2012 Survivalists... the "Real" Zombie Apocalypse?

Zombie Thursdays is a weekly feature with guest blogger, Miranda. You can read more about her here.

As zombie fans, it's fun to speculate about what it would be like to live during and after a zombie apocalypse. There are movies, television shows, books, etc. that are all designed to give a somewhat accurate portrayal of what our lives could be like with little food and water, no electricity, and with the world in chaos and riots. A great show that exists is the "reality" show The Colony which has participants spend seventy-two hours in a simulated quarantine before joining forces to form a survivalist community. They forage for food, set up battery operated generators, ward off roving gangs trying to steal their supplies, and generally try to adapt to a new way of living as if the world has been destroyed by a highly contagious super virus.

But even that show is under controlled circumstances. There are obviously camera crews following them, producers pulling cast members to the side for the "testimonial rooms," and I'm sure there is medical help just waiting beyond the cameras in case something goes really wrong. Even so, it is fun to watch and imagine what it would be like to live in such a world. No computers, no internet, no cars, no entertainment. Just surviving.

While a zombie attack may be a far fetched idea (for now), there is something else coming that has survivalists all panicked. 2012.

While many of us will laugh at the notion of the world as we know it ending and new type of existence beginning in December 2012, there are others that are absolutely convinced this will occur. I recently watched a special on msnbc (I believe) about 2012 survivalists and the lenghts at which they are going to be prepared. And it's not just a matter of stock piling water and canned goods in their basements. Many of these individuals are purchasing land and building survivalists' communities in the hills of undisclosed locations. Some properties go for hundreds of thousands of dollars, just like buying a vacation condo. Don't believe me? Just check out this disturbing example of a website-- Place of Refuge 2012.

For those too lazy to click and explore, the gist of it is this-- for two acres of land with a 99 year lease, all you have to pay is $7,500 to join the community to make it through the coming storm. Of course, this does not include a house, etc. Just the land and a spot in the group. According to the site, only one spot is left. Also worth viewing is their "why" page with many examples of the signs that 2012 will be the end.

Humans seem to believe that the worst thing that can happen to us is death. And yet... every single one of us will die eventually. Humans seem to have this unwavering devotion to life. If the zombies attack, we'll fight. We'll fight to live another day in undead hell. If 2012 turns out to be real (and I for one believe that I will be waking up on December 22, 2012 and heading to work as usual) and the world falls in to chaos and despair, we'll fight to live in tiny colonies up in the hills-- modern mountain men and women. Is it really worth it? Why do we fear change and death so much?

Maybe that is why the world is so fascinated with the ideas of various apocalypses-- The Rapture, 2012, and zombies. Especially zombies. We fear death and wonder what could possibly be worse than that? In the case of zombies, the only thing worse than death is reanimated death. Better to shoot yourself in the head first than be turned into "one of them." Or fight to live in the hopes that the world order will be restored and life will somehow go back to normal. But after such an altering event, is normal even possible?

It's a lot to contemplate, and it's difficult to believe that there are people in the world right now who are selling all of their possessions, quitting their jobs, and are leaving their families so that they can live in one of these survivalist communities. Watching the special on television, I felt sorry for these people, I felt bad. As I'm heading into another day of work on December 22, what will these people think when they wake up and see 2012 being mocked on the morning news shows as just another hoax?

What are your thoughts on 2012 and the fear mongering websites that always seem to pop up around these events? Are these people serious or just out to steal money from people's fears of death?