Maybe the Twilight Zone is closer to reality then we think. They said for the human race to survive, we have to remain civilized. I do not know if that is possible.
Much depends upon what is meant by civilised....it strikes me that some primitive folk are far more civil than the civilised, and some "civilised" folk are more primitive than the primitives. Primitive or civilised, folks will do whatever is necessary to ensure the survival of themselves, their kin, their clan, and their tribe over others. I think a related thread, started by melbo given the title of: How large is your Umbrella? | Survival Monkey Forums and Cato, given the title of: Are preppers responsible for the unprepared? | Survival Monkey Forums Both Explore "The Shelter" theme and its moral and practical survival dilemmas. When civilisation and civility fails, Messrs Colt, Winchester, Browning, and Remington are probably good friends to include in your "shelter" plan. They are a mite more civilised, and much more effective in dealing with hostiles, than bows, arrows and atlatls.
Thank you @chelloveck for the links. We often discuss the inner city give-me crowd being the ones to look out for. I noticed during the riots last summer that people of the give-me crowd thought first to steal liquor, tvs and lotto tickets. This video shows that those friends and neighbors will be the first wave that you have to fight off. I wonder if some of those men were desperate for themselves or their children? Notice at the end, not one person asks Bill to help them get prepared. They start talking about a block party. The crisis has passed, all is forgotten and they seem to want to pick up where they started at the beginning of the video.
Civilization as such will be suspended, but will eventually emerge from the smaller communities that will survive or form after calamity. The people who will survive long term will be those predisposed to be civilized. The viability of rioters and looters will be short term as that is all their mindset will allow. I see the gentry and city folk at first waiting for .gov to provide food, protection, medical, etc.. for a short while until they realize it isn't coming or there isn't enough. Sooner or later they will do what they need to keep them and their loved ones alive, and it will get nasty. Thugs and looters starting their business almost immediately as soon as they see they can get away with it. BTW, that pile of Doritos and useless electronics exactly 100 yards from my shooting position should probably be avoided... That first violent phase will be the most difficult to survive, likely less than a third of us will.
Looting and rioting when times are good, just reflects dishonest, criminal opportunism, at times when LEO resources are inadequate, or unable to respond effectively (because of infrastructure damage due to flooding, storm and tempest). Once the risk of being arrested and convicted become greater than the spoils to be won by looting, then things resume their base index level of law abiding behaviour. Looting liquor, cigarettes, portable consumer durables, and lotto tickets, doesn't reflect dire need, but mere wants. When dire need becomes the motivating force for looting, pillaging and other forms of unlawful societal disorder, there aren't likely to be many block parties, apart from discrete, (armed), MAG pot lucks.
I do think many will focus on the mere wants first while waiting for the Calvary or gov to arrive. Then about day 2 or three is when it will turn. We know this but I loved this episode because it showed typical suburbia. Shows that society has not changed much. It shows the materialism and the laughing and mocking of those that are looking ahead, planning for just in case.
I watched the video and consider it to be very instructive and probably very close to the truth, too close. Anyway, I liked it very much. Thank you @Motomom34
Very prophetic... If your neighbors and friends know you have food, water, weapons, ammunition or a shelter, they will be at your door as soon as disaster is eminent, believe it. They will drag you and your family out and fight among themselves destroying both their and your chance at survival. Be diligent in your preps but be discrete. The less anyone knows the better.
That was one of Rod Serling's better Twilight Zone episodes. He had a way of presenting human nature with warts and all, and then putting a mirror (that good old B&W TV set) in front of the viewer to tell his story. His episode prolog introduction combined with the post-story comments, as the TV scene faded to those twilight stars, were a good example of that familiar phrase we hear today: "We report (think about it, then....); you decide."
