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Time To Face the Facts on Afghanistan
Information Clearinghouse
Washington, DC - "Both Barack Obama and John McCain are wrong about Afghanistan. It is not a 'good' fight against 'terrorism,' but a classic, 19th century colonial war to advance western geopolitical power into resource-rich Central Asia. The Pashtun Afghans who live there are ready to fight for another 100 years."
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article20971.htm

Pirates Threaten to Blow Up Ship

BBC News

Gulf of Aden, Somalia - Somali pirates holding a Ukrainian ship with a cargo of military tanks off the Somali coast have threatened to blow it up if they are not paid a ransom.

A pirate spokesman told news agencies by satellite telephone that the ransom of $20m (£12m) must be paid by Monday night or the ship would be destroyed.

He said the pirates were ready to die along with the crew.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7664767.stm

Fox News

New York, New York - The World Bank Group's computer network — one of the largest repositories of sensitive data about the economies of every nation — has been raided repeatedly by outsiders for more than a year, FOX News has learned.

It is still not known how much information was stolen. But sources inside the bank confirm that servers in the institution's highly-restricted treasury unit were deeply penetrated with spy software last April. Invaders also had full access to the rest of the bank's network for nearly a month in June and July.

In total, at least six major intrusions — two of them using the same group of IP addresses originating from China — have been detected at the World Bank since the summer of 2007, with the most recent breach occurring just last month.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,435681,00.html

Associated Press

Moscow, Russia - A submarine-launched ballistic missile has made a record flight, hitting a target in the middle of the Pacific Ocean for the first time, Russian officials said Saturday.

President Dmitry Medvedev witnessed the test, part of naval exercises being staged in the northern Barents Sea.

Russian TV showed what it said was the Sineva missile launching from the submarine Tula. Medvedev said Saturday it flew more than 7,100 miles into the Pacific near the equator.

Medvedev also was quoted by Russian news agencies as ordering naval officials to begin building new aircraft carriers.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,436426,00.html

Associated Press

Tripoli, Libya - Three Russian warships — including a nuclear-powered missile cruiser — have called on the Libyan port of Tripoli for a two-day stop on their way to the Caribbean.

Cruiser Pyotr Veliky, anti-submarine vessel Admiral Chabanenko, and support vessels from the Northern Fleet are on their way to Latin America to take part in joint naval exercises with Venezuela.

The vessels reached Libya Saturday.

The deployment will represent the largest Russian naval maneuvers in the Caribbean since the Cold War.

Venezuela has forged close ties with Russia, which is looking to increase its presence in Latin America.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,436427,00.html

BBC News

Washington, DC - US State Department officials made the announcement after reaching an agreement with Pyongyang over nuclear verification measures.

"Every element of verification that we sought has been included in this agreement," an official said.

North Korea began disabling its Yongbyon nuclear reactor in August, but more recently it has made moves to reassemble the plant after Washington refused to remove it from the terror sponsors' list.

In other provocative steps, it expelled UN inspectors and test-fired short-range missiles, heightening tensions with the US.

Correspondents say that Pyongyang wants to come off the US list in order to receive international aid and loans, and as a step towards its diplomatic rehabilitation.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7665206.stm

China View News

Beijing, China - The latest tests found that Chinese liquid dairy products met the new temporary restrictions on melamine, the country's top quality control agency said on Saturday.

It was the ninth investigation on the industrial chemical following the tainted baby formula scandal that killed at least three infants and sickened more than 50,000 others, according to the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine (AQSIQ).

China on Wednesday set temporary limits on melamine content in dairy products. The limits were a maximum of 1 mg of melamine per kg of infant formula and a maximum 2.5 mg per kg for liquid milk, milk powder and food products containing at least 15 percent milk.

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-10/11/content_10180918.htm

The Wall Street Journal

Washington, DC - The Bush administration is hoping to announce as soon as Saturday that it is tentatively removing North Korea from its list of state sponsors of terrorism, in a bid to kick-start a stalled nuclear disarmament agreement, U.S. officials said.

The move would mark a significant concession by the U.S., which has been negotiating with Pyongyang over terms for allowing the international community to gauge the extent of North Korea's nuclear arsenal. The proposed deal is already stoking the ire of U.S. conservatives. Republican presidential candidate John McCain said in a statement Friday that the U.S. must "avoid reaching for agreement for its own sake, particularly if it leaves critical verification issues unaddressed."

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122368530580325113.html?mod=googlenews_wsj

CNN Asia

Washington, DC - Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice signed a new nuclear trade deal Friday with the United States which she said will unlock a vast potential partnership.

