IF Society broke down for any reason, War, Storm, Inserection, how would you prepare?

[tobee43]

David Brin in the novel Postman, posits a different reason for the ultimate collapse of society...it is a bit of a devil's advocate...sorry guys, you all ran into a huge sci-fi fan here :-)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Postman

get out of here...i have used david brin's example of the postman numerous times...LOL!!!!!! that is just got me stopped in my path that you should bring it up. actually, nope, it doesn't surprise me.


go rent the movie if someone hasn't seen it. i guess even huxley has it wrong? although i could go for a soma or two or three or ten to make it through some of these days!

[tobee43]

a friend of mine passed this to me, written by their friends Jane & Joe D. (i don't want to give their real names athough the first names are really real), and i think it's right on mark.

with everything being said, it is remarkable that we take note of the following:

The 26th amendment (granting the right to vote for 18 year-olds) took only 3 months & 8 days to be ratified! Why? Simple! The people demanded it. That was in 1971...before computers, before e-mail,before cell phones, etc.

Of the 27 amendments to the Constitution, seven (7) took 1 year orless to become the law of the land...all because of public pressure. what we should all do, and this writing is really coming from a friend of my friend, is, asking each addressee to forward this email to a minimum of twenty people on their address list; in turn ask each of those to do likewise.

In three days, most people in The United States of America will have the message. This is one idea that really should be passed around.

Congressional Reform Act of 2011

1. No Tenure / No Pension. A Congressman collects a salary while in office and receives no pay when they are out of office.

2. All Senate and House of Representatives members (past, present & future) will participate in Social Security. All funds in the Congressional retirement fund move to the Social Security system immediately. All future funds flow into the Social Security system, and all Congress men and women participate at the same level as the American people. Funds collected may not be usedfor any other purpose or programs.

3. Congress men and women can purchase their own retirement plan and will pay the same rates as all Americans do.

4. Congress will no longer vote themselves a pay raise. Congressional pay will be determined by the individual states they represent every two years with the raises limited to the lower of CPI or 3%. with no special adjustments.

5. Congress loses their current health care system and participates in the same health care system as the states they represent and the American people.

6. Congress will equally abide by all laws they impose on the American people. No provisions for special treatment will be allowed.

7. All contracts with past and present Congressmen are void effective 1/1/12. The American people did not make this contract with Congressmen. Congressmen made all these contracts for themselves. Serving in Congress is an honor, not a career. The Founding Fathers envisioned citizen legislators, so ours should serve their term(s),
then go home and back to work.

If each person contacts a minimum of twenty people then it will only take three days for most people (in the U.S. ) to receive the
message. Maybe it is time.

THIS IS HOW WE BEGIN TO FIX CONGRESS AND OUR COUNTRY.

[IamOld]

That may be an interesting scenario - unless this country deals with...the...ehem..."inherent contradictions of capitalism" your scenario is plausible.

I recall a video game for the PC from a few years ago that posits such a future...

I have long thought that the way our country is headed, things will end with a second civil war. As the Baby Boom generation dies off, and those of us who are "coming of age" see a country where rights and liberties are almost nonexistant, where decent jobs and meaningful opportunities are gone, and where the politicians in charge cater to multinational corporations rather than their own citizens, you can be sure that discontent will begin rising fast. When you add on the problems of crippling national debt and crippling student loan debt, the situation could get ugly fast.

What I predict will happen is an eventual collapse of the banking system, together with a massive stock market crash due to corporate mismanagement and the inability for companies to maintain growth in a nation with high unemployment and a large percentage of the population living in poverty. Even the government will not be able to "bail out" the affected institutions, due to the fact that it will be paying out too much in public assistance and entitlement benefits, spending too much on the military and on the huge incarcerated "underclass", with too little tax revenue on account of the high unemployment and underemployment. I think that there will probably be another civil war here--a class civil war, not a race civil war--and this will happen in my lifetime.

I have no idea how we would survive here in such a situation, especially if it lasts for a long time. Because of most peoples' greed and selfishness--focusing on "me", rather than "us"--I suspect there will be a lot of infighting, looting, and unnecessary violence. I remember seeing news reports of this in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, rather than people working together as a community to rebuild and take care of each other.

Fortunately, my wife is from Mexico and is still a citizen there, and she believes that I could get a job there in the field I am studying (computer science), so if necessary we could move there. Her dad, as well as both grandparents own large houses and would be happy to let us stay there while we save up for a home of our own.

[bcohen]

I have long thought that the way our country is headed, things will end with a second civil war. As the Baby Boom generation dies off, and those of us who are "coming of age" see a country where rights and liberties are almost nonexistant, where decent jobs and meaningful opportunities are gone, and where the politicians in charge cater to multinational corporations rather than their own citizens, you can be sure that discontent will begin rising fast. When you add on the problems of crippling national debt and crippling student loan debt, the situation could get ugly fast.

