What are you afraid of?

D. Gordon — Mon, 12 Jun 2006 23:36:18 GMT

First of all, every one of the aboved mention "Are" going to happen at some point, somewhere, somehow; so the whole "Will it ever happen?" is really a pointless question.

Frankly, I'm really not afraid of any of the above, because I look at it not from "Oh no, I could die, and everyone I love with me." because if I do, I get terrified and act irrationally.

Life is inherently littered with hazards to it, that is what ultimately leads to "balance". Look, it doesn't matter whether we go out into the universe or stay here, we are in a war against nature, and at the same time, in a war to preserve it. Diseases come and kill millions, and we seek to wipe them out, and new diseases arrise. Call it evolution or call it god, the ultimate result is the same, a balance is sought. The same thing with asteroids, the environment (got news for you all, it's become apparent life is extremely tough to remove from a place, so even it we kill us all off...the planet will recover....unless we shatter the whole sheabang, then the environment might have a worry), terrorism (unless human society fundamentally changes we all have an innate nature to cause harm to those who are different, some of us are just better at controlling it, and most just take it to differing levels, physical harm being the most extreme).

Don't get me wrong, I believe we should do everything we can to prevent disaster, but I'm just pointing out it is, always has been, and always will be a constant fight, regardless of technology, something will come up that can get you.

What are you afraid of?

Christopher Eldridge — Tue, 13 Jun 2006 00:36:05 GMT

Wow… I’m kind of surprised that AAMD (Arsenals of Absolute Mass Destruction) did not even make the list. Nuclear terrorism is a pittance compared to even just one U.S. Ohio-Class ballistic missile submarine, which has the destructive force of 4,000 Hiroshima bombs. That is the kind of doom that really could spell the fall of man, not some 200-pound dirty bomb.

Alien invasion is an outright silly idea in that any alien species that can travel this far to even get here doesn’t need anything from us! Most of the others on the list seem pretty hokie and far fetched (in geologic terms) compared to the real dangers of Natural disasters. An 8.0 under San Fran or a Katrina-like hit on Miami or Huston and you’d be looking at some big problems!

As for being prepared, nothing beats knowing about edible wild plants that you can eat from your own lawn! Peterson’s Field Guide to Edible Wild Plants is the best reference and it only takes about three months to learn. They are everywhere!

Alan, my web site still has my article Preparing for a Super-Disaster as the excerpt text.

What are you afraid of?

Thomas Garrison, Pohang City, S. Korea — Tue, 13 Jun 2006 04:55:32 GMT

And the point of this chicken little survey is ..?

What are you afraid of?

Patrick Bishop, Caldwell, NJ — Tue, 13 Jun 2006 05:49:23 GMT

I'm more concerned about the cumulative effects of many little disasters.

How do we prepare for ten suicide bombers in ten different American cities walking into airports and blowing themselves up at the metal detectors within a few minutes of each other? How do we prepare for a similar scenario involving the Lincoln Tunnel, Golden Gate Bridge, or at a series of electrical substations?

American commerce would come to a screeching halt. Game over, thanks for playing.

What are you afraid of?

Oren, Tel Aviv — Tue, 13 Jun 2006 08:31:22 GMT

Israel has been living with terrorism for many decades. Statistically speaking, it's still significantly less dangerous than road accidents.

The fact that terrorism stars at the top of the list of things americans are afraid of says more about the effectiveness of your government's scare campaign than about the actual level of threat.

What are you afraid of?

Dennis, Hemet Ca. — Wed, 14 Jun 2006 04:05:36 GMT

Our civilization is based on cheap portable energy. No energy, no civilization, period. Nothing presently is a feasible replacement for current sources, at least with the level of population the world has right now. The biggest and most pressing danger is mankind breeding itself beyond the numbers supported by available resources and then to extinction but you won't see that on any research paper released to the public.

What are you afraid of?

nik auckland — Wed, 14 Jun 2006 04:30:38 GMT

what is the problem??? we will without doubt all die some time. Yes we could be a little more prepared but most of humanity want's someone else to do that for them, and we still would die. So enjoy your life (while you have it)and care for others, a least that way our lives would be a bit nicer.

What are you afraid of?

Bobby Palmer — Thu, 15 Jun 2006 21:32:15 GMT

Life is an adventure, it is up to you whether it is good or bad, whichever you choose you get back just what you gave to others. Forget about dying. That will take care of itself. Concentrate on living and treating people they way you want to be treated.

What are you afraid of?

Chris Eldridge, Harrisburg, PA — Thu, 15 Jun 2006 22:39:15 GMT

The parts of the show that I was able to tolerate were actually pretty good. I knew about super volcanoes but did not realize that Yellowstone was sort of overdue (perhaps within another 100,000 years). I am glad to see they mentioned the Canary Island volcano that could cause an East Coast Tsunami. There points on solar flares was not as hockie as I thought they would be and I liked how they addressed human induced mass extinctions. Not a topic many cover. If they could have only left out alien invasion and robot revolution I think I would have felt a lot more comfortable. They really did have good graphics!

What are you afraid of?

Alan Sheets, Loveland, CO — Fri, 16 Jun 2006 20:05:13 GMT

The only disaster scenarios I can really give any credence to are the super volcano, the pandemic, and the solar burst/EMP attack.

What are you afraid of?

K.N.C .MOULY , BANGALORE ,KARNATAKA.,INDIA — Sun, 18 Jun 2006 13:03:53 GMT

The idea of possibly facing a situation that we are "AFRAID OF/CATASTROPHIC"is as old as the universe.
There have been innumerable such occassions described in mythology. THE MANKIND has been facing such situations frequently and has survived amazingly! I totally agree with Bobby Palmer let us concentrate on civilized living and discretely breed mankind (Dennis, CA )

What are you afraid of?

Ellen, Southern Mississippi — Tue, 18 Jul 2006 06:12:19 GMT

What am I afraid of? Another Katrina. The Middle East Crisis. Bird Flu. Alzheimers. Why? I have no control over these things.

What are you afraid of?

Cathyg01, HB, CA — Fri, 26 Jan 2007 19:44:21 GMT

Is this the same film as The History Channels "Last Days on Earth"?