The End of Humanity - what would you do?

Phobos · 2002-07-25 18:25:49

If a 200 mile wide asteroid was going to hit Earth tomorrow night and wipe out all of humanity, how would you spend your last day of existence knowing that fact?

Josh Cryer · 2002-07-25 20:17:54

Oh c'mon! Don't we know the answer to this one?

I would make it a point to make wild passionate love to the one I love. Afterwards, closer to the time of impact, I would invite her to sit with me and watch our impending doom on the highest hill or mountian in the area.

Unless, of course, Mars Direct was built by then. In which case I would and hijack it and take her to Mars with me. Hehe

Palomar · 2002-07-26 11:18:23

*I think that would depend on what the rest of humanity is doing, particularly in my "neck of the woods." I think the majority of people [no matter where in the world] would either a) be brave and resigned about it or b) be going absolutely hysterical and crazy about it. I can imagine certain segments of any and all populations flocking to religious refuges, committing suicide or suiciding with family, or perhaps even going beserk and trying to kill others. I can imagine Israelis and Palestinians weeping and hugging each other in the street, remorseful for all that's gone on between them...and other warring nations as well. I can even imagine Saddam Hussein telephoning George Bush, or vice versa, and saying a humane goodbye to each other. In the face of death, when people KNOW it is coming soon for them, most folks drop the personality armor, the posturing and antics, etc., etc. I imagine the entire world saying a collective farewell, apologies flying around, people weeping for "what could have been" long ago, before this imminent catastrophe...

I don't know how my husband would handle it, but I'd watch it all -- the last butterfly flittering about, the last clouds floating serenely in the sky, the last cockroach skittering along -- everything around me, I'd take a final notice of -- I'd relish a final meal...and then I'd swallow a huge bottle of sleeping pills when it would be known that the asteroid cannot be blown into fragments with missiles, etc., and doom is assured.

--Cindy

Phobos · 2002-07-26 19:17:21

Unless, of course, Mars Direct was built by then. In which case I would and hijack it and take her to Mars with me. Hehe

Hey, don't blast off without me!! In 2019 I'm probably going to be living there around the launch complex somewhere, so wait a few minutes!

I can imagine Israelis and Palestinians weeping and hugging each other in the street, remorseful for all that's gone on between them...and other warring nations as well.

I think those hatreds are so well entrenched that nothing can stop them. Heck, they'd probably think the asteroid was a gift from god to kill off all of their enemies.

I don't know how my husband would handle it, but I'd watch it all -- the last butterfly flittering about, the last clouds floating serenely in the sky, the last cockroach skittering along -- everything around me, I'd take a final notice of -- I'd relish a final meal...and then I'd swallow a huge bottle of sleeping pills when it would be known that the asteroid cannot be blown into fragments with missiles, etc., and doom is assured.

I'm not sure what I'd do. If Josh and his girlfriend blast off to Mars without me, I'd probably get together with some friends and get plastered to kill the thought even though there's a little part of me that would want to be fully aware so I could feel first hand the force of the impact. What do you think people in general would do? Do you think they'd would quietly accept their fate or do you think there would be massive rioting and panic in the streets? Probably both.

PaganToris · 2002-07-28 10:35:34

Well if that did ever happen wich it might in 2019 but i would get all pasterd with my friend and then i would
i would read the bible and I would tell god FORGIVE ME FOR ALL MY SINS PLZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ

PaganToris · 2002-07-28 10:36:28

Well if that did ever happen wich it might in 2019 but i would get all pasterd with my friend and then i would
i would read the bible and I would tell god FORGIVE ME FOR ALL MY SINS PLZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ

clark · 2002-07-29 15:36:02

Why is the idea of the "end of the world" any more significant the "end of your life"?

Would there be riots, sure, but then that is just people lashing out in anger due to impotence.
Would some resign themselves, no doubt, where do you go when there is no place left to go?
Would some still try to survive instead of offing themselves with some pills? Of course, evolution has created a basic drive in us that guareente's that someone, somewhere will keep trying to survive, even against hopeless odds.

The end of the world, in the classic sense, is the ultimate thought experiment in human exitenilism. Anything you do will be absolutely without question be rendered meaningless. Any act and every act is negated by the eventual destruction.

Kill someone, so what, were all going to die in 24 hours. Want to kill someone, why? They will be dead in 24 hours.

Want to take drugs, fine, you will be dead in 24 hours.
Want to make love, great, you'll still be dead in 24 hours.
Want to find god, at least seemingly constructive, yet possibly delusional. It also begs the question as to what the "grand design" could be if we are ALL dead.

Personaly, I believe I would follow the apparent wisdom of the terminaly ill upon their death bed, surrounded by as many familiar faces as possible, at least we will not be alone until that moment of death. It is after all, the only thing you can really do that would at least be helpful to another in a situation such as this.

???

Palomar · 2002-07-29 22:24:15

Personaly, I believe I would follow the apparent wisdom of the terminaly ill upon their death bed, surrounded by as many familiar faces as possible, at least we will not be alone until that moment of death. It is after all, the only thing you can really do that would at least be helpful to another in a situation such as this.
???

*That's nice. However, not all terminally ill patients come to the "end of the rails" surrounded by supportive loved ones; and even if they are, most aren't aware they are there simply because they're so highly medicated on pain killers which render them incoherent and "out of it."

