Real World Scenarios....

[Bladite]

Imagine...TSHTF...
All is lost...pandamonium everywhere...electricity is sporadic...
No basic services...things are about as ugly as they can get...
But you are packed in tight...your bunker is fortified...well stocked...
and you are sheltered in place..waiting it out...
A knock at the door...revreals a long time friend...she is a young single mom with two small kids...she is lost...looking for help from you...
Please let me in...she cries...her kids are hiding behind her...looks like they haven't eaten or slept in days...
What do you do?
SHane

i have a bunker. check.

the world as far as i'm concerned is gefucked. check.

i planned ahead, have basics for me for say ... what? 6-9 months? assuming that the terror ahead will alleviate... i can hold tight. maybe i planned with some other people, and some made it, some didn't, so we can go longer if we want. we're ready to survive and "see what happens when we pop up again", not necessarily save the world, or repopulate. check.

someone found my bunker that wasn't on the plan? inconceivable. they made it past the fake outer bunker that looks like it was pillaged and destroyed/abandoned? outrageous. they know where the secret door is? how? well. what was the disaster? how longer term? if i open the door am i going to die from radiation, disease/plague/lepers, aliens, slugs, zombies? and how did she find me/us? my first thought... it's a trap.

there would be no really good reason i can imagine she'd find me, or get past my decoy destroyed bunker and still think i'm there. i'd be quiet. i might ogle my secret microphone/cameras that i placed outside and look for others. a trap is all too real - place a young, breedable female outside a bunker? RIIIIIIIIGHT.

if i was REALLY nice, i might someone innocently leave a micro-cache of supplies nearby (or more)[naturally, i'd have a smaller bunker for ME that NOBODY would know about, and supplies here and there as well] , and have some way of them finding it... in advance, remember, i'm sealed in, for the duration. nobody in, nobody out for some period of quarantine. that's really key.

bladite

 

[cavetech]

we'll never move back to Florida. Its unescapable, and filled to the brim with the helpless and clueless. Andy


You mean Democrats? Just kidding. I was going to say- 'there's the definition of the modern State."



munk

You're wrong there. Florida is a must issue carry state.

That taint gunna happen like in a democrate's state like NJ...........

 

[Fiddleback]

Humans have much more complex interdependencies than the cave bats. Human groups almost always seem to win out over the isolated individuals, and the large groups seem to win out over the small groups. Small group advantages often are short-term, while the larger group advantages tend to be longer term. Puting oneself outside the community may have hidden drawbacks and dangers that are not immediately evident in the short term.

This is a generalization that sounds all cuddly and nice, but is patently untrue. Many civilizations have outgrown their resources and died off because of poor management. I think Bladite has the right perspective on this scenario.

 

[FallingKnife]

A sticky thing is that real-world SHTF situations won't happen like in the movies, where leaving the bunker exposes you to zombies and bandits. I think smaller ones happen all the time -- a storm (blizzard, hurricane, tornado, etc.) shuts down roads and electricity is one example.

For an account of a very severe SHTF, pretty close to apocalytic situation, read and/or watch Hotel Rwanda. Paul Rusesabagina was able to take in about 1,200 refugees during, I don't know what to call it, organized genocidal rioting? He was the manager of at a hotel and used its grounds as a kind of haven for the refugees. The authorities tried to clear out the hotel several times, but he managed to resist through bribes, persuasion, and quick thinking. And luck.

 

[Steely_Gunz]

I guess it depends on what your motivation is. Does collective work provide a better chance for survival as a society/species? Yes I think it does. It's a long term plan. However, in the short term nitty gritty where each hour is borrowed time, IMHO a very light and mobile and flexible unit is needed consisting of only those that MUST be there. A very selfish mode of thinking is going to help get you through the crisis in one piece. It is up to you as an individual whether or not you want do the "right" thing or survive and deal with those demons another day.
It's very complex, and being a modern man I have no idea what I would actually do. Would I take my dog intot he bunker with me knowing full well that he will be another mouth to feed, is not good for hunting, and is not big enough to offer protection? Yes I would. However, I would also have the very sick feeling in my gut knowing that there might come a time when I would put a bullet in the back of his head and use his meat for food. We've built a very thin vail around the brutality of the natural order of things. When the day comes that it is torn down, there are going to be a lot of confused people who parish looking for their will to survive.
Well, dang now i'm depressed.

Jake

 

[Kevin the grey]

Why do folks all want to have to defend a place?

Perhaps the nomadic choice would be better...

I,m just looking at this from the same perspective with a different choice of words . It would not be Nomad so much as Scavenger . I am sure scavenging was in your game plan . Scavenging may not be apparent to some when a Nomadic lifestyle is mentioned . Nomads would be living off of the corpse of the civilisation that went before . They would be hunting , harvesting and scavenging . There would be a great deal of competition for depleting resources . There would consequently be a high failure rate . Being in direct competition with desperation would be a no win situation for those who would remain civilised . Cerainly some would survive . The percentage would be very low .

 

[tinmaddog]

Let them in because she's a friend, because it's the right thing to do and because from the description I've got enough supplies to last for a while. Plus, given the people I know, there's a descent chance that she knows how to handle herself and would at the least not be too much of a liability.

PS - Hi!

 

[Bamboo]

But no one's asked the most important question-


Mike

Is she cute?



Seriously though, if she's a friend, she's in. Then we start training her kids to be the next generation of resistance fighters, or whatever kind of warriors the world needs to right itself down the road.