Consensus on Concerns

Safe America For Everyone This newsletter powered by: Mad Mimi Unsubscribe instantly from these emails by clicking here. Email look weird or can't download pictures? View it on the web here. Click HERE to go to the SAFE home page. Click HERE to go to the SAFE FaceBook page. Click HERE to go to Ark Two. Click HERE to go to list of Ark Two Videos Forward this email to a friend. This newsletter is Copyleft: and may be used by anyone. SAFE Ark Two Newsletter August 4th, 2013 Consensus on Concerns There is little consensus about what one should be MOST concerned about. Some think: Climate Change World Food Shortage Syria/Iran/Israel G-20 - Upcoming Budget - Monetary system There does seem to be some consensus among some of the Governments in the world that some sort of threat is imminent. The US State Department has ordered closed the following US embassies and consulates from August 1st to August 31st: -US Embassy Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates -US Embassy Algiers, Algeria -US Embassy Amman, Jordan -US Embassy Baghdad, Iraq -US Embassy Cairo, Egypt -US Consulate Dhahran, Saudi Arabia -US Embassy Djibouti, Djibouti -US Embassy Dhaka, Bangladesh -US Embassy Doha, Qatar -US Consulate Dubai, United Arab Emirates -US Consulate Erbil, Iraq -US Consulate Jeddah, Saudi Arabia -US Embassy Kabul, Afghanistan -US Embassy Khartoum, Sudan -US Embassy Kuwait City, Kuwait -US Embassy Manama, Bahrain -US Embassy Muscat, Oman -US Embassy Nouakchott, Mauritania -US Embassy Riyadh, Saudi Arabia -US Embassy Sanaa, Yemen -US Embassy Tripoli, Libya France, Germany and Britain on Saturday announced the temporary closings of their embassies in Sana, Yemen, and Russia has already moved people out of Syria. This week is the 15th anniversary of the bombings of the American Embassies in Nairobi, Kenya, and Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, which killed more than 200 people and wounded 4,000 others. To put that latter into perspective - there were over 1,000 people killed in the conflict in Iraq, in July alone. That is a conflict that has been more or less pushed from the news headlines. (Do check your MSM this moment for the truth of that statement.) I don't know what is related and what isn't, but most commentators think the embassy closings somehow all swirls around Syria and its Russian connection. Iran says that it is tightly tied to the Syrian conflict, as does Turkey. It may well be that I just don't have those things in perspective. Ramadan ends this week. Iran has gone on high alert and has announced new nuclear powers and threats against Israel (or not - depending on the news source) as it changes government leaders. China Concern Several times every week - I will comment to my wife about some hysterical email, news item, video or blog that we receive - and I will comment about the passion that people put into these subjects when there hangs over their heads the Damocles' sword of nuclear WW3 and EMP. The latter is a subject about which I am considered a one stringed instrument and quite frankly - a nut. Oftentimes - in my view - the other current concerns are related to my primary concern. This week, for example, the astounding news (from an authoritative source but not in the MSM) that China may have now become the world's leading nuclear power with a greater stock of active weapons than either the US or Russia. We don't know what its Missile delivery systems are in its deep caves (and China isn't saying) but it is still weak so far as the TRIAD goes of airborne bombers, and nuclear submarines. Both of these latter may be irrelevant in a pre-emptive world-wide nuclear war. Climate Concern A subject that remains front and center in the news and with much of the public is the concern about the climate. Less than a year ago the headlines were: UN warns of looming worldwide food crisis in 2013 • Global grain reserves hit critically low levels • Extreme weather means climate 'is no longer reliable' • Rising food prices threaten disaster and unrest John Vidal - The Observer, Saturday 13 October 2012 There was also concern about drought in the US and flooding of the Mississippi River that was causing long term disruption of the barges and which was expected to greatly impact world food supplies. To top that off there was the problem of the conversion of US corn supplies to ethanol which was going to have terrible effects on the price of corn in Mexico and elsewhere. Now, today I am ASTOUNDED to learn that there is a world food glut. ESPECIALLY in rice. So terrible many countries don't know what to do. Also corn surplus has exceeded expectations but even wheat, which still seems to be in trouble, has reached the point that some countries are forbidding its importation. Things can change in a minute with hail or pestilence, but I must say that locally I have never seen such lush fields in my life - and I am an old Kansas boy. It may be that the weather change has made it especially good for up here and, as I have mentioned before, there aren't many bugs (sadly including bees). Altogether though - locally at least, and I am reading similar reports for elsewhere, it looks like the greatest bumper crop ever. Still a few weeks until harvest, but just what does all this mean. Millions starving in the world - and the world can't get rid of the surplus. There is concern about the Malthusian laws. The theory is that if the non-productive are fed they will continue to multiply and eventually overrun the food supply. There is a counter theory that if people's standard of living is raised that they will have fewer children. Whichever. In my paradigm we are about to reduce world population by about 80% and it is God's decree to 'multiply and replenish the earth' that will still hold for the next century at least. But, food and diet are a predominant concern in the communications that I receive. Worry about GMO (I tell my wife that it is not a personal concern for us because we are too old for its longer term effects, if any, to impact us). But there is endless concern by others about how healthy their diets are. Just doesn't get up there very far in my list of concerns. I am more concerned about the people currently starving in the world - and the many more that will