The agreement will open the door for U.S. companies to provide billions of dollars of equipment and expertise to the Indian nuclear power industry.

http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/10/11/us.india.nuclear.pact/

Times of India

Washington, DC - India has indicated it would not mind the United States entering a civil

nuclear deal with Pakistan, saying it believed every country has the right to use nuclear energy for peaceful purposes.

"We will like to encourage civil nuclear cooperation for peaceful use of nuclear energy," external affairs minister Pranab Mukherjee said at a press conference after signing the bilateral 123 agreement with Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.

"We believe every country has the right to use nuclear energy for peaceful purposes," he said when asked about Islamabad's demand for an India-like nuclear deal with the US.

In reply to another question about Pakistan's apprehensions about the nuclear deal, Mukherjee said India was determined to build good relations with Pakistan and was trying to resolve all outstanding issues between them through their composite dialogue process.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/3583688.cms

Associated Press

Puerto San Carlos, Mexico - Fishermen pulled in their boats and hotels warned tourists away from beaches Friday as Category 2 Hurricane Norbert bore down on Mexico's southern Baja California peninsula.

Norbert, with winds of near 105 mph, was expected to hit land early Saturday along a relatively unpopulated stretch north of the resort of Cabo San Lucas.

http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5gEhzSsWOgWU_7qqk0Pi86kLVtWiwD93O2IU00

Free Press

Detroit, Michigan - The tainted iceberg lettuce that has sickened 36 people statewide originated in California before being shipped to Michigan, state agriculture officials announced Thursday.

http://www.freep.com/article/20081010/NEWS06/810100328/1001/

In focusing on economic emergency planning, you have to distinguishes between international emergencies which are basically economic in nature and the economic aspects of planning for 'total' emergencies (i.e., recovery from all-out nuclear attack). In reviewing the concepts 'economic' 'international' 'emergency' and 'preparedness' it is pointed out that international economic emergencies could be non-adversarial in nature, for example a major natural disaster requiring controls on imports and exports.

However actual international economic emergencies have all been of an adversarial nature. Like the Arab oil embargo of 1973, they have also all had political aspects. But while the oil embargo was foreign 'autonomous' in nature (not arising through U.S. action) other emergencies have represented U.S. policy responses to international situations. Proposed U.S. economic action against South Africa would be a policy response to events in the nation. A major reason for being concerned with international economic emergencies is the increasing exposure for the U.S. economy to international influences. Imports have about to almost 10% of GNP, and production of some types of goods in the United States has ceased. The U.S. technological lead may be diminishing. And foreign investment in the United States has reached the point in mid-1985 where we have become a debtor nation.

Now we're seeing the fruits these actions. We are reliant on other countries for oil, food, products and so much more.

We've prevented drilling for ourselves. We export all the products we grow and then re-buy them on the global market at a loss. We've closed down the majority of our major manufacturing and moved all these factories overseas where we re-buy the products to resell.

If there is an collapse in governments or trade then what do we do?

From a preparedness standpoint it's every man for himself.

Jobs are lost and people lose their homes. If they have no food on hand and no savings then
they rely on government aid and food banks and shelters. As more and more of this happens you end up with what we have now - food banks that have empty shelves. People living in tent cities and car camps. And where will the government get the food to feed everyone? They don't have it.

Hunger causes families to make difficult choices: 51% of the hungry people serves must choose between food and paying for heat, 40% must choose between food and paying for medicine or medical care, and 40% must choose between food and rent.

Recent news stories have alluded to the possibility of famine in America in 2008 and I believe we may be headed down that road. In all the news reports I’ve seen, this year’s wheat crop is pretty much destroyed worldwide. Agriculture experts and economists are following worldwide weather trends and crop damage and it‘s not looking good.

AP News has been reporting that the March 2008 spring flooding has all but eradicated Arkansas' spring wheat crop and Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and Missouri all are reporting similar conditions. Much of the remaining U.S. wheat crop has been pre-sold to foreign countries, therefore it will be domestic supplies that run out first. In fact, wheat reserves in the United States are at their lowest levels since the Depression. Although initially price controls will keep the prices of breads, cereals and other wheat-based products stable, eventually, prices will have to rise in order to keep these industries afloat.

Rain & hail storms in Thailand, Pakistan, and the Middle East are threatening or have already destroyed this years wheat crop. And that is from this mornings newswires. While dry weather in India, the world's second largest wheat producer, has contributed to global supply tightness. India's grain-belt has been stricken with long periods of drought since December, threatening roughly half the country's 2.8 billion bushel crop. "They're stuck in that (dry) pattern. The damage isn't done yet, but it will be done if we stay in this pattern for the next two or three weeks," Jason Ward, analyst with Northstar Commodity in Minneapolis said.

