willits livin'

good times being had in this town. many many good folks, a gracious host in antonia, and a community that is more progressive in the sustainable direction than most any i have seen otherwise.

still a ways to go. but yet last weekend i spoke to someone about the lack of reality of peak oil, climate change and that the systems are not in fact closed but open and infinite and that all is produced within if that is the reality we chose to live in. in essense it is all about which reality we chose to live in.

i wonder if the mohicans chose their reality, or the redwoods that once line the yokayo and napa valleys. perhaps they figured their time had come and it was better to leave earth. not sure about that.


--

on another note- it is still interesting to me how a culture that pushes the use of plant medicine in virtually every form to the fringes and even makes many illegal thinks they can reach the deeper levels of understanding without the aid of our plant ally friends. are we that capable as humans, with all the influences of the world- media, tv, electromagnetism, a capitalistic culture, many brainwashed people blindly following, food and all the chemicals in it, in the water, in the air, to find and follow the path with clarity without some aid, be it plants, music, fasting, chanting, singing, dancing, or communing in love with another person.

i, personally, am grateful for the guidence given by nature and her gifts.

not so simple living fair

http://nsslf.wordpress.com/

Thirty some years ago in Anderson Valley the Simple Living Fair made its debut at the Boonville Fairgrounds. The driving force then was a group of back-to-the-land refugees from urban venues who had the desire and hope to make this agricultural work relevant; cooperating with and respecting nature; and moving a lot of dirt. This summer at the Mendocino County Fairgrounds in Boon­ville on July 31st and August 1st the Anderson Valley Foodshed has organized a retrospective and brand new version called the NOT So Simple Living Fair.

Throughout the weekend we will have simultaneous displays and demonstrations, Conversation Café, Barter Blanket area, Tool Show and Tell, and Marketplace. Displays and demonstrations will cover the topics of:

* Animal Husbandry
* Herbs and Health
* Sustainable Practical Skills
* Greywater and Rainwater Harvesting
* Farming and Gardening
* Food Storage and Preservation
* Alternative Energy
* Kitchen Skills
* Tool Show and Tell
* Beekeeping
* Seedsaving
* Shelter
* Fermentation and Dairy Culturing
* Hunting and Gathering

Our Mission:

The Anderson Valley Foodshed Group works toward a vibrant, healthy local food system for our community. We celebrate our local foods, farmers and gardeners. We aim to increase our capacity to grow a diverse, year-long supply of food for all who live here. We work toward these goals through education, connecting people to each other, and creating new opportunities to grow, process and enjoy locally grown food.

nature by numbers

introduced by a friend of mine

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cPdVhjXHdfE

nature is pretty cool

one reason I like mendocino

the war on the cannabis plant must end. i have found few places that are actively moving forward with community discussions. oakland leads the pack for sure, but mendo is not too far behind.

Medical Marijuana Community

Strategy Meeting

Sat July 17 2010 1-6pm

Saturday Afternoon Club, 107 South Oak, Ukiah

Participants will include:

Joy Greenfield--1st Approved Applicant in the County's 99 plant exemption Permit process,

raided by the DEA with COMMET support, will tell her story.

Jim Hill-- Local medical grower raided by DEA with COMMET support last fall will tell of his experiences

Mark Wuerfel-- Creator of Mendocino Pride collective, raided by DEA with COMMET support will tell about his three raids

Also: Plaintiffs from Nuisance Ordinance Lawsuits;

Asset Forfeiture; Sheriff's Gardensite Guidelines;

Collectives as Legal Closed-Loop Membership

Associations; Third Party Verifier; Organic, Local

Sustainable Value-Added Economy; CBD Science;

Legalization / Regulation / Future Proposal.

Emerald Triangle Coalition (ETC) Information.

Mendocino Medical Marijuana Advisory Board

PO Box 2555

Mendocino, CA 95460

707-964-9377

http://www.mmmab.net

back on left coast

been a few since the last update. now in willits doing some organic farm work on a homestead and at the elementary school- brookside elem.

further west- to the far east

hi- left california in november and have been travelling through thailand and a bit of laos since then. it's been great. lots to share but ned more time to type.

