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Image | Making the Urban-to-Rural Transition
Making the Urban-to-Rural Transition
by joemanc

My transition began in the fall of 2008 during the financial crisis. I had watched the Crash Course earlier in the summer, and as the crisis unfolded, I began to take the initial steps, or Step Zero, as has been mentioned on the site before.

How I Got Here

In 2008, I was living in a condo in a city of about 50,000. I began to wonder whether living in a condo was the way to go, or to find a house and/or land. I knew the housing market was horrible and that it would get worse. Ultimately, I decided my best bet was to buy a house with land in a small town. The key was getting to that point.

Making the Urban-to-Rural Transition
 by joemanc

My transition began in the fall of 2008 during the financial crisis. I had watched the Crash Course earlier in the summer, and as the crisis unfolded, I began to take the initial steps, or Step Zero, as has been mentioned on the site before.

How I Got Here

In 2008, I was living in a condo in a city of about 50,000. I began to wonder whether living in a condo was the way to go, or to find a house and/or land. I knew the housing market was horrible and that it would get worse. Ultimately, I decided my best bet was to buy a house with land in a small town. The key was getting to that point.

Image | Dealing With a Reluctant Partner
Dealing With a Reluctant Partner
by Becca Martenson
Is your partner not “on board” with the ideas in The Crash Course?  Here are the do’s and don'ts of speaking with your reluctant partner.

In early 2002, the stock market was tanking and Chris watched our savings drop along with it.  Ignoring the platitudes of our financial advisor to "wait it out because the stock market always goes back up," he began an intensely focused (dare I say obsessive?) study of the economy.  What he learned made him both angry and afraid. He ranted about the state of debt levels, the fragility of fiat currencies, and the inequities of the banking system – and I barely listened:  “Uh huh.  Really?  Gosh, that’s too bad.  Can you pass me a diaper, please?”

The movie “The Matrix” had just come out, providing perfect metaphors that made him sound pretty darn crazy to me:  He talked about having taken the red pill, and that he didn’t want to be a battery for the machine anymore.  I figured this was some kind of mid-life crisis in the works.  It was an emotional squall; I just had to wait it out, and Chris would be back to his usual self in a few months.  But the squall didn’t pass – instead, it picked up energy and became a real storm.  The harder the storm raged, the more I shut down to what Chris was trying to tell me.  He was growing increasingly distrustful of the system and fearful about the impact on his family, but I couldn’t open up and listen to what he was saying at all.  No one else I knew was talking about this stuff.  What was the matter with my husband?

 

Dealing With a Reluctant Partner
 by Becca Martenson
Is your partner not “on board” with the ideas in The Crash Course?  Here are the do’s and don'ts of speaking with your reluctant partner.

In early 2002, the stock market was tanking and Chris watched our savings drop along with it.  Ignoring the platitudes of our financial advisor to "wait it out because the stock market always goes back up," he began an intensely focused (dare I say obsessive?) study of the economy.  What he learned made him both angry and afraid. He ranted about the state of debt levels, the fragility of fiat currencies, and the inequities of the banking system – and I barely listened:  “Uh huh.  Really?  Gosh, that’s too bad.  Can you pass me a diaper, please?”

The movie “The Matrix” had just come out, providing perfect metaphors that made him sound pretty darn crazy to me:  He talked about having taken the red pill, and that he didn’t want to be a battery for the machine anymore.  I figured this was some kind of mid-life crisis in the works.  It was an emotional squall; I just had to wait it out, and Chris would be back to his usual self in a few months.  But the squall didn’t pass – instead, it picked up energy and became a real storm.  The harder the storm raged, the more I shut down to what Chris was trying to tell me.  He was growing increasingly distrustful of the system and fearful about the impact on his family, but I couldn’t open up and listen to what he was saying at all.  No one else I knew was talking about this stuff.  What was the matter with my husband?

 

Image | Practical Survival Skills 101 – Fire Starting
Practical Survival Skills 101 – Fire Starting
by Aaron M

Throughout the Internet, a great many resources exist on an immense variety of topics. Some purport expertise in Survival – a sign you should instantly recognize as a red-flag.

Survival is not a topic, nor a way of life. It’s a measure of adaptability. Casually discussion of methods of starting fires, building shelters, procuring clean water and food is the academic tantamount to describing the process of surgery without having ever seen a scalpel.

