Y2K citizen's action guide

Supplement to Utne Reader Preparing, yourself, your family, and your, neighborhood, for the, year 2000, computer, proble...

Author: Eric Utne

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Supplement to Utne Reader Preparing, yourself, your family, and your, neighborhood, for the, year 2000, computer, problem, and beyond,

Y2K Citizen’s

Action... Guide

“As we prepare for Y2K, something surprising and quite wonderful is going to happen. We’re going to get to know our neighbors.” —Eric Utne, founder, Utne Reader This book is also available online at www.utne.com/y2k

Y2K Citizen’s Action Guide Preparing yourself, your family, and your neighborhood for the year 2000 computer problem and beyond

Y2K Citizen’s Action Guide is made possible through the support of many individual and foundation donors, and Utne Reader Books.

Acknowledgements Y2K Citizen’s Action Guide would not be possible without the generous help of the following people: Margo King, John Steiner, Rick Ingrasci, Nina, Leif, Sam, Oliver, Cecilia and Eli Utne, Mark Simonson, Sharon Parker, You Mammely, Kim Cranston, Griff Wigley, Jim Hickman, Roleigh Martin, Judy Laddon, Elizabeth Ward, Steve Davis, Deborah Rozman, Howard Martin, Gabriella Boehmer, Richard Perl and Susan Fried, Auguste Rae Perl, Craig and Patricia Neal, Charlie Hess, Michael and Margot Baldwin, William Ulrich, Judith and Robert Gass, Robert Welsch, Cathy Braeunig, Margaret Klis, Stanley Moses, the staff of the Utne Reader, and especially the authors, all of whom contributed their work without charge.

Y2K Citizen’s Action Guide Copyright © 1998 Utne Reader Books. Portions of this work are not copyrighted. Many of the articles are available on various websites. We welcome readers to photocopy the uncopyrighted pages and distribute them free of charge to friends, family and neighbors. Copies are not to be sold. The article, “From Chaos to Coherence: The Emotional Challenge of Y2K” is copyrighted and cannot be reproduced without the written consent of the Institute of HeartMath. The article is based on the forthcoming book, From Chaos to Coherence, to be published by Butterworth-Heinemann in late 1998. Additional copies of Y2K Citizen’s Action Guide can be purchased for $4.95 US ($5.95 CAN) at bookstores nationally and from leading on-line booksellers. Community preparedness groups are encouraged to purchase and resell copies of Y2K Citizen’s Action Guide as a means to raise funds for their efforts. Bulk orders of this book (in increments of 50 copies), can be purchased by sending $1.00 US per book (e.g. $50 US for 50 books) plus $7.50 US per 50 copies for shipping and handling. Send check or money order, payable to Y2K-Utne, to: Bulk Order, Utne Reader, 1624 Harmon Place, Minneapolis, Minnesota 55403 USA. For continuing coverage of Y2K, community preparedness, and sustainable living, give yourself, or someone you love, a subscription to Utne Reader, the voice of the emerging culture. Subscriptions are $19.97 US ($30 CAN) per year (six issues). and can be obtained through www.utne.com, or by calling 800-736-UTNE, or by sending a check or money order to: Utne Reader Subscriptions, PO Box 7460, Red Oak, IA 51591-0460 USA. Join Café Utne. Link up with other people across your town and around the world to discuss Y2K or any other topic. Café Utne (www.utne.com), “a place in cyberspace where ideas and community intersect,” is the most active site on the web for conversation and community. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data: Utne, Eric, Editor, November 1998 Y2K Citizen’s Action Guide: Preparing yourself, your family, and your neighborhood for the year 2000 computer problem and beyond, edited by Eric Utne, copy-edited and proofread by Sharon Parker; designed and laid out by Mark Simonson. Printed in the United States of America. First printing November 1998. ISBN 0-9653816-2-5 (pbk.) Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 98-90981

Close to Home: By John McPherson

A seldom-considered further consequence of the year 2000 computer glitch.

CLOSE TO HOME © John McPherson. Reprinted with permission of UNIVERSAL PRESS SYNDICATE. All rights reserved.

“I cannot be optimistic and I am generally concerned about the possibility of power shortages. . . . Supermarket supplies may be disrupted. . . . It’s clear we can’t solve the whole problem, so we have to allow some systems to die so mission-critical systems can work. . . . Pay attention to the things that are vulnerable in your life and make contingency plans. . . . Don’t panic, but don’t spend too much time sleeping, either.” Senator Robert Bennett, Chairman of the Senate’s Special Committee on the Year 2000 Problem

“This is not a prediction, it is a certainty—there will be serious disruption in the world’s financial services industry. . . . It’s going to be ugly.” The Sunday Times, London

“Failure to achieve compliance with the year 2000 will jeopardize our way of life on this planet for some time to come.” Arthur Gross, Chief Information Officer, IRS

“The public faces a high risk that critical services provided by the government and the private sector could be severely disrupted by the year 2000 computing crisis. Financial transactions could be delayed, flights grounded, power lost, and national defense affected.” General Accounting Office, U.S. Congress

“More than one-third of the most important [government] systems won’t be fixed in time.” House Panel Y2K report, September 1998

“We’re concerned about the potential disruption of power grids, telecommunications and banking services.” Sherry Burns, CIA

“A few months ago people were talking about seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. Now the only hope is keeping the world economy from total deterioration. And you get a sense that it is all now truly left to Adam Smith’s invisible hand—it’s beyond any country’s ability, and institution’s ability to control.” Jeffrey Garten, Dean, Yale School of Management

4 / Y2K Citizen’s Action Guide

“The world is working its way through a very difficult period. . . . The circumstances and issues are unprecedented, very complex. People who look for easy answers and guarantees are misguided. (These problems) do not lend themselves to black-and-white views.” Robert Rubin, Secretary of the Treasury Fortune Magazine, Sept. 28, 1998

“...complex systemic problems...are inherently uncontrollable. . . , traditional approaches to solving them simply don’t work. . . . They require collaboration, participation, openness and inclusion. These new systems’ problems force us to dissolve our past practices of hierarchies, boundaries, secrecy and competition.” Margaret Wheatley and Myron Kellner-Rogers Codirectors, The Berkana Institute

“It’s far too late, and things are far too bad, for pessimism.” Dee Hock, Founder, Visa International

“. . . The greatest antidote to worry, whether you’re getting ready for spaceflight or facing a problem of daily life, is preparation . . . the more you try to envision what might happen and what your best response and options are, the more you are able to allay your fears about the future.” Senator John Glenn

“If life is a process of discovering who we are, Y2K is when we find out.” Tom Atlee, President, Co-Intelligence Institute

“The Y2K bug provides us with an extraordinary opportunity to ask ourselves the profound questions which have been buried by our wealth and our technology. It is a time for us to ask what we really value and how we can preserve the ecological systems on which all life depends. It is a wonderful time to be alive.” Robert Theobald, economist and futurist



Contents 009 Foreword by Charles Halpern 013 Introduction by Eric Utne OVERVIEW 016 Turning To One Another by Margaret Wheatley and Myron Kellner0Rogers 022 The Y2K Neighborhood by Larry Shook PUBLIC CITIZENSHIP 036 What Public Citizens Can Do about the Y2K Crisis by Charles 0Halpern and Paul Friedman 042 Questions for Public Officials by Tom Atlee, Gordon Davidson and 0Margo King COMMUNITY ORGANIZING 048 All Together Now by Paloma O’Riley 049 What One Town Can Do by Paloma O’Riley and Jim Lord HOUSEHOLD & NEIGHBORHOOD PREPAREDNESS 052 What Has Been Accomplished in Boulder County by Kathy Garcia, Margo King and John Steiner 055 Organizing Your Neighborhood for Y2K by Kathy Garcia PERSONAL PREPAREDNESS 070 Individual Preparation for Y2K by Paloma O’Riley INNER PREPAREDNESS 092 The Psychological Challenges of Y2K by Gordon Davidson and Corinne McLaughlin 095 From Chaos to Coherence: The Emotional Challenge of Y2K by Doc Childre and Bruce Cryer APPENDICES 106 US Committee on Government Reform and Oversight 111 Proposed Citizens Y2K Financial Protection Act 114 Resources 119 Afterword by Eric Utne



The Y2K Problem Challenges All of Us By Charles R. Halpern On January 1, 2000, many computer software programs and embedded microchips, programmed to identify the year by its last two digits, will think it is 1900, causing date-driven computations to fail and computer-reliant systems to malfunction or shut down. In fact, current systems that perform post-2000 forecasting on transactions have already begun to experience failures. If these “year 2000” or “Y2K” problems are not remedied, the disruptions that result could range from delays in airplane flights to interruptions of phone services to business bankruptcies to power failures, to global recession and civil unrest. A few short months ago, I did not understand that this seemingly trivial computer programming glitch could have such devastating social and economic consequences. Like so many other people, I assumed that the problem could be fixed easily by technological experts and that it had limited relevance to my work. Y2K wasn’t my problem. It is a major understatement to say that I was wrong. Y2K is my problem and yours. Without our fully realizing it, computer systems have become integral to almost every aspect of our lives, whether or not we use computers ourselves. Computer programs and microchips in our country and throughout the world are increasingly part of interconnected systems, so that if one fails, the effects may rapidly cascade and multiply. Computer scientists and engineers offer no silver bullet for solving the Y2K problem. In fact, they are the first to admit that we have neither sufficient time nor enough personnel to identify, assess, repair, replace, or “work around” the billions of lines of defective code and date-sensitive microchips prior to January 1, 2000. In October 1998, expert testimony by the Gartner Group (to the U.S. Senate Special Committee on the Year 2000 Technology Problem) and oversight findings by the House Subcommittee on Government Management, Information & Technology have lent credence to this view. As the House report states, “It is now clear that a large number of Federal computer systems simply will not be prepared for January 1, 2000. At the same time, the utilities industry, the financial services industry, the


