Is Recession Preparing a New Breed of Survivalist? [Survival Today - an On going Thread #2]

May 05th,2008

[nw_arizona_granny]

Yahoo ran an interesting article this morning indicating a rise in the number of survivalist communities cropping up around the country. I have been wondering myself how much of the recent energy crisis is causing people to do things like stockpile food and water, grow their own vegetables, etc. Could it be that there are many people out there stockpiling and their increased buying has caused food prices to increase? It’s an interesting theory, but I believe increased food prices have more to do with rising fuel prices as cost-to-market costs have increased and grocers are simply passing those increases along to the consumer. A recent stroll through the camping section of Wal-Mart did give me pause - what kinds of things are prudent to have on hand in the event of a worldwide shortage of food and/or fuel? Survivalist in Training

I’ve been interested in survival stories since I was a kid, which is funny considering I grew up in a city. Maybe that’s why the idea of living off the land appealed to me. My grandfather and I frequently took camping trips along the Blue Ridge Parkway and around the Smoky Mountains. Looking back, some of the best times we had were when we stayed at campgrounds without electricity hookups, because it forced us to use what we had to get by. My grandfather was well-prepared with a camp stove and lanterns (which ran off propane), and when the sun went to bed we usually did along with it. We played cards for entertainment, and in the absence of televisions, games, etc. we shared many great conversations. Survivalist in the Neighborhood

[DelaWhere]

>>>You knew what was for supper that night. <<<

LOL Yep, memories of that too...

[Eagle50AE]

Fed Buys $7.37 Billion in Treasurys

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2228054/posts

[DelaWhere]

>>>Fed Buys $7.37 Billion in Treasurys<<<

A couple of computer entries = $30.954 Million in interest payments at .42% interest.

Not bad for 5 minutes work by the Fed.....

Imaginary money but real interest...

Feel bad for grandkids and great grandaughter...

Can I say Arrrrrgh again?

[DelaWhere]

When the Power Grid Shuts Down – Why You Should Care to Prepare for Disasters Emergencies

HOLLY NOTE: This is as serious as it gets:

know how to use a home generator safely and properly store fuel;
water storage and purification knowledge essential

April 11, 2009
Kevin Baum

Imagine a life without the comfort we all expect from today’s modern infrastructure. Every time you flush the toilet, turn on a light, the air conditioning, open the fridge, brushing teeth, drink a glass of water, boil on the stove top to make your iPod, Shop in the shop, your car, a shower , call your mother, mow the lawn, or just sit back with a cool glass of iced tea, you will be based on a complex and Webbed structure of supply and distribution networks, with all these “small” comfort possible. What many of us do not believe - or more - that the supply and distribution network is very closely linked, which means that disturbances in any part of the network may be shock waves throughout the system, the hundreds of thousands of people and households in the very unpredictable manner.

As an example, an “easy” 7-day power outage (an increasingly common occurrence in today’s uncertain world). Once the network is gone, so is the possibility of pumping water, sewage, electricity, street lights, store lights, house lights, refrigeration, heating systems, security systems, telecommunications systems, fuel pumps and more. You will not be able to go to the store to buy food, water, medications and supplies you need so badly, because the shops are closed, the shops, which somehow can be left open to be sold out within hours. You will not be able to move to a place untouched, because the gasoline pumps are not operating - all you have is what is in the tank. Their food is cooled within a few hours spoil your wastewater will again and you have no fans, the smell and the heat, or heating to warm you from the biting cold. Ice in the warmer latitudes. It is out of the food as soon as your pantry is empty, and the only water you drink, or clean, is what you have in the bottle before the failure occurred. If you have an emergency, you will not be able to 911, because the telecommunications will probably be down.

What will the next 7 days like for you and your family? Here is what he looked like a SurvivalOutpost.com’s Customer:

“We had no idea how the power failure would be a pleasure. We planned, but there are so many things that you do not think, and water runs from so quickly. We had to wait in lines for water. Who would have thought that a toilet is nearly three gallons to fill to flush! people here would have paid lots of money for a battery operated fan - We were pathetic.”–Renee Sutherland, Hurricane Gustav Survivor

If you are not adequately prepared, it is likely that you are responsible for your nervous weeks, in a long line of grumpy and seemingly hostile strangers, as you all are waiting for government assistance (which may days to reach). If that sounds bad, then you now know what millions of unprepared people have lived through (or in some cases - not), after a major disaster.

