ECONOMICS AND SURVIVAL

I keep running into the term "consumer economy". And I think "What other kind of economy is there?" I am so used to the idea of producing and selling in the market place that I can't fathom any other way of going about making a living. As I sit here mulling this subject over I am immediately reminded that we have a "service" economy. It was supposed to replace the manufacturing economy we once had. Didn't work out so well.

The way things used to work, a man harvested a crop, or a herd of animals or something from his farm and took it to the local village or town and sold it for his own support. With this money he paid what he had to pay to do his trip for the next year. When he went to town he didn't sell all he had but rather he kept a portion of seed for the next years crop and some animals to eat himself. If he owed any taxes to the local ruler he paid for them when he sold his crop. Life was pretty much dependant on getting in a good crop and getting it to market. If you failed at our endeavor then you might go hungry or lose your farm. Down through history things have been pretty tough on those who failed financially. If Daddy wasn't rich then you were up shit creek without a paddle and that is hard pulling, brother.

Being in a town or city was another story altogether. Tradesmen lived in town. They had stores or shops that they used to display their goods and wares. If you were popular and the people bought off of you than you made a good living. If folks would not buy off of you then you were out to lunch, with no food being served!

What we are dealing with right here is the concept of production and a market. They have to go together. If you have one without the other then you have practically nothing. Planning must accompany production. Marketing must be there also.

One thing I have stressed but never got into very much is comfort toward the people. You have to reassure folks that every thing is fine and dandy. And you might not think this is important but when you see the results of stress among a people that normally don't have it, then you will see what I mean. Probably the first thing that will crop up is breathing problems. Some folks will have trouble getting their breath. People who have had a little bit of breathing problems will all of a sudden develop Asthma. Do you have an inhaler for these emergencies? Can you offer some relief if things get critical? These things are very real and should be reckoned with while the reckoning is easy and available. You might be surprised at who gets afflicted with breathing problems. It happens almost irrespective of age and mental condition. Do NOT think that it won't happen to you or yours, because it will. This problem is not covered by most blogs in their medical posts. It just isn't given much coverage. But the people who get it will sure want it covered! Those people will be in hell and suffering for it. Wanting to take a deep breath and can't. Gasping like a fish out of water. Could be a kid. Could be your spouse. Could be your parents. And who it might be may be walking and running and thus escaping any suspicion or notice. YOU DO NOT KNOW WHO WILL BE STRUCK WITH HIDDEN EMOTIONAL PROBLEMS! AND IT COULD BE YOU! Please take care of this matter before it rolls over you like a tidal wave. Doctors can get you the inhalers needed to help these people. Let's get it done.

Another area of major concern is the bodies waste disposal systems. People will not generally lose their ability to urinate but they can damn sure stop having their bowls working. I'm sure all of you have heard the term, "Scared shitless." Well, that is how it can happen. You let a major upheaval come over someone and they might just shut their bowels down and not even know they have done it. In fact, it is a good idea to question people as to if they have taken a bowel movement lately or not. Keep the appropriate laxatives on hand to get people back on schedule. You will be glad you did.

We are fairly recent arrivals to the planet Earth but our genetics can go back millions of years. And remember that all of our ancestors had to survive some nasty shit to get us here. So our drive to survive goes back a long way and is not easily cast aside. And it is not mean to be cast aside. Those traits have enabled us to make it this far and they were meant to be held onto. The human nature can mix up all the decisions our body has to make and get things all confused. A million year old emotional entity living in a 45 year old body with the things it is having to go through is not a pretty sight. Keep an eye out for these problems and stay alive.

Michael

mboone@rtccom.net