We will soon begin a program of worldwide Beta testing for Collapsenet. I would like to invite the below-listed regular contributors to this wonderful blog to participate in this phase of our launch so that we can make CollapseNet as useful as possible in the shortest period of time. If you would like to participate in Beta testing please send an email to wmiller310@hotmail.com. (that's CollapseNet's Chief of Staff / V.P. - Strategic Development's side e-mail just for this). State in the email that you are a member of the blog and were invited to participate by me and Jenna. Keep messages short. We're busier than you can imagine. We'll get back to you directly as things develop. We expect to start Beta testing sometime during the week of May 3rd. -- We're all doing the best we can.
Also, everyone who has dontated funds to me in the past or who has received a personal invitation recently from me to participate should send a similar e-mail. Our lists of past donors are somewhat dispersed and not easy to fully reconstruct in our haste to get CollapseNet launched. We do not want to leave you out. The easiest and fastest way for us to plug you into the CollapseNet website is by your sending an identifying e-mail to us at the above e-mail address. You will be contacted soon with Beta testing instructions, logins and initial passwords.
I have to tell all of you that the country is mobilizing in some wonderful ways and I couldn't be more gratified than I am to see how much support we have. PLEASE, do not send Jenna any emails asking to volunteer as a Beta-tester. We're compiling a large list and Jenna's not handling that. If you have my personal email address, please do not send anything to me there. We're changing information flows to make everyone more effective.
Thanks to all you wonderful souls who have given so much for so long..
MCR
Rice Farmer
Eyeballs
F. Kamilov
Sebastian Ronin
Businessman
Peter J. Nickitas
Ecosutra
Gamedog
Elmo
Peaked Out
Elizabeth Miller
Sunmr
Soggy Bottom
Pandabonium
Weaseldog
Jon Noel
Vantage Point
Son of a Farmer
**********************************************************************
From Jenna Orkin
Headlines
Mother of All Gushers Could Kill Earth's Oceans - from Elizabeth Miller
Mother of All Bubbles: Huge National Debts Could Push Euro Zone into Bankruptcy
Leaked report: Government fears Deepwater Horizon well could become unchecked gusher
Total Wellhead Failure Raises Fear of Worst Case Scenario
Fears for crops as shock figures from America show scale of bee catastrophe
Copper thieves cause power grid havoc
Kim Jong-il Spokesperson Blames Torpedo Attack On The U.S. Friendly Fire
War game shows how attacking Iran could backfire
Jordan River could die by 2011: report - from Elizabeth Miller
Economy
Merkel's Coalition Steps Up Calls for `Orderly Insolvencies' of EU States
Debt Shock for Japan
Risk of Japan Going Bankrupt Is Real
...by 2011.
Greek Fund to Provide as Much as $19.8 Billion for Banks, EU Document Says
ECB Comes to Greece’s Aid by Waiving Collateral Rules; ECB Plays With Fire; Europe's Web of Debt
Is Spain the Next EU Country To Tumble Into a Debt Crisis?
"Super Tax" Hits Australia; In US, Gold will be an Easy Target; Expatriates Give Up US Citizenship To Avoid Taxes
Plunge in State Revenue - California
Economic data -- not spill -- push oil prices higher - from Rice Farmer
Truth and Myths of the Federal Reserve
Sterling gold price record
Terror/Intelligence
Taliban chief resurfaces on video
New York Bomb Suspect Says He Acted Alone
Except for a wee bit of help from....... PAKISTAN! (Insert scary emoticon with appropriate music tag)
Failed New York bomb puts Pakistan in spotlight
NYPD Wants to Jam Cell Phones During Terror Attack
NYPD Cuts Cops, Keeps Spycams for Terror Defense
Darpa Spy Cams to Find Threats in 'Weak Evidence'
Researchers Hone in on 'Spot-a-Terrorist' Spy Cams
Why London's Spy Cams Don't Spook Bombers
Al Jazeera English launching today in Canada
US starts anti-al-Qaeda military exercise in Sahara - from Rice Farmer
Amazon is tracking most-highlighted Kindle passages - from Rice Farmer
The Guardian may be helping the far-Right
South Park: most dangerous show on TV?
