There is a lot of economic doom & gloom in the press lately, enough to make you crazy. For example, take this article titled, Is this finally the economic collapse? written by Keith R. McCullough, the CEO of Hedgeye. McCullough suggests that our 90% debt to GDP ratio is so high that real economic collapse is closer than ever.

Some somewhat extreme watchdogs have also been keeping an eye on some of the usual and unusual economic indicators and have summed up 15 Economic Statistics That Just Keep Getting Worse.

Another article caught my eye; a Bloomberg opinion story recently reported that the, U.S. Is Bankrupt and We Don’t Even Know It.

I’m not sure what to believe and don’t take any of this at face value; but it does bring up some interesting points and logical conclusions.

• If we the people can’t slow our run-away government spending, we can expect to see a big jump in taxation since someone is going to have to pay all this money back.
• I can’t imagine any politician voluntarily choosing to make hard choices like doubling taxes on their watch. In fact they all seem hell-bent on creating some kind of artificial economic stability at any cost.
• I also can’t imagine any politician actually admitting that an economic train-wreck is eminent because it could trigger an economic train-wreck.
• Judging from the noise the doomers are making about the eminent collapse, it might explain why the politicians are so hell-bent and spending our unborn descendants’ tax dollars today.

We should not let paranoia overcome us; but we should also listen to our built-in survival instincts.

Logic tells me that the economic numbers show that we may be moving onto thin ice again; but that we might cross this frozen lake without incident. But my instincts tell me I should tie a safety rope onto my belt in case I fall into the the sub-zero waters.

People with a clear minds find a certain level of preparation prudent and practical. The metaphor of tying on a safety rope while crossing a frozen lake helps me consider my next steps. Digging a bunker in my backyard and filling it with guns & ammo seems insane but building a rotatable inventory of non-perishable food seems much more reasonable.

No matter what kind of safety rope feels right for you, now seems like an increasingly bad time to ignore our instincts.

I continue to ask myself… why do I live in California? I don’t like bureaucracy and now California is adding even more layers that will effectively cut the income of online entrepreneurs state-wide.  ABX1 28, was just signed by Jerry Brown. Sadly he might have just said goodbye to many California-based online entrepreneurs.

You see California wants to collect sales tax on sales that include banner clicks from websites owned by people who happen to live in California. The main stream media is making it sound like the bill leves sales tax on buyers in California, but california buyers always paid sales tax on online purchases. What the bill actually says is that if someone, like an affiliate, is part of the sale… sales tax must be sent to California too.

The problem is that affiliate programs are basically advertising programs that typically pay a fee to website owners when a buyer ends up buying something from the advertiser’s online store.

In other words, in cases where the buyer and seller are no where near the borders of California, California still wants to charge sales tax because the website where the buyer saw the advertising is owned by someone who happens to live in California.

Affiliate fees are advertising fees! Affiliates don’t sell products or have anything to do with the transaction – they essentially get a commission based on the effectiveness of their advertising efforts.

So now Amazon.com is telling all of us idiots that haven’t left this sinking ship (California) that our affiliate relationships are canceled.

Now… I don’t make much money from Amazon myself – but I’m beginning to wonder how this going to effect Google Adsense and all other online advertising programs. If those get hit by boneheaded laws like this my independent online income will evaporate – so long as I stay in California.

I must say… Jerry Brown and the fools that manage California might have just given me a business reason to leave – and Oregon and Washington are looking more inviting all the time.

UPDATE October 3, 2011 – Governor Jerry Brown just signed a repeal for this legislation and we’re back in business as an Amazon Affiliate!

I was shocked to hear that Californians didn’t pass Prop 19 this past week. Shocked. I was certain that Californians would thumb their noses at the Federal Government and vote to make growing a few marijuana plants legal in this state. I mean if we (by majority vote) can elect Jerry Brown as governer how can we not vote to legalize pot. LOL

Well the good news is that the Emerald Triangle will survive. I was born in Mendocino County and lived in Redwood Valley for years as a starving artist, so I have some strong feelings about the place and dream of moving back all the time.

If pot had been legalized I’m certain that things would radically change up there. The local economy would collapse, real estate values would plummet, folks would be forced to leave, the county government could face bankruptcy. I know this sounds crazy but everything relies on marijuana up there, even for those people not working directly in the business.

