scope a bit, I have a whole list of straight up real life stories of survival since I happen to like that kind of thing (I wrote blurbs of my favorites here), but I’d like to stick with more general survival situations – scenarios that affect everyone.
What other books and movies are out there? The Road? (I actually thought that movie was terrible.) The Day After? (I don’t remember seeing that one.)
If you can add to my list, please do. (It’s very easy to comment to this post – you don’t get spammed or anything.)
I’ll be addressing the militarization of the police and all that that implies on this Saturday’s show.
Howdy Monica,
This is my suggestion but for a more recent display of the police state look for the news report in Florida of the couple that were raided by “Not YOUR Homeland Security” at 6:30 am, handcuffed “NAKED” on the floor for two hours and then…nothing. No arrest, apartment and belongings destroyed during the search and more…. nothing…
Drudge report had the story…
The Omega Man
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Omega Man is a 1971 American science fiction film directed by Boris Sagal and starring Charlton Heston. It was written by John William Corrington and Joyce Corrington, based on the 1954 novel I Am Legend by the American writer Richard Matheson. The film’s producer was Walter Seltzer, who went on to work with Heston again in the dystopian science fiction film Soylent Green in 1973.[2]
The Omega Man is the second adaptation of Matheson’s novel, the first being The Last Man on Earth (1964) which starred Vincent Price. A third adaptation, I Am Legend starring Will Smith, was released in 2007.[3]
The film differs from the novel (and the previous film) in several ways.[4][5] In the novel the cause of the demise of humanity is a plague spread by bacteria, turning the population into vampire-like creatures, whereas in this film version biological warfare is the cause of the plague which kills most of the population and turns most of the rest into nocturnal albino-mutants. Screenwriter Joyce Corrington holds a doctorate in chemistry and felt that this was more suitable for an adaptation.[6][7]
http://www.infowars.com/woman-says-dhs-forced-her-to-strip-naked-at-gunpoint-during-terrifying-dawn-raid/ this story is crazy! It’s just crazy to go into a peaceful house like that and raise holy hell. That does not make us safer – it’s not what we’re paying them for!
oh, and I am going to have to see Omega Man – there are two things I truly love in this world: scifi & Charlton Heston. I CAN’T WAIT! Thank you.
I agree. But:
1) No one is getting fired by ANYBODY for lawless behavior under the Eric Holder
No-Justice Department rules, which means we are PAYING them to MISTREAT us!
2) You know our country is going down the wrong path when the Financially Broke Postal System is buying and stockpiling guns and ammo.
What do you hear in the Congress or the Senate or the Judicial system about any of this??
(Cue the crickets…)
Wasn’t it Neal Boortz that watched a TSA agent walk off with his camera, out of his luggage, at the airport, while Neal was SCREAMING??
And again…. nothing.
Elmer Fudd said it best, “Be vewry, vwery, quiet… we are hunting wabbits…heh-heh-heh-heh.”
I recommend “The Dog Stars” by Peter Heller. A very good TEOTWAWKI story. Plausible and well written.
And if you want a very libertarian-leaning TEOTWAWKI novel, read “Alongside Night” by J. Neil Schulman.
Farenheit 451, and Harrison Bergeron. And remember, the clones were first used for good in Star Wars, until the senate unwittingly awarded special powers to Darth Sidius. The Running Man, where they mowed down hungry civilians, desperate for food.
Of course, books and movies scarcely approach the Kgb , the gestapo, and various arms of communist rule in China and North Korea, viet nam etc. Busting into people’s houses with automatic weapons, killing and disappearing people that are troublesome to the political class. We’re seeing some of that here, with police brutally attacking a house and throwing a flash bomb into a crib with a baby sleeping in it.
For light-hearted totalitarian dystopia, one of my all time favorites is Demolition Man. http://www.amazon.com/Demolition-Man-Sylvester-Stallone/dp/B001AIY58O/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1403968304&sr=8-1&keywords=demolition+man
‘They Live’
Try F. Paul Wilson’s “Nightworld”. You’ll love Repairman Jack…. everyone does.
This is a favorite genre of mine as well. I think the very best book is “One Second After” by William Forstchen. It’s amazing – this is the book that motivated me to prep.
Another decent read is “Ashen Winter”, not the finest writing but a very different perspective on surviving Teotwawki. It’s also YA appropriate for anyone looking to introduce their teens to the topic.
Alas Babylon