From www.shock.military.com ...

Counter Battery Fire from the Enemies' Perspective

This video was captured from an insurgent. It shows how we fire artillery on a rockets nest they used to attack an army base.

(The first segment shows the insurgent attack. Then comes payback.)

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Get Ready ... Seriously - http://www.safecastleroyal.com

Changing Public Perceptions about Preparedness a Critical Issue for 2009

Recurrent natural disasters, man-made catastrophies, and economic turmoil across the globe make the need for personal preparedness an absolute necessity today. Government, relief agencies, and the very system that the global economy depends on are all at risk of failure. Safecastle LLC is committed, along with others, to improving the readiness of Americans in the face of developing economic and geopolitical chaos.

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Minneapolis (Vocus/PRWEB ) April 2, 2009 -- For many, emergency preparedness is a way of life. It’s a logical approach to having insurance set aside, just in case the worst comes to pass. Yet in recent years, “survivalism” came to be portrayed as a fringe, even dangerous avocation. The label “survivalist” became a slur of sorts. If there was one thing that was certain in the late 20th century, it was that you didn’t want to find yourself living next door to a bunch of survivalists.

Safecastle LLC

Dangerous realities continue to surface in the 21st century. Clearly, our world has not been tamed. Natural threats to personal safety are ever-present and often unpredictable. But man-made danger to our comfortable way of life is growing fast and obviously bearing down on us.

Today, we are afforded the perspective of watching the unfolding global economic catastrophe in our choice of real-time media,’ said Rantala.

No longer does it benefit anyone to follow the 'Don’t Worry, Be Happy' roadmap

At Safecastle, all of our preparedness-related businesses are at full capacity, responding to the demands of those who are just now coming to the table. We fear time may be short to adequately prepare America for what is coming, but we remain committed to doing everything we can.

In 2009, although the logic behind crisis preparedness is unchanged, perceptions are turning.

Victor Rantala, president of Safecastle LLC, said, “Dangerous realities continue to surface in the 21st century. Clearly, our world has not been tamed. Natural threats to personal safety are ever-present and often unpredictable. But man-made danger to our comfortable way of life is growing fast and obviously bearing down on us.”

Dependency on modern systems, governments, and bureaucracies created false security for many people. But large disaster-relief failures such as what occurred following Hurricane Katrina and the Asian tsunami pulled down the façade. Similarly, fiscal implosions of the sort that simply were not supposed to have happened in our carefully orchestrated society have blindsided those who trusted that others had their best interests at heart.

“Today, we are afforded the perspective of watching the unfolding global economic catastrophe in our choice of real-time media,’ said Rantala. “We each customize our high-definition exposure to the political slant and script that best suit us, but the ultimate impact of the pending train wreck for Americans and citizens around the world is proving to be uncontrollable … even with every available resource on the planet devoted to the effort.”

Natural disasters, economic catastrophe, personal misfortune, and more … these are the things that life offers up at random, and sometimes in wide-screen. “No longer does it benefit anyone to follow the 'Don’t Worry, Be Happy' roadmap,” Rantala said.

Indeed, preparedness is taking off. Latest trends show people everywhere are investing time and resources in long-term food storage, backyard gardening, personal self-defense and security, and time-proven wealth preservation strategies.

Even the U.S. government is focusing on the need to change any remaining misconceptions about the necessity for personal preparedness. This year, the Department of Homeland Security is aiming at those who still don’t get it. An email sent to National Preparedness Coalition members April 1 states: “This September, National Preparedness Month 2009 will focus on changing perceptions about emergency preparedness and will help Americans understand what it truly means to be 'Ready.' We will illustrate how preparedness goes beyond fire alarms, smoke detectors, dead-bolt locks and extra food in the pantry, and help you communicate important preparedness messages to your family, your business and your community …”

Rantala stated: “At Safecastle, all of our preparedness-related businesses are at full capacity, responding to the demands of those who are just now coming to the table. We fear time may be short to adequately prepare America for what is coming, but we remain committed to doing everything we can.”

