The Meaning of Life 74
and bought gold and a farm to prepare for a collapse of the
financial markets.^65
Buffett is a person Elon admires.^326 The Giving Pledge
is a philanthropic campaign by Buffett and Bill Gates, and
Elon is one of twelve billionaires who has signed it and
will give at least half of his wealth to charity. “Just signed
giving pledge with eleven others. I hope this announcement
convinces others to do the same,” Elon said.^56
Preparing for unexpected events is generally a good
idea. After theHurricane Katrinain 2005, everyone saw
how difficult it was for a government to help a large
amount of people in need. But some take this preparation to
the extreme, and the reality seriesDoomsdayPrepperspop-
ularized it. The series shows US citizens who are prepar-
ing for everything between heaven and earth, including
a collapse of the financial market, a nuclear war, and a
worldwide pandemic.^64
The preppers, as they call themselves, buy large amounts
of weapons and food. While some preppers construct large
underground bunkers and defenses, others rebuild old mil-
itary trucks to be able to escape into the wilderness. Some
believe hiding out in the middle of the ocean is the only
way to survive, so they prepare large boats. One planned
to escape from the US to safety in the jungles of Costa Rica.
Entire industries have grown up to help people prepare.
One company specialized in building bunkers with flushing
toilets, hot water, and surveillance cameras. To build these
bunkers, that could be hidden four floors below the ground,
they hire workers from another area to make sure no one