U.S. wheat stockpiles have thinned as bad weather has battered crop after crop around the world, most recently in Argentina and India. The scarcity has fed seemingly relentless demand for wheat supplies, often at any cost. U.S. wheat exporters have sold more than 15 million bushels a week for seven of the last 11 weeks, well above the U.S. Department of Agriculture's weekly target of about 1 million bushels a week.

The United Nations News is reporting that a new fungus has been discovered in Uganda and the Middle East that is spreading and is also having a serious impact on wheat yields in affected countries.

The food shortage is so bad in Haiti that people are eating mud cookies. Yes, cookies made from dried yellow dirt from the country’s central plateau and some people can’t afford to make those because unless they can make the trip to get the dirt they can’t make the mud to make the cookies. Crazy huh? I can’t make this stuff up - Google Haitians Eating Dirt and read the story on ABC News or any of the other agencies reporting it.

We take our food for granted and we’re all just one season away from a major famine or terrorist threat. And wheat isn’t the only thing that’s scarce. Corn for food is scarce because farmers are growing Genetically-Modified crops for ethanol production and GMO corn for ethanol isn’t edible. Or at least is doesn’t taste good.

Since October 2006, 35% of the Western honey bee population - billions of bees - has disappeared in the United States. It’s called Colony Collapse Disorder and by the end of 2007 reports of similar occurrences have flooded in from many other countries. It is thought to be related to certain microscopic ticks attaching themselves to the honey bees or genetically modified crops - experts can‘t seem to agree on anything except that the bees are gone. While this has already started a rise in honey prices, and seriously affecting my Mead production, the actual impact of the honey bee decimation will be catastrophic. Honey bees are needed to pollinate more than 30% of the crops in the United States. Without pollination, fruit and vegetables don’t grow. Major crop producers are already seeing the impact on their crops and prices will rise as the honey bee decimation continues.

Couple all of this with rising fuel & transportation costs and crops being grown for uses other than eating and we’re in a crisis that we may not be able to recover from.

So what do you do?

You start by making a list. How many people do you need to feed? What do you need to feed them? Choose foods that make sense for your family. If you store 100 pounds of wheat berries do you even know what to do with them? Will your family eat them? Our motto is “Store what you eat, eat what you store and store 6 months to one year’s worth MINIMUM.”

Your main storage items will be what are called “staples”. This includes flour, sugar, salt, yeast, water and canned goods. These items are bought in the bags you get at the grocery or if you buy in bulk they’re in large 25-50 pound bags. We repackage these items in buckets with Gamma lids which allow us to upon and close the buckets easily. You can get buckets free sometimes by contacting local restaurants & bakeries. Wash with hot soapy water, rinse with some bleach water and let them dry in the sun which also helps to kill germs.

Do you have a bread machine? They’re crazy inexpensive now and a breeze to use. Buy flour and ingredients when they’re on sale. Bread is cheaper to make at home and tastes a thousand times better. At a $1.39 a loaf and up you can literally make it for pennies. You can also make pizza dough, breakfast rolls, etc. And once you find out how much you love fresh breads learn how to do it by hand in case the power goes out and you can’t use your bread machine. Everything that the machine does you can do by hand. You can bake on a gas grill or in your woodstove or even in a bonfire if you have the right tools.

Shop the sales. Each week when you get the store ads check out what’s on special and stock up on it if it’s a great price. If you’ve made your list then you know what your family eats. I keep receipts and keep track of what items like ketchup, mayonnaise, soup, and cereal costs. When it’s on sale I can see what I paid last time and if it’s a deal I’ll stock up and get extras. You should always put a stock-up buffer in your grocery budget. That way if there’s a huge deal then make it worthwhile.

Where are you going to put all this stuff? If you have a pantry or closet then great but cases of canned food stack easy and you can rotate the stuff into your cupboards. You can store cases under beds, under your desk, in a garage, up against a wall covered with a table cloth. I’ve had several tables made out of stacked buckets of sugar, salt & flour topped with a round piece of wood and covered with a table cloth. It was some of the most useful furniture I ever had. One of the main things to remember is keep your food in a cool, dry place if you can. It’ll extend the shelf-life. Make room for your own food supply or you’ll be standing in food lines waiting for government bread, government cheese, soup, milk and toilet paper.

