Sunday, April 09, 2006
Saturday, March 18, 2006
The next Iranian Oil Embargo
Have you been watching the situation in Iraq and Iran? Since Iran is a Shi'ite Muslim country, they are covertly helping their brethren in Iraq, where the majority Shia were dominated for many years by Saddam Hussein's government. Now, they're in control of the new American-backed government. My sources suggest that when the smoke and dust clears, there will be two Iran-styled Islamic Republics living side by side, hating America's guts, and sitting on the second largest reserve of oil in the world!
And, of course, we are harrassing Iran for wanting to develop nuclear technology, possibly nuclear weapons in ten years (according to the estimate I heard). So, it's likely we will REALLY give them a reason to hate us by attacking their nuclear facilities.
I don't think one has to be a fortune-teller to predict that the two countries (and perhaps others) will join together and refuse to sell oil to "The Great Satan." Why not just sell their oil directly to China, who has been buddying up to any source of oil to fuel their continued rapid development into what I believe will be the dominant economic power within 10 years?
Can you imagine what will happen to the world economy if both Iran and Iraq decide to withhold their oil from the Western powers? And, by our meddling in foreign affairs of other countries, we made it all possible.
Good time to be buying gold mining stocks and big oil with proven reserves, don't you think?
And, of course, we are harrassing Iran for wanting to develop nuclear technology, possibly nuclear weapons in ten years (according to the estimate I heard). So, it's likely we will REALLY give them a reason to hate us by attacking their nuclear facilities.
I don't think one has to be a fortune-teller to predict that the two countries (and perhaps others) will join together and refuse to sell oil to "The Great Satan." Why not just sell their oil directly to China, who has been buddying up to any source of oil to fuel their continued rapid development into what I believe will be the dominant economic power within 10 years?
Can you imagine what will happen to the world economy if both Iran and Iraq decide to withhold their oil from the Western powers? And, by our meddling in foreign affairs of other countries, we made it all possible.
Good time to be buying gold mining stocks and big oil with proven reserves, don't you think?
Sunday, March 05, 2006
$: The United States of Death Squads: Now in Iraq
$: The United States of Death Squads: Now in Iraq
Is the US as bad as all this? Is it worse? Will we ever know the truth - all the truth and nothing but the truth - with the CIA's black budgets that are classified? What about Iran-Contra, with the CIA and their friends turning cocaine smuggling into arms funding? Think that's not going on in Afghanistan, one of the heroin capitals of the world? It's just more off-budget funding for doing things we don't want revealed.
Whether it's all true or just a bit is true, the CIA and the Bush administration aren't doing a very good job of winning friends and pacifying the Middle East, are they? Talk about terror bombings! What about the "collateral damage" of tens of thousands of noncombatants when we bomb and shell and raid civilian neighborhoods? The US is making a lot more enemies by being in Iraq and using similar tactics that made Saddam reviled.
It's time for the US to get out of Iraq and to cleanse our government of all its amoral covert ops orientation and participation.
Is the US as bad as all this? Is it worse? Will we ever know the truth - all the truth and nothing but the truth - with the CIA's black budgets that are classified? What about Iran-Contra, with the CIA and their friends turning cocaine smuggling into arms funding? Think that's not going on in Afghanistan, one of the heroin capitals of the world? It's just more off-budget funding for doing things we don't want revealed.
Whether it's all true or just a bit is true, the CIA and the Bush administration aren't doing a very good job of winning friends and pacifying the Middle East, are they? Talk about terror bombings! What about the "collateral damage" of tens of thousands of noncombatants when we bomb and shell and raid civilian neighborhoods? The US is making a lot more enemies by being in Iraq and using similar tactics that made Saddam reviled.
It's time for the US to get out of Iraq and to cleanse our government of all its amoral covert ops orientation and participation.
Friday, March 03, 2006
Shelter from the Storm: Oakridge, Oregon
If you've been reading about the changes Peak Oil is going to bring our society (www.LifeAftertheOilCrash.net ), then you might want to ask yourself, "Where do I want to be when there's no gas or it's too expensive to drive anywhere?"
