quick tip !!

you have got to read this!!

http://www.wired.com/magazine/2010/09/pl_screen_endtimes/

if you don't get a laugh, you're heartless.

Day Five: Oh' how Hollywood has changed the end of the world...

In recent years, Hollywood has shown a great appreciation for the Doomsday film. Apocalypse movies have reigned almost supreme since about 2007. And the range of the catastrophes has been without bounds. From runaway viruses to alien invasion, and every now and then a decent zombie film. This rise in apocalyptic fiction has added fuel to the survivalism movement's fire. With each box office success, comes at least five hundred more converts. They may not all quit their jobs, stock up on supplies and armaments and movie to the Wyoming Rockies, but at least five people leave the theater thinking that one awful question: What If? What if the world ends tomorrow?, What if the next round of flu is the deadliest?, What if the lights never come back on? These questions lead inevitably to the next big question: Am I Prepared?


No is usually the answer to that one. These people don't get into a frenzy and isolate themselves, their response is more like my response; go online, look up a list of tools and supplies that you'll need, read a few very good books, and compile a good-sized Bug-out Bag. This is the average response to such a growing curiosity. A curiosity that Hollywood has exploited incredibly well. In the last three to four years, at least two dozen doomsday movies maybe even more, have been released onto the population including but not limited to :

• Carriers



• Doomsday



• Cloverfield



• The Book of Eli



• 28 Weeks Later



• Invasion



• The Crazies



• I Am Legend



• Legion



• Zombieland



• Resident Evil(extinction & afterlife)



• The Road



• Terminator Salvation



• 2012

• Children Of Men
  
  
• and much much more.....

This is by no means a comprehensive list. But the sheer bulk of films that are represented is astounding. Many of these films went on to mega-blockbusters or cult classics. This blog is called a book list, but with such a rise in the film media of apocalyptic fiction, it would be ignorant of me to not mention or suggest a movie or two like I've done already. That being said, the following suggestions are some of my favorite films, and absolute musts when it comes to learning everything you need to know to survive the end. I read in another article that you can learn everything you need to know about survival from scifi-doomsday films. This is as much a fiction as the movies themselves, but they can serve as useful guidelines to the real thing...

Suggestion #1: The Book of Eli

After Viewing this film, my mind was quiet for a very long time. The possibility that this could one day be our future was so real and startling I was scared into silence. It's why I haven't written about it before, or in such a long time. This movie made me get serious about the end of the world, and the world that would be born from the ashes. A world that nobody would ever want to see with their own eyes. It made me ask the other really big question: Do I really want to Survive at all?

The Book of Eli showed you a world of complete destruction and did so beautifully. With an amazing cast and incredible cinematography; and a mood and tone that are more darker and somber than any other film of the year. The film gave the audience a view of a future that doesn't need zombies to make it scary, and presented to us the many things people would have to do, or be willing to do, to survive.

Suggestion #2: Carriers

The Perfect film to highlight what not to do in a doomsday situation. Do not succumb to the every-man-for-himself frenzy. I happen to believe in Karma, and it is illustrated perfectly in this film. Yes they did survive, and yes they did make it to their destination, and yes they did have a plan and supplies and all that bull. But watch the movie, really watch it. For every sacrificed life they ended to save their own, they paid awful prices for them. This film was amazing. Great cast and film makers, great story, and great execution. But above all, it had one great message that I truly believe in: Don't abandon your humanity for the sake of survival, because you won't survive, you'll become a monster more evil than the one that destroyed your world.

Any other movie from the above list is just as useful as the two I suggested, I've seen almost all of them, and recommend all of them to you. But remember, these are guidelines, not hard facts and reference materials. you want that, stay tuned for my next entry, which will be about the many new books and websites that I've come across in my research, and i will have a few videos and a full entry about making your own bug out bag.

thanks for reading.

Day Four: Day of the Dead

How can you not love Zombies?

fleshing eating, rotting, slow or fast; zombies are now here to stay forever and, like disco, they will never die. Ever. But, could zombies ever really exist on earth beyond the human imagination? Maybe they could. In this new day and age, the advancement of science and technology has brought about many new and startling discoveries about the universe and ourselves. In a world where one small organism that can't be seen with the naked eye can circle the earth and kill hundreds and thousands of people in a matter of weeks, the idea that there could be a zombie apocalypse has never been more of a possibility.

Imagine it, the streets littered with trash, blood, crashed and inflamed cars, burning skyscrapers, miles and miles of destruction and fire; and there to inhabit it all, an army of hungry and vicious zombies. Prowling the ruined earth for living flesh. That would be one hell of a party.

But don't worry, my blog is here to protect you and for your safety I suggest the following items :

Suggestion #1: The Zombie Survival Guide by Max Brooks

The Ultimate guide to surviving the world of the undead, and totally hilarious to boot! Max Brooks is every bet as brilliant and funny as his Father Mel Brooks. This volume of vital information is the zombie fan's bible and is full of useful tactics when it comes to living in a world where the dead walk on earth.