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Safecastle LLC is an established crisis preparedness provider specializing in steel-plate shelters and safe rooms, as well as emergency storage food, supplies, and gear of the highest quality and standards. The company offers a buyers club for those interested in an economical, reliable approach to emergency readiness.

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Public Political-Contributions Search

I was wondering about GM CEO Rick Wagoner's political contributions record and whether that might have somehow been a factor in his ouster at GM by our new, more "invested" administration.

Upon locating this site, I found that he very meticulously played both sides of the fence. Weasel.

But as I said, I stumbled upon www.newsmeat.com. What a site. Still think privacy is possible in America? Check it out. This site not only lists celebrity donations, but you just may find your neighbor there (or yourself).
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The American Form of Government

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If We Were to Ever Start from Scratch, Taxes Ought to Be ...

I've been doing some work on my federal taxes here. Is it just me or do taxes keep getting more and more complicated and incomprehensible every year?

My thoughts turned to why there is such a thick morass of tax rules and regulations. I'm not talking about the need for taxing us to do some things that the state and federal governments must do. But how in the world it got to be the maze of legalese that it is.

It is of course an accumulation of decades worth of politicking.

The flip side is that politicians love to also talk about simplifying the tax system, though that seems to be an impossible dream when it comes down to it.

Here's a dream sequence for you ...

Something massive happens to the USA. The people come out of it demanding realistically minimalist, manageable, accountable government. They want to be able to afford the services they are provided and they want it to be based on fairness--not on welfare-ism or socialism or cronyism, etc. Everyone is responsible and pulls their own weight.

I know, I know, but remember--this is a dream.

So what IS the most fair basis for taxing a population? I believe a majority of people would say a straight income tax--a given percentage based on actual income. But how fair is that really? You still have some people working harder than others to make more income and thus pay more taxes (with the less motivated or unaccomplished piggybacking on the achievements of those who are already leading the way in terms of being employers, technological innovators, etc.) .

OK--yes, that WOULD be huge improvement over what we have now. But what if instead, there was a straight tax levied against a household based solely on the number of people in that household? Each person responsible for their own exact share of their ownership of their country.

Radical? Brutal? Scary? Simplistic?

I don't know. It seems to me that if the tax laws were that simple and straightforward--citizens across the board, each liable for one consistent fraction of the governmental budget, would be far more likely to willingly do their part to ensure the government is responsible in how it manages its tasks. Also, those who choose to work hard would not be penalized for doing so, to get ahead. In fact, they would be rewarded more directly than they are now under the current system.

And those who choose to sandbag would quickly be found lacking and perhaps they would need to be finding a new homeland better suited to their limitations.

Sure, that would be hard on some, but I think simple can be better; and in an arrangement like that, families would be taking care of their own, working hard together to get ahead, not scheming to beat the system, since headcounts would be pretty easy to verify.

(Mmmm ... let me doze a bit longer before my wakeup call, OK?)
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One Last Time

"The night before the burial of her husband's body, Katherine Cathey refused to leave the casket, asking to sleep next to his body for the last time. The Marines made a bed for her, tucking in the sheets below the flag. Before she fell asleep, she opened her laptop computer and played songs that reminded her of 'Cat,' and one of the Marines asked if she wanted them to continue standing watch as she slept. 'I think it would be kind of nice if you kept doing it,' she said. 'I think that's what he would have wanted.'"
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Rogoff: The Worst Is Over? Are You Kidding?

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Surviving the Fall

So 53% of the American population feel that we may be entering a 1930s-like depression in the near future. (Sorry, but I couldn't help recalling that 53% of the voters chose "change" in the presidential election. Is this what they had in mind?)

A lot of us have seen the cautionary signposts for years. None of what approaches should be a shock to anyone. Many have taken steps to prepare for this or a similar catastrophic event to ensure us at least a chance at providing for the needs of our loved ones through the most difficult of times.

I guess if there is a surprise I see registered among fellow world-watchers and crisis-contras, it is that the whole process of collapse is an agonizing slow-motion shimmy. Many envisioned disaster that comes instantly or perhaps overnight--with a clearly recognizable sign from the heavens that signals it's time to pack up the moped, head for the hills, and never look back.