Do you want to be in a city, with no way to grow what you need to eat, when our food supply system breaks down? Without cheap oil, or unavailable for any price, how can trucks supply your neighborhood grocery store? Can you imagine that hungry people will resort to looting?
If you live in a city or small town, will your backyard vegetable garden or tree fruit crops be safe? Even if they were, how long could your family live on what you can grow and preserve?
Where would the ideal place be, to live in safety and comfort as oil prices go inevitably up and we experience intermittent supply shortages over the next few years?
* A mild climate would be a plus: temperate, not too cold or hot, good for
gardening and farming
* Far enough away from hordes of starving city dwellers and criminal
types, so there will be fewer hungry people to keep out of your garden
* Plenty of fresh, clean water in all seasons
* Abundant game animals and fish, if you want to hunt and fish
* Lots of sunlight in the winter, to run solar energy collectors
* Ideally, the local government can see what's coming and is preparing
for it
I've found a place that pretty much meets these criteria. It's far from perfect, but the location is fantastic and the things that are missing can be added. An influx of those who are preparing for "life after the oil crash" would make it possible to change the political climate of the small city I have in mind.
The city is Oakridge, Oregon. It has about 3500 residents living in a protected valley about 35 miles from the nearest city, a cosmopolitan college town (Eugene).
One of the nicest things about Oakridge is its climate. It sits at 1200' altitude and therefor is "above the fog and below the snowline" in the winter and pleasantly cooler in the blazing Oregon summers. Five rivers converge here at the headwaters of the Willamette River. This is still in Zone 7 of the climate charts, so the gardening is good. We are surrounded by National Forest lands, and enjoy lots of "old growth" trees.
Recreation is big here. Hundreds of miles of trails through the forests and along the streams make this heaven for hikers and mountain bikers. A network of single and two-lane paved logging roads connect us to neighboring communities like Cottage Grove and even Crater Lake National Park. Might come in handy.........
( It should be pointed out that clearcut logging was stopped in this region about 20 years ago, so these forests are healthy and green and these paved roads are left for bicyclists, hunters, and anglers to use. )
Oakridge is 30 miles from the nearest ski area. The fishing is fantastic - trout , salmon, and bass, with some other species in our streams and reservoirs. Hunting for deer, bear, and elk is good, in season.
Oakridge after peak oil poses problems for retirees who need to be close to a major hospital for dialysis or other medical problems.
Those who must commute to a job in Eugene (as many do now) may find this less and less possible in the near future. Either people must find ways to work here and/or live off the land, or they must have dependable income from investments or businesses (like those on the Internet) or they must go elsewhere.
Oakridge has a strategic location, sitting astride a major highway through the mountains. There are many unfilled business niches to service the traveller. For as long as travel continues, that is.
There are incentives for businesses that create jobs. The community is crying out for vision and investment. Oakridge is the "homely step-sister" of Oregon mountain communities, waiting for her makeover. But her bone-structure (the mountain setting) is fantastic!
I like to say that it's easier to add the amenities Oakridge lacks than it is to remove all the things I don't like about most other places.
Oakridge is an opportunity for those who see the need. There's a limited ammount, truly. It's a chance to take a beautiful place and create the ideal Peak Oil refuge.
All we need are a few hundred visionaries to bring their business skills and resources to remake towns like Oakridge into the ideal post-Peak Oil refuges. Look at what's developing in Willits, CA! Look at what's happened to Bend (which has a lot of drawbacks in post-Peak Oil terms)!
If nothing else, Oakridge is a bargain place to set up a get-away or retirement home. People are moving here, anyway. The real estate market is very tight, but still a bargain compared to Bend or Eugene. And it can only hold about another 1500 souls. Check it out before the prices go out of sight!
For more information, go to Http://site257.webhost4life.com/cityhall/
Do you want to be in a city, with no way to grow what you need to eat, when our food supply system breaks down? Without cheap oil, or unavailable for any price, how can trucks supply your neighborhood grocery store? Can you imagine that hungry people will resort to looting?
