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Catastrophic Survival
By Richard A. Fleetwood - May 2001
(below is a posting I made long ago to the MISC.SURVIVAL newsgroup)
In article <34121FED.4F80@cant.ed<, http://www.dejanews.com/[ST_rn=qs]/profile.xp?author=hank@cant.ed&ST=QS writes:
HOW DEEP A CATASTROPHE?
>MINIMUM
>Minimum disrupts physical communication. If it doesn't stop the
>movement of goods, which requires roads, good money, and good government
>(police, courts, etc), it's not a disaster.
Disaster can be ANYTHING that affects a large group of people. An F5
tornado devastating Jerrel, TX wth 300+ mph winds is not a disaster in
Birmingham, AL, but you can bet your butt that the survivors and families
of victims will see it as a "real" disaster. Jerrel still has roads, the
good money of the survivors, and the support of local, state, and federal
gov. yet it doesn't change the fact that this group of people suffered
CATASTROPHIC losses. It's a minor catastrophe because it doesn't affect
anybody outside the immediate radius of the damage area.
>
>Cities depend on the free movement of goods in and out. If trucks or
>trains do not operate, or suppliers will not accept cash money or
>promises to pay, or the cities cannot afford to pay, the cities die.
Cities depend on goods and SERVICES. You have to have BOTH in order to
have an economy to sustain growth AND development. Without development
cities stagnate, then deteriorate in inverse proportions to the amount of
money put back into development. Movement into cities can be by truck,
train, boat, plane, helicopter, or mule train. Hell, look at the Mormon
migration across the great plains into the desolate regions of the Great
Salt Lake area in the mid 1800's. That was by wagon train, buckboard, and
handcart. These people settled and the development of the entire west
coast was opened by the trails these people laid with shoe leather and
sometimes even bare feet.
Your concept of cities simply dying because the truckers go on strike
(again) or UPS pilots go on strike (planned) or the banks and saving and
loans going bankrupt ( see the history of the Texas Savings and Loans Real
Estate scandals) is bunk. Look at Washington,D.C. The entire city is
bankrupt, the mayor is a felon, half the black male population is in some
kind of trouble with the law, yet the seat of our great nation still is
BASED there. The city is still operating.
>
>Causes may be economic collapse, widespread disease, asteroid impact.
>
>NOTE. If all the bridges are destroyed by earthquake or even meteorite
>damage, they can be repaired, and emergency supplies airlifted in, or
>even packed in. While disastrous, if the city can be supplied, it is
>not a catastrophe.
Ok. One at a time.
Economic collapse. Most of the cities in the civilized world are having,
or have had, economic collapse of some sort in the past 500 years, and
especially the past 50 years. Look at Brazil's triple- digit (100%)
inflation rate at times in the past decade. Look at the collapse of the
soviet empire and the rise of black market capitalism to let people survive
with needed goods AND services where the government couldn't provide. Look
at the rebuilding of almost the entire continent of Europe by the US after
WWII by the hard work and funds of the US taxpayers. Like anything else,
economic fortunes and famines are going to cycle, either thru fraud and
deceit, misappropriation, war, natural disaster, or global (planned)
control. All we as individuals can do is hold on and have enough savings in
hard currency (gold, silver, ammo, food) to make it thru the next cycle.
Widespread Disease. Medical science has proved astounding successful at
battling transferable diseases, and at finding solutions to prevent new
diseases from being spread. Ebola, with its DIFFERENT strains, can be
transferred by blood or by air (in aerosol form, like a sneeze or cough)
and I'd HIGHLY recomment reading the book THE HOT ZONE,(beg, borrow, or
steal a copy-its in paperback, books-on-tape, and every library I've ever
been it) the true facts of the ebola scare and its activity here in this
country. Ecoli, bacteria found in hamburger and other under cooked meats,
can kill a large number of people quickly if not caught (thats the biggest
peril of "fast food"......how bout "fast death"?). Then there is AIDS. We
all know how it is transmitted. We all know it is deadly. We DON'T know
how to fight it and beat it, yet.
But geneticists are making headway in
overcoming many of its syptoms, by cell manipulation. We should ALL know
how to avoid possible contact with the AIDS antibodies. This is probably
the scariest disease our country, and the world, is fighting right now. It
is the most costly disease to fight right now, costing many times the money
to treat one aids patient then it does one cancer patient. In other words,
mid-12th and 13th century Europe didn't stand a chance in beating Pnemonic
Plague and its derivatives, because of the lack of knowledge, communication
ability, or roads. We don't have those problems now, and probably never
will again.
Asteroid Impact. Ok, its happened before. Last known attempt at
global distruction-1908 in Tunguska, Siberia. Proof of other
attempts---hundreds of small and large craters all over the globe,
weathered over, filled in by vegetation, trees, swamps, or glacial gravel
pits. The last 20 years or so, with the advent of personal video cameras,
has caught some fantastic images of close calls with very large meteors
either burning in the sky over an evening football game (see the
Realtv1.com website and look for the video of this clip--about 4meg in
size) or the rock that passed over a a resort in the rockies in the mid
'70's, just grazing the atmosphere and going back out into space.
