What is the appeal of apocalyptic thinking? (men, husband, attracted)

[mateo45]

Apocalyptic movements and Doomsday cults, they keep re-appearing again and again.…Y2k, 2012, Branch Davidians, Heaven's Gate, the Rapture & End Times, Preppers, Obama as the AntiChrist, Islamic Armageddon, etc., etc..

What's the psychology behind these sorta groups… what makes them so attractive & recurring even in modern times, and do you think there's a particular type of person that they tend to attract?

[Sonic_Spork]

I don't know but I often wonder too about these shows, where people get SO EXCITED telling us all about how the world will be destroyed. It's almost like they just can't wait for the end. It's weird.

My husband likes to fantasize about some kind of apocalypse, he grew up on dystopian films like Mad Max type stuff and I know what's up with it in his situation. He has largely failed to meet the expectations of success in the civilian world. He could not settle to one profession, build on it, and retire from it. He hopped from one thing to the next. He doesn't understand people and social expectation very well. But he prides himself on his survival skills and knowledge of things about defense and improvising survival solutions. I think that a lot of guys who spent years in the military wind up having trouble adapting to what is normal and expected outside of it, at least that may be a part of it.

Me...I want nothing to do with the end of normal society. I function well in the world I live in and am not interested in hiding out up in the hills or surviving any kind of apocalypse. No thanks!

[mateo45]

^ ^ Good point re: the "Mad Max" angle. After all, where else besides the military or law enforcement (which both still have 'rules'), and the total anarchy of an apocalypse, are you left to your own devices to dispense life, death and 'justice' at the end of a gun, and survive based mainly on your own skill & wits?

Kinda like the quote from the movie "Fight Club"…. "It's only after we've lost everything that we're free to do anything!"

[Cantabridgienne]

The illusion of control.

Same thing with the kinds of people who believe the dead children in Sandy Hook and the Boston Marathon were actors.

[JaxRhapsody]

I'd love a dystopian future, I'd run this city with the largest territory, have the most bad ass vehicles, and weapons. It would be my group that keeps things like water and elctricy going. I would be somebody.

[Jjury15]

Humans are tragic. Since we don't have to worry about lions eating us, if we'll find a decent meal today out in the wild, or if our water source is tainted, we create new 'worries'. It's what we're designed to do. How boring would this world be if we didn't?

[Leizar]

Originally Posted by mateo45

Apocalyptic movements and Doomsday cults, they keep re-appearing again and again.…Y2k, 2012, Branch Davidians, Heaven's Gate, the Rapture & End Times, Preppers, Obama as the AntiChrist, Islamic Armageddon, etc., etc..

What's the psychology behind these sorta groups… what makes them so attractive & recurring even in modern times, and do you think there's a particular type of person that they tend to attract?

The only reason i can think of why someone might want the world to end is simply because they do not like the way the current world is. going out to actually change the world is too much hard work but creating an end world date is easy, it gives people a feeling of hope, which i suppose is like a drug to some. i think that the majority of people attracted to such groups are from the lower working class.

Originally Posted by Sonic_Spork

My husband likes to fantasize about some kind of apocalypse, he grew up on dystopian films like Mad Max type stuff and I know what's up with it in his situation. He has largely failed to meet the expectations of success in the civilian world. He could not settle to one profession, build on it, and retire from it. He hopped from one thing to the next. He doesn't understand people and social expectation very well. But he prides himself on his survival skills and knowledge of things about defense and improvising survival solutions. I think that a lot of guys who spent years in the military wind up having trouble adapting to what is normal and expected outside of it, at least that may be a part of it.

That makes sense.

Those that lack the right qualities to be a success in our current way of life, but have the perfect set of qualities (skills, talents, attitude etc.) for an apocalyptic way of life would indeed be wishing for an apocalypse to happen so that they could finally put their skills to use and finally be a success in the world.

While those that have the perfect qualities (such as social and business skills) for our current way of life, but lack the right qualities for an apocalyptic way of life would indeed be wishing for an apocalypse to NEVER happen, for if it did, they would not survive.

[PDD]

Originally Posted by mateo45

Apocalyptic movements and Doomsday cults, they keep re-appearing again and again.…Y2k, 2012, Branch Davidians, Heaven's Gate, the Rapture & End Times, Preppers, Obama as the AntiChrist, Islamic Armageddon, etc., etc..

What's the psychology behind these sorta groups… what makes them so attractive & recurring even in modern times, and do you think there's a particular type of person that they tend to attract?

Similar to those who believe that when they die they are going to a better place. I don't get that either.
I guess it's group brain washing, if enough people believe then it must be true.

[amylewis]

Seems to me it's about the power and sexual options the survivors would have. A guy could set himself up as a warlord, dictator over a territory, corn-pone Nazi, whatever, and have all the women and weapons he wants while calling all the shots and feeling like a big man... at last. Societal controls would vanish, and the aspiring strong-man could impose whatever rules he wished.

It's a popular fantasy among certain types of men for that reason.

[tnff]

Originally Posted by Leizar

Those that lack the right qualities to be a success in our current way of life, but have the perfect set of qualities (skills, talents, attitude etc.) for an apocalyptic way of life would indeed be wishing for an apocalypse to happen so that they could finally put their skills to use and finally be a success in the world.

While those that have the perfect qualities (such as social and business skills) for our current way of life, but lack the right qualities for an apocalyptic way of life would indeed be wishing for an apocalypse to NEVER happen, for if it did, they would not survive.

I suspect most of those who THINK they have the skills to survive, will be among the first to go. They get an image from movies of they can be the warlord. Reality is it will be about farming, raising food, preserving food, making clothes, etc. Even skills like blacksmithing, woodworking will be needed.