Many posts on this forum are based on the assumption that worldwide chaos resulting from Y2K is a foregone conclusion. My question is: How many people really believe this? How many believe they should stock up and head for the hills? My opinion currently lies somewhere in the middle between the extremes of "minor blip in history" and "the end of the world as we know it." Comments?

-- Buddy Y. (buddy@bellatlantic.net), July 31, 1998

Answers

I expect enough to survive that riots are contained to inner cities. Sadly, I do anticipate King William or King Al taking over via martial-law. Things, IMHO will be bad, but not TEOTWAWKI. The end of the U.S. Constitution (forever), but not the end of life.

I think most of the problems will come from other countries - now that earth is one big happy global family, meltdown in Asia and Russia and Latin America will probably topple the financial system. Phones won't work. Factories will "freeze". A *LOT* of people will starve - and the "West" won't be there to "bail them out" this time.

My biggest fear is war using "weapons of mass destruction" (gag). If Russia, China, or other nuclear countries have conditions worse than pre-WW2 Germany, it could get _real_ ugly.

Not that I'm looking forward to figuring out which plants/animals in my area are safe to eat, or digging latrines...

-- Anonymous (Anonymous@anonymous.com), July 31, 1998.

Buddy: It's hard to predict how bad it's going to be. If power is off more than 30 days, it's going to be real chaos. My scenario is: For city dwellers, electricity off 3 days, martial law. Electricity off 7 days, rioting, looting, home invasions. Ten days, diseases sets in, dead bodies on the street or in dwellings. Children on the street abandoned, no hospitals, or emergency services, everyone is on their own. Seventeen days, invasion of rats and mice, cholera breakout, thousands dead, city becomes a massive graveyard, bodes are burned in to prevent further spread of disease. Thirty days, a few with stored food and water are still holding on inside their boarded up, barbed-wire house. Bay-Gen radio is still working, short-wave only. Rumors of possible invasion from China or Russia. No border patrol, foreigners cross the border in gangs, killing and pilfering everything in their path. Cities are war zones. Forty days, gangs start to make their way to the hills, those living there have survived well. Gangs start pilfering abandoned homes. Those still surviving, pick off a few with their AK47s, thugs retreat and go somewhere else, the dead become food for the vultures. Sixty days, the hillbillies are still holding on, they have prepared well, Red Army or Russian troops have invaded us, those left will either commit suicide or be put into concentration camps to become slaves. We are now truly a One-World Order. Anyone wish to add to this? Bardou

-- Playedbythegamr (refusetogive@baloney.com), July 31, 1998.

Buddy, I too would like to prepare for "something in between". But the more I study the situation, the more I realize the improbability that y2k will allow that option. If it is an economic bump in the road, we will see shortages, price fluctuations, inflation, and business bankruptcies. In other words, no big deal.

If, on the other hand, we loose critical systems which are the life support for our way of life, I don't think we will stop the resulting domino effect. Should we loose the national power grid for only 30 days, the populations of major cities would be forced to flee urban deserts, and social breakdown would begin.

So, IMHO, we either fix a significant ammount of y2k before it hits, or we enter a downward social spiral with unimaginal (to modern Americans) consequences. I'm not significantly computer literate to say whether we can fix y2k in time, but I am an historian, and I know that people, communities, societies, civilizations, can die.

I realize that I am drifting towards the "survivalist" mentality, but this is a gamble I did not ask for, and the stakes are the lives of my loved ones.

-- Lon Franck (lgal@exp.net), July 31, 1998.

Hi Buddy...

"Conclusions" about Y2K are few and far between. The only conclusions you can reach so far is that the date won't change and that most "experts" are as in the dark as everyone else, they just get paid for being in the dark.

And that's where the controversy over Y2K begins. No one REALLY knows how bad, or good, things will be. However, as time goes on, more and more information leaks out and the puzzle begins to take shape. The longer we wait the more we'll know. But, if one waits too long, the items needed to deal with the problem will be scarce at best.

Personally, knowing what we already know, living in any large metropolitan poses serious safety concerns. Yet, if everyone moved to the hills, then everyone is in "the hills". The truth is simple: very few will be able to leave even if they wanted to so most folks had better learn how to prepare and deal with their worst case scenario.

