[G.Mason]

"I think you miss the impact of a total loss of electricity on our version of civilization in a metro area."

And I think you miss my point.

We can run around, fretting over the absurdity of this topic [EMP attack], or comet strikes, or eastern and western tsunami's in the USA, or hurricanes, or ... ????

I, for one do not sit around worrying about these possible events beyond my control.

Should anyone of these disasters strike, I will do my best to survive, and if you have some food I can use (as the supermarket is closed) I will relieve you of it, at the point of a stick, if necessary. ;)

[blackdog]

Sometimes our "Entire Modern Civilization" you place such value on sure ain't much.

The real question here is............What will the recount on the electronic voting machines read in Ohio at the time of the nuclear blast, and will it throw the election as Haliburton desired when they launched a missile from Pakistan to prevent Hillary from winning, on November 8th 2008, handing it to the evil republicans once again?

[blackdog]

When it comes to disasters either manmade or natural, when all is said and done, the potential upside is quite something. While I share the sadness of the Tsunami victims and feel their undescribable agony over family losses, I bet world coffee prices are going to go thru the roof and I bet many of those ruined fishermen and their survivors may become coffee growers. Killer quakes give us building and infrastructure leaps in technology. Hurricanes are producing housing designs and materials which are astonishing in their durability. Giant waves which capsize boats are giving us self righting ocean going vessels in the event of a capsizing. Mine collapses gave us Haliburton designed drilling rigs to rescue people buried alive at a few hundred feet. Space vehicle disasters give us feedback for future designs which will take us farther and faster. The Tsunami will bring cranes, bulldozers, and heavy equipment along with construction firms teaching new skills to a people who may take a new direction on where they want to head as a society.

Humans are best when things are at their worst. Without Dickens-like hardships, we go nowhere.

[Blueflag]

I'll agree to your point about not fretting. Death by vehicle accident is more likely.

But you'd need a lot more than a stick to relieve me and my family of any food stocks ;-).