Peace of mind in these uncertain times comes through adequate preparedness - a balance between personal responsibility to prepare for the likely natural and manmade disasters, an acknowledgment that it could actually happen, you and your family, and a recognition that there is a safety net, there are ready to help ... but one that you must be willing to wait on. It’s the waiting, you injured:

“I live in north-western Pennsylvania. Domestic United States. Who would have ever thought that I would be ready for a week power outage from a hurricane, the landfall in Texas! Ike shot law of the country, take us with 80 mph winds and has given us totally unprepared. It was a Wal-Mart, and I had on my neighbors to help me through the incident. A neighbor had a generator, and he went from home from home that each of us an hour to cool our food and limited what water we had.” –Alita Gail - Hurricane Ike Survivor

The question of survival in today’s increasingly complex and unpredictable and dangerous world is simple: Given the potential hazards that are likely to see you (as an economic collapse severely disturbed that our supply-chain networks and support, or a Katrina-scale natural disaster or social unrest, etc.), you have the necessary supplies to the hand to them about the wait ... stay at home to rest in the comfort and company of your family and friends? Or will you wait impatiently in a long line of strangers, in the hope that it is in the forefront, before it is removed from the supply?

The selection and decision is yours ... Never forget that when the time for action is on you, the time for preparation is over.

Stay safe. Keep informed. Be ready.

Kevin Baum is co-founder of SurvivalOutpost.com, an Austin-based on-line business specializing in Emergency Preparedness Supplies and Survival Equipment for individuals, families and businesses. The SurvivalOutpost philosophy is to balance reason with readiness, and to encourage knowledge, independence and self-sufficiency as tools to survive in an increasingly uncertain & unpredictable world.

http://climate-our-future.blogspot.com/2009/04/when-power-grid-shuts-down-why-you.html

http://www.millennium-ark.net/NEWS/09_Sci_Tech/090413.when.grid.goes.down.html

[nw_arizona_granny]

http://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/cdrh/cfdocs/psn/index.cfm

Recalls and Safety Alerts

* Stronger Warnings for Bowel Cleansing Agents
* Warning on Dietary Supplement “Venom Hyperdrive 3.0”
* Ethex Corp. Expands Recall of Generic Drugs and Supplements

Preventing Medical Errors

* Avoiding Medication Errors with Multiple Brand Names
* Preventing Misconnection Errors – Medical Device Safety Calendar
* Confusing Heparin Labels Can Lead to Errors
* Preventing Overdoses when Using Methadone to Treat Chronic Pain

[DelaWhere]

Recession Closes In on Chicken Farmers

April 13, 2009
By David Zucchino
Los Angeles Times

Reporting from Siler City, N.C. -- Four years ago, Andrew Meeks literally bet the farm on chickens. Now he fears he made a losing bet.

Photo: Without offers, Andrew Meeks of Siler City, N.C., faces foreclosure. “I paid a lot of money for these chicken houses, but they aren’t worth a nickel right now,” he said. (David Zucchino / Los Angeles Times)

His three massive chicken houses are empty, and a "For Sale" sign has sprouted out front. Meeks, a contract chicken farmer, borrowed nearly half a million dollars to refurbish his 25-acre farm, putting up as collateral his home, the farm and virtually everything else he owns.

But the company that provided his chickens and paid him to raise the birds canceled his contract. Without chickens, he can't earn the money to pay off his loans.

Foreclosure is on the horizon.

"I paid a lot of money for these chicken houses, but they aren't worth a nickel right now. There's no market for the birds," Meeks said, strolling through one of his darkened chicken houses, scattering white feathers and startling a lone chicken.

The worst recession in decades has hammered all types of businesses across the country, farming included. But among the hardest hit are contract chicken farmers in the South and especially in North Carolina, the nation's second-leading poultry producer, where it is a $3.3-billion industry.

Last winter, the economic crisis created "pretty much a catastrophe" for contract farmers, said Dan Campeau, a North Carolina State University poultry specialist and extension agent.