The key is going to be community awareness and an agreement to pull together and BE a community. There is power and safety in numbers. If government checks & services, food stamps, etc. do not arrive in time things will be nasty real quick. If neighbors decide to pull together and help one another things will go much smoother than if folks take a isolationist approach.

As a minister I deal with human reactions to difficult circumstances and I can share a simple observation: when a person is prepared emotionally, spiritually and physically they do fine. If not, you never know how they're going to react. That's why church leaders have a very large burden to get up to speed on this issue and be prepared to help as many people as possible.

My own personal opinion is that a person should prepare as they are able. For praying people I encourage them to educate themselves, then pray and prepare as God leads. If you're not a praying person, educate yourself and do your best to prepare.

But this still leaves the pressing question hanging out there: If no one really knows how bad (or good) and for how long, how does one prepare? My default answer is simply this: Prepare as if you are on your own for a month. If you live in New York, buy a bigger gun. (Please don't flame me for a little Y2K humor.)

Blessings to all!

http://www.lifetel.com/y2k2000.htm

-- Pastor Chris (pastorchris@lifetel.com), July 31, 1998.

Buddy: One more nail in the coffin; my husband's employer wants all PC,'s, work station, etc (17,000) to be tested for Y2K compliance assessment by Sepember 30, 1998. Guaranteed that the right hand does not know what the left hand is doing. I have worked for the company and know first hand that this is true. Bardou

-- playedbythegame (refusetogive@baloney.com), July 31, 1998.

Bardou asked if anyone wanted to add to her list, which was indeed very well done, and terribly frightening! All I'd like to add is this: Any reasonably level-headed person, who believes that Bardou's y2k chaotic scenerio could possibly become a reality, would have to be a fool not to get on speaking terms with God right NOW!

As someone said here before, lots of people will be crying out to God for mercy if things really go sour, but only the prayers of those who are rightly related to Christ will be heard. Religion won't work, trying to appease God with acts of penance won't either. But, those who humble themselves before Christ, the Lord of all creation, submit to His authority, and accept His marvelous plan of salvation, will become rightly related to Him and heirs of eternal life when this veil of tears is history.

I'm not preaching at you folks, just stating facts and offering help. Planning a trip without a road map is not wise, yet some do it. Planning how to survive a possible catastrophy when its intensity and duration are unknown is like walking alone down a dark alley in south central L.A. on Sat. nite. Some do it, but not too many make it through. It's comforting to know we can be certain to either survive y2k or awake in Heaven.... no doubt about it. Now, that's the good news believers are trying to share on this disaster forum.

-- Arcy (arcy.w@usa.net), July 31, 1998.

I don't think it's gonna get fixed. I hope that the computer geeks keep working as long as they think they can because the more they do now, the less will have to be done post y2k. At least that is what I have been told. How bad it gets will probably depend on where you live. The military cannot be everywhere at once. They will probably select large cities with a history of civil disturbance to operate in. Note that the Marines and Army have an outfit called MOUT that has been practicing in: Chicago, Los Angeles and now Birmingham. If all they need is to practice fighting in streets, why do it in so many cities? I can only conclude that they are practicing in target cities where they expect trouble. There is danger no matter what you do. Bug out to the sticks? What if the man in the family unit breaks a leg, or hurts himself with an axe? How many suburban housewives with little kids are going to be able to handle an injured husband, a farm and kids and defend the homestead? Where does she get help? Stay in the city? well we all know the dangers there. Protect your goods with a gun? How long can you go without sleep? Kill a few of your assailants? What are you going to do with their bodies? I hear a lot of very brave talk in several news groups. I hope they all have the courage of their convictions. I for one am going to stockpile food and water. I have firearms. I just don't know if I can shoot a desperate father who has a couple of hungry children crying in the pain that hunger brings. I think I will stick it out in my city of 80k. Maybe it is big enough for the military to occupy and small enough not to get killed in the panic which is sure to come.

-- Bill Solorzano (notaclue@webtv.net), July 31, 1998.

