The Carrington Flare

It was late August, in the year 1859, many Americans were sitting down to read the newly published "Tale of Two Cities" when suddenly the night sky began to glow red. The fire in the sky drew attention from people all around the world but there was very little panic, in fact most were just fascinated.

By September 2nd, the telegraph machines in boston were so overwhelmed with power that the operators actually unplugged their batteries and allowed the system to run only on the power provided by the atmosphere. The better part of electrical consumption in those days was the widespread and international use of the telegraph, which was visible by the rats nest of wires that ran through the cities.

The curious wonder of the event was short lived though, as electric wires all over America and Europe started to burst into flames. Homes and businesses were destroyed and lives were shattered. Named for the astronomer who first recorded seeing the event unfold weeks earlier, the Carrington event was never considered a catastrophie but would be recorded as the weirdest solar event ever. The lasting aurora was visible as far south as Cuba.

The strongest solar flare in modern history occured in 1989 and cut power to an entire Canadian Province. The 1859 Carrington event was at least three times stronger. While normal solar flares take about four days to reach earth, the Carrington flare took just less than 18 hours to impact our fragile planet. It was that intense speed that allowed it to penetrate our natural magnetic defenses.

Now fast forward to today, a time when electromatic energy (in the form of electronic circuitry) provides us with almost everything we rely on. Todays electronics are far more sensative then the rough wires of the 1850s, and far more integrated into our lives. Just think about our communications, climate control, food storage, cars, airplanes, military weapons and nearly everything we touch in our daily lives. Imagine if every chip in the world failed at one time.

Well, if you haven't heard, the cycle has come back around. Scientists at NASA have established a cycle for this type of radical solar regurgitation and, according to them, that cycle repeats around 2013. Yes, three years from now we might be cutting our lawns as planes start falling from the skys. Fires might spark up all over the world and computer controlled weapons could do... well, who knows what could happen.

If you have not read my warning to prepare yourself for the worst, you should consider it now. This could be another Y2K style empty threat or it could be the biggest thing since global warming. Now that you have read a little history about the damage caused in 1859, you can decide for yourself just how valid the threat really is.

Dead Beat Dad PAC

Dead Beat Dads... it sounds so dirty. The evil of being a dead beat dad is so obvious to all on the outside but is it deserved?

Clearly there are those who earn good money but hide it from their former spouses for personal reasons but what about the rest? I have found that a great deal of great fathers have been forced into dead beat status by the very system that punishes them for that title. It's complicated but let me try to explain..

Imagine having a good solid career in a luxury industry, something like a pool salesman or a consumer electronics retailer. You find yourself working lots of overtime so that your wife can stay home and take care of your small children.

During this time, to your dismay, you find out that your loving wife has been loving someone else. You enter into a divorce and a child support obligation is assigned by the state that reflects your past income.

Now that you are divorced, and lonely, you drop a few hours to try to rebuild your life and try to re-establish social interaction. The state continues to force you to pay as if you were still working the overtime hours because "you chose to lower your income".

As time goes on, the economy begins to slump and the sales of consumer electronics takes a dramatic nose-dive. Along with this, your income splits in half. You go to court to try to lower the support obligation but the judge decides that you must continue to pay the original amount because he feels you are still just as capable of making money but you are intentionally lowering your income in spite.

When you make $50k and pay $13k, everyone is happy, but when you make $25k and are still required to pay $13k it gets real hard to pay your bills. Suddenly things are being taken from you, your car is re-claimed by the bank and your home goes into foreclosure. There is simply not enough work to make all of the payments and, with virtually no other experience, it is nearly impossible to get another job. Even fast food restaurants turn you down because they consider you "over-qualified".

Losing your vehicle and being forced to move in with friends or family, you find increasingly difficult to get to work and your paychecks start to suffer worse. Now you are making less than your support obligation and accruing debt with the state while barely making enough to get by. Now think about this, back when things were going great you met a perfect girl and married her. Before the economy turned bad, you decided to have a child with your new wife. Having lost your car, your home, and possibly your wife and young child you would be willing to do anything to make things work.


In desperation, you take a huge risk and enlist in the Military. Knowing that it would be years before you could make the money you once had, you accept the fact that your bold risk would be difficult for your family but could bring a basic sense of stability.