Also, there's no assurance your loved ones would want or even be capable of sharing warm, calm, tender final moments if that asteroid hits in 2019...some may be tearing their hair out and screaming hysterically.

Regardless, I generally live for now and enjoy each day as much as possible.

--Cindy

Ranger_2833 · 2002-09-12 11:11:12

I go out and buy the biggest aluminium baseball bat I could find. Then I'd go and find every congress-person for the last 30 years that didn't have the common sense to support manned exploration of space (hence setting us back about 30 years from where we should have been) and beat them with the bat untill they woke up and got a freaking clue. Or until I got bored, seeing as how congress members couldn't see trees in a forest.

Shaun Barrett · 2002-09-12 18:59:19

[Quote from Ranger 2833: "... beat them with the bat until they woke up ..."]

Funny ... I'd always imagined beating someone with a baseball bat would tend to put them to sleep .... Permanently!!

Just kidding around here! Ranger's idea is VERY understandable. In fact, why wait until we're all doomed? Hell, let's get the bats now and get the show on the road!!

Phobos · 2002-09-12 19:31:53

LOL! I think Ranger has a point!

Just kidding around here! Ranger's idea is VERY understandable. In fact, why wait until we're all doomed? Hell, let's get the bats now and get the show on the road!!

LOL! If we see terrorists armed with baseball bats swinging at politicians in the name of spaceflight it won't be to hard to know where they got the inspiration.

wccmarsface@msn.com · 2003-04-20 20:31:42

A 200-mile-wide asteroid hitting the earth! Whoa! It couldn't happen: not one that big (the KT impactor was around six or so miles across with a kinetic energy yield of at least one hundred million megatons!). A killer rock that size probably hasn't been seen within Earth's vicinity for very likely more than four billion years. A dense white dwarf colliding with the sun might be as great a likelyhood as a space rock hundreds of miles across, but wait: what about giant comets that size that could make it careering across our planet's orbit!? Haven't some of these been spotted in the Kuiper Belt? Yikes!! wccmarsface@msn.com

PaganToris · 2003-04-22 20:02:32

well if the end of Humanity would come wello i would go pound it like mad no tomrrow and drink a bunch of beers
and do anytyhing i could do

dickbill · 2003-07-30 13:42:27

I don't find Cindy's thread about HIV...so I post here.
It's about a new HIV vaccine. at:
http://fr.news.yahoo.com/030730/202/3bqdr.html

Very shortly, the vaccine contains (probably among other things), a vaccine recombinant virus containing several HIV genes (gag pol nef and env), so this vaccine does NOT contain any HIV virus (even attenuated). It """"should""" (notice the number of " used) safe. Whatever, good news.

sorry it's in french again ! but it is the second time (after the russian meteor) that I don't find mention of a Yahoo.fr news in Yahoo.com. Is that a boycott of AFP or is there no french translators or what ? luckily Dickbill is there...

Palomar · 2003-08-06 20:05:25

I don't find Cindy's thread about HIV...so I post here.
It's about a new HIV vaccine. at:
http://fr.news.yahoo.com/030730/202/3bqdr.html
Very shortly, the vaccine contains (probably among other things), a vaccine recombinant virus containing several HIV genes (gag pol nef and env), so this vaccine does NOT contain any HIV virus (even attenuated). It """"should""" (notice the number of " used) safe. Whatever, good news.
sorry it's in french again ! but it is the second time (after the russian meteor) that I don't find mention of a Yahoo.fr news in Yahoo.com. Is that a boycott of AFP or is there no french translators or what ? luckily Dickbill is there...

*Thanks dickbill...

AND I'M GLAD THE FORUM IS OPERATIVE AGAIN!

--Cindy

P.S. to Adrian: The Yahoo! Group is deleted.

prometheusunbound · 2003-08-11 11:39:30

I guess I would walk the dog and have a regular day. I can't imagine why I would want to do anything different, clark is right, death comes at any time. I love living my life as it is, but I do realize death comes at any time. . . . .might as well accept it and live on until times up.

btw I already believe god has found me so I wouldn't worry excessivly about that part, maybe just offer a prayer just before impact commanding my soul into his hands.

Death is nothing new, we are powerless to be born and powerless to die.

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#1 2002-07-25 18:25:49

Re: The End of Humanity - what would you do?

#2 2002-07-25 20:17:54

Re: The End of Humanity - what would you do?

#3 2002-07-26 11:18:23

Re: The End of Humanity - what would you do?

#4 2002-07-26 19:17:21

Re: The End of Humanity - what would you do?

#5 2002-07-28 10:35:34

Re: The End of Humanity - what would you do?

#6 2002-07-28 10:36:28

Re: The End of Humanity - what would you do?

#7 2002-07-29 15:36:02

Re: The End of Humanity - what would you do?

#8 2002-07-29 22:24:15

Re: The End of Humanity - what would you do?

#9 2002-09-12 11:11:12

Re: The End of Humanity - what would you do?

#10 2002-09-12 18:59:19

Re: The End of Humanity - what would you do?

#11 2002-09-12 19:31:53

Re: The End of Humanity - what would you do?

#12 2003-04-20 20:31:42

Re: The End of Humanity - what would you do?

#13 2003-04-22 20:02:32

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#14 2003-07-30 13:42:27

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#15 2003-08-06 20:05:25

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#16 2003-08-11 11:39:30

Re: The End of Humanity - what would you do?

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