Hello Internet - it’s me again, Jack Finch, here on Most Amazing Top 5.
We’re gonna jump right in with the question - Could A Purge Actually Happen in Real Life?
Thanks for the warm welcome from everyone; I’m having a lot of fun being here.
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Now I feel like I’m stepping into my boots a little bit, we’re going to be covering
a scary topic in a bit of a different way.
Scary in the sense of, you know - life and death.
We’re asking - could a purge *actually* happen in real life?
We’ve all seen the films, what are we now - 4?
And the concept of an American dystopian action horror is, alarmingly, not that far away from
fiction at this point.
But when we break down the technicalities of one night a year, where all crime - including
*murder* is legal … things get a little interesting.
I mean, I think I’ve wrapped up the answer to this question already - it’s no -, but
just stick with me, because the interesting thing is *why*.
So firstly, there are some /pretty/ rich people in the world right now.
(There are a reported 540 billionaires in the United States alone, with a combined worth
of 2.399 trillion dollars)
And when you flick a switch and turn crime off for 12-hours, there’s a lot of other
people who are going to want a piece of that pie.
Luckily for the billionaires, there’d be a tonne of hired mercenaries willing to defend
their property for a price - but how long would that /really/ last?
Because people on the lower end of society, who can’t afford guns and armored vehicles,
they’re going to get pretty tired of the Purge, pretty fast.
You can’t just wipe them all out.
And just like history has taught us, when enough people come together in a revolutionary
army, it doesn’t really matter how much money you have.
And even if it failed in the first year, that army would only get stronger and stronger
and learn from the lessons of the other failed attempts.
On that same point - it would /also/ be pretty much impossible to even make sure people followed
the “rules” of purge night.
I mean, even if a law like A Purge made its way through the Senate, most common, decent
people would just leave the country.
Why would they wait around for just one night a year, where they’d most likely be brutally
murdered?
Businesses would more than likely close down and move overseas, you know - to a country
where their workforce isn’t systematically eradicated every year.
On the flipside to that, there’s also the argument that a society who upheld the purge
would be completely supportive of the idea.
Even after the majority of people had left, maybe the United States would have already
answered its overpopulation issue - without even killing anyone.
And then the remaining people could practice their Purge amendment right - alongside like-minded
people.
Everyone’s a winner.
We also have to remember how difficult it would even be to bring an end to a Purge night.
Okay - so the sun comes up, everyone put down your weapon - even though you’ve just shot
my wife.
You know them’s the rules.
The mass hysteria of arming an entire population isn’t just a ‘time out’ kind of gig
- those poor people would be angry, pumped full of adrenaline and *also* armed to the
teeth.
Neighborhoods would band together, they’d build walls around themselves and say, ‘No
Purge over here’ - and that’s all year round!
The last thing a crazy government wants to do is arm the average citizen and think that
the police and social order aren’t something that they can depend on for safety.
Because - here’s the main point - human’s, on the whole, aren’t completely psychotic.
Our friends are really great, and we’d rather spend one night of the year shooting fireworks
into the sky instead of automatic submachine guns.
Now don’t get me wrong - the world is a pretty scary place.
There’s no denying that.
And even in 2014, when the Purge films were first topping the box office - people were
trying to jump on the hype train and root for a 12-hour lawless crime spree.
Facebook pages popped up for Detroit, Chicago, Jacksonville, Miami and even Cleveland.
And guess what?
… No one showed up.
But I can do you one better.
Deep in the Bolivian Andes, there is one day - each year in early May, where the locals
gather in their town square and practice their own kind of “Purge”.
The ancient practice is known as ‘tinku’ - encourages the local people to erupt in
a festival of violent brawling.
Their weapons are fists, and sticks and stones - but the battles are pre-arranged, and most
people are looking to settle long-standing family grudges.
Alongside this though, there are huge feasts and a bit of a party - elaborate dances and
musical events.
Don’t get me wrong - some people have actually died during link.
But for the most part - once it’s all over - the locals shake hands, slap each other
on the back and drink some homemade booze.
Now that’s a Purge I could get behind.
That’s all we’ve got time for today guys - I’ve been Jack Finch, make sure to hit
that subscribe button down below - and hopefully, we’ll be seeing you soon.
But until then - take it easy.