Spring time in Berkeley!

What a time to be in California. Today was the 40th Anniversary of People's Park, and a nice gathering took place all afternoon in PP, with drums, music, herb, and sun.

Training for Transition- San Francisco, Dec 6,7

Transition Towns Training – SF, December 6 and 7, 2008.

This past weekend I was fortunate to be able to spend some time with folks who are looking into the future and not talking only about the doom and gloom scenarios that certainly will befall pockets, if not most of humanity, if we continue down the path of consumption, ignorance, and denial that we are currently walking. Instead, this weekend was more about accepting that we are going to live in a world that will need to go through a period of transition away from our reliance on cheap, abundant liquid fuels and into one that is short on dense, transportable energy and one that is affected by climate change that is most inevitably upon us.

I wrote recently a summary of Transition Towns. That can be found at http://leftcoastjournals.blogspot.com/2008/09/transition-towns.html.

The event was called “Transition Towns Training.” Transition Towns is a movement started in England about 4 years ago. This is on their home page: “It all starts off when a small collection of motivated individuals within a community come together with a shared concern: how can our community respond to the challenges, and opportunities, of Peak Oil and Climate Change?” They put forth a series of steps, or ingredients, that communities can implement if they want the transition to be smoother. “We are all in transition, whether we like it or not, some of us are just not aware of it.” Through increased awareness we have much to gain, including a less panicked population, more time for preparation and the most valuable resource of all, in my opinion, engaged humans bringing forth their individual knowledge.

We met on the northern coast of San Francisco as the moon was in its third quarter. A sunny and warm beautiful morning with the Golden Gate off in the western horizon, 52 unique individuals came together to be led through Training for Transition by founders(of the training) Sophy Banks and Naresh Giangrande. After beginning with some protocol for group discussion - one hand up to be next, two hands up to respond to the immediate point, and a T to indicate a technical response - we moved on to different group mingles. We aligned by geographic location, community (however we defined it) size, our community’s progress in transition, and how long we have been ‘involved’ personally, with introductions and discussing why we are here going around among each new set of neighbors. The group came together with many goals, among them:

• To form groups
• Learn practical ideas
• Gain and share inspiration
• Explore the role of technology
• To create jobs
• To gain a sense of wider contacts

We then moved into an exercise where we shared knowledge about peak oil, PO, and climate change, CC. Much of this information was known generally to most of the group, so the importance of understanding the problem before moving onto solutions was made clear. I will state here my high regard for both Sophy and Naresh as instructors. The methods employed allowed for all members of the group to be engaged and helped facilitate communication between the Transitioners. In our talking of peak oil, climate change and solutions, we were encouraged to leave out opinions, and instead to present facts in as balanced a way as possible.

We discussed how to close the loops; using less resources à producing less waste à using the waste as a resource was emphasized. We have plenty of ‘energy’, but not liquid fuels.

Naresh then spoke of 4 potential future scenarios, after we had a mutually defined reality based on PO and CC. Starting from the top:

• Blue line - shows what most seem to believe, that growth will continue without end, even if we must go into space at some point
• Pink line- that green technology will emerge and at such a level to enable us to maintain our near current way of life
• Yellow line- an Earth Stewardship approach that has the world using much less energy in order to maintain a balance with the rest of life on earth.
• Blue line- a Mad Max scenario, which may be where we end up if transition does begin soon on a large level.

Naresh also recommended Naomi Klein’s “Shock Doctrine” and Starhawk’s “Fifth Sacred Thing” and inspired us with this quote by JFK- “The problems of the world cannot possibly be solved by skeptics or cynics whose horizons are limited by the obvious realities. We need people who can dream of things that never were.”

After lunch, which surprisingly was everyone fend for themselves (the only drawback for me all weekend), we began with a visioning experience looking forward 20 years into the future to see what life was like then. The resounding view was a positive one, of more community, more shared meals, a simpler life.

