Famine, Head-lice, Canning Jars and pictures

Dan commented on an earlier post about dire consequences if/when a technology failure triggered failed crops in the US.

The question that popped into my head involved HOW MUCH of a failure could we manage our way around and when must people start dying in the streets because there simply, mathematically, is not enough calories, fat and protein?

The short answer is that 50% of our current wheat harvest would have to fail .AND. 70% of our current soybean .AND. 90% of our corn harvest. A major caveat is that the transportation/distribution system would have to be able to efficiently allocate the much smaller amounts of food.

The first order analysis, aka back-of-envelop calculations) figured 2500 Calories per day per person, 33% from fat and 70 grams of protein per person per day. One egg per person and pregnant women and pre-teens getting 1/2 liter of milk a day.

The total ration would be famine bread that was 38% wheat flour and 38% corn flour with the remainder being de-fatted soy flour to bump the protein up to 19% (to meet the 70 grams/day target).

Meat, booze, imported fruits and vegetable consumption would be driven to almost zero under this draconian scenario although grass-fed beef and lamb would be available in small amounts and so would small game like rabbit.

Countries that depend on our food exports would be in a world of hurt.

My 40,000 fly-over conclusion is that famine in the United States is far more likely to be created by failures in the logistics-and-allocation sectors than failures in the production sectors. 

Highway pickup

I participated in a "Highway Pickup" event yesterday.

I was chatting with an older gentleman while we waited for the rest of the crew to show up. He told me about inheriting canning jars from his parents and from his wife's parents. He told me had quite a collection of them before that happened.

Recently, they gave 500 of the jars to some neighbors, an older, Amish couple.

The couple, in turn, washed every jar until is sparkled and gave them, boxes and boxes full of them, to a newly married Amish couple as a wedding gift. The bride was thrilled to the point of (happy) tears to receive the gift.

Same man, another story

Shortly before he mustered out of the Army, he worked in recruiting. He had been detailed to pick up a group of new recruits and transport them to the base for in-processing prior to boot-camp.

He was issued a Ford Econvan and departed at -3-o-dark-thirty for a city of approximately one million people.

Upon arriving at the pick-up point, he saw 14 men milling around. His fan held 8. With the motivational method he had learned in the military he was able to pack 12 of them into the van.

Driving was difficult with his elbows wedged in against his side, but orders were orders.

He had been driving for half an hour when the recruit leaning against him asked about the beds they would be sleeping on.

"You will get whatever Uncle Sam issues you" the driver replied.

"Geeze, it can't be worse than what we bunked in last night" the guy behind him said. "My gawd...I never seen so many bed-bug bites and I swear I got head-lice there..."

The driver hit the brakes and swerved to the side of the highway. "OUT!! OUT! OUT!!!!" he screamed at them.

After a multitude of WTFs, he finally got them all out of the van.

He assured them that there was a bus coming in ten minutes to pick them up (a bald-faced lie) and slammed the doors shut, leaving them standing beside the highway with their bags in the dark.

His Commanding Officer asked him "Where are the recruits? Didn't you pick them up?"

The driver said "They told me that they had head-lice. I dropped them off beside Mullet Highway near Snook Avenue." 

The CO cursed a blue streak and started making phone calls. The last time they had imported lice it had taken weeks to get rid of them and it reflected poorly on the CO's record.

Then the CO ordered the driver to get a haircut, pick up Rid shampoo at the Px and a clean uniform from the quartermaster and to get sanitized via the shower-room.

He said that he was scratching for a week after that, thinking about how close he had been to 12 men with head-lice and bed-bugs. 

Bonus pictures

See the squirrel?

Can you see him now?

Rose-hips. During WWII, boys in Britain were sent out to collect them to supply Vitamin C. That is because citrus imports had been driven to zero by the U-Boats sinking transport ships.