Demand for chicken nose-dived as beleaguered consumers cut back. The industry's two biggest foreign markets, Russia and China, drastically trimmed their orders. Fuel prices surged, driving up the cost of chicken feed as some grain crops were diverted to produce ethanol.

Pilgrim's Pride of Pittsburg, Texas, one of the country's largest chicken companies with $8.5 billion in sales last year, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in December. In six central North Carolina counties, 44 farmers lost their contracts, including Meeks.

Together, the 44 farmers owe at least $18 million to banks on investments in their farms, Campeau said. Only four have found contracts with other chicken processors. Two have retired. The rest are searching desperately for a lifeline in a glutted market.

"The industry is swamped with product right now. But these growers [farmers] have big debts and can't wait for the market to turn around," said Bob Ford, executive director of the North Carolina Poultry Federation.

'We're baby-sitters'

Nationally, 800 to 900 chicken farmers have lost contracts since last fall, almost all of them in the South, said Gary McBryde, an economist with the Department of Agriculture. Chicken production is down 7% since April 2008, the National Chicken Council said.

Contract chicken farmers are at the mercy of big chicken processors, known as "integrators," which provide chicks and feed. Contracts require farmers to provide chicken houses, pay to heat and cool them, and maintain water lines and other equipment. Farmers must dispose of chicken waste and dead birds.

The farmers raise the chicks to maturity, then are paid by the pound for the meat. But the integrators own the chickens and decide how many the farmers get. They determine the formulas under which farmers are paid, based on a complicated feed-to-meat ratio.

"We're basically baby-sitters," Meeks said.

Farmers provide half the capital in the industry but earn only 1% to 3% on their investments, versus more than 20% for integrators in boom times, the National Contract Poultry Growers Assn. said.

In good economic times, integrators provide enough chicks for farmers to pay down their loans and turn a profit. But in bad times, contracts can be canceled on short notice, leaving farmers like Meeks stuck with expensive chicken houses and equipment.

In February, Pilgrim's Pride announced that it would shut down three of its 32 processing plants -- in Georgia, Arkansas and Louisiana -- by mid-May. Citing the steepest drop in consumer food purchases in 60 years, the company said it lost $1 billion in fiscal 2008 and $229 million in the first quarter this year.

'Painful' situation

Ray Atkinson, a Pilgrim's Pride spokesman, called the situation "very difficult and painful."

He said the North Carolina farmers were given ample notice last fall that the company intended to cut off the 44 bottom-performing farmers out of 128 in the region.

But the company had hoped to avoid such cuts. Atkinson said the company kept the farms on last spring when it closed its Siler City processing plant. Rather than terminate farmers supplying that plant, Pilgrim's Pride combined them with farmers supplying a company plant in Sanford, N.C.

Overall, Atkinson said, Pilgrim's Pride has cut off about 300 of its 5,000 contract farmers. About 430 will be affected by the three more plant closings next month.

Meeks said he didn't blame anyone for his troubles. As a farmer and businessman, he knows he is at the mercy of market forces beyond his control.

Because of the recession, "integrators were making money on the margins, but the margins have run out," Meeks said. "That's the chicken business."

He purchased the farm four years ago and shares the two-bedroom house with his wife and dogs. At 52, he said, he's hardly an attractive catch for employers, and he's not eligible for unemployment compensation or food stamps.

"I'm not crying the blues," he said. "With this economy, a lot of people are worse off than I am."

He is proud of his hard work in rebuilding the once-derelict chicken farm. He owns a "Grower of the week" hat and a "Top 10 grower" jacket, awarded for high-quality production in good times, when he raised 60,000 birds at a time.

Two weeks ago, Meeks reluctantly put up the "For Sale" sign, but he has not received a single call.

"It's just one fool looking for another fool," he said. "I mean, nobody is going to buy chicken houses now, when you can't sell chickens to anybody."

Ford, of the poultry federation, predicted that the market for chickens wouldn't recover until at least next fall or winter. He said most contract farmers couldn't wait that long.

Meeks said his banker had told him he needed to "come up with a plan" to continue making debt payments. Right now, he said, he doesn't have a plan.

"All I ever aspired to be was a farmer. Chicken farming is a good life," he said, sitting in his frame house at dusk, gazing out at this three forlorn chicken houses. "Now I don't know what I'll do. I have no idea."