Along the way we would need to hold different events for different groups based on who was present and what stage they were at-

Pre- Contemplation	Is there a problem?	Talks, films, info sessions, potlucks
Contemplation	What needs to be done?	Solutions detailed, reasons for change
Preparation	What will I do? How?	Reskilling, timetable, transition teams
Change	Keep going and/ or try something else.	Support, celebrations, deepening work

When we begin meeting, there are some first steps to keep in mind:

• Get to know others in group- this may take time
• Set intent
• Establish ground rules
• Take time, meet a few times without putting pressure on results
• Set a when will we finish task- ie we cannot grow food for all of ‘town’ but we can celebrate when we install 5 gardens.

The first day wrapped up nicely and with many tired folks, as much work was done. As many folks were staying at the hostel also located at Fort Mason, I offered to pick up some food for a communal dinner, an offer only one other member of the group accepted, though we met some great folks travelling through SF over our lentil, rice, and broccoli dinner superbly prepared by a gracious guest and chef. Some other Transitioners did enjoy the meal the next day for lunch.

The moon set a little later on Saturday, falling into the Pacific just after midnight.

Day2-

The mourning process will be long and hard. There is much that we will lose as we accept that a transition is coming. We need to put that energy into something positive. On that note I will head out to the spiral gardens and continue this after the sun has set.

Back home after recovering much primo topsoil to put new plants into.

The afternoon began with a discussion about our Beliefs in the Industrial Growth System. These brainstormed ideas could loosely be placed into these 5 categories:

• The world will not meet our needs àCreate excesses to compensate
• Worthlessness is felt àWe use external things to gratify us
• We are powerless- we have lost confidence in our own abilities àSo we dominate nature and other people
• We have concern for our safety à So we arm ourselves, protect ourselves
• We are separate from nature àWe seem to know celebrity news but not our neighbors

We then moved into a talk about psychotherapy, and how we develop their world view as they grow up in this world. Most experience a duality of the brain- one part saying all is well and we are safe and the other saying we must watch out for ourselves. We adapted by doing things that first bring us partial success and then by repressing memories of the good and bad split within our thoughts. Here again I felt that awareness raising was critical to helping the people as a whole from fully crossing over to ‘everyone for themselves’ as the situation deteriorates.

We will find our own place, where we belong.

The question was raised- what do we who have transitioned do when the hungry come knocking on our doors- we must open our doors or we have not transitioned. (but when has opening the doors ever led to anything positive?)

We may all be hungry together, but sharing the human experience is the key. We have to chance to reclaim our humanness, our femininity.

Remember the law of 2 feet- when not engaged, use your 2 feet and go somewhere else. This leads us to the ‘open space’ model of discussion. Those with a topic to discuss wrote their idea on a post it, and we merged ideas to get about 8 topics and then broke to different tables to discuss our ideas in a free form model, with some people staying put and others floating about the room. When opens space starts it starts, and when it ends it ends, and whoever comes are the right people, and whatever happens is the only thing that could have happened.

Lunch Sunday ended with a brief discussion about the state of the economy, and if I was trying to be optimistic before this talk it faded again, hopefully the denial will not try to come up again. Money is debt- thanks to the Federal Reserve and their lovely policy of charging us interest on all the money the print and lend us- that is citizens of the US. Two scenarios for the economy-

• There are resource constraints, peak oil is upon us- economy looks bad now, and if oil prices go up again the economy spirals down
• There is more oil- the economy can hang on until the peak hits, which is inevitable.

When peak oil becomes apparent, Wall Street will crash.

Perhaps the most powerful part of the weekend was a visioning experiment where ½ of us journeyed 7 generations into the future and then came back to listen to a present day transitioner describe what it is like going through transition and what their role during transition was. This brough a level of realness, we are going into the unknown, and having the chance to talk about what it ‘was’ like and what we did helped, for me, move my ideas forward. My dominating idea is to bring food production to more urban/ suburban areas by planting food in peoples backyards, frontyards, and eventually streets. I see this as being a very local movement with most ‘farmers’ travelling less than a mile to work, with local nurseries to help with teaching and propagation and soil making, with many homes slowly making the conversion to graywater and solar, and many more community meals being shared and information being shared, and community growing and happening in many places. I wrote more about this here.

If you had a piece of land that was yours to care for, what would you do?

Now turn this around and treat yourself that way, as you are a part of the earth.