Bill: I wouldn't shoot a man with children if they came to my door unless he/she physically attacked me or anyone in my family. If you helped every man, woman, child, that came to your door, you would not surive. You may as well, just open up the door and tell people to take everything you have. If you plan to store food and water and you plan to help out everyone, you need a warehouse twice the size of Costco. Just send them on their way and tell them the Lord will take care of you. Maybe give them a survival guide and a Bible and tell them to pray really hard and God will answer their prayers for help. Your average everyday city dweller wouldn't know how to survive in the wilderness. They would never make it out of the city. As for injured spouses and family? Take a first aid course at your college or Red Cross. Everyone should have an emergency first aid book and medical supplies as part of their cache. Last resort, look in the front of your phone book, it has different medical aid information there. As for what to do with the dead bodies? No problem, bury them or burn them. Everyone should have a burn barrel in their back yard to burn garbage. Remember, there won't be any garbage pickup. Larger cities will see National Guard, military, in the beginning. But if this is a nationwide situation, those guards will disappear just as fast as they appeared. They will abandon camp to be with their family. What kind of loyalty will they have if their own families are not taken care of and if they are not getting a paycheck? If you have guns, be prepared to use them or get rid of them so no one can use them on you. They will be of no use to you unless you plan to use them. Remember this is worst case scenario. I hope this is just a glitch, but I am preparing for a monster. Bardou

-- Bardou (bardou@baloney.com), July 31, 1998.

Bardou, have you snapped your garter??? One minute you are bitching about religion, the next blathering about it! I can't make heads or tails of this place anymore! Can I have some of what you have been smoking?

-- Dave (dave22@concentric.net), July 31, 1998.

Bardau:

Not to be argumentative, but: Will the inside cover of a phone book help with compound fracture, dismemberment, gunshot wounds, apendicitis, concussion etc? Will you burn barrel reach the increadable temperatures of a cremetorium? Have you ever dug a 6x3 foot hole? Have you ever seen or smelled a decomposing or burning body? Have you ever shot and killed anyone? I have done all of the above except for the hole. When I said I don't know if I could kill a hungry man I know what I am talking about. Can you say the same in defense of your position?

-- Bill Solorzano (notaclue@webtv.net), July 31, 1998.

Forecasting exacty how this situation will play itself out is nearly impossible, this is a first-time event. There is no historical precident that an individual can use to try and gauge how badly the mistakes will pile up. We can compare wars, floods, and other events one against the other and consider for ourselves how badly this war, flood, or other event will affect us.This is perhaps the most disturbing concept to many people, the very inability to compare it to another event. I have a sneaking feeling the outcome may surprise all of us, but it may not be a very happy surprise.

-- Uncle Deedah (oncebitten@twiceshy.com), August 01, 1998.

Dave 22: Well isn't it how it works, pray to Jesus and everything will be taken care of? You don't have to lift a finger, worry about where your next meal is coming from, you only have to beleive on the Lord Jesus Christ and all your troubles and worries will be behind you. I'm wondering what will happen when the churches, after 3 days of handing out food and depleting their storehouse, what will they tell the people then? "Shall we turn these jugs of water into wine? Come brethern, let's pray by that these jugs of water be turned into wine so we can get doo-doo faced and forget our problems!" P.S. And I haven't been smoking anything. From now on, Jesus is the answer to everything. Got a problem? Jesus is the answer? Got a money problem? Jesus is the answer. Wondering what the Lord wants you to do today? Jesus is the answer. No effort upon your part. No thinking for yourself, just rely on other people and Jesus will do it for you. Jesus is the answer. Give everyone a Bible, a book on survival, and send them on their way. I guess that can be the set answer for any question on this forum. Just preach, don't teach. It's all tongue in cheek.

-- bardou (bardou@baloney.com), August 01, 1998.

Bardou,

I was reading your first post in this thread and rushed to the end to ask: Do you have a Bay Gen radio? Do you like it and where can I get one???? I can't seem to take Art Bell long enough on the radio to get the 800 number.

d

-- Dianne Smith (benedict@theriver.com), August 01, 1998.

... sigh ....

Arcy, thank you for sharing, but how dare you profess to know the extent of the Lords' forgiveness and mercy. He may be a slow to hearing their cries as they were to be humbled, but he will hear them. Why else would we have been given repentance?