telecommunications industry, vital modes of transportation, and other indispensable industrial sectors are all at risk.” Offshore oil rigs, for example, won’t be able to pump oil if they experience the failure of a critical microchip, one of thousands embedded throughout such facilities, including equipment far below the surface of the ocean. Supertankers, refineries, pipelines, and railroads won’t be able to produce and transport oilbased products if they aren’t Y2K compliant. Power plants (without even considering their own Y2K problems) can’t function without petroleum or coal. And your car won’t run without gasoline. Of course, if your local gas station does get a delivery, you still have to get the gasoline out of the underground tanks into your car. If the electric power goes down, the pumps won’t work. If telecommunications fail, the pumps won’t recognize your credit card. But you get the point. We have created a world in which every system is six software programs or microchips removed from every other system. The United States is ahead of almost every other country in the world in dealing with the Y2K problem, in part through the efforts of my good friend John Koskinen and the President’s Council on Year 2000 Conversion, which Koskinen chairs. But even the federal government and private corporations, which are in the vanguard, are doing triage by focusing only on their own “mission critical” problems. As the report cards handed out by Congressman Horn’s subcommittee have made clear, there is a great disparity in how well different government agencies are doing. The Social Security Administration, for example, started fixing its code in 1991 and has a good chance of being Y2K compliant by the millennium. But Medicare has virtually no chance of being ready. The elderly who rely on Medicare will face the year 2000 not knowing when they will receive their next check. Similar delays can be expected in income-support payments. Like the federal government, large corporations have already spent billions of dollars and years of person-hours of effort in order to fix their systems. But even those corporations that are furthest along in the process must worry about their suppliers, customers, and local infrastructure systems. Surveys teach us that failures within the United States are most likely with small and medium businesses and at the county and municipal levels of government. On the international level, many developing countries, most Middle Eastern countries, and Russia, China, India, Thailand, Argentina, and Venezuela are far behind. There is an enormous amount of uncertainty about the nature of the failures to come, the seriousness of dislocations, and how long it will take to correct them. However, the probability of substantial failures is sufficiently great


that careful attention must be given to how we prepare for the date. So, while we must accelerate our efforts to remediate what we can in the time remaining, we must also focus on ways to respond to a world that on January 1, 2000, may look different and more threatening than the world to which we have become accustomed. The first thing we must do, both individually and societally, is to resist the powerful urge to engage in “us versus them” thinking and to worry exclusively about ourselves and our immediate families. People who are learning how to use automatic weapons and going out into the desert to wait out the Y2K crisis are not only acting immorally, in my view, but are living a fantasy. There aren’t enough weapons or a desert big enough if we all decide to look out only for ourselves. Isolationism is just as dangerous on the international level because we depend on many foreign companies and countries for critical products and resources. Some wonderful examples of communities coming together to meet Y2K challenges have begun to emerge throughout the country. For inspiration, go to the Cassandra Project web site (www. millennia-bcs.com) or to the web sites of specific communities such as Lowell, Massachusetts; Northern Virginia; Tucson, Arizona; and Santa Cruz, California; and the many equally helpful sites that are springing up on an almost daily basis. But we must also begin to take a look at how our larger society, not just the local neighborhood or community, can respond to the Y2K crisis. This is a time for each of us not only to help our own local communities pull together but also to try to revive the idea of “public citizenship.” By public citizenship I mean taking responsibility not only for the people who live close to us or who are our natural kindred spirits, but for those vulnerable and politically powerless people and countries who so often go “unseen” and neglected. In this highly interdependent world we have created, their problems are, in fact, our problems. Thus, public citizenship is essential to meeting the Y2K challenge. We must work together to increase public awareness about Y2K. We must identify systems critical to the larger society, such as access to health services and protection of the environment, and make the necessary Y2K preparations that will safeguard these systems. In all our efforts, we must pay particular attention to assuring essential services for the poor and vulnerable. (See “What Public Citizen’s Can Do about the Y2K Crisis,” on page 36. —ed.) We need to know how much of our national infrastructure is ready for Y2K.


We can’t fix critical problems or plan work-arounds without such information. Accordingly, all of us need to press businesses and governments for much more openness about the state of their Y2K compliance efforts. We need to know about the risks associated with the failure of embedded chips in hospital medical devices and systems, and breakdowns of the supply chain for life-preserving pharmaceuticals. We need to know the Y2K status of key infrastructure components in our localities, such as transportation and firefighting systems. We need to develop contingency plans for possible failures in power grids, in communications systems, in water and food supply networks, and in solid waste disposal. We must make contingency plans to address some of the “worst-case” scenarios if we hope to be able to mitigate them. Community organizing efforts led by churches, synagogues, schools, and other local institutions, for instance, could consider setting up emergency relief centers, complete with supplies of food, water, and blankets, as well as a backup generators and fuel. Such relief centers might help members of the public feel protected against freezing or starving in the event of a major infrastructure breakdown. If people are aware that such relief centers and plans exist, they will have the confidence to remain calm and can help prevent or minimize the risk of civil disorder that could follow from hoarding and other individual/exclusive behaviors, rather than community/ inclusive responses to infrastructure breakdowns. We must be citizens of the world and participate in setting global priorities—identifying and attending to those Y2K-related risks that threaten us with global disruption and massive damage to public health and the natural world. At the top of the list should be nuclear power plants and other ultrahazardous processes such as toxic chemicals and weapons systems. Obviously, no individual or group can solve the Y2K challenge alone. Each of us must take responsibility, individually and collectively. The Y2K crisis requires collaboration among neighborhoods, communities, cities, states, and governments across the traditional boundaries of competition and national borders. In working together to meet this formidable challenge we can affirm our interconnectedness and common humanity. Charles R. Halpern is president and chief executive officer of the Nathan Cummings Foundation, a national grantmaking organization that supports the arts, environment, Jewish Life and democratic values. During the past six months, he has covened a number of foundation meetings on Y2K. He is a pioneer of the public interest law movement and served as founding dean of the City Universty of New York Law School at Queens College.


I Am Because We Are By Eric Utne By the time you read this there will be little more than a year to prepare for what I have come to believe will be the social equivalent of a worldwide earthquake. The exact date and time of this earthquake is already known— the stroke of midnight, December 31, 1999. What we don’t know is where the earthquake will fall on the Richter scale. Will it just be a little hiccup, barely noticeable as the world wakes up on the morning of January 1, 2000, as some knowledgeable people of goodwill predict? Or will it be cataclysmic, causing genuine hardship to millions around the world, as increasing numbers of others are now saying? This guide hopes for the best while planning for the worst. We have come to believe those who say that the world’s energy, transportation, food, banking and communications systems, and other basic infrastructure are so thoroughly dependent on interlinked computer networks and embedded computer chips that there is no way we can fix all of them in time to avoid some disruption. We hope they are wrong, and that we look foolish whenY2K passes. National Public Radio reported in October 1998 that a Harris Poll of Silicon Valley computer programmers and engineers found that over 60 percent of them anticipate “serious impacts” as a result of Y2K, 62 percent will avoid air travel at the turn of the century, 20 percent of them plan to withdraw all their money from their savings accounts and one in 12 plans to move to safer quarters before January 1, 2000. On October 15, 1998, The New York Times reported that “10 percent of the nation’s top executives are stockpiling canned goods, buying generators and even purchasing hand guns … ,” because they are concerned that “the nation’s computer infrastructure will go on the fritz.” Senator Robert Bennett, chairman of the Senate’s Special Committee on the Year 2000 Problem, said recently, “I cannot be optimistic and I am generally concerned . … It’s clear we can’t solve the whole problem . … Pay attention to the things that are vulnerable in your life and make contingency plans.” The Y2K Citizen’s Action Guide doesn’t engage in the debate over whether or not to be concerned about Y2K. The following pages focus instead on


what you can do to prepare for possible disruptions; as a public citizen, as a member of a neighborhood, as a householder, and as an individual. The guide is filled with checklists and inventories to help you take stock of your assets and your liabilities, the skills and supplies you have, and those that you need, to help you and others get through a crisis. It shows you how to bring your neighbors together, how to help them face the issue, and how to get them working together. And it offers ideas and guidelines for communicating with public officials and others who need to be addressing Y2K in their spheres of influence. The operative watchwords are: “Be prepared.” As we prepare for Y2K, something surprising and unexpected and quite wonderful is going to happen. We’re going to get to know our neighbors. Possibly for the first time in our lives, we will begin to know what it means to live in real community. Most Americans these days live in networks, not communities. We tend to work, study and hang out with people who are like ourselves. We rarely associate with people who are not similar to us in terms of education, income, age, race, physical characteristics, and worldview. We put our old people in nursing homes and our young ones in day-care centers. Lawbreakers are kept behind bars and the physically disabled and the mentally ill are kept out of sight. We pay trained service personnel to handle these “others” for us so we can get on with our careers and our personal growth. Y2K is an opportunity to change all this. Y2K is the excuse we’ve been waiting for to stop making so many compromises in how we know we should, and want to, live our lives. Y2K is our opportunity to stop our polluting and wasteful practices, and start living more sustainable, environmentally friendly lives. Y2K is the conversational gambit that can lead to discussions that begin to knit webs of affiliation, care, and mutual support. Y2K can bring a family feeling throughout the community. Perhaps, through the conversations started among neighbors because of Y2K, some day our children will come to know the experience of community conveyed by this common phrase of the Xhosa people of southern Africa: “I am because we are.” Eric Utne is founder and editor-in-chief of Utne Reader.


