A Prediction
From sniffing around, I am beginning to suspect that Citigroup wil be the next to fall if the bailout isn't signed. If that happens, in my opinion, it will reveal the inevitability of (and perhaps trigger) the fast crash scenario. I don't see any way around it. It will provoke the biggest emotional shock wave in history. It will be a great moment of truth and make it possible to save infrastructure, personal wealth and lives. Fast crash leaves infrastructure functioning (in whatever degree) and we need that infrastructure to prepare. From what I just heard at ASPO, Global oil production could drop to 79 or even 78 G/bpd from this year's roughly 85. Nothing else need be said on that subject. Now is when the real lifeboat building begins. Anything before this was just practice.
MCR
China Banks Told to Halt Lending to U.S. Banks
er, now what?
jd (Julian Darley)
New York City Water Supply Threatened by Gas Drilling
Jenna Orkin*
A law which recently passed the New York State Legislature threatens New York City's drinking water, says James Gennaro, Chairman of the City Council's Commission on Environmental Protection, in a recent editorial in the Daily News.
Having apparently slipped under the radar of the city's Department of Environmental Protection, the new law will open up the Marcellus Shale, which sits directly beneath our watershed, to gas drilling.
In addition to the threat of leaks and runoff from hundreds of toxic chemicals which have already plagued similar projects in New Mexico and Wyoming, drilling would require the city to invest over $10 billion in a water treatment facility, says Gennaro, a former geologist.
In testimony to the City Council on September 10, State Commissioner on Environmental Conservation Pete Grannis maintained that a one mile buffer zone would protect the water supply. But the State's reliance on a Generic rather than a Specific Environmental Impact Statement undercuts that assurance.
The impact of the type of drilling involved, hydraulic fracturing or "fracking," is little understood because oil and gas companies are exempt from disclosing the chemicals they use. Those companies, chief among them, Halliburton, maintain that the chemicals are protected as trade secrets.
An EPA report released in 2004 concludes that the process is safe but testimony presented to the City Council by Catskill Citizens suggests that the report was unduly influenced by former Halliburton CEO Dick Cheney.
*former plaintiff in a class action lawsuit against the EPA
And From the Fiddling While Rome Burns Department:
Mother Russia flexing her muscles again, (bearing in mind, however, the sources for some of these stories.)
Russia May Cut Off Oil and Gas to Europe
Russia to Respond Militarily to U.S. Missile Shield
Russia Successfully Tests ICBM Designed to Beat Anti-Missile Systems
Russia Moves to Secure Arctic Shelf
Can You Spot the Chinese Nuclear Sub?
51 Things You're Not Allowed to See on Google Maps
Check out number 3.
SEC May Let Companies Abandon US Accounting Rules
Warning on Voting Machines Reveals Oversight Failure
Pentagon Brass Meets Secretly with Pakistanis
Flu Antibodies Recovered from 1918 Pandemic
Chalabi Aide Arrested on Suspicion of Baghdad Bombings
Price of Oil, Purging Voters and Election '08
Scientists: Save the Planet: Have Fewer Kids
--JO
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21 comments:
we need some real solid (specific) advice here:
what should we do with our money?
-take cash out of the bank? put it in a personal safe?
-buy gold and silver? which kinds specifically (swiss francs? morgan silver dollars?) and at what costs? (goldline quotes $260 for 1/5 oz swiss francs and $18 for morgan silver dollars as of this week)
how will this truly protect our savings? can you really use 1/5 of an ounce of gold to buy things (food, shelter, clothing) in the future? how will it be valued?
what should house/apt renters be considering?