If you are tired, rest. If you are hungry, eat. Take care of yourself, LOVE YOURSELF.

Thank you for you interest in my experiences at Training for Transition. Since last weekend I have met many others in the east bay who are looking to get a transition movement, including POGO, peak oil group of Oakland, who screened just Power of Community. We have a long way to go and not much time. Please contact anyone from transition, there are groups set up in every state now, or feel free to contact me directly if you want to talk. Thanks do much. Love to all.

Mike Adams

mikeafarmer@gmail.com

Voting - in november and every day

Many of us seem to think all we need to do is get Obama elected and he will take care of the rest. And the scientists will find a new liquid fuel for our cars as well.

We vote every day with our dollar and our actions. This faith, hope, or whatever you want to call it in our leaders to come is unjustified. It is only through the actions of all, or most, that change will come. Why should obama care about sound economic policy, energy policy, agricultural policy, or climate policy if we don't, as evident by our excesses all over the spectrum?

Drive less, grow some food, have a neighborhood potluck, read a book, buy locally produced food, pick up the trash in front of your house, and encourage other to do the same. One day it will be cool to care about others and the planet. We vote every day, many times a day.

Stop down-talking coal and oil until you stop using electricity and using products made from or transported to you with oil. There is nothing that will come even close to matching the billions of btus produced from fossil fuels. The sooner we accept that the sooner we accept the climate will change or we will change our lifestyles- dramatically.

Backyard Food Gardens

Backyard Food Gardens

Plan-

1. Centered around a Spiral Gardens type nursery
1. Grows food plants along with herbs, fruit and nut trees
2. Weekly farmers market
3. In poorer neighborhoods
4. Sells cheap
5. Goal of bringing quality food to poorer, urban communities.
2. Expand to installing nursery plants into backyards
1. For free
2. For work or trade
3. For cash
4. Find donors, grants, government funds
5. Umbrella under a non profit
3. Care of gardens
1. for free, if needed
2. training provided to residents
3. multiple levels of support to be offered
4. Market services door to door
1. Local based work force
5. Expand nursery
1. library
2. kitchen- indoor and outdoor, solar oven
3. workshop space

i. seed collecting

ii. germination

iii. nutrition

iv. medicinal herbs

v. companion planting

vi. politics

vii. justice

viii. potlucks

ix. cooking

x. many more

6. Being neighborhood based, early nurseries would be role model for expansion into unplanted neighborhoods, using as much local resources, both materials and labor, as possible.
7. Ideas inspired over the past 2 months, moving to a 4 season growing environment, participating at spiral gardens, seeing the need to grow food where people are, educating the people about how food, and energy, is produced, and finally put to paper after the ‘food policy for the next administration’s dialogue at uc <st1:place w:st="on">Berkeley on oct 1, 2008. www.enviro.berkeley.edu/amr.
1. Food Policy for the Next Administration, Wheeler Hall, UC Berkeley, Oct 1, 2008- notes

i. We must go back to the garden and have incentives, possibly through health care, for feeding people healthy food.

ii. Teach Children

1. How to garden- environment

2. How to prepare food- community

3. Basics of Nutrition- health

iii. Plant 5 arce White House Lawn

1. Hire a White House Farmer

2. Encourage Youth to become food producers

iv. We need a polyculture approach, a systems approach

v. We need millions of farmers to replace the oil and chemicals that currently grow food

vi. Take Chemistry class

1. Go beyond organic chem.

2. Green chemistry

vii. Fill key positions in Washington

1. Policy makes future and people make policy

viii. Be Heard- don’t be passive

1. City Council

2. School Boards

3. State Legislature

ix. We need a farmer in each family

x. Vote with your fork

xi. We need leaders who care about food

xii. See www.fooddeclaration.org

seems some folks in the east bay are doing this already-

my farm- http://myfarmsf.com/about.html

all edibles- http://alledibles.com/

bike pedals

The End of Wall Street

* http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122212648830465179.html

* Wall Street Jounral

* SEPTEMBER 23, 2008

The End of Wall Street

"The world had changed," said the Morgan Stanley spokesperson yesterday, and you can mark that down as the understatement of the year.