You know ... maybe the legendary apocryphal all-out nuclear exchange that decimates the civilized world in minutes is what some planners had in mind. Or in the event of economic collapse, a financial implosion distinguishable by a hailstorm of stockbrokers leaping from tall towers and pitchfork-wielding peasants storming banks and convenience stores for their final entitlements.

But no. Now the historians tell us that even in that storied Great Depression of 1929-Crash-fame (and beyond), folks didn't understand it for what it was until they were maybe midway through it. That is, years into the debacle ... one day suddenly realizing ... hey, boiling up shoe-leather soup is not what we used to call normal dinner-table fare ... how did this happen?

I really don't mean to denigrate the suffering of those people back then, nor our own ill-informed preconceptions of what our incarnation of "the end" might be.

Fact is, it's a blessing that this declining period of pre-ruination allows for so many more folks out there to urgently lay in supplies and gear for the long cold nights ahead.

After all, the more of us prepared for mass shortages and suffering, the better off we all will be.

This is what we have--a chance to encourage those around you to prepare. If you want, pretend like you yourself just woke up to the fact that, OH MY GOSH, WE NEED TO DO THIS NOW!, if you want to keep your long-held, deep, calm determination to survive a closely-guarded secret.

Some folks still just need a proverbial slap across the face to move them off the dime. Some may be in shock, unable to discern what they need to do. After all, many have already and/or continue to lose their life savings and the assets they thought were their tickets to a graceful swan song into their golden years.

Be gentle with them, but make sure those nearest to you get it done. If they deny the need now, they are just plain fools.
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Six Minutes with the Renegade Economist - Michael Hudson Interview

Get Ready ... Seriously - http://www.safecastleroyal.com

Wow. The Kindle 2 is a Prepper's Dream

I took delivery of the new Kindle 2 (distributed solely by Amazon) a few days ago and I have to tell you, I have been in informational download heaven ever since.

A few pertinent facts, from the viewpoint of someone who is looking at this from a bunker mentality:

1. Amazon price is $369.00 plus shipping. Reasonable if you recognize the info capacity the unit provides wherever you are, wherever you want to go.

2. The unit is the height and width of a larger paperback, the thickness of a piece of corrugated cardboard ... 8" x 5.3" x 0.36", 10.2 ounces. In other words--amazingly portable and lightweight.

3. You buy your Kindle and they ship it to you pre-programmed with your Amazon account info. The wireless network you use to download books and periodicals is free and near as I can tell--it is pretty much everywhere. You can turn your wireless connection off when you are not going to download anything.

4. Much of the Kindle content you can download is actually free. I've downloaded the KJV Bible, the Encyclopedia Britannica, several collections of the greatest novels in history, several current best-sellers that appeal to me, many how-to books that I'll probably never open until I have to, and of course many of the best survival-type books on the market. I've spent about $150 on all that.

5. I will continue to build my handheld library as I think of the types of knowledge I want to have on hand. The thing holds about 1000 books! So far, I'm up to about 25, I think.

6. Oh ... and as for actually using it and reading off the screen--it's a pleasure.

7. Get this--it has "read-to-me" mode that allows you to multi-task or have several people listen at once. The voice is variable and speed is adjustable.

8. Battery life, by all reports and from what I have gathered so far is amazing. Use it continuously; with wireless turned off you'll be reading for two weeks before you need another charge. Charging takes about 4 hours. You can do it from an outlet or via a supplied USB cable. What that means to bunker rats like me is that you can easily recharge it using any number of solar or hand-crank charging units available out there.

Hence ... everything else can literally collapse around me, yet me and mine in our bunker (or on the road) will have enough of the basic useful wisdom of civilization at our fingertips to scratch out a new life from the ruins (or so the plan goes).

March 29 update: I now have well over 100 books and reference volumes on my Kindle 2. I am ecstatic about the amount of information at my fingertips to be referenced at will!
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Ground Zero - Nuke Your City and Learn

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Get Ready ... Seriously - http://www.safecastleroyal.com

One More Week - Mountain House Sale, 25% Off plus Freebies

In a nutshell:

- 25% off all MH cans

- FREE shipping to the lower 48

For club members ...

