Happy Independence Day and hopefully you can be truly independent today and do whatever the hell you want to. It used to be a holiday when people were home with their families but now retail stores have big July 4 sales so you have to work there. Manufacturing used to give factory workers 2 weeks off in July for vacation. There isn’t any of those jobs here anymore.   If anything the hospital workers used to be on call all weekend to repair all the accidents due to people shooting off fireworks on their street. Now you can go to jail if you have fireworks. Things are just very different these days.

We live in a world now full of threats so it is not impossible to think that the world we live in could collapse in a heartbeat. Half the movies we “entertain” ourselves with are about preparing for the end of our world. In the movie The Hunger Games, the main characters live in an old missile silo. Usually real life is not so far off from the movies. After all, the new American way is to make as much money as you possibly can and then selfishly spend it all on yourself. Go to Raven Ridge, Kansas and buy yourself a luxury condo inside a missile silo just to be safe. Drive for hours to nowhere and meet armed guards at the gate until you get clearance and then the guns go down and you are met by very friendly people on the other side of the gate.

It is a former intercontinental ballistic missile site of silos. It is a structure that the United States built with doomsday in mind. Inside is 15 floors of buried underground happiness without real windows. All of the exterior walls are 9 feet thick. It is a condo tower where you can purchase space in it for anywhere from one to five million dollars. The large pool area has beach scenes painted on the walls and includes a man- made waterfall.   These survival condos are the high end of a booming business of which more than 3 Million Americans are committed to.  Disaster preparedness is now a $5 hundred Million dollar industry. There are companies that cater to the apocalypse. It is survivals for the rich.

There is game rooms and a full size theater with large leather chairs for all. There is a bar adjoining the movie theater. This is Larry Hall’s vision of survival. He is the developer of these places.  It would make you feel like you actually could sleep through a nuclear bomb. There is plenty of water with good pressure. The contractor Mark Menosky lives there on and off throughout the year. There are his and hers bunk beds for the kids and gas fireplaces in the living rooms. All rooms have virtual windows that are flat screen TV’s where you can choose whatever scenery you wish to display. There are high Teck Japanese toilet seats   that will clean you up without toilet paper if necessary otherwise it would take an entire floor just to store toilet paper.

They are pet friendly with areas for you to walk your dog. A school room where kids can continue with their studies and the other adults are the teachers. Part of the deal with ownership of the condo is that during a “lock down” everyone would be required to perform a 4 hour shift in assisting a need. Work in the on- site store or in the greenhouse where organic fruits and vegetables are grown and fish are farmed. They grow celery, lettuce, carrots, onions, blueberries, strawberries and kale. The one thing you have to keep reminding yourself is why this thing exists. Why does it have so much security measures?

They have air filters to neutralize a nuclear or biological or chemical attack along with an extensive armory with plenty of guns. It is a modern day fort. Outside it is clear that the underground place is a fortress.  There is an on- site windmill generating its own stored power. The silo is sold out. More sites are currently under renovation for more condos.  The last time they were opened was in 1967. Today the threat may be different to maintain our independence but the fear remains. At least for some rich people the accommodations during a disaster will be pretty good..  Enjoy your holiday if you have one.