She was explaining the company's decision late Sunday night to convert back into a bank holding company some 75 years after the Glass-Steagall act sundered the House of Morgan into J.P. Morgan, the bank, and Morgan Stanley, the investment firm. Under pressure from the Federal Reserve, Goldman Sachs made the same choice this weekend.

And so, in a single week, the era of the independent investment bank has ended. Wall Street as we've known it for decades has ceased to exist. Six months ago there were five major investment banks. Two -- Lehman Brothers and Bear Stearns -- have failed, Merrill Lynch is selling itself to Bank of America, and now the last two are becoming commercial banks. Adam Smith, that great market disciplinarian, is punishing excesses and remaking American finance long before Congress can get into the act.

Both Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs will have two years in which to arrange their affairs to conform to the capital requirements and other rules that govern such commercial banks as Wells Fargo, BofA and Citigroup. That will mean less leverage -- assets that are perhaps 10 times their capital bases instead of the 20 or 30 to 1 they have sported as investment banks. That in turn means less risk and almost certainly less profit and lower compensation.

In exchange, they will be able to accept consumer savings deposits as a ready source of funds. They also get the promise of greater stability and continued access to Federal Reserve lending facilities such as the discount window. To be more pointed, they'll have a better chance at survival, not least because they also will be able to avoid certain "mark-to-market" accounting rules that have forced writedowns on troubled securities.

This year's market turmoil had called into question the viability of the investment-banking business model as far back as March, with Bear Stearns's collapse. The Fed gave the remaining banks access to emergency lending, but it was clear from the start that this taxpayer lifeline wasn't sustainable without a greater degree of federal oversight. What Morgan Stanley and Goldman did Sunday night was to choose their poison -- submitting themselves to commercial banking regulation rather than have it imposed on them either through legislation or merger, as Merrill recently did in selling itself to BofA.

The result will be a sturdier but also less-innovative financial system than we have had in recent decades. That has its benefits; we're paying the price for some of the more dubious innovations right now. The new system will have more capital and less direct lending through such vehicles as asset-backed securities. Direct lending is highly efficient and has provided funds for many useful ends. But it is also riskier in a panic because it lacks a capital cushion to absorb the losses when asset values decline. In another sign of this new world, Morgan Stanley followed the weekend's news by announcing that it had sold a 20% stake to Japan 's Mitsubishi.

Wall Street's transformation also means that private equity companies and hedge funds will be the new financial innovators and move further onto investment banking's traditional turf. But both hedge funds and private equity have intrinsic limitations on their ability to raise money and fund their activities, so neither is a perfect substitute for the former role of the investment banks.

In some sense, the pure-play investment bank was itself a regulatory artifact. In the depths of the Depression, separating the investment functions from the banks was considered necessary for the stability of the commercial banks. Thus Glass-Steagall was born, and this week that separation can finally be said to be undone.

As for the long-term effects, expect them to be as hard to predict as the full effects of Glass-Steagall were in 1933. Adaptation and innovation have been hallmarks of our financial system since before there was a Goldman Sachs or Morgan Stanley. If Congress is wise next year as it attempts to reorganize our financial system, it will recognize the benefits of a sturdier system without crushing its ability to innovate.

When is enough enough?

when will they go too far?

how many of us actually care enough to get out of our comfortable lifestyle and speak out. to expect us to be 'led' to a better future is ignorant. we must build the future ourselves. we the people.

What has happened to us? All wrapped up in how important our lives are, how great we as a nation are, how busy we are and choosing not to learn about how our agriculture policies affect the farmers of the world, our drug policies are wreaking havoc everywhere, our energy policy will cause endless war, our meat industry often show just how low as a species we can sink with regards to any form of respect for other life, and more.

come on people- let's do what needs to be done- now!

at one point i thought all americans would be ok, if you were lucky to be born here then you were lucky to be in the greatest country there is, but overall we don;t even care about each other.

if i got mine then la di da.

don't dwell on the negatives. see the good in the world. don't be a downer. i've heard that a few times.

three things-

1. we are producing less oil than we did as a world 3 years ago- in 20-30 years we will probably be living using about 50% of the oil that we use now. how will that affect you lifestyle, your work, and your recreational activities- just think about it

2. the food production of the earth will decline as we have less fuels, fertilizer, soil, water, and more frequent storms and droughts. this will lead to a decrease in the population of earth. imagine that we are at 6.5 billion people now and in 50 years may be at 3 billion- carrying capacity. how will we get there from here? what different methods do we see our kind and compassionate leaders using?

