Surviving Dystopia: What Is Dystopia? (part 2 - the Unfolding)

By Tim Gamble

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Dystopian dis-ˈtō-pē-ən adj.: 1) of, relating to, or being a world or society in which most people lead wretched, dehumanized, fearful lives; 2) a world of high technology, marked by authoritarian government and powerful corporations, with a huge divide between a privileged elite, and a disempowered underclass they rule over.

In modern survivalist fiction, the storyline typically goes something like this:

• Things have been getting bad for awhile 
• The "sheeple"  aren't paying attention, suffering from normalcy bias, dumbed down by public education, and bought off by "free stuff" from the government
• At some point there is a Trigger Event (SHTF) that causes a relatively quick collapse 
• The Trigger Event is followed by a period (a few months to at most a few years) of intense anarchy, violence, and even civil war
• Modern infrastructure collapses, including the current political and economic systems
• Many of the sheeple are shocked out of their long slumber by this harsh reality
• The sheeple that don't wake up, die
• Eventually, the good guys (the newly awakened folks, lead by preppers, survivalists, traditional Christians, and constitutionalists) win
• The world is saved, the Republic is restored, and our rights are protected for all time to come
• Technology is still around, but plays a smaller role, controlled in a way to be less prone to abuse

Sounds great. However, it is far more fantasy than anything else. The emerging reality of dystopia will be much longer lasting and far more brutal for the common folks. 

Here is how I see dystopia unfolding: 

• Things have been getting bad for awhile 
• The "sheeple"  aren't paying attention, suffering from normalcy bias, dumbed down by public education, and bought off by "free stuff" from the government
• Things continue to get worse for the underclass (which is most of us), as our freedoms, opportunities, and privacy continue to erode, as do our bank accounts
• Things actually get better for the elite class, as their wealth, power, and privilege increase
• There is no Trigger Event to collapse the modern system (there will be smaller events that don't collapse the system)
• Most of the Sheeple don't wake up (a few do, but not nearly enough)
• A new, permanent civilization emerges, with a very small elite class ruling over all, a small professional middle class serving the ruling elites, and a very large underclass, living small, desperate, fearful lives
• Technology grows ever more powerful, and is successfully used by the elite to control the underclass

Not very pleasant sounding, is it? But I would argue that it is the emerging reality.

In the survivalist fantasy scenario, emphasis is placed on those things that would help us survive a short-term emergency and collapse - food and water storage, bushcraft and wilderness survival skills, and so on. While those skills are useful and important, they don't go far enough for survival in a true dystopian future.

Dystopian Survival Situations: 

• Direct Loss of Freedoms & Privacy (though legislation such as "hate speech," "red flag," and "climate change" laws, as well as regulations against "misinformation" or forcing "diversity and equity" as defined by ?)
• Indirect Loss of Freedoms & Privacy (through political correctness, wokeism, deplatforming, cancel culture, and so forth...)
• Continued (and intentional) breakdown of traditional institutions such as the Family, the Church, and National Sovereignty (borders, patriotism)
• The (Intentional) Breakdown of Infrastructure, particularly relating to food, energy, and the supply chain
• Recession, Job Loss, High Inflation, and Economic Turmoil
• Workforce Displacement via technology and illegal immigrants
• Political Turmoil & Police State Actions  
• The Surveillance State
• Technocracy, AI, and Smart Cities
• Medical Passports & 15-Minute Cities
• Social Credit Scores
• The Digital Economy
• Civil Unrest, including Riots & Looting (many planned and funded by the Elites)
• Identity Theft 
• Cyber Threats 
• Violent Crime (spurred on by illegal immigration, defunding of the police, and woke DAs not prosecuting real crimes)
• Lawfare Against Political Opponents
• Assassination of those that pose some sort of danger against the Elites (the recent failed attempt on Trump, the "suicide" of Epstein)
• Active Shooter Situations 
• Terrorism 
• Epidemics & Pandemics (planned or unplanned)
• Regional and Proxy Warfare

Knowing how to build an emergency shelter or start a fire in the rain probably won't do you much good in most of those scenarios. Not that there is anything wrong with those skills. They are useful and are worth learning. But there are many other skills that you should also learn in order to survive dystopia. I'll go over those skills in part 3 of this article.

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