- FREE 35g pouch of CELOX with 4 case purchase

- $120 rebate voucher and pouch of CELOX with member purchase of 8 cases

- FREE OPTIMUS Crux, $120 voucher, and pouch of CELOX with 12 case member purchase

- $240 rebate voucher, FREE OPTIMUS Crux and pouch of CELOX with member purchase of 16 cases

- (rebates continue to ratchet upwards from there)

Sale ends March 6.
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Get Ready ... Seriously - http://www.safecastleroyal.com

Obama Declares War - Kudlow

This is a must-read (click the title below to view the article):

Obama Declares War on Investors, Entrepreneurs, Businesses, And More

Friday, 27 Feb 2009 | 4:39 PM ET
Posted By: Larry Kudlow

Excerpt:

He is declaring war on investors, entrepreneurs, small businesses, large corporations, and private-equity and venture-capital funds.

That is the meaning of his anti-growth tax-hike proposals, which make absolutely no sense at all — either for this recession or from the standpoint of expanding our economy’s long-run potential to grow.

Raising the marginal tax rate on successful earners, capital, dividends, and all the private funds is a function of Obama’s left-wing social vision, and a repudiation of his economic-recovery statements. Ditto for his sweeping government-planning-and-spending program, which will wind up raising federal outlays as a share of GDP to at least 30 percent, if not more, over the next 10 years.

[snip]

And as far as middle-class tax cuts are concerned, Obama’s cap-and-trade program will be a huge across-the-board tax increase on blue-collar workers, including unionized workers.

[snip]
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Mountain House Ingredients from China

There has been a mild disturbance in "the force" in the last week or two.

There is a rumor out there about "dangerous" emergency food storage products on the market (started by a food dealer who sells, of course, certain other products).

Walton Foods and others have been accused of potentially poisoning their customers with foods from China. Depending on where you come across this rumor, it is supposedly "all" the foods these companies sell, "most" of the foods, or "some" of the foods.

I have had dialogs with a few folks about various fears and motivations people have for not wanting to buy food from China, at least without being able to make an informed decision ... and of course that is perfectly justified on their part.

I've been talking with my main food supplier, Mountain House Foods, and finally have some specific facts to relay to anyone who is interested, with regard to their freeze dried foods ...

1. Out of the hundreds of ingredients Mountain House purchases, there are 4 ingredients from China: whole pea pods, sliced water chestnuts, sliced bamboo shoots, and sliced mushrooms.

2. One or more of those ingredients can be found in 4 of the 36 canned MH varieties: Beef Teriyaki, Spicy Oriental Chicken, Chicken Teriyaki, and Chicken Ala King.

3. Oregon Freeze Dry Inc. is the company that processes and cans Mountain House foods. They have been in business for over 45 years. They are a major government supplier of foods and have been for most or all of their history.

4. The facility is a USDA/FDA facility. They test for microorganisms in all raw materials/foods that come in before they go into their products. Once cooked and dried, all finished product is again tested for the standard microorganisms--E-coli, Staph, TC, Salmonella. All product must pass all these tests before it gets released.

5. There is a USDA officer on-site everyday. There is a full HACCP plan on all items.

Personal comment--Mountain House is as "by-the-book" and as safe a food processor as there is anywhere. I can't speak authoritatively about the other food processors mentioned by the original accuser but I would have zero concerns about buying their products out of food safety fears as I know how critical it is economically for such manufacturers to keep their product safe.
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Economic Crisis Resulting in a Return to Personal Preparedness

People are increasingly stocking up on emergency storage food, in the face of crushing economic crisis.

Minneapolis (Vocus) February 19, 2009 -- Signs and wonders of the growing global economic disaster continue to emerge. No one is pretending to imply that things are going to be OK anytime in the near future. Millions of jobs are being vaporized. Home and real estate values are plummeting. Assets are disappearing into thin air and lives are being turned upside down.

