Magical Thinking, or Why Grandma Will Never Die

...For since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation. 2 Peter 3:4

I received two opposite responses to my idea that the US could face famine some day soon. One is favorable and the other a repudiation of the whole idea. They are not from the "Response" section but I would like to share them anyway. Both are from people I have known for about 40 and 50 years.

First the favorable one:

"Dear Gerald, First, I think your article is GREAT! Older folks ..me included... are apt to put their trust in the old way of doing things.. that worked for them in times past. You hit the nail right on the head..I too grew up with shelves of canned goods and we knew we would not "go hungry". Those days are gone with the propeller airplanes. I had a brief meeting with Larry last week. He is still "hanging in there" trying to find the right medical treatment to give him some relief. Gerald, he is melting away and lost most of his teeth. But..I gave him the book you sent on survival and the little cards with key chain (I really wanted to keep them!) and he became TOTALLY engrossed...that was the end of conversation. I gave him a few minutes to look through and his comment was 'this may be Gerald's greatest contribution to all of us'. He hasn't called since our meeting , but asked me to send your e-mail address, which I did. So this is my long answer to your question if we are taking all of this seriously...YES. I told Ken about it last Saturday when I visited. You'll love what he said. He asked me about Jerry's old place and wondered if I thought of using the big back yard we struggle to maintain for weeds, good ones that is! ... He asked me if I had a book about edible weeds." (Part of letter.)

Now the unfavorable reply:

"Hi again, Ger! Well I can't really say a whole lot about famine, because I don't know a whole lot about it. People tell us things, and I think at times, they just want to throw fear into us, much like they did with the y2k thing, but I think it's good that you're planting all that stuff. I always think it's good to do whatever you believe in."

I told this person that since Grandma has always recovered from seemingly fatal conditions, she always will. There are no changes. All things stay the same. Bible prophecies about famine will not come true, because y2k did not occur. I will let it go at that and not address the issue with her any more.