Summary

In Chapter 3, entitled “Luxury Survival,” O’Connell recounts his trip to the Black Hills of South Dakota. There, he met with Robert Vicino, a wealthy real estate entrepreneur who was overseeing the construction and sale of luxury apocalypse shelters. These bunkers are expensive, and so only very wealthy people will be able to afford them. Vicino’s company is named Vivos. Vivos’ South Dakota location—one of multiple around the world—is called “xPoint” (45). O’Connell notes that the bunkers likely appealed to wealthy people who fantasized in living in a post-apocalyptic world devoid of government. O’Connell describes such a fantasy as “a logical extension of capitalism itself” (47). While waiting for Vicino, O’Connell visited a local historical museum, which conveyed the many horrific tribulations of the past that were eventfully fixed by technology and cooperation.

When O’Connell met with Vicino, it...