Christian preacher arrested for saying homosexuality is a sin
Environment
Farmers Cope With Roundup-Resistant Weeds
Monsanto's calling card.
DEET Mosquito Repellent Could Lose Its Bite
German Enviro Says EVs ‘Plunder’ and Pollute
Nano Patents and Innovations
And...
Beautiful women can be bad for your health, according to scientists
But ugly women are good, right?
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24 comments:
Do you all realize we are in an unrecorded earth event.
The great oil from the " Deep Horizon"- I am amazed by that name-so telling. Freaky! This has never happened before, I imagine the earth has seen melted permafrost, and has had mass deforestation periods, but nothing like this has ever happened.
I am really curious how many people, other than the people of Collapsenet of course, know the details about Deep Horizon? I already know my friends back home in yuppy-ville Atlanta still think its a spill.
Oil gushing out, will it ever end? We all can agree that we fear this new technology will bring us the earth extinction level event. Oil will stop the currents in the oceans, Oxygen in the atmosphere will diminish. If not this instance then the next?
There are 30,000 oil wells in the gulf, and they only account for 30% of Americas energy use. The energy descent is undeniable; its being considered in the highest meetings.
Industry Leaders Seem to be Showing More Openness to Energy Descent Issues.
http://www.theoildrum.com/node/6419
British Petroleum sent the British Royal Navy to the Falkland Islands to secure the same kind of oil wells, with a mile of pipe reaching the sea bed. No regulations, no permission, and Argentina was told to @*@% Off.
When will we take consideration with our communication with natural systems? Or are we just waiting for the return of slavery? I feel guilty not able to count the monks on the mountains and the urban guerrilla gardeners. I am waiting for society to see the value in Permaculture. Very hard on me this perception. And I get discouraged to mobilize my own designs because of it. I really want to do something with at least 150 people at a minimum of 5-10k invested each. Where? The Georgia mountains. The budget out west and the water rights mean its time to relocate. I want to join artistic progressives and migrate. You get a green house, 5 acres, and share farm equipment.
I am progressing in the entertainment company, have a network of musicians that I want to perform events with. And I will have some of the best HD CDN equipment coming.
You need a video camera that has SDI out for future perfect internet HD live broadcasting.I really have all most of the equipment to start a theatrical Permaculture. With others it could get crazy fun. Its all coming with the new technology, Numetra. That is why net neutrality is so important and on the table. Pray we remain. Fighting the corporations is the greatest fight of our lives. Obama is not a socialist he is a corporatist.
I really want to test my friends back in Atlanta, upper class denial is crazy. I cant seem to get them to care. I beg them to be my experiment. Setting up permaculture demonstration suggestions are met with resistance. Life long friends who I love to this day. All you belligerent behaving southern morons with mega churches in your back yard ready-waiting to pounce on your collapse, please let me come down and film you during this great shift? That is what I want to produce.
When you follow truth to power and act civilized, the only weapon they have is silence.
I really do not want to see anyone end up in the lines of boot camps and soup kitchens from a dying synthetic system that will collapse. We as a nation are better than that.
I need a Permaculture state of emergency. But until then lets create a theme camp of artisans. Lets create the expedition. Beta
testers! Freaky!!!!!
Russell Berns
russell@ecosutra.com
www.ecosutra.com
"I imagine the earth has seen melted permafrost, and has had mass deforestation periods, but nothing like this has ever happened."
Oh, I don't know... Oil is made by earth's crust moving around, and compressing organic matter into hot spots, volcanoes, and what not. It had to have sprung a leak at least once in the last 500 million years, I would think. Maybe not as bad as this.
