A spokesman for the Center for Security Policy says that the threat of Electro Magnetic Pulse (EMP) is real. With Iran developing multi-stage Space Launch Vehicles (SLV) the possibility of such an attack will become even more probable than ever before:

From WND:

And experts forecast if such an attack were a success, it effectively could throw the U.S. back into an age of agriculture.

“Within a year of that attack, nine out of 10 Americans would be dead, because we can’t support a population of the present size in urban centers and the like without electricity,” said Frank Gaffney, president of the Center for Security Policy. “And that is exactly what I believe the Iranians are working towards.”

A recent launch of an SLV by Iran has sparked renewed concern of an attack that could send an electromagnetic pulse powerful enough to wipe out computer controls for systems on which society has come to rely, officials say.

As the G2 Bulletin reported last week, Ronald Burgess, director of the U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency, revealed that Iran successfully launched a multi-stage SLV, the Simorgh. The device ultimately could be equipped with a nuclear bomb, which the U.S. intelligence community assesses Iran is developing.

Officials also report Iran has been testing detonation of its nuclear-capable missiles by remote control while still in high-altitude flight. The development makes a potential EMP attack on the U.S. more probable.

An enemy of the United States, be it Iran, North Korea or a terrorist organization, does not need to detonate a nuclear weapon on the ground.We believe this is the only reason why Iran would be testing SLV’s with in-flight detonations. With this kind of weapon, Iran (or anyone else) would simply need to strike first. Once the weapon goes off, it would be difficult to determine from where it came and to respond appropriately, as all forms of traditional communication would be wiped out.

A small-scale, five to ten kiloton weapon detonated 200 miles above Nebraska, or a few weapons detonated 50 miles or so above the eastern, western and central United States would do the job.

The effects would be nothing short of disastrous – literally the end of the world as we know it.

All unprotected and unhardened electrical devices would be left useless.

This means that everything, from the refrigerator in your kitchen to the semi-trucks that carry food across the country, would be non-functioning.

If an enemy of the USA wants to bring America to its knees without rendering the land completely useless, they could do so with an EMP weapon.

We’ve always believed that a mainland invasion of the United Stated would be difficult, if not impossible. But, if an EMP weapon were to be used, our country could effectively be invaded within a matter of months, as most of the population would be wiped out and the government and military infrastructures in disarray.

We consider EMP as one of the most significant threats out there. The recovery period from a collapse of this magnitude would be counted in decades, not years, thus, for those who are “prepping” for a worst-case scenario, consider long term sustainability planning when planning for an EMP SHTF scenario.

Recommended Research:

One Second After by William Forstchen

Jericho TV Series (Available on iTunes)

Patriots by James Wesley Rawles

This article has been generously contributed by Mac Slavo from SHTFplan

Since March 2009, the stocks and commodities have soared – and investors have been thrilled.

While many attribute this rise in valuations to economic recovery, some believe that rising costs are a direct result of the monetary expansion by the Federal Reserve, resulting in price inflation on certain goods, namely those assets such as commodities, which are not considered debt-based (i.e. cars, houses).

The Labor Department reports that prices in the month of March rose across the board:

There was little sign of budding inflation in the report. Excluding volatile food and energy costs, wholesale prices rose by 0.1 percent, matching analysts’ expectations.

…

Food prices jumped by 2.4 percent in March, the most since January 1984. Vegetable prices soared by more than 49 percent, the most in 15 years. A cold snap wiped out much of Florida’s tomato and other vegetable crops at the beginning of this year.

Gasoline prices rose 2.1 percent, the department said, the fifth rise in six months.

In the past year, wholesale prices are up 6 percent, with much of that increase driven by higher oil and other commodity prices. But the core index, which excludes food and energy, rose only 0.9 percent.

…

“Today’s report … does not bring any renewed concerns about inflation in the immediate future,” Dan Greenhaus, chief economic strategist at Miller Tabak, wrote in a report to clients.

Low levels of inflation also allow the Federal Reserve to hold down interest rates. The Fed has kept the short-term interest rate it controls at a record low of near zero in an effort to boost the economy.

