Surviving the Crash:
Good Morning
It’s a cloudy day and threatening snow here in
Please note that there may be more than one new article on the site at a time these days, so please scroll down. I am expanding the information available to you as I add what readers like yourself have to say.
I’m going to post up part one of a three part article from Barbara Peterson, who has some good common sense advice in her series, “Surviving the Middle Class Crash.”
From Blinded Sheep to One Eye Open at All Times
By Barbara H. Peterson
Who I am is not important. I am simply one of the many former middle class Americans who has been forced, due to economics, to take a long hard look at where this country is going, and where I want to be next year, and the year after that. It is clear that things in this country are changing, and we need to prepare for the future.
My journey down the rabbit hole began with the following thought: “What if nothing is as it seems, and everything I have been told is a lie.” This thought kept rolling around in my head until I was compelled to act. I started dissecting every scrap of information I heard on the news, and went to the Internet to do my research. What I found was that I had indeed been lied to, and was going to continue to be lied to by the mainstream media because it is bought and paid for by large multi-national corporations who do not want us to know the truth behind genetically modified terminator seeds, or anything else of importance. We are mere consumers. The heads of these multi-national corporations, whose only goal is to make money, are bleeding Americans dry. We the people are expendable. Until we realize that, we will continue to act as if nothing is wrong until we get flushed down the toilet.
Our country is being sold piece by piece to the highest bidder by a few powerful elites who have turned our economic system into an all-out grab for money and power, man the torpedoes, full steam ahead! A declaration of war on the American people has been declared, and we are in for the fight of our lives.
At this point, some of us are having a difficult time making ends meet. Maybe we are cutting down on our fuel consumption, or making other sacrifices to save money in order to hang on to what we have. We ‘aint seen nothin’ yet. Hanging on is going to get harder. To combat the forces of evil and take back our country, it is time to make a change, one person at a time.
I invite you to follow me down the path to take back my independence and break away from the corporate teat. It might not always be pretty, but I can assure you, it will not be dull; and just maybe, we can learn from each other.
You can reach Barbara’s website at: http://www.spktruth2power.wordpress.com
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Mike,
Thanks for the link to this website. You and she have a powerfully important message.
Kathy
Kathy,
Always nice to hear from you. Yes, it seems that both Barb and I woke up one day and said, “What the heck is goin’ on around here?” Once you begin to do the research, it’s so simple to see that our current economy cannot be maintained.
But, together we will all make a difference and show folks a way to live that beats the old American dream of debt and consumption seven ways to Sunday.
Hi Mike,
I have several comments roaming around in my head, but no time until the weekend to put them into words. I do appreciate the link because I have been thinking very seriously for over a year about “survival” strategies. Sometimes I feel a bit silly, thinking back to the “survivalists” of the 70’s and 80’s, but I’m becoming more convinced that we all need a Plan B.
Having read your book’s section on housing, I thought you’d be interested in an article in the current (March, 2008) issue of The Atlantic titled, “The Next Slum” by Christopher Leinberger. It adds another dimension to the points you made in the book. I’ve tried to access it online to send you the link (in case you’re not a subscriber), but it doesn’t seem to be available yet. I may try to scan and email it to you, if you’re interested.
I really appreciate your work, Mike. We come from very different perspectives, I think, but we’re reaching the same conclusions.
Kathy,
I’m always interested in information that furthers my continual research.
The word “survival” enjoys the same reception as the word “radical.” Stereotyping and preconception win the day.
However, a radical departure from a burning house is a good thing and not a subject that requires a great deal of debate.
Basic Survival, or the preparation for survival, requires the same amount of debate…none.
Humans are in fact three days away from being barbarians. If one does not believe this simple truth, take away the food and give the former civilized folks three days and then walk by with a sack of Big Macs!
Barbara and I have discussed the fact that neither of us are talking about storing food and ammo in a cave and slipping off into the woods with a Boy Scout knife and sleeping bag!
Both my book and Barb’s beliefs suggest (for those who wish to heed the words), a simpler more enjoyable, more sustainable lifestyle.
I can’t speak for Barb, but I did nothing to prepare for Y2-K. It was a known computer software problem for gosh sakes.
Our current issue is that of our base employment and the fact that exponential consumption is an impossible economic model to continue. That simple. Ready or not, here it comes.
Please pass on any thoughts and questions.
Don’t, worry Mike, I have neither you nor Barb mistaken for “take to the woods” survivalists. But, the basic preparations you both suggest are quite foreign to most people. I have wished I had paid more attention to the skills of my mother and mother in law, who both learned early on about sustainable and simple living.
While I am in complete and strong agreement with your advice to get out of debt, especially credit card debt, I wonder how this can be heeded by those who are so over their heads. I have been reading on Calculated Risk about homeowners “walking away” from their unpayable mortgages. Do you think we’ll be seeing walk aways from credit card debt. I know that the so-called Bankrupcy Reform legislation makes this very unpleasant if not impossible, but I wouldn’t be too surprised to see many more credit card defaults by individuals who justify nonpayment by asserting that they have been screwed over by the excessively high rates of interest.
With the lawlessness of the top leadership of the country providing an example to the citizenry, I wouldn’t be too awfully surprised to see some very chaotic disregard of debt.
Kathy,
Spot on with your fears and beliefs. Credit cards and auto repo’s will be the next housing crisis along with… more housing crisis.
Even Super Ben Bernanke laid some bad news on the boys and girls of Wall Street yesterday, in that we have a ways to go before recovery. He also said the FED was willing to do what ever necessary to help the economy.
My scenario in my blog of a couple of days ago, “The Old End Around Play,” is working out according the script.
Trotting out that same old tired inflation plan, is the last skinny rabbit in the politicians magic hat. And doing so is devastating to our country. But then, you have read my book and know all about it.
Our failed leaders not only don’t deserve to lead us, they don’t deserve to live with the rest of us.
Kathy and Mike,
We have officially been dug out of the driveway, and can now exit the premises. Whew! I hate snow! Oh well, comes with living in the country.
I believe that misconceptions about what it takes to “survive” are rampant, and a lot of people are making a lot of money touting dried food, emergency lighting, etc. What we really need is a bit of common sense that went the way of the dodo bird once the T.V. took over our lives and turned us into creatures of instant gratification.
For example, I can make several loaves of healthy, home-made bread for what it costs for a couple of loaves of the store-bought variety. I guarantee you my bread is healthier and tastier too.
I can also make my Blue and Gold Macaw named Rita her favorite treats by taking my apple cores, which are normally thrown away, and laying them on the counter under the fan, which is near the woodstove. In two days I have dried apple treats that she just loves. Or, I could go to the store in my car, spend $15.00 on a bag of dried fruit that is imported from who knows where, and doused with whatever preservative is popular at the moment. Which is less expensive and healthier?
An optimist at heart, I am convinced that if we learn to take responsibility for our lives instead of farming that responsibility out for the sake of convenience, we can live a lifestyle that is sustainable.
Credit card debt
I can attest first-hand that the first debts to go when the money is gone are the credit cards. When you have $500 in the bank and have to choose between keeping the electricity on, paying the phone bill, buying food, and paying the credit card, food and electricity are on the top of the list. This is when I found out about creditors not being able to contact you after receiving a written notice to cease and desist.