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Tool of His offered this as a starter on butchering of stock

Home Slaughtering and Processing of Beef
For Home Purposes Only
A beef animal selected for slaughter should be healthy and in thrifty condition. Keep the animal off feed 24 hours before slaughter, but provide free access to water.
Don't run or excite the animal prior to slaughter because this may cause poor bleeding and give the carcass a bloody appearance.
The weather, especially expected temperatures the few days following slaughter, is extremely important. Night temperatures should be 32 degrees F or lower for the carcass to chill properly without refrigeration.
The meat will spoil if improperly chilled and stored during warm weather. Also, during extremely cold weather, the meat should be protected from freezing by covering it with a clean cover.
Preparing for Slaughter
Slaughter should be done in a dry, clean, dust-free area. A well-drained grassy area is recommended.
Take precautions during slaughter, chilling and processing to keep the carcass and cuts clean and free from contamination. Use clean equipment, keep hands clean, wear clean clothing and keep work and storage areas clean.
The carcass can be chilled without refrigeration by hanging it in a dry, clean building. Freedom from odors or contamination is essential.
Most meat spoilage and off-odors and flavors can be attributed to one or more of the following causes:
1. Improper chilling of the carcass: The internal temperature of the round and other thick parts should be lowered to 40-45 degrees F within 24 hours after slaughter.
2. Absorption of off-odors: When the carcass is chilled in an area with any odor (manure, gasoline, paint or musty odor), the carcass will adsorb it.
3. Poor sanitation during slaughter, chilling and processing: This contamination with microorganisms causes off-odors, off flavors and spoilage.
4. Improper freezing and storage of frozen meat: Packaged meat should be quick-frozen and stored at 0 to 6 degrees F. Home freezers are for storage of products already frozen, not for quick-freezing large quantities of meat. Small quantities, preferably less than 25 pounds, can be satisfactorily frozen at home by placing meat in the freezer with at least one inch of space between each package
Equipment Needed for Slaughter
The minimum required items of equipment for home slaughtering are as follows.
Stunning device such as 22 caliber rifle
Block and tackle chain hoist or tractor equipped with hydraulic lift
Beef spreader (singletree equipped with hooks on both ends and a ring in the center will do)
6 inch boning knife
6 inch sharp skinning knife
8-inch butcher knife
10 to 12 inch steel bucket to hold water for washing hands
24 to 28 inch hand meat saw
Enough pans or buckets for edible meat
Adequate supply of clean, cold water and hand towels
How to Stun Animal
Kill the animal as humanely as possible. If a rifle is used, exercise recommendations for safe use of firearms. The proper place for the bullet to strike is at the intersection of two imaginary lines extending from the right horn or anima, edge of poll to the left eye and from the left horn or edge of poll to the right eye with a sharp blow. Proper point for a sledge hammer will also stun the animal
How to Bleed Animal
As soon as the animal is down, bleed it without delay. Stand behind the animal and with the sharp skinning knife, make an incision through the hide in the middle of the dewlap immediately in front of the breastbone.
Hold the knife so the point is directed toward the rear of the animal, insert the knife under the breastbone toward the rump of the animal and cut toward the backbone. This will cut the arteries that cross just beneath the point of the breastbone.
Bleed the animals without delay following stunning.
How to Skin Animal
Turn the animal on it's back and place a short prop (square post) on either side to hold it there. Remove the forefeet and shanks at the knee by locating and cutting through the flat joint with a knife. Skin out the hind legs and remove the hind feet and shanks by sawing.
Then split the hide at the rear of each hind leg, beginning where the shank was removed, moving to the udder or scrotum. Do not skin the outside of the hind and front legs until the carcass is hoisted. To remove the fore-hind legs nore front legs until feet and shanks, cut through the carcasses is being hoisted. the flat joint. The intact hide will keep the shanks clean during hoisting.
The next part of skinning is known as "siding." Begin the siding by sliding the knife under the skin that has been cut over the belly. Grasp the loosened hide with hand (hair side is easiest to hold) and pull it up and outward. Place the knife firmly against the hide with the cutting edge turned slightly toward the hide.
Use long, smooth strokes of the knife to remove the hide down over the sides. This is one of the most difficult tasks in skinning.
Opening the Carcass
After siding is done, cut through the center of the brisket with a knife and saw through the breastbone. Insert the handle of the knife in the abdominal cavity with the blade leaning backward to open the belly cavity.
In case of a male, remove the penis before opening the carcass.
Saw off the hind feet and shanks after skinning out the hind legs.
To open the belly cavity, insert the knife, handle first, with the blade leaning back. This avoids cutting the stomach.
The inside of each round muscle over the pelvis is covered with a thick, white membrane. Follow this membrane. Use long, smooth stroke with the knife when and avoid cutting into the muscle. The knife can be forced skinning. Keep the knife firmly against the hide with the between the soft cartilage that joins the pelvic bone. See cutting edge slightly toward the hide.
In older animals, the pelvis must be sawed.
The carcass is now ready for hoisting. Insert the hooks of a beef spreader or single tree in the tendons of the hind legs. After the carcass is partially hoisted, complete skinning the rounds and the back of the carcass.
Sawing through the breastbone prior to opening the belly cavity.
To separate the rounds, cut along the thick white membrane at the pelvis.
Remove the bung by cutting around it on the two sides and back and pulling through the opening of the pelvic cavity. Continue pulling the bung and intestines to the back.
Removing the bung by cutting along the two sides and back; and pulling it through the pelvic opening and cutting the ligaments that attach the intestines to the back.
Pull down on the paunch to tear it loose from the carcass. Cut the esophagus where it goes through the diaphram. Allow the intestines and the paunch to drop into a container or on the ground. The liver should still be attached to the carcass and can next be removed. Remove the gall bladder from the liver.
Continue hoisting the carcass until the head clears the ground. Remove the heart and lungs by first cutting out the diaphram, the white connective tissue that separates the abdominal and thoracic cavities. Grasp the heat and lungs, pull forward and downward and cut the large blood vessel attached to the backbone. Remove the heart, lungs and esophagus as one unit.
Complete skinning the carcass and remove the head. The head is removed by cutting across the neck above the poll and through the atlas joint.
Carefully examine all the internal organs and the dressed carcass for any abnormalities or conditions (such as abscesses or inflammation) that might affect the wholesomeness of the meat.
Splitting the Carcass
The carcass should be split into two sides. Start the splitting by first sawing through the sacral vertebrae from the inside. As soon as the cut is made through the pelvic area, sawing can be done easier from the back. Make the split down the center of the backbone to the neck. Leave the neck attached, to balance the sides on the single tree.
Trim any soiled, bruised or bloody pieces of meat. Wash the carcass with cold water to remove any remaining blood and dirt. Pump the forelegs up and down a few times to aid in draining blood from the forequarters.
To improve the appearance of the carcass, shroud it tightly with wet, clean white muslin to smooth the exterior fat during chilling. Use skewers or ties to tighten the shroud.
Cutting Beef
Beef should be aged a few days before cutting. The amount of aging will depend on the amount of fat covering, desired flavor and temperature.
Carcasses that have only a thin fat covering should be aged three to five days; those with more fat, five to seven days. Very little tenderization occurs after seven days. Longer aging may result in off flavors and odors due to microbial growth.
Only carcasses with fat covering the entire outside should be aged longer than 10 days.
If the temperature of the carcass rises above 40 degrees F, the time required for aging is reduced. Also, chances of spoilage are increased.
Wholesale cuts of a beef side in reference to the skeleton vertical line drawing">
The sides of the carcass are quartered by cutting between the 12th and 13th rib. The 13th rib is left on the hindquarter to allow air to circulate over the kidney knob and to prevent bacterial growth if additional aging time is desired. The following is a common procedure for cutting the quarters into wholesale cuts.
Forequarter
Remove the rib and plate from the chuck and brisket by cutting between the fifth and sixth rib. Cut perpendicular to the top line of the carcass. Separate the rib cut from the plate at a point 1-1/2 inches below the rib eye muscle on the end where the side was quartered and cut parallel to the back.
The rib may be cut into rib steaks by cutting the desired thickness. The larger part may be made into a roast or the entire cut boned into boneless rib steaks or roasts. The rib cuts are rather tender and may be broiled or dry roasted.
The plate may be processed by cutting two or three rows (1 1/2 to 2 inches) of short ribs and the remaining boned for ground beef.
To remove the brisket and foreshank from the chuck, first locate the arm bone joint near the surface of the carcass. Cut about 1 inch above the top of the joint, perpendicular to the cut made when the quarter was first divided.
The brisket may be separated from the shank by cutting through the natural seam that joins them. The shank is usually boned for grinding but cross-cut shank or soup bones may be made. The brisket should be boned for a roast or for grinding.
The blade end of the square-cut chuck may be cut into steaks or roast.
The arm end of the chuck may be cut into steaks or roasts. The neck portion can best be used for ground beef.
Hindquarter
The hindquarter should be placed on the cutting table with the outside down.
The flank is removed by starting the cut on the round near the cod area following the round muscle. Cut closely to avoid cutting into the lean on the round near the stifle joint. Continue the cut forward on a line to a point 2 or 3 inches below the loin eye muscle at the 13th rib.
The flank steak, the prominent muscle on the inside near the center of the flank, may be stripped out for a steak and the remaining lean trimmed for grinding.
Separate the loin from the round by cutting between the fourth and fifth sacral vertebrae at a point approximately 1 inch in front of the aitch bone. The loin should then be cut into steaks. Begin cutting at the sirloin end and cut toward the small end of the loin.
Remove the rump by cutting parallel to the two ends of the aitch bone and just behind the aitch bone. The rump is usually boned and tied for roasts. The sirloin tip is removed by following the round bone to the knee cap. The tip can be used as roasts or steaks.
The remainder of the round may be cut into steaks or roasts most easily by separating the top and bottom round. The hind shank should be boned for ground beef.
Packaging for the Home Freezer
Successful freezing depends on proper packaging to protect foods in freezers. Ordinary Kraft or waxed paper DO NOT adequately protect foods in freezers. Use moisture vapor-proof material designed especially to wrap foods for freezing. These materials are strong, easy to handle, resist grease, are moisture proof and will not transfer odors. Plastic and Kraft laminated materials are probably the most economical and are the easiest to use in most cases.
How to Wrap
The drug store fold is the approved method to seal the moisture in and the air out. To make the drug store fold:
1. Place the meat in the center of the paper.
2. Bring the two horizontal ends together and fold over until tight against the meat.
3. Tightly fold one end, then the other. Turn each end underneath and secure with tape.
For easier separation of steaks when frozen, place a double thickness of waxed or freeze paper between eact piece with plastic sides to the meat. Before packaging, remove or cover sharp bone edges with double thickness of freeze paper so they will not puncture the wrapping paper.
Labeling: Label each package clearly with a crayon or grease pencil. Include the name of the cut, the quantity and the packaging date.
Freezer Storage Time: The maximum recommended period of freezer storage for beef is nine months.
Thawing Frozen meat: For best results, thaw in original package inside your refrigerator. Allow approx. 3 ours per pound for small roasts and steak packages. Larger roasts require 4 to 5 hours. If thawed at room temperature, alow 1 hour per pound.
Cooking frozen meat: Frozen meat may be cooked satisfactorily either by thawing prior to or during cooking. When cooking steaks or roasts from the frozen state, allow additional cooking time.
Frozen roasts require approx. a third longer for cooking than roasts that have been thawed. Allow additional time for cooking steaks or ground beef paties compared to thawed cuts. When broiling, place frozen steaks and ground beef patties further from the heat or at a lower temperature than thawed cuts; so the meat will be cooked to the desired degree of doneness without becoming too brown on the outside.
Source (PDF): Oklahoma State University

