Posted on 05/04/2011 4:43:43 PM PDT by blam
There’s no slack in the system. The Green Revolution, our free market capitalist system, and our modern transport network mean we can keep ten or twenty times as many people comfortably fed as a hundred years ago. But if those modern miracles succumb to a civilizational apocalypse, we would have ten or twenty times as many hungry people as in past times of true famine. The results would be ugly. Cannibalism ugly.
This also implies that people thinking they can “live off the land” are in a dream world. Within six months after a true Mad Max catastrophe, every animal larger than a kangaroo rat within our borders would have been shot for food. Our ancestors killed off the passenger pigeon and almost killed all the buffalo with muzzle loaders, back when there were fewer than 100 million of them. Imagine what 300 million hungry people with 200 million modern weapons would do to the fauna of this continent.
Thanks. We do appreciate you experts dropping by with your two cents worth.
bkmk
Yup. Look what happened after Katrina in some of those little towns on the edge of New Orleans. It wasn't pretty.
If you don't have connections in the place you're going, the best case scenario would be that you'd be permitted to pass through on your way to somewhere else. Worst case, you'd be treated as an invading army by a bunch of good ol' boys who know the terrain and have been hunting man-sized animals since they were little shavers.
So...do you follow his orders or resist him/them?
Russia may be the closest analogy, but they didn’t have near the gang issues and people were used to living with next to nothing and the population centers were nothing like what we have today. This is going to be a whole different rodeo.
Skip Montana..
PING!
It should be plain to see that we are heading (or being driven, depending on your view) toward a economic collapse. Congress doesn’t have the will to cut spending and there is no leadership coming from the White House.
The dollar is falling almost every day and prices are rising, gas is head for $5.00 a gallon and there is no way the economy can’t not bear any tax increases so with out badly need DEEP cuts in spending we are head straight for the cliff.
I see no way we can avoid a crash much like that of Argentina’s only MUCH bigger:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rH6_i8zuffs
You need to remember that as a armed society and one which contains a much more violent crimial and entitlement minded element our collapse is much more likely to be much more violent than Argentina’s was/is. I see evidence in the daily news that in many big ‘blue’ cities you can expect what I call “Pocket pogroms” will be carried out and if you aren’t ‘Amish’ you better be ready to get out and quick!
For more information on living in a collapse economy I strongly suggest that you read Ferfal’s blog SURVIVING IN ARGENTINA: http://ferfal.blogspot.com
Another good video to watch is: Economic Collapse - Why People Die in Crisis - Normalcy Bias Vs. Situational Awareness
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Quos1dxW7gI
For those who would like to get started preparing my Preparedness Manual is available (THANKS!to eaker)for a free down load at:
http://www.tomeaker.com/kart/preparedness1i.pdf
“Once it crashes, govts will no longer have the funds to maintain order.”
Economic activity never drops to zero, there is always somebody selling and somebody buying what they are selling. Oil and gas will not just magically disappear, the oil producing nations will always be interested in selling that oil to someone so there will be some energy available that can be used. Also, you had better believe that if people in cities start to get hungry that they will organize and go out and take (tax) what they need from the rural areas. You’ll be paid in worthless paper for you produce or packed off to jail if you refuse (they’ll leave enough for you to survive and plant next years crop so that they can take it again, or if really stupid do what they did in Zimbabwe and give it over to cronies and watch everyone starve to death).
The real danger is that you get some genocidal idiot in a leadership position who decides that there are too many people and starts systematically killing off the undesirables. There’s not much that you can do other than run to another country if that happens. Look at the Ukraine, Cambodia and any number of other places for those types of examples.
Just remember all the past small peaceful civilizations that grew up and thrived. Oh wait, none of those are around because they all got stomped on by someone bigger and more aggressive. Remember that when planning on going out to some small rural community on a small plot of land.
That’s kind of my thinking, that the gov would have it’s hands full just trying to keep some sort of order in the cities and trying to protect high-value assets (power generation plants, command and control facilities, etc),
I doubt they’ll be out harassing J6P who lives on a couple acres 25 miles outside of town.
Around here the locals would resist en masse.
Its not a dislike of police or anything, just naturally independent people who are here because we like to be alone. If it came down to it we could easily block access by road and force anyone to slog in through the swamps, across the streams or across the lake by boat.
Okay.
I expect the same here.
We've already discussed the road-blocks with some.
OK, I see what you’re saying. We will be in interesting times and it will be a patchwork of order/disorder no doubt.
“Except in this case we’re talking about many small interconnected rural communities and urbanites who don’t have the sense to do more than head down the highway to the next city.”
Think about Sherman’s march, those small interconnected rural communities really did a number on him didn’t they? Nope, sorry you’ll be mowed down like clover.
LOL by a bunch of urban slugs?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.