Overview


Overview

Turning to One Another: The Possibilities of Y2K by Margaret Wheatley and Myron Kellner-Rogers The year 2000 problem (Y2K) sits in our midst, terrifying some, boring others. No one knows for certain how we will be affected by worldwide failures in computers and computerized equipment when the calendar shifts to a four-digit year. But we do know some things for certain. Y2K is a powerful teacher about our modern life. It makes visible the interconnections by which we have woven the world together through technology. It illuminates the extent to which both local and global systems are computer dependent. It displays the limitations of traditional approaches to leadership and planning. It reveals our very human tendency to deny and hide from issues when they are too complex to comprehend. And it exposes our dissatisfactions with our hectic and lonely lives. One other thing is true about Y2K: It is no longer merely a technical problem. Whether it was ever capable of being solved technically, we have run out of time and resources. It has transformed itself into a social and political issue. How we respond to the year 2000 in our communities and organizations offers us the possibility of real transformation in our relationships and capacities. And we do need to learn how to deal with Y2K, because it represents a new type of issue: the failure of complex systems. In the 21st century we can expect to be confronted with more and more of these increasingly complex problems.

The Nature of the Failure of Complex Systems Complex-system failures share a set of distinguishing features: • The longer they unravel, the more extensive their effects. • Costs always far exceed what has been budgeted for fixing them. • As effects materialize, unknown interdependencies become visible. • The more that problems come into focus, the fuzzier they appear. • Past experiences with simple systems don’t apply. • Cause and effect are impossible to track; consequently, there is no one to blame.


Overview These features describe the most frightening realization about problems with complex systems: They are inherently uncontrollable. Since prediction and control are impossible, traditional approaches to solve them simply don’t work. Each of these characteristics has become increasingly evident with the year 2000 problem. Initially, Y2K was thought to affect only software; it seemed to be a relatively simple problem. But then we learned that embedded microprocessors were vulnerable to the date change. These chips are so prevalent in modern life—in cars, satellites, home appliances, utilities, oil rigs, transportation systems, telecommunications, manufacturing, and medical equipment—that the average American is in contact with seventy microprocessors before noon each day. Failures in these chips will occur throughout the infrastructures that make modern life possible, threatening the functioning of all major systems: health care, utilities, governments, transportation, food supplies, public safety, finance, telecommunications, and defense. And what was first seen as a problem for each organization (or country) to solve individually has become a problem that can’t be solved alone. What does it matter how compliant and ready you are if your suppliers lag behind, or if your employees can’t get to work or don’t have food, or if power plants fail? What good does it do you to be prepared if your neighbors aren’t?

Complex Systems Require New Collaborations Complex systems require new approaches to dealing with their entangled interdependencies and inherent fuzziness. Complex-system failures cannot be solved alone. They require collaboration, participation, openness, and inclusion. These new problems force us to dissolve our past practices of hierarchies, boundaries, secrecy, and competition. In a systems crisis, the more we cling to these past practices, the more we deepen the crisis and prevent solutions. Y2K insists that we come together in new ways, that we turn to one another. We already know how to be together in transforming and effective ways— we see it on TV every time there’s a disaster. Disasters often illuminate what is best in humans: our heart-opening willingness to come together, to use whatever is available to rescue and save other human beings. Whenever disaster strikes, we read many stories of extraordinary, superhuman responses. Those who have been in these relief efforts speak about the


Overview importance of trusting relationships. Just a few weeks prior to the Oklahoma City bombing, community agencies had been together in a civil defense preparedness drill. No one was practicing for a bombing, but as they worked on other contingencies, they developed good relationships that facilitated working together when confronted with the bombing horror. However, one key player had not participated in the drill, the FBI. Many people in Oklahoma City still speak with resentment about being pushed around by “the Feds,” who excluded them from rescue operations. As Elizabeth Dole, president of the Red Cross, has said, “The midst of a disaster is the poorest possible time to establish new relationships. . . . When you have taken the time to build rapport, then you can make a call at 2 a.m. . . . and expect to launch a well-planned, smoothly conducted response.” It is important to note that past practices of leaders, where we rely on secrecy or evasion, create more risk rather than less. Lockheed Martin CEO Norm Augustine has written about his experiences with crises and gives one rule for information: Tell the truth and tell it fast. Secrecy feeds the problem, not the solution. And secrecy sets in motion some powerful dynamics that end up destroying capacity. People who learn they’ve been kept in the dark, or fed misleading information, quickly lose confidence in others. In the absence of real information, they fill the vacuum with rumors and fear. And whenever people feel excluded from involvement, they withdraw and focus on selfprotection. They no longer believe anything or anybody. As the veil of secrecy thickens, the capacity for collective solution-finding disappears.

When Complex Systems Fail

• Engage the whole system. Frequently ask, “Who else should be • • • • •

involved?” Create abundant information, circulate it through existing and new channels. Develop quality relationships; trust is the greatest asset. Support only collaboration; competition destroys capacity. Forget boundaries and territories; push for openness everywhere. Focus on creating new, sustainable systems. There is no going back.

Because of its complex nature, Y2K demands that we transform the ways we work together, that we forego traditional boundaries and competitive behaviors, that we let go of past conflicts and injuries. We must turn to one another to solve the unsolvable, we must depend on one another to find solutions. We simply cannot get through whatever disruptions or breakdowns occur by remaining isolated or indifferent.


Overview How we come together now will give us the capacity to face the unknown of the year 2000. We don’t have to know the future in order to be prepared for it. Organizations and communities that learn to work together, that trust one another, and that become more expansive and inclusive develop the capacity to deal with whatever happens. They have created a capacity for working and thinking together that enables them to respond quickly and intelligently to surprise and distress. This paradoxical truth was well illustrated a few years ago when major chemical plants in West Virginia engaged with the community to develop worst-case scenarios. Living with 14 large chemical manufacturing facilities, the citizens around Charleston exercised their EPA-mandated right to know how a failure in any one of these plants could affect their lives. What would be the worst that could happen to them, given the worst conditions and the worst dysfunctions? (For one plant, a leak from their anhydrous ammonia storage tank during high winds would create a deadly plume that would destroy all life within 30 miles.) Early in the process the plant managers took an enormous risk and decided to involve the community in developing the necessary information. Every committee was chaired by a member of the community. Together with plant personnel, they gathered information about the deadliest events that could occur. When they were ready to present their scenarios—28 scenes of terror and destruction—they set up booths in a popular shopping mall on a Saturday. (This choice of venue was suggested by a woman in the community.) As summarized by Dick Knowles, then plant manager of the Belle DuPont facility, “We presented 28 ways we could kill the community, and trust went up.” This is a familiar lesson from participative processes. As people engage with one another—even as they develop terrorizing information—they develop relationships that enable them to encounter the unknown together, and they develop much greater collective intelligence. Old divisions and problems fade in importance; people learn that in working together they are capable of achieving surprising results that benefit everybody. And people develop trust in themselves as a coherent collective. They have learned to think well together, and they have made decisions that they’re proud of. They have realized that they hold in common enough concerns and desires so they can work well, even brilliantly, together. The year 2000 problem requires just such participation from all of us. We cannot leave Y2K to the technology experts, or to the consultants, or to


Overview leaders. We are all affected, we all have essential perspectives to contribute, and we all must be involved.

What’s Possible and Who Cares? In the past few years, more and more people have expressed a great longing for community and autonomy. Can we use Y2K to transform these longings into new ways of being together? The year 2000 requires that communities, regions, nations, and the planetary community work together to develop scenarios and make contingency plans. But it is how we choose to engage in that planning that offers the real opportunity for deep and meaningful change. Let’s all begin our planning from the place of possibility, not fear. Consultants from the University of Washington’s program on sustainable community have learned that the first critical question to ask of any community is: “What’s worth sustaining?” If we can begin Y2K planning from this essential question, we will evoke our best creative energies. Years ago, consultant and organizer Marvin Weisbord learned that he had been asking the wrong question. He had gone into troubled systems asking “What’s wrong and how can I fix it?” He came to understand that the critical question was, “What’s possible, and who cares?” If we begin our planning from “What’s possible?” we will avoid attempts to patch together the old system, or to frantically re-create systems that have resulted in isolation and dissatisfaction. People do want to be together differently. In a recent survey on Y2K, 89 percent of respondents wanted simpler, more decentralized systems so that their communities could be more self-reliant and independent. The nature and complexity of Y2K leads us to invite back those we’ve excluded from current society. Our elders knew how to function before computers became substitutes for human activity. Our poor and disenfranchised long ago learned how to pull together in the face of need, or failed delivery of services. Our youth want to reconnect with us, their energy could be focused on the many assessment and information-gathering activities required. Our churches can provide both physical and emotional centers for this work. The sweet irony of Y2K is that if we use it now as an opportunity to re-create our communities and culture, whatever technological failures materialize won’t have the same negative impact. If we have worked together to discover what’s possible, we will have developed the collective


Overview capacity and compassion to go through whatever trials Y2K presents to us. If we begin in earnest now to call ourselves together, the millennial sun can provide its energy to those dreams of community held by many of us. Margaret Wheatley and Myron Kellner-Rogers collaborate in writing, speaking, and thinking about new organizational processes and forms. Together they lead the work of The Berkana Institute, a nonprofit foundation, and consult to a broad range of organizations through their firm, Kellner-Rogers & Wheatley Inc. Meg’s bestselling book, Leadership and the New Science (Berrett-Koehler, 1994), was named best management book of the decade. Meg and Myron are co-authors of the recent bestseller, A Simpler Way (Berrett-Koehler, 1996). They can be contacted on the web at : www.berkana.org, or at PO Box 1407, Provo, Utah, 84603.