Blueduck responded

The one thing I take immeadiate caution with is anyone telling a person that they can "stun" a beef animal using a sledge hammer, while it can be done on a small or young animal, the older ones are gonna be a little tougher in the skul there and may require more than one whack, and if you aint never done it before or witnessed it done you might only get one whack at it, the animal is not gonna appreciate just standing around waiting to be whacked a second time...... though i suppose there will be exceptions to any rule, it is not the best thing to do the first time out of the box.
Another thing is it is best to go out and watch a butcher process an animal if they will let you, watching will get you valueable information that just reading about wont even begin to touch on trying to do certain tasks related to skining, gutting and so forth...... it can be done completely by reading a book, one couple did so entirely by Reading Carla Emery's Encyclopedia of Country Living though it took them about 4 hours if i remember correctly, and in my cousins plant it takes about 15-20 minutes from running the animal in the chute til it is hanging on the rail...... the last beef i did in the open took me about 30 minutes to get it ready to hang in the shed, and the last sheep i hung up took about the same, bigger animals only weigh more and have a little bit more hide to remove, everything else is the same it seems like and it dont take much longer for a bigger animal than it does for a medum sized one..... though one like a rabbit we had down to 43 seconds in races when i was a kid...... the things that stick in a kids mind that were the fun parts of youth, rabbit skinning races with the cousins.
William
Idaho

and Jericho added his thanks for the information

Or next offering this week is from 230gr. He posted and article about a Hawthrone tree. Its has many atributes that would be good for the retreater and homesteader.

Hawthorn (Crataegus sp.)
The Hawthorn family is huge in this country with nearly 200 species of Hawthorn trees, not counting another 100 or so species of shrubs. Many of those species are native to North America. You can have a bushy Hawthorn shrub or a fairly good sized 30 foot tall Hawthorn tree. The trees will tend to have short stout trunks and rather crooked, spreading branches. Perhaps the most important feature of the Hawthorn is the thorns, really tough, long (from 1 to 5 inches in length) and very sharp thorns adorning the branches, however, there are a few species without thorns. If you want a hedge that no child, dog, or even cat will penetrate, get a Hawthorn. The Hawthorns will live from 50 to 100 years and they have a long history dating as far back as the Bible.



It is said to be what the "crown of thorns" was made of. In Europe, especially Germany, it was grown as part of a hedgerow to divide fields and land and the hardwood of the hawthorn tree is sometimes used to make handles for tools.
They will have really nice looking red or yellow fruit sometimes as big as crabapples in the late fall and early winter that feed all manner of birds and mammals, as well as, people. Use the leaves, flowers and berries for medicinal and culinary purposes. The berries are collected when ripe and used raw or cooked, or dried whole for use in decoctions, liquid extracts, and tinctures. It is believed that antioxidants are responsible for the beneficial effects of Hawthorne berries. The young leaves of our native hawthorn can be eaten raw, usually mixed with other salad greens.
Hawthorn Jelly
Pick hawthorns when they are turning red.
Remove stems and wash well.
Add chopped up tart apples to increase tartness of jelly, because hawthorn berries alone are rather bland.
In a kettle, cover with cold water and cook until berries and apples are very soft.
Mash well and strain through a jelly bag or a fine sieve.
Measure the sugar and add 1 to 1 and 1/2 cup for each cup of juice.
Boil hard again until mixture tests for jelly.
The berry is often added to supplements designed to promote heart health, reduce blood pressure and correct unhealthy cholesterol levels. It is believed that natural anti-inflammatories, such as those found in hawthorne berries reduce cancer risks and the risk of heart disease. These natural compounds can also lower blood pressure and reduce blood cholesterol levels.
The fruit and flowers of many hawthorns are well known in herbal medicine as a heart tonic to treatment a weak heart condition and high blood pressure. Contemporary medical studies show the same results: if you eat Hawthorne fruits you will also be strengthening your heart.
Hawthorn has been used for centuries as a cardiac tonic. Research has shown that standardized extracts of this botanical can benefit coronary function. Specifically, hawthorn has a positive effect on the muscles of the heart. Long-term use of the herb results in a dilation of coronary vessels and an increased flow of blood through the heart. Hawthorn also affects intracellular calcium levels in the heart muscle, resulting in improved cardiac function and a lowering of spastic cardiac conditions such as cardiac arrhythmias and congestive heart failure, and weakened or damaged hearts.
Prescribers often find that, as cardiac function improves and stabilizes, blood pressure goes down
It is essential to remember that hawthorn is not a quick-acting herb. One cannot expect to cut short an attack of angina by taking a supplemental dose of hawthorn. As a health-enhancing dietary supplement, hawthorn's effects are best realized when the plant medicine is utilized in the appropriate doses over a long period of time -- several weeks or months.
In my personal experience, it does help the heart over time at least in the herbal mix that I found. In fact I still have some left as my high BP greatly improved and so did my heart congestive heart failure. It was not the only thing I did of course it was part of it. Besides the berries are free and pleasant tasting.