The core index is up only 0.9% over the last twelve months, but this does not take into account the most important consumption goods in America, gas and food. While core index numbers may be touted as a victory against inflation, it is clear that Americans are spending more precisely where it hurts the most.

If this trend were to continue, and the cost of food were to rise an average of 2.4% per month for the next twelve months, here is how it might look a year from now at the grocery store when purchasing exactly the same items on your shopping list:

Month 1          $100.00

Month 2          $102.40

Month 3          $104.85

Month 6          $112.56

Month 9          $118.09

Month 12        $126.79

Thus, one year from now you’ll be paying $126.79 for the same groceries that cost you $100 today, a 26% increase in food prices over the course of a single year – and that’s with inflation “under control.”

Is what we are seeing play out in the market place the biflation we’ve discussed previously?

From Wikipedia:

The term was first introduced by Dr. F. Osborne Brown, a Senior Financial Analyst for the Phoenix Investment Group.[2] During Biflation, there’s a rise in the price of commodity/earnings-based assets (inflation) and a simultaneous fall in the price of debt-based assets (deflation).

It is still difficult to predict exactly which way we will go from here – deflation or inflation. As the referenced article pointed out that food and energy costs are volatile, and they will follow the broader commodities markets. If, for example, a global stock market correction or crash were to take hold, then chances are that energy prices would drop as they did in 2008, unless that global crash is triggered by military action in or around oil producing nations.

Food would also follow the commodity pendulum, and as we saw in 2008, agricultural investments around the world completely collapsed.

If commodities remain tied inversely to the US dollar on the broader trend line, then we may continue to experience price increases as stock prices rise, and as such, if stocks drop significantly, so too should food costs.

There is, of course, the other possibility that global investors will lose confidence in the dollar, and commodities like food, energy, base metals and precious metals will decouple from stock markets and take a completely different trajectory.

The timing of such a decoupling event is difficult to predict, but our view has been that a decoupling in commodities will be apparent in the near future, especially if the US Dollar begins to disintegrate and lose purchasing power.

While the volatility in food and energy costs may swing prices back and forth on a short-term trend, the longer term trend, we believe, is likely to be one of continued price hikes resulting from an eventual dollar devaluation or US debt crisis.

The trend going forward during this economic depression is getting back to basics. We often discuss ‘prepping’ as a way to protect your family in the event of an unforeseen catastrophe (natural or man-made). Recently, we’ve seen more financial analysts and advisers recommend shifting from traditional investments like stocks, bonds, CD’s and money market accounts, to tangible assets that will gain value regardless of what stock and bond markets do.

Of course, we’re not saying you should go out and spend your entire 401k retirement account on 5 gallon buckets of rice, but diversifying into hard assets on a variety of levels could be a great investment. As the US Dollar continues its decline over the coming years, the price of essential consumer goods is likely to rise. Certain goods, however, like real estate, cars and anything that is driven primarily by credit expansion may experience a deflationary impact in real dollar terms, while others, like food and energy may see explosive price increases.

Paul Mladjenovic of SuperMoneyLinks.com discusses 3 Things Everyone Needs to Do with Money in 2010:

“OUR GOVERNMENT CAN NOT SPEND OUR COUNTRY INTO TRLLIONS OF DOLLARS OF DEBT WITHOUT CONSEQUENCE.

I am working on my next set of forecasts and seminars but before they are out, I want everyone (and I mean EVERYONE) to consider 3 simple things to gain greater financial peace of mind:

-Diversify away from paper assets.

-Accumulate essentials.

-Re-focus your portfolio with emphasis on “human need”.

[Read the full, expanded article]

In Buy Commodities at Today’s Lower Prices, Consume at Tomorrow’s Higher Prices we offered some ideas about how to be a ‘prepper’ and ‘investor’ simultaneously.

“If you are a prepper, for example, who is already stocking essentials foods and goods, you’re way ahead of the game. As commodity prices continue to rise for a variety of reasons, your “investment” is paying off in real terms. Buy 10 pounds of rice today for $10, and when that same bag of rice goes to $20 a year or two from now, you can say you earned a 100% return on your investment! And the great thing about your investment, is you don’t have any counter party risk, for the most part, meaning that you own the physical good and it is in your possession — you take delivery at any time!”