Our friends/family and community here (New Paltz, NY) are very awesome but we only seem to have vague ideas of what to expect and how to navigate. We love the posts from MCR and JO but feel like you all have the best info and we would like more of it. We might be poor kids but we do have some cash and things - and we do have families that may eventually want some advice as well. please help us out in anyway you can but some more specifics would be really great. thank you.
what is everyone else on this blog doing these days to stay positive, hold on to valuables (cash), and "build lifeboats"?
in answer to your question, los doggies:
-buy gold and silver?
yes, absolutely. also see www.nwtmint.com and kitco.com.
the peak oilists of my acquaintance have a variety of gold and silver coins, American, Canadian, Swiss and South African.
we are keeping enough money at our disposal for the short term for gas and perishables (while money as we know it will still purchase something) - gold and silver coins for later - we have stocked non perishables to last us for as long as it will last with restrictions for 'budgeted' use - we have solar flash lites and it's important to understand the psychology of the preparednots if you are prepared - do what you can and hope for the best - join with others that have prepared in your community - buy seeds - they may come in handy - buy salt -- can't live without it - some of these kinds of things can be bartered - do you have a water filter should your water supply become a problem? - can you hunt for food? can you identify wild plants that can be eaten? do you know of herbs for illness? do you know vitamin c sources in the wild? - do you know how to build a fire? have matches or know how to use a fire starter alternative method? - just do what you can - it's better to be safe than sorry - do you have a skill others may value? we will need each other to survive what's coming - no doubt about that i'm afraid
From the New York Post:
The U.S. Stock market was just 500 trades away from Armageddon last Thursday:
http://www.nypost.com/seven/09212008/business/almost_armageddon_130110.htm
Speaking of gold...
US Mint Halts Buffalo Gold Coin Sales as Demand Surges
http://www.cnbc.com/id/26905337
This a time of shock, I think this is "act six", see below, "when will the Gun be removed from over the fireplace"?
I have been afraid of Gold for years,
our law still allows the confiscation
of Gold, but not other hard assets!
We are in a undeclared war for not only
the world's energy, but the way we think
and behave, for where we can live, & who
survives, & at what level.
The one's behind 9-11, and what has
happened since, including possible weather modification, are not going to stop until they are exposed, and
defeated. They will destroy our
banking, trading,& monetary system,
including the confiscation of Gold, they have already taken homes, land, &
business's here, & around the World. They work around the law, & make their own when needed.
Look up "The crisis Hypothesis".
Here is a good site:
http://www.scielo.cl/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0717-68212000011200003
Page down to table 1 for 11 points,
I think we are at #6,we are being rushed
through "#7!
The masses are in confusion, about the Election, World affairs, Gas prices, &
now the fear of YEARS of recovery.
"PLEASE fix it quick, so I can get back
to my TV, & Beer"
To repeat what Mike has said, "We have
to change how MONEY works!"
Someone has a plan, & we are not being included.
Invest in Gold? Well, I´have never found Gold very edible. Invest in a small farm instead. Learn to live in a shared environement.
I am in Germany as this collapse occurs. There is no collapse here. Much of the food in Bavaria is grown locally. The economy here is very strong. To see the life here; with efficient train systems, excellent health care and infrastructure, with relatively full employment, and to watch the unfolding of the financial "terror" being perpetuated in the U.S. is a very strange thing indead. J.P. Morgan is certainly getting some bargains. SHows how being a friend of Dick Chenay can be a help.
My thanks as always to Mike and Jenna. The best source of news for this traveling man.
Lawrence
Glad to see you hacking away again Mike.
You don't know me from Adam unless you read Ruminations from the Garden.
But you should.
We're rowing the same boat.
Strange considering there was a time when we were opposite sides of the law.
Don Henry Ford Jr.
The US European Command has permanently deployed US troops to Israel.
http://www.armytimes.com/news/2008/09/defense_xband_092608/
Chalk up another one for Kunstler? Those of you who have read his book "World Made by Hand" will recall that some of the characters had previously fought in the "Holy Land."
Should one buy gold and silver? Some people laugh at this, pointing out that we can't eat precious metals. That's true, but they can save your money when currencies fail, and when things really get bad, you'll have a lot more money than you started with. Use that to buy farmland, etc. Millions of cash-strapped people will be trying to sell lots of things.