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-chickens13-2009apr13,0,1116647,full.story

[DelaWhere]

Monsanto’s Roundup Residues in GM Food Cause Cell Damage

April 7, 2009
Mercola

Residues of Monsanto’s Roundup herbicide found in GM food and feed can cause cell damage and even death, even at very low levels. The authors of a study on the subject say their research “... points to undesirable effects which are currently masked or hidden from scientific scrutiny.”

Roundup herbicides are among the most commonly used in the world, especially on GM crops that are engineered to be Roundup resistant. Their residues are among the major pollutants, and they are authorized as residues contaminating GM foods and feed at the tested levels.

The researchers studied toxicity mechanisms of four different Roundup formulations in human cells. The formulations were diluted at minimal doses (up to 100,000 times or more), but they still caused cell death within a few hours. The researchers also noted membrane and DNA damages, and found the formulations inhibit cell respiration.

Sources:

Chemical Research in Toxicology January 2009;22(1):97-105

Organic Consumers Association January 5, 2009

Dr. Mercola’’s Comments:

Roundup Ready soybean, cotton and corn crops are the world’s largest group of genetically modified crops. In fact, the GM Roundup Ready gene is part of more than 75 percent of soybeans, 65 percent of cotton and 10 percent of corn grown in the United States.

This particular variety of GM crops became so popular because it allows farmers to spray Monsanto’s Roundup herbicide directly onto their fields without harming the crops. Ordinarily, if you were to spray Roundup, or any other glyphosate-based herbicide, onto a plant, it would die.

Millions of pounds of Roundup are used every year on U.S. gardens, lawns and farms. It works by inhibiting an enzyme called EPSP synthase, which is necessary for plants to grow. Without it, plants are unable to produce essential proteins so they slowly yellow and die. The GM Roundup Ready crops, however, produce an enzyme that has the same function as EPSP synthase, but is not affected by Roundup.

As you might imagine, the use of Roundup herbicide has increased dramatically since the GM Roundup Ready crops were introduced, and serious problems have been reported ever since.

GM Crops May Contain Toxic Roundup Residues

It’s widely known that GM Roundup Ready crops contain Roundup residues. This latest study showed, for the first time, just how toxic these residues may be to your health. Even when researchers tested formulations of Roundup that were highly diluted (up to 100,000 times or more) on human cells, the cells died within 24 hours.

They also found damage to cell membranes and DNA, along with an inhibition of cell respiration.

Further, the researchers discovered that the mixture of components used as Roundup adjuvants actually amplified the action of the glyphosate, making at least one of its metabolites even more toxic. The researchers wrote:

“This work clearly confirms that the adjuvants in Roundup formulations are not inert. Moreover, the proprietary mixtures available on the market could cause cell damage and even death around residual levels to be expected, especially in food and feed derived from Roundup formulation-treated crops.”

More Dangerous Roundup Research

Monsanto long used the slogans, “It’s Safer than Mowing,” “Biodegradable,” and “Environmentally Friendly” to describe Roundup — until the real effects of this toxic herbicide were revealed and they were forced to discontinue their deceptive advertising.

Glyphosate, the active ingredient in RoundUp, is the most commonly-reported cause of pesticide illness among landscape maintenance workers in California. Additionally:

• The surfactant ingredient in Roundup is more acutely toxic than glyphosate itself, and the combination of the two is even more toxic.
• Glyphosate is suspected of causing genetic damage.
• Glyphosate is acutely toxic to fish and birds and can kill beneficial insects and soil organisms that maintain ecological balance.
• Laboratory studies have identified adverse effects of glyphosate-containing products in all standard categories of toxicological testing.

In one animal study, rats given 1,000 mg/kg of glyphosate resulted in a 50 percent mortality rate, and skeletal alterations were observed in over 57 percent of fetuses!

And just so you understand, GM crops that are resistant to Roundup are the most widely sold GM varieties. So if you eat GM foods, there is a very good chance those foods contain Roundup residues — and possibly hefty amounts of them.

According to Jeffrey Smith, leading spokesperson on the dangers of GM foods, by 2004, farmers used an estimated 86 percent more herbicide on GM soy fields compared to non-GM. Higher levels of herbicide residue in this GM soy might cause health problems, and many symptoms identified in one UK soy allergy study are also related to glyphosate exposure.

