We are seeing quite a few threatening signs in the world today – global warming, wars, the potential collapse of the US banking system and more. Becoming a father for the first time these issues seem to weight on me a bit more than they have in the past. Not that I haven’t worried about it before, given that my wife and I for a while have been trimming our lifestyle to become more self suffient – as can be read about in Tiffany’s blog www.noordinaryhomestead.com and its predecessor blogs – but with a little one on the way it becomes even more of a priority in our lives.
The signs are dim indeed. Just this past weekend we have seen fighting brake out between Georgia and Russia over a miniscule piece of land – about the size of Rhode Island. This spat by itself would not worry me so much if one could ignore the larger implications. The weekend has brought harsh words between Russia and the United States (who is the strongest supporter of Georgia joining NATO), another instance of sabre ratteling between the old foes, which have been at it for some time before the Georgia-Russian conflict – missile shields and the issue of Iran.
In my opinion the stage is being set for a second cold war. However, this time the result may shift to the benefit of Russia. The US is already weakened by a long going, under equipped war in Iraq and the state of the financial system makes it dependent on the help of China and Russia, who have been buying up US Government debt at an unprecedented rate over the past several years.
The other worrying issue, which is only amplified by current and potential (Iran) military conflicts remains the US – and by implication Global financial markets. Soaring oilprices, which have gotten a bit of a breather in the past few days, falling house prices and a still tight credit situation have brought dark clouds on the horrizon. Throw into this volatile mix more military conflicts and the US could be brought to its knees economically. A war with Iran would mean skyrocketing oil prices – at least temporarily – and with it the wrath of China and Russia, which currently prop up the US economy through buying Government debt – something that could very likely stop in the event of a larger conflict in Iran.
As I mentioned before my wife and I have been working on attaining a more sustainable lifestyle for quite some time. Not because of a particular event that has been bothering us but out of the believe that the good years in the financial industry might one day be over – or at least in a coma for several years. Working in the stockmarket has its ups and downs, but if the proverbial shit hits the fan (SHTF) we know, a stockbroker is about as usefull a harmonica while duck hunting.
In our case this means enjoying the good years of being a stock broker, but also preparing for a time when the money dries up – a stagnant market or long term bear market. Self Suficient living is a goal we try to reach – a maximum independence of the system. It’s a hedge for whatever may come our way. As with anything requiring long term discipline it’s a tough thing to do.
We dads have a responsibility to take care of our little ones and to get them out of harms way if bad things do happen. Without wanting to implore anyone to become a Rambo style survivalist – it’s everyone’s personal choice to see how far they want to take preparations – I do have to urge every dad to have a close look at what they will do when the perfect storm does come together.
I will try to include some of the things we working dads should take into consideration in this blog in the coming weeks and months – basically you’ll be stuck with me for a while until we get things right 