One other thing I am wondering about: I've heard that when buying gold in the US the transaction is reported to the government. True? Certainly I would not feel comfortable with that. Here in Japan, buying precious metals is basically the same as buying a loaf of bread. You plunk down the cash, they hand you the goods. So there is no way for the govt to know who has precious metals, or how much.
Someone in these unending, plaintive messages MUST be thinking about mobility & distribution of victuals, perishables & necessities of life.
See (peakoil.net) articles 374 & 1037. Christopher C. Swans "ELECTRIC WATER & James H. Kunstler's "The Long Emergency". Forget about too much agonizing over gold & silver; the feds will call it in to protect the currency sometime soon.
Keep the gold & silver if it pleasures you... but if serious about the future localized economy, note Richard Heinberg's inclusion of "Railroad rehab & extension" in his more recent speeches. He is beginning to get the idea. Raiways, standard gauge and renewable propelled are requisite in the Peaking Oil & Climate Change solution set.
Precious metals just make you & your loved ones a conspicuous target, first time you use one coin for a purchase, the cat is out of the bag! Rather see the conversation shift to community groups getting to the County Planners about rehab of dormant lines & new, to local warehousing & perishables market/distribution. Julian Darley is sitting on a network of dormant rail lines and is doing all a disservice by keeping quiet on rail rehab. Come ON, JD!
Get copy of US Rail Map Atlas for your respective locale (spv.co.uk). Get copy of "Rail Transport & The Winning Of Wars" from the Association Of American Railroads in D.C, (202-634-2100) & present to office adjutant at your State National Guard; suggest Commandant study & re-commission Railroad Operating & Maintenance Batallions as were at hand for 100 years after the Civil War. Good source for rail savvy human resources for private sector rail expansion. Jenna has my contact info for discussion.
Corporate shippers like Wal-Mart, UPS, USPS, anyone relying on lots of trucks... I'd see about the rail reconnect possibilities for your traffic flow patterns! J-pods & sailboats are comfort zone items, like the precious metals approach. OK for short term diversion. Save some IQ & effort to rebuild the rail matrix within walking distance...
Financial crisis wonks can look at equipment trust certificates, ways & means of sequestering wealth in the railway plant & rolling stock so crucial for sustaining the Union of States. Think about Kunstler's cause & effect chain.
Energy feudalism is underway. A 3rd-hand anecdote:
"She went to the gas station yesterday in Clearwater Florida, there was no gas. So she left it until today. She went to another one and there was no gas. So she went to another where there was a long queue. Whilst she was waiting she chatted to another woman who was also waiting. This other lady told here that there was no gas whatsoever between Ashville in N Carolina through to Charleston in S Carolina. She said that in Georgia people are fighting over gas.
Not a peep in the media, nothing."
It suggests prices are being suppressed, probably by manipulation of the gasoline futures markets.
Doesn't look like the free market is even being allowed to solve Peak Oil, let alone whether it would be able to.
My understanding is that gold purchases are not reported to the government here in the U.S., but that gold sales in excess of $10,000.00 are. They're more concerned with seeing the red flags and tracking when you may be making taxable profits on selling your gold. When you buy the gold you're simply exchanging dollars for the exact same dollar amount of value in gold, so no taxable event has occurred yet.
Mike/JO, why is Citigroup next?
Any ideas of an October surprise? Ron Paul's economists say the real collapse will be waiting around the corner after the bailout...any predictions?
What's up with the global situation regarding central banks and national/geographic interests-meaning why isn't China/India etc dumping the dollar big-time right now? (As predicted in Denial Ends Here)
P.S. We're just outside Portland, so if you need a place to stay when you return to Oregon for the trials just let me know. Be more than proud to help in any way. Seriously.