For those interested in investing some of their wealth into real, tangible assets, consider the following as food for thought:

• Precious metals
  Though gold and silver are no longer considered money by most “mainstream” economists, the fact is that central banks in China, India and Russia have been continuing to stockpile precious metals over the last decade, and they will likely continue to do so going forward. Why? Because as all or most of the paper currencies around the globe are debased, gold and silver will become the de facto monetary unit against which other currencies are valued. As Dr. Marc Faber has said on several occasions, “Own gold and become your own central bank.” Many contrarian financial advisers who lean towards the Austrian school of economics recommend allocating 10% to 20% of your current investment/retirement portfolio to gold. If you are banking on having that money when you retire, consider speaking within your financial adviser about purchasing precious metals in the form of mining companies or ETFs. If possible, a portion of your holdings should be in physical bullion like bars and coins, which will provide added security as you will have no counter party risk because you have it in your possession.
• Food
  As the US Dollar loses value and other countries become hesitant about fund our trillion dollar debts, the cost of food will continue to rise. Combine the dollar’s monetary issues with the fact the many farmers around the world are unable to gain access to loans to continue or expand operations, and you have the potential for prices increases no just because of dollar debasement, but supply problems. The other threat for food is that we may very well experience a perfect storm event, such as that experienced in the dust bowl of the 1930’s, meaning that heavy rains, or heat or cold may affect agricultural output, further straining supplies and pushing prices higher. Foods like rice, legumes, pastas, wheat, oats, and canned goods could be purchased today and stored, in some cases, for up to five years or longer. Consider the price increases that can happen in these food stuffs over the next five years and this investment may see significant gains. And again, you eliminate counter-party risk because you are holding the tangible assets yourself. (The following video shows how The Survival Mom has dedicated a room in her home for just this purpose)
• Sustainable Living
  Well known trend forecaster Gerald Celente has suggested that one of the mega-trends of this decade will be living on less and becoming more self sustaining. Individuality will return to America, and a push to distance oneself from the “grid” will take off for a variety of reasons. Rising food and energy costs are likely to be two of the major catalysts for this trend. How can you invest for yourself? First, consider investing your time and money into skills development like gardening, farming, sewing, woodworking, or hunting, as these skills can certainly be an investment that will pay off in the future. While it may not be feasible for most to become farmers in terms of commercial enterprise, it can be accomplished on a personal level by those who have a bit of desire and choose to expand their skills base. Urban gardens are already popping up all over America as the micro-farming trend continues to gain acceptance. Even in the suburbs, on a fifth of an acre of land, those with the ability to think outside the office cube can grow enough food to support their entire family for a year.

  For those concerned with rising energy costs, your options are basically limited to investing in energy stocks and ETFs, or, investing in yourself and create your own supply of energy. Learning how to develop and implement a power grid in the comfort of your own home will not only give you the skills to earn a living in the future, but to provide nearly unlimited energy for your household through use of solar, wind and hydro power. Investments into alternative energies for your home may seem costly, but not if you consider the rising cost of your electric and gas bills over the next couple of decades. Sustainable living investments are not one-off investments, say, like storing a bucket of beans, but rather, pay dividends forever.

• Clothing/Footwear
  Though not often considered as investments, extra clothing, especially things like socks, underwear, house shirts, shoes, sweat shirts and sweat pants, will likely move up in price as well. While adults may be able to stretch their close for several years without replenishing their closets, children are a whole different story. If you’ve got kids, this is one investment that can really pay off. Purchasing graduating sizes of clothing for your kids with a time horizon of 3 – 5 years can really save you money down the road. It is true that in America today, these items are readily available and imagining a scenario where these items will not be on store shelves is hard to do. But consider the East Block circa 1985, and you’ll have a different perspective. Because of isolationist policies, closed currency and price controls, these items were very difficult to come by. If the US experiences a currency crisis, it will have an immediate and significant impact on the USA’s ability to acquire goods from manufacturers around the world, as the price for goods will be difficult to determine because of the potential for massive currency fluctuations. If not for yourself, consider stocking some reserve clothing for your kids.
• Hard Assets in General
  Recently, President Chavez of Venezuela devalued the Bolivar, Venezuela’s currency, and within a few hours residents of the country flocked to stores to spend any physical cash they had on hand or in their bank accounts. When a currency is devalued, either over night or over a period of months and years, the purchasing power is destroyed. What you could buy today for $50 will cost $100 later. We’re not suggesting you spend all of the cash you have, but take into consideration some of the things you regularly spend money on daily, monthly or yearly. Can you purchase those items now and save them for later use? If so, wouldn’t you rather pay 10% or 20% or even 40% less now than three years from now?