FRC Forums Highlighted Posts of the Week

411man started this one article and thoughts

Long well researched piece.I think the data is more or less correct, but drought issues in some countries are offset by flooded areas as well, sometimes in the same country... as SW or SE drought in USA vs MidWest flooding... similar situation in China etc. So these maps are not exactly accurate in this regard IMO. But the situation is, as flooded areas have the same problem of crop production as drought areas, just the opposite extreme. The pattern represents the shift to 'global cooling' IMO.=========================================

Catastrophic Fall in 2009 Global Food Production
by Eric deCarbonnel .Global Research, February 10, 2009Market OracleAfter reading about the droughts in two major agricultural countries, China and Argentina, I decided to research the extent other food producing nations were also experiencing droughts. This project ended up taking a lot longer than I thought. 2009 looks to be a humanitarian disaster around much of the worldTo understand the depth of the food Catastrophe that faces the world this year, consider the graphic below depicting countries by USD value of their agricultural output, as of 2006.[Green top map below]Now, consider the same graphic with the countries experiencing droughts highlighted.[Red and green bottom map below]The countries that make up two thirds of the world's agricultural output are experiencing drought conditions. Whether you watch a video of the drought in China, Australia, Africa, South America, or the US , the scene will be the same: misery, ruined crop, and dying cattle.ChinaThe drought in Northern China, the worst in 50 years, is worsening, and summer harvest is now threatened. The area of affected crops has expanded to 161 million mu (was 141 million last week), and 4.37 million people and 2.1 million livestock are facing drinking water shortage. The scarcity of rain in some parts of the north and central provinces is the worst in recorded history.The drought which started in November threatens over half the wheat crop in eight provinces - Hebei, Shanxi, Anhui, Jiangsu, Henan, Shandong, Shaanxi and Gansu.HenanChina's largest crop producing province, Henan, has issued the highest-level drought warning. Henan has received an average rainfall of 10.5 millimeters since November 2008, almost 80 percent less than in the same period in the previous years. The Henan drought, which began in November, is the most severe since 1951.AnhuiAnhui Province issued a red drought alert, with more than 60 percent of the crops north of the Huaihe River plagued by a major drought.ShanxiShanxi Province was put on orange drought alert on Jan. 21, with one million people and 160,000 heads of livestock are facing water shortage.JiangsuJiangsu province has already lost over one fifth of the wheat crops affected by drought. Local agricultural departments are diverting water from nearby rivers in an emergency effort to save the rest.HebeiOver 100 million cubic meters of water has been channeled in from outside the province to fight Hebei's drought.Shaanxi1.34 million acres of crops across the bone-dry Shanxi province are affected by the worsening drought.ShandongSince last November, Shandong province has experienced 73 percent less rain than the same period in previous years, with little rainfall forecast for the future.Relief efforts are under way. The Chinese government has allocated 86.7 billion yuan (about $12.69 billion) to drought-hit areas. Authorities have also resorted to cloud-seeding, and some areas received a sprinkling of rain after clouds were hit with 2,392 rockets and 409 cannon shells loaded with chemicals. However, there is a limit to what can be done in the face of such widespread water shortage.As I have previously written, China is facing hyperinflation , and this record drought will make things worse. China produces 18% of the world's grain each year.AustraliaAustralia has been experiencing an unrelenting drought since 2004, and 41 percent of Australia's agriculture continues to suffer from the worst drought in 117 years of record-keeping. The drought has been so severe that rivers stopped flowing, lakes turned toxic, and farmers abandoned their land in frustration:A) The Murray River stopped flowing at its terminal point, and its mouth has closed up.B) Australia's lower lakes are evaporating, and they are now a meter (3.2 feet) below sea level. If these lakes evaporate any further, the soil and the mud system below the water is going to be exposed to the air. The mud will then acidify, releasing sulfuric acid and a whole range of heavy metals. After this occurs, those lower lake systems will essentially become a toxic swamp which will never be able to be recovered. The Australian government's only options to prevent this are to allow salt water in, creating a dead sea, or to pray for rain.For some reason, the debate over climate change is essentially over in Australia.The United StatesCaliforniaCalifornia is facing its worst drought in recorded history . The drought is predicted to be the most severe in modern times, worse than those in 1977 and 1991. Thousands of acres of row crops already have been fallowed, with more to follow. The snowpack in the Northern Sierra, home to some of the state's most important reservoirs, proved to be just 49 percent of average. Water agencies throughout the state are scrambling to adopt conservation mandates.TexasThe Texan drought is reaching historic proportion . Dry conditions near Austin and San Antonio have been exceeded only once before—the drought of 1917-18. 88 percent of Texas is experiencing abnormally dry conditions, and 18 percent of the state is in either extreme or exceptional drought conditions. The drought areas have been expanding almost every month. Conditions in Texas are so bad cattle are keeling over in parched pastures and dying. Lack of rainfall has left pastures barren, and cattle producers have resorted to feeding animals hay. Irreversible damage has been done to winter wheat crops in Texas. Both short and long-term forecasts don't call for much rain at all, which means the Texas drought is set to get worse.Augusta Region (Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina)The Augusta region has been suffering from a worsening two year drought. Augusta's rainfall deficit is already approaching 2 inches so far in 2009, with January being the driest since 1989.FloridaFlorida has been hard hit by winter drought, damaging crops, and half of state is in some level of a drought.La Niña likely to make matters worseEnough water a couple of degrees cooler than normal has accumulated in the eastern part of the Pacific to create a La Niña, a weather pattern expected to linger until at least the spring. La Niña generally means dry weather for Southern states, which is exactly what the US doesn't need right now.South AmericaArgentinaThe worst drought in half a century has turned Argentina's once-fertile soil to dust and pushed the country into a state of emergency. Cow carcasses litter the prairie fields, and sun-scorched soy plants wither under the South American summer sun. Argentina's food production is set to go down a minimum of 50 percent, maybe more. The country's wheat yield for 2009 will be 8.7 million metric tons, down from 16.3 million in 2008. Concern with domestic shortages (domestic wheat consumption being approximately 6.7 million metric ton), Argentina has granted no new export applications since mid January .BrazilBrazil has cut its outlook for the crops and will do so again after assessing damage to plants from desiccation in drought-stricken regions. Brazil is the world's second-biggest exporter of soybeans and third-largest for corn.Brazil's numbers for corn harvesting:Harvested in 2008: 58.7 million tonsJanuary 8 forecast: 52.3 million tonsFebruary 6 forecast: 50.3 metric tons (optimistic)Harvested in 2009: ParaguaySevere drought affecting Paraguay's economy has pushed the government to declare agricultural emergency. Crops that have direct impact on cattle food are ruined, and the soy plantations have been almost totally lost in some areas.UruguayUruguay declared an "agriculture emergency" last month, due to the worst drought in decades which is threatening crops, livestock and the provision of fresh produce.The a worsening drought is pushing up food and beverage costs causing Uruguay's consumer prices to rise at the fastest annual pace in more than four years in January.BoliviaThere hasn't been a drop of rain in Bolivia in nearly a year. Cattle dying, crops ruined, etc…ChileThe severe drought affecting Chile has caused an agricultural emergency in 50 rural districts, and large sectors of the economy are concerned about possible electricity rationing in March. The countries woes stem from the "La Niña" climate phenomenon which has over half of Chile dangling by a thread: persistently cold water in the Pacific ocean along with high atmospheric pressure are preventing rain-bearing fronts from entering central and southern areas of the country. As a result, the water levels at hydroelectric