Sincerely, AE
Trevbus -- One factor here is that gas station owners are afraid of being accused of gouging, against which the government has issued a warning. Higher prices might also induce more violent reactions from drivers. Filling stations should be raising prices to encourage conservation and stretch supplies, but instead they keep selling at the same price or only slightly higher prices and just run out. So the government injunction against gouging is a form of price manipulation.
Gunnar Henrioulle -- of course having precious metals could make you a target, but in an age of severe privation, anything you have that others don't will make you a target just the same. Got a room full of grain? You'll be a target once people who aren't eating see that you are. Here in Japan, the land of Law and Order, crop thefts are already common during the growing and harvest seasons. The only way not to be a target will be to have absolutely nothing.
andy -
pls send your email address as a comment to the blog. i won't post it.
thx
The Trouble with Gold is that
when the powers in control issue
a recall, or confiscation, there
will be a reward offered, so any
transaction or trade will become
as dangerous as dealing with Gold,
or a Jew, under Hitler!
Other "Black market" transactions,
will involve "Local" dangers.
Any travel, mostly after dark will
be risky, think "Dark Ages", &
City States. I suspect that lights after sunset will be the
first "Energy Saver".
Find those you have something in
common with, & practice Amae!!
The Japanese have a word Amae, "the Emotion of feeling", a form of Empathy, most common in the Mother/ Infant connection, where the Mother knows the Baby's needs instinctively, & the Infant
senses the Mother's emotions. Every Mother who has Breast fed knows the sensation of "Letting
Down", even though her baby is miles away.
It's also common in a well matched couple, which some call"SoulMates",
it's not Love, or passion, just,
Commonality!
Sometimes Amae's best expression is in letting go! Amae will not
remove, or lessen the other
emotions that go with a loss.
Amae is often expressed in Bible, Middle Eastern, & other Native Folk
stories!
The current dictionary entry's express the negitave aspect of Amae, that of selfishness, or demanding something unusual, or unreasonable, Dangerous times are
ahead, & even Amae expressed as
(Group)Selfishness will be a
positive.
Your Strip was/is a fine Positive expression of Your Amae,
Amae always,
Buying gold and silver? Absolutely - but not with the intent to "dip" into it in the near future. It is a long term vehicle for preserving your wealth and should come after other things, like having enough cash to see you through a few months and food for the same.
Regarding anonymity (rice farmer's comment) - reporting to the government or recording names varies from place to place and even dealer to dealer in the USA. In Japan it is anonymous for amounts under 2 million yen (about $18,800). Over that, they are required to record your ID info.
Some people keep 3 month's worth of cash at home in a safe place (in case banks close). As for gold and silver - some at home, some in a safety deposit box. Not all eggs in one basket.
The word "amae" is a very recent invention - 1980's - so to say that "the Japanese have a word..." as if it has deep cultural roots is quite a stretch.
Many a Jew escaped Nazi Germany using gold, and many a Vietnamese left their homeland in the 70's using the same (some of whom are in my family). There is always the risk that government will confiscate what you have (be it gold, tools, food, or what have you), but having them gives you options until such time as they are actually taken from you.
The best investment you can have is in yourself - your knowledge. But if you have a surplus of wealth, I cannot see the logic in not having things which may help one during a crisis.
About "amae" -- This word is a noun back-formation from the verb "amaeru," which itself is based on the word "amai," meaning "sweet (taste)." Actually, in everyday Japanese "amae" has a negative connotation because it signifies one's desire/attempt to have others be indulgent toward oneself, thereby allowing behavior that would normally be a deviation from what is socially acceptable. "Amae" was popularized in English in the 1970s by the book "The Anatomy of Dependence."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Anatomy_of_Dependence
The title literally means "the structure of amae." Since words change meaning when entering other languages, I suppose people in English-speaking countries use it differently.
Well, that was a nice distraction from the financial meltdown, which continues apace. The disease is spreading, with banks in Europe falling like dominos. The whole global system was over-leaveraged and propped up by cheap energy. The dance is over and it's time to pay the fiddler.
ever look at the link between cancer clusters and gas and oil drilling?
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