Overview

The Y2K Neighborhood By Larry Shook A Briefing Begin with a sweltering Monday afternoon on August 31, 1998. The date is noteworthy only because this story orbits the calendar, giving each moment a stature it wouldn’t otherwise have. Hope Findley is briefing the City Council on efforts to prepare Spokane for possible trouble from the year 2000 computer problem. Findley is Mayor John Talbott’s assistant, and this is the mayor’s regular council briefing prior to the evening session. “We’re approaching community awareness as though something will happen come January 1, 2000,” says Findley. “There will be some disruption. We just don’t know what it will be.” Talbott echoes her remarks: “We want to be sure people can react calmly.” When the mayor and his assistant ask for comments from council members, only Roberta Greene speaks. She urges Findley and Talbott not to scare people. The council promptly turns to other business. Known variously as the millennium bug, the millennium bomb, and Y2K— for year 2000—this programming flaw is widely expected to cause some computer malfunctions. The difficulty, as Findley says, is that it’s impossible to know just how big a threat Y2K really is. The millennium bug, or bomb, is nothing if not unnervingly ambiguous. Some experts dismiss it—David Starr, former chief information officer of Reader’s Digest Association, has called Y2K a fraud. Many close observers, however, don’t take it lightly, especially decision makers who must put their money where their beliefs are. Many insurers offering business interruption policies now exclude Y2K because of the perceived risks. The few companies offering Y2K policies levy a $330,000 annual premium for $1 million of coverage. Lloyds of London, the company that enabled international shipping by insuring boats and cargoes, has announced that it won’t insure


Overview any vessel without certification of Y2K compliance. Dr. Edward Yardeni, one of Wall Street’s most respected economists, says Y2K could cause food shortages in the U.S. because of the dangers it poses to the nation’s highly computerized agricultural industry. On August 2, 1998, The New York Times editorialized: “It makes sense to prepare for the worst.” The exchange at the Spokane City Council meeting epitomizes the discussion of Y2K in America. At a national conference on the subject held in Boulder, Colorado, just a week before Findley’s presentation, I heard Jim Lord describe this situation as one of the most baffling climates of opinion in U.S. history. “There are two kinds of people,” said Lord, “those who don’t think Y2K is a problem, and those who work on Y2K and are terrified.” A retired U.S. Navy officer and electronics specialist, Lord has become one of the country’s leading advocates of grassroots preparedness on the chance that some Y2K worries are valid. He thinks The New York Times is right, and that any individual or community failing to make provisions for possible interruptions of electricity, food, water, emergency services, life-supporting prescription drugs, and other services, is taking a needless and potentially ominous risk. While those in the burgeoning Y2K surveillence industry have different views about how bad it will be, all agree that it is a problem. The staggering sum of money being poured into managing it is proof enough of that. By some estimates, Y2K remediation efforts are currently costing the U.S. as much as national defense.

What Is This Thing? On the one hand Y2K is as simple to understand as a broken clock. On the other, it’s as complex as the interconnectedness of life itself. Computers are machines that do mathematics—they add, subtract, multiply, divide. That’s it. All of the millions of dazzling services they provide are based on those four functions. Registering time is an essential part of many of those functions, and so Y2K is about time. It’s also about that most human of acts: a mistake. Just an innocent mistake, accidentally designed into these machines to which civilization has been entrusted. Early programmers, products of a culture that understands The Summer of ’42 to be a love story set in 1942, simply used this common shorthand. Without thinking, they abbreviated the long past and future—the concept of millennium and century—out of the computer’s database. That left only the truncated digits of a decade. This was erroneously programmed into billions of


Overview lines of computer code in mainframes. The shorthand contaminates many PCs, and infects an unknown but significant percentage of the world’s 20 billion to 70 billion microchips. The latter are tiny computers the size of a fingernail, “embedded,” as they say, in the world’s computer systems. That means they’re part of the warp and weave of the Earth’s economic and social systems, too. Regulating the pulse of life, they control the function of devices ranging from nuclear missiles to wristwatches to traffic lights to offshore oil platforms. (The average offshore rig has 10,000 embedded systems, some under water, some encased in concrete.) By one estimate, if only five of every 10,000 microchips failed because of Y2K, the result could be 12.5 million to 35 million critical computer failures worldwide. On September 10, 1998, when Rep. Stephen Horn (R-Calif.), chairman of the technology subcommittee for the House Committee on Government Reform and Oversight, issued the federal government one of his periodic report cards on its management of Y2K, anachronistic embedded systems were much on his mind. He noted that water pumps on the fire trucks of Baton Rouge, La., aren’t affected by the year 2000 problem. It’s just that the truck ladders won’t work without Y2K repairs. Horn gave the government a “D” for effort. Even so, Y2K really isn’t a complicated problem. It’s just a big simple problem. Lord explains it this way: “If I gave you a shoebox full of marbles on Wednesday with a cloth and a can of polish and asked you to polish all the marbles by Saturday, you wouldn’t have any difficulty. Now imagine the same assignment, but instead of a shoebox, the Grand Canyon filled to the brim with marbles. That’s Y2K. It’s a simple problem of overwhelming magnitude.” It’s as though a moment, an era, a world finds itself suddenly isolated by the mad clock’s hand. A manmade wrinkle in time. When December 31, 1999, becomes January 1, 2000, many of the world’s unrepaired computers will simply register two zeroes and they won’t know what time it is. Some computers will stop working. Some will make big mistakes that, while they might be messy, will at least be noticeable. Others will commit sinister little errors that could slowly befuddle the nervous system of the global economy. Food, water, electricity, fuels, telecommunications, financial services, transportation, health care, world trade of every kind—the list of critical systems that could be impacted is endless. Could small numbers of Y2K-triggered computer failures cascade into major social disruptions? That’s the worry, and it’s taking its toll on the public’s nerves. At the Boulder conference, several presenters noted increasing reports of marital stress and even breakups over differences of opinion about the


Overview subject. (Respected business author Margaret Wheatley joked that any day she expects an Oprah show about “Men who love women who love Y2K,” or “Children of Y2K-obsessed parents.”) What emerged in Boulder was the picture of a society looking to its technological priesthood for answers much as primitive peoples once turned to their shamans. What does it all mean?

A Sounding Alarm To an increasing number of people, the meaning of Y2K can be summed up in two words: National Emergency. Item: On September 14, 1998, the former CEO of United Press International, James Adams, announced the creation of “the world’s largest Y2K Web site” in order to “sound a public wake-up call.” Dubbed “Y2Ktoday” (www.Y2Ktoday.com), it will feature a daily feed of some 500 stories from a special reporting team, plus wire reports. “It’s time the public worldwide had access to accurate and timely information,” said Adams. Item: On October 7, 1998, a national townhall Y2K meeting was conducted via free satellite broadcast to help communities and citizens get ready. Sponsored by the National Association of Counties, the National League of Cities, the International City/County Management Association, and Public Technology, Inc., its featured speakers included, among others, John A. Koskinen, chairman of the President’s Council on the Year 2000 Conversion, and a representative of Montgomery County, Maryland. Y2K czar Koskinen is the nation’s top source on the subject, and Montgomery County is a national leader in Y2K readiness. Steve Davis, Montgomery County’s budget manager, began leading his community, located northwest of Washington, DC, in the fight against the millennium bomb in 1995. Davis’ Web page, “Dealing With The Year 2000 Problem” (www. erols.com/steve451/impact.htm), is a popular resource among local government officials working on Y2K. I met Davis in Boulder—where he was a speaker and also interviewed by ABC Nightline—and I was as impressed by his cool, unflappable manner as I was by his technical expertise. “I have a standing answer,” Davis told me, “for any public official who says he doesn’t have a Y2K problem: show me your report. Until you methodically inventory your systems, it’s meaningless to make any claims about Y2K. This is hard work, and it’s absolutely essential. Any community whose officials are not performing this analysis, and who are not regularly reporting on their progress, could be in serious trouble.”


Overview A barrel-chested man of six-two, Davis has the demeanor of a big city battalion fire chief accustomed to giving high stakes direction under pressure. He doesn’t like to talk about worst-case scenarios for Y2K, because he doesn’t expect them to happen. He senses that the country is on the verge of a Manhattan Project–level assault on Y2K and he won’t give reporters looking for sensational survivalist stories the time of day. (A recent e-mail message he sent to a Swiss journalist working that angle: “I’m sorry but I will do nothing to promote news coverage of the Y2K survivalist mentality. I think that it would be much better if you were to do a story on what needs to be done to minimize the problem.”) Still, Davis doesn’t pull punches about how serious he thinks Y2K could be without adequate preparation. He says worst-case scenarios can be avoided if government at all levels puts itself on a war footing and if all citizens take preparation seriously. One of the most frequently consulted sites on Davis’ Web page, “What Government Should be Doing About the Y2K Problem,” contains such admonitions as: Government has a moral obligation to make Y2K its top priority. Governments should immediately take a “Manhattan Project” or “Marshall Plan” approach and deal with this as the potential crisis that it is. The basic concept is that we must quickly pull public and privatesector leadership together to organize efforts to mitigate and prepare for Y2K impacts. The year 2000 problem is: • • • • •

A bug that will potentially impact many electronic systems A risk to our power, water, sewer, and telecommunications systems The greatest challenge ever to face government in modern times A complex threat that will be a tremendous test of leadership Something that must be fixed quickly in the face of dwindling resources

Without solid processes for a coordinated response to emergency situations, loss of life and widespread suffering are very likely to occur. Put the considerable logistical capabilities of the national and state armed services, guards, and militias to work planning solutions to problems. Based on the kinds of problems found and corrected in Montgomery County—the 911 emergency system, among others—Davis concludes that the world isn’t yet anywhere near ready for Y2K. “I’ve run into tons of people who say that their city is doing nothing,” says


