HISTORY REWIND

I pulled out an old history book from when I was a college student. You can tell that from what I have been posting these past few days. History really does repeat itself and we really don't learn much as a society as we travel the same path our pioneers did. In particular I refer to The Donner Party.

The Donner Party started westward from Independence, Mo. They joined a wagon train bound for California. The main wagon train made it to California; The Donner Party did not.

The Donners had everything they needed and spares teams of oxen ,wagons, food, supplies and a good herd of cattle. What they didn't have was good sense and good leadership. They didn't have the needed skills an experience to be real pioneers.

The Donners were led by two older men in their sixties. They began the trek to the golden land in good health, but did not finish the long, arduous journey.

When they joined the wagon train in Independence no one expected the horrors that would overtake them. They dallied along the trail and lost precious time with breakdowns, wandering cattle and oxen. They squandered their days fishing and hunting along the way or having to repair poorly maintained wagons and and chase their wandering herds.

In late June they finally made it to Fort Laramie where they finally realized that time was short and they were way behind schedule. On bad advice they split away from the main train that was ahead of them. They were the tail end of the dog. They were told that there was a shortcut through the mountains and they could make up for lost time. They were also informed by wiser mountain men...that was not the trail to follow as it had never been tried by wagon train and was a difficult trail for even a man on horseback. The main train made it to California as they kept to the proven trail west.

Adverse conditions were abound. They had to hack through forest and literally carve out a road for passage. Wagons broke down, cattle and oxen died or wandered off and food became scarce. They ate the oxen and cattle that were left. They might have made it if it had not been a blizzard that stalled them in the mountains. It was an epic horror situation that we now know as THE DONNER PARTY of the history books. Starvation, cannibalism, and death were the legacy and shadow of the Donner Party.

Now, jump-journey into the 21 first century. Do you now see the need to hone your skills and be prepared? We, as a nation are not ready for adverse conditions such as food scarcity, homelessness, job loss, money crunches and a government that has caused more damage in the past six months than any other governing body in our short American history.

Will you survive? Will I? I insist that we are in a depression; call it a recession, if you will, but I won't. Do you have the skills and knowledge necessary to make through to the next Presidential election when we can hopefully rectify some of this mess? Will there be anything left of Americana to salvage? Will you and /or your family face famine and starvation? Think hard...think very hard.

I hope to expand on how history is repeating itself, only in a far worse scenario. As I exhort all to steal themselves for hard times, I too, am stocking up. I urge desecration about your location(s) and what you may have in your pantry/larder. Yesterday and today I did add some to my little "supply station." I, like many, am limited by finances, but I can find and "hoard" a little each month. Prepare and survive any adverse conditions that may come upon you.


Read about the Donner Party.

To be continued...I hope.