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SHANGRI-LA SUCKS
As last Friday was our observed holiday, I came in for almost two hours to do food pick-ups, then went into town for some shopping/water/trash etc. The normal weekend shtick. I just got an extra twelve hours out of the deal. So I was pretty relaxed and rested. More than the usual weekend. I’m sure that the average Mr. Suburbia spends his weekend mowing the lawn ( shooting putrid showers of partially dried dog feces into the neighbors yard if he is too busy to pick up after the ball-licker first ), yelling at the kids and scratching himself in front of the plasma screen ( Wood Flat Screen LCD/Plasma TV Stand Entertainment Center w/DVD & CD Storage + Stereo Component, Tivo/Cable Box, XBox, PS3, Wii Games Storage – Soft Cherry Finish
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Then, very satisfied with my redneck Tim Taylor ( Home Improvement – The Complete First Season
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I was reading Creekmore this morning and noticed he is giving strong consideration to moving. Or, he has decided but not just where. I like Creekmore. He might go out of his way not to offend anyone, privately thinking we are all a bunch of mouth breathing asshats, which is rather gentlemanly of him. He won’t scream at you that the sky is falling and we are all going to die. But, hey, we all have our failures. I mainly like him because his example means I’m not the only crazy fool living in a trailer. Well, not the only crazy fool that writes a blog while living in a trailer, anyway. People say, Jim, you crazy bastard. You shouldn’t live in a tin box ( Travel-Trailer Homesteading Under 5,000 NEW 3rd Edition Revised and Updated
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Your demigod Rawles ( How to Survive the End of the World as We Know It: Tactics, Techniques, and Technologies for Uncertain Times
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We all moved to Shangri-La ( Shangri-La
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The Official Bison Web Site http://www.bisonpress.com/
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My e-mail is jimd303@netzero.com
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Anyone can submit a guest article. No minimum word length, no writing skill necessary ( just get the idea across ). You retain copyright ( this must be your original writing ) and I’ll just use the once. I’ve yet to turn down an article, just don’t use the N Bomb or libel another that can sue me. Send by e-mail. Payment will be your removal from my enemies list.
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) and it wasn’t a bad book at all. It was interesting and enjoyable. The only problem was, after 350 pages I didn’t really feel it told me much of anything. It covered ancient invasions as a group, then covered as main sections Alexander The Great, The Mongols, the Brits, Soviets and Americans. It was basically a lot of battle dates and generals names. Grand strategy rather than tactics. It didn’t cover how the mountain tribes lived at all. It was also a bit too Jingoistic covering our current occupation. Not a bad book to read, if you can get it cheap or free, but I would advise against paying full price or thinking of it as anything other than general background information ( it is likely I won’t even reread it or reference it ). Please feel free to recommend books to me. As I said, I never have enough Interweb time so I miss a lot. I didn’t know about last months book “The Unit” nor did I know about yesterdays recommendation “The Fall Of Eden” ( The Fall of Eden
). I’ve ordered that one and will let you know what I think soon. And I had no idea that “Dwelling Portably” ( Dwelling Portably 1980-89
) had come out in book form. I loved the newsletter but never had the whole collection of issues. The three books out cover one decade per title and cost $8 each. I accidentally found out about them while looking to see the items on my Amazon commission orders list last month. 
) It always bothered me that so many people are dumbasses. You can’t help but think that it is a blooming wonder the human race has survived as long as it has, people do such stupid ass crap. Then it hit me. Dumbassness is actually a survival trait. For long periods of time, stability is required and desired. In cataclysms and sudden upheavals most of the population is wiped out and those individuals with the next new desired trait which was once an aberration becomes the saving grace of the race. This would include those with enough intelligence and imagination/creativity that would experiment with new ideas. For instance, during stable weather, you don’t want some maverick tinkering with farming techniques ( The New Organic Grower: A Master’s Manual of Tools and Techniques for the Home and Market Gardener
). Whatever proved successful in the past was what you stayed with. You never had enough of a surplus that you wanted to experiment. But when that new ice age started you had no choice but to try new ideas since the crops were doomed anyway. So dumbasses were encouraged, because they kept things stable. They didn’t threaten the tribe by being curious or inquisitive. They used the small brain power they had to learn what needed to be done and that was all the thinking required. Of course, this leads those who are smart enough to gain power to look down on the legions of idiots surrounding them. But were they smart enough to realize that all those fools assured their own survival? Doubtful. I don’t want to get too carried away with my wonderful new theory and actually compare the 90% of the population who are Extreme Dumbasses to, say, worker drones in an insect colony ( INSECTS
). But there are similarities to be sure.