I would imagine there are few on the forum who are not well acquainted with the biblical implications of Y2K. Most do not want to discuss it here. Please, I beg you, ease up on the preaching. It causes only agnst.

Your persistance is admirable but gentle persuasion is probably the key. d

-- Dianne Smith (benedict@theriver.com), August 01, 1998.

The opinions here in all are very well thought out and very pessimistic. Although, your scenarios are probably very accurate, I do not believe that the U.S. Constitution will be lost. I believe there are enough of us (people who would defend their country with their lives) that we will retain that form of government set forth in that document. Maybe not in Washington DC but somewhere. I would wish that some nationally syndicated radio host would hoist that "Title of Liberty", unfortunately they're are busying themselves with smoke and mirrors as we listen anxiously for the results of the testing of the stain on Monica's dress! Who cares! In a very few months it will NOT be relevant. Clinton will probably not be kicked out of office and even if he were the result could be infinitely worse (Al Gore is a Tree Hugging Disaster! - not that I don't like trees.). We'll go on worrying about whether they did the "Big Nasty" in the oval office all the while the true problems we face are snowballing behind us and getting pretty dang close! (Actually, I do believe infidelity, perjury and general moral turpitude to be very serious problems but not so immediately serious.)

Here's what I truly believe: Every evil thing that has happened these past few years, Ruby Ridge, Waco, OK City, Flight 800, school shooting, etc., has been used to fuel an agenda (yes folks I'm a Conspiracy Theorist so, skip me if you must). That agenda is to make the general populace beg to have their freedoms taken away. Much like the Jews did when they begged the Lord for a king to take care of them. I believe that we are being "boiled alive like a frog" You know, you can't throw a frog into hot water, he'll jump out but if you put him in cold water and slowly turn up the heat he'll never know. (I'm paraphrasing what someone else said.). That Agenda, of course, is to socialize American. And as everyone knows Socialism is only a hop, skip and a jump away from Communism.

I believe the past inaction and current cover up especially in the government sector regarding the Y2K problem has been planned and played out by the conspirators - I have no idea if it was planned from the very beginning and think it rather a mote point. But I do believe it will be used to the upmost extent. Every possible problem that arises will be magnified and publicized. "To save you, you must give up a little of your freedom here and a little there." I believe that rioting will be encouraged or rather inflamed. People will be purposely stirred up to anger against their neighbor. The more chaos the better. And the National Guard? I believe it will not be overly utilized unless in another country. I believe a "police force" made up of Multinational forces will be deployed and will have no problem mowing you and your family down because they don't know you from Adam.

Those of us who prepare (especially those of us who are Christian) will be persecuted I believe. FEMA will confiscate our food and weapons and place our loved ones in concentration ... uh, detention camps. Parents will probably be executed as traitors and our kids taken in to be brought up "properly" by the State.

I believe if TSHTF, we must unite on some front to prevent all that has been discussed. It is obvious from this forum that that front will not be religion. I believe it to be the US Constitution under which we must unite as Americans. You may not agree that the Constitution is a "divinely inspired" document but you must allow it to be an "inspired" document.

As for the rest of the world, I believe most will be better off then we if TSHTF simply because they have less to lose. And really, what country would not do better if their Communist, Socialist or Fascist government crumbled and allowed it's people to get on with the business of life?

d

(Shame on you Dave 22. I thought Bardou did very well controlling her vehemence her earlier post. Then you had to go and fan the flame of her dislike!)

P.S. Yikes! As I look over my post I see that the "pot is calling the kettle black"!

-- Dianne Smith (benedict@theriver.com), August 01, 1998.

Buddy,

I don't think the apocalyptic visions some people are having will pan out. I hasten to add that I certainly HOPE not, but in this case there is not enough information to be absolutely sure what will happen. There is enough information to justify being prepared for any reasonable scenario, and I leave reasonability to the individual. (My definition: anything that doesn't hurt you or anyone else, and contributes toward solving predictable problems, is reasonable. Planning to cheat people out of money, going broke, getting into fights with the spouse/kids/parents, getting blotto on booze/drugs to escape, forgetting or neglecting to enjoy and appreciate what life gives you in the now, blind panic, unremitting D&G etc. are UNreasonable.)

