A Lighter Y2K Choice ...

As midnight was about to strike, December 31, 1999, an expectant hush gathered among the Neighborhood Millennium 2000 party crowd, gathered at the local High School gym. The school is located within easy walking distance of most the sub-urban towns Silicon Valley, California population. Coveted bottles of sparkling bubbly purchased earlier in the year were at the ready. Kids held stockpiled 4th-of-July sparklers, poised expectantly over several adult-supervised candle flames.

Local musicians blasted the laughing, milling crowd with waves of electronically supported dance-your-toes-off music. A back-up bank of acoustic guitars and percussion instruments stood ready, in case the lights went out. Kids had kazoos and harmonicas stashed in their warm snow parkas. Revelers all brought their solar powered flashlights, Coleman lanterns and votive candles with plenty of matches and Bic lighters -- in case. Several techno savvy individuals carried their BayGen hand-cranked radios along with their wireless laptop computers connected remotely to the internet. Several had set up community viewing stations to keep watch online and continue posting to their favorite Y2K forums. They had noticed fewer and fewer postings taking place during the 24-hours leading up to the local midnight hour. Just the few remaining alert Yourdon posters from the Western States and Hawaii remained. Everyone at the dance knew there were lights going out over many portions of the planet. Still, they remained optimistic, though shaky, and remembered to walk outside, take a deep breath and look up at the millions of twinkling stars. They gratefully appreciated the vastness of the Divines gift of magical lights, appearing nightly, for millennia, even eons.

At the stoke of midnight, amid kisses and hugs, the lights went out, as expected. PG&E, our local electric utility, had earlier in the year become a responsible corporate citizen, at the urging of many local citizens Y2K grass-roots action committees, corporations, small businesses, city and county governments and all the Moms and Dads supporting their kids scout troops with the well-coordinated supermarket Y2K awareness efforts. The Pacific Gas & Electric company openly spearheaded a Bay Area campaign to prepare the City By The Bay and the surrounding San Francisco environs for power disruptions, even extended blackouts, once they realized their Y2K remediation and testing efforts would not be completed in time for the 2000 rollover.

It was the monumental mess in their accounting and billing systems which woke-up Bay Area residents in mid-January 1999 to the Joann Effect. The latest in a series of rolling Y2K failures, occurred about a month after the famed San Francisco Blackout experience. It taught the corporate managements across the nation, a costly economic lesson about serving their customers wisely, rather than hiding the truth from them. In fact, PG&E company-wide, experienced an awesome supplemental revenue increase, fueled in an emerging growth market, when they began selling solar-powered and other Y2K-ready alternative power products. The unexpected income helped offset their 1998 expenses for pending S.F. Blackout payments and potential 1999 Y2K class-action lawsuits being drafted by an angry citizenry working in conjunction with local groups of concerned lawyers.

Actually it was the overwhelming threat of massive judicial grid-lock across the country, that finally encouraged the now famous Y2K truth-in-reporting, highlight the problems, then become part of the solutions nation-wide preparation movement. It was also, sparked by the internet digital revolution, that ultimately fired up the nations newsmedia and landed the truth or consequences scenarios squarely upon Washington D.C.s uncovered shoulders and unzipped behind-the-scenes covert, dont panic the people press policies.

Unable to keep the potential Y2K global uncertainty a secret, the Presidents Council on Year 2000 Conversion, lead by John the plastic man Koskinen, actually did a surprising about face in February of 1999. (It was widely rumored that Koskinen had faced a near-death experience, which opened his heart, and altered his perceptions on whats important in life. He became the leading advocate of a truthful and responsive government). Since the council could no longer keep a smiling happy face plastered on the leaking information dikes, and also, in light of rampant media speculation about the potential international domino effects for the Year 2000 millennium bug and embedded chip time bombs, a well publicized meeting took place between heads of all government agencies and expert computer programmers and the Governors of the 50 re-united states. (Jesse Ventura wore a flashy red, white and blue jogging suit).

In a stroke of either sheer-genius or last ditch panic to head off an unfavorable Senate impeachment trial verdict, President Clinton, at that meeting, turned around the decades long, Washington practice of cold war silent-running, classified information and secrecy-at-all-costs-in-government-action policies. Going against a bureaucratic desire to keep a lock on the truth-telling practices of the Washington media spin machine, he candidly announced to the nation and world, that Y2K was a serious threat to the nations economy and infrastructure. He brilliantly made the case for calm preparation, outlined reasonable actions for creating community, headed off potential bank-runs and became an instant hero with the AARP crowd.