dams and other reservoirs are at all-time lows.Horn of AfricaAfrica faces food shortages and famine . Food production across the Horn of Africa has suffered because of the lack of rainfall. Also, half the agricultural soil has lost nutrients necessary to grow plant, and the declining soil fertility across Africa is exacerbating drought related crop losses.KenyaKenya is the worst hit nation in the region, having been without rainfall for 18 months. Kenya needs to import food to bridge a shortfall and keep 10 million of its people from starvation. Kenya's drought suffering neighbors will be of little help.TanzaniaA poor harvest due to drought has prompted Tanzania to stop issuing food export permits. Tanzania has also intensified security at the border posts to monitor and prevent the export of food. There are 240,000 people in need of immediate relief food in Tanzania.BurundiCrops in the north of Burundi have withered, leaving the tiny East African country facing a severe food shortageUgandaSevere drought in northeastern Uganda's Karamoja region has the left the country on the brink of a humanitarian catastrophe. The dry conditions and acute food shortages, which have left Karamoja near starvation, are unlikely to improve before October when the next harvest is due.South AfricaSouth Africa faces a potential crop shortage after wheat farmers in the eastern part of the Free State grain belt said they were likely to produce their lowest crop in 30 years this year. South Africans are "extremely angry" that food prices continue to rise.Other African nations suffering from drought in 2009 are: Malawi, Zambia, Swaziland, Somalia, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Tunisia, Angola, and Ethiopia.Middle East and Central AsiaThe Middle East and Central Asia are suffering from the worst droughts in recent history , and food grain production has dropped to some of the lowest levels in decades. Total wheat production in the wider drought-affected region is currently estimated to have declined by at least 22 percent in 2009. Owing to the drought's severity and region-wide scope, irrigation supplies from reservoirs, rivers, and groundwater have been critically reduced. Major reservoirs in Turkey, Iran, Iraq, and Syria are all at low levels requiring restrictions on usage. Given the severity of crop losses in the region, a major shortage of planting seed for the 2010 crop is expected.IraqIn Iraq during the winter grain growing period, there was essentially no measurable rainfall in many regions, and large swaths of rain-fed fields across northern Iraq simply went unplanted. These primarily rain-fed regions in northern Iraq are described as an agricultural disaster area this year, with wheat production falling 80-98 percent from normal levels. The USDA estimates total wheat production in Iraq in 2009 at 1.3 million tons, down 45 percent from last year.SyriaSyria is experienced its worst drought in the past 18 years, and the USDA estimates total wheat production in Syria in 2009 at 2.0 million tons, down 50 percent from last year. Last summer, the taps ran dry in many neighborhoods of Damascus and residents of the capital city were forced to buy water on the black market. The severe lack of rain this winter has exacerbated the problem.AfghanistanLack of rainfall has led Afghanistan to the worst drought conditions in the past 10 years. The USDA estimates 2008/09 wheat production in Afghanistan at 1.5 million tons, down 2.3 million or 60 percent from last year. Afghanistan normally produces 3.5-4.0 million tons of wheat annually.JordanJordan's persistent drought has grown worse, with almost no rain falling on the kingdom this year. The Jordanian government has stopped pumping water to farms to preserve the water for drinking purposes.Other Middle Eastern and Central Asian nations suffering from drought in 2009 are: The Palestinian Territories, Lebanon, Israel, Bangladesh, Myanmar, India, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Thailand, Nepal, Pakistan, Turkey, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Cyprus, and Iran.Lack of credit will worsen food shortageA lack of credit for farmers curbed their ability to buy seeds and fertilizers in 2008/2009 and will limit production around the world. The effects of droughts worldwide will also be amplified by the smaller amount of seeds and fertilizers used to grow crops.Low commodity prices will worsen food shortageThe low prices at the end of 2008 discouraged the planting of new crops in 2009. In Kansas for example, farmers seeded nine million acres, the smallest planting for half a century. Wheat plantings this year are down about 4 million acres across the US and about 1.1 million acres in Canada. So even discounting drought related losses, the US, Canada, and other food producing nations are facing lower agricultural output in 2009.Europe will not make up for the food shortfallEurope, the only big agricultural region relatively unaffected by drought, is set for a big drop in food production. Due to the combination of a late plantings, poorer soil conditions, reduced inputs, and light rainfall, Europe's agricultural output is likely to fall by 10 to 15 percent.Stocks of foodstuff are dangerously lowLow stocks of foodstuff make the world's falling agriculture output particularly worrisome. The combined averaged of the ending stock levels of the major trading countries of Australia, Canada, United States, and the European Union have been declining steadily in the last few years:2002-2005: 47.4 million tons2007: 37.6 million tons2008: 27.4 million tonsThese inventory numbers are dangerously low, especially considering the horrifying possibility that China's 60 million tons of grain reserves doesn't actually exists .Global food CatastropheThe world is heading for a drop in agricultural production of 20 to 40 percent, depending on the severity and length of the current global droughts. Food producing nations are imposing food export restrictions. Food prices will soar, and, in poor countries with food deficits, millions will starve.The deflation debate should end nowThe droughts plaguing the world's biggest agricultural regions should end the debate about deflation in 2009. The demand for agricultural commodities is relatively immune to developments in the business cycles (at least compared to that of energy or base metals), and, with a 20 to 40 percent decline in world production, already rising food prices are headed significantly higher.In fact, agricultural commodities NEED to head higher and soon, to prevent even greater food shortages and famine. The price of wheat, corn, soybeans, etc must rise to a level which encourages the planting of every available acre with the best possible fertilizers. Otherwise, if food prices stay at their current levels, production will continue to fall, sentencing millions more to starvation.Competitive currency appreciationSome observers are anticipating “competitive currency devaluations” in addition to deflation for 2009 (nations devalue their currencies to help their export sector). The coming global food shortage makes this highly unlikely. Depreciating their currency in the current environment will produce the unwanted consequence of boosting exports—of food. Even with export restrictions like those in China, currency depreciation would cause the outflow of significant quantities of grain via the black market.Instead of “competitive currency devaluations”, spiking food prices will likely cause competitive currency appreciation in 2009. Foreign exchange reserves exist for just this type of emergency . Central banks around the world will lower domestic food prices by either directly selling off their reserves to appreciate their currencies or by using them to purchase grain on the world market.Appreciating a currency is the fastest way to control food inflation. A more valuable currency allows a nation to monopolize more global resources (ie: the overvalued dollar allows the US to consume 25% of the world's oil despite having only 4% of the world's population). If China were to selloff its US reserves, its enormous population would start sucking up the world's food supply like the US has been doing with oil.On the flip side, when a nation appreciates its currency and starts consuming more of the world's resources, it leaves less for everyone else. So when china appreciates the yuan, food shortages worldwide will increase and prices everywhere else will jump upwards. As there is nothing that breeds social unrest like soaring food prices, nations around the world, from Russia, to the EU, to Saudi Arabia, to India, will sell off their foreign reserves to appreciate their currencies and reduce the cost of food imports. In response to this, China will sell even more of its reserves and so on. That is competitive currency appreciation.When faced with competitive currency appreciation, you do NOT want to be the world's reserve currency. The dollar is likely to do very poorly as central banks liquidate trillions in US holdings to buy food and appreciate their currencies.
By Eric deCarbonnel
http://www.marketskeptics.com