Ghost estates testify to Irish boom and bust
quote
Only a few years ago, developers feeding money into local government coffers were getting free rein to build row upon row of five-bedroom detached houses on the green outskirts of towns nobody had even thought of commuting from before. Banks were throwing money at members of the public who saw these houses either as an escape to a better lifestyle or an investment route to riches. Builders from eastern Europe were working overtime to create homes, the value of which was sometimes three times what it is now. As the slump set in, the immigrant workers went back home, the banks ceased lending on the scale that had fuelled the frenzy and the market disappeared. Property supply had become completely divorced from property demand.
unquote
Another bizarre symptom of the collapse…
Namaste
Here's a couple interesting links. The first one has to do with narcotics smuggling in Canada, and the second with our favorite country, Iran.
http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/crime/article/804134--international-crime-group-exposed-in-toronto?bn=1
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5iP_c47WRWDs-U5bRaYXA9xgrrmhwD9FG8EQ82
And, just because we've moved from volcanos to oil leaks, doesn't mean the former stops existing.
http://wwww.examiner.com/x-3122-Chicago-International-Travel-Examiner~y2010m5d3-Here-we-go-again-Iceland-volcano-eruption-forces-Ireland-airport-closures
I think this is a resource to keep checking, in case anyone's planning to fly to or from those areas.
http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/corporate/pressoffice/2010/volcano.html?WT.srch=1
ecosutra - I've come to the realization that most of man kind has lost the ability to understand even the simplest cause and effects scenario let alone one of the magnitude of what's happening in the Gulf.
People are simply totally unawares! What's worse is they've been lulled into thinking those that do see cause and effect are doomsdayers, lunatics or just plain out there.
The need to change has to be internalized before real change can happen. Unfortunately,when the sheeple of the world do wake up to reality of wide spread effects of this "leak", it will be WAAAYyy too late.
If the gusher was in a field say in North Dakota and was putting out the potential flow rate this one has, maybe people would understand the magnitute when the Missouri became a stream of oil filling up the Mississippi to the Gulf.
According to the latest Shape of Things to Come this is the first of three such events that may happen before November which will show governments and mankind are no match for Mother Nature and/or the Universe.
A Personal View of Permaculture.
We looked into Permaculture over thirty years ago and decided it was not for us. I have just been having another look at the books we bought at the time - Permaculture 1 & 2 by Bill Mollison, and I must say I find them as disjointed a read as I did then. Over the years I have been turned off even more from looking into the system by the very large number of people 'offering' very expensive design courses.
Now I am sure that many people have found the system to be of enormous help, but to promote it as the be all and end all of the future of food production is, I feel, very misleading.
There are many fine teachers of food growing and self-sufficiency who have written books which are not only practical but readable.
However, reading about food growing is only the beginning. Doing it is the great teacher. And doing it on your patch of ground, in your locality, with your specific soil, rainfall patterns, wildlife, altitude etc., etc.
Finding out what you can and cannot grow. We love Avocadoes but can only have them because they are imported from warmer states. It is too cold at our place to grow them. We cannot grow celery, it bolts in the short intense heat of our summers so we grow celeriac instead in the cooler months. We have had to learn what our land and climate will grow for us.
Books and courses will give you information and ideas, but nothing, nothing will be as useful as DOING it.
Permaculture is IMO simply another source of possible information. Unless of course you want to be part of a system that everyone in your group goes along with.
I imagine that could be a rewarding lifestyle. But PLEASE, not another 'one system fits all sizes'.
No, We Can't Have It All -
An Excerpt from 'Endgame, Vol. 1: The Problem of Civilization' by Derrick Jensen.
Brilliant.
Today's first article about the true magnitude of the oil leak is terrifying. Using a nuclear explosion to close up the hole when there is 10.000 times as much natural gas down there as oil is beyond insane. Think of the explosion that would cause. Biblical in proportion. I'm not too religious anymore, but my grandfather was a hell fire and brimstone preacher. He claimed that modern technology, especially TV, radio and the automobile were all the works of the devil. Perhaps he was right. Look where all of that has gotten us. I'm totally depressed. With the bee population in freefall and the oceans soon to die, it looks like it's soon to be curtains for us all.
