I have a very bad feeling about this winter. The purchase orders were cut off today at our school (about 6 months earlier than normal), because the state is facing another 200 million dollars in cuts. Oil is back up to nearly $80 and climbing. We are headed into winter with very little cushion around here.

This could be the winter of our discontent. Right on Schedule.

SURE... do it yourself, GO... give up all the comfortable toys of civilization and go live in a forrest.

What does it mean when active LT Colonels in the National Guard are stockpiling ammunition?

This colonel has the ability to surround himself with a company of infantry. I was not implying that he could or would steal ammunition. It struck me as odd that a man in command of so much public force would find it necessary to privately stockpile ammunition.

This colonel has the ability to surround himself with a company of infantry. I was not implying that he could or would steal ammunition. It struck me as odd that a man in command of so much public force would find it necessary to privately stockpile ammunition.

I'm thinking next winter Revi not this one. It will take that long for the first of the Obama bills to come due. They will pretend that everything is OK and getting better through this winter to get the rest of their agenda passed into law (and will do whatever it takes to make us believe it) .I'm not sure what they think will come to pass between now and 2012 that will make them look good to the voters but I am guessing they are wrong about it.

link The US crop has already passed from Bountiful to Normal to Down 10%. We're now in the worst harvest since 1975 when tractors were pushing cotton pickers thru the field in January.

Seems we are getting different projections about the wheat crop. Can you please source your info? Here is mine: article

Stop 'n' go: Harvest way behind normal pace, USDA says
by Jeff Caldwell, Agriculture.com Multimedia Editor, 10/19/2009, 4:15 PM CDT:

Monday's USDA-NASS Crop Progress numbers show a trend that many farmers in the Corn Belt can probably vouch for: It's wet, and harvest is already way behind.

As of Sunday, according to this week's Crop Progress report, 17% of the nation's corn crop has been harvested. That's way behind; usually, this week sees the crossing of the halfway point for harvest progress. A few strides were made in the last week in states like Iowa (up to 10% as of Sunday compared to 6% a week ago), but farmers in states like Michigan and Minnesota have yet to even break double-digits (harvest stands at 3% completed in both states, USDA says). (See more from Monday's report).

More soybeans have been harvested so far this fall, but that crop, too, is well behind the normal. Sunday saw bean harvest reach the 30% mark, up 7% in the last week but still way off the normal pace of 72% by this week of the year.

Here is mine: article

Since last year's disappointing fall harvest, grain's been a pain for U.S. railroads. Through 2009's first 37 weeks, the volume of corn, soybean, wheat and other agricultural products moving along their networks has dropped about 22 percent compared with volume from the same 2008 period.

* the U.S. Department of Agriculture is projecting a corn harvest around 13 million bushels