230gr responded (and GM seconded the thought)

Food is the next real crisis and control issue. Food scarcity gives the government power in price controls and rationing. It will come with in the foreseeable future, prep now with long term storage foods while you can.

Heyman chimed in with this response

Not only will the problem come from government control of food and quantities thereof water WILL be a big issue. An issue that I have been pondering is what ever food is grown privately will become that much more valuable so much that will it be worth the risk? of course but when the hordes find it they will gorge themselves with the food before it is even ripened therefore loosing any seeds that were needed for the next years crop. Making any gaps you have left in your preps counting on a garden that much more life threatening.

eeyore added a couple of articles (and concurred that water is very important)

A 'time bomb' for world wheat crop
Katharine Kimball / For The TimesOregon State scientist Mary Verhoeven is among those working to develop wheat varieties resistant to a strain of “stem rust” that a colleague calls “a time bomb.”The Ug99 fungus, called stem rust, could wipe out more than 80% of the world's wheat as it spreads from Africa, scientists fear. The race is on to breed resistant plants before it reaches the U.S.By Karen Kaplan June 14, 2009 The spores arrived from Kenya on dried, infected leaves ensconced in layers of envelopes.Working inside a bio-secure greenhouse outfitted with motion detectors and surveillance cameras, government scientists at the Cereal Disease Laboratory in St. Paul, Minn., suspended the fungal spores in a light mineral oil and sprayed them onto thousands of healthy wheat plants. After two weeks, the stalks were covered with deadly reddish blisters characteristic of the scourge known as Ug99.Crop scientists fear the Ug99 fungus could wipe out more than 80% of worldwide wheat crops as it spreads from eastern Africa. It has already jumped the Red Sea and traveled as far as Iran. Experts say it is poised to enter the breadbasket of northern India and Pakistan, and the wind will inevitably carry it to Russia, China and even North America -- if it doesn't hitch a ride with people first."It's a time bomb," said Jim Peterson, a professor of wheat breeding and genetics at Oregon State University in Corvallis. "It moves in the air, it can move in clothing on an airplane. We know it's going to be here. It's a matter of how long it's going to take."Though most Americans have never heard of it, Ug99 -- a type of fungus called stem rust because it produces reddish-brown flakes on plant stalks -- is the No. 1 threat to the world's most widely grown crop.The International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center in Mexico estimates that 19% of the world's wheat, which provides food for 1 billion people in Asia and Africa, is in imminent danger. American plant breeders say $10 billion worth of wheat would be destroyed if the fungus suddenly made its way to U.S. fields.Fear that the fungus will cause widespread damage has caused short-term price spikes on world wheat markets. Famine has been averted thus far, but experts say it's only a matter of time."A significant humanitarian crisis is inevitable," said Rick Ward, the coordinator of the Durable Rust Resistance in Wheat project at Cornell University in Ithaca, N.Y.The solution is to develop new wheat varieties that are immune to Ug99. That's much easier said than done.After several years of feverish work, scientists have identified a mere half-dozen genes that are immediately useful for protecting wheat from Ug99. Incorporating them into crops using conventional breeding techniques is a nine- to 12-year process that has only just begun. And that process will have to be repeated for each of the thousands of wheat varieties that is specially adapted to a particular region and climate."All the seed needs to change in the next few years," said Ronnie Coffman, a plant breeder who heads the Durable Rust Resistance in Wheat project. "It's really an enormous undertaking."Ancient adversaryFarmers have been battling stem rust for as long as they have grown wheat. The fungus' ancestors infected wild grasses for millions of years before people began cultivating them for food, said Jorge Dubcovsky, professor of genetics and plant breeding at UC Davis."The pathogen keeps mutating and evolving," he said. "It's one of our biblical pests. This is not a small enemy."When a spore lands on a green wheat plant, it forms a pustule that invades the outer layers of the stalk. The pustule hijacks the plant's water and nutrients and diverts them to produce new rust spores instead of grain. Within two weeks of an initial attack, there can be millions of pustules in a 2.5-acre patch of land.Wheat plants that can recognize a specific chemical produced by stem rust can mount a defense against the fungus. But the rust is able to mutate, evade the plant's immune system and resume its spread.Stem rust destroyed more than 20% of U.S. wheat crops several times between 1917 and 1935, and losses reached nearly 9% twice in the 1950s. The last major outbreak, in 1962, destroyed 5.2% of the U.S. crop, according to Peterson, who chairs the National Wheat Improvement Committee.The fungus was kept at bay for years by breeders who slowly and methodically incorporated different combinations of six major stem rust resistance genes into various varieties of wheat. The breeders thought it unlikely that the rust could overcome clusters of those genes at the same time.After several outbreak-free decades, it seemed that stem rust had been defeated for good. Scientists switched to other topics, and the hunt for new resistance genes practically slowed to a crawl.A new strain of stem rust was identified on a wheat farm in Uganda in 1999."It didn't draw a lot of attention, frankly," said Marty Carson, research leader at the Cereal Disease Laboratory, part of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. "There's very little wheat grown in Uganda." PGrain scourge.East Africa is a natural hot spot for stem rust. Weather conditions allow farmers to grow wheat year-round, so rust spores can always find a susceptible host. Some of the wheat is grown as high as 7,000 feet above sea level, where intense solar radiation helps the fungus mutate.The highlands are also home to barberry bushes, the only plant on which stem rust is known to reproduce through sexual recombination. That genetic shuffling provides a golden opportunity for the fungus to evolve into a deadly strain.Within a few years, Ug99 -- named for the country and year it was identified -- had devastated farms in neighboring Kenya, where much of the wheat is grown on large-scale farms that have so far been able to absorb the blow. Then it moved north to Ethiopia, Sudan and Yemen, putting more small farms at risk. Those that can afford it are trying to make do with fungicides, but that's too cumbersome and expensive to be a long-term solution, Ward said.To make matters worse, the fungus is becoming more virulent as it spreads. Scientists discovered a Ug99 variant in 2006 that can defeat Sr24, a resistance gene that protects Great Plains wheat.Last year, another variant was found with immunity to Sr36, a gene that safeguards Eastern wheat.Should those variants make their way to U.S. fields any time soon, scientists would be hard-pressed to protect American wheat crops.A laborious taskNow the pressure is on to develop new wheat varieties that are impervious to Ug99. Hundreds of varieties will need to be upgraded in the U.S. alone."You can't just breed it into one or two major varieties and expect to solve the problem," Peterson said. "You have to reinvent this wheel at almost a local level."The first step is to identify Ug99 resistance genes by finding wheat plants that can withstand the deadly fungus.Roughly 16,000 wheat varieties and other plants have been tested in the cereal disease lab over the last four years. The tests were conducted between Dec. 1 and the end of February, when the Minnesota weather is so frigid that escaping spores would quickly perish, Carson said.These and similar efforts at a research station in Kenya have turned up only a handful of promising resistance genes, which crop breeders such as Brett Carver at Oklahoma State University in Stillwater are trying to import into vulnerable strains of wheat.Each year, Carver crosses hundreds of plants in a greenhouse to produce as many as 50,000 candidate strains. Over the next four years, those are winnowed down, and the most promising 2,000 are planted in the field.Only the hardiest strains are replanted each year, until the 12-year process results in a single new variety with dozens of valuable traits, such as the ability to withstand drought and make fluffy bread.The oldest of the plants Carver bred for Ug99 resistance are only 3 years old, but one of the strains has been planted in the field already in case the fungus hitches a quick ride to the U.S. on an airplane or in a shipping container."In the absence of stem rust, it would not be the highest-yielding wheat," he said. "In the presence of stem rust, it would be the only thing that would survive."
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-sci-wheat-rust14-2009jun14,0,1661589.story

Cold puts Western Canada crops behind schedule
WINNIPEG, Manitoba (Reuters) - Cool weather has pushed growth of Western Canada's wheat and barley crop at least 10 days behind schedule, the Canadian Wheat Board said on Monday."You're pushing development into a period with better likelihood of getting a (pre-harvest) frost," said Bruce Burnett, director of weather and market analysis for the Canadian Wheat Board. "It's not particularly what we need at this moment. It's just too cool."There's little relief in forecasts for the Prairie region. Southern Manitoba, parts of which are still seeding, will have cool, wet weather through Wednesday, according to Environment Canada. Daily low temperatures of just above freezing are also forecast for much of Saskatchewan and Alberta.The Wheat Board, which has a government-granted marketing monopoly on Western Canada's wheat and barley, releases its planting and production estimates on Thursday.Late-spring frost continued to strike the Prairie canola crop over the weekend. One pocket of western Manitoba dipped to -4 Celsius (25 Fahrenheit) overnight Sunday and stayed below freezing for much of the night, said Derwyn Hammond, senior agronomy specialist for the Canola Council of Canada.Some farmers are considering reseeding, with crop insurance deadlines in the Manitoba areas hit by the most recent frost arriving as early as Wednesday."(They're getting) that feeling of urgency, that if I'm going to reseed, I need to do it," Hammond said. "But with cool temperatures it's tough to see if those plants are survivors or not. Based on past experience, a lot of times canola comes through better than you expect it to."Burnett said he hasn't received reports of frost damage to cereal crops wheat, barley and oats.Southern Alberta received some rain or snow over the weekend, which was welcome given its areas dryness, but the most parched areas in central Alberta and Saskatchewan stayed dry, Burnett said.
http://www.reuters.com/article/environmentNews/idUSTRE55749420090608

The second article picked out from the ones this week is put forth by Jericho

From Food Freedom http://foodfreedom.wordpress.com/2009/06/16/hr-2749-totalitarian-control-of-the-food-supply/'A new food safety bill is on the fast track in Congress-HR 2749, the Food Safety Enhancement Act of 2009. The bill needs to be stopped.HR 2749 gives FDA tremendous power while significantly diminishing existing judicial restraints on actions taken by the agency. The bill would impose a one-size-fits-all regulatory scheme on small farms and local artisanal producers; and it would disproportionately impact their operations for the worse."---------See the article in the link above


If you like this kind of articles and insite, stop by our forum and join in

Highlighted posts for the week

Three practical posts this week, thanks to Wolf Brother and Heyman and 411man this week

R U Prepared for this?
Situation
- you've either bugged out to your BOL
- you've bugged in
- you've bugged out to wilderness.