Who
knows how many humans have died in the past millenia from giant asteroid
strikes? We'll never truly know, but we can understand it CAN happen. If
it does, it will still be a localized event, taking out only a few states
or half a continent. We'll ALL know it happened but most of us will still
be around to deal with the aftereffects.....decreased food production,
extensive earthquakes, possible meteoric storms from the debris re-entering
the atmosphere. Communications will go to hell for a while but with our
skills at rebuilding, it _will_ be a temporary setback.
>
>But if the cities have to be abandoned and the refugees are unable to be
>freely supplied with essentials, they will take them where and when they
>can, and that is a catastrophe.
Why would cities have to be abandoned? Nuke strike, volcanic eruption,
dam break, all come to mind.....however, people still live in Hiroshima,
Nagasaki, Washington state, Hawaii, Alaska. The 1964 Earthquake in Alaska
(8.5 richtor) lasted over 5 minutes and raised the level of the seabed off
the coast by over 50 feet for hundreds of miles. Anchorage had sides of
streets lined with buildings fall 15-20 feet on one side of the street.
Liquification of soils on hillsides moved some houses 1200 feet down the
hill. Less then 20 people died as a direct result of the earthquake. Over
110 more died from the 100 foot + Tsunami that came into the bay as the
people were surveying the damage 3 hours later. Anchorage is still there
and thriving now. As many people we have in this world, and with as much
and varied transportation we have available from ALL countries, refugees
being helped or relocated to safer areas TEMPORARILY could be accomplished
in a matter of days or weeks. Emergency food, water, shelter, meds, and
manpower could be anywhere in the WORLD in HOURS. There is nothing
forseeable that would negate this fact, no matter what anybody says.
Even if the US was stone broke, with the military sitting there in their
barracks twiddling their thumbs, because there was no funds for gas,
diesel, or jet fuel for training purposes (ITS HAPPENED), citizens of this
great country would reach into the depths of their souls, not to mention
their pockets and the backs of their pantries to help survivors of ANY
horrific REGIONAL catastrophe anywhere on this earth. Fuel would be found,
transportation arranged, and services delivered no matter how difficult it
was to make it happen.
>
>MAXIMUM
(In my estimation, see above)
>
>Maximum leaves a minimum of one man and one woman alive and able to
>procreate. Any less is pointless to worry about, unless it can be
>prevented.
Never happen. Anything that could kill 6,999,999,998 people in one
strike, would also take out the last two of 7 billion beings.....for
example a 500 mile diameter asteroid diverted from its original orbit by a
simple act of gravitational attraction to another, 1 billion years ago,
headed straight into the center of earth's equatorial regions at 80,000
mph, would be a bad thing. Large tracts of earth spit into space, magma
from hundreds of miles deep suddenly released to cover any and all
available beings and technology, and the kinetic energy still available to
the 'roid as it traveled thru the center of the 7000 mile diameter earth,
if not exiting the other side, would cause a really BIG bump (say, oh,
maybe 2-300 miles high?) with many new cracks and faults, as well as
worldwide earthquakes as the solid masses of rock, the earth's remaining
mantle and crust, and just the sheer shockwave of the remaining atmospheric
interaction would literally blow the life of any human not initially
vaporized by the thermal blast or shockwave. Bodies would be compressed,
hearts squashed inside chests, shrapnel from earth, homes, vehicles, etc,
would shred tissue no matter where it was.
>
>When Sodom and Gomorra were destroyed by a rain of fire from heaven
>(sounds like a meteor storm. Read Clube and Napier's "Cosmic Winter",
>or "Serpent in the Sky"), Lot and his two daughters survived. Lot's
>daughters believed the destruction to be so global that they were the
>only humans left living. They were survivors from a city.
Again, a REGIONAL catastrophe. Another suggested read would be anything
by Immanuel Velikosky-"Worlds in Collision", "Earth In Upheavel", "Ages In
Chaos", "Peoples of the Sea", "Mankind In Amnesia", "Ramses II and His
Time", "Oedipus and Akhnaton", or his autobiography "Stargrazers and
Gravediggers". Some are out of print, or are only available in library
additions, but ALL can be found in your local city or university libraries.
I have multiple copies of the first two in paperback, as well as early
additions in hardback, and have never payed more then a dollar at any used
book store for the extra copies. Whenever I find someone interested I
giv'em a copy.
Why? Because these books bring together ANCIENT
historical and geological records of SOMETHING happening within mankinds
"recorded" history that was so hurtful , so terrible, and so damaging that
civilational's survival was in question. If you know Velikovsky, you know
what kind of reception he was given by the scientific community when he
published his first book in 1950. Actually, it wasn't a real
reception....more like a lynching. After 40+ years, scientific
establishments and most professors of the old school think he was a
lunatic. Read several of his books BEFORE you make your decision, but READ
THEM if you think "worldwide catastrophe" is a viable possibility.