3. capitalism requires growth- both in population and in energy use. we are moving to a world of less energy, food, and people. how does negative growth affect capital markets?

i don't think i am a pessimist, but let's take this to the personal level. we all know cigarette smoking kills- not only the smoker but the people around them. yet many of us smoke- a blatant disregard for our health and the health of those in close proximity to us. now some say that we are going to begin to care about people that are not us more than we care about us? i doubt it. nothing against smokers as there are many things we all do that we know, deep down, are not good for us individually or as a whole.

many seem to have faith in technology, or in people 'getting it', waking up, becoming 'aware', but i ask you- how many do you know with solar panels, who grow 10% of their food, don;t use fossil fuels more excessively than they should. how many of the 'aware' are actually living lifestyles that do not harm other human beings?

but things can be different. if we each make the steps we can- ask for help along the way, admit our ignorance in how to live without all the goodies that have made our lives so cozy.

the time will come when our enemy will not be 'drugs' or 'terrorists' but instead overconsumption, greed, and fear of not having enough and ignorance. we will look at non recyclers and excessive users in a bad light. this will not be easy as the enemy then will be us, our friends, neighbors, and relatives rather than drug pushers and the taliban.

we must not judge but welcome those who are willing to move to a more sustainable path. we must also do what we can to speed up this move, as it is not happening anywhere near fast enough.

i do not see myself as pessimistic in discussing the end of this day, as i see the new day coming and am looking forward to living in it.

we know what to do- and along the way we will be guided. lose the fear and be willing to accept change. only together will we make it. individually we will not survive.

when will we care- when our investments disappear? when our job is lost? when our friend or family member loses their house? when the lights go out? when the grocery store doesn't have any food? when china begins to march on the middle east? when rations for electric and gas are initiated?

Better yet- when will we actually do something?

--------------------------------------------------

I may be going to hell in a bucket, babe,
But at least I'm enjoying the ride.

or

We don't own this place, though we act as if we did,
It's a loan from the children of our children's kids.
The actual owners haven't even been born yet.

But we never tend the garden and rarely we pay the rent,
Some of it is broken and the rest of it is bent
Put it all on plastic and I wonder where we'll be when the bills hit.

We can run,
but we can't hide from it.
Of all possible worlds,
We only got one:
We gotta to ride on it.
Whatever we've done,
We'll never get far from what we leave behind,
Baby, we can run but we can't hide.

I'm dumpin' my trash in your back yard
Makin' certain you don't notice really isn't so hard
You're so busy with your guns and all of your excuses to use them.

Well, it's oil for the rich and babies for the poor,
We got everyone believin' that more is more,
If a reckoning comes, maybe we will know what to do then.

-------------------------------------------------------------------

hell in a bucket and we can run by john perry barlow

Peak Oil Preparation: Educating Family, Loved Ones, And Friends

By Clifford J. Wirth

29 September, 2008
Countercurrents.org

Peak Oil will soon generate problems for individuals and families around the globe: unemployment; bankruptcy; inability to pay for heating oil, higher education, mortgage, and rent etc; the need for family members to share residences and expenses; violent street crime even in previously safe neighborhoods; the separation of family members (due to high airfares, the high cost of gasoline, or gasoline rationing); and anxiety and depression.

Families that have a common understanding of Peak Oil problems can provide mutual support and group problem-solving, and they are more likely enjoy life and survive the Peak Oil catastrophe. Young people who understand Peak Oil are more likely to study what makes sense for the future. Informed people who are unemployed can work collectively for their future and use their resources for contingency planning, instead of looking to panaceas and technological fixes.

