It is a tenet of the Old Believer sect that televisions, telephones, computers and any other forms of cultural or scientific progress pose threat to the cohesion of their religion and way of life. The result of such attempts to outrun change and signs of excess comfort has been the Old Believers' periodic migration from one underdeveloped land to another. As time moves on and populations increase, so does the sect's inability to locate ample ground for settlement. Increased exposure to the influences of progress may create conflict between older and younger generations of Old Believers, as more young adults look to attending universities where exposure to progress is inevitable. Beyond these concerns, the Old Believer sect preaches the arrival of Armageddon in the year 2000, following a period of upheaval and war.
The Old Believer sect, originating in the Russian Orthodox Church, began their nomadic trail as dissidents in 1666 when Patriarch Nikon banished them for refusing to adopt changes in church ritual. The diaspora included settlements in Siberia, China, Brazil and eventually Oregon in the 1960's. Their current settlement is in Alaska, where the last of millions of Old Believers consider yet another relocation.