Suggestion #2: World War Z by Max Brooks:

Well if your gonna read the guide you might as well read this one too....

Suggestion #3: Dawn of the Dead(1970s and 2007 editions):

the best surviving zombies films ever made other than my next suggestion:

Night of the Living Dead a film by George A Romero:

the beginning of the end.....

Day Three: Computers are Evil...

Is anyone else freaked out over the possible fact that the Amish may be the only people who survive doomsday? I hate to think that they got it right, that the way they live is the only way to live. life with computers is faster, better, and much more complicated. we are more connected to each other than we've ever been, and more cut off from each other as well. It's hard to sit here and say that technology is dangerous as I type away on my dell. But things have become more and more accelerated, more and more dangerous. Cyber-crime, cyber-terrorism, cyber-sex, cyber-space..... it's all an illusion, and totally real.

could computers take over the world? it's highly unlikely, but could one computer malfunction, or one computer hacker, or one very organized terrorist cell trigger an apocalypse? our own government agency behind stopping cyber-crime in the U.S. says that a possible cyber attack is expected within the next 5 to 10 years.

my first suggestion, and don't laugh:

The Terminator Saga:

yes the classic sci-fi story is very educational, not when it comes to real life scenarios, but definitely when it comes to being strong in desperate situations. Sarah Connor is one of my favorites, she's my hero actually. and the second film transformation that she does is key to understanding what you must become in order to survive.

My second suggestion:

Surviving Disaster Hosted By Cade Courtly

If you've heard of it but never watched it, you were probably one of those people who shrugged it off as just a load of crap. But the show in fact is very intriguing, and informs you of things that most people aren't away of when it comes to surviving. the entire first season is available on Amazon On Demand, but the best episodes are..... well they're all pretty amazing, but start with "Pandemic" and "Nuclear Attack" first.

Day Two: The end will come from......where?

There are hundreds of theories and opinions on how human society will come crashing down. Nuclear war, pandemic, famine, aliens from outer space, and a whole host of others. none of these beliefs need be ignored, some are more outrageous than others, but all of them are just as likely as the next. No opinions are going to be discouraged here.

this leads me to my next suggestion:

Doomsday: End of the World Scenarios by Richard Moran

a review of the book had this to say about it:

"Moran lays out ten exciting scenarios that could one day lead to the extinction of humankind: weapons of mass destruction, asteroids impacts with Earth, Massive volcanic eruptions, the greenhouse effect...."

all things are possible when it comes to hypothesis. All scenarios are welcome here. From aliens to super flu, everything and anything could take place especially in a future that is so uncertain. Nothing can be seen through the fog of time, especially when you're looking forward.

Day One: a reaction to a growing audience....

If there is one thing that this oil spill has brought up about this world, it's that the planet we live on is much more fragile than we are lead to believe. With the green movement and the cries for alternate energy and recycling programs, we believe that we can save the ecosystem from a slow death of pollution. I wouldn't say that expectation is fool-hearty, never underestimate human ingenuity. But pollution isn't the only possible way to execute a complete collapse of civilization, and we can't prevent something that for, all intense and purposes, is a natural occurrence.
As a student of history and anthropology, I have lately witnessed a dark pattern scratched across the human timeline. And the pattern is this: a political/disastrous shit storm builds, and the world ends.
And not only does the world end, it displaces the few who survive and are left behind to pick their way across the torn land of a world that has been sterilized of everything that was.

I know what you're thinking, why does anyone get so caught up with this stuff? This growing obsession over doomsday, the Apocalypse, survivalism, etc. where does it all come from? Why does it matter to so many people? Answer; because it's such a great and undeniable possibility; especially in this highly advanced and incredibly violent age of human evolution.

Millions of people have began the search for enlightenment on the subject of surviving the doomsday event, whatever that might be, and it's hard to separate the knowledge you need out of the loony bin. I want to help
so, what follows is a reaction to a growing audience....
I will go on a hunt for all knowledge survivalism and doomsday and post all books, articles, blogs, and websites here for anyone who is looking for it. I won't just review and blog about reference materials, there is a wide variety of fiction novels and films out there that are just as illuminating as any textbook. No, this blog will cover it all as best as I can. Please feel free to comment and give suggestions, and wish me luck on my search.

For my first post, I suggest two things for your viewing:

• Survival Blog.com

founded by Jim Rawles, a largely read survivalism author and ex- army intelligence officer, the blog is probably the most professional and helpful website on survivalism and has in-depth instructions on building shelters, building up supplies, learning helpful skills, and is a great way to find others searching for the same information.

My second Suggestion:

I know it may seem out there, but you should read it, you'll understand........

• The Dark Tower I: The Gunslinger by Stephen King.

a dark and unsettling view of what our would might be one day.