Notes to consider

Some excellent posts have recently been coming in from readers to James Wesley Rawles' SurvivalBlog, nonetheleast of which is this tidbit which I excerpted;

"...I expect raiding to take two main forms. The roadside ambush and the home invasion. Home invasions are always dangerous and often brutal. If the raiders attack your home, they will try to take you by surprise and kill every combatant in the house before anyone can react. They will force every more at a very fast pace to prevent you from reacting. They may use some kind of distraction or disguise to gain surprise. Home invasion, carried out with professionalism and gusto is fairlysafe and easier than you would think. Expect to see some of them wearing body armor, dressed in police uniforms and carryingbadges. (Some of them will have professional entry training...like SWAT and military). Failing at a stack entry, they may use CS gas to drive out the occupants. Failing that, they will use fire..."

I can bet good money that the home invasion scenarios are going to get this bad, and worse, I'm just afraid that it's going to start a little sooner than expected.

And in a similar vein, and appropriately enough, fresh off the heels of finishing The Road, Mr. JIC adds this bit;

"...Don't ever underestimate the vile depravity of human beings. Anarchy is the dirtiest word in the English language. Rape and torture may be common. I believe as food gets harder to find, many people will turn to cannibalism to sustain themselves. (I wish this were not true, but historically, it's very common.) I am not advocating cannibalism in any way, but In all fairness, cannibalism can greatly extend a group's supply base. There are a whole lot of people out there and people are made of meat. While easy targets are available, some groups may prosper for some months eating human flesh. It could be a fairly successful strategy for some groups. Beware. History of other collapses warns us that this may be common..."

Again, I'm concerned that his timetable is closer than he anticipates.

With the real unemployment rate at 17%, possibly more, it shouldn't take too much more straw to break this camel's back.