Overview Davis. “If tomorrow were New Year’s Day 2000 it would be horrific, in my view. You would have mass systems failures, probably power failures— telecommunications, water, sewer—and all the ugly things you can imagine, resulting from a shortage of food and so on. Economically, it would be a depression.... The economic and personal loss [of wealth, not life] from year 2000 would be as devastating as World War III.” Davis is by no means alone in that view. Economist Yardeni was invited to give the keynote address at a recent gathering of the G-8 industrial leaders in Basel, Switzerland, and he urged them to regard Y2K as a coming war, and to unite in battle against it. Because of that, Canadian Joe Boivin thinks a preemptive peaceful use of the military is the world’s best hope. A veteran information technology executive, his $200 million Y2K repair for the Canadian Royal Bank of Commerce (the country’s second-largest bank) was successfully implemented among 140 divisions worldwide and is considered one of the most sophisticated remediation efforts yet. “We have global threat here,” Boivin told me, “and the vast majority of countries around the world have only recently begun to look into it. If you look at infrastructure failures within many of the developing nations, who are hard-pressed today with all kinds of other natural disasters and financial crises, there’s a very high probability that, never mind how well we do in Canada and the U.S., other countries are going to take a big hit.” As a result, he said, Y2K threatens a foreign policy nightmare that creates strong self-interest on the part of every nation to pull together to prevent the worst from happening. Boivin believes that Y2K constitutes more of a common enemy to humanity than any space invasion science fiction ever dreamed up. He advocates the immediate creation of globally coordinated task forces in order to sustain delivery of power, water, food, and other necessities in every country via Y2K-immune means. Like many who have studied the issue closely, Boivin sees a possible silver lining in Y2K’s dark cloud. Because of population pressure and the destruction of natural resources, he contends, humanity today faces a stronger mandate for cooperation than ever before in history, with little time remaining before the collapse of natural systems begins threatening civilization. “Maybe the year 2000 is the opportunity,” he suggests. “This is possibly the last chance we have to grab [Y2K] as the common enemy and put aside


Overview previous differences. If we don’t do that, the outcome doesn’t look very good . … I believe all of this is very much focused on survival of the species.” In a June 2, 1998, C-Span broadcast, Senator Robert Bennett (R-Utah), chairman of the Senate’s Y2K subcommittee, advised the public: “Don’t panic, but don’t spend too much time sleeping, either.” Garv Brakel, Spokane’s director of management information systems and Y2K coordinator, says that’s good advice. Like Steve Davis, Brakel says he doesn’t expect worst-case scenarios, but he thinks it makes sense to treat Y2K with the seriousness Davis recommends. “There will be problems,” he warns. “There will be things that will be missed. There’s no question about that.” Brakel, who was recently made Spokane’s Y2K chief, says he is most concerned about where Spokane’s computer-linked infrastructure interfaces with the outside world—that’s where the biggest questions lie. He says all the city’s critical systems are being vigorously reviewed and updated as needed and that the kind of regular public reporting Davis advocates will soon begin.

Y2K and The Human Psyche Because media coverage of Y2K has been so sparse, such conclusions may surprise readers who haven’t been tracking the issue on the Internet. The Worldwide Web fairly buzzes with discussion of the issue. At the most basic level, Y2K raises just two questions: 1. Could it weaken computing power enough to seriously threaten the infrastructure? 2. Can the problem be managed? Strong consensus exists that the answer to the first question is maybe, to the second, yes. Why, then, haven’t such basic conclusions been more widely reported? The answer to that question seems to lie as much in Y2K’s exotic personality as in the modern world’s faith in technology. Creating a detailed strategy for managing Y2K brings communities face-to-face with the unprecedented vulnerability that technology has brought to their lives. Although it’s a modern myth that technology has set humanity free, frank review of Y2K implies the opposite to many. At the standing-room-only Boulder crowds that attended her lectures on what Y2K means to agriculture, Cynthia Beal described how she came to grips with the issue.


Overview Owner of The Red Barn Natural Grocery in Eugene, Oregon, a retail outlet of organic foods with annual sales of a million dollars, Beal explained that for a long time she flatly rejected claims of Y2K’s dangers. Finally she began analyzing the various systems upon which her business depends. She was stunned by what she learned. To illustrate, on the blackboard she drew a pictogram of how a potato grown in South America must migrate through a daunting gamut of interwoven computer and social systems to find its way into a sack of potato chips on her store’s shelf. In the event of cascading Y2K disruptions of the type that can’t be ruled out, it became clear the likelihood of the potato’s uninterrupted journey was roughly that of a snowball’s chance in hell. The same is true for most of the merchandise in the modern supermarket, of which there is an average of three days’ supply. “When I finally ‘got it,’ ”said Beal, placing a hand over her solar plexus, “I got it here. It was like, UUUOOOHHH.” She made the low moan of a woman with a case of food poisoning. Throughout the audience heads bobbed knowingly. “That’s it,” a voice agreed. In the five days I spent interviewing people who had gathered for the Boulder conference from all over America—listening to physicians, stockbrokers, computer engineers and others—I learned that stories like Beal’s are common. Nevertheless this is an experience the media tends to discount. Typical is a column that ran in the September 6, 1998, edition of the Dallas Morning News under the headline: “A Cave In Arkansas—Will Y2K usher in TEOTWAWKI? [The End Of The World As We Know It.] Bryan Elder is sure it will—so sure that he’ll be deep beneath the ground on Jan. 1, 2000.” The story began: “‘As soon as I get a cave, I’m going to live in it,’ Mr. Elder vowed, wending his way through one Arkansas cavern. ‘I’ll be the world’s next caveman.’ Y2K is the pop-culture moniker…” The October 1998 issue of Scientific American carries a similar piece under the title: “The End of the World as We Know It.” It begins, “Every religion has its doomsday prophecy, and it turns out that computing is no exception. (If you doubt that computing is a religion, just try mentioning Windows to a Mac owner.)” The story goes on to compare Y2K to other notorious End Times— the 1524 deluge that didn’t drown London, the 1719 comet that never struck, the Cold War we weren’t supposed to survive but did, Kevin Costner’s apocalyptic film operas. “About the only people in the U.S. who might escape all effects are the Amish,” jokes the article. It concludes with the biographical


Overview note that the author “has stockpiled several dozen bags of chocolate chips.” And then there’s coverage such as Fred Moody’s “Day of Reckoning” article, which ran in The Inlander’s July 15, 1998, edition. [The Inlander is the newspaper that first carried the story you are reading.] Where Jim Lord divides Y2K opinion into camps of the indifferent and terrified, Moody suggested the categories of “Owls,” and “Roosters.” He cited the Center for Millennial Studies, a Web page founded by Richard Landes, a professor of medieval history at Boston University, “where Y2K is studied in its proper context: not the world of technology, but the world of religion’s ‘apocalyptic time’—defined, writes Landes, as ‘that perception of time in which the End of the World (variously imagined) is so close that its anticipation changes the behavior of the believer.’ “In Landes’ conception, the rooster is “the apocalyptic believer,” the owl, “the antiapocalyptic skeptic.” The tone of such reporting reassures the reader that all is right with the world, and that God is still in heaven—along with the communication satellites that let people reach out and touch one another via cellular phone. But it’s misleading if it suggests that Y2K is just an example of humanity’s quirky psychology, or that the only sufferers of TEOTWAWKI are those who either expect the rapture or are holed up with guns and bullion. Where, in this view, does The New York Times fit with its suggestion of planning for the worst, just in case? And what to make of the Canadian Parliament? As it happened, the day after Hope Findley’s city council presentation in Spokane, the Ottawa, Canada Edmonton Sun reported, under the headline, “Military Preparing to Take Over After 2000 Bug Bomb”: “The National Defense Department announced yesterday it’s preparing for war against the ‘year 2000 problem’ that some experts predict will foul up computers and wreak havoc worldwide. Defense documents released yesterday show the department is preparing for the worst—a kind of martial law that will see soldiers, sailors and air personnel play a major role in keeping Canada working during a massive computer crash.” Moreover, from reporting that simply spoofs Y2K, you’d never guess what people such as Gail Coopee, of Redmond, Washington, are going through. A data resource management veteran with more than 20 years experience before becoming an independent consultant, Coopee spent her last eight years in industry with Snohomish County Public Utility District. She headed up the company’s strategic planning, which also included investigating Y2K. “We looked at the year 2000 problem as a technical problem we didn’t want


Overview to be too public about,” she says. “We knew about it, and we were very serious about dealing with our own information systems, but really had no concept of all the embedded systems that are out there. This is something I’ve only learned about in the last week,” she told me. It was September 8, 1998. Coopee had been suspicious of the religious tone of some Y2K information. She attributed advice to create emergency provisions of food and water to “those nuts out in Montana and Idaho, those survivalists.” After dismissing Y2K to friends and relatives as no big deal, she succumbed to a friend’s pressure to review a set of reports. “There was great resistance inside me to even look at this stuff,” she says. After she did, however, she realized that, “I was the one who had been blind and not really seeing the whole problem … I’m starting to feel the emotional effects of it. It’s actually kind of hard to talk about it without crying at this point.” When I asked her what concerned her, she said she was shocked to learn the pervasiveness of embedded computer systems that perform cycle calculations based on a calendar date. “It’s amazing the, uh, impact … on our…” She apologized as she softly wept. After a moment I asked her what she saw that might escape someone without her technical background. “I’m seeing the very real possibility of the end of the lifestyle as we know it … our lives—I’ll just go ahead and cry—our lives, I feel, are never going to be the same. They may be vastly better if we do pull this off in terms of coming together as a community, and really facing this, and coming up with alternatives … to being so blindly dependent on technology. I mean it could be really a wonderful change, but it is going to be different .… I was sitting on a dock yesterday, on Lake Washington, and I looked up and I saw … there’s the blue sky, and below there’s this beautiful water … and well, that won’t be changed . … But it’s almost like everything else in our lives is going to change. Even if it’s changed for the better—you know?—it’s going to take a lot of work to get there. And when we’re there it may take a lot more work … having to live in a society where we have to relate to each other and be dependent on each other and communicate on a daily basis for our survival is not something that—as wonderful as it sounds—it’s not something that most of us have any experience or preparation to do … “My mother and I were talking about this. She’s 79. She said, ‘It’s taking us back to the horse-and-buggy days.’ And I said, ‘Yeah, minus the horses and the buggies.’”


