permaculture

["Harold Waldock" <hwaldock@telus.net>]

Mary,

You ask a good question [in an email below ] at a good time even if a little
late.  I begin to feel like the answer could be a bit late for some by the
time this email reaches them and for them to take action.

Firstly the news that does not get reported:

Silver Shortage: Around the US, Canada and Australia and other countries
ordinary folks report that many places they go they cannot buy 10oz, 100oz
or even 1000oz bars. like they could a few weeks ago; late deliveries of
silver bars on order from reputable vendor, out of ordinary high premiums
for junk silver (5-8% is normal it used to be as low as -2%) (pre 1966
Canadian silver coins and pre 1967 US silver coins).  This has been going on
for over two weeks. For more details read Jason Hommel at
http://silverstockreport.com/  Gold is available as is platinum and
palladium.  The price of silver and gold has done one of the frequent usual
very short term 10-30% drops.  Silver is especially cheap now if you can get
it.  5-8% premiums are normal. Actually the price of paper money rose
against gold and silver briefly but will continue its long standing decent.
A dollar used to buy 1/35 of an ounce of gold now only 1/940. A pre1966
silver coin (80%) in Canada is now worth 10.5x the face value. I used to buy
them at 8.5x face value.  When I was a child I could get them at face value.
Why? Because the paper market price (COMEX NYMEX in NY) for silver is
controlled resulting in reduced silver production and increased demand from
investors avoiding confiscation of wealth that happens during inflation
which is rising strongly.  Credit crisis is another reason why as people
loose faith in the banks to have any  money when they come to take it out
(Northern Rock in UK and Bear Stearns in US) and their unstable and always
declining value of paper money.  People buy gold and silver instead during
bank runs. US dollar Down 95% since 1913 and Down 80% since 1971  now down
each year 4% in the things we buy every year not including food and energy,
the most important. Food and energy inflation is much more serious as you
know. There are too many dollars, (national debt) treasuries (notes and
bills) circulating for them all to have high value and very little silver
compared to a few years ago. Silver got used up in electronics and other
things so there is little left.

Inflation of a money supply is a cause and rising prices a symptom: Every
dollar in your wallet and savings bank is being eroded in value as they
print, electronically create it and give it to prop up banks or for
governments to spend in ways that do not create wealth.  Every new dollar
reduces the value of existing ones. All of the new dollars and old dollars
together cannot buy more than what the old dollars alone bought though it
takes time to effect this about 18 mo.  This is the heart of inflation.
Since those who create it and give it to their friends get money which
nobody knows about until it is traded, they can dispossess those that
currently own valuable things.  Zimbabwe has 1000% inflation - useful for
the people who get that money supply to cheat people who own land and other
assets out of their true value with paper.

Why is it important to permaculturalists? Because financial crisis is going
to happen in a short time frame and it will affect you. It relates to the
change in the way people value inconvertible paper money though technically
it is a currency.  People don't like paper money because good quality money
(gold and silver) holds value while inconvertible paper money does not.  In
order to do permaculture or survive it is easier when one has high quality
money or other assets with which to buy things such as food, seed, land and
tools.

What is the permaculturalist to think?

Permaculture Design manual on money p533-p545 describes the problem of
financial systems that depend on valueless paper for money.   Bill Mollison
makes many many good points far more than errors. Some of Bill Mollison's
errors include: 1) Diamonds not valuable. But diamonds in life threatening
situation are useful - one can buy one's way out of problems with the
diamond.  Diamond prices always go up during the critical stage of a crisis
but not as much as gold.  Gold and silver is much easier to trade that is
why it makes the best money.   2) He says inflation is caused by greed.  I
agree it could be caused by the greed of those in government who produced
paper money and no equal useful work for it. (dilutes the existing units of
value) Politicians love to blame union workers for being greedy when the
workers demanding a just wage that has been eroded by inflation. Wage and
price controls are what the Communists (and Nixon and Ford)  used and look
where it got them 3)  The LETS system  is the international monetary system
created on a small scale - equally unstable (LETS history shows this)
because the LETS currency has no storage value where as silver and gold both
do. LETS systems based on definable units of labour possible (hard to
define - in the middle ages it was in ploughing and harvesting a set amount
of land) Labour is hard to trade and is somebody's debt (in early middle
ages there was very little trade), gold and silver easy to trade and is
nobody's else's debt unlike our paper money (really an imponderable
currency).   If LETS is based on silver coinage they will work just fine and
achieve all the other goals. One thing is that the silver price of things
will rise till silver is properly valued.  1/10oz used to be a days wage for
a long time 4) There are other little errors but so much good stuff to think
about and do.