If you live in a city or small town, will your backyard vegetable garden or tree fruit crops be safe? Even if they were, how long could your family live on what you can grow and preserve?
Where would the ideal place be, to live in safety and comfort as oil prices go inevitably up and we experience intermittent supply shortages over the next few years?
* A mild climate would be a plus: temperate, not too cold or hot, good for
gardening and farming
* Far enough away from hordes of starving city dwellers and criminal
types, so there will be fewer hungry people to keep out of your garden
* Plenty of fresh, clean water in all seasons
* Abundant game animals and fish, if you want to hunt and fish
* Lots of sunlight in the winter, to run solar energy collectors
* Ideally, the local government can see what's coming and is preparing
for it
I've found a place that pretty much meets these criteria. It's far from perfect, but the location is fantastic and the things that are missing can be added. An influx of those who are preparing for "life after the oil crash" would make it possible to change the political climate of the small city I have in mind.
The city is Oakridge, Oregon. It has about 3500 residents living in a protected valley about 35 miles from the nearest city, a cosmopolitan college town (Eugene).
One of the nicest things about Oakridge is its climate. It sits at 1200' altitude and therefor is "above the fog and below the snowline" in the winter and pleasantly cooler in the blazing Oregon summers. Five rivers converge here at the headwaters of the Willamette River. This is still in Zone 7 of the climate charts, so the gardening is good. We are surrounded by National Forest lands, and enjoy lots of "old growth" trees.
Recreation is big here. Hundreds of miles of trails through the forests and along the streams make this heaven for hikers and mountain bikers. A network of single and two-lane paved logging roads connect us to neighboring communities like Cottage Grove and even Crater Lake National Park. Might come in handy.........
( It should be pointed out that clearcut logging was stopped in this region about 20 years ago, so these forests are healthy and green and these paved roads are left for bicyclists, hunters, and anglers to use. )
Oakridge is 30 miles from the nearest ski area. The fishing is fantastic - trout , salmon, and bass, with some other species in our streams and reservoirs. Hunting for deer, bear, and elk is good, in season.
Oakridge after peak oil poses problems for retirees who need to be close to a major hospital for dialysis or other medical problems.
Those who must commute to a job in Eugene (as many do now) may find this less and less possible in the near future. Either people must find ways to work here and/or live off the land, or they must have dependable income from investments or businesses (like those on the Internet) or they must go elsewhere.
Oakridge has a strategic location, sitting astride a major highway through the mountains. There are many unfilled business niches to service the traveller. For as long as travel continues, that is.
There are incentives for businesses that create jobs. The community is crying out for vision and investment. Oakridge is the "homely step-sister" of Oregon mountain communities, waiting for her makeover. But her bone-structure (the mountain setting) is fantastic!
I like to say that it's easier to add the amenities Oakridge lacks than it is to remove all the things I don't like about most other places.
Oakridge is an opportunity for those who see the need. There's a limited ammount, truly. It's a chance to take a beautiful place and create the ideal Peak Oil refuge.
All we need are a few hundred visionaries to bring their business skills and resources to remake towns like Oakridge into the ideal post-Peak Oil refuges. Look at what's developing in Willits, CA! Look at what's happened to Bend (which has a lot of drawbacks in post-Peak Oil terms)!
If nothing else, Oakridge is a bargain place to set up a get-away or retirement home. People are moving here, anyway. The real estate market is very tight, but still a bargain compared to Bend or Eugene. And it can only hold about another 1500 souls. Check it out before the prices go out of sight!
For more information, go to Http://site257.webhost4life.com/cityhall/
Tuesday, February 28, 2006
Leave it to Beaver
I've been reading a lot of blogs lately about Peak Oil and the impression I get is that people like to talk and analyze, but most aren't taking the necessary steps to prepare their family for what is going to happen.
