The Planet’s Future: “The planet’s future: Climate change ‘will cause civilization to collapse’ “, an “Authoritative new study sets out a grim vision of shortages and violence …” is the title and ‘sub’ of the Jonathan Owen piece on 7/12/09 posted by the UK’s The Independent (independent.co.uk) on 7/13/09. Here are some of the highlights:

• “…the authors of the report, produced by the Millinium Project – a think tank formerly part of the World Federation of the United Nations Accociations- set out a number of emerging environmental security issues, “The scope and scale of the future effects of climate change – ranging from changes in weather patterns to the loss of livelihoods and disappearing states – has unprecedented implications for political and social stability.”
• “An effort on the scale of the Apollo mission that sent men to the Moon is needed if  humanity is to have a fighting chance of surviving the ravages of climate change.’
• “This is the stark warning from the biggest single report to look at the future of the planet – obtained by The Independent on Sunday ahead of its official publication next month. Backed by a diverse range of leading organizations such as Unesco, the World Bank, the Us Army, and the Rockefeller Foundation, the 2009 state of the Future report runs to 6,700 pages and draws on contributions from 2,700 experts around the globe.”
• “The impact of the global recession is a key theme, with researchers warning that global clean energy, food availability, poverty, and the growth of democracy around the world are at “risk of getting worse due to recession” …”.
• “The immediate problems are rising food and energy prices, shortages of water and increasing migrations ‘due to political, environmental and economic conditions”, which could plunge half the world onto social instability and violence.”
• “The effects of climate change are worsening – by 2025 there could be three billion people without adequate water as the population rises still further. And massive urbanization, increased encroachment on animal territory, and concentrated livestock production could trigger new pandemics.”

Home Garden Warning: From Reuter’s today we get “Potato famine disease striking home gardens in U.S” by Julie Steenhuysen. Here is some of the key information:

• “Late blight, which caused the Irish Potato Famine of the 1840’s and 1850’s, is killing potato ant tomato plants in home gardens from Maine to Ohio and threatening commercial and organic farms, U.S. plant scientists said on Friday.”
• “… the fungal disease spread by spores carried in the air, has made its way into the garden centers of large retail chains in the Northeastern United states.”
• “Wal-mart, Home Depot, Sears, Kmart, and Lowe’s are some of the stores the plants have been seen in …”

“What’s unique about this year is we have never seen plants affected in garden centers being sold to home gardeners …”

*PrudentHome Note: ALL of the above information should provide additional incentive for the home gardener and food producers to consider PrudentHome’s recommendation to have at least two gardens worth of seeds (open-pollinated, natural &/or organic) on hand always, and we now add; each of your garden seed collections/selections should come from at least two sources, preferably in different areas of the country. That and SAVE YOUR SEED.

A Valuable Source: You’ll find a link at PrudentHome to M.D. Creekmore’s “The Survivalist Blog” (thesurvivalistblog.blogspot.com).

You’ll want to put this site on your list as Mr. Creekmore’s perspective on survival is at once tactical and practical. He supports individual/family independence via economy, simplicity and reliability in preparation (as do we at PrudentHome) from his skills as a gunsmith, martial artist, and practitioner of independent living. He’s worth your read.

Until next time: keep your eyes on the horizon as the weathers changing fast.

Water Crisis Now & ‘Future: “Water crisis rocks L.A., Mexico City; who’s next? is the title of the Martin Sieff piece at upi.com this past 4/10/09. The article discusses the critical and diminishing resource of fresh water, it’s effects on 40 million people in and around the U.S. and how it’s likely to impact us in the future. Here are some key points:

• “Water crisis are rocking two of the world’s largest cities as Mexico City starts a 36 hour water cutoff and Los Angeles is in the midst of a water dearth.”
• “The problem, however, is far wider than two of the most populous cities in the Western Hemisphere. “… An unprecedented world population of 6.8 billion people (and adding a U.S. population number every four years or so -PH) … and the inescapable reality of global climate change are guaranteed to make the long term crisis worse.”
• The Mexico City cutoff effecting 5 million people was brought about by the need to “…fix a leaky supply system and to ease — somewhat — a supply problem that began when the lakes that once flooded the city were drained 409 years ago.”
• “In Los Angeles, the City Council unanimously turned back a rationing plan Wednesday that had been put together by the city’s Department of Water and Power, which is caught between the council and a statewide order from California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to cut usage 20%.
• “If the city fails to take action, the agency that supplies the bulk of water to Los Angeles could impose rationing.”
• “U.S. cities are going to be hugely vulnerable to water shortages within the next five to 10 years. There’s a huge aquifer under several states in the Midwest. The aquifer, tapped primarily for agriculture, has been depleted over the past couple of decades and is a future crisis waiting to happen.”
• “… CNN cited a recent American Society of Civil Engineers report that concluded more than 1,800 U.S. dams are in urgent need of reconstruction work and pose a significant risk of being breached.
• “…Repairing dams and leaky pipes is not sexy. It is not cutting edge technology. …. It’s only a matter of life and death for 300 million Americans.”

Finally, we’re providing some additional resources for your personal research:

Water Crisis Websites:

www.water.org

www.usaid.gov – Water Crisis

California Water Crisis – calwatercrisis.com

Nature.com – Global Water Crisis

Water Crisis Books:

When the Rivers Run Dry: Water–The Defining Crisis of the Twenty-first Century

Blue Covenant: The Global Water Crisis and the Coming Battle for the Right to Water

Blue Covenant: The Global Water Crisis and the Coming Battle for the Right to Water

Unquenchable: America’s Water Crisis and What To Do About It

Not a Drop to Drink: America’s Water Crisis (and What You Can Do)

Beginning Preparations At The Family Level: A lot of the U.S. is in drought now and in our area, cities are tapping into a river that many local citizens thought of almost as a preserve several years ago. Water resources, among a host of others, are being rapidly depleted and we must begin to adjust our lives and lifestyles to this fact.