It is important to be prudent with where one might invest their money, as it is impossible to say for certain that an inflationary environment is in our future, and which goods will be affected by increased prices. But all signs point to an eventual devaluation, officially or unofficially, of the US dollar. While the aforementioned “investments” are not traditionally accepted and your financial adviser might think you’ve gone off the deep end, they are worth considering and provide you with another option for protecting your wealth.

This article has been contributed by Mac Slavo of SHTF Plan.

I often wonder if we’ll see a day when cyclists will outnumber motorists.

My primary transportation is a bike. I don’t have a car because the expense is not worth it. With the price of gasoline continually rising and state of oil making everything more expensive, maybe more people will make this same choice.

No one wants this scenario to occur, but it’s worth speculation: what should you consider if you’ve gone carless? This is a short guide on what you need to know if you’re looking to use a bicycle as an alternate or primary form of transportation for everyday riding.

Question 1: What kind of bike is best for me?

That depends!

If you’re interested in getting somewhere fast you need a bike with a lightweight frame, like a road bike. The drawback of a road bike is that gravel and potholes can literally throw you off course.

If you’re facing a lot of potholes, broken glass, and rough riding, you’ll need a more durable bike. An all-terrain or mountain bike with thick, knobby tires, shock-absorbing suspension, and a sturdy frame might work. The downside of an all-terrain bike is that its bulk makes riding on the street pretty slow.

My bike is a hybrid. It has features of both road bikes and mountain bikes making it a great choice for everyday transportation. Like mountain bikes, hybrids’ handlebars are flat allowing for a more upright riding posture. But hybrid bikes have lighter frames and components than mountain bikes and feature a larger wheel rim for added speed. However the tires are wider than a road bike’s tires, making it easier to ride along uneven surfaces.

There are several models within the hybrid category:

• Comfort bikes: In my opinion, comfort bikes’ frames tend to be heavier than I like, but they are very easy to ride.
• Cross bikes are modeled after road bike frames and wheel sizes with slightly wider tires to handle road hazards. I own a cross bike.
• Commuter bikes are similar to cross bikes, but have attachments for racks and baskets.
• City bikes include both a light frame and thicker tires – better for bulldozing over hazards.

From my experience with hybrids, the drawback of Commuters and Cross is that the tires are fairly smooth and narrow, which is good for speed and longer distances, but not ideal for gravel, potholes, or ice.

Any hybrid is great for everyday biking, but each person should make a decision based on road conditions, weather patterns, as well as one’s physical ability to bike. For less experienced bikers, Comfort Bikes and City Bikes are fine choices.

Because buying a bicycle is ultimately a matter of personal preference, this bike-buying guide can further help you see what to look for when test-riding a new bike.

Question 2 : Is it possible to get around only with a bike?

It is, but doing so entails the following considerations.

For carrying groceries and other items you’ll need to install racks and baskets on the bicycle. This can be as simple as bunjee-cording a milk crate onto a rack, but there are also many types of racks, baskets, and panniers commercially available. You’d be surprised by how much you can carry.

For larger items it’s not so easy. Bike trailers do exist. Trailers can be purchased commercially, and you can also make your own. This link includes instructions on how to build your own bike trailer using the metal from a discarded bike frame. (Note: I haven’t tried this myself, but at least we know it’s possible.)

For riding at night, you do need to install lights. Bikes come with reflectors, but those aren’t good enough. It’s best to have a lamp attached to your front handlebars and a red lamp attached to the rear of the bike.

Finally, cycling means that you will be exposed to weather. Dress accordingly. While I dislike spending a lot of money, technical gear from a bike shop or online bike catalog is really nice to have for cold weather. Lightweight, wind resistant material keeps you warm and allows you to maneuver the bike safely. For example, it’s impossible to glance over your shoulder to check for cars if you’re wearing a coat with a huge hood.