Overview That’s what TEOTWAWKI actually sounds like. Is media satire of such painful soul-searching a sign of callousness? Not necessarily. In a recent essay, Margaret Wheatley and her colleague Myron Kellner-Rogers wrote of Y2K: “It reveals our very human tendency to deny and hide from issues when they are too complex to comprehend.” The media, notes Dr. Kent Hoffman, a Spokane psychotherapist who is helping to launch a communitypreparedness initiative called “Y2K Neighborhood,” is no more immune to Y2K’s inescapable psychological challenge than anyone else. “Dealing with Y2K honestly does bring us face-to-face with certain aspects of our lives we’d maybe rather not look at,” suggests Hoffman. “Uncomfortable forces can be involved, like when magnets face the same pole—the force of repulsion and denial when we ‘get’ the potential danger of Y2K is overwhelming. Of course our psyches run for cover. Anger, disbelief and even devaluation of the issue are almost inevitable.” Hoffman, however, also sees the silver lining glimpsed by Coopee, Boivin and many others. “In time, especially when we see how community can support us through this, we can transition into hope and action.”

A Way Through The Rapids: The “Y2K Neighborhood” Nancy Schaub, a Spokane philanthropist who is working with Hoffman to launch the Y2K Neighborhood project, describes it as a process of educating the community so that neighbors can collaborate, on a door-to-door basis, to create resilient, overlapping networks of support. She says the challenge of the Millennium Bug reminds her of one of her passions: whitewater rafting. An accomplished boatwoman, every summer Schaub leads friends on adventures down the Northwest’s great waterways. “You never run a technical and potentially dangerous rapid without first scouting it,” explains Schaub, a youthful and athletic mother of three grown children. “You get out of the boat and look for a high place where you can study the river. Before you commit yourself, you have to see the ‘line,’ your way through. I see many parallels with Y2K. In addressing a rapid, the most critical time is the setup, and you must have ample time for that. If you enter the rapid a little too far to the right or left, you’ll never find the right way through. I like the opportunity right now, with Y2K 16 months out, to be thinking. I’m scouting the problem. I’m preparing myself psychically, emotionally, spiritually, and I’m actually physically preparing my environment, my relations in the neighborhood, et cetera. This is the setup time. If we use it to gather the


Overview food and equipment we need, create the right plans with our neighbors, we’ll enter this period of disturbance, which is just like big whitewater, in the best possible way—we’ve already seen a way through—and that gives us the best prospects for coming out [okay in] the end.” Paloma O’Riley, America’s high priestess of Y2K community preparedness, agrees with Schaub. She also used a wilderness metaphor to make the same point at one of her Boulder presentations. Formerly head of Y2K compliance for Land Rover, the British car maker, O’Riley and her husband raised their children for a time in the Alaskan wilderness, 100 miles by air from the nearest settlement. “We lived with the worst-case scenario, because we had to,” she said with a chuckle. “That doesn’t mean you expect the worst, you’re just ready for it. Alaska requires that.” One of her favorite examples of worst-case scenario planning involved what could have been a tragic encounter between her toddler son and a grizzly bear. As O’Riley worked in the kitchen, the youngster slipped outside without her knowing it. Through the window she saw him halfway across the pasture, trundling toward the horse corral. At that moment a huge grizzly rose on its hind legs in brush beyond the corral. The boy was walking directly toward it. O’Riley explained the helplessness she felt. She couldn’t have reached her son, nor even have gone for her rifle, in time to do any good. But the boy simply froze in his steps, just as his mother had taught him to do if he ever heard a strange sound. After a moment, the bear dropped to all fours, turned and vanished. That moment, explained O’Riley, epitomizes the spirit of her Cassandra Project Web page (http://millennia-bcs.com/casframe.htm). This prizewinning site has become a national clearinghouse for personal and community Y2K preparedness efforts, offering exhaustive detail about how and why to get ready for possible service interruptions. Just as Alaska is bear country, she reasons, the world—at least for the moment—has become Y2K country. Living in it unprepared makes no sense, she says, because in a climate of disrupted infrastructure, relatively minor mishaps could produce a domino effect of needless emergencies unless contingency plans are in place. At the same time, O’Riley considers individual survival efforts worse than foolish. They would be impractical if some of Y2K’s more serious disruptions came to pass, because of the risk of civil disorder if a critical mass of society were caught off guard.


Overview “The best security you have is a prepared neighbor,” she told Boulder audiences. Even in the event of truly worst-case scenarios, she said, “If we pull together we’ll come through this with flying colors.” That is the point Dr. Hoffman emphasizes in explaining the idea behind the Y2K Neighborhood. While the Millennium Bug may be a new kind of challenge, it has an old-fashioned solution, he says. It reminds him of Garrison Keillor’s story about “storm families.” “Each child in Lake Wobegon has a family, other than her or his own, to go to in a time of emergency,” explains Hoffman. “The heart of the story is that we all need a ‘storm family’ in difficult times. That’s what Y2K Neighborhood is setting out to do—create storm families, like miniature villages, among every five or six houses on every block in the county. It’s a way in which we can come together, plan together, look out for each other during this time of uncertainty. Who in each storm family has special medical needs? Who has special skills, and how can our talents be pooled for the mutual benefit of these small units? How can we make certain that each household is safe, whether the hardship lasts for days, weeks or even months?” The point, says Hoffman, is to help citizens take initiative in advance in order to deal with uncertainties and to keep pressure off emergency services. That will let them be held in reserve for the most critical situations. He acknowledges that while it may at first seem intimidating to plan for such possibilities, it needn’t be. “All we’re really talking about is polishing up our neighboring skills,” he says. “If they’re needed, we’ll be ready. If not, we will have created goodwill and community enrichment on an unprecedented level all around us. What do we have to lose?” Larry Shook is a freelance investigative reporter and coeditor of Awakening: The Up Side of Y2K (Spokane, WA: The Printed Word, 1998), available at Amazon.com and The Printed Word, (509) 624-3177. See also Larry’s Media, The Millennium Bug & The Stories We Tell (Earthlight: Magazine of Spiritual Ecology, Fall 1998) where he describes what he left out of this article.


Public Citizenship


Public Citizenship

What Public Citizens Can Do about the Y2K Crisis By Charles Halpern and Paul Friedman Each of us can be a “public citizen” in our response to the Y2K challenge; we can play a critical role in alerting others and helping to shape a community and national response that secures the welfare of all. We list below a number of ways that public citizens can work together to prepare for worstcase scenarios posed by this unprecedented challenge. 1. Public citizens can make sure their own workplaces, affiliated businesses, and support structures are all Y2K compliant. Public citizens should act quickly and effectively to assess their own Y2K preparedness. This means following the same assessment, remediation, and testing steps as businesses. After taking appropriate steps to assure the integrity of their own information technology, public citizens should inquire about the Y2K compliance of their partners, vendors, suppliers, and other essential organizations. In addition, public citizens should check on the Y2K compliance of their office buildings and community infrastructure systems such as electricity, transportation, and waste disposal. Public citizens who are well along in the Y2K remediation process may also help by sharing their learning and experience with others who are just getting started. As awareness of the social dimensions of the Y2K crisis increases, there are likely to be market disruptions, particularly in foreign markets. Public citizens should be alert to such possibilities, consult with investment managers where appropriate, and be prepared to meet financial obligations without impairing their own financial condition. In taking these steps, they should act in a responsible manner that avoids contributing to a disastrous market plunge. 2. Public citizens can help to increase public awareness of the Y2K problem. Before we as a society can mobilize to react constructively, we must convince all relevant parties that the year 2000 problem is both serious and urgent. Although there have been a number of high quality Y2K


Public Citizenship conferences, many of them involve “preaching to the converted.” And although there are a plethora of excellent Websites providing pertinent information, we must find effective means to reach the great majority of our national population that lacks computer access to the Web and relies on traditional media, especially television, for its news. Public citizens can help by stimulating and/or providing support for indepth treatment of the problem in newsletters, newspapers, books, movies, radio, and television. A thoughtful discussion of the problem and of the need for action on “Oprah Winfrey” would be worth any number of conferences or pamphlets. Businesses, which use the media effectively to promote their products and services, should turn their resources and skills to the task of helping educate the public about the Y2K problem. Striking the appropriate tone so as to strongly motivate listeners or viewers without inducing panic is a major challenge. Successful business leaders enjoy considerable access to local and state officials and possess great influence among their peers. They can begin to increase public awareness simply by activating their own community networks where they are located. Engaging their boards, stockholders, and advisory committees on the social dimensions of the Y2K issue is an important step in assuring support for preparedness measures. 3. Public citizens can play a leadership role in helping to organize a social response to the Y2K problem at the national, state, and local levels. The year 2000 problem poses a set of interlocking challenges in each community. Too often, it has been addressed as a technical problem for individuals or corporations, without looking at the larger social dimension. Public citizens can take the lead in getting beyond this narrow view and in mobilizing the resources of their local and state communities to address the social dimensions of the Y2K crisis. Businesses can also help by providing key technical and fiscal support to national service organizations that can activate their networks of local chapters to prepare for Y2K. Nobody can say with certainty at this time exactly how much social disruption and damage will be caused by the Y2K problem. But it is certainly within the realm of possible scenarios to foresee major infrastructure breakdowns and social disruption both locally and worldwide. We must begin immediately to formulate contingency plans to address some of the “worst-case” scenarios if we hope to be able to mitigate them. Public citizens can further such community, state, and national preparedness by supporting several actions:


Public Citizenship •

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Plenary sessions or special breakout sessions on Y2K at the annual conventions of their trade associations and of leading national service and relief organizations, and the publication of Y2Kpreparedness articles in the newsletters of these organizations. These sessions and publications should educate and alert people that the Y2K problem requires emergency attention outside normal planning and action cycles. Special coordinating meetings for trade associations and national service and emergency response organizations. The purpose of such meetings would be to promote networking among key leaders in these organizations and coordinated contingency planning at the local level throughout the country. Public information and community organizing efforts built around churches, synagogues, schools, and other local institutions. Consider encouraging the use of these local institutions as emergency relief centers, complete with supplies of food, water, and blankets as well as backup generators and fuel so that members of the public will feel protected against freezing or starving in the event of a major infrastructure breakdown. The existence of such centers might help to prevent or minimize panicky individual hoarding and the civil disorder that could follow from an individual/exclusive rather than a community/inclusive response to infrastructure breakdowns. Y2K efforts of responsible community-based organizations and networks, such as groups working to protect the environment and house and feed the poor.

4. Public citizens can encourage and support public interest organizations to undertake high-priority tasks. For example, public citizens could encourage and contribute funds for: • Credible environmental public interest organizations to evaluate risks associated with failure of date-sensitive embedded microchips at U.S. nuclear power plants and toxic-waste disposal plants. • Public health organizations to coordinate a national evaluation of the risks associated with failure of embedded chips in “mission critical” hospital medical devices and systems, and breakdowns of the supply chain for life-preserving pharmaceuticals. In conjunction with this effort, public citizens could hold a series of healthcare conferences in major cities with the focus on ensuring hospital services to vulnerable populations. • Finding ways to require corporations and government entities to divulge full information about their Y2K preparedness. • Investigative journalists to determine the state of preparedness of key


Public Citizenship infrastructure components in their localities and publicize the findings in appropriate newspapers and magazines. Public citizens might encourage a reporter to investigate the transportation and fire-fighting systems in the city where they live, for example. 5. Public Citizens can encourage investigation of the most dangerous situations in other countries and support individuals and organizations interested in helping to address those situations. In today’s highly interdependent global economy, it is in the best interests of us all to help people in other countries deal with urgent Y2K issues. A high priority for the world is to ensure Y2K compliance of nuclear power plants, nuclear waste storage sites, nuclear weapons systems, and other ultrahazardous systems in countries such as Russia, Ukraine, India, and Pakistan. Public citizens can also advocate for contingency planning efforts for communities in Central and Eastern Europe and developing countries that will be in desperate need of help if more serious disruptions of infrastructure occur. 6. Public Citizens can press for much more aggressive leadership at the national level to address the Y2K problem. The president and vice president have shown some leadership on this issue. In February 1998, they established the President’s Council on Year 2000 Conversion, which coordinates the federal government’s efforts and assesses Y2K preparations in key infrastructure areas. More recently, they have delivered speeches on Y2K to the Academy of Sciences and issued statements in connection with National Y2K Awareness Week. They proposed recently enacted legislation to protect companies that share information about Y2K compliance. We need much more active leadership and a national sense of urgency to meaningfully address this challenge. Public citizens should join those who have called for the president to use his “bully pulpit” to spark a major national preparedness effort; to form a Y2K global alliance to coordinate both national and multinational campaigns; to freeze all legislative, regulatory, and information technology changes that might divert resources from attention to the Y2K problem; and to submit an emergency Y2K budget for last-ditch efforts to repair or replace key computer systems and to implement contingency plans. We need a Y2K center for developing and implementing a national and international Y2K strategy. We agree with the House Subcommittee on Government Management, Information & Technology and other thoughtful observers that the most logical mechanism for establishing a year 2000 strategy to coordinate efforts, share information, and alert citizens to the


Public Citizenship status of Y2K preparations is the President’s Council on the Year 2000 Conversion. The President’s Council should have its mandate expanded to include conducting a broad assessment of the nation’s year 2000 readiness; identifying and assessing the risks to the nation’s welfare, including the risks posed by international linkages and by the failure of critical infrastructure components; and developing and implementing necessary contingency plans for action at the national and international levels. The council’s staff and budget should be dramatically increased. Public citizens should encourage such leadership initiatives at the national level. Of course, even with aggressive leadership from the president, we won’t succeed with Y2K preparedness plans unless governors, mayors, and other state and local leaders also play an active role. In this regard, public citizens could support public interest groups that want to establish appropriate bench marks, monitor compliance, and publish regular report cards on the progress of specific states and cities in achieving Y2K readiness. A model for this initiative would be the report cards issued by the House subcommittee for the critical computer systems in the various federal agencies. 7. Public citizens can support the creation of a Center on Y2K and Civil Society, which would encourage public interest organizations, ordinary citizens, and their communities and institutions to work together on Y2K preparedness, reviving the ideals and practice of public citizenship. We need to further the concept of a “civil society” in the context of the Y2K crisis. A Center on Y2K and Civil Society could encourage public interest organizations, ordinary citizens, and their communities and institutions to work together on Y2K preparedness, reviving the ideals and practice of public citizenship for the common good. The first thing we must do, both personally and societally, is to resist the powerful urge to engage in “us versus them” thinking and to worry only about ourselves, our immediate families, and our organizations. Some wonderful examples of communities coming together to meet Y2K challenges have begun to occur throughout the country. A Center on Y2K and Civil Society could work to raise awareness through a thoughtful media campaign and dissemination of accurate information; could support specific community planning initiatives; and serve as a clearinghouse for dissemination of checklists, best practices, and models for community preparedness. In all of our efforts, we must pay particular attention to assuring essential services for the most poor and vulnerable members of our communities. 8. Public citizens can help make response to Y2K a budgetary priority.


Public Citizenship To maximize the impact of Y2K-preparedness efforts, public citizens may wish to contribute to the creation of a one-time emergency fund for the support of organizations and activities addressing the Y2K problem. A common fund could be jointly administered by a small staff and an advisory board or it could be part of the Center on Y2K and Civil Society discussed in section 7 above. Guidelines should be established that would allow money to be disbursed on an expedited basis to qualified individuals and organizations for the purposes described above. The fund should also consider and review unsolicited proposals from individuals and organizations that believe they have something special to contribute toward Y2K preparedness. *** No single group can assess the complexity of the systems threatened by the Y2K problem or where the consequences of failure might be felt. Foundations and nonprofits, local, state, and national governments, and each of us individually and working with each other must take responsibility for meeting the year 2000 challenge. The Y2K crisis requires collaboration among neighborhoods, communities, cities, states, and the federal government in a manner unprecedented in American history. We must begin to develop social responses to the year 2000 problem. We need to engage in this discourse within our organizations, our communities, and across the traditional boundaries of competition and national borders. We must understand that Y2K is a systemic, worldwide crisis that requires us to respond in the collective, humane way we would respond to the devastation caused by multiple, simultaneous earthquakes and floods. In working together to meet this formidable challenge, we can affirm our interconnectedness and common humanity. Charles Halpern is president and CEO of the Nathan Cummings Foundation. Paul Friedman has founded and directed both a foundation-funded public interest organization and a for-profit law firm, and has served as Deputy Associate Attorney General at the United States Department of Justice. Most recently, he has been an advisor to the Nathan Cummings Foundation on Y2K.


Public Citizenship

Questions for Public Officials By Tom Atlee, Gordon Davidson and Margo King Public dialogue on the year 2000 problem has centered around its potential impact on businesses and government and “the economy.” Little attention has been paid to the potential impact on communities—which are, after all, where we live—and on what preparations would be prudent to support communities (that’s us!). Please use these questions. If enough of us ask them in public forums, we can trigger vital community-oriented public dialogue and public policy on Y2K. And please, today, share them with your friends and associates. The sooner these questions get asked by lots of people, the faster we’ll get creative responses. Feel free to print, publish, broadcast, distribute, or use this material in any way that you think will stimulate positive approaches to Y2K. Now is the time for us to demonstrate to politicians and officials at all levels that citizens are aware and concerned about Y2K. Our representatives should be educated about what needs to be done to prepare for potential disruptions. We have designed the following questions to lift Y2K into the political dialogue. Before each question, we provide an opening background statement questioners may use to inform their audience and the politician or official. Then we give the question, phrased to get politicians and officials to say how they will handle the Y2K issue being raised. Government officials may be asked these questions any time, especially at public meetings. If they’re asked these questions repeatedly, we’ll probably see coordinated government responses to Y2K rising to the top of everyone’s agenda. We suggest you have your local groups attend public meetings, call in to radio and TV talk shows, write letters and ask these questions. Together we can launch our constructive Y2K agenda into the national consciousness. We can push officials to: • • •

help us get more information about basic infrastructure readiness, address how Y2K will affect communities, and encourage communities to work together to prepare for disruptions.

