GM, Public Transportation, and Karma

If worse came to worse, the cats would have to learn to hunt for themselves, and subsist on table scraps. For the vast majority of human history, even when felines were accepted into a house, they didn't receive any special attention

 

If things were to *really* go to s***, that it becomes a simple exercise in mathematics, eg probability. A bit of common sense goes a long way too

For example, a person who claims to be "survivalist" is most likely to be the first one drawn and quartered. These nuts tend to draw a great deal of attention to themselves, such as having semi-fortified rural properties, humorous signs (Trespassers will be shot, survivors will be shot again), and a general belief that if there are starving hordes, an unreliable piece of s*** weapon like an AR-15 will keep them at bay

Let's do a fun little "what if" scenario. What if this November, there is a repeat of a coronal mass ejection, like the 1859 Carrington's Flare? Back in 1859, the high tech gee-whiz technology of the day, telegraph, was completely knocked out by the event. Telegraph lines in the US actually glowed red hot due to the geomagnetically induced current

A CME right now, or in November, would fry most of our orbiting satellites. Most of our long distance power lines would become perfectly tuned receivers for the GIC, such as what happened to Hydro Quebec in 1989 with that *minor* CME. It would fry almost all of our MV/HV transformer stations. As those large transformers are built to order, there would be no quick replacement

The same GIC is postulated to even effect modern vehicles, as a CME would have similar effects to HAEMP. So those "survivalists" with their brand new diesel pickup, the kind modified to blow clouds of black smoke on command, will suddenly be without transportation. Oh, and those shiny solar panels will also be fried, along with the solid state charge controllers and solid state inverters and rectifiers.

On a larger scale, since we have applied Just In Time to our food distribution network, within 2-3 days the stores are bare. No electricity, no communications, no transportation. If it's winter that means the vast majority of North America is already in heating mode for the conditions

Scary, isn't it? Similar scary studies have been recently performed by senate and congressional committies regarding the effect of a rogue nation detonating a single nuclear weapon at high altitude, somewhere over North America. This would be similar to exoatmospheric testing done by the United States, such as the Starfish Prime detonation that knocked out most of Hawaii's power grid

It's estimated you would lose 70-95% of the population, due to starvation, violence (Riots, scavenging, etc), disease, lack of water, exposure to climate, etc

So I'm well aware of the odds of getting through such an event. First and foremost in your favor would be isolation, as very few are equipped physically or emotionally to walk hundreds of miles. Asides from that, it's a numbers game, and the odds are you *will* lose

Under the above scenario, it's likely the best use of a firearm would be to ensure a quick end to it

But off this depressing topic. I firmly believe the entire point of designing a home to be as energy efficient as possible, especially in a passive way, is to minimize our energy requirements to the greatest extent possible.

There are obvious benefits for the individual, society, and even planet

 

Jayman's last post makes me want to get on the boat and head for a remote island.

Tom

 

Why? I see no benefit to doing so. Of course, having a sailboat and skills to operate it are handy

 

I don't worry about personal survival through true end of civilization type stuff.
With rheumetoid arthritis, my ability to work with my hands would be severly limited and with type 1 diabetes, I wouldn't last a month past my insulin running out.
Odd sort of freedom in that.

 

I'd prefer to think of life as something more than postponing the inevitable a little while longer.

I'm sure I can dig enough out of the rubble to make a rough go of it, but defending the family against armed hordes isn't likely to be successful. Maybe I should sell the children now, while I can still get a good price.

Zuli the (barely) domesticated dingo will find something to eat no matter what, but I can see I'm going to have to refine my tastes.

 

I totally agree.....well said....

I consider our prius as one element alongside our solar panels, rain recovery system and our organic gardens as a method for us to pursue our lives responsibly within our urban community. Not to separate ourselves from it.

Your local Community will be the method of real survival in bad times---your strength is involvement in it via social capital-----there is no logic in planning on defending yourself against society...cooperation within communities may be one of the elements we have lost by corporate demands that we recover in economic bad times.
Just my thoughts
Froley

 

Let the children go, for a good price but don't sell the teddy bears. They will keep you warm AND they don't eat!

 

If worse comes to worse, kitty is dinner.

 

The coyotes around here are pretty healthy. Cats disappear on a regular basis. I wish they'd eat the squirrels who are always raiding my garden.

