I read a book called Lucifer’s Hammer by Larry Niven many years ago about a comet hitting the Earth. There was a scene in the book, after the impact, where a rich guy manages to finally reach a place up in the mountains where he has supplies stashed, only to find that his employees have claimed it for themselves and won’t let him in because he’s basically useless in the new world of survival.
If you were working for Huffman or Musk or any of the rest of them, and a there was a huge society ending disaster, would you let them in when they showed up or would you just shoot them down with their own guns? I know what I would do. I can’t imagine anyone letting them in.
Imagine being thrown together with 99 other survivors of the apocalypse and 1 of them was musk.
There’s going to be medical people and trades people and farmers and naturalists and even people with governance experience from community groups et cetera.
Imagine how utterly useless a billionaire would be in that context. Their entitlement would make them worse than useless. Like I’d rather be stuck with nanna who is just a drain on resources rather than someone who’s only skill is self interest.
Didn’t read the book but I get the scenario after a hypothetical world changing disaster, it’s going to be a ratrace for high ground.
It’s a false sense of security to believe hoarding cash or guns or vehicle would be your ticket out of it, it’s called pride and hubris.
A motor/car can’t swim. Weapons are a sign of hostility. Cash could be useless.
Even having access to an escape satellite doesn’t guarantee you’ll be hit by space trash or cosmic plasma streams.
The Road is a example how depressing the aftermath really is.
Being hired as security at a billionaire’s Hawaiian apocalypse bunker has got to be the best job imaginable. You get paid to live in a tropical paradise in case The Worst should happen. If The Worst actually does happen, you just go inside the bunker and lock the doors, and if the billionaire shows up, you don’t let him in. Easy peasy.
people like musk, thiel,altman have built complexes in other countries( mostly thiel,NZ) in case billionaires finally becomes the target they richly deserved, how are they going to staff thier complexes? with harems of women in cas thiel men, and slaves, willing to go with them.
I read a book called Lucifer’s Hammer by Larry Niven many years ago about a comet hitting the Earth. There was a scene in the book, after the impact, where a rich guy manages to finally reach a place up in the mountains where he has supplies stashed, only to find that his employees have claimed it for themselves and won’t let him in because he’s basically useless in the new world of survival.
If you were working for Huffman or Musk or any of the rest of them, and a there was a huge society ending disaster, would you let them in when they showed up or would you just shoot them down with their own guns? I know what I would do. I can’t imagine anyone letting them in.
It doesn’t even have to be so combative.
Imagine being thrown together with 99 other survivors of the apocalypse and 1 of them was musk.
There’s going to be medical people and trades people and farmers and naturalists and even people with governance experience from community groups et cetera.
Imagine how utterly useless a billionaire would be in that context. Their entitlement would make them worse than useless. Like I’d rather be stuck with nanna who is just a drain on resources rather than someone who’s only skill is self interest.
Nanna is the keeper of the stories and the only person who has the entire new testament memorised.
Didn’t read the book but I get the scenario after a hypothetical world changing disaster, it’s going to be a ratrace for high ground. It’s a false sense of security to believe hoarding cash or guns or vehicle would be your ticket out of it, it’s called pride and hubris.
A motor/car can’t swim. Weapons are a sign of hostility. Cash could be useless. Even having access to an escape satellite doesn’t guarantee you’ll be hit by space trash or cosmic plasma streams. The Road is a example how depressing the aftermath really is.
The Road is a good example; this thread also has me thinking about the Amos and Clarissa arc after the meteors hit in The Expanse.
I had gone quite a long time without thinking about The Road.
Day ruined.
Being hired as security at a billionaire’s Hawaiian apocalypse bunker has got to be the best job imaginable. You get paid to live in a tropical paradise in case The Worst should happen. If The Worst actually does happen, you just go inside the bunker and lock the doors, and if the billionaire shows up, you don’t let him in. Easy peasy.
people like musk, thiel,altman have built complexes in other countries( mostly thiel,NZ) in case billionaires finally becomes the target they richly deserved, how are they going to staff thier complexes? with harems of women in cas thiel men, and slaves, willing to go with them.