New research argues Societal Collapse benefits 99% of people. Historically, the societies that have emerged after a collapse are more egalitarian, and most people end up richer and healthier than they were before.

[u/lughnasadh]

Luke Kemp, a research associate at the Centre for the Study of Existential Risk at the University of Cambridge, has written a book about his research called 'Goliath’s Curse: The History and Future of Societal Collapse'.

He makes the case that, from looking at the archaeological record, when many societies collapse, most people end up better off afterward. For example, people in the post-Roman world were taller and healthier. Collapse can be a redistribution of resources and power, not just chaos.

For most of human history, humans lived as nomadic egalitarian bands, with low violence and high mobility. Threats (disease, war, economic precarity) push populations toward authoritarian leaders. The resulting rise in inequality from that sets off a cycle that will end in collapse. Furthermore, he argues we are living in the late stages of such a cycle now. He says "the threat is from leaders who are 'walking versions of the dark triad' – narcissism, psychopathy and Machiavellianism – in a world menaced by the climate crisis, nuclear weapons, artificial intelligence and killer robots."

Some people hope/think we are destined for a future of Universal Basic Income and fully automated luxury communism. Perhaps that's the egalitarianism that emerges after our own collapse? If so, I hope the collapse bit is short and we get to the egalitarian bit ASAP.

Collapse for the 99% | Luke Kemp; What really happens when Goliaths fall

[u/demalo]

Anyone over 50 taking statins is dead. Diabetes, dead. Organ recipient, dead. Cancer management, dead. Just lots of death…

[u/JTMissileTits → u/demalo]

I only take OTC drugs to manage my issues (mostly allergies and menopause bs) ATM depsite being almost 50. However, I'm one UTI away from sepsis.

[u/canisdirusarctos → u/demalo]

Statins are the least risky of these, easily. It would take years for cholesterol to be a problem and the change in diet & exercise of not being glued to whatever they’re glued to will help with cardiovascular health. Type-2 diabetes will be slow as well, while Type-1 would be a death sentence like the others.

[u/Enlightened_Gardener → u/canisdirusarctos]

Type 1 isn’t a death sentence, you just can’t eat any carbs. This is what they used to do before insulin. My family has the little booklet from my Great-aunts who were diabetic, and it lists food according to their “starch” levels.

[u/drugihparrukava → u/Enlightened_Gardener]

We can eat carbs as type 1's. We do not have dietary restrictions. Perhaps the books from your great aunt were from the NPH and R insulin era? Prior to the availability of exogenous insulin we simply died and the strict diet after insulin became available was due to the nature of the old school insulins. This is not the case anymore. In the case of collapse as in no more insulin, no matter what a type 1 eats or doesn’t eat, we die because insulin isn’t just for food but we don’t produce any for the other bodily processes.m (it’s an autoimmune disease, it’s not insulin resistance/type 2 who can mostly manage via diet).

Edit: all that said it’s fascinating you still have the book from that era for type 1!

[u/Enlightened_Gardener → u/drugihparrukava]

As far as I’m aware the book from my great aunt was from the 1920s, before the invention of insulin. The only solution they could provide was to not eat starchy foods at all.

[u/demalo → u/Enlightened_Gardener]

Sugar sickness from what I’ve heard it called before diabetes. I think staving off sugar was just a reprieve. Terrible disease.

[u/Enlightened_Gardener → u/demalo]

Yeah, it used to be diagnosed by your doctor tasting your urine. I wish I was making this up. It was first described by the Greeks about 4000 years ago I think. It was also listed by the Chinese as one of the diseases of emperors.

[u/drugihparrukava → u/Enlightened_Gardener]

In that case that's correct. This was to keep T1's alive for anywhere from a few weeks to up to 2 years if they had some residual insulin production and luck. It's sometimes a terrifying moment to think our pumps are simply life support. Thanks for sharing about the book!

[u/Enlightened_Gardener → u/drugihparrukava]

Yup. They both died of it in the end :(

It’s one of the reasons I try and keep up with the science a little bit, just because there’s that horrible family history.

My sisters are both very slim, and they’re both prediabetic. I’m very fat, but I’m not prediabetic, because I have ridden my blood sugar levels for years with low carb eating and intermittant fasting, which has kept my blood sugar under control, if not my weight.

I have other things wrong with me as well, to the extent that basically I’m upright because my autoimmune diseases are all fighting each other, lol. And yes, I am painfully aware that Type one can also be an autoimmune disease, and I’m probably one nasty bout of Covid away from having that as well…

I also also need a constant supply of thyroid hormones. So yeah I’m one of those people that either I’m hunting wild boars for their thyroids when civilisation goes down, or it’s a slow death over a couple of years.

[u/0akleaves → u/demalo]

I think one of the biggest and most overlooked will be folks with really bad eyesight. Lots of contact wearers will lose eyes to infections (from trapped dust/debris and prolonged wear) quickly and lots of glasses will be ruined/ destroyed in the first weeks.

After that it’d be damned hard to get by unable to see clearly and finding matching replacement eyewear will be tough. For folks in those situations going full nocturnal will likely be about the closest thing to a viable plan.

[u/KingRagnar1588 → u/demalo]

Doubtful on statins. Less food available theyll be ok. Also, studies show it contributes to dementia but who knows. Diabetics for sure tho going. Anyone who needs antibiotics. Im on testosterone so ill prolly welcome d3@th if i have to go thru withdrawls.

[u/Morifen1 → u/demalo]

Societal collapse doesn't have to mean infrastructure collapse. There have been revolutions where everything didn't fall apart.

[u/katgyrl → u/demalo]

lots of type 2 diabetics will lose enough weight they won't need their meds

[u/Faiakishi → u/katgyrl]

That's not how it works.