Terror! Doom! Danger!

Just so you know, the world is on a path to destruction. I have long had a feeling of impending doom, the end of the world. I even took a class about the end of the world. I like learning and studying end of the world narratives. The world can end in many different ways. This blog is just a chance to go over those ways and contrast them with mainstream media's doom rhetoric.

1) A catastrophic apocalypse. Let's think not human planned, ordained, or orchestrated. This is unforeseeable for most scenarios ( unless you are in one of the many Hollywood dramas about asteroids headed to earth or core overheating, even then you only have 24 hours (actually 1.5 hours in film time)). Considering the paradox that the world hasn't actually ended and we have no actual frame of reference, it gets tricky when talking about the natural disasters, the asteroids, the earthquakes and all other catastrophic events.

2. Consider for a moment... what kind of "end of the world" do you envision? It is remarkable how many people believe the world will end while they are still alive. Some think it is full destruction, that is fatalistic and a form of nihilism. Some think it will go up in the flame and smoke of Armageddon to be purified and realized in a truer form. Some think that we are working everyday against the evil and towards an immediate spiritual wellness and balance of the world, without the big boom. Some think aliens will either cause the end or save us from it. Some think environment holocaust will melt us all in due time. Some prophesy the end through numbers, stars, calendars, personal possession of another entity, divine message, and signs all around us. Some think nuclear holocaust will melt us all, sound familiar? Some think God will judge us, deliver the good and punish the evil. There could be a flood, who knows, but that God did promise not to again. But there are other gods and Gods, so don't be fooled by the Euro-Christian version of the end days.

3. We hear about the end all the time!! The news today, which is what I like to call low-cal or low-content entertainment, it really could just flash some headlines in 5-10 minutes and be done with it. Yet we see the news drag on and on and on. Panel of experts here who give us no new or substantial views. Their rhetoric is all about speculation, skepticism, assuming the worst or most simplistic answers, and a kind of self deprecation/promotion that curtails either into elite egotism or purposeful self-victimization. Left and right, conservative and liberal, and they all sound alike. We are all familiar with it. The swishing noise of some terrifying slide coming into view, the voice over of dastardly and sensationalized visions of danger, terror, and dissolution. This is on all reputable stations, and it leaks into the minds of every person. I'm not considering a conspiracy. No, rather, this is a culture.

4. My end. My end is like the book Z for Zacharia. I read that book in 8th grade and it has always stuck with me. It was horrifying to read, to imagine. An uncertain holocaust, maybe nuclear, maybe environmental. It is deadly and has a contaminative quality. It spreads, but cannot clear away all life. Many die, in fact most die. Then people revert to homesteading, mistrust, and bartering. This means relying on people, but protecting yourself. Possessions that held value before, don't anymore. No electricity, that is until people get together and find a way to do it on a local level since infrastructure and power companies don't exist anymore. You grow your own food. Ride horses, motorcycles and bikes. Gas is there but scarce so you ration it. There are no zombies in my end. Just plain old people and lots of dead people. No government, nothing. We teach each other. No one was sterilized, so we can repopulate, carefully. We can become strict breeders, to ensure survival. Everyone has a gun, because it is more like the Wild West than ever.

Think about your end.