) are confused about being a little bit pregnant ( you are either free or a slave, nothing in-between ). That said, realistically I understand that the 90% of the population that are dumbasses ( hey, look at that- it did tie in with the main article ) need government because they can’t look after themselves. Government on a tribal level makes sense. You need to plant a surplus to feed soldiers and weapons makers so that they protect you against attackers. Plus, come the time, you need them to attack a neighboring tribe to steal their food so you can survive the famine ( by the way, I don’t confuse the tribal and individual aspects of this. I might talk against people stealing my food, but I know it is hard-wired into them. It is a given. Hell, I might try to steal theirs if things get bad enough [ ten year winter from Yellowstone erupting ]. But condoning an action and realizing its inevitability are not contradictory ). In a herding society all herders are soldiers so there isn’t such a difference amongst leaders and the population. They are the exception. Now, once we get away from agricultural societies ( First Farmers: The Origins of Agricultural Societies
) and smaller political entities, things get complicated. A nation state is a bit different. Then you have wealth redistribution thrown in on top of protection. Yes, there is that to some degree in tribes but it is just one percent living in relative luxury. Actually, I should say in energy intensive societies there is a difference. A nation state is the result of a surplus. When you see a surplus that is enough to be noticeable to the serfs/peons/rabble, then you need to bribe them somewhat to pay them off and keep them quiet. 
) as a bribe for peace. It is okay for some to make millions as long as the average Joe gets tens of thousands. Which points out the dangers to the Powers That Be ( The Powers That Be
) in our current situation. Those not in power don’t realize the surplus is gone and so still expect their bribes. As the remaining/shrinking wealth flows into fewer hands, revolution becomes more possible. Do you remember the old saying, if politics changed anything it would be illegal? If either political party threatened to actually change anything, it too would be abolished. By voting, you don’t vote for a party but for the system as a whole. By not voting, you are withholding your consent to being screwed. You still get the high hard one shoved up your shorts, but at least you didn’t ask for it. 
), democrats, tea baggers, socialists. All window dressing for the masses. Those controlling resources and their distribution also control the politics and won’t change a thing. The only change will be less and less for you and me. Which really isn’t change, as its been going on for some time. Worry about real issues, like your immediate survival in an Oil Down, Energy Down, Civilization Down, Empire Down era we have unfolding before us now.
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) but grew tired of its fuel cost. It makes a very good pot of coffee ( thick as and with the taste of mud, scalding hot ), but unless you live in a forest and have mostly free wood and keep the stove going I wouldn’t advise using it. The French press ( Bodum 1548-01US Brazil 8-Cup (34-Ounce) Coffee Press
) is either expensive or prone to failure, plus if made of glass is begging to break and hurt you ( I believe we had a minion that was assaulted by his press ). The newest, best way to cheaply make off grid coffee is the stainless steel thermos ( Thermos Nissan FBB1000 34-Ounce Stainless-Steel Vacuum Insulated Briefcase Bottle
). Place your desired amount of grounds in the thermos, add boiling water, cover and wait ten to fifteen minutes. Reheat ( it comes to a boil quickly ) if you like it very hot. I then throw on another dose of water in the pan to prepare the next mug, assembly line fashion. My thermos holds two mugs of coffee and sometimes I’ll make them the night before. The next morning you don’t have to wait the fifteen, just toss in the pan to heat it up. You can experiment, but I can’t tell the difference if I leave in the thermos more than ten or fifteen minutes. Overnight doesn’t seem to make it any stronger. You might even like it after just five minutes. You’ll need a grounds basket with filter ( I got mine from trash picking from a discarded percolator ). Place on top of your cup and pour in from the thermos since the water is pre-measured. I use the re-useable coffee filter ( Perma-Brew 3 Year Re-useable Coffee Filter, Fluted Basket
), but while fast it does allow some fine grounds through. If you are a true frugal survivalist you will have one or two thermoses already so this is essentially a free coffee maker.