The allergy study identified irritable bowel syndrome, digestion problems, chronic fatigue, headaches, lethargy, and skin complaints including acne and eczema, all related to soy consumption.

Symptoms of glyphosate exposure include nausea, headaches, lethargy, skin rashes, and burning or itchy skin. It is also possible that glyphosate‘s breakdown product AMPA, which accumulates in GM soybeans after each spray, might contribute to allergies.

GM Foods are NOT Safe

This latest study is just one more reason why you should be very careful about keeping GM foods out of your diet. Aside from their potential to be contaminated with toxic Roundup residues, GM crops routinely create unintended proteins, alter existing protein levels, or even change the components and shape of the protein that is created by the inserted gene.

This results in brand new proteins that have never before existed in food, some of which may be causing severe allergic reactions.

Creating a GM crop can also produce massive changes in the natural functioning of the plant‘s DNA. Native genes can be mutated, deleted, permanently turned on or off, or change their levels of protein expression. No one knows how this will impact human health, but so far Jeffrey Smith has documented at least 65 serious health risks related to GM foods.

Among them:

• Offspring of rats fed GM soy showed a five-fold increase in mortality, lower birth weights, and the inability to reproduce
• Male mice fed GM soy had damaged young sperm cells
• The embryo offspring of GM soy-fed mice had altered DNA functioning
• Several US farmers reported sterility or fertility problems among pigs and cows fed GM corn varieties
• Investigators in India have documented fertility problems, abortions, premature births, and other serious health issues, including deaths, among buffaloes fed GM cottonseed products

Further, just last year a long-term feeding study commissioned by the Austrian Agency for Health and Food Safety confirmed GM corn seriously affects reproductive health in mice.

The results were so worrisome that GM opponents called for an immediate ban of all GM foods and GM crops in order to protect the health of humankind and the fertility of women around the world.

Important Tips for Avoiding GM Food

About 70 percent of the foods in your grocery store contain GM foods, so it can be difficult to eat a GM-free diet, but I feel strongly it is one of the more important things you can do for your health, and to help protect the environment.

Particularly in the United States, the GMO giants have been very effective in eliminating legislation that would require them to clearly label GM products and, as a result, most grocery stores in the United States do not post signs next to produce to let you know it’s been genetically modified.

So here is the way you can do it:

Examine the little sticker on the produce and if you see a five-digit number that begins with an 8, take a big pass, as that produce is GM.

Most processed foods and drinks also contain genetically modified ingredients, unless they are organic.

As an aside, if the health risks alone aren’t enough to make you change your mind about eating GM foods, perhaps this little tidbit will be: Farmers who buy Monsanto’s Roundup Ready seeds are required to sign an agreement promising not to save or sell the seeds, which has been the traditional practice since the beginning of agriculture.

The result of this insane practice is that farmers across the world must now buy new seeds every year, and they must buy them from Monsanto.

So whether you do it for health purposes or to keep an evil company like Monsanto from gaining control of the food supply, making an effort to avoid GM foods is a wise decision.

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2009/04/07/Monsantos-Roundup-Residues-in-GM-Food-Cause-Cell-Damage.aspx

[CottonBall]

Thanks for the update. Glad you are settling in, and most importantly, enjoying it immensely. You are on quite an adventure.

(BTW, consider jotting down some notes daily about what you did, so you can write us a short story - or novel - someday about your experiences.)

I’d like to hear your opinion on your grinder as well - I’m considering getting that model myself for when the grid is gone or sporadic.

[CottonBall]

Another spot you would just love is the Gasby Penninsula way north in Eastern Canada. A combination of mountains and little fishing villages in the Vally's along the coast, leave you alternately driving in the mountains looking down on the little coastal villages and then down in the villages driving along the beautiful coastline, looking up at the mountains.

Sounds lovely! I am going to have to start a file on 'places to see' and that will be the first entry (then the Blue Ridge Parkway). I can hopefully get to the Blue Ridge Mountains this year or next. Hubby and I love seeing rural areas, so we may make the one in Canada yet - if we get to move back east before too long.