If you don't like to read (what the heck are you doing on the internet
for, then???) then get one book...."Doomsday, the Science of Catastrophe",
by Fred Warshofsky. He has a fairly decent intro into the subject, covering
items such as the mathematics of catastrophe, black holes, ancient myths,
earthquakes, biocatastrophe, Velikovsky, Einstein, and more...
>
>There is other evidence, including many ruins, that man was civilized
>before, and lived in cities, and had advanced technologies. There is
>evidence of metal working, shipbuilding, and even aeronautics. This
>technology demanded written language.
Read anything you can find on Edgar Cayce, then a book or two on the
physics and math equations BUILT into the Great Pyramid. Also, scan the
internet for info about the scandal growing at the sphinx right now.
>
>Then catastrophe.
>
>This catastrophe was so complete, and so global, that all this fine
>technology, and even the ability to read and write, was abandoned and
>forgotten in the struggle for survival. Shipbuilding, metalworking, and
>even farming skills were lost. All that remained were a few artifacts
>that are derided by uniformatarians as hoaxes, or flukes of nature, and
>myths retold over the centuries, to be first written down, greatly
>altered, thousands of years later. What could have happened?
See above responses.....economics, El Ninos, weather disasters, scandals,
everything happens in cycles, whether a few years or a few hundred or
thousand. At some point, if we're NOT nailed by the 500 mile dia. 'roid,
we'll have a tiny bit of our culture found 30-40 feet under soil, ash, or
igneos rock.
>
>The Bible tells us part of the story. Rains of fire and brimstone from
>the heavens. The fountains of the deep flooding the earth. Rain for
>forty days and forty nights.
>
>This is exactly what we would expect from a massive meteor storm, if the
>earth passed through a recently broken up comet. There would be legends
>of pillars of smoke and fire, of dragons in the sky, and of heavenly
>combats. There would be talk of gods and godesses.
>
>How many survived? Very few. People far out to sea in very well
>constructed ships, and those in the high mountains at the time.
See Velikovsky above...
>
>All the cities, with all their industries, were destroyed so totally we
>argue today whether they actually existed.
They existed. We just haven't put the cash into the hands of the
controlling governments agencies to start digging them out yet. See the
Isle of Thera and the volcanic eruption that was probably the basis for the
"Atlantis" theory or story as put forth by Plato.
>
>What technology survived? None. The survivors were reduced to the
>stone age, using flint and bone in place of metals, learning to use
>weapons and hunt for game. All the farms, with their stores of grain,
>their fruits, and their animals, being in the lowlands, were destroyed
>with the cities. Initially the survivors must have been scavengers,
>unless a few managed to save enough weapons and ammunition to last until
>new weapon and hunting skills were developed.
Some must have survived. Look at the replication of boats, planes, roads,
primitive technological improvements. How about the modern compound
hunting bow, with its anti-vibration string attachments, multirange guide
markers, camo paint jobs, trigger release grips, and not to mention the
razor tipped, aluminum, artificial- feathered arrows..........its still a
bow and arrow.
>
>THE FUTURE
>
>Rely on assault rifles and stockpiled ammunition? I don't think so.
>
>Obtain by all means. And practice with them. But remember they may
>well not last your lifetime.
Get QUALITY items and tools. Read the recently posted message about Mauser
rifles and their longevity. I have an 1893 Turkish model with an 8mm
barrel. Its heavy as hell, much stouter then my SKS, and with enough
practice can be just as deadly at long range as it is at short range.
>
>Get less advanced weapons and tools. Ensure you can prosper without
>advanced technological support. Learn nineteenth century skills.
Bow and arrow, crossbow, rock and sling, atlatle, or just big, sharp
rocks. But having a scoped, lasersighted, silencered, semi- or full-auto
rifle will get you everytime at long range.
>
>Get woodcraft and survival skills. Learn how the Amerindians did it. =
>
>How stone age men did it.
>
>Hank
Camp a lot more, build handmade projects like models, planes, black powder
pistols or rifles, full size canoes or kayaks. Exercise your mind with
PRACTICAL and USEFUL skills. Also build up your physical strength and
stamina. Join the Y, learn to mountain bike, or walk alot more at the
beach or trails at the closest state park.....BUT PUSH YOURSELF. The
wrong time to do this is under stress of disaster o' the day, like the next
hurricane, twister, or earthquake.
Have full confidence in your abilities, mentally, physically, and
emotionally. If you ain't got it now, nothing else is more important. If
you have a family that requires your ability to support them NO MATTER
WHAT, then push yourself away from this computer until you feel like you
can reasonably handle any REAL situation that might happen where you live.
After you can say you have required skills for day to day living well,
then you can make up 'possible' impossible scenarios like "that last two
people on earth surviving" thing.
Just my thoughts, but not yet seen in any "reality" checks.
Richard
rafleet@aol.com- http://members.aol.com/rafleet/blast.htm -
"Trust thyself. Every heart vibrates to that iron string. Accept the place
that devine providence has found for you; the society of your
contemporaries, the connection of events." R.W. Emerson
Updated May 2001 - © 2001 By Richard A. Fleetwood |
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