CBS premiered ‘Jericho’ the other night. Its basically “Alas Babylon: The Series”. Reviews, as seen across the various preparedness discussion groups and forums is mixed. I liked it but then again there isn’t much to compare it to…which makes sense, I suppose…theres not much drama (read: marketability) in a show where a huge crisis occurs and the population is…just fine. No, the drama sells…the people stuck in elevators, the homeowners huddled in the living room hearing strange footsteps on their porch as the camera closes in on the image of the doorknob slowly turning…that sort of thing. A show where the lights go out and someone simply fires ou the 5kw and enjoys a cup of coffee just doesn’t have much watchability. I think I gave my impressions of the show a few posts back. It seems it is trying to use the formula that has made ‘Lost’ (or as I call it ‘Gilligans Island Of Dr Morreau’) so successful…complex mysterious characters and events that are introduced but not explained until later, long story arcs, backstories shrouded in mystery, etc… Theres certainly entertainment potential here, its just a matter of how waiting to see how its used.
It does bring up an interesting topic, though. What role, if any, does fiction play in an individuals plans and perperations? Some would say that reading books like ‘Lucifers Hammer’, ‘Alas Babylon’, or even Aherns pulp series ‘The Survivalist’ do absolutely nothing except provide ‘action hero’-style entertainment. I agree somewhat but I think that it is important to have read some of the ‘classic’ fiction on the subject (and Im counting LH and AB as amongst those classics). Why? Because even if the situations are outdated, unrealistic or, in Aherns case, just plain over-the-top they encourage you to think about those situations. After all, in order to say ‘that scene with the [fill in the blank] was so unrealistic!’ means you had to think about how you’d manage in a similar scene ‘in reality’ and thus you are made to think about situations and predicaments you may not have thought about in the past. Example: in Alas Babylon the residents of the small Florida town suffer an intensely hot summer and realize that they don’t have enough salt to replace what theyre sweating away daily…and upon further investigation realize that it also has myriads of other uses that would have made having a large quantity of it handy. Many people, Im sure, hadn’t thought about just how much salt they might need to sock away and even if there was a real need for it. So, in this example, reading fiction opens your mind to things you may not have considered.
Another example: In Lucifers Hammer one of the characters has no useful skills, no great talents, and has a couple strikes against him in terms of his physical condition…but he becomes a crucial member of a local outfit because while he has very little skills and talents he does have a very large collection of very, very useful and relevant books. And while Im sure you and I have thought of this sort of thing before, it may have opened the eyes of others to the need for some very good reference material.
My point here isn’t to cite examples or to garner comments about what you’ve learned from fiction. Nah, my point is that fiction has a place in the preparedness lifestyle and that this series, which may very well turn out to be very short lived and somewhat technically inaccurate, could have some value for making a person think about situations or problems that they hadn’t thought about previously.
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Finished ‘World War Z’ the other night. Its okay. Definitely better than Stephen Kings hackneyed ‘Cell’. The book very much would fly as a movie. It could be told in narrative with all sorts of neat flashback scenes to various conflicts and events. Hard to believe the guy writing it is the son of Mel ‘Blazing Saddles’ Brooks. Who knew?
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I continue to be very pleased with the Leatherman Wave multitool. I heartily recommend it to anyone looking for a good pocket tool. In fact, I may be getting an extra or two. I use the knife blades more than anything else but the screwdrivers and scissors come in quite handy too. Good ergonomics and a generally well thought out design. Me recommend.
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Local gas prices dropped another six cents overnight. Its now hovering around $2.56/gallon. When it gets below $2.50 I’ll rotate out the stored gas. Might pick up an extra can or two and increase the storage as bit while Im at it.
I’m starting to think about rotating out the stored gas as well. The switch to standard from daylight time is my main marker, but gas prices (and current tank status) will probably dictate just when.
Earth Abides by George Stewart is a more realistic look at TEOTWAWKI. It’s a rather dark book that documents the slide back into savagery within one or two generations because technology and education couldn’t be maintained. I don’t know whether or not I’d recommend it, but I sure remember it a lot of years after reading it.
Earth Abides
I just finished reading it for the first time last week. While it’s entertaining, it mostly avoids the idea that some people won’t be terribly friendly – with one exception – and the fact that none of the survivors has any interest in reading or learning anything new and that the older generation doesn’t really bother to teach the younger ones how to read rang false in my opinion, especially as the main character Ish is a bookhound and reveres the library.
It was too Pollyanna for my tastes, there was little in it about survival and was more about rebuilding an idyllic village society. It’s worth a read, but don’t look for any solid worthwhile information there outside of don’t eat decades-old food from rusty cans.
Crom
Now that gas is dropping, the thought of storing a bit has come to my mind too.
Any thoughts on this can?
Ebay LInk
gave up
watching the tv awile back. been busy doing other projects including redoing my homemade pump action jenny, pvc projects, and more. for me every day is a survivail test, so am gratefull for a good bunch of books, hand tools, and supplies at hand now. the survivial comedy crap on tv is a bad joke, sop who needs that stuff. I deal with the real world which anyday, anywhere can tilt the nice world into a mini hell. fiction books deal with fictional stuff, many survival novels belong in the trash, period. have fun with your world before it is gone, Wildflower 06
$2.56 a gallon?! Damn! I just drove by a BP station tonight that was selling it for $2.07. Want me to send you some? :o)
I <3 my Leatherman Wave, although I don't use it very often.
I need a recommendation for a better keychain flashlight than I currently have. Power went out in the building where I work yesterday and even the emergency lighting in the stairwells was out. I told the people at the bottom that I was prepared and didn’t need a flashlight, but quickly discovered it didn’t light up anything. It’s a “micro photon light” kind of like this with an orange bulb. Perfect for map reading, but horrible for wandering around in dark stairwells. Have any suggestions?
I’ve been using ASP LED keychain lights for several years. They have different LED colors including red and white, and two basic designs – one with a momentary button and internal battery, and one with a sequenced light (which includes flashing, steady and SOS) that also has a removable battery. They’re more expensive than the slightly smaller cheap ones, but I like them well enough that I’ve given them as stocking stuffers to friends at Christmas.
Thanks for the link – I’ll check them out.
I concur that fiction can be useful for generating the thought processes, and also that it can make quite an impression. I don’t recall exactly when I read Alas, Babylon, but it was during my high school years so we’re talking “no earlier than 1973.” And I’ve only read it once. And yet despite one reading over 30 years ago, here’s things I picked up and still remember about a potential post-nuclear world:
…and so on.
Yeah, basic stuff now. And not nearly a complete list. But it did get me thinking, and that was a critical first step.
Mil. fuel cans (MFC’s) are s’posed to be the shiznits but Im not liking plastic for its off-gassing and semi-porous nature. Everything I read from people who own them say theyre great but I worry about expansion/contraction in weather changes and the like.
…he does have a very large collection of very, very useful and relevant books.
Which he then proceeds to hide in a septic tank. Yuck.
Good book though.
BTW, I just surfed in here via a common community.