For this reason, I intend to write a series on Practical Survival. This will not be geared towards the rugged woodsman who knows just how difficult it is to survive off the land – it’s written with an intended audience of the layman who knows little or nothing outside the modern First World.

 
Practical Survival Skills 101 – Fire Starting
 by Aaron M

Throughout the Internet, a great many resources exist on an immense variety of topics. Some purport expertise in Survival – a sign you should instantly recognize as a red-flag.

Survival is not a topic, nor a way of life. It’s a measure of adaptability. Casually discussion of methods of starting fires, building shelters, procuring clean water and food is the academic tantamount to describing the process of surgery without having ever seen a scalpel.

For this reason, I intend to write a series on Practical Survival. This will not be geared towards the rugged woodsman who knows just how difficult it is to survive off the land – it’s written with an intended audience of the layman who knows little or nothing outside the modern First World.

 
Image | Straight Talk with Charles Hugh Smith: Why The Status Quo Is Unsustainable
Straight Talk with Charles Hugh Smith: Why The Status Quo Is Unsustainable
by Adam Taggart

"Straight Talk" features thinking from notable minds that the PeakProsperity.com audience has indicated it wants to learn more about.  Readers submit the questions they want addressed and our guests take their best crack at answering. The comments and opinions expressed by our guests are their own.

This week's Straight Talk contributor is Charles Hugh Smith, who has been an independent journalist for 22 years. His weblog, www.oftwominds.com, is a daily compendium of observations and analysis on the global economy and financial markets, as well as notable political, social, and cultural trends. Charles has authored a number of books across several genres, including the recent Survival+: Structuring Prosperity for Yourself and the Nation.

1. Of the many forces at play that you write about within the economy, society, and politics, which ones do you see as the most defining for the future? How do you expect things to unfold?

CHS:  Clearly, demographics and Peak Oil are forces which cannot be massaged away by policy tweaks or financial engineering. I think the exhaustion of Global Neoliberal Capitalism and State Capitalism is apparent, as is the bankruptcy of the two ideologies that more or less define our politics. The reliance on expansion of credit and State power is a dynamic with only unhappy endings.

 

Straight Talk with Charles Hugh Smith: Why The Status Quo Is Unsustainable
 by Adam Taggart

"Straight Talk" features thinking from notable minds that the PeakProsperity.com audience has indicated it wants to learn more about.  Readers submit the questions they want addressed and our guests take their best crack at answering. The comments and opinions expressed by our guests are their own.

This week's Straight Talk contributor is Charles Hugh Smith, who has been an independent journalist for 22 years. His weblog, www.oftwominds.com, is a daily compendium of observations and analysis on the global economy and financial markets, as well as notable political, social, and cultural trends. Charles has authored a number of books across several genres, including the recent Survival+: Structuring Prosperity for Yourself and the Nation.

1. Of the many forces at play that you write about within the economy, society, and politics, which ones do you see as the most defining for the future? How do you expect things to unfold?

CHS:  Clearly, demographics and Peak Oil are forces which cannot be massaged away by policy tweaks or financial engineering. I think the exhaustion of Global Neoliberal Capitalism and State Capitalism is apparent, as is the bankruptcy of the two ideologies that more or less define our politics. The reliance on expansion of credit and State power is a dynamic with only unhappy endings.

 

Image | The Keys to Transitioning Healthcare: Empowerment, Education, & Prevention
The Keys to Transitioning Healthcare: Empowerment, Education, & Prevention
by suziegruber

A few months ago, I developed red spots on my face and neck that were kind of itchy.  After another day or so, the spots had progressed down my torso and onto my thighs, so I decided to go to a doctor.  Although I have health insurance, at the time I did not have a primary care physician, so seeing a doctor quickly proved to be difficult.  Most everyone I called told me to go the emergency room, a ridiculously expensive suggestion, given that my situation was certainly not a life-threatening emergency.  I finally got an appointment with a nurse practitioner at a local clinic.  She hurriedly looked at the red spots, pronounced that I had hives, and immediately decided to give me a steroid injection and to prescribe a week-long dose of Prednisone.  There was no discussion of reasoning for her prescription, likely symptom progression, or treatment options.