In an unexpected bi-partisan move, President Bill Clinton appointed Elizabeth Dole, of the American Red Cross, to spearhead a state-wide emergency preparations effort. She then introduced a strategic Mom Is Helping You contingency programming plan for the entire country. A superb point-person for prudent preparedness, Elizabeth Dole was widely expected to run in the Presidential 2000 elections. Until, of course, the nation collectively realized they would have to be delayed until 2001.

Over these last months, Ms. Dole has done a remarkable job in informing the nation and impacting the local creation of fully prepared, well-coordinated and Y2K volunteer-ready communities within the rural, sub-urban and urban towns and cities across the land. So much so, that as midnight, struck this small corner of California, and the power-grid went down, there was no panic. Within a few seconds, the back-up generator system kicked in. The community party goers cheered loudly!

Locally we all knew the nation and the world was in for dicey times ahead in the first few months of 2000. But because of the wave of openness and truthfulness that had rushed through the land like a fresh breeze last spring, like a self -empowering tidal wave, the nation was completely ready. For anything.

We had all learned the valuable, hidden Y2K lesson ... We are not alone. We are all one.

Diane

Happy New Year! *Create Community, Prepare 2 Share, Be Y2K Aware*

-- Diane J. Squire (sacredspaces@yahoo.com), December 31, 1998

Answers

In your dreams Diane........when are you going to face reality? Why do you depend so much on the news media, which is so bias, for your information? Who can separate fact from fallacy? No one knows what is going to happen or when it will happen. Whether this Y2K thing will snow ball into something terrible or a bump in the road is anyone's guess. Time will tell. In the meantime, quit sensationalizing and take off those rose colored glasses.

-- navajojoe (navajojoe@puff.com), December 31, 1998.

thanks dianne!! We all needed that!! You are terrific.

-- cjeannne (cjeanne@hereandnow.com), December 31, 1998.

Let's see if this works...

Guess what!! You have just received an animated greeting card from Diane J Squire. You can pick up your personal greeting by connecting to the following WWW Address

http://www1.bluemountain.com/cards/box5863b/nad3rkfwgecwkd.htm

(Your greeting card will be available for the next 60 days) This service is FREE! :) HAVE a good day and have fun!

Chuckles, Diane

-- Diane J. Squire (sacredspaces@yahoo.com), January 01, 1999.

Oooooo, Diane, it works! LOL. Upper music, java jangle ;)
Thanks and Happy New Year! Bombs away ...


-- Leska (allaha@earthlink.net), January 01, 1999.

Gosh, navajojoe, lighten up a little. Figure that by this time next year the banking system will have collapsed, full scale rioting and looting will have been curtailed only through oppressive martial law, and finally all the embedded chips now kick in to do their thing, causing the power grid to fail. So if someone wants to write a happy Y2K story, whats the harm? (Personally, I would have made it a bit more sarcastic, but thats just me....)

Cute Holiday greetings to the Yourdonites, too, Diane!

-- Jack (jsprat@eld.net), January 01, 1999.

I enjoyed your comments, wouldn't it be nice. Of course the point is awareness=preparation. A fantastic thing happened in Canada during the last month. Army announced Operation Abacus, 1 priority-y2k with 32,000 soldiers. The RCMP our national police force cancel all vacations for month before and 3 months after 1/1/00. RCMP advise this week to have 30 days water, two weeks cash and lay in an additional two weeks food. Today in the Calgary Herald newspaper, a whole section was devoted to y2k and they did not sugar- coat it. So in our country if the professional peacekeepers are taking this so seriously, it doesn't take a genius to figure out what to do at the community level and personally.

-- Rick Reilly (rreilly@home.com), January 01, 1999.

May I also point out that "this" vision is what I would LIKE to see happening. By April we should know if it's even possible.

Diane

-- Diane J. Squire (sacredspaces@yahoo.com), January 01, 1999.

Link to Diane's greeting card:

http://www1.bluemountain.com/cards/box5863b/nad3rkfwgecwkd.htm

-- No Spam Please (anon@ymous.com), January 01, 1999.

navajojoe

Is it now official? Only gloomy prediction stories can be posted on this board? Wow. Glad someone informed me.

Rick

-- Rick Tansun (ricktansun@hotmail.com), January 01, 1999.

