Something of a follow-up to this post, where the initial article was reworked as part of a book, and the initial event the author described was revisited and followed up on through additional...
Something of a follow-up to this post, where the initial article was reworked as part of a book, and the initial event the author described was revisited and followed up on through additional interviews with similar preppers.
I'm going to take the liberty to repost this comment from @zoec in that thread and hope that's OK. It's putting into words (ironically) what I have been trying to pinpoint for a long time. I read...
I'm going to take the liberty to repost this comment from @zoec in that thread and hope that's OK. It's putting into words (ironically) what I have been trying to pinpoint for a long time. I read it back then in 2018 but it seems clearer now.
The essence of the capitalist dream is exactly to leave the human condition by appropriating the human artifice. Marx was acutely aware of this from day one. For really good discussion, read Chapter 4 of The Body in Pain by Elaine Scarry.
"Leaving the human condition" is not merely a symptom of "having power". The former is almost synonymous to the latter. In a hierarchical society, those without power are always those who are intensely and emphatically embodied — more immediate to pain, more concrete, more limited by the immediate bodily presence, more describable (i.e. more subjected to the power of language). Conversely, the privileged and powerful lead a style of existence that is more abstract, less conscious of the bodily messiness/susceptibility to pain/vulnerability, and wielding the power of language.
It's no wonder that late-stage capitalism is becoming not only increasingly greedy and bizarre, it's also becoming more ineffable. We'll have less and less words to describe it coherently.
In the linked podcast, Douglas theorized that these billionaire preppers wanted to recreate the womb, and make digital systems that could meet their every need without them having to interact with...
In the linked podcast, Douglas theorized that these billionaire preppers wanted to recreate the womb, and make digital systems that could meet their every need without them having to interact with the outside world. That works pretty well as a catch-all, IMO.
The second half of the article got me thinking. It feels like there might be some serious intergenerational dysfunction among the ultra-wealthy, especially in the US.
The second half of the article got me thinking. It feels like there might be some serious intergenerational dysfunction among the ultra-wealthy, especially in the US.
Makes sense, it's the old money/new money divide, where old money wants to keep it's wealth generationally and not make a big fuss, while new money wants to translate it into power and vanity...
Makes sense, it's the old money/new money divide, where old money wants to keep it's wealth generationally and not make a big fuss, while new money wants to translate it into power and vanity projects as soon as they are able to.
Every time I read about preppers, it feels very childish to me. Like they're just role-playing in a world where they have all the power. Apocalypse is very unlikely, especially in their time. Most...
Every time I read about preppers, it feels very childish to me. Like they're just role-playing in a world where they have all the power. Apocalypse is very unlikely, especially in their time. Most of these billionaires also seem to be techies, who are likely to be taken away by all this nonsense. It really just feels like insecure rich nerds LARPing that they're in a setting where they have all the power, but really they're just rich nerds. Poor people just watch TV for their escapist fantasies.
It did come up during the interview that it seemed an awful lot like the tech billionaires interviewed were planning out their ultimate man caves, and the apocalypse was just window dressing.
It did come up during the interview that it seemed an awful lot like the tech billionaires interviewed were planning out their ultimate man caves, and the apocalypse was just window dressing.
Something of a follow-up to this post, where the initial article was reworked as part of a book, and the initial event the author described was revisited and followed up on through additional interviews with similar preppers.
I'm going to take the liberty to repost this comment from @zoec in that thread and hope that's OK. It's putting into words (ironically) what I have been trying to pinpoint for a long time. I read it back then in 2018 but it seems clearer now.
In the linked podcast, Douglas theorized that these billionaire preppers wanted to recreate the womb, and make digital systems that could meet their every need without them having to interact with the outside world. That works pretty well as a catch-all, IMO.
The second half of the article got me thinking. It feels like there might be some serious intergenerational dysfunction among the ultra-wealthy, especially in the US.
Makes sense, it's the old money/new money divide, where old money wants to keep it's wealth generationally and not make a big fuss, while new money wants to translate it into power and vanity projects as soon as they are able to.
Every time I read about preppers, it feels very childish to me. Like they're just role-playing in a world where they have all the power. Apocalypse is very unlikely, especially in their time. Most of these billionaires also seem to be techies, who are likely to be taken away by all this nonsense. It really just feels like insecure rich nerds LARPing that they're in a setting where they have all the power, but really they're just rich nerds. Poor people just watch TV for their escapist fantasies.
It did come up during the interview that it seemed an awful lot like the tech billionaires interviewed were planning out their ultimate man caves, and the apocalypse was just window dressing.
Douglas Rushkoff was interviewed for the You Are Not So Smart podcast on this book, and I think it was pretty interesting:
https://youarenotsosmart.com/2022/09/18/yanss-242-the-psychology-behind-the-apocalyptic-anxieties-creating-a-surge-of-billionaire-preppers/#more-8033