Over the past 100+ years, Americans have gone from being self-employed farmers or shopkeepers to being employees. In that time, they've acquired the habit of expecting someone else to solve the problem. The boss will deal with it - the Federal government - someone will work out a way for us to go on living in the same wasteful, frivolous way that got us into this situation, so we just need to write our congressperson or call our local talkshow host and vigorously state our opinion. What a bunch of crap!
Didn't anyone learn anything from the Katrina debacle? We're on our own! No one is riding to the rescue! The people who will get out of jams will be those who can pay their way out.
I am beginning to look around for the place to live in safety and comfort while our American way of life meets the hard cold reality that there no longer is enough cheap oil to maintain our ridiculous life style. I'm actually looking forward to seeing some of our inane Hollywood celebrities try to earn their living by doing something of real value.
We've got - at most - a few years to prepare. It's a good time to buy a few acres in the country with a few friends. Brush up on your organic gardening and farming skills. Stock up on hand tools, guns, and ammo; learn to use them. Lay back a supply of canned or freeze-dried foods. Maybe put in your own gas tank for the inevitable times when it will be impossible to buy fuel, due to shortages. Get ready and learn to love it.
Lessening your family's dependence on working for someone else, cutting your dependence on foods of questionable quality that must be trucked a thousand miles to your local grocery market - these are good things. Getting out of big cities where you are vulnerable to terroist attacks, bird flu epidemics, shortages of gasoline, medicines, and food may be troublesome to accomplish, but you will be soooo glad when the blackouts get to be a regular occurence or there is a panic for any of the aforementioned reasons.
This is not a drill!
We will be seeing more wars over resources, especially oil in the next few years. I wouldn't count on the USA being able to capture enough to keep our bloated system going. Our adventure in Iraq doesn't seem to be working out too profitably, does it? Just as in Vietnam, I will place my bets on the guerilla forces to win.
My advice is to learn to become self-reliant again. Find a way. Get in shape because only the healthy and the fit (and the prepared) will have a chance to survive the next ten years.
Why believe me? I've been through a few "trial runs" that I'll tell you about next time.
Over the past 100+ years, Americans have gone from being self-employed farmers or shopkeepers to being employees. In that time, they've acquired the habit of expecting someone else to solve the problem. The boss will deal with it - the Federal government - someone will work out a way for us to go on living in the same wasteful, frivolous way that got us into this situation, so we just need to write our congressperson or call our local talkshow host and vigorously state our opinion. What a bunch of crap!
Didn't anyone learn anything from the Katrina debacle? We're on our own! No one is riding to the rescue! The people who will get out of jams will be those who can pay their way out.
I am beginning to look around for the place to live in safety and comfort while our American way of life meets the hard cold reality that there no longer is enough cheap oil to maintain our ridiculous life style. I'm actually looking forward to seeing some of our inane Hollywood celebrities try to earn their living by doing something of real value.
We've got - at most - a few years to prepare. It's a good time to buy a few acres in the country with a few friends. Brush up on your organic gardening and farming skills. Stock up on hand tools, guns, and ammo; learn to use them. Lay back a supply of canned or freeze-dried foods. Maybe put in your own gas tank for the inevitable times when it will be impossible to buy fuel, due to shortages. Get ready and learn to love it.
Lessening your family's dependence on working for someone else, cutting your dependence on foods of questionable quality that must be trucked a thousand miles to your local grocery market - these are good things. Getting out of big cities where you are vulnerable to terroist attacks, bird flu epidemics, shortages of gasoline, medicines, and food may be troublesome to accomplish, but you will be soooo glad when the blackouts get to be a regular occurence or there is a panic for any of the aforementioned reasons.
This is not a drill!
We will be seeing more wars over resources, especially oil in the next few years. I wouldn't count on the USA being able to capture enough to keep our bloated system going. Our adventure in Iraq doesn't seem to be working out too profitably, does it? Just as in Vietnam, I will place my bets on the guerilla forces to win.
My advice is to learn to become self-reliant again. Find a way. Get in shape because only the healthy and the fit (and the prepared) will have a chance to survive the next ten years.
Why believe me? I've been through a few "trial runs" that I'll tell you about next time.