Questions for Permaculturalists:  Have you created an ecovillage?  Do you
have constructive relationships and networks?  Do you have access to farm
and garden land or good relationships with those who do close by? Have you
got out of debt? Do you have seeds and plants that can support you? Do you
have the means to spend i.e. savings (anything valuable not including paper
money or things in banks) when work is poorly paid or hard to come by to get
through a crunch or bank failure?  Do you have the tools and skills to be
useful when things get hard?  Do you have a  library of how-to books
covering all your needs and others needs so as to get at skills that may
come into demand as the market for skills and supplies changes radically?

Take a look at this story of survival during the currency crisis in
Argentina
http://www.stevequayle.com/News.alert/06_Prep_tips/070910.basic.survival.101
.html  I heard much harder stories of mass hunger, in a country that exports
food and that was richer than Canada in 1910's all because the banks with
out an announcement closed for 4 months and the money people could take out
afterwards did not hardly buy anything - it had been devalued.  It happened
in the US in 1930's too.  In Canada in the 1930's we had people living in
the garbage dump in Vancouver.

What is a permaculturalist to do now?

=>Convert a major portion of your savings and assets to real money.  Be
prepared to give it to friends who provide you with what you really need -
it is the best gift. If they don't like it you or they can always go to a
coin store or pawnshop and sell it for devaluing paper currency.  A market
is a free (unforced) exchange of gifts.  Getting more now means you can give
to more later and look after your friends and family's needs.  If you don't
spend it during time of fear and crisis it won't have as much value to
people later.  It is always generous to buy when prices are low (sellers are
needy) and sell when prices are high (buyers are needy).  If we all did that
there would not be as many needy people around and we would have enough left
over to give to those who have nothing.  Of course prices don't always tell
of their value - that is a careful judgement.  Markets price well only 85%
of the time.

 Do you have a local permaculture network? why not start one? Do you
volunteer to do things like update websites, hold meetings, organize
speakers and workshops for that network?

The signs of the times tell us that there are many other practical things we
should do also. I'd like your comments too.  I'll need your insight and
assistance.


I've written before on this topic on the Vancouver Permaculture List
vanpermaculture@yahoogroups.com  see more info about the little informal
Vancouver Permaculture network at www.alternatives.com/vpn.



Harold Waldock
hwaldock@yahoo.ca.

Note: If you want me to reply to on permaculture@lists.ibiblio.org  please
cc me directly so that I will see it.  I can't always reply quickly.
 I'll respond to vanpermaculture@yahoo.ca because you are my local friends
and the list is so much smaller.  I'm tied up building
www.yarrowecovillage.ca - we are going into financing for the new buildings
in a few weeks. So much work to do.

-----Original Message-----
From: Mary Coll
   Sent: March 24, 2008 11:17 AM
  To: hwaldock@telus.net
  Subject: your viewpoint


  Hello Harold,

  Just a quick email...

  I am an avid reader of the vanpermaculture postings and have saved most of
your postings as I have always found them rich with information and often
enlightening in perspective.

  As such, I've been needing lately to hear some more from you on the
current state of the world and what advice you might have on how to proceed.
I appreciate that you are busy getting on with it all yourself...but if you
had a few minutes to spare, I, and many others I'm sure, would be grateful.
:)

  Peace,
  Mary Coll