) knows that I’ve done some pretty dumbass things. I am no smarter than the average bear. Odds are that I fall well below genius IQ level. I am no smarter than you are. The only difference is that I devote an insane amount of time researching and thinking about the Apocalypse. That is my only edge. Okay, I’m sure I have a few other qualities that help. Not more common sense ( Common Sense
), but perhaps the ability to cut to the bone of the core issues. I don’t know, since it is kind of hard to be objective about yourself. So I can’t really blame people if they think, why should I listen to this idiot? He’s preaching to us about not doing things he’s already done. You could use the “smoking parent warning his children about cigarettes” analogy. Do as I say, not as I do. Yes, it helps that I’m now living what I’m preaching. Before it was theory and now it is example. But I’m not really here to preach by example. I don’t think living in the desert in a trailer is the greatest idea ( the collapse takes long enough to get lethal and I’ll be living in a better grade of underground cellar [ Build Your Own underground Root Cellar
] than what I have now which is only for emergencies ). I wish instead for you to listen to the reasons why the collapse is imminent. It is a lot of analytical tripe. A lot of pie in the sky wild ass guessing. But if you believe it correct it should give you a reason to light a fire under your ass preparing. 
). I lived amongst millions. As early as ‘85 I could have been making payments on Ozark land. I allowed myself to get into my current financial situation by being a total dumbass with wife #2. Yes, there was treachery on her part, but I allowed myself to make poor decisions all the same. It took me awhile to get out of debt, to invest rather than just pay bills. 
) on my shoulder. Now, the other side of the coin as far as living in an abstract equation is that, as I said, I devote an idiotic amount of time to thinking about the collapse. I think about these things riding my bike, driving at work, stocking shelves. Hell, this idea was hatched last night as I sat on the commode. Putting a lot of computational power behind a question is worthless if the basic premise is faulty, granted. But if we agree on the basics guiding the collapse, I’m telling you we don’t have much time left. In my opinion. I’m not trying to hedge my bets here. If I’m wrong I’ll admit to being wrong. I’d love to be wrong. But, please, don’t be a dumbass like myself and take forever insulating yourself from the collapse.
). Dies The Fire ( Dies the Fire: A Novel of the Change
). And of course One Second After ( One Second After
). My definition of a good post-apoc novel is great detail, written well enough to be reread repeatedly, and a lot of ideas and ponderables. Patriots is too Yuppie orientated and a bit stiff in its writing style. I’m not claiming I could do better, I’m comparing his to other published books of the genre. Go-Go Girls Of The Apocalypse ( Go-Go Girls of the Apocalypse: A Novel
) was a fun read and got me to buy the authors contemporary crime novels he was so good, but it is not a reread. I enjoyed The Unit, but while heads above a lot of drek out there and full of “makes you really think” it wasn’t top ten. World Made By Hand ( World Made by Hand: A Novel
) was well written and worth the money, but a Birkenstock tree hugging east coast blue blood asshat fairy tale all the same. I know I’m forgetting a lot, but I’ll wrap it up anyway. Lucifer’s and Dies The Fire, definitely are buy and reread books. 
], but you have to wonder about its anti-capitalism message ). Simplify doesn’t necessarily mean lack of possessions. I used to have a self imposed rule that whatever didn’t fit into two duffle bags when I moved ( and I used to move a lot ) was given away. This was a retarded rule as I kept re-buying the books I gave away. And if I had all the wheat I’ve tossed overboard to move I would at least double my current ton plus. Most likely triple it. Not that I didn’t try to keep it. When I lived back in California me and my dad took turns helping each other move. I got the far worse end of the deal as step mom has a semi load worth of crap. High end crap, but still crap. Heavy oak crap. Five freezers in the garage, etc. Anyway, he told he me wasn’t moving the same two dozen buckets of wheat one more time. They got moved around quite a bit. But, alas, eventually they were given away on an austerity move. I think more important than the number of possessions is how self sustaining they are. And, in intangibles, if the item is from debt or has a monthly cost. 
) is painless. Hooking up to panels and batteries require cleaning and almost daily inspection. But the point is to forego the necessity of earning the money to pay for the regular electricity, which includes car payments and higher rent for a nearby job and work clothes, etc. If you can slowly eliminate monthly bills, you are simplifying. But you also can’t just replicate the middleclass lifestyle. You need to downgrade to the simplest way to remedy problems. Which is why I prefer the bike commute ( Ready to Pedal: Ride More, Drive Less, Here’s How! Bicycle DVD
). I have the motor vehicle, enjoy what it does, but don’t rely on it to survive. The bicycle simplifies transportation. I clear the land of scrub brush, not with a tractor or chainsaw, but with a manual saw and pruners ( the small blade, long handle pruner was the wife’s idea- and works much better than a saw. Plus, it was on end of season clearance ). It is simple and a breakage is cheap and easy to remedy. Water hauled in buckets is far easier than financing a well and all the equipment that needs ( what frozen pipes? ). We all need tools and tools must be maintained. But butt simple tools ( manual sweeper and annual rug beating instead of an electric vacuum powered by a generator ) vastly simplify your life.