After a couple of days, you've settled in, you've set whatever level of security you can establish, you've started adjusting to living the primitive life.

All of a sudden you smell smoke.
If you've bugged in - the house/apartment next door is on fire. the vegetation up wind from you is on fire - grass, brush, woods, whatever.
If you've bugged out - the vegetation up wind from you is on fire - grass, brush, woods, whatever.

Have you prepared for firefighting? Is your area fire defensible?


[begin_why_I_know_what_I_know]
I've been a volunteer firefighter since the 4th grade. I'm 57 now. I have a 2 year degree in Fire Protection and Safety. After the service I worked 8 years as a FFighter/EMT on a rescue truck and have continued volunteering.

I've fought my share of wildfires. I've never fought a forest fire. Part of my degree included how to make your home fire safe and your land fire defensible.
[end_why_I_know_what_I_know]

For a BOL/BIL, I'm a big fan of pressurized water extinguishers. You can fill them your self and use a hand air pump to pressurize them.

I was going to do a long post on this but found these two web sites.

1. Make you place defensible:
http://www.ext.colostate.edu/Pubs/natres/06302.html
This page explains how to do it better than I can.

2. Active Defense:
http://www.homefirefightingsystems.com/firegel.html
This site talks about a fire prevention gel you spray on your hose to defend against an active wild fire bearing down on you. A wet gel on any combustible surface including side walls. Keeps embers, sparks, and radiant heat from starting.

3. You should have at least ONE medium to large ABC extinguisher (at least a 4A rating - a 4A rating on an ABC extinguisher always has a 60+BC rating). I also have 4 pressurized water extinguishers I keep. I always take one or two with me when I car camp.

It does work:

20 or so years ago, a friend of mine asked me how he could make his place less likely to burn down from grass fires.
He implemented my suggestions:
1. Clear out all brush for at least 100 feet from home fence line.
2. Do controlled burns around the area to help keep grass fires from his house/outbuildings.
3. Permanently plumb in some lawn sprinklers ( the impact type ) .

So that the spray coverage would either do the ground around the house/outbuildings and/or the sides of the house/outbuildings.
4. Spend the money to purchase a pump that and water storage system that will enable ALL the sprinklers to run for 45 minutes AND as many 3/4" x 100' garden hose stands as he will have. (Tips are the straight bore type with a shut off) His home and outbuildings all had metal roofs. Most of his outbuildings are all metal. His big barn is 100 year old wood with a tin roof.

A year or so ago, Sterling county in Texas had a wildfire that burnt 30,000+ acres of land. (That's slightly more than 48 SQUARE MILES).

After that happened he called me and said what I had suggested kept his home and barn from burning down. The fire burned up to and around his home and outbuildings. He said he started the sprinklers when the fire was about 500 yards away. He and his wife and 2 sons manned the garden hose sections and used them to put out spot fires. He said the water supply ran out about 10 minutes after the fire had burned past.

Something to think about/add to your preps.
http://frc4u.org/phpbb/index.php?topic=1608.0#msg3555

Hatching Chicks
Here are some pictures of our new chick. We have 12 laying hens 2 roosters and a silkie. I never knew it but silkies are natural brooders no coaxing the hen or anything the silkie just grabbed some eggs and started laying on them. We sectioned her off with just two eggs the first was a no go and the second look and see. With the 12 laying hens we get free eggs and sell enough to pay for themselves. We just feed them rolled corn and let them free range over our expansive acre.

Here is a good website about chickens all basic but good stuff;
http://www.lionsgrip.com/babychix.html



230gr responded
Silkie hens are among the best to use as broodies if you want to hatch your eggs out under hens and they make wonderful mothers protecting and teaching the chicks how to forage for food. They are small chickens, near bantams size with the at Cock 2 ¼ lb. and the Hen 2 lb. They are slow to mature for a small bird and, although not suited for wet weather (because of their fancy feathering), are very heat & cold hearty. They are generally poor layers and their eggs are small, so keeping a few silkie hens for brooding along with your flock of better laying and / or meatier breeds would be a good strategy.

You can see the rest of the pics at
http://frc4u.org/phpbb/index.php?topic=1589.0

