They’re busy building bomb-proof underground shelters, and funnily enough, that's making me feel a tad nervous. Why?

Now, I don't want to be regarded as some kind of crank or a nutty prophet of doom. Nor would I appreciate being thought of as one of those tiresome conspiracy theorists either. But when it's reported that the likes of Mark Zuckerberg are busy doomsday-prepping, it kind of makes my ears prick a little and a hint of panic might just be setting in.

Apparently, Zuckerberg isn't the only one doing this. At least another dozen billionaires across the globe are buying up remote islands and using some of their newly acquired land to create underground hidey holes for themselves and their families. What’s really worrying is that the completion date for these billionaire shelter complexes is Winter 2024.

If all this isn’t just idle gossip, it must be logical to wonder what these people know that the rest of us mightn't. A fair query, I think you’ll agree? I imagine that it might also be fair to assume that these people aren't actively building underground survival shelters because it's suddenly fashionable to come out all Bond Villainish? Those who have reportedly witnessed these complexes being built can't all be telling porkies? So my bet is that there's some truth to these tales.


On a precipice

It doesn't take a billionaire’s insight or a tech-geek’s intellect to work out that the world isn't currently in a particularly fabulous sort of place. The way things are panning out, western civilization could quite easily find itself teetering on a cultural and economic precipice. It doesn’t take much to upset the applecart, it's always been hanging on a thread. Let's face it, there’s plenty of fraying going on around the peripherals of this great human fabric of life. And, if you happen to be a billionaire, I guess a survival bunker is a pretty good investment, all things considered.

You may be chuckling away to yourself by now. Who is this fellow you might be asking? He's clearly hysterical and has been watching too much rubbish on YouTube. But my lunatic rantings may not be as laughable as they first appear when you consider how precarious things are actually looking. Just humour me for a moment and hear me out.

Ok. As if any of us need reminding, we have the biggest regional conflict for generations still raging on in the Middle East. It's a humanitarian disaster. As I write, international diplomats are desperately trying to stop the war in Palestine from escalating into the wider region. After all, this possible escalation has been a major concern from day one. In fact, it's been a concern for years. Who knows what atrocities might have manifested themselves in Gaza, the West Bank or beyond by the time this piece goes to print? I dread to think. Really and truthfully, I do.

And then, we have the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. Not only that, we also have a precarious stock market that depends almost wholly on what's widely known as the “big tech seven.” That’s a whole lot of eggs in not a great many baskets. The way things are going, we have the real potential for a complete economic collapse in China.

To top it all, we have the small problem of America being the most divided it’s been since the Civil War. You couldn't make this up (although Hollywood has had a go with its forthcoming Civil War movie due to hit the big screen). It's clearly a very serious situation that some suggest could actually threaten the postponement of the forthcoming presidential election. If (or when) that election does eventually go ahead, it isn't all that unreasonable to surmise the possibility of monumental resentment and anger arising - whoever “wins”. That might be followed by civil disorder. As far as I can see, neither side of the American political divide is likely to be particularly magnanimous in defeat.


Start digging

Where’s my shovel? At this stage, we might all do well to start digging. The more I delve, the more I see that this is one bad-ass world that seems wholly determined to plunge itself into chaos. Why, though? If only that negative energy could be channeled into something positive, we’d all benefit.

I love being right. I admit it, I do. But this time I earnestly hope to goodness that I’m well and truly wrong and that 2024 isn't going to herald that dreaded “black swan” event.

But all I seem to see is extremely rich and powerful people in charge of our collective destiny. People who are utterly incapable of one very important achievement. And that is to create a future where everything will be alright. Because if the future isn't alright for us (that's you and I) then no matter how much wealth the likes of Zuckerberg hold or how much power your common or garden billionaire believe they individually possess; an apocalyptic dystopia isn't exactly in anyone's long term interests.

Zuckerberg has reportedly spent nearly $300 million creating the most expensive property in human history. It's on a 1500 acre complex in Hawaii. It really does smack of a crazy billionaire who's gone a bit rogue and is now on the cusp of attracting the attention of 007. Zuckerberg’s workforce is sworn to secrecy and has been forced into comprehensive Non-Disclosure Agreements regarding what their paymaster is up to.

These ultra-wealthy billionaires even have a euphemism for what they see as some kind of impending apocalypse and resultant societal collapse. They refer to it as “The Event”. This euphemism has been created by the very people who have been preparing and indeed creating a “digital” future that has less to do with making the world a better place for the general population but moreover, they’ve been involved with the scary aspiration that has actually sought to transcend the human condition altogether (with AI). Extreme wealth and privilege has only served to make these people become obsessed with insulating themselves from the crazy world which they themselves have helped create.


“The Event”

I imagine that these billionaire bunkers aren't simply just blast-proof but are also capable of shielding their occupants from climate change, rising sea levels and the mass migration of desperate and displaced people. People who might be just as keen as the billionaires themselves to survive the disease, the pandemics, and the ensuing panic that would doubtlessly result from resource depletion after “The Event”.

For the average tech billionaire, there seems to be one form of technology that now trumps all others. This involves developing brand-new ways to escape from the rest of us mere mortals.

So who will triumph? Will it be Jeff Bezos migrating to space in an Amazon Prime cardboard box (with his Star Trek box set to hand)? No free returns Jeff, old pal. Once you're on your way - it's a one-way ticket. Perhaps the victor will be Thiel as he heads off to his New Zealand compound (with a view) of melting glaciers. Or will it end up being our Mark Zuckerberg, escaping off to his Hawaiian Island metaverse?

Guess what? These catastrophising billionaires are supposedly the winners. Champions of their own utopia, the epitome of survival-of-the-fittest.

Hmmm? Really?

Author

Douglas Hughes is a UK-based writer producing general interest articles ranging from travel pieces to classic motoring. 

Douglas Hughes