. . .
C “A system that cannot go on forever will not go on forever. The System in its current incarnation cannot go on forever. Thus, the debate shifts fundamentally from ‘if’ to ‘when.’ The syllogism suggests that fundamental change is in store. Do we have the stores?”
D “‘When’ not ‘if’ and also ‘what.’ Plan B is by definition less desirable than Plan A or presumably it would be Plan A. The most desirable plan is failing. What is Plan B?”
C “The other systemic challenge is weather. That problem like the financial machinations is also substantially man-made and man-modified. Mother Nature allocates every region a specially-tailored natural catastrophe. Florida and the Southeast get hurricanes, the Midwest gets tornadoes, the West Coast gets earthquakes, other regions get typhoons and cyclones. And Mother Nature is shifting the script so that some areas get floods and some get drought. The jet streams and the gulf streams are working in tandem to change things on the ground.”
D “Leaves you wondering what is Plan B?”
. . .
C “The script never varies. The public Emergency Preparedness offices provide detailed lists of necessary supplies and valuable advice yet always unfailingly avoid even hinting that a gun, even one for hunting squirrels or pigeons, is a wise and prudent investment. Some of them are reluctant even to mention acquiring a knife other than a pocket knife or perhaps a scalpel.”
D “And the private sector prepper sites go to the other extreme and focus the entire discussion around guns and ammo and ammo and guns and guns and ammo. The alpha, the bravo, the charlie and the delta of preparation for the Great Omega.”
C “Get a gun. We have a moral duty to protect our family and friends. And get an LED flashlight. And extra batteries.”
D “And beans and bullets. My personal Plan B combines public and private sector suggestions.”
. . .
C “Going it alone is a failure from the start, yet desperately few humans have the intellectual and emotional software to engage others cooperatively. Finding others who have resources, skills and tools is not promising.”
D “At heart, the most prudent preparation is to restrain the dragons in our soul to free our mind.”
. . .
[And this past weekend, earthquakes in Nepal.]
[National PrepareAthon! Day on April 30 is a grassroots campaign for action to increase community preparedness and resilience.]
[See the e-commentary at Beans and Bullets (April 6, 2009), We Ain’t Ants; We Are Grasshoppers (April 9, 2012), On Community (June 3, 2013) and On Roiling And Rolling Collapse (March 9, 2015).]
Bumper stickers of the week:
Get a garden rake, get a gun, get a grip
“If you want to awaken all of humanity, then awaken all of yourself; if you want to eliminate the suffering in the world, then eliminate all that is dark and negative in yourself. Truly, the greatest gift you have to give is that of your own self-transformation.” Attributed by some to Lao Tzu, but who knows.