The Doomsday Documentary Fallacy
A doomsday documentary used to be just what people needed to jumpstart their prepping motivation. Fortunately, most of the older documentaries have fallen flat when it comes to predictions and dates. Some doomsday documentaries are relevant and provide good insight into events that could lead to a doomsday. Most of these doomsday scenarios are low risk (as shown by our TrueRisk Analysis). Most preppers do not prepare for these immediately, but instead push for basic preparedness with doomsday prepping as a capstone to it all. Still- it is important to know the possibilities, which is where a doomsday documentary can come in handy. Here are a few doomsday documentaries worth watching:
Doomsday – Earth’s Final Moments
2015 – YouTube – 1 hour 30 min runtime – 85% rating (YouTube)
This documentary goes into the end time, final days, or ‘eschaton’ period described by most Abrahamic religions. It is interesting whether or not you are familiar with biblical prophecies.
Ancient Prophecies: Countdown to Doomsday
2006 – Originally Aired on SciFi – 66% rating (IMDB)
This documentary was part two of a VHS cassette bundle. Plenty of the predictions don’t hold weight anymore since they are past the prophecy date. It is still pretty entertaining to watch and worth understanding the fallacy of selected apocalypse dates.
2020 Last Days on Earth
2014 – YouTube – 78% rating (YouTube)
This doomsday documentary paints a bleak picture and leans towards a pessimistic timeline for extinction events. Despite the self-loathing, it does discuss potential doomsdays scenarios in detail.
The Doomsday Clock (Modern Marvels)
2005 – History Channel – 1 hour 6 min runtime – 76% rating (IMDB)
This documentary goes past the discussion of the Doomsday Clock developed by the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists and looks at the events that affect the clock. The clock hands move based on their agreed probability of these events, which is just a fancy risk analysis exercise. The doomsday clock is either over exaggerated or brushed off by the media at this point, but it is still interesting to see the reasoning behind its creation.
The Final Word
Documentaries are a great way to learn about something fast, but they can also spread misinformation or just distracting information. A risk analysis trumps a man-made prophecy almost every time, so research and proper planning is the way to go about prepping. Don’t get too absorbed or depressed about possible doomsday scenarios. Keep in mind that they are low probability. Learning about them can equip you with knowledge that could help if one were to happen. Keep exploring, stay prepared, and be safe.
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