Saturday, October 31, 2009

Defining Terms: TEOTWAWKI and WTSHTF

Perhaps it would be helpful if we were to start off by defining our terms. This is what I mean when I use the acronyms TEOTWAWKI and WTSHTF.

TEOTWAWKI (The End Of The World As We Know It)
• Governments collapse: there is no help coming.

WTSHTF (When The $#!t Hits The Fan)
• Disaster which disables only local government and/or infrastructure i.e. help is on the way.
• National or international event (depression, pandemic, economic collapse à la Argentina in 2001) which cripples governments but does not destroy them i.e. help is slow & inadequate, but on the way.

TEOTWAWKI
I envision two likely TEOTWAWKI (The End Of The World As We Know It) scenarios:

Slow onset TEOTWAWKI (The End Of The World As We Know It) i.e. there's warning.
• An asteroid is detected weeks (days, hours) before it strikes Earth.
• A regional Thermonuclear War breaks out and spreads à la WWI.

Rapid onset TEOTWAWKI (The End Of The World As We Know It) i.e. there's NO warning.
• An undetected asteroid strikes the Earth.
• Global Thermonuclear War breaks out à la December 7th, 1941.

WTSHTF
I envision two likely WTSHTF (When The $#!t Hits The Fan) scenarios:

Slow onset WTSHTF (When The $#!t Hits The Fan) i.e. there's warning.
• A hurricane is headed for the coast.
• Our inept, greedy, self-serving politicians manage to devalue the dollar faster than expected.

Rapid onset WTSHTF (When The $#!t Hits The Fan) i.e. there's NO warning.
• An earthquake (à la 1994 Northridge earthquake)
• Terrorists set off a dirty bomb.

While it is true that an earthquake in LA would have ramifications as far away as NYC (mainly Wall St.) for most of the country it would be something to watch on FOXNews rather than something requiring the tearing of sheets into bandages.

If you are in Enid Oklahoma it really doesn't physically affect you all that much if NYC is a smoking hole in the ground and vica versa. However there will be consequences as government adjusts to the new reality caused by the smoking hole and the new reality that caused that smoking hole.

To me that's the main difference between WTSHTF and TEOTWAWKI; with WTSHTF law enforcement, utilities and the social order have been interrupted, but will soon be reasserted i.e. help, and return to normalcy, is on the way. With TEOTWAWKI there is no government reaction because there is no longer a functioning government to react. help is NOT on the way.

(Before TEOTWAWKI)
When seconds mean life or death the police are only minutes away.-- John Connor

(After TEOTWAWKI)
When seconds mean life or death you are the police.
-- Desert Dave

To Comment on this article
E-Mail Me
Unless you specifically ask me not to, I'll post your reply here in the blog so everyone can read it. Of course I'll remove your last name, email address or any other specific information for privacy reasons.