Jenna: Sure seems like an awful lot of my posts don't get printed. I'm sorry if I don't always write up to your standards. I have a demanding job which requires reports and preparation in my free time in addition to trying to grow my own food and making "preparations". Sometimes I barely have time to skim all the articles you have posted. You must have a lot of time on your hands to come up with all these articles. I have a graduate degree but most days I just don't have the time to submit polished posts like others do. I thought that input from a cross section of the population was welcome here.
cj
i don't recall stopping any of your posts. maybe blogger did it? not everything gets through here.
Highly recommended:
5/4/10 - Denver Post - Al Lewis "America's housing market needs Mercy"
Summary: Sister Lillian Murphy, the CEO of Mercy Housing, has a fascinating perspective to relate to the author who interviews her about her tenant who was recently arrested for making threatening telephone calls to Nancy Pelosi.
http://www.denverpost.com/business/ci_15015998
"People are simply totally unawares! What's worse is they've been lulled into thinking those that do see cause and effect are doomsdayers, lunatics or just plain out there."
I'll drink to that! :-)
Many of us - in anticipation of possible Internet disruptions - have cited the need for "Internet alternatives." I suspect this issue is already on the CollapseNet agenda, but while we're waiting, I'd like to invite those who have the inclination, to consider obtaining an amateur radio ("Ham") license. It's not a foolproof or bug-free medium (and it it is subject to regulation, etc.), but it IS a redundant way to maintain contact with people you care about. There is no longer a (Morse) "Code" requirement; all you need to do is study some exam questions for a few hours, and take a written test. Not everyone has the time for this, but if you're sort of a techie, or have an interest in it, don't be reluctant to act. The ham community has a long tradition of passing "Traffic" in emergency situations, and the tools could be handy when other systems fail. (By the way, text can be transmitted, as well as voice.) More info available at:
www.arrl.org
Best to all!
Re-reading Derrick Jensen's article just now, I was reminded of another article I read a few years ago in one of my science mags. They were saying that it requires more total energy to manufacture a typical silicon photo-electric cell than it is likely to generate over it's useful lifetime. I don't know how accurate that assertion is, or if it still holds true today. It was just an interesting factoid I thought I'd throw out there.
Ecosutra: Nice to hear what you've been up to; it's understandable that you're frustrated with all the stymied plans. I'm a little north of your stomping grounds, but maybe we can collaborate on some media/outreach work in the future...
"Soggy": A big "YES!" to your suggestion to just "Do it." Experience is the ONLY way to find out what works in a particular locale. (And it's SPRING up here; time to get to it!) I've enjoyed your expertise; thanks for sharing.
CJ: Don't feel picked on; Blogger.com DOES swallow posts. I haven't had any disappear recently, but lost several of them a couple months ago -- never to be seen again.
And (finally)... Thanks, eyeballs, for insights that border on the poetic. Great stuff!
The movement in Permaculture is not a single plan for all. It is a design system depending on your climate and elements. No one village will look the same. Permaculture is evolving, with bio char, anaerobic digesting bio gas, solar thermal water boring systems seems to be the newest beta test.
But the food forest design is the heart and soul of Permaculture and swaling is the key element to save life. Its how you make bio char, its how you water harvest, its how you build sediment flows for fertilizers. We must begin loving swales as a surfers quest for swales.Permaculture design certification is important to the research institute because they need to get people understanding all the elements and how to connect them so that you can work 500 hours a year. There is so much more information that one will need to research inside of the Permaculture research institutes data bases. The Design course is for you to get the " music theory of the earth" so that you can understand as much as you need to know to get going without making to big a mistake. Start small. Build a bonsai permaculture project on your deck. Try to make water flow with a pump through multiple systems.So much to tell. To any off the grid sustainable person, I challenge you to admit that you will be able to apply more systems off of each other after you have earths music theory in you.