Unable to keep the potential Y2K global uncertainty a secret, the Presidents Council on Year 2000 Conversion, lead by John the plastic man Koskinen,actually did a surprising about face in February of 1999. (It was widely rumored that Koskinen had faced a near-death experience, which opened his heart, and altered his perceptions on whats important in life. He became the leading advocate of a truthful and responsive government).

It was revealed in 2002 that Koskinen' "near death experience" was the result of an unfortunate encounter with a radical rightwing geek fundamentalist who was convinced that Mr K was the AntiChrist. Seems the radical held Mr K hostage for 45 minutes strapped to a barrel of ammonium nitrate and fuel oil. The whole thing was connected to a detonator controlled by an old IBM (486) computer running a strange diluted version of MVS. Its not known what Mr K said to the fundamentalist and vice vera, but Mr K was eventually freed (and transformed). The geek was never identified, but he was rumored to be a prominent csy2k personality who published periodic updates. Apparently, he is now a 'gentleman' farmer in Virginia and is no longer a programmer despite the desperate need in the post- y2k world.

-- RD. ->H (drherr@erols.com), January 01, 1999.

Diane,

If John Koskinen were to have a near-death experience altering his perception of what's important in life, what would we see from him that might signal the birth of a truthful and responsive government?

-- Critt Jarvis (critt@critt.com), January 01, 1999.

No harm in thinking positive, but what are the facts Jack? Diane is a come lately. She only discovered Y2K 3 months ago and now she thinks she can change the world by making people aware. Aware of what? There's only so much food and water to go around. Tell the people how to defend themselves against the gangs who are going to go after all the food, water and ammo you have stored. If the scenario that all the "experts," are predicting comes true, then no matter how prepared you are or aren't, people are going to die. People are dying right now, but do we lend a hand to the homeless? Are you on the band wagon to help the homeless Diane? Are you on the bandwagon to help all the starving children? Why isn't this your crusade? Y2K will get here regardless, we can't stop time.

-- navajojoe (navajojoe@puff.com), January 01, 1999.

Why, navajojoe? Because Y2K is global.

Most everyone on the planet will be impacted, in some way, shape or form by Y2K repercussions. That's why. If the "few" are prepared, not the "many," your gloom and doom prophecies would likely become a reality. IF better prepared, at the local levels, all across this country, and this world, then we just might make it with fewer losses.

Awareness first, preparation second. Before ANY of the "old threaders" started preparing, they had to "get it" first. Give the people on this planet a fighting chance!

We are all part of one another's future.

Diane

-- Diane J. Squire (sacredspaces@yahoo.com), January 01, 1999.

Diane- Awareness by everyone without a solution is the first stage of panic. Because there is no solution for everyone. "Be careful of what you wish for, you just might get it." Suddenly, Y2K stories are appearing everywhere, and awareness is starting to blossom. However, I too think that April will be the the "pivot point" so to speak, when everyone will "get it", due to living examples in the way of fiscal year 2000 rollovers.

Now, my question to you and everyone else on this forum: By April, will you be where you know it will be safe? Will you have completely liberated yourself from the banking system, stock market, and anything else that depends on electronic promises to pay? Will you have the supplies needed to see you through the rough times ahead, including the complete collapse of the power grid, for perhaps for at least a year? Will you ready to defend via deadly force?

-- Jack (jsprat@eld.net), January 01, 1999.

I shall be like Princess Diane Squire, I shall roam the earth scattering seeds of knowledge about Y2K. I shall ask those whom I have come into contact with these Y2K awareness questions:

1. Hello, my name is JohnnyY2K Seed. Did you know that the Y2K bug is about to get you? No? Well here is a booklet that I have prepared for you, and here's a couple extra copies for your friends and relatives. May I ask you a few questions about Y2K?

(a) Are you prepared for at least 1 year of living without electricity, and if so, what do you have to sustain you? If not, what are your plans to prepare for no elecricity? What? You have no money to buy the basic 1 year of supplies to sustain you and your family for one year with no power?

(b) Do you have at least a 6-month supply of food for your immediate family in case you cannot get to a store to purchase food or if there's not stock on the shelves at the store to buy supplies? What? You don't have enough money as it is to buy food for your family for 2 weeks let alone 6 months?

(c) If there's no power or water due to malfuctioning of the power company and the water treatment plant, can you live for 6 months without being dependent on the water company to get water to you? What? You have no room in your apartment for a swimming pool?