What I predict will happen is an eventual collapse of the banking system, together with a massive stock market crash due to corporate mismanagement and the inability for companies to maintain growth in a nation with high unemployment and a large percentage of the population living in poverty. Even the government will not be able to "bail out" the affected institutions, due to the fact that it will be paying out too much in public assistance and entitlement benefits, spending too much on the military and on the huge incarcerated "underclass", with too little tax revenue on account of the high unemployment and underemployment. I think that there will probably be another civil war here--a class civil war, not a race civil war--and this will happen in my lifetime.

I have no idea how we would survive here in such a situation, especially if it lasts for a long time. Because of most peoples' greed and selfishness--focusing on "me", rather than "us"--I suspect there will be a lot of infighting, looting, and unnecessary violence. I remember seeing news reports of this in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, rather than people working together as a community to rebuild and take care of each other.

Fortunately, my wife is from Mexico and is still a citizen there, and she believes that I could get a job there in the field I am studying (computer science), so if necessary we could move there. Her dad, as well as both grandparents own large houses and would be happy to let us stay there while we save up for a home of our own.

[IamOld]

David Brin in the novel Postman, posits a different reason for the ultimate collapse of society...it is a bit of a devil's advocate...sorry guys, you all ran into a huge sci-fi fan here :-)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Postman

[ValleYum]

Did anyone else on here read Pat Frank's book Alas Babylon?

From a review:

Though written almost 50 years ago, Frank's post-apocolyptic vision of what might result after the missiles are launched should still serve as a warning for 2008 and beyond. The Dark Ages are only the push of a button or fall of a civilization away.(

Things I learned from this book: Salt, canning jars, matches or the ability to make fire, seed to grow food, medical supplies, fishing gear, knives/whetstone, guns and ammo will be worth their weight in gold. So will the ability to have potable water.

My thoughts: Do I have a hand operated can opener? A kerosene lamp with kerosene to burn in it? Do I live in a climate where I will be able to grown produce yet be temperate enough to survive without commercially provided power? So much to think about and try to prepare for.

Awesome water filtration link, Frogger!

[Meatstick]

Others may "try" to take it by force. An attempt does not guarantee success.

It might not guarantee success if it's only one person, you can only fire so many bullets and then well....you know. Anyways I would think to survive total chaos a person would have to be as far away from civilization as you could possibly get. Living in a large city or even a small town would not be the answer.

Nice link for water filtration, thanks.

[Pandora]

You might as well buy a 9mm Glock pistol, fill the magazine with hollow point ammunition...

Ruger here, and while I'll refrain from putting it in my mouth / pulling the trigger - I can recommend some awesome HP ammo: Corbon DPx or Hornaday Critical Defense - Always good in my book! Now to just save up enough to get the .357, .38 snub nose and the monster .44

[Samhill]

you never know with all the police lay offs and the military being treated without the respect they so deserve, they may join in!

Seriously, you would think they would be the ones to start it all....

[frogger]

You might as well buy a 9mm Glock pistol, fill the magazine with hollow point ammunition, put it in your mouth, and pull the trigger.

You can go ahead without me.

[Samhill]

You might as well buy a 9mm Glock pistol, fill the magazine with hollow point ammunition, put it in your mouth, and pull the trigger.

I have a little more fight in me than that.

[kornellred]

Natural disasters are inevitable. Always have been, and always will be. You do the best you can to survive.

But all of the other stuff about fiscal defaults, currency devaluations, economic chaos and civil disobedience is just a bunch of bullshit, quite frankly. It will never get that bad for society as a whole. If it does, we are finished. You might as well buy a 9mm Glock pistol, fill the magazine with hollow point ammunition, put it in your mouth, and pull the trigger.

[tobee43]

The only way it could ever be non violent, is if the police and military actually upheld their oath to defend the constitution and the people and sided with the people.

i don't think we can count on that any longer, unfortunately.

however, you never know with all the police lay offs and the military being treated without the respect they so deserve, they may join in!

[Samhill]

it needs to hit hard and fast and still non violent.

The only way it could ever be non violent, is if the police and military actually upheld their oath to defend the constitution and the people and sided with the people.

[tobee43]

i even remember in college the protests against the Vietnam war.

we were a collective group of non-violent protests against the government. it started in san fran bay area, when i was at berkeley ...but let me tell you, it got crazy when one was getting tear gassed on the way to class. (i know i'm aging myself, but many people didn't live it). it was an exciting time. i still feel we changed the face of this country just by the shear numbers and yells of change chanted daily unti they were heard.

that movement took hold and look what happened at kent state...there were many dead...so it can get ugly.

we need to organize once again, but now it needs to hit hard and fast and still non violent. we have gotten complacent, lazy, and passive. things are going to have to change if we are to move forward.