Elmo, not as bad as this? That is my point. Im praying Paul Stamets leads us with the mushrooms to inoculate the oil. Turn it into rich soil. Oh another innovation adopted inside the Permaculture movement. Fungal compost tea.
Why would anyone need to do that, when we got fossil fertilizers feeding the world with no soil. By the way did you know that the loss of soil is the #1 crisis in the Permaculture research institute?
sunmr- I fee the same way, the cause and effect circus... I wrote a verse lately that reflects that.
So many disasters make me feel at war and hardly any see my solutions.
Conditioned to receive deflections.
Were not even connecting the same perceptions.
re: "Beautiful women can be bad for your health, according to scientists"
Not news to my generation. Here are The Coasters with "Get an ugly girl to marry you" (Hit #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1963).
Lol.
Soggy: I think you have fell into the same trap many who read about PC fall into, without doing even the basic intro course. I had the same impression from literature until I did a weekend intro course with Graham Burnett.
I agree re the Mollison books. But Permaculture is NOT a system of food growing, it's a set of design tools wrapped up with some basic ethics, Earth care, People care, and fair shares.
One of the best analogies (and there are many definitions!) is that Permaculture is a wardrobe, sustainble building design, organic gardening, Local exchange trading systems (LETS) community building, a sustainable lifestyle etc. etc. are all coat hangers which fit within the wardrobe.
I also agree about the money making aspect you touched on, it remains a contentious issue within the PC scene IMO. There are many people within PC that will teach it for nothing, many more who are trying to do just that but have to meet overheads somehow too. I have never heard of anyone being turned down for a course because they couldn't afford it, there are also many stories about freeloaders who have taken advantage and failed to get any value from the courses because they did not put anything in.
Ecosutra has mentioned before on this blog how he is trying to put the full 72hour permaculture design course online for free! When he pulls it off, things may well move forward on a larger scale.
A better book is patrick whitefields The Earth Care Manual: A Permaculture Handbook for Britain and Other Temperate Countries it's much easier reading, especially if you're in a cool temperate zone.
Saying that, I do believe the PC design system can be applied anywhere in the world (as it is now) though we must take local knowledge into the design too (also a PC ethic) to find the best design for a particular climate zone.
Re: bolting celery: To understand what is possible with micro climates search for some videos about Sepp Holzer who grows semi tropical plants up a mountain in Sweden!
CJ: blogger software regularly eats my posts, save a local copy, if your post does not appear after Jenna updates, repost - it seems it's the only way to overcome the tedium of the system ;)
Jenna: Perhaps you're right about blogger being the culprit in my missing posts. I have to re-register with it every time I want to post a comment. Maybe there is something about my operating system it doesn't like.
I find it suspicious we no sooner have this oil leak than along comes attempted "terror" in NY city. Seems fishy to me. Someone could have put a smoke bomb in that SUV and the rest is creative writing. We have a whole range of detailed information just a few days after it occurred. Is this a diversion from what's happening in the gulf or yet another excuse to take away our civil liberties? Billions spent on enhanced airport security, yet this person still got on an airplane, while nuns and peace activists are on the no-fly list.
Dalex, thanks! I'll go for the ham radio course. I was sort of keeping that one on the back burner until someone told me my next move. Nice one.
cj, right on about New York. I thought exactly that, m'self.
The Gulf: A whole new spin on "Devil's Tears."
I think that cj and others have nailed it. I had been wondering why a failed car bomb attempt in NYC with a poorly-made bomb had been getting so much attention in the media. But it certainly serves as a good distraction from the seriousness of both the oil spill and the economy.
MIke,
Has the shit hit the fan yet? It feels like it has hit me square in the face. How many Black Swans will it take?
Aimlow Joe
http://www.aimlow.com
Warkin Equipments Pvt. Ltd. is a Manufacturers & Exporters of Oil Chillers, Oil Coolers, Air oil coolers & Water coolers in India.
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