I know that steroids significantly impact my body through increased anxiety, difficulty sleeping, and suppressed immune response, and I was about to leave on a month long trip, so I really didn’t want any of these side effects.  I slowed her down long enough to get her to tell me what I could expect if I didn’t take the shot or the Prednisone.  She told me the hives would likely progress through the rest of my body, enter my lungs and then cause difficulty breathing, and that I definitely needed both the injection and the Prednisone.  By this point, I internally questioned her judgment due to her extreme prognosis and lack of willingness to engage with me, so I accepted the shot and decided to mull over whether or not to fill the Prednisone prescription.  That afternoon I spoke with a friend of mine who is an MD (I should have called him first), and he said that I likely would not need the Prednisone and that I should see how it goes for a couple of days.  I did not need the Prednisone and the hives disappeared in a week or so.

So why am I sharing this story? In my opinion, health care remains one of the thorniest problems that we face, because even with relatively abundant cheap oil, our current system serves us poorly.
The Keys to Transitioning Healthcare: Empowerment, Education, & Prevention
 by suziegruber

A few months ago, I developed red spots on my face and neck that were kind of itchy.  After another day or so, the spots had progressed down my torso and onto my thighs, so I decided to go to a doctor.  Although I have health insurance, at the time I did not have a primary care physician, so seeing a doctor quickly proved to be difficult.  Most everyone I called told me to go the emergency room, a ridiculously expensive suggestion, given that my situation was certainly not a life-threatening emergency.  I finally got an appointment with a nurse practitioner at a local clinic.  She hurriedly looked at the red spots, pronounced that I had hives, and immediately decided to give me a steroid injection and to prescribe a week-long dose of Prednisone.  There was no discussion of reasoning for her prescription, likely symptom progression, or treatment options.

I know that steroids significantly impact my body through increased anxiety, difficulty sleeping, and suppressed immune response, and I was about to leave on a month long trip, so I really didn’t want any of these side effects.  I slowed her down long enough to get her to tell me what I could expect if I didn’t take the shot or the Prednisone.  She told me the hives would likely progress through the rest of my body, enter my lungs and then cause difficulty breathing, and that I definitely needed both the injection and the Prednisone.  By this point, I internally questioned her judgment due to her extreme prognosis and lack of willingness to engage with me, so I accepted the shot and decided to mull over whether or not to fill the Prednisone prescription.  That afternoon I spoke with a friend of mine who is an MD (I should have called him first), and he said that I likely would not need the Prednisone and that I should see how it goes for a couple of days.  I did not need the Prednisone and the hives disappeared in a week or so.

So why am I sharing this story? In my opinion, health care remains one of the thorniest problems that we face, because even with relatively abundant cheap oil, our current system serves us poorly.
Image | A Case Study in Creating Community
A Case Study in Creating Community
by SagerXX

Take a little trip with me…

Ben Bernanke finally prints A Dollar Too Far. Or the bond vigilantes have their day. Or various foreign countries begin to dump their Treasuries en masse one Wednesday morning. Or Fraudclosure pitches the TBTF banks (and mortgage insurers, et alia) into a hole too deep for any bailout. Or oil producing nations decide to cut back exports by 20% when it becomes apparent that some of their largest fields are well past peak and starting down the steeper part of the back side of the curve. 

You can pick one of any number of liminal events, or more likely several of them will make up the Family-Size Valu-Pak o'Doom. But it's obvious to me that El Ponzo Grande is beginning to develop a mortal wobble. Like the top in the last shot of "Inception," it only continues to spin endlessly in a world of illusion. In the real world we inhabit, wobble indicates the top is getting ready to fall.

 
A Case Study in Creating Community
 by SagerXX

Take a little trip with me…

Ben Bernanke finally prints A Dollar Too Far. Or the bond vigilantes have their day. Or various foreign countries begin to dump their Treasuries en masse one Wednesday morning. Or Fraudclosure pitches the TBTF banks (and mortgage insurers, et alia) into a hole too deep for any bailout. Or oil producing nations decide to cut back exports by 20% when it becomes apparent that some of their largest fields are well past peak and starting down the steeper part of the back side of the curve. 

You can pick one of any number of liminal events, or more likely several of them will make up the Family-Size Valu-Pak o'Doom. But it's obvious to me that El Ponzo Grande is beginning to develop a mortal wobble. Like the top in the last shot of "Inception," it only continues to spin endlessly in a world of illusion. In the real world we inhabit, wobble indicates the top is getting ready to fall.