starve if there is a social disruption. There is lots of hunger among many people right now, right in the US, as the one of the last things the US Congress did, before going on vacation, was take a BIG chunk out of the Food Stamp legislation. I don't know how all that works - needing Senate approval and Administrative signature. Where has all the Good Gold Gone? A month or two ago all the clamor was about Greece and how the banks were going to take half their depositors' money. Yap, yap, yap. Headline after headline. But then it all went away and you don't see that on the front page anymore. People told me that it wasn't going to happen. Did happen finally, this week. But hardly anything in the news about that. Go figure. Another strange thing going on has been a lot of discussion about gold and gold transfers. A couple of weeks ago they ran the Queen down to the Bank of England gold vaults to show her standing among all the gold. Lots of discussion in some circles this week that a bunch of it is no longer there. I really don't know anything about any of this but here is an interesting interactive video that I spent an hour on. These kinds of virtual tours are astounding to me. We can truly travel the world from our living rooms these days and gain more access than if we actually went there. Concerns Clouding the Horizon Lots of talk about how the NSA/Snowdon debacle may impact the G-20 Russia summit at the Constantine Palace in Saint Petersburg, Russia, 5–6 September 2013. Obama says he may not attend because Putin didn't send back Snowdon. Of course it bothers no one that the US didn't send back Lady to Italy. September 30, 2013: FY 2013 ends. Congress and the President must agree on appropriations for FY 2014 by September 30 so the government can function when the new fiscal year begins on October 1, 2013. If lawmakers do not reach an agreement about the sequester by Oct. 1, the government will shut down and the Treasury will face the risk of default. I don't know how any of that will actually work out either because there is also the Continuing resolution (CR): Legislation that permits government agencies to continue to operate at existing funding levels if a new appropriations bill has not been enacted for a new fiscal year. It all revolves around the debt ceiling and the Tea Party attempts to squash Obama Care (not a doable). Anyway, Congress just went on a 5 week holiday that ends mid-September, (after the G-20) and just two weeks before the budget runs out. Current at Ark Two Whatevever all these world events mean - that some think the US is getting ready to go into Syria, (the real reason for closing the Embassies in Arab countries), that Iran is arming Hezbollah in Syria and Lebanon to attack Israel, that Israel is preparing for that and going into Iran after the nukes, or that Russia and China are saying that they won't stand idlely by - or -or -or. And whatever that gold thing is about, if it is about anything, but there are lots of people who think the world is about to go into a monetary crisis, G-20 or no. The Oct 1st budget bomb may be the biggest blast pending on the horizon. But Congress is enjoying its vacation, and we should too. Five weeks of calm is not too many. I was greatly surprised by the calm in the ghettos after the Zimmerman trial, but you know I think that is simply smoldering underneath. So we are having good weather, maybe getting bumper crops, and a mild winter - I don't know, but, here at Ark Two taking advantage of all this calm to try to get in the winter wood supply - EARLY (for us). Most serious preppers keep a year or two ahead but for the last years we have run out in February. Did get our chimney cleaned yesterday. Putting in the largest indoor water supply that we have ever had in the house. Just doing a bit extra on a number of fronts at this moment. Not telling anyone what to do. Just saying. Peace and love, Bruce DawnSayer@webpal.org US National Coordinator's Corner Christopher Verreos coordinatorsafeusa@gmail.com Christopher Verreos and his wife Regina Greetings SAFE Team! As we wait for the highly anticipated developments with our Database, I have some additional present observations to share. As we "prep" for various scenarios, form working mutual support Triads, and wonder about the great "what if", there are some folks already putting skills to the test, and evaluating survival principles for us to review. Specifically, there's more than one TV series featuring families in the great state of Alaska undergoing varying levels of hardship - just to put food on the table and keep the home fire lit! Guess what? In each case, their success comes down to how dynamic their network is! I highly recommend those shows over the "lone survival expert" ones because they're practical and not so sensational. Just the nuts and bolts of family survival. Even the "lone wolf" survivalists have their super support network, if you know where to look. So, the question remains: What are we doing to build OUR networks to ensure positive results?  I spent the past few days in some very rigorous high Sierra backpacking enjoying the natural beauty AND honing important survival skills. I'm still recovering - ha ha! The end result? We had a group of three, where we could divide tasks, divide resources, divide skills to greatly improve our chances. Sitting at home waiting for the Big Event or watching someone else on TV tough it out in the wilderness might offer some motivation or good input, but it's no substitute for the real thing. The tornado alley members KNOW what I'm saying.  If you have water purification materials, do a trial run, or two. Practice. Evaluate. Adapt. Same thing for alternative heat and lighting. The list goes on. You'll develop your interests and skills, AND you'll have an improved skill set to offer your family, Triads, and neighbors when needed. Stay SAFE. Peace & Action, Christopher Verreos National Coordinator, SAFE USA coordinatorsafeusa@gmail.com Bruce Beach 161 Main St. Horning's Mills Melancthon Ontario L9V 1X7 Canada This is a link to the book everyone needs now - and which we hope they will buy and support our cause. This is a link to the book everyone will need the day AFTER the Great Catastrophe - but which they need to buy and read NOW!.