The Titanic is a classic example of rich beating out the poor. But with the tsunami in Japan, I don't think wealth has played much into survivability yet. I guess it all depends.
Was The Unthinkable about the Coconut Grove fire?
Maybe it's an influence of where I work, but I know plenty of tenured professors who wouldn't know how to change a tire if they had to. Maybe in that case, it's less of a case of wealth and more of independence. Growing up, sixty miles from anything, if you didn't know how to think on your feet, you were screwed. I think for me, this whole preparedness strikes a nerve by saying "See! I knew this shit would come in handy!"
But yeah, those folks hunkered down in their bomb shelters waiting for Y2K to happen scare the shit out of me. But again, Y2K was a fine example of the hubris of the wealthy. At a time when computers were affordable mostly by the affluent or folks with a disposable income, it would have been those without that had the last laugh. At least until the systems running the water treatment plants went offline and started pumping cholera into everyone's water supply.
Thank you for this thread, Nadia. I've been stalled with my own post-apoc work and you've given me lots of food for thought!
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2011-04-19 03:54 pm (UTC)Was The Unthinkable about the Coconut Grove fire?
Maybe it's an influence of where I work, but I know plenty of tenured professors who wouldn't know how to change a tire if they had to. Maybe in that case, it's less of a case of wealth and more of independence. Growing up, sixty miles from anything, if you didn't know how to think on your feet, you were screwed. I think for me, this whole preparedness strikes a nerve by saying "See! I knew this shit would come in handy!"
But yeah, those folks hunkered down in their bomb shelters waiting for Y2K to happen scare the shit out of me. But again, Y2K was a fine example of the hubris of the wealthy. At a time when computers were affordable mostly by the affluent or folks with a disposable income, it would have been those without that had the last laugh. At least until the systems running the water treatment plants went offline and started pumping cholera into everyone's water supply.
Thank you for this thread, Nadia. I've been stalled with my own post-apoc work and you've given me lots of food for thought!