People we care about are threatened by the Year 2000 problem. We can do something to help. We can get their attention.

Many of us will be at gatherings of some kind on the 4th of July. If each one of us talks to 4 people about Y2K, just think of the impact we can make.

Very few people give Y2K much thought and even fewer are doing anything. I am constantly appalled at the number of supposedly Y2K aware individuals who tell me they will start their preparations in the fall after the kids go back to school.

We need to do two things: 1) get people to take Y2K seriously and 2) we need to persuade them to begin preparing immediately for Y2K.

Let's start the awareness this July 4 weekend. Let's tell stories from current news that will persuade people to think about Y2K as the threat that it is!

You don't even have to let on that you are a "GI" (got it). You can just insert a zinger into the conversation. Here are a couple of options:

1. "Did you hear what happened in Los Angeles a couple of weeks ago? A Year 2000 test caused a 3 million gallon sewage spill. That's got me thinking that this Y2K thing may really be a problem."

Reference: Los Angeles Times, June 19, 1999: "A computer glitch during a Y2K test earlier this week [Wednesday, 10:00pm] sent nearly 3 million gallons of raw sewage spilling from the Daniel C. Tillman Water Reclamation Plant in Van Nuys, forcing the closure of about 10 acres of Woodley Avenue Park until at least Monday." www.latimes.com The story is now in their archives. You can't print the whole story, but you can print the summary by clicking on "archives" and searching for "Y2K".

2. "Did you hear that the Mayor of city of Washington D.C. has admitted that the city will not be ready for the Year 2000? That's got me thinking that this Y2K thing may really be a problem."

Reference: Washington Post, June 28, 1999: "The District government, recognizing that its year 2000 repair program likely will not be completed on time, is planning a massive New Year's Eve mobilization of emergency personnel and other staff to ensure that critical city services are not interrupted if computer systems fail." http://search.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPlate/1999-06/28/057l-062899-idx.html

You can use any news story that resonates with you, but be sure to use only stories that can be verified from credible sources. Do not use "my friend's brother" stories.

Come on folks - we can do it! Numbers count. When people hear many Y2K stories, some will "get it."

www.y2kkitchen.com

-- Sally Strackbein (sally@y2kkitchen.com), June 30, 1999

Answers

Sally, that is a great idea though I already tried to talk to my relatives on Easter with no breaking through at all. Now they think I'm nuts and it's a big joke in the family. Every time I see one of them they remark " Now don't be worrying too much about that y2k thing" or "Have you got all you y2k stuff done?" They really think it's a big joke and they have even laughed me. I don't think I'll be talking about it this time.

-- (stillwondering@Prodigy.net), June 30, 1999.

Sally,

I don't mean to rain on your parade and I certainly wouldn't dicourage you to try. BUT

>If each one of us talks to 4 people about Y2K, just think of the impact we can make.

I have "takled" to well over *40* people in the last 2 years and the response I've generally gotten is a look that says "why do you have that penis growing out of your forehead?"

I readilly agre that the need to communicate the problem is HUGH. The hour is late and the situation may be desperate.

Just don't get your hopes up too high. There's a lot of cognitave disonance out there.

-Greybear

-- Got Patience?

-- Greybear (greybear@home.com), June 30, 1999.

Sally, Mrs. Rimmer and I salute your courage on this. We, like Greybear, have spoken to a great many people over the past year. With minor exception, the response we've gotten is "you know, you two are beginning to look a lot like Greybear from the neck up".

We felt it was our moral obligation to inform those closest to us of a potential danger that we perceived. Over the past year, we've done exactly that. But those we've spoken to are fully within their rights to ignore our position. Of course we could be wrong, so we encourage others to research the issue and make up their own minds.

Unfortunately, if a subject can't be fully researched and understood in 5 minutes or less, most will not even bother.

Awareness simply does not equal preparedness. There are very few people that have not heard of Y2K but precious few who consider the issue serious enough to warrant spending more than 5 minutes thinking about it.

Quite frankly, it far too late for all but the most serious. It has taken Mrs. Rimmer and I a full year to reach the level of preparedness we are now at. But understand, we are NOT anticipating nor are we prepared for TEOTWAWKI. We are not prepared to live for long periods without doctors or pharmaceuticals. We are not prepared for total (or even partial) social breakdown. We are not prepared for idiots with a cause and a few dangerous weapons. We are not prepared for martial law. We are not prepared We are not prepared to 'live off the land'. We do not live under any illusion that we are prepared for a mega-disaster.

We are simply prepared to survive mild (a few days) to moderate (a few months) disruptions in basic infrastructure -- food, water, heat, sanitation. It has taken a full year, an enormous effort, and a significant change in thinking to get this far.

I will be grateful if the new year brings only renewed prosperity. But the change in thinking and our movement towards self-reliancy will continue regardless of how Y2K turns out. I find these attitudes to be the significant benefits brought about by our journey.

If Y2K turns out to be anything more than it's current bump in the road status, the lack of adequet preparation in light of the evidence will not go over well with the general population. I'm certain heads would roll. But for those who have heard but chosen not to listen, the first person to blame should be the one staring back at them from the mirror.