 

My grandmother used to live next to a crazy cat lady. She didn't have any of the cats fixed and at one time we counted 36 cats roaming the property. They used to come over to my grandmothers house looking for food because my grandmother made the mistake of feeding a few of them.

Across the street was a vacant hillside. The cats would sometimes wander up there and never make it back. The coyotes were pretty healthy around my grandmothers house, too. Eventually there were only a few cats left. Nature in action.

 

Can you eat salmon which have migrated upstream 10 miles or will they be too beat up to be worth the effort?

 

10 Miles is nothing unless it is a very shallow and high temperature stream in which case they will be beat up and likely sick with infection. Otherwise you can still eat salmon from most large river systems for quite some time and distance from the ocean. In some cases well over 100 miles.

 

Assuming that they haven't all been harvested in the ocean, at the mouth or lower down stream by other hungry souls.

And is also assume the stream side habitat exists for proper spawning and growth of smolts,,, not to mention having enough escapement every year to ensure a good return. Salmon are not simple!

Icarus

 

Agreed! I'm a part of Salmon Nation just as you are.

I've done a few salmon habitat surveys and you are correct. Riparian degredation and sedimentation has a terrible negative impact on salmon recruitment.

 

Funny how the discussion evolves - from karma to dogma to dog salmon.

This is sure going to be a different place without salmon. We've had salmon-based cultures here for ten thousand years. Seemingly, the short term profits of forestry and lice-infested salmon farming are more important. Which is a crying shame, when we could probably shut it all down and survive on tourism alone (OK, maybe grow-ops too) showing people what nature used to look like. Some days I sympathise with the natives who say they should have killed off the white people when they had the chance.

 

The problem was (amongst others) that the Natives didn't have a chance. According to Jared Diamond in "Guns, Germs and Steal" 90% of Native Americans were DEAD AND GONE by the year 1620! This the year that the folks landed at Plymouth Rock,, where ill educated N.Americans tend to think N. American history began.

They were dead due to European diseases brought by the Spanish and Portuguese in the century before,,, these diseases running rampant across the width and breadth of the continent. My native ancestors never had a chance,,, in more ways than one!

We tend to think that whites conquered the natives,, but the reality is there was,, at least in the early years little to conquer. The settlers in Mass. were greeted by the natives as saviors since they themselves were starving.

Icarus

 

You'd enjoy reading Charles Mann's http://www.amazon.com/1491-Revelations-Americas-Before-Columbus/dp/140004006Xand the history of Massasoit is detailed in one of the chapters.

 

Oh, I agree. A healthy virgin kidney fetches a handsome price, imagine all the parts. You could retire right now

Of course, it's virtually impossible to make a go of it alone. I should have mentioned that I'm part of a group of about 30 who think along similar lines.

It's prudent to plan ahead. Anybody who assumes the vague government will magically show up and fix things after a disaster, is dreaming. With the exception of exoatmospheric testing, the only example we've had of solar or extrasolar distrubances causing widespread damage was in 1989, when Hydro Quebec failed

Another example was the infamous ice storm of 1998, which impacted Ontario Hydro customers in a very narrow band from Kingston to Montreal, going across to Nova Scotia. It's estimated around 35 fatalities and $7 billion in damages.

Most of the HV pylons buckled under the weight of the ice. Many areas were without power for 30-45 days, some for 90 days. In that situation it would have been prudent to have a good supply of non-perishable foodstuffs, a means to keep warm (Temps got as low as 0 F after the ice storm), and a way to ensure safe water supply

Just this spring, there was extensive flooding both south and north of Winnipeg. The new floodway system appears to do a good job of protecting Winnipeg, at the expense of outlying areas. Folks were flooded out of their homes upward of 2 months, with no real assistance from the government

Even the official Canadian disaster preparedness office recommends a minimum 72 hour emergency kit.

Is your family prepared?

If you live in an area with a bunch of useless tools, and otherwise unreliable/untrustworthy folks, time to move to an area where you can surround yourself with folks who have like-minded ideas regarding community survival

Cats will instinctively keep you warm at night, for a small amount of food

Yeah, I figured that out. Especially the older fat cat, he'd keep me going a long time. But rest assured, I would feel *very* bad if I had to turn my pets into supper

The Crazy Cat Lady is a good source for a pet. Just be prepared for hefty vet bills as you will have to have the critter treated for parasites, and will have to have it denutted

 

Rest assured, most epizootic pandemics are completely color blind. Us whites will gasp, wheeze, and drop right alongside you