Sunday, February 19, 2006
Imagine a World Without Oil
It's time to start preparing for the day oil is to0 scarce to be used to haul our foodstuffs hundreds or thousands of miles to our neighborhood store. What will we eat then?
When gasoline is too expensive for us to drive 10-80 miles to work each day, how will we earn our living?
Will your peaceful city neighborhood and your backyard vegetable garden be safe when hungry people are looking desperately for something to eat? Can you grow enough to feed your family year-round where you live? And do you have a well that doesn't require electricity?
The time has come for intelligent people to start making plans for a time in the near future when our society, which runs on cheap oil, begins to fall apart.
If you read between the lines of your daily news, you'll see what I'm talking about. Look up "peak oil" on Google and read what scientists, geologists, and serious thinkers are predicting. There is no doubt that it will happen; the only debate is over "How soon?"
All it would take would be a major terrorist attack on any major oil-producing nation, say with a dirty nuclear weapon, and you will see prices of oil and natural gas go through the roof. Combine the likelihood of terrorism with the growing appetite for oil of China, India, and other industrializing nations and you have a good chance that supplies will be grabbed up and/or fought over by nations desperate to keep their society running. Will it be 3 years or 10 before things get really ugly in the cities?
This is not news, but I'm starting to sense the urgency to prepare for a scaled-down economy that's based on serving real human needs like food, shelter, and cooperation. A local economy in a rural environment that is safe from marauding thugs.
Interestingly, this change to a world without oil is going to be a good thing. Those who see it coming can avoid the pain of going "cold turkey" when the supply is shut off. Some will get stronger and healthier by getting off the couch and growing their own food, instead of driving to the store. Some will commute by bike rather than Hummer. Others will starve, steal, and impotently scream for the government to DO SOMETHING! (Think Katrina!)
Will you join the Captain's dinner party on the Titanic and live it up for a little longer? Or will you prepare now to save your loved ones from the chaotic times ahead? (Think we can stop another 9/11?)
From what I'm reading on www.PeakOil.org and other well-documented peak oil sites , life will be better when the frantic oil-dependent people have died off, leaving the meek to inherit the earth.
When gasoline is too expensive for us to drive 10-80 miles to work each day, how will we earn our living?
Will your peaceful city neighborhood and your backyard vegetable garden be safe when hungry people are looking desperately for something to eat? Can you grow enough to feed your family year-round where you live? And do you have a well that doesn't require electricity?
The time has come for intelligent people to start making plans for a time in the near future when our society, which runs on cheap oil, begins to fall apart.
If you read between the lines of your daily news, you'll see what I'm talking about. Look up "peak oil" on Google and read what scientists, geologists, and serious thinkers are predicting. There is no doubt that it will happen; the only debate is over "How soon?"
All it would take would be a major terrorist attack on any major oil-producing nation, say with a dirty nuclear weapon, and you will see prices of oil and natural gas go through the roof. Combine the likelihood of terrorism with the growing appetite for oil of China, India, and other industrializing nations and you have a good chance that supplies will be grabbed up and/or fought over by nations desperate to keep their society running. Will it be 3 years or 10 before things get really ugly in the cities?
This is not news, but I'm starting to sense the urgency to prepare for a scaled-down economy that's based on serving real human needs like food, shelter, and cooperation. A local economy in a rural environment that is safe from marauding thugs.
Interestingly, this change to a world without oil is going to be a good thing. Those who see it coming can avoid the pain of going "cold turkey" when the supply is shut off. Some will get stronger and healthier by getting off the couch and growing their own food, instead of driving to the store. Some will commute by bike rather than Hummer. Others will starve, steal, and impotently scream for the government to DO SOMETHING! (Think Katrina!)
Will you join the Captain's dinner party on the Titanic and live it up for a little longer? Or will you prepare now to save your loved ones from the chaotic times ahead? (Think we can stop another 9/11?)
From what I'm reading on www.PeakOil.org and other well-documented peak oil sites , life will be better when the frantic oil-dependent people have died off, leaving the meek to inherit the earth.
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