In beginning preparations at the family level for these coming changes we look to some basic information provided in Appendix A: Water Conservation Tips of the excellent, and previously recommended, FEMA booklet “Are You Ready? An in-depth Guide to Citizen Preparedness”

This booklet is foundational in family preparedness and is FREE. It is available by calling FEMA at 1-800-BE-READY or by going to Department of Homeland Security web site: www.ready.gov.

Until the end of the week then, keep your eyes on the horizon as the weather’s changing fast.

“The nature of the problem is so severe and conditions so potentially devastating that “character” (as in, “Should the individuals proposed for key/critical government positions have non-payment of federal taxes as a disqualifier ?”) must be overlooked in favor of uniquely assessing their “ability”.

“The current stimulus plan is not a real stimulus plan at all but a social programs agenda with a little stimulus thrown in.”

“Banks want the government to buy ‘bad stuff’ from them at market prices, not at model prices, in order to break the ‘bad-to-worse’ cycle.” (OF COURSE THEY DO!)

And finally. this concerning the “fixer’s”: “THEY’RE MAKING THIS UP AS THEY GO ALONG.”

“GOT PANTRY” REVISITED : On 1/23/09 we posted a brief piece discussing the family pantry as the cornerstone of a “Plan B” (the fall-back plan for families when there’s no meaningful Plan A from the federal/state governments to meet “…a near apocalyptic world financial (and resource) crisis, combined with a possibly massive change in world weather patterns …”) and that families should have “The realistic minimum level of food and water stores for your family should be the amount necessary to get you thru the worst natural disaster that’s occurred in the last 100 years. If you think that this is too extreme. Remember Katrina and imagine the recovery process without state or federal help.”

Or you could just read the reports coming from Kentucky over the last several days and go from there: “Local officials were growing angry with what they said was a lack of help from the state and the Federal Emergency Management Agency.” and this from Grayson County Emergency Management Director Randall Smith, “Smith said FEMA has been a no-show so far.” The foregoing was taken from a newsmax.com article on 1/30/09 entitled “Life After Ice Storm Dire, Getting Worse in Spots”.

Our point here is that you and your family are the essential elements in Plan B. Please don’t depend on others to come to your aid in a significant crisis. They may not be either able or willing (you and your family may not be a “priority”) to help you. It’s far better to assume that you’re on your own.

Note: Your “pantry” should include a basic medical kit and enough prescription medicine to meet specific family members needs for a minimum of 30 days. We’ve discussed this in the past and will again in the not-too-distant future.

Until later in the week then, keep your eyes on the horizon.

The article describes the reactions of citizens from generally non-protest cultures to the effects of financial meltdown in their respective countries. Other countries, such as the Ukraine, are mentioned as candidates for possible future riots.

COMMON SENSE:

1. Things are far worse than anyone “in charge”, nationally or internationally, is willing to admit.

2. NO ONE, nationally or internationally, “knows” the course of action necessary to “fix” the current financial crisis.

Note: By way of example, several of the methods effected and proposed within the U.S. have failed during the Great Depression and/or more recently, in Japan.

PLAN B: Rationale: When there is no effective Plan A to deal with what a number of observers are calling a near-apocalyptic world financial (and resource) crisis, combined with a possibly massive change in world weather patterns, then you have to fall back to Plan B.

What is Plan B? Plan B is what it’s always been and probably what it will always be: YOU! You, along with your family (the “prudent home”) and perhaps a few close friends [with possibly/hopefully some of your neighbors] providing for your own critical necessities such as food, medicine, and personal protection.

“GOT PANTRY?”: The cornerstone of Plan B is the family pantry. The beginning is a store of food, along with a back-up way to prepare it, and water for a three day period for every member of the house plus one ( an extra family member or neighbor showing up).

The three day store of food and water ( one gallon /person/day) is truly a sub-minimum and represents a step towards the true minimum/minimum of seven days. The realistic minimum level of food and water stores for your family should be the amount necessary to get you thru the worst natural disaster that’s occurred in your part of the country for the last 100 years! If you think this is too extreme, remember hurricane Katrina and imagine the recovery process WITHOUT substantial state or federal help.

• DO: Get a copy of FEMA publication # H-34: “Are You Ready? An In-Depth Guide to Citizen Preparedness”, Tel. #1-800-480-2520 (It’s Free!)-While you’re waiting, call your local Red Cross for any disaster preparation information they may have. It will probably be free but certainly at low cost.
• DON’T: Put off setting up your “cornerstone”. There’s no more time.

Please remember your pets/animals in your preparations and keep your eyes on the horizon.

Water requirements are generally stated as being a gallon per person per day. This is a quantity to be used primarily for drinking with perhaps a small amount to be used for food preparation. Here again, don’t forget your pet’s requirements.

Under the heading “FOUR THINGS”, we want to elaborate a little:

1. Your pen or pencil and notebook might be used to do things like : writing down an inventory of the items in your program, costs associated with those items, additions you might to make to your program ( ie, extra food and water for a relative or neighbor).

2. Permanent marker: this should be used to mark the date on each item in your program that the item was added to the program so that program items can be rotated using the FIFO method. This means first-in-first-out.

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES :

“Are You Ready? A Guide To Citizen Preparedness ” FEMA publication H-34

Tel# 1-800-480-2520

Cost: FREE

We hope to get together again next week on July 15-Tuesday.

Meanwhile, keep your eyes on the horizon.