 
Image | What Should I Do? The Basics of Resilience (Part 9 – Your Next Steps)
What Should I Do? The Basics of Resilience (Part 9 – Your Next Steps)
by Chris Martenson

Note:  This is the final article in our series on personal preparation to help you answer the question, “What should I do?”  Our goal is to provide a safe, rational, relatively comfortable experience for those who are just coming to the realization that it would be prudent to take precautionary steps against an uncertain future.  Those who have already taken these basic steps (and more) are invited to help us improve what is offered here by contributing comments, as this content is meant to be dynamic and improve over time.

Those who’ve read this full series know that six years ago my family lived in a big house by the sea, where we were completely dependent on outside systems to deliver to us our daily food, water, warmth, and electricity. Perhaps even more worryingly, we engaged with a relatively limited community, defined by the people with whom we worked or knew through our children’s lives and activities.

Today, in addition to running this website and working towards creating a tipping point of awareness around the three Es, we have a garden, chickens, food preservation skills, solar hot water and electricity, local food connections, and a steadily deepening network of relationships around each of these elements.  We did not do this all at once, but over a period of years.

What Should I Do? The Basics of Resilience (Part 9 – Your Next Steps)
 by Chris Martenson

Note:  This is the final article in our series on personal preparation to help you answer the question, “What should I do?”  Our goal is to provide a safe, rational, relatively comfortable experience for those who are just coming to the realization that it would be prudent to take precautionary steps against an uncertain future.  Those who have already taken these basic steps (and more) are invited to help us improve what is offered here by contributing comments, as this content is meant to be dynamic and improve over time.

Those who’ve read this full series know that six years ago my family lived in a big house by the sea, where we were completely dependent on outside systems to deliver to us our daily food, water, warmth, and electricity. Perhaps even more worryingly, we engaged with a relatively limited community, defined by the people with whom we worked or knew through our children’s lives and activities.

Today, in addition to running this website and working towards creating a tipping point of awareness around the three Es, we have a garden, chickens, food preservation skills, solar hot water and electricity, local food connections, and a steadily deepening network of relationships around each of these elements.  We did not do this all at once, but over a period of years.

Image | What Should I Do? The Basics of Resilience (Part 8 – Community)
What Should I Do? The Basics of Resilience (Part 8 – Community)
by Chris Martenson

Note:  This article is part of a series on personal preparation to help you answer the question, “What should I do?”  Our goal is to provide a safe, rational, relatively comfortable experience for those who are just coming to the realization that it would be prudent to take precautionary steps against an uncertain future.  Those who have already taken these basic steps (and more) are invited to help us improve what is offered here by contributing comments, as this content is meant to be dynamic and improve over time.

You are going to need community.

It is my informed opinion that there is no “fix” to our current predicament; there are only outcomes to be managed.  Unless some brand-new energy source is discovered – preferably about 15 years ago and prosecuted with all due haste – the necessary liquid fuels will not be there to power enough new economic development to cover all the past debts and unfunded promises.  While this does not necessarily mean the “end of the world,” for many it will certainly mean “the end of the world as they know it.” 

What Should I Do? The Basics of Resilience (Part 8 – Community)
 by Chris Martenson

Note:  This article is part of a series on personal preparation to help you answer the question, “What should I do?”  Our goal is to provide a safe, rational, relatively comfortable experience for those who are just coming to the realization that it would be prudent to take precautionary steps against an uncertain future.  Those who have already taken these basic steps (and more) are invited to help us improve what is offered here by contributing comments, as this content is meant to be dynamic and improve over time.

You are going to need community.

It is my informed opinion that there is no “fix” to our current predicament; there are only outcomes to be managed.  Unless some brand-new energy source is discovered – preferably about 15 years ago and prosecuted with all due haste – the necessary liquid fuels will not be there to power enough new economic development to cover all the past debts and unfunded promises.  While this does not necessarily mean the “end of the world,” for many it will certainly mean “the end of the world as they know it.” 

