[Raellus]

Tribe, by Sebastian Junger (author of War, a previous rec here, and A Perfect Storm) is short (about 150 pages ) and thought-provoking.

Most salient, re T2k, is an examination of the phenomenon of societies in crisis (London during the Blitz, New Orleans during Katrina, and others) tending to show more social cohesion instead of less*. Violent crime rates go down, so do rates of mental illness (especially depression) and suicide. Class divisions tend to blur. Instead of hoarding, most people share.

This well-documented historical trend tends to belie Hollywood's portrayal nihilistic post-apocalyptic scenarios where people are inherently selfish, unethical, and violent (think, Walking Dead, Mad Max).

The truth is, shared hardship creates a sense of community that simply doesn't exist any more in modern western societies. We may be materialistically rich, but we are relationally poor (a good chunk of the book focusses on how and why this sad social state came about).

Junger also examines why combat vets (combat being the ultimate community builder, at the small unit level) often struggle after returning to "The World" (which increasingly deemphasizes, or even undermines, community).

*Another book that I read not so long ago that examines this theme is Human Kind (A Hopeful History) by Rutger Bregman. It doesn't discuss war much (if at all, really), so I didn't mention earlier, but I recommend it to anyone who needs an uplifting non-fiction read.

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