One Second After EMP

http://www2.macleans.ca/2009/06/11/so-your-bank-account’s-wiped-out/

Given our massive debt load, this apocalyptic scenario’s not looking that badBy Mark Steyn‘Hey, Dad, something strange.’“ ‘Yeah?’“ ‘Listen.’“He stood there silent for a moment. It was a quiet spring evening, silent except for a few birds chirping, the distant bark of a dog . . . rather nice, actually.“ ‘I don’t hear anything.’“ ‘That’s it, Dad. There’s no traffic noise from the interstate.’“He turned and faced toward the road. It was concealed by the trees . . . but she was right; there was absolute silence. When he had first purchased the house, that had been one disappointment he had not thought of while inspecting it but was aware of the first night in, the rumble of traffic from the interstate a half mile away. The only time it fell silent was in the winter during a snowstorm or an accident . . .“ ‘Most likely the accident’s further on and people were told to pull over and wait,’ he said.“The girls nodded . . . It was almost eerie. You figure you’d hear something, a police siren if there was indeed an accident, cars down on old Highway 70 should still be passing by.“And then he looked up. He felt a bit of a chill.“This time of day any high-flying jets would be pulling contrails . . . ”But there aren’t any contrails, or jets. It’s America “one second after,” to use the title of William R. Forstchen’s novel.One Second After what? After an EMP attack. What’s EMP? “Electromagnetic pulse.” You’re on a ship hundreds of miles offshore floating around the ocean, and you fire a nuke. Don’t worry, it doesn’t hit Cleveland, or even Winnipeg. Instead, it detonates 300 miles up in the sky at a point roughly over the middle of the continent. No mushroom cloud, no fallout, you don’t even notice it. That’s the “second” in One Second After and what comes after is America (and presumably pretty much all of Canada south of Yellowknife) circa 1875—before Edison. The cars on the interstate stop because they all run on computers, except for Grandma’s 1959 Edsel. And so do the phones and fridges and pretty much everything else. If you were taking a hairpin bend when your Toyota Corolla conked out, don’t bet on the local emergency room: they’re computerized, too. And, if you’ve only got $27.43 in your purse, better make it last. The ATM won’t be working, and anyway whatever you had in your account just vanished with the computer screen.Mr. Forstchen tells his tale well, putting an up-to-the-minute scientifically sound high-tech gloss on an old-fashioned yarn. One Second After is set in small-town North Carolina, but the stock characters of Anyburg, U.S.A. are all here—the sick kid, slow-on-the-uptake local officials, gangs of neo-barbarians, the usual conflict between self-reliant can-do types and the useless old hippies. I liked this passage:“ ‘What a world we once had,’ he sighed.“The parking lot of the bank at the next corner was becoming weed-choked, though that was being held back a bit by children from the refugee center plucking out any dandelions they saw and eating them.”And at that point I stopped thinking of One Second After as a movie-thriller narrative, and more in geopolitical terms. After all, the banks in America and western Europe are already metaphorically weed-choked, and may yet become literally so. In the Wall Street Journal a couple of months back, Peggy Noonan predicted that by next year the mayor of New York, “in a variation on broken-window theory, will quietly enact a bright-light theory, demanding that developers leave the lights on whether there are tenants in the buildings or not, lest the world stand on a rise in New Jersey and get the impression no one’s here and nobody cares”—or, to put it another way, lest the world stand on a rise in New Jersey and get the impression Manhattan’s already been hit by an EMP attack. A friend of mine saw his broker in February and asked him where he should be moving his money, expecting to be pointed in the direction of various under-publicized stocks or perhaps some artfully leveraged instrument novel enough to fly below the Obama radar. His broker, wearing a somewhat haunted look, advised him to look for a remote location and a property he could pay cash for and with enough cleared land and a long growing season. My friend’s idea of rural wilderness is Martha’s Vineyard, so this wasn’t exactly what he wanted to hear.And this is before EMP hits.So it wipes out your bank accounts. What’s in there? I mean, really. The average American household is carrying $121,953 in personal debt. What would be so bad if something goofy happened and all the meters got reset to zero? And Joe Schmoe’s credit card debt is as nothing compared to what the government’s signed him up for: USA Today recently calculated that the average American household is on the hook for $546,668 in federal debt—i.e., not including state and municipal. The Atlantic crunched the numbers further and reckoned that, to pay off the federal/personal debt over half a century at three per cent, the average household would have to write an annual cheque for $25,971. U.S. median household income is 50 grand, before taxes—and that $26,000 cheque assumes no further increase in federal or personal liabilities.Critics of USA Today’s methodology say they’ve conflated two separate things—hard government debt, and the rather more amorphous obligations of Medicare, social security and other unsustainable entitlement programs. But, insofar as that’s a distinction with a difference, it’s the entitlements that are harder to slough off. A couple of decades down the road, Greece’s public pensions liabilities will be approaching 25 per cent of GDP: for the political class, it’s easier to default on foreign debt and risk unknown consequences than to renege on social commitments and ensure the certainty of violent insurrection. As attractive as it might be to tell ingrate geezers to go eat dog food, it’s not politically feasible in a democracy in which they’re the most electorally vindictive demographic group.Besides, in a society that’s all but eliminated the concept of moral hazard, who isn’t entitled to government largesse? The North American auto industry pays its workers so much that it’s unable to make a car at a price anyone’s prepared to pay for it. So naturally it’s been delivered into the corporate control of the very same unions who demanded those salaries. Under the hilarious Canadian bailout, “social justice” requires that auto workers who make $70 per hour be subsidized by taxpayers making less than a third thereof. If it’s unreasonable to expect a guy on 70 bucks an hour to make provision for lean times, why should anyone else? The advanced Western democracy has, in effect, jumped the bounds of temporal and spatial reality: America lives beyond the means of its 300 million citizens to pay for it, so passes the check to its children and grandchildren. Most of the rest of the West does likewise, but demographically has no kids to stick it to.Professor Glenn Reynolds, America’s Instapundit, noted that USA Today figure of $668,621 federal/personal debt per household and observed tersely: “Debts that can’t be repaid won’t be repaid.” Or to extend the old saw: if you owe the bank a thousand dollars, you have a problem. If you owe the bank a million dollars, the bank has a problem. If everyone owes a million dollars, civilizational survival has a problem. When I first heard about EMP a few years back, the big worry was that in a split-second it would vaporize trillions of dollars of wealth. From the perspective of 2009, vaporizing trillions of dollars of debt has something to commend it.Published more or less simultaneously with William Forstchen’s EMPocalypse now is Soft Despotism, Democracy’s Drift by Paul A. Rahe, a scholarly analysis of Montesquieu, Rousseau, Tocqueville and their lessons for us today. Yet both books are concerned at least in part with the relationship between the modern state and technology. Professor Rahe cites Tocqueville’s observation on absolute monarchs in whom resided “a power almost without limits”—in theory. But in practice, wrote Tocqueville, “almost never did it happen that they made use of it.” They lacked the machinery: you were in your peasant hovel upcountry and His Majesty was in his palace hundreds of miles away, and “the details of social life and of individual existence ordinarily escaped his control.” Not anymore: regulations for this, permits for that, government identity numbers for routine transactions, computer records for every humdrum manoeuvre of existence, fulfilling Tocqueville’s vision of an administrative despotism in which all the King’s subjects could be made subordinate to “the details of a uniform set of regulations.” As the “bailouts” and “stimulus” pile up, so the micro-regulatory regime will intensify.At least until the EMP attack.I’m not suggesting it’s the solution to all our problems. Just saying that, compared to the various other options for advanced democratic society, William Forstchen’s apocalyptic scenario may be one of those 1950s creature features where you wind up rooting for the creature.

http://frc4u.org/phpbb/index.php?topic=1606.0

There were several others equally as good, it was a very good week at the forums this week, if you get a chance stop by for some practical advise and information.

http://frc4u.org/phpbb/

FRC Forums Highlighted post's of the week

I posting two posts from one of our newest (posting) member's. Both kind of go together anyway.

Substituting honey for sugar


I am beginning to experiment with substituting honey in my recipes for sugar. Honey is more easily digested in your body and actually provides some vitamins and minerals (in very small quantities) in addition to all the other benefits of the natural substance.
Today I used honey in my plain white bread recipe... with equal quantities. I was only adding 2 Tablespoons so that is OK. With larger quantities there are some more rules. This is what I have found so far.

Honey can easily be substituted for sugar. Due to honey's ability to retain water, products made with honey tend to remain moister longer than similar products made with sugar or other sweeteners.
Some minor adjustments may need to be made to a recipe when substituting honey for sugar:
Use equal amounts of honey for sugar up to one cup. Over one cup,here is the formula 1 cup honey = 1 1/4 cups sugar + 1/4 cup liquid. .
Lower the baking temperature 25 degrees and watch your time carefully since products with honey brown faster.
In recipes using more than one cup honey for sugar, it may be necessary to reduce liquids by 1/4 cup per cup of honey.
In baked goods, add 1/4 teaspoon of baking soda per cup of honey if baking soda is not already included in the recipe. This will reduce the acidity of the honey, as well as increase the volume of your product.
Moisten a measuring spoon or cup first with water, oil, or an egg before measuring the honey to prevent it from sticking to the measuring utensil.
Honey is heavy by weight. A 12 ounce jar equals one standard 8 ounce cup. A quart weighs 3 pounds.

This is from the kitchen if Mrs, Heyman

This batch turned out great. It seems that honey works just as good. As we are hoping to have our own honey supply someday, I am excited.

I have also been working on my own homemade yeast starter (essentially a sourdough starter-very simple also). I didn't use the homemade starter on this loaf because I didn't want to try something new with the honey on bread that.


Homemade Yeast

From the kitchen of Mrs. Heyman
I have been working on a homemade sourdough yeast starter for some time now and it is growing well. The recipe really is very simple... you almost won't believe how easy it is.

No Commercial Yeast Starter

"It may take a little time, but making a good starter is easy! It is best to use organically grown flour and non-chlorinated water because they contain no chemicals which might kill the wild yeast."

INGREDIENTS
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups bottled (non-chlorinated) water

DIRECTIONS
Combine flour and spring water in a medium bowl; stir well. Cover loosely with a cloth and let sit on a kitchen counter for 2 to 3 days, or until bubbly.
To use and feed your starter; take out the amount needed for your recipe and then replace that amount with equal parts flour and spring water. If you keep your starter at room temperature it should be fed every other day, and if refrigerated, fed weekly. If you accumulate more starter than you need, simply pour a few cups down the drain before feeding it.