Then it happens, you find yourself in the troop medical center being told that you have sustained an injury that would permanently restrict the use of your dominant arm and that they would be discharging you as a result of that disability. Now, back at home, having endured painful surgery and nearly a year of rehabilitation in hopes of regaining some use of your arm, you are ready to re-enter the work force.

It is difficult to find work when 70% of the consumer electronics companies in your area have closed down and you are forced to compete with hundreds of unemployed applicants, who have no physical limitations, regardless of how good you once were. During the 18 months since you have returned from the Army, you have earned nothing and thus, paid nothing in child support. Just as you finally find a job, the state sends you notice that they would suspend your license if you do not pay the $17k owed in back child support. Well, so much for the job.

In the end, you have given every ounce of yourself to a system that has made it progressively more difficult to meet your obligations. You have sacrificed your home, your car, your wife, your children, your dignity, and even the use of your right arm in an attempt to do the right thing. Imagine, if you would, what it is like to give all of this up only to be tagged a "dead beat dad."

Obviously this story is not a random example of what might happen, it has happened. In fact, since I have forced myself to work harder to try to rebuild my life, I have seriously re-injured my right arm and will require another attempt at surgery. Beyond that, my left shoulder has suffered from the overcompensation and might require some amount of surgery as well.

Yes, this is my story. I know, from talking with others, that I am not alone. Many men are beaten down by a mixture of circumstance and a ridiculous system, and those men are living with the stigma of being a dead beat dad.

Now I am asking for help! I don't want your money, I want something else, something bigger. I suggest that, with more than half of Americans being divorced, there has to be a way to fix the system. I want to start a Dead Beat Dad PAC. Imagine how powerful we can be if we unite and offer political backing for those who would stand up for us. I have several ideas that would make it easier for the man to succeed while the mother gets what she needs rather than driving the father into the ground and hurting everyone.

Please send this to every divorced man you know and help me unify a group of good people who just need a little support so they might support their own.

Stock Up!

The faint smell of gun control is not from a distant memory but a warning of things to come. With the increase of border violence, the pain of the economy, and the power grab by our government, we are fast approaching a major movement against firearms. Like the stench of a coming storm, we are about to be hit by an anti-gun tsunami.

Think about it this way; The president of Mexico just passed through and blamed their violence on our lack of gun control (Obama agreed). The "state" of Chicago is about to test the recent Supreme Court decision on the D.C. gun ban. Liberals are feeling very powerful right now and, once the next election surprises the conservatives by going more liberal, the left will start pressing the issue.

Now is a good time to prepare for the storm. The wise thing to do, assuming you're a reasonable human being, is to arm yourself. I'm not suggesting that we prepare for some kind of war or anything but there are several good reasons to get ready.

First, we had a cold winter this year and a mild hurricane season last summer. This does not necessarily mean anything but it could be an omen. If the storm of storm comes through, especially with the flood of oil in the gulf, things could get ugly. It is reasonable to assume that the Katrina incident might be relived in your town. If so, there may be problems getting food, water, and fuel into the affected areas. Gangs of hungry, desperate people might come looking to relieve you of your supplies. It might come down to you or them.

Second, the terrorist potential. Never underestimate the possibility of a major terrorist attack, one that would bring the better part of the nation to a complete hault. How long would you last if the stores close down for a couple of weeks?

Third, civil unrest. With the virasity of today's political conflict, we could be edging toward a major event that might cause mass riots. A Boston Tea Party type of event or something like the Kent State shootings could spark major upheaval. Furthermore, what if, God forbid, some idiot takes a shot at Obama? Having seen what happened when a thug like Rodney King gets beaten by a few white cops, imagine what the riots would be like if the first black president is assassinated. You might be at work when the news hits and, on the way home, some thug pulls you out of your truck and beats you to death.

There's also the possibility of a global conflict. It's not far fetched to imagine an invasion, especially with the collapse of the global economy. We are the sole nation of wealth. Not so much the money but the resources. We would be an inviting target to a gang of failing countries, especially if we are politically divided.

The point is: Hope for the best but prepare for the worst. There is no harm in being ready. Go out and get yourself some food, water, fuel, and bullets.. Turn them over once in a while but keep a stock of those things that are important. Don't forget to consider the little things... diapers, toilet paper, soap, bug spray (when power goes out the bugs come in). Keep your Ice maker and gas tank full, make friends with your neighbors, and have a plan.