FWIW, I watched a lot of the same sort of discussions take place in the mid to late 1970's, and this sounds like the same thing over again. Then it was terrorism, nuclear war, economic and/or political collapse, climate change etc. that caused all the anxiety (or was it just the recession?). Want an example? Go find a copy of Mel Tappan's _Survival Guns_ (copyright 1975, if I remember). See if anything there sounds familiar.

This time it's computer problems (and maybe an approaching recession?) that has people nervous. The scenarios all sound the same now as they did then, it's just the potential causes that are different. No matter what, there are some things you can be ready for, and some things that will overwhelm you no matter what. The trick is to be ready for what you can without destroying your future if your pet scenario doesn't play out as planned. I can practically guarantee you that it will not play out as planned, by the way, no matter what it is.

Going through the mid to late '70s was the best possible practice for the late '90s, if you were paying attention. A lot of the classics now were new then. The newcomers now just don;t recognize the classics, and that's part of the problem. Of course those of us who were here, and paying attention in the '70s, have a 20- year head start on being ready for the '90s, whatever they bring.

If we're paying attention now, that is. It's incredibly important to keep proper perspective, now as it was then. The hand that blots out your vision held one inch in front of your eyes is the same hand at arm's length, but you can see a lot more around it when it's further away. Keep this problem in perspective too. There are a lot of things that can happen in 17 months, and not all of them will be bad. I find it disturbing to see the anguish often expressed here of late, and the frayed tempers also. Those are signs people are loosing perspective, and when that happens people loose headway on making appropriate preparations also. Using these months wisely is the best thing to do to handle the problem, however serious it turns out to be.

This is a good chance to sort out what's really important to you, and take the best possible care of it. If you do this well, no matter what else happens you will improve your life, and that of your family also. If you quit the rat race, well and good, as long as you don't park your family in some squalid shack, waiting in a confused miserable huddle for a doom that somehow doesn't materialize. You can move to the country and change your lifestyle if you decide to- but it's a HUGE adjustment and not to be taken lightly. It needs to be worked out carefully. If you decide to stay on in the city, also well and good- but you need to devote the same care and planning to that decision. Just don't let all the STUFF involved get in the way of the PEOPLE who are really important, no matter what your decision.

LPL

-- Lee P. Lapin (lplapin@hotmail.com), August 01, 1998.

Diane: This is not a sermon.... I'm just correcting your post!

Yes, my finite mind often underestimates God's forgiveness amd mercy, however, my post was entirely biblical. Human wisdom always bases its estimation of God on its ability to understand Him, and it simply can't be done. Just because well meaning humanity says: "just pray harder and God will surely hear you", doesn't mean that He will hear. God's Word is very clear on this point. There are many proof texts, but I shall mention just a couple here.

David, a true believer, was a man after God's own heart, and yet he said: "If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me." (Ps. 66:18). The prophet Isaiah said: "Behold the Lord's hand is not shortened that it cannot save; neither His ear heavy that it cannot hear: but your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid His face from you that HE WILL NOT HEAR." (Is.59:1). The Apostle John said: "Now we know that GOD HEARETH NOT SINNERS, but if any man be a worshiper of God, and doeth His will, him He heareth." (John 9:31).

Sin separated Adam and Eve from God, and sin separates believers from enjoying the blessings of God. "If my people which are called by my name, shall humble themselves and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; THEN WILL I HEAR from Heaven and forgive their sin, and will hear their land." (2 Chr. 7:14).

This is why it's so important that sincere people understand that, in order to be assured that God will hear their prayers, they must be rightly related to Him. Songs with unscriptural words like: "He hears every prayer... and will always say I forgive...", make them think that God is just waiting for the next problem they can't handle on their own, and will rush right in to solve it. Not so my friend!

With y2k in view, it's important that we all get it right. "There is a way that seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death." The Bible alone and in its entirety is the Word of God. If we want to know about God, i.e. what He's like, what He expects of man, and how to enjoy earthly blessings and life eternal, then we had better study the Bible. Listening to folks with a vested interest in religion can often lead unwary people astray. Remember that saying "The road to Hell is paved with good intentions"?