Question 3: How can I take care of the bike?

Each new bike comes with a manual that includes instructions on how to perform basic maintenance. Use this manual to become familiar with how your bike works. Do you know how to remove the front and rear wheels? Do you know how to adjust the seat and handlebars? Do you know how to patch an inner tube?

Bare bones maintenance includes keeping the bike clean, the chain well-oiled, and the tires full of air.

The essential bike emergency kit would include a frame pump, a patch kit, tire levers, a spare inner tube, and a set of Allen wrenches. In addition, you need a floor pump with a pressure gauge to keep the tires inflated to the proper level.

Owning a bike means getting to know its quirks and treating them when necessary. This website offers a Bike Tune Up and Bike Repair Guide that can help diagnose and treat problems and teach you how to perform a do it yourself tuneup.

While there’s a lot to learn about bikes, relying on your own pedal power and performing your own maintenance is extremely rewarding. That’s why I didn’t wait for a worst case scenario to get into bikes. Cycling is great exercise, it saves a lot of money and energy, and you get the best parking places. Bicycling is also a wonderful way to spend time with your family and teach kids about joy of self-propelled transport. Let’s ride!

Lauren is a blogger for the website www.pathacross.com, which is dedicated to sharing information and experiences on becoming more self reliant. Raised in a family of cyclists, Lauren considers biking a powerful expression of self reliance and a crucial survival skill.

WELL-FED NEIGHBOR ALLIANCE FOOD POLICY COUNCIL Opening Remarks
NOVEMBER 16th, 2009 ~ SPRINGFIELD MISSOURI
By Galen Chadwick

Good evening, friends and neighbors. Eating in this, our city’s newest restaurant (the Gastropub), fulfills a long standing desire of mine. The pub’s very existence shows that public demand for a sustainable future has found expression at the commercial level, and this is very good news for all of us. I am amazed at tonight’s gathering of 75 civic, social, and administrative leaders. Many of you have long championed a vision of a sustainable Springfield. This restaurant is the best answer to the recurring question “Why is relocalizing our food such a big deal?”

Well, consider the young college student who recently saw the movie, FOOD INC. He said, “I can’t support the violence that farmers do to the animals. That’s why, from now on, I’m not buying my meat from the Farmers’ markets, but at the grocery stores . . . where they make it.”

If this was an isolated comment, it would be funnier. The bad news is that we hear variants of this theme often. People really believe that milk “is made in the store,” or the produce, or eggs, or the cereal. The disconnect is so astonishing, the numbers involved so large, that one is left struggling for traction like a dog on roller skates.

You can imagine this scenario: three days after the trucks stop rolling, a thought slowly stirs in the minds of millions of hapless Missourians, one sixth of whom exist in the fog of Federal Food Supplements and handouts. Ultimately, this thought will begin to take the shape of a small bubble, which finally struggles to surface: “I can’t feed myself, and  nobody else can either!” No doubt a long silence will follow this epiphany, both individually and collectively. The next thought will be: “Nobody had a “Plan “B.” Ask not for whom the bell tolls . . .etc.

The lesson of history is stark: whom ever controls our food controls our destiny. Because we have lost control of our local and regional food base, the coming fight is not going to be framed by agricultural efficiencies, or government price policies, but the issue of basic survival. The top-down paradigm has failed us, and a grassroots, all-volunteer citizen’s drive to restore local food and jobs has begun. Why? Not one county in Missouri can feed its own people, much less the teeming millions in urban centers.

People are organizing around a simple demand: our food and our jobs can and must be returned. They must be returned as fast as possible. That’s it. A simple, unadorned idea, yes. And we, “the people,” leave it up to y’all in positions of governmental and academic authority to work out the details. But how? How are you actually supposed to do this?

Public education is vital, no doubt. It is our compelling need. But an abyssal gap exists between a vision and roadmap to authentic sustainability, and the dogged inertia of an uninformed public. This begs harsh questions about the effectiveness of our institutions. Held to this angle, tonight’s gathering is a tacit admission that certain limits to political authority have been reached. Those of you in high profile leadership positions know these limitations far better than most. Our only hope for mobilizing a societal and political embrace of regional sustainability depends upon creating autonomous, participatory, and pluralistic solutions, such as a Springfield Food Policy Council.