Educating family, loved ones, and friends about Peak Oil and its impacts is a formidable challenge. Most people believe strongly that a national commitment and technology will solve energy problems and support a stable economy. Denial concerning Peak Oil is pervasive at all levels of society. Frustration in educating family members about Peak Oil is common, as revealed on the Peak Oil Blues website.

It helps to remember that people avoid the reality of Peak Oil from weakness, not strength. Peak Oil is personally frightening and many fear for family and friends. Educating about Peak Oil is the right thing to do, so be patient. It sometimes takes weeks, months, or years to get through to people. Learn from the experiences of others on the Peak Oil Blues website. Here are some ideas to consider in educating family, love ones, and friends.

Studies by major independent government agencies and scientific organizations are the most credible sources for convincing many people that Peak Oil is real and will have serious impacts soon. I wrote a 48 page Peak Oil Impacts Report based on such sources, and the sources can be referenced directly from the report (which can be downloaded, website posted, distributed, and emailed). It is hard to deny studies by the National Academy of Sciences, U.S. General Accountability Office, U.S, Congressional Research Service, and major scientific institutions. Many governments have sponsored Peak Oil studies. Use these authority symbols to your advantage.

You can tell your family or friends that Peak Oil is a serious issue that you personally need to discuss with them, and that you want them to read the report for factual information in order to have a well-informed conversation.

The report was written by a recently retired professor of Political Science at the University of New Hampshire, where he was director of the Master of Public Administration program for many years. In that capacity he worked with hundreds of local, state, and federal officials on government planning. Based on this report, he gave a Peak Oil presentation to the New Hampshire Town Managers Association last January and a variety of audiences in Albany, NY in June.

If the report is too long or complex, start off with some articles in newspapers or magazines that you can print and ask them to read and discuss, for example: Fortune Magazine, BusinessWeek, The Times (London), The Wall Street Journal, MoneyWeek, Scientific American, and the Wikipedia Encyclopedia

If they read short convincing articles, you may then convince them to read the 48 page report. You can also ask them to read the first page summary of the report and the summaries of the report by the U.S. General Accountability Office, which is covered in my report.

Also convincing are the following websites: U.S. Representative Roscoe Bartlett, who is a respected conservative Republican Member of Congress; Simmons and Company International (see his speeches), Jim Kingsdale, Association for the Study of Peak Oil & Gas - USA, and Association for the Study of Peak Oil & Gas – Ireland (see the Newsletter) .

The September 2008 ASPO-USA Peak Oil Conference included a very credible group of speakers, including Neil King Jr., the international energy reporter for “The Wall Street Journal.”

An Internet search of the term “peak oil” yields some 4,400,000 hits.

“Energy Bulletin” provides much scientific information and a Peak Oil primer.

The “Transition Movement” and Portland (Oregon) Peak Oil Task (and other cities’ efforts) show that some towns and cities are planning to prepare for Peak Oil.

There are many videos on Peak Oil on Google or Yahoo.

If anyone asks why more people don’t know about Peak Oil, the following explains this conspiracy of silence. Both private and national oil company executives and their allies in business and government have lied to the media and public about oil reserves in order to create an image of corporate financial growth. This has increased their salaries, stock investments, stock options for retirement, and large consulting fees to produce phony research. The media and government officials have believed the lies and have conveniently avoided giving the public bad news about future. And most leaders and people across the globe believe that there must a new energy source for continued prosperity and economic development, so why worry about Peak Oil?

Patience is a virtue.. It takes time for people to think about how vital oil is for the economy and what life will be like without oil in the future. Patience -- even many who are aware of Peak Oil are in denial about the future. They accept Peak Oil, but not its impacts. Patience -- belief systems that were developed over a lifetime are difficult to change. Patience.

In the comments option, please offer additional ideas for educating family, loved ones, and friends about Peak Oil.

Cliff Wirth is a policy analyst who writes and speaks about Peak Oil impacts, alternatives, survival, preparations, and relocation. He holds a Ph.D. in Policy Analysis and a Master's degree in Public Administration and taught policy analysis, energy policy, public administration, global urban politics, and Mexican politics at the University of New Hampshire for 27 years.

Clifford J. Wirth, Ph.D.
http://www.peakoilassociates.com/
http://survivingpeakoil.blogspot.com/