Image | What Should I Do? The Basics of Resilience (Part 4 – Growing & Preserving Food)
What Should I Do? The Basics of Resilience (Part 4 – Growing & Preserving Food)
by Chris Martenson

Note:  This article is part of a series on personal preparation to help you answer the question, "What should I do?"  Our goal is to provide a safe, rational, relatively comfortable experience for those who are just coming to the realization that it would be prudent to take precautionary steps against an uncertain future.  Those who have already taken these basic steps (and more) are invited to help us improve what is offered here by contributing comments, as this content is meant to be dynamic and improve over time.

Increasing Your Local Food Sources

For us, the next step after getting some food stored away was to increase our local sources of food.  Our primary local sources include the farmers who produce our meat and raw milk and the community-supported agriculture (CSA) vegetable operation to which we belong.  Our local demand translates into more local food—a worthy outcome by itself, but we also happen to get superior food as part of the bargain.

And there's more.  Our CSA is run by two fabulous young farmers whom we adore, it employs a crew of young local people, and they grow everything organically.  We are getting tastier and healthier food, increasing demand for local food, and supporting our local community, all in one fell swoop.  If you do not yet belong to a CSA and have the opportunity, it is well worth pursuing.  And if a CSA is not available or affordable to you, then at the very least, make connections with local farmers and food producers and purchase food from them directly whenever possible.

 
What Should I Do? The Basics of Resilience (Part 4 – Growing & Preserving Food)
 by Chris Martenson

Note:  This article is part of a series on personal preparation to help you answer the question, "What should I do?"  Our goal is to provide a safe, rational, relatively comfortable experience for those who are just coming to the realization that it would be prudent to take precautionary steps against an uncertain future.  Those who have already taken these basic steps (and more) are invited to help us improve what is offered here by contributing comments, as this content is meant to be dynamic and improve over time.

Increasing Your Local Food Sources

For us, the next step after getting some food stored away was to increase our local sources of food.  Our primary local sources include the farmers who produce our meat and raw milk and the community-supported agriculture (CSA) vegetable operation to which we belong.  Our local demand translates into more local food—a worthy outcome by itself, but we also happen to get superior food as part of the bargain.

And there's more.  Our CSA is run by two fabulous young farmers whom we adore, it employs a crew of young local people, and they grow everything organically.  We are getting tastier and healthier food, increasing demand for local food, and supporting our local community, all in one fell swoop.  If you do not yet belong to a CSA and have the opportunity, it is well worth pursuing.  And if a CSA is not available or affordable to you, then at the very least, make connections with local farmers and food producers and purchase food from them directly whenever possible.

 
Image | What Should I Do?: The Basics of Resilience (Part 2 – Water)
What Should I Do?: The Basics of Resilience (Part 2 – Water)
by Chris Martenson

Note:  This is part of a series on personal preparation to help you answer the question, "What should I do?"  Awhile back, we polled our most frequent visitors to the site and asked what improvements would be most helpful to our readers.  The strongest response was that we should make it easier for people to start preparing.

So we've decided to do exactly that.  This series on how to build personal resilience into your life is designed for people who are just beginning the process.  Those who have already taken these basic steps (and more) are invited to help us improve what is offered here by contributing comments, as this content is meant to be dynamic and improve over time.  Our goal is to provide a safe, rational, relatively comfortable experience for those who are just coming to the realization that it would be prudent to take precautionary steps against an uncertain future.
What Should I Do?: The Basics of Resilience (Part 2 – Water)
 by Chris Martenson

Note:  This is part of a series on personal preparation to help you answer the question, "What should I do?"  Awhile back, we polled our most frequent visitors to the site and asked what improvements would be most helpful to our readers.  The strongest response was that we should make it easier for people to start preparing.

So we've decided to do exactly that.  This series on how to build personal resilience into your life is designed for people who are just beginning the process.  Those who have already taken these basic steps (and more) are invited to help us improve what is offered here by contributing comments, as this content is meant to be dynamic and improve over time.  Our goal is to provide a safe, rational, relatively comfortable experience for those who are just coming to the realization that it would be prudent to take precautionary steps against an uncertain future.
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 "It's About Control": An Interview with David Icke
Just got my result that I’m C19 positive.
I work at a mining camp in northern BC where I shared a bathroom with a guy (double injected) that was coughing for days and then tested positive. They got me to do a rapid test which was negative but I was feeling OK at that time.
Got home and started feeling...
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