Up to 40 million people will lose their jobs in 2009 according to the International Labor Organization. Over a quarter of a million western companies are expected to fail, representing record levels of insolvency. More than $10 trillion has been pledged by the U.S. alone toward solving the crisis.

Safecastle LLC owner Victor Rantala said, "Economic failure and cultural devolution are the best-case scenarios we have to work toward right now. The worst case?--the real possibility of the outbreak of major warfare, disease, and/or natural catastrophe that would coincide with the current demise of the economic system as we know it."

Scores of politicians, commentators, and experts from all walks of life have been toiling to get the word out in the last several months. The message is that people need to do what they must to be ready for a world that is about to be far less kind and gentle.

Names like economics and business Professor Nouriel Roubini, economic commentator and broker Peter Schiff, ShadowStats economist John Williams, economic strategist Barton Biggs, Wall Street Journal writer Brett Arends, former National Security Advisor Zbigniew Brezinski, engineer and author Dmitry Orlov, not to mention officials from various US government agencies are among the many who have used their positions of influence to sound the alarm about the dangers we are facing.

Said Rantala, "Many, many people have taken heed of the warnings and allocated precious funds into resources that are substantive and actually meaningful in the emerging, new reality. Assets like precious metals and storable food are in demand like at no other time in history. That move toward traditional value is continuing to accelerate."

In spite of this growing awareness of the need to reallocate resources and to stock-up on tangible supplies, inevitably there are going to be countless people left behind. The suffering ahead will possibly be unprecedented.

Rantala said, "The reason I started Safecastle LLC was to enable as many people as possible to be prepared for crisis situations. We're now facing the largest magnitude of crisis in our lifetime and we at Safecastle remain committed to helping others while we can. So we are now offering the best possible deals we can put together on the number-one selling, highest quality emergency storage food in the world — Mountain House freeze dried food in #10 cans."

US consumers are encouraged to take advantage ... for two weeks, from February 21 to March 6, Safecastle is offering cases of Mountain House food at 25%-off discounts, as well as free shipping to the continental United States.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/prweb/20090219/bs_prweb/prweb2114254_1

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John Williams: Stock Up on Gold, Food, and Booze

ShadowStats economist John Williams believes that hyperinflation in the next few years could render US currency worthless. Tangible stores of value are what he suggests people put their money into today while the getting is good.

Devolutionary America

For at least a couple of weeks now, one word has repeatedly returned to mind as all the crushing implications of the world's economic collapse emerge.

"Devolution."

The process of devolving.

Think 180-degree turnabout in most everything modern America has embraced as our being entitled to, justly or unjustly.

Not many folks are at the stage yet where they can comprehend the meaning of what is coming. Change is a process. Those in the locomotive are themselves just coming to grips with the strange new landscape. Many of them are not yet accepting the fact that there is no going back to the best of the good old days, that were largely illusory anyway.

Most of the rest of the riders are not even yet over the bridge. Those of you in the caboose will be the last to take it all in. Eventually, we'll all have to come to grips with it, though I suppose it will take some time before we call it what it really means.

Devolution.

Most of us have grown up in a nation where we learned to expect success. To expect prosperity. To believe in our superiority. To in fact want it all and not have to give much of anything of value in return.

We embraced the mirage. We celebrated the wizards who conjured the illusions of mass levitation.

It was certainly entertaining while it lasted. Oh-oh ... pssst ... don't look down. (There's no landing gear on our magic carpet, but keep that to yourself for now, OK?)

Devolution.

The opposite of evolution, which implies progress and improvement. Turn back the clock, give back the ill-gotten gains and then some. That's what we have up ahead.

Denial is the natural first stage in any major, forced change. As a rule, the ones who get through the denial quickly and accept and adjust accordingly will be among those with minimal pain and the most to gain.

Thing is, devolution is not a familiar template to map out or on which to formulate new strategies and tactics.

Economically, culturally, systems-wise, policies, laws ... the very power structure that has kept the world at relative peace for the past several decades ... it's all up in the air in the immediate future. Can we comprehend this as yet?