But longterm success, I think, will be driven by psychological answers far more than socio-political ones. The fact is that you, our leaders of commerce, education and governance are wedded to the status quo. You can neither predicate an awakening in consciousness nor craft solutions for problems larger than our institutions themselves. Our perpetual growth, cheap oil economic paradigm, wrought upon this finite and fragile planet, offers no way out. But finding a way out is the top item on your job description.

Broadly speaking, we are here tonight because the Well-Fed neighbor Alliance has trumpeted the notion that we can longer ignore, hide, or reverse this city’s decline towards a fearsome collective tipping point. Namely, this is the last moment, the last possible chance, for an entire society to relearn how to feed itself. The subtext is, a whole lot of us better begin learning how, and fast. And people respond. The 1,000 gardens project will soon become ten thousand gardens for a very good reason.

The last generation that can actually feed itself, and not with overseas slaves, cheap oil, and industrial mono cropping are now in their 80’s and 90’s. The last people with any inkling how to survive, and feed the rest of us, are slip-sliding away. Going with them: control of our mutual destiny. To lose the capacity for food self-sufficiency is to lose the only true commonwealth that the common man has ever had.   The truth? We’ve so lost track of what is essential to our lives that freedom itself is now on the line. Food sovereignty means, “We, the people, have the inalienable and God-given right to own, grow and trade our own food under no other authority than what we ourselves see fit.”

Simply put, the question “Why a Food Policy Council?” comes within a larger context, comes with an impetus to recognize and name a loss of culture and identity so great we cannot speak to it. We have become helpless. So the first job for our leaders and civic role models, I think, is honesty: Restore historical memory to the public, champion the  greatness of Missouri’s Golden Age of Agriculture. Many steps are needed to restore the trust, common identity, and social capital necessary to lead through uncertain times.

Bottom line: we’ll not enjoy a resilient and diverse economy until we relocalize our food base and again make things of value. We will not do that unless and until we have a forum for all parties to come to the table as equals. This is the greater value of this Food Policy Council: it offers a template from which other seemingly intractable local issues, such as Land Use Planning, can find citizen based remedy and solution.

At some point, we stopped appreciating our farmer patriots. The real worth of the landsman stopped mattering to us. Everything else became more important, more valuable than food. We boast that we spend only 10% of our money on food. Yes, and look at the result! That we no longer know why, where or how our food comes to us is compound ignorance gone to seed. No one says out loud, “I’ll buy apples picked by prison slaves in China, or tomatoes picked by barefoot and hungry kids in Mexico before I will pay one dollar more to my neighbor down the lane” but that’s what we do. That’s what box stores are for. People have been programmed to think and act this way. Our ignorance is pervasive, scalar, and institutionalized. Again, we are in deep, deep trouble.

The WFNA is committed to a vision of bioregional sustainability and food self-sufficiency. There is no downside to restoring food and jobs to our community. That is why the Alliance represents a broad spectrum of citizens, why we look like America. We are growing explosively because we advance a psychological perspective that leads to solutions, rather than a socio-political model that perpetuates division as principle.

Our motto says it all: “Your best defense against hard times is a well-fed neighbor.” Restoration spreads best by its own grassroots demonstration; the new-found interest in feeding ourselves is coming from inside the offices, and from over the fences: “How may I empower you, my neighbor, to create a future we can all embrace? When we hear this question passing along the streets, your job of leadership is well and truly done.

The Great Belief Divide, as we call it, is not between left and right, progressive or conservative mindsets. Instead, is is all about resolving two competing visions of the future, and about who controls the institutional language and structures upon which these visions logically rest.

What are those competing visions and how do we bridge them to create a sustainable Ozarks? Well, getting folks to link arms is what it is all about, and creating the Springfield Food Policy Council is an elegant place to start. But given the limits of time this evening, I suggest that discussions aimed at creating grassroots support for a sustainable city would best be held over chips and fondue down here at the Gastropub. Maybe I’ll see you around and, before the snow flies, we can talk about strategies for sustainability through transpersonal awakening. Thank you so much for coming.

