After reading the past 500 threads, I'm beginning to see that we're all petering out, what has been said has been said, what we know we know, what we are expecting we are expecting, and we've all made the necessary preparations. All else from here on out is just a rehashing of the previous 65,500 threads that have been posted on here. There won't be many new GIs, everyone is one their own. The lull before the storm means that everyone reading this BB is waiting for the storm, and the DGI, the Pollyannas, and the GIs have already chosen and made their decision. It's too late now to convince anyone of what is ahead and maybe all us GIs are over exaggerating the severity of the problem. I'm tired of playing the cat and mouse game, listening to the spin doctors, the whining yuppies, and those that think we need to play mommie and daddie to everyone. Adios and see you all on the other side.....maybe..perhaps..don't really know.

-- AdiosAmeigos (AdiosAmeigos@bye.com), March 14, 1999

Answers

Adios,

It's pretty clear at this point that the world as a whole is going to be burnt toast in 2000. The question is, will we just be "well done" here in the U.S., or will we be toast as well.

Getting an idea on how the U.S. situation is going to turn out is very important to those in the process of preparing for Y2K. I don't have the money to go out and buy everything at once. With me it's just a little more each week at the grocery and Home Depot.

I believe we'll find out a lot more between now and August on just how bad things things will turn out in the U.S. I need to know what kind of failures to prepare for so I can adjust my preparations.

I don't know about you, but I have family members whose welfare I need to consider...

-- Kevin (mixesmusic@worldnet.att.net), March 14, 1999.

http://www.sjmercury.com/svtech/news/breaking/merc/docs/027317.htm

Posted at 6:21 p.m. PST Tuesday, March 2, 1999

Y2K may spark unrest, economic pain -US Senate

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The year 2000 computer bug may set off civil unrest in poor countries, undermine economic growth in Asia, Latin America and Africa, and disrupt global trade in oil and other commodities, a Senate panel said Tuesday.

While there was a low probability of an accidental nuclear weapons launch, the committee said missile systems and other high-tech weapons in other countries could malfunction. The Senate was also warned that terrorists might strike against U.S. targets next Jan. 1 to take advantage of weakened security.

``I have a nightmare of CNN cameras in villages or cities where there is no power, no telecommunications, the banking system is broken down, widespread rioting,'' said Utah Republican Sen. Robert Bennett, chairman of the Senate's Special Committee on the computer problem.

[snip]

For the United States, Y2K disruptions should be manageable, the Senate panel concluded.

``The committee has no data to suggest that the United States will experience nationwide social or economic collapse, but the committee believes that some disruptions will occur, and that in some cases Y2K disruptions may be significant.''

Bennett said the U.S. military might experience some minor computer glitches, ``but its mission-critical, war-fighting capability will not be compromised.'' U.S. intelligence services would also be ready in time.

The U.S. health care industry may be the least prepared, according to the panel, which said the nation's Medicare system was in ``serious trouble''.

The committee complained that U.S. airports started preparations too late, and warned that shipments of goods by sea could be disrupted because the maritime industry was running behind. But it said a prolonged nationwide blackout was unlikely, although local and regional outages were possible.

In case vital services were temporarily cut off, the committee said Americans should stock up on bottled water, canned goods and other essentials, as they might to prepare for a winter storm lasting two to three days. People should also keep copies of their financial records in case banks run into unforeseen problems.

The committee said the most serious computer problems were likely to strike other countries next Jan. 1, because many of them started preparing too late or not at all.

The report singled out Japan, Mexico, China, Germany and Taiwan for falling nine months to two years behind schedule in preparing for the year 2000 bug. The committee also said that major oil producers Venezuela and Saudi Arabia were 12 to 18 months behind schedule.

``Disruption of flights and global trade between some areas and countries may occur,'' the committee said.

In a closed-door briefing for senators, Bennett outlined the Y2K threat to national security.

``There is a low to medium probability of terrorist exploitation of Y2K. However, we must remain vigilant in case some of our security systems malfunction,'' Bennett said afterwords.