Yes, the cold winters do get to me , especially as I get older, but occasionally, I still manage to snowshoe out into the woods where the white pristine snow, the quiet broken only by the song of chickadees refreshes my soul and makes me realize that despite the cold, I would miss the changing seasons if I lived elsewhere.

Wow - you have a way with words. Reading what you wrote is reminiscent of when I read Thoreau - and am brought to a beautiful place and get a serene wondrous feeling deep down without even leaving my living room. I suppose that without winter, etc., spring wouldn't be quite as appreciated. It is really boring here in the desert where the weather changes are minor. And I'm getting so I can't stand the heat. I thought it was supposed to be the opposite - that I'd dislike the cold the older I get! Well, not with me....I have to leave in the summer and head to the mountains. Speaking of which, I just bought my first pair of snowshoes! I was hoping to try them out this winter before all the snow is gone, but we may not make it up there before then...

How cold does it get where you live?

[CottonBall]

got more bad news from the vet about our oldest pet..

So sorry to hear that. Pets can become like family - ours certainly are. It's hard when all the unconditional love comes to an end.

[CottonBall]

Ok, make sense, I like to make a lot of things in bulk to save the work (and the mess). I never thought of it with respect to chickens also. I haven’t had to kill anything to eat (yet), but it does sound messy.

[CottonBall]

‘rejecting federal authority in favor of state or local authority’

Have these ‘wingnuts’ ever heard of - let alone read - the Constitution???????

That's exactly what I was thinking when I read your post. The Dept. of Homeland Security would consider our forefathers 'right wing extremists' for sure.

[CottonBall]

"Frustration" and "disappointment" have dogged Michelle Obama these past 20 years, despite her US$300,000 a year salary and corporate board memberships.

Arrrghhh, I don't know which one pisses me off more - her or her husband. Typical liberal - she wants to be angry and can always find something to keep her mad. BTW, she wasn't even happy with other Dems - apparently she wasn't proud of American wanting 'change' during the 8 years Clinton was in office. It's all personal. Yet another liberal trait.

[Eagle50AE]

>>> It’s hard when all the unconditional love comes to an end. <<<

It sure is.. Thank you.

[Marmolade]

“THANK YOU! and HAPPY ANNIVERSARY!”

Count me in on those sentiments. I have learned so much from these threads. Thanks to all who have contributed.

Dallas was fun with the kids, but now I’ve got a lot of catching up to do here. :)

[upcountry miss]

We reach zero and below a couple times a year as a rule, but teens are normal lows here in Southern Maine. Living near the ocean has a tempering effect also.

Yes, we live in a truly great and beautiful country. I just shudder at the changes Obama has in store for us. Never had a desire to travel abroad. There are too many places here that I would love to visit for the first time and many, many more that I would love to revisit.

[CottonBall]

We reach zero and below a couple times a year as a rule, but teens are normal lows here in Southern Maine. Living near the ocean has a tempering effect also.

That's not bad at all. Do you have any lighthouses nearby? I just love the pictures of Maine with all the lighthouses and the rocky cliffs.

Yes, we live in a truly great and beautiful country. I just shudder at the changes Obama has in store for us. Never had a desire to travel abroad. There are too many places here that I would love to visit for the first time and many, many more that I would love to revisit.

I also hope the country (meaning its economy) isn't destroyed so much that few can travel.

[CottonBall]

Here's a couple of interesting stories. All with indicators leading to the economy worsening - and soon.

Calpernia had posted about the Baltic Dry Index previously here. It was rising at that time, but has reversed itself: Baltic loses last month's gains

An FR thread: Is a Major US Dollar Devaluation Imminent?

[CottonBall]

Dallas was fun with the kids, but now I’ve got a lot of catching up to do here. :)

Glad you had a good time. We missed you! (BTW, if by 'catching up', you mean reading the new posts, I know what you mean! Missing a few days here means a lot of new reading.)

[CottonBall]

ps. Do you have that cute Maine accent? Or is it only part of the state that has it? (I never got a Texas accent myself b/c it’s only the east part of the state that has it. Darn - I think accents are so neat. Well, any accent other than those the illegals all over here have. Come to think of it, and about half the legals - anchor babies. They don’t learn one word of English until our schools are forced to waste money teaching them the language. So they end up sounding like they never even lived here, much less were born here.)