Simply His,

Arcy

-- Arcy (arcy.w@usa.net), August 01, 1998.

Arcy

Why do so many of your posts contain phrases such as "I'm not preaching at you" or "This is not a sermon"?

Hounding people constantly about anything gets tiresome after a while. Religion in particular.

Contemplating the possible terrible effects of Y2K can be a frightening dawning of awarenes as to what is really important in ones life. People who feel lacking in spritual fellowship will be shown the way to go, and will find you. There plenty of other threads for you, myself, and others to debate the religious implications of Y2K. Ed has done us all a huge favor in running this forum for us to use for discovering about, and coping with, Y2K. The least we could do to repay him is to try and keep the threads somewhat on subject, IMHO

-- Uncle Deedah (oncebitten@twiceshy.com), August 02, 1998.

Diane: You can purchase the Bay-Gen radio from the C. Crane Companmy. They have a web site. You can also type in Bay-Gen in your search engine and get a couple of companies that sell it. It work great and the reception is excellent.

And thanks to you all who have put Arcy in his place. I'm just going to play the same game as they do whenever they start the preaching.

-- bardou (bardou@baloney.com), August 02, 1998.

Deedah.... I'm not in the slightest interested in debating the implications of y2k or religion. As we all know, people are frightened and deeply concerned about y2k, and I'm trying to offer help to those who mistakingly think God is just a life preserver to be grabbed in time of peril. Childish scoffers do make it a bit harder for serious lurkers to concentrate, but most will recognize their foolish posts as being the real cause of forum disruption.

Connie.... try those bible translations on this verse: "And whosoever was not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the Lake of fire." You probably won't like this, but I'm going to pray for you!

Bardou.... I offer a word of hope to needy, concerned people which happens not to fit your definition of disaster preparation. Your determination to silence me only proves that your motive runs much deeper than preserving the integrity of this forum... much deeper!

It's been suggested that list members be notified when a post contains material which is offensive. I'll comply either by title reference or a note before the text. Example: "SPIRITUAL CONTENT". Will you do likewise, example: "VULGAR LANGUAGE" or "SLANDEROUS REBUTTAL" or "FOOLISH CHATTERING"?

-- Arcy (arcy.w@usa.net), August 02, 1998.

Amazing!

-- Uncle Deedah (oncebitten@twiceshy.com), August 02, 1998.

John notes that the 144,000 living people who will be deemed worthy of salvation during the final judgement "did not defile themselves with women, for they kept themselves pure." This means that none of the saved will be lesbians or, one could assume, women, period.-Revelation 14:3-4 Come on Arcy, what are the odds of you being included in that number? You guessed it! Like winning the Powerball Lotto! I'll be sure to save you a spot in Hell's Jacuzzi. Hee-Hee

-- Connie L. (Cofkee@aol.com), August 03, 1998.

Well, well, well...I am coming to the conclusion that very few people posting here know much about the details of the Y2K problem. Many have totally bought into the idea that the world economy will collapse and anarchy will result.

I have been working with computers since 1977. I wrote Y2K compliant programs for the Social Security Administration and the Dept. of Agriculture in 1983. I am actively studying the problem now. I don't believe the worst-case scenarios at all. I think you are wasting your time preparing for Armageddon. I also get the impression that many who have bought into the chaos and anarchy scenarios had done so before they even knew what Y2K was.

We do not know exactly what all the implications are, but from what I have been able to find out so far, I think that any problems we encounter will tend to make people pull together to solve them rather than resulting in the breakdown of society.

As for the religious preaching here: If I want religion I'll go to church on Sunday.

-- Buddy Y. (buddy@bellatlantic.net), August 03, 1998.

Buddy:

I am so relieved that there is nothing to worry about. You must contact the NY Times, Washington Post, The Senate, The Congress and the President. Don't forget Europe and Asia. You must share your wisdom with all of them.

-- Bill Solorzano (notaclue@webtv.net), August 03, 1998.

I did not say there was nothing to worry about. This is precisely the point. The major media, the President, congress, etc. have finally brought this issue into the open--this will help.