But he added: ``There is a medium probability of economic disruptions that will lead to civil unrest in certain sectors of the world, particularly where their economies are already fragile or there is political uncertainty.''

He told senators there was a ``high probability'' that widespread computer glitches would compound economic problems in Latin America, Africa and Asia.

``In some countries it will be more serious than others,'' Bennett said. ``The unknowable question is what will be the impact on the United States.''

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-- Kevin (mixesmusic@worldnet.att.net), March 14, 1999.

There's nothing else to know, you know what I know and you prepare accordingly based on your knowledge. No one is stopping you from any kind of preparation. I'm not fortunate to be born with a silver spoon in my mouth, I'm not a top executive storing away a bunker full of food, I'm not Bill Gates, I'm just a peon little worker here in America working for a living, keeping my eyes open, taking care of my own, and realizing that there's nothing new to add.

-- AdiosAmeigos (AdiosAmeigos@bye.com), March 14, 1999.

So what are you going to do Adios, watch the Monica story? Y2K may be the biggest event in my life. When I start to see the same level of information coming from the general media that I see on this forum, I may consider leaving. I think I'll be here for quite a while. <:)=

-- Sysman (y2kboard@yahoo.com), March 14, 1999.

Adios;

You could take one more very important interim step.

How about testing what you have prepared. Unplug the phone, pull the breaker down to off and turn off the main water valve.

Live like that for a couple of days and you will discover new things to do to advance the prospects for living.

Best wishes,

-- Watchful (seethesea@msn.com), March 14, 1999.

Hellooooooo Watchman, been there done that! I can't keep soothing your souls, keep your spirits up, posting the same advice, same information, same scenaRIOS, playing out the scenes, dealing with the polly-want-a-crackers, just been at this toooooooo long! Hmmm need to take a break, sell my computer before someone realizes it's not Y2K compliant, walk on the beach and see if the ocean beckons me.

-- Adios (AdiosAmeigos@bye.com), March 14, 1999.

Adios, I can certainly understand why you feel the way you do. It can get so damn tiresome picking through the threads here and on other forums, looking for something we might have missed, and usually being confronted with the same biases time after time... GI, DGI, DWGI, after a while you begin to see how folks are totally polarized, opinions set in concrete, and most of what passes for discussion is a stylized rendition of "Us vs. Them", ad nauseum. I agree, those who GI will stay 'got', while the vast majority of those who DGI/DWGI will never be converted in time to do themselves any good.

Still, I stick around here because of the opportunity to exchange ideas (and the occasional barb) with intelligent and informed individuals of like mind - something I rarely encounter outside this forum. It's also an invaluable source of all kinds of information regarding events related to Y2K. That alone would keep me around, because you never know when events may dictate that your Y2K plans made need adjustment.

So take a breather if you want, but look in on us every so often.

-- sparks (wireless@home.com), March 14, 1999.

"Shall We Pack Up And Call It Quits?"

I feel like you do once in a while, so I pack up and go take a little vacation where there's no computer. Refreshing. And it helps me put things back into perspective. But I return, because as someone else said, this forum is still the best place to stay informed on progress, or lack thereof. The media is useless and will remain so.

Hope you feel better soon, and good luck.

-- Chris (Catsy@pond.com), March 14, 1999.

I agree with Chris. Just took a week off -- went to New England, didn't have computer. Now I find myself spending less time on the forum. I still spend about an hour a day to catch up and comb through the threads to get the latest news and tips. But I am spending much more time with the tasks of preparation. So much to be done and the clock is ticking!

-- Libby Alexander (libbyalex@aol.com), March 15, 1999.

As long as it is still possible, at a personal level, to prepare for Y2K, then I think that this forum is still quite useful. Amazingly enough, even at this late date, thanks to the large DGI mentality, you can still buy rural property cheaply, still purchase a supply of stored food, still place an order for a diesel generator, still get your money out of the banking system in the form of cash, etc.

But yes, the day cometh, when it will be Too Late. And all the chit-chat on this and every other forum will just as you have described: re-hashing of times past.

-- Jack (jsprat@eld.net), March 16, 1999.