survival shelter courtesy of google.com
As the saying goes, “It’s an ill wind that blows no good.” Despite the war of nerves Donald Trump is playing with North Korea’s leader, Kim Jung-un, bad political news means good business for some. Since North Korea launched a missile that could reach the United States, interest in underground shelters has grown. Not surprisingly, much of it in Japan, which lies 800 miles off the North Korean coast.
Manufacturers of underground shelters have enjoyed a steady market all along, thanks to survivalists who expect Armageddon each morning. But fear of a nuclear war hasn’t been so prevalent since the cold war. Nobody can predict Trump’s behavior from moment to moment, and Kim Jun-un is a complete mystery. Only his haircut hints something is amiss.
Those with money to spare are taking these two clowns seriously. Underground bunkers are all the rage. Living options vary: from a simple safe room that starts at $18,999 to an underground palace, complete with a bowling alley, hydroponic pools to grow vegetables, independent air filtration systems and a theater to watch movies. That will cost over $8 million.
A company in South Dakota has planned a 9,000 bunker subdivision for underground living called x-Point. $25,000 will get you a 99 year lease for a bunker, and another $1,000 a year will allow you occupy the land where it’s buried. (“Where a Bad World Means Good Business, by Justin Mattingly and Andy Sharp, Bloomberg Businessweek, August 7. 2017, pg. 17.)
If you don’t mind living like a Morlock, the accommodations are affordable to many — presuming you can sell your above ground house, that is. Keeping up payments after a nuclear war is the puzzle — when there is no government, no economy and no jobs.
Me? I’m not worried. When the missile comes, I know how to save both money and my sanity. I’m going to stand where it lands.
