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Maybe a tad paranoid but...........
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<blockquote data-quote="Marguerite" data-source="post: 473560" data-attributes="member: 1991"><p>Economies are tanking around the world because when the US sneezes, the rest of the world catches cold. We were fortunate in Australia to have a government do stuff which seemed crazy, but saved our bacon (and rice, and bank accounts, and other stuff). When all the survivalist stuff and government info in other countries was saying, "Save your money! Stuff it under the mattress!" or whatever, our government handed it out. To the poorest people first, the ones who would HAVE to spend it to survive.</p><p>Result - money flowing round the economy. People getting paid for services. People at the coal face of the economy, the grovers, the shopkeepers, all getting paid for their goods and services. They could then afford to buy more. And so it flowed on.</p><p></p><p>When times are tough, people talk about conspiracy. Paranoia is more common. "Maybe it's because of the ...[insert hypothetical catastrophe here]". This sort of emotional backlash then becomes a negative feedback loop and the situation worsens. "See?" the doomsday people say. "That proves my predictions were correct!"</p><p>Not, it doesn't. It is what is called a self-fulfilling prophecy.</p><p></p><p>My brother used to be a wealthy man. Then 25+ years ago we had a combination of problems - an economic downturn, plus his franchise got embezzled by the head office honcho who disappeared to Argentina with the proceeds. My brother had mortgaged everything to keep his business afloat, only to lose the lot and have to declare bankruptcy. Now, we have a law that says that a bankrupt person can't start a new business in the same state for a certain number of years. My brother's wife consulted a fortune teller (WHY? With what funds!?) who listened to the story and advised, "You will move interstate and he will make his fortune back again."</p><p>Now, that was perhaps a fairly safe bet. Someone like my brother who always did well in business (when not embezzled!) would of course want to get back on the horse immediately. So it made sense to say he would move interstate.</p><p></p><p>The fortune teller said they would move interstate, so that is what they did. Trouble is, he never had the capital it needed to get back into the black. No fortune re-made. They live in rental accommodation on a government pension and also work as cleaners. But the fortune teller said... only because the fortune teller was making a well-informed guess. Self-fulfilling prophecy.</p><p></p><p>Stocking up on bulk goods is a good idea if you need to save money, but avoid spoilage. If you're really concerned about possible catastrophes, drinking water is the most urgent concern. You can survive on no food for a lot longer than you can survive on no water. And stockpiled water needs to be used or it goes stale. Loaded with algae or bacteria. </p><p></p><p>We use large volume plastic juice bottles (well cleaned and dried) to store rice, sugar, etc. A large plastic drum to store bread flour. Rainwater tanks. Filtered water. Solar hot water. Vegetable garden. Hens. I cook from scratch, knit and sew. Not because we fear the end of the world, but because that is how I was raised and our environment needs people to consider the travel costs of what they use as well as the other environmental costs. We need to get away from our over-packaged, over-marketed society and back to a simpler and healthier lifestyle. If we don't, then the paranoia will become reality, one we have brought on ourselves by our own shortsightedness.</p><p></p><p>Marg</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Marguerite, post: 473560, member: 1991"] Economies are tanking around the world because when the US sneezes, the rest of the world catches cold. We were fortunate in Australia to have a government do stuff which seemed crazy, but saved our bacon (and rice, and bank accounts, and other stuff). When all the survivalist stuff and government info in other countries was saying, "Save your money! Stuff it under the mattress!" or whatever, our government handed it out. To the poorest people first, the ones who would HAVE to spend it to survive. Result - money flowing round the economy. People getting paid for services. People at the coal face of the economy, the grovers, the shopkeepers, all getting paid for their goods and services. They could then afford to buy more. And so it flowed on. When times are tough, people talk about conspiracy. Paranoia is more common. "Maybe it's because of the ...[insert hypothetical catastrophe here]". This sort of emotional backlash then becomes a negative feedback loop and the situation worsens. "See?" the doomsday people say. "That proves my predictions were correct!" Not, it doesn't. It is what is called a self-fulfilling prophecy. My brother used to be a wealthy man. Then 25+ years ago we had a combination of problems - an economic downturn, plus his franchise got embezzled by the head office honcho who disappeared to Argentina with the proceeds. My brother had mortgaged everything to keep his business afloat, only to lose the lot and have to declare bankruptcy. Now, we have a law that says that a bankrupt person can't start a new business in the same state for a certain number of years. My brother's wife consulted a fortune teller (WHY? With what funds!?) who listened to the story and advised, "You will move interstate and he will make his fortune back again." Now, that was perhaps a fairly safe bet. Someone like my brother who always did well in business (when not embezzled!) would of course want to get back on the horse immediately. So it made sense to say he would move interstate. The fortune teller said they would move interstate, so that is what they did. Trouble is, he never had the capital it needed to get back into the black. No fortune re-made. They live in rental accommodation on a government pension and also work as cleaners. But the fortune teller said... only because the fortune teller was making a well-informed guess. Self-fulfilling prophecy. Stocking up on bulk goods is a good idea if you need to save money, but avoid spoilage. If you're really concerned about possible catastrophes, drinking water is the most urgent concern. You can survive on no food for a lot longer than you can survive on no water. And stockpiled water needs to be used or it goes stale. Loaded with algae or bacteria. We use large volume plastic juice bottles (well cleaned and dried) to store rice, sugar, etc. A large plastic drum to store bread flour. Rainwater tanks. Filtered water. Solar hot water. Vegetable garden. Hens. I cook from scratch, knit and sew. Not because we fear the end of the world, but because that is how I was raised and our environment needs people to consider the travel costs of what they use as well as the other environmental costs. We need to get away from our over-packaged, over-marketed society and back to a simpler and healthier lifestyle. If we don't, then the paranoia will become reality, one we have brought on ourselves by our own shortsightedness. Marg [/QUOTE]
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