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/No-Commercial-Yeast-Starter/Detail.aspx



My starter has been growing now for about 2 months and I have used it for pizza dough weekly. I have tried rolls and plain bread with some good results and some not so good. It should look like the picture shortly after feeding it. The bubbles are good indicators that the yeast is present. Also, you will notice the sour smell. I am still working on the actual ratio of my sourdough starter as compared to the dried yeast that my recipes call for. It seems as though I need more of the homemade yeast to get the potency of the purchased yeast. I expected that, but am still working it out. One batch at a time.
I am excited to get this starter to the point that I am comfortable, as I have read that there are many other kinds of yeast starters out there using different fruits and such (organic and completely natural, of course) as the catalyst to start the yeast growth and can't wait to try them out with my bread.
Yeast itself is actually something that is already present in your kitchen right now... all you are doing is creating the perfect environment to grow it and collect it for your own use. As it is a living organism, it is important to continue feeding your yeast starter, or you will kill it. I don't use my starter daily and so in order to keep from dumping too much down the drain (when the jar is too full), I put it into the refrigerator and then am able to feed it weekly instead of daily. I have found that it is good to set the jar out on the counter for a couple hours to get to room temp before feeding and let it out a little while to jumpstart it a little before setting it back into the refrigerator.
If you ever pull it out and it just looks bland, no activity at all, you can give it a boost with some sugar (just a little) or a bit of dried purchased yeast. Make sure that it is growing well before you decide to set into the refrigerator. You may have to let it out a couple of days to get it back up to par.
I will try to give you updates on the substitution for purchased yeast and with my new projects in the kitchen.



(Note the bubbles)

FRC Forums Blog of Highlighted Posts

411man posted these two highlighted stories
Alaska may be in N.Korea Missile Reach
June 01, 2009 Associated Press SEOUL, South Korea -
North Korea has transported its most advanced missile, believed to be capable of reaching Alaska, to a launch site on its west coast near China, news reports said today. The reclusive communist country was also reportedly bolstering it defenses and conducting amphibious assault exercises along its western shore, near disputed waters where deadly naval clashes with the South have occurred in the past. South Korea's Yonhap news agency said the missile had been sent by train to the newly completed missile facility of Dongchang-ni, about 40 miles from the Chinese border. Yonhap, quoting government sources, said the missile could be ready to launch in a week or two. South Korean media have speculated that the North wants to time the launch for around June 16, when South Korean President Lee Myung-bak has a summit in Washington with President Barack Obama. With the launch, Pyongyang could also thumb its nose at U.N. Security Council attempts to rein it in after last week's nuclear test and a series of short-range missile launches. U.S Defense Secretary Robert Gates, speaking at a news conference in the Philippines, said North Korea appears to be working on a long-range missile but it's not clear yet what they plan to do with it. Lee, hosting a conference of Southeast Asian leaders on the southern island of Jeju, warned the North against any provocation. "If North Korea turns its back on dialogue and peace and dares to carry out military threats and provocations, the Republic of Korea will never tolerate that," Lee said in his regular radio address. "I want to make clear that there won't be any compromise on things that threaten our nation's security." Adding to tensions this week, the trial starts Thursday in Pyongyang of two American journalists, Laura Ling and Euna Lee, accused of entering the country illegally and engaging in "hostile acts." North Korea faced strong international criticism after its last long-range missile launch, on April 5. The North said the launch was of a rocket intended to put a satellite in orbit. That modified version of the Taepodong-2 rocket flew about 2,000 miles, crossing over Japan before crashing into the Pacific Ocean. In late April, the North threatened to conduct nuclear and long-range missile tests unless the Security Council apologized for criticizing the launch. On Friday, it threatened to take a further "self-defense" measure if the Security Council provokes it. That threat was seen as referring to an ICBM test. In another sign that a new launch is in the works, the North has designated a large area off its west coast as a "no-sail" zone through the end of next month, the Chosun Ilbo newspaper said, citing unidentified intelligence officials. Yonhap said North Korean troops conducted amphibious assault maneuvers along with west coast. Other media carried similar reports. South Korean defense and intelligence officials refused to comment. On Yeonpyeong island, one of South Korea's northernmost islands near North Korea, South Korean naval boats and a warship were patrolling waters around the disputed western sea border, but no incidents were reported. The area is rich in fish, and May and June are the crab-catching season, meaning the waters are generally crowded with commercial ships. Experts said the missile preparations were especially significant because the North has never launched a long-range missile from the northwestern base. Kim Tae-woo, vice president of Seoul's state-run Korea Institute for Defense Analyses, said he thinks the North chose the site because of its proximity to China, making it more risky for the U.S. to strike. The missile being prepared for launch is believed to be an intercontinental ballistic missile with a range of up to 4,000 miles, the JoongAng Ilbo newspaper reported, citing an unnamed South Korean official. That would put Alaska within striking range. Today, the North said again that it is being provoked by South Korea and the United States, saying that the number of spy planes operating in its airspace has risen dramatically. "The U.S. imperialists and the South Korean puppets perpetrated at least 200 cases of aerial espionage against the DPRK in May, or 30 cases more than those in the same month of last year," it said in a report in its official Korean Central News Agency. The DPRK is an abbreviation of North Korea's official name. The North's missile and nuclear programs have been considered a top regional security concern, though the regime is not yet believed to have mastered the technology to make a nuclear warhead small enough to mount on a missile.
http://www.military.com/news/article/alaska-may-be-in-nkorea-missile-reach.html?ESRC=eb.nl

How to Test Seed Viability
http://flowergardens.suite101.com/article.cfm/how_to_test_seed_viability How to Test Seed ViabilityHow to Tell if Old Seeds Are Viable if Leftover or Old Saved Seed Will Still Germinate Sprout and Grow When Planted© Barbara M. Martin Dec 26, 2006 Read more: http://flowergardens.suite101.com/article.cfm/how_to_test_seed_viability#ixzz0H0uAUeHG&BKeep old seeds or throw them out? Are they worth planting? What's the shelf life of seeds? Will seeds you already have still sprout or germinate and grow? Test them!If you are a seed saver and saved your own flower or vegetable garden seeds from last year (see Seed Saving Information Directions and Tips) or if you have left over seeds from last year or the year before, are the seeds still any good? Will the seeds germinate and grow? Are the seeds viable? The answer is maybe yes, maybe no. Seeds might seem like inanimate objects, but in reality they are alive. Some seeds are naturally very short lived (sweet peas and delphinium for example) while other seeds may easily retain viability for several years and maybe for as long as a decade. Storage conditions affect the longevity of seeds as well. You can do an easy germination test at home to check on seed viability and seed germination rate.Do A Germination Test Before Planting Old SeedsIf you have some leftover or older seeds and wonder whether or not they are viable and will still germinate and grow, you can find out for sure with a germination test. It’s better to test your seeds before planting than to waste time and effort planting seed that is no longer viable – and why purchase more seeds if those you already have are still good?How to Set Up Easy Seed Germination Test Take a small sample of your seeds to test, maybe ten seeds or so from each batch. Slightly dampen a paper towel and place the sample seeds on it. Fold the barely damp paper towel it in half over the seeds. Enclose in plastic wrap or place inside a sealed plastic bag so it will stay damp. Label the package with seed name and date. Set the package in a relatively warm place (70 to 75 degrees) such as the top of your refrigerator or on a high shelf. Do not put it in direct sun. (Direct sun could cause it to overheat.)How Long to Wait: Check Seeds OftenThe seeds should absorb water and swell. Check daily for germination and to make sure the paper towel is still just barely moist. Mist it lightly if it begins to dry out.Depending on which specific plant you are testing, the seeds may begin to sprout in a day or two or may take several weeks to begin. Usually the majority will sprout within a few days of each other. When germination stops and no more seeds have sprouted for several days, you will know what approximate germination rate to expect from that batch of seeds.Read more: http://flowergardens.suite101.com/article.cfm/how_to_test_seed_viability#ixzz0H0uFocOw&B

230 gr gave this one, A little while back, but worth printing here for sure
Onions are toxic to dogs and cats
Onions are toxic to dogs and cats are even more susceptible!. Onion toxicity causes a hemolytic (Heinz body) anemia where the animal’s red blood cells burst while circulating in its body. and the toxic effect of the onions are the same whether the product is raw, cooked or dehydrated. Animals affected by onion poisoning show gastroenteritis with vomiting and diarrhea. They will show no interest in food and will be dull and weak. The red pigment from the burst blood cells appears in an affected animal’s urine and it becomes breathless as the red blood cells that carry oxygen through the body are reduced in number. Onions and garlic contain the toxic ingredient thiosulphate but Onions are more of a danger. Daily feeding of onions has a cumulative effect. Garlic can be safe for your dog if used in moderation and for short periods as when it is used for it’s natural antibiotic properties
Note: Other substances such as Acetaminophen (Tylenol) and benzocaine-containing topical preparations can also cause Heinz body anemia in dog
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