This article has been submitted by Galen Chadwick, the regional coordinator for the WFNA (www.wellfedneighbor.com). Mr. Chadwick founded a grassroots, agrarian restoration movement now spreading through 27 counties, and larger cities,in SW Missouri. The Well-Fed Neighbor Farms’ Coop, a producer owned enterprise, is being formed. Agreements are in place to begin supplying several supermarkets with loccally grown produce, meat, dairy, eggs and value-added products. Knowledge of the WFNA urban programs, including the 1,000 gardens project, has spread far and wide outside the state.

Visit the Well Fed Neighbor Homepage…

Watch Videos at the Well Fed Neighbor Channel…

In an article published on Ready Nutrition titled, Is This The End of Microfarms?, I addressed  my concerns on HR bill 875 or The FDA Food Safety Modernization Act .   This bill would literally change the procedures and ways of our farms as well as our ideals about the American dream as we know it.   

HR bill 875 will:

 ”protect the public health by preventing food-borne illness, ensuring the safety of food, improving research on contaminants leading to food-borne illness, and improving security of food from international contamination, and for other purposes.” 

If passed, this would give government agencies the power to tell the American public what they should eat, how they should care for produce and care for livestock.  The facility owners will have no say in these matters.  The government has made the decisions for them (as they like to do).  They must adhere to guidelines or else there will be hell to pay.  According to the website Rogue Government,

“ The governement even plans to set up a Food Safety Administration to authorize this agency to integrate state and local agencies as fully as possible into national food safety efforts by forcing them to enforce federal food safety regulations.   This section completely ignores the Tenth Amendment of the Constitution.”   

At a time when businesses and consumers are already struggling, the price tag for this new agency will be in the billions.  The L.A. Times says that the cost of reforms in the House bill is estimated at $3.7 billion over five years, with $1.4 billion of that to come from a $500-per-facility fee on food makers.

Voter support for this bill was at an overwhelming 90% according to a current voting poll from L.A. Times.  The article states,

“There’s broad public support. It would be a quick win for both parties,” said Erik Olson, director of chemical and food safety programs in Pew’s Health & Human Services Policy program. “This is a rare situation where the industry is shoulder to shoulder with consumers.” 

 The bill was slated for hearing in Congress today.  It is nice to see that Congress has enough time on their hands to overhaul a health care system and destroy our ways of life as we know it.  Although, I should not be surprised, they passed the “Bail Outs” even though the citizens of this country adamantly opposed it.  Interestingly, L.A. Times made no mention of the actual name of the bill or the effects and implications this bill would have on small farms and ranches as we know it.  That’s the kind of reporting we are used to.  It’s just another half hearted attempt at delivering what they think we should know about.  As far as the media is concerned,  we are on a “need to know” basis.

Do not get me wrong, I agree with finding vulnerabilities in our food sources and combating contaminants to improve the quality of food we eat.  However, it is the “fine print” and vagueness of this bill that is concerning.    According to Campaign For Liberty,

“It will affect anyone who produces food even if they do not sell but only consume it.  It will literally put all independent farmers and food producers out of business due to the huge amounts of money it will take to conform to factory farming methods.  If people choose to farm without industry standards such as chemical pesticides and fertilizers they will be subject to a variety of harassment from this completely new agency that has never before existed.  That’s right, a whole new government agency is being created just to police food, for our own protection of course.”   

I ask you – what is to stop the government from defining a small home garden as a food facility?  Because of the vagueness of this bill, it is not only the micro farmers that are affected by this.  Anyone who has a garden, or shares their produce with neighbors or even owns a local restaurant that supports local farmers and buys their produce could be affected.   We could all be affected and pay the price dearly for not speaking up.  . Many say that this bill is unconstitutional in that state rights will be stripped away.  If passed, the state cannot go in and take care of the problem.  It is a federal issue, thus will have federal repercussions.

“This Is a Vehicle For The Large Corporations Of Industrial Agriculture.”

Who is pushing for this bill to be passed?  Some feel this bill is quietly being pushed by big agribusinesses, herbicides and pesticide companies who want to take out the little guy (organic farmers, micro farmers, and ranches) as opponents.  Save those too big to fail. 