America will devolve. How far, how fast? I have no clue, to be honest. But the scenery out the windows as the train picks up speed, going bass ackwards will be like a ride into the past. Don't forget to pack warm clothes.
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Get Ready ... Seriously - http://www.safecastleroyal.com

At the Heart of Surviving--Panic Control

I love this guy's blog, Deep Survival. Laurence Gonzales is an author/survival expert/columnist at National Geographic Adventure. He's got a wealth of worthwhile articles in his blog archive.

This one, published a few weeks ago, gets at the very core of what it means to survive. Click on the title below to read the whole article.

How to Control Panic

Excerpt:

When we hear the word “panic,” most of us imagine someone running around and screaming. But panic takes many forms. It can be thought of simply as any behavior that occurs when the level of stress or emotion is high enough to prevent conscious thought and deliberate decision-making.

For example, most people panic when they fall or when they’re knocked down. The panic may be brief and not very intense, such as when you slip on ice and scramble to get back up. But it can also be incredibly powerful. In the summer of 2000, a 35-year-old climber in Alberta grabbed a loose hold while soloing the southwest face of Mount Colin and fell more than 200 feet, hitting solid rock at the bottom. He died from extensive trauma, but even in his panicked state he was still trying to get back up.

In emergencies, such a powerful natural response can seem nearly impossible to suppress.

[snip]
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Safecastle Royal's Ratcheting Rewards Sale

The economy is in critical condition. Jobs are being vaporized daily. International tensions are threatening to combust.

What's a responsible crisis-preparedness provider to do?

Throw out all the stops, that's what.

It's Coming!

For two weeks, February 21-March 6, we are making available the best emergency storage food in the world at the lowest discount prices permitted by the manufacturer--25% off all Mountain House can-case listings!

And of course always FREE shipping on everything we sell, to the lower 48.

Ho-hum. Been there, done that (though the MH sale demand is always a "killer", we're out to save the world) ... This time around, it's not enough for these volatile times.

So, for our buyers club members (join for a one-time $19 fee), we are offering the following ratcheting rewards for your Mountain House can purchases (note that we have been offering the rebate vouchers below on an ongoing basis, sale or no sale) ...

1. Buy any 4 cases of Mountain House food in cans and also receive, for free, ONE 35g pouch of CELOX--the amazing, life-saving hemostatic agent that no one should be without. (One free pouch per customer, while supplies last.)

2. Buy any 8 cases of Mountain House food in cans and receive the CELOX mentioned above AND a $120 rebate voucher code from Safecastle that will be good for any subsequent purchase in our buyers club store, except for Mountain House cans. (The $120 rebate voucher is awarded for every 8 cases purchased, no limit.)

3. Buy any 12 cases of Mountain House food in cans and receive the CELOX and the $120 rebate voucher mentioned above, PLUS an OPTIMUS Crux, the cool, tiny, portable stove with big power (fuel canister not included). Limit one per customer, while supplies last.

4. As indicated above, every 8 MH can cases purchased earns members a $120 voucher. So if you buy 16 cases, you get the CELOX and OPTIMUS Crux mentioned above plus a $240 rebate voucher, to be used in a subsequent purchase in our buyers club store for anything except Mountain House cans.

5. Finally, an additional rebate voucher level, is a $500 rebate voucher for every 35-cases of Mountain House cans (in place of the $120 voucher codes for the 8-case levels). Vouchers may be used in subsequent purchases (a code is emailed to you) toward the purchase of anything in our buyers club store except for Mountain House cans.

There's nothing you need to do to get these automatic FREEBIEs, other than to be a buyers club member. Log-in, make your purchases, get your discount during the sale period and we'll take care of the rest.

Questions?
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Social Upheaval Brewing

What happens when untold, growing masses of people are unemployed or under-employed, hungry, and losing their homes? And jobs just are not available to provide hope?

Read these two February 5 MSNBC articles (and see the interactive charts), and see what conclusions you come to:

Job Market Could Remain Bleak for Years

Too Late to Avoid a Depression?
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