(d) Well let me ask you this: What are your plans for disposal of sewage, I mean, when you and your family use the toilet, and there's no water to flush down the waste, what are your plans to dispose of the human waste? What? What did you say? Did I hear you say that you will deficate in the street, or crap in a bucket and pour it down the storm drain? Well what about the envirnonmentalists? What? Did I hear you say "screw the environmentalists," you'll shit where you damn well please? Okay, let me ask you this....

(d) Since you can't afford to stock up on 6 months worth of survival supplies, because your on a limited budget like so many other millions of Americans, what do you think you can do to prepare yourself for the turmultous events headed our way?

(1) I shall go to the government and ask for more food stamps so I can buy 1 years worth of pinto beans and rice for my family. (2) I will ask the government to call for martial law and confiscate all firearms from those that are hoarding firarms and ammo, because they are the enemy of the government and the pose a threat to me. (3) The government should go after anyone who is hoarding food so that me and my family will have equal amount of food as everyone else.

Oh, I see, where did you get these ideas? Well I studied the great philosphers when I went to college? You mean you went to college? Yeh, I went to college, I have a BS in philosophy. Oh, well, uh, how come you demand so much from others and little from yourself? Well that;s my whole philosphy. You don't get anywhere on your own, but you get a whole lot from others for FREE! Go for it Diane!

-- Johnny@Y2KSeed (JohnnyY2KSeed@apple.com), January 02, 1999.

Jack, By April, will you be where you know it will be safe?

Well see. Not for lack of trying. Also trusting that IF one follows intuition (gut feeling for some) that, yes, we will be where we need to be safe.

Dear JohnnyAppleSeedlessBaggaClone,

First, just sprinkling internet seeds, clues to potential Y2K knowledge and wisdom, as are most of us posting here. Are you? Or are you sowing something else. Remember, You reap what you sow.

1) If one prepares as if there is at least one year of living without electricity, you will be incredibly prepared. If your community does too, well kudos to all. Plant community co-op gardens this spring and go through the personal farmer learning curve while you can still shop at the local supermarket. (i.e. learn from your park n patio gardening mistakes while you have the opportunity to do so).

2) No money? Then working within community is the only prudent option. Volunteer at a local food bank. If none exists, help create one involving your local Red Cross, Salvation Army, community disaster preparedness groups, etc., etc. Remember the V word. Activating enough Volunteers eventually morphs into community Victories.

3) If there's no power or water due to malfunctioning of the power company and the water treatment plant ... you, and the neighbors surrounding you, had better PLAN for very creative work-around solutions this spring, while supplies are available. No money? You need to get very creative indeed. Or get work and focus on simplicity and whats important.

4) Create plans for disposal of sewage. Toilets are not an option when the grids are down. Start a compost pile. Organic farming works. Learn about how to do that. Build an outhouse, not near the ground water supplies. For THOUSANDS of years, millennia, there were not running toilets as we know and love them. Were here, in the billions. Some of our ancestors must have figured that one out. Can you spell CAMPING? People do it all the time (several times a day).

5) Go ahead, and ask your local government to start planning for food and water shortages. And ask them to ask their state government, and the states to ask their federal government, and so on and so forth. For every problem, find a working solution. Sometimes the solution is even unexpected. Its called contingency planning. Planning for myriad contingencies. Sound smart? Possibly prudent? Are there workable local, county, and state solutions to NOT declaring martial law? Better figure that one out in community. Youll all get more that way.

Diane

-- Diane J. Squire (sacredspaces@yahoo.com), January 02, 1999.

No doubt about it, she's a liberal from CA. The snowball always rolls off to the left side of the mountain.

How's 'bout something for us right-wingers over here this side of the Conventional Divide? 8<)

-- Robert A. Cook, P.E. (Kennesaw GA) (cook.r@csaatl.com), January 04, 1999.

Robert,

If there was a way to reverse engineer Y2K snowballs for you, I would!

Remember hearts are found on all sides of a mountain.

Diane

-- Diane J. Squire (sacredspaces@yahoo.com), January 05, 1999.

Flashback.

Thanks for the reminder Critt.

;-D

Diane

-- Diane J. Squire (sacredspaces@yahoo.com), December 31, 1999.

April? What's all this BS about April? Sounds like the buzz from a year ago.

-- Lars (lars@indy.net), December 31, 1999.