So for now illegal pot growing is safe. Marijuana prices will stay high and business will continue as usual. But I’m also certain that this close call has sent a strong signal to everyone in the region that high profits will someday come to an end. Just like the larger global economy… all bubbles eventually burst.

Here’s a glimpse into the Emerald Triangle.

That’s right I’m party-free. Oh you didn’t know you could do that? I’m not sure you can in every state but I bet you can. In California all I had to do was write “decline to state” in the political party box.

I think this is an important step for everyone to do, conservative, liberal, or other. It seems like too many of us have taken sides against each other, dividing American citizens into easily controlled groups.

Does that sound crazy, easily controlled groups? Yeah maybe it is, but there are a growing number of us free agents. I just wish there were more true revolutionaries running for office. Who knows maybe if enough of us say enough-is-enough there will be.

This photoshopped image became a reality as the inhabitants of Peacetropolis gather at exactly 11:41 a.m. today to have their photo taken by satellite. I’ve not seen the actual photo yet.

It will be cool to see what Black Rock City looks like from space. I wonder what aliens think of Burning Man? Who knows maybe some of them are there now in attendance LOL

Peacetropolis! ~ image by Ashanti Vivia – SentienZe MediA (Artist’s Rendering)

I’ve said it before and I’ll keep saying it until the grid goes down… the perfect strategy for a post peak oil future is to simply choose to downsize consumption, grow increasingly self-reliant, and live more sustainably.

A recent report from the German Military, (Peak Oil – Implications Of Resource Scarcity On (National) Security from the Center for German Army Transformation, Group for “Future Studies” July 2010), summarizes the risks to civilization as humanity runs out of gas.

What is doesn’t say is how to avoid trouble. I suspect most people have trouble connecting the dots because they can’t imagine anything more normal than commuting by car, gas heat, hot running potable water 24/7, electricity oozing out of their sockets, and ample supplies of food on store shelves.

The core problem is that we’ve built a civilization on non-renewable cheap energy. So all those normal luxuries are normal when cheap energy is available. But like falling off a cliff, it’s not the fall that kills you – it’s the instant you stop falling that does you in.

We can wish for thorium parachutes but the truth is that relying on a dream is just not practical. Instead choose a well-tested safety harness.

The more of us that start moving in this direction the stronger our civilization becomes. If happy motoring continues, those of us living more simply and closer to the land will simply be leading happier less-dependent lives. If happy motoring ends we’ll be the best prepared for a oil-free future.

Living with less is the best peak oil hedge.

You know civilization is nearing collapse when Paris Hilton’s cocaine possession arrest the the top story on Google News. WTF!?

If you listen to this latest post by populist Jim Hightower, you’ll get the latest scoop on the corruption at Dell. It seems that they knew they were selling junk and were intentionally hiding the fact from customers… corporate customers. Yeah yikes. Talk about biting the hands that feed you.

Now they are refusing to release internal emails being requested by a court order, and they’re own lawyers want to sue them. Yeah, double yikes.

Who knows if this is enough to squash Dell, but it sure is a brand squasher.

Ironically, my work Dell is being replaced soon… get this… by an Apple. Not sure if that’s any better anymore. Have you seen the latest patent from Apple… spyware nicknamed Traitorware.

Maybe we should all just switch to Linux.

Truth be told, if any piece of a system is sustainable it has a natural sustaining effect on the other parts. By sustainable I mean the true definition of the word, the capacity to endure. This can be applied to any system, natural or human-made.

For example, if we build a civilization that is dependent on non-renewable energy sources, we’ve built a unsustainable civilization, one that cannot endure. The same is true of business. A business built on top of an uncertain foundation might benefit from rapid growth while that foundation holds but when it fails, watch the greedy bastards that set it up jump off like rats leaving a sinking ship, before it sinks.

This is actually the main reason all the dominos in our economic game fell in sequence. When a big one drops, (like home values), other segments that were dependent on unsustainable resources, (like borrowed capital), saw their foundations crumble. Since so many small businesses were built on the foundation of borrowed home equity, we naturally saw the failure of many small businesses when the home value bubble burst.

I was surprised to see corporate giant AT&T running ahead with a renewable energy program. This shows how they must understand how environmental sustainability will help to ensure their economic sustainability. They will be keeping their networks alive with solar power.

It would be nice to see more regular folks embrace this business strategy and apply it to their own lives. Imagine how sustainable our civilization would be if we were all a bit more self-reliant.