Grab Your Go Bag

I used to always joke that the biggest difference between pro- and anti-gun activists is that one side is a lot better armed. Apparently, many people in the tech industry are starting to wonder if they really do need to be better prepared for the possibility that some of today’s economic and political battles will move from the tweets to the streets. In the past, the closest our industry has come to preparing for a society where the norms break down has been annual treks to Burning Man for a week of shirtless, molly-fueled hugs in front of customized RVs, retrofitted with subwoofers capable of blowing Dub techno beats across the Nevada desert. In the spirit of full disclosure, I fall into an even more unprepared camp. My family goes into a total panic if the WiFi gets spotty, and the contents of my go bag don’t amount to much more than a manual typewriter, a few confusingly ironic T-shirts, and a six-pack of La Croix. But believe me, there are plenty of people in Silicon Valley who have joined the prepper movement to evolve from code warriors to road warriors. The New Yorker’s Evan Osnos tracks the trend: Doomsday Prep For The Super-Rich. My favorite line comes from Marvin Liao who explained to Osnos that just having food and water won’t be enough: “‘What if someone comes and takes this?'” he asked me. To protect his wife and daughter, he said, ‘I don’t have guns, but I have a lot of other weaponry. I took classes in archery.'”