If you can afford it, buy a freezer. We got our upright used. Occasionally you may have to have it repaired but it’s worth the investment when prices are high. Chest freezers work best but they’re hard to search through if you have a large variety of items. Uprights are easier to inventory. Buy meats in bulk and break them down into smaller packages or if the butcher department has a sale, have them wrap it for you in individually packed sizes like one or two pounds per pack. It’s no extra charge and saves you from having to buy paper and tape. I always stop by that department first, tell them what I need like 20 pounds of ground beef in 1 pound packs and I tell them I’ll come back for it. They’ll remember you and appreciate that you gave them the extra time and you can use it to go stock your cart with other sale items & groceries.

Work you meals around what’s on sale and what you have on hand. Be flexible.

Locally we shop at a place called Cash-N-Carry which supplies small restaurants and stores but they allow regular people to shop there. Not everything is a great deal but have you really paid attention to the pricing in Costco and the other huge stores? Sometimes you actually pay more than in the grocery store. Pay attention, map everything out on paper and bring a calculator. I forget mine half the time and if you see me in the bulk aisle talking out loud trying to do math in the air then you’ll definitely remember to bring your own calculator.

And grow your own fruit and veggies. Some of you may remember Victory Gardens although a lot of you are too young but they were also called War Gardens or Food Gardens for Defense. It was a way of feeding families while being able to ship food to our fighting men and women overseas. Families were encouraged to plant gardens in their yards and share & swap with neighbors.

You don’t need a big yard, heck you don’t even need a yard as long as you can put dirt in containers. Lettuce grows in 15 days in little shallow trays only 1.5-2” deep. I usually have several growing at a time and if you clip the lettuce instead of pulling it then it keeps growing. You can do carrots in flower pots if you get the little ones. Tomatoes, peppers, even cucumbers and beans have bush-types that you can grow in pots right on your porch or in pots in bright windows.

Consider getting heirloom seeds. These are seeds that if you save them from the fruit of vegetable you can replant them and grow them again next season. Most seeds nowadays are one time use. If you save the seeds and replant them you probably won’t get anything and you may not even get the same kind of plant because of all the cross breeding. I buy heirloom whenever possible.

Grow herbs on your counter tops in little pots. Put plants in every window. Teach the kids how to water them. If you have a deck you can plant dwarf fruit trees in pots and bring them in during the winter.

If you get a lot of something you can freeze it, can it or dry it. Freezing and drying are the easier of the three.

Sprouts are really cool, easy to grow and packed with vitamins and minerals. They only take a couple days to get enough for eating, they’re cheap considering how much food you get and they taste great. Mung bean sprouts are great for stir frys. I add alfalfa and sprout blends like broccoli & radish sprouts to sandwiches and for an easy snack try a Triscuit or whole grain cracker with a slice of cheddar cheese topped with some sprouts. Microwave for about 30 second and you have a decent snack or even a quick meal.

If you live in an area where you can raise chickens then do it. They’re easy, their fun and they’re adorable. You don’t have to eat the chickens if you can’t but they’re worth it too. You can always have someone butcher them for you. They eat tons of bugs, their waste is good for the compost and you don’t need a rooster to get eggs unless you also want baby chickens. Check out www.backyardchickens.com for more information.

And what about your pets? I have two black labs and I have seen their dog food rise from $5.96 for a 25 pound bag to $7.50 in just 2 weeks and I have a feeling it’s going to go up from their. Remember that most pet foods use wheat & corn along with the usually meat by-products. And the cost of trucking this food around has gone up as well. If it goes on sale then buy extra. Since it’s not cheaper to buy the 50 pound bag then I’ll just keep buying the 25 pound bags. Rotate it like you would your regular food and keep it in it’s bag. You can store 3 - 4 bags in a 30-55gal trash can with a lid to keep pests out. Keep it in a garage or basement and get out one bag at a time. Consider supplementing your pet’s dry food with leftover rice, meat & vegetables. I don’t condone feeding them table scraps willy-nilly but the good stuff is good for them, too and it’ll help stretch out their dog food and cut on waste.

I’m going to stray from food here for a few minutes and let you know that there are other things you need to store which we’ll cover in other shows but if you’re going to all this length to do this much then you should also shop the sales on other items.

Food isn’t the only thing you should store. We have buckets with Strike-Anywhere Matches, pens & pencils. Paper products like toilet paper, etc. It’s an old joke to stock up on toilet paper but think about how much you’ll be hating life if you didn’t have any to use. What about deodorants, toothpaste, razors and shaving cream. Have you seen the prices jumping up? Women’s products also need to be stored if you have girls & women in your household.

This is all under your own control.