Does this sound familiar?

If this pattern of accomodating corporate interests at the expense of small famers persists, then we could eventually expect something similar to what happened in Russia with Stalin.  Our right to choose what type of food we put into our bodies is on the voting block.  Our food sources will be controlled by the government.  They will tell us how we should grow our food, when we should harvest our food and if we resist we face massive fines, jail time or possibly our land could be confiscated.  They know that if they control the food source, they control the people.  Welcome to the New America.

For More Information On This Subject: 

http://www.roguegovernment.com/HR_875:_A_Bill_That_Would_Regulate_The_Small_Family_Farm_Out_Of_Business/14783/0/13/13/Y/M.html

http://www.ftcldf.org/index.html

 http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-food-safety22-2009oct22,0,514104.story

http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=h111-875

 My Reality Check

Every morning I sit in front of my computer and start reading about what is going on in the country and just like the headlines that you read, it’s all about how bad everything is right now.  I am affectionately calling it my “Morning Cup of Anxiety.”  My husband chimes back and calls it, “The Morning Cup of Reality.”  How right he is.  I have used Denial and Anxiety as a buffer to wish the problem away.  I didn’t want to admit it.  I just tell myself, “It’s anxiety and everything will be fine.”  But  when my husband uses the word reality.  Wow… that word has some muscle power.  I can’t use denial and anxiety in conjunction with that word.  Anxiety is often defined as a fear of impending doom. Reality means the problems are really real and present.  They are not going away.  I realize that now.  How do I handle that?

 Now that I admit it to myself, I am apologizing to you all.  I played a part in this.  I suppose we all did.  I have come to a startling realization… I was a fed a line of crap that I believed and now I have a problem.

  We are Addicted to Consumerism

 Our spending has gone out of control.  We are constantly fed pictures of rich socialites and artists in the best clothes.  We want the things that they have.  The term, “shop therapy” is widely used now.  We, as Americans have a Consumption Addiction.  It’s a problem that each of us needs to address.  Peter Schiff asks, “If you bring booze to a party, do you not expect an alcholoic to drink?”

 Lax government policies, with greedy banking interest at their core, have pushed free money [in the form of credit] on Americans for over 30 years.  Money is a very, very cheap drug.  The drug dealers know that America is hooked, and rather than seeking treatment, they push even harder.  The fact is we must take personal responsibility for this.  We can’t ignore it like a big white elephant.  The world is being affected by the mistakes, lies and denial that our politicians and citizenry engage in.  It’s time to sit yourself down and say, we have a problem.  It’s time to get help.  This is our reality. 

 And, we can go on reading Perez Hilton, watching tonight’s newest reality show premier, and wanting to buy all the current fashions that Hollywood stars are wearing.  The money bubble has popped.  We don’t have any more money.  This country is broke.  Read the previous sentence again.

 Our federal, state and local governments have spent all of the riches this country has produced in the last 200 years and now they’re borrowing from our future with collateralized loans. And, the collateral is YOU.

 An Apology To Every Citizen In This Country

 I admit that I am hooked on buying things.  I love the rush it gives me.  I love the way something new looks in my home or seeing a new dress on my daughter.  I was approved for credit cards before I was mature enough to handle the responsibility.  And, at the time I didn’t care.  I wanted free money.  At one point, I was in so much debt that I couldn’t even pay the bills.  I crippled myself financially.  I bought into the “free money” drug and got high every chance I got!  We should all realize now that we have been crippling ourselves for a short lived fix.  Now that the economy is basically on life support I have a duty to myself to stop my addiction and prepare for the inevitable.  I am taking full responsibility for my part in this. 

By this admission, I have decided to begin this website to help myself and my fellow American in preparing for what is to come.  And for the part that I have caused in the crippling of my beautiful nation, I apologize profoundly.  It breaks my heart to think that millions of us will be dealing with hard situations and having to struggle to buy food and keep shelters over our heads.  As Americans I know we will get through this, but not without some hard times ahead.  But I will take comfort in these words, “Dont count your problems.  Count your blessings.”   We will get through it with faith.  Best of luck to you all.  I’m praying for my country and my fellow citizens.