To the extent that people should be made aware of potential risks posed by Y2K, Mrs. Rimmer and I have fulfilled our moral obligation a long time ago. Notwithstanding, we applaud your efforts, encourage others to join with you and wish you success.

-- Arnie Rimmer (Arnie_Rimmer@usa.net), June 30, 1999.

Sally, I'm happy to report that after my husband and I had all but thrown in the towel regarding his father and step-mother ever "Getting It", last week during supper, they brought the subject up and told us they had come to the conclusion that they need to prepare. HALLELUJAH! (Of course, we had been silently preparing for them, too) Dad asked what they could do to help us complete our preps and asked for detailed information on preps past the 'basics'. Lucky for him (and us), they have the financial wherewithal to buy what they need now, and won't have to stretch their purchases out over a period of weeks/months. Hubby and I had done several 'silent inventories', and they already have many of the essential items already in place (water source, heat source, etc.)

Talking, sending info in the mail, 'accidentally' leaving information behind, etc., does pay off sometimes. I think we were 'helped' by the fact that Dad has been a salesman for 50+ years and understands persistence!

I can honestly say that we both felt calmer knowing that had' come around' and understood the necessity of preparation. Felt better than we had in months and months.

-- Wilferd (WilferdW@aol.com), July 01, 1999.

We'll do it with you. We are having a little Fourth of July parade and a neighborhood cookout on our new propety next door... just bought it for a church building site. Serves many purposes, including getting to know our neighbors, informing them about our modest building plans, building community, and down the line, y2k.

As organizers, we have set up a neighborhood organization to contact folks who signed up at the y2k forums we had this spring, plus names we have gotten from y2k booths at the fairs etc. We are promoting block parties as first on the agenda with neighbors in a 1-2 block radius. The one thing we consistently find in this time of y2k denial is that people everywhere WANT TO GET TO KNOW THEIR NEIGHBORS.

Starting there, some are presently interested in y2k, some in things like first aid, neighborhood safety and security, buddy systems for the elderly and anyone else, gardening etc.

We are trying to put this grassroots organization in place so that when y2k interest rises in the fall, we will have groups who are already playing and working together, much easier to work with.

I don't see much on this kind of community approach on this bulletin board, am at risk of being called a polly because am working with other people. The fact is, I think it is going to be hard times, hard and long. If the energy is not with getting other people to overtly prepare, but instead in developing trust, friendship, and working relations with neighbors, lets go there for now. When the change in consciousness starts with whatever trigger event brings it on, I'd like to maximize survivability by having as many neighborhoods organized as possible.

-- seraphima (seraphima@aol.com), July 01, 1999.

Seraphima -

You obviously haven't seen too many threads by Diane Squire, the Cascadians (Ashton & Leska), Stan Faryna, or any of a host of preparers. The need for community preps have been a topic of much discussion off and on for many months. Problem is as noted above: one has to be careful about talking with others, lest you get labelled a "loonie." I'm careful and patient in my communications. Changing people's minds has been a very slow process; unfortunately, time is running out.

-- Mac (sneak@lurk.hid), July 01, 1999.

Because I've been involved with Civil Defence for so long the family and friends are used to me ragging on them to keep at least 2 weeks of supplies on hand. Many times I have had to dispatch a 4wd in the midst of a winter storm and power outage to deliver simple things like a 5 gallon water bottle or a mechanical can opener, even batteries and a flashlight. The number of people who have NOTHING is staggering!

My employer has yearly seminars on disaster preparedness, on paid company time and only about 10% of the employees take advantage. The rest think it's a waste of time. Telling people that are somewhat prepared about the added dangers of y2k usually has had positive results for me. I have found out however, if they see things about plots and NWO and black helicopters they instantly turn off.

I know some folks truly believe these things and I won't condemn them, but any of you folks see some white trucks with blue globes and fellas with white helmets with a blue globe on them, PLEASE HOLD YOUR FIRE, it just might be the Telephone Company.

-- Bruce (bwblanchard@ems.att.com), July 01, 1999.

Sally, As always, you are doing the Lord's work.

I'd like to relate my experience in communicating the problem over the last 6 years (might be different from people who havn't been personally involved with fixing and preparing at the tops of Fortune 500 aned governments).

Family, friends and neighbors thought I was losing my marbles 3 years ago when I concluded we weren't going to make it. Now they are approaching me about what will/could happen and what to do. This took hearinbg about it from me when no one wass talking, disbelieving aned then see4ing things start to come out in the media. I think the "coverup" by governments is helping them come to their senses because most believe governments lie.

The class of people who listen and take prepatory actions on first contact is not my upper middle class neighbors, but service people: waiters, taxi drivers, hotel staff, etc. These are people who by their job have to listen and communicate with you and are at high risk personally. It helps if you have written advice to leave behind (like the list of things to buy for 30 days, Judith Draper sent you).

If you want to have impact, I recommend you talk to service personnel. You probably have to prepare for your family yourself, and your neighbors won't react in time.

noel

-- noel (ngoyette@csc.com), July 01, 1999.