As for worrying...there is a vast difference between analyzing the problem and looking for solutions (normal worrying) and the obsessive worrying I am seeing alot of here (i.e. planning for the apocalypse).

By the way, the writer for The Washington Post greatly over-simplified what the Y2K problem is. I think it has been a good series so far, but am not too sure about the writer's knowledge of the problem. It seems to be mostly a token effort on the part of the Post to jump on the Y2K bandwagon.

-- Buddy Y. (buddy@bellatlantic.net), August 03, 1998.

Buddy, I haven't noticed your name on this Forum before, so I guess you're new??? I read Ed's book last Spring, have been into this site for several months, and have received many helpful ideas here. There's nothing wrong with stocking up! Is there any area of this nation that doesn't have one or more of the following: earthquakes, hurricanes, tornadoes, floods, big snow storms, etc., with resulting power outages, water cut off and so on? Sensible folk keep some things stored for such events. For Y2K, the average store-up time suggestion seems to be three months. We have a goodly time period left to gradually do so. We will have lost nothing; we can still use the items if Y2K is no problem (not likely). I have stated this elsewhere on this Forum, but in case you haven't seen it, Buddy: April 1 Japan, Canada and New York State start their fiscal year 2000; April 6 Gt. Britain and various private businesses in G.B. start their fiscal year 2000 also. The "fallout" from this may be THE first MAJOR catastrophe, affecting world wide commerce, etc. If so, I think we'll ALL get serious about this! Read through as much on the Forum as possible, Buddy, and dig out all the practical ideas. It's worth it!

-- Holly Allen (Holly3325@juno.com), August 03, 1998.

Buddy,

No, not everyone here believes chaos is a foregone conlusion. Heck, some posters here (most, even) don't get sarchastic when you post an opinion that disagrees with their view. I wish we could say that about all posters here, but sadly that is not the case. Anyway, count me among the "problems yes, catastophe no" crowd.

-- Paul Neuhardt (neuhardt@ultranet.com), August 04, 1998.

Was I being sarcastic? My apologies. I don't mean to offend. I always try to call it as I see it, but sometimes I get carried away. I get excited sometimes when trying to post a message in a forum such as this. My apologies to all.

As for Y2K, my opinion so far is that the worst-case scenario won't happen. Of course, the best case won't either. But I do think that awareness has grown exponentially recently, and I think if people can work together there will not be a catastrophe. I will not be heading for the hills. I will be right here in DC trying to keep informed and help the situation in whatever way I can.

-- Buddy Y. (buddy@bellatlantic.net), August 04, 1998.

Buddy,

I didn't mean you. There is, however, an example of what I did mean in this thread as a direct response to one of your posts.

'Nuff said.

-- Paul Neuhardt (neuhardt@ultranet.com), August 05, 1998.

God helps those who help themselves. End of my religious contribution! My guess on length of time we may need our preplaned stocks of goods....is a few weeks. The "experts" seem to agree that all the problems will not be found and fixed. So a partial break down of some of our systems seems logical. The more important the system (i.e. power grid, water & food distribution, banking etc.) the greater the impact. y2k is coming and there is no escape. Last night I had a dream of a cabin and a corn field and an elderly negro woman.

-- Ronald Banks (phxbanks@webtv.net), August 07, 1998.

I'll be watching for ya. Hee Hee

-- R. Flagg (bigchair@hell.com), August 07, 1998.

MY LIFE FOR YOU.....RANDALL ARE YOU IN VEGAS?

-- trashcan (trashcan-man@webtv.net), August 08, 1998.

Response to Response to Chaos a foregone conclusion?

good

-- alexander (asalgado26@yahoo.com), March 17, 2004.

Patience Trashy, patience. Our time is soon.

-- R. Flagg (bigchair@hell.com), August 08, 1998.

Er...one of the early signs of Y2K...forgetting to take needed medication...

-- Chana Campos (chana@campos.org), August 08, 1998.

Nick....You ain't gonna go without Tom Cullen, are you? M-O-O-N and that spells chaos, Don't you know-----

-- Tom Cullen (okie-redneck@webtv.net), August 30, 1998.