We could also send these questions to the offices of public officials, saying that we’re spreading them by e-mail. We can suggest that the official prepare


Public Citizenship answers. We might even provide a website that has all the answers (our answers) on it. (Unless they do their own research and come up with their own answers, which is also fine.) Statement l: The year 2000 problem may just be a big inconvenience, or it could really mess up our lives and communities. I want to know how the important institutions we depend on are doing in fixing their computer systems and embedded microchips. Most companies and governments are holding back information. They don’t answer our questions—or they give us PR responses or legalese that doesn’t tell us where they’re at. They leave us no choice but to prepare for the worst, because we have to assume that they’re really behind and are going to fail in January 2000. We should be able to know what is really going on; or at least they could tell us that they don’t really know what will happen in January 2000. Question 1: What will you do to make it easier for citizens to get real information about how companies, utilities and agencies are doing in their preparations for Y2K? Statement 2: Lots of people are getting pretty scared about what might happen on January 1, 2000, when some computers and microchips break down. Already there are signs that thousands of them are heading for the hills, stocking up on dried food and planning to take all their money out of the banks. This sort of stuff will probably get worse during the next year. Question 2: What will you do to prevent widespread panic and dangerous runs on banks and stores, without impeding people’s ability to prepare for Y2K? Statement 3: Last July President Clinton cited a Wells Fargo survey that showed that of the small businesses that even know about the year 2000 problem, roughly half intend to do nothing about it. Most of the jobs in our economy come from small businesses. They make parts and provide services that are vital to the operations of big businesses. If lots of small businesses fold, our economy is done for. Question 3: What could you do to make sure that the small businesses in your constituency are well prepared? Statement 4: The North American Electrical Readiness Council stated in a September 1998 report that 64 percent of electrical utilities in the U.S. are only 30 percent through their Y2K repairs, and 36 percent of utilities have no plan at all. Many people think there is just not enough time for them to complete this work. It is also likely that nuclear plants, (which are 20 percent of our generating capacity) will have to be shut down because their safety cannot be guaranteed. If we lose


Public Citizenship our electrical grid we will have severe infrastructure and supply problems. Question 4: What will you do to ensure that the United States (or your local region) has electricity (or backup systems) in January 2000? In particular, do you support the establishment of local micro-grids and government incentives for sustainable, locally self-reliant energy systems like solar and wind power? Statement 5: Many people who live in urban areas are very concerned that even if they prepare by storing food and water, large populations of poor or unprepared people could lead to widespread social unrest. We could face severe social disruptions and even violence if basic services and supplies are unavailable. Proposals have been made that the federal or state government establish warehouses of food and supplies in the inner cities to prevent this scenario. We could use schools for shelters and involve churches and businesses. There are all sorts of things we could do. Question 5: What will you do to help us work together to prepare our whole community for Y2K? (This can be asked even if it is a state or national official, because state and national policies can help or hinder community collaborations.) Question 5A: What would you do to ease racial and class differences during the period of intense stress we’ll probably experience with Y2K? Statement 6: A significant number of people are moving to the country because of the year 2000 computer problem. If these migrations become large, or if computer failures release toxics or radioactive substances (which the EPA has publicly expressed concern about) or if governments and businesses just get too distracted by Y2K work to pay attention to the environment, the environment could be hurt pretty badly. Question 6: What are you going to do to ensure that we don’t have toxic leaks or nuclear accidents because of Y2K? What do you propose to do to protect the environment from Y2K-related damage? Statement 7: A lot of experts are saying that hospitals are threatened by the year 2000 problem—that some of their equipment has embedded microchips that might fail, or that computers might not be able to do important calculations with patient records. And the agency that handles Medicare payments is not ready for the year 2000. Furthermore, some medicines might become hard to get. I’ve heard that 70 percent of the world’s insulin is produced by one company in Europe. Question 7: Do you know how they’re progressing on their Y2K preparations? What would you do to ensure we have adequate health care in January 2000? Statement 8: The media likes to play games with the year 2000 problem. One


Public Citizenship day they’ll say that it isn’t a problem, and the next day they’ll publish some scary millennial survivalist story. They paint pictures of how divided people are about Y2K and they seldom actually investigate what’s behind the claims of officials, corporations, and fear-mongers. And a lot of good stuff that’s going on—like concerned citizens getting together to prepare their communities—never gets reported. The Internet is filled with good analysis and documentation, but also with wild doomsday rantings and false reassurances. Question 8: What will you do to get the media to give us the useful information, inspirational stories and good guidance we need to get our communities ready for the year 2000? We can’t really do it without their help. Statement 9: Many people are concerned that our entire infrastructure could be threatened, especially if the electrical grid goes down, because the entire system is completely interdependent and a failure by telecommunications could bring down the electrical grid, all banking, and emergency services. Question 9: What will you do to ensure that the basic, vital infrastructure we all depend on will function well into the year 2000, at least in our area? Question 9A: What will you do to ensure we have water, sewage disposal, waste disposal, basic energy supplies, food, public security, health care, care for the poor, elderly and infirm, adequate public transportation, a functioning local economy, a functioning justice and prison system, increased self-reliance and resilience as a community? Tom Atlee, president of The Co-Intelligence Institute, believes Y2K is an opportunity to improve and transform ourselves and our culture. His website (www.co-intelligence.org) and the book Awakening: The Upside of Y2K (1998, The Printed Word), coedited with Judy Laddon and Larry Shook, have inspired hundreds of people to engage creatively with Y2K. Awakening is available from 509/747-8776 or Amazon.com. Gordon Davidson’s bio is on page 94. Margo King works as a networker, consultant, and organizer. A founding member of Boulder Y2K Community Preparedness Group, she is currently engaged full time, along with her husband, John Steiner, with the political, psychological, social, and spiritual issues emerging from the Y2K challenge: How do we use this time of radical uncertainty to awaken to our true nature and, with wisdom and compassion, quickly bring awareness and comprehensive contingency planning to our communities at the local, national, and global levels? This document is also available on the Web at: www.co-intelligence.org/ y2k_politicianQs.html


Public Citizenship

Making Your Letters to Capitol Hill Count Letters to policy makers—whether they be to Members of Congress or local elected officials—can be an effective means of influencing public policy. Some letters, of course, are more effective than others. To follow are some tips on making your letters and telephone calls more effective: Have a Specific Message. Make sure to have a specific action request before you write. If you want a decision changed, a vote cast a particular way or to communicate specific facts, be clear and concise. For legislative action, be sure to include the name and bill number of the legislation you are advocating (i.e., the America Loves Dogs Act, H.R. 1). Ask for a specific, detailed reply, and be prepared to write a second time if you receive a response that is vague. Be Brief. Your letters are more likely to be read if they are brief and to the point. Include one or two arguments for your position—presumably, those arguments in which your opinion would be given particular weight by virtual of your position or those that are simply powerful on their own merits. Target Your Letters. Elected officials—particularly federal office holders— seldom read their own mail. This duty normally falls to a staffer—often one with little influence over policy decisions. To increase the chances that your letters will have impact, make sure to direct them to staff members who have some responsibility for issue(s) in question. For letters to Congress, these individuals will most often be Legislative Assistants or Legislative Directors. Personalize Your Letters. Although mass-produced postcards and letters can demonstrate to policy makers that a large group of people hold the same point-of-view, individually written postcards and letters are much more effective. A policy maker knows the letter-writer is genuinely concerned about an issue when he or she has taken the time to write a personal letter. Be Courteous. Rude comments in your letter will make it less effective. One can be firm while being courteous. Follow-up. If you receive a vague response from an elected official, write again and request more specific information. And, should the policy maker do as you ask, make sure to send a thank you. Thank you letters are rare and thus most appreciated. Excerpted from, “How-to Guide #1,” published by the Environmental Policy Task Force, 300 Eye Street, N.E. Suite 3, Washington, D.C. 20002. Tel. 202-543-1286, Fax 202-543-4779 . Email: [email protected]. Web: www.nationalcenter.inter.net


Community Organizing


Community Organizing

All Together Now By Paloma O’Riley The year 2000 problem represents a potentially difficult time for all of us. However, let’s not lose sight of the fact that it’s a temporary bump (or pothole) in the road—not the end of the world. No one knows what will happen, nor how serious it will be. However, we can and will get through this or any other difficulties, if we all work together. Many people ask what they can do to protect themselves. Should they go off to the woods, move to another state? Others want to know if they should withdraw their money from the bank. I say No! Why? There are over 260 million people in this country alone. You think you’ll be the only one in the woods? They will all be focused on their own survival, perhaps at the risk of yours. Then there’s the larger issue—if everyone leaves, who will be left to keep the communities and cities going? What will be left to come back to? If 5 percent or less of depositors take their money out of the banks, the banks will close. How does intentionally crippling the financial infrastructure help you, your family or community? How will we be able to rebuild? It’s not about ‘me’ anymore, it’s about ‘we’; and our individual actions can and will impact everyone, for good or ill. Individual preparedness is for those who can; community preparedness is for those who can’t. What kind of world will be left if the elderly, the poor, the ill and the disabled are abandoned, perhaps to suffer or die? Is that the world we want our children to inherit? The life lesson and legacy we wish to pass on? Life isn’t just survival, it’s about living, building and growing; and passing it on to the next generation. The only way to get through this is to pull together and work through it as a community. Problems can’t be escaped, they can only be dealt with. If you are concerned about your safety, the best means of securing it is to help your neighbor prepare; and work with your community to develop needed and appropriate plans.


Community Organizing As for me and mine, we’ll be staying right here. Our neighbors, the seniors down the road and my family will sink or swim together. My only hope and wish is that there will be enough of us to keep each others’ heads above water when we tire. Eventually, the storm will pass and we will wade ashore—together. I hope we’ll see you there.

What One Town Can Do By Jim Lord and Paloma O’Riley Medford, Oregon, was recently the site of a remarkable community event. More than 700 people gathered together over a two-day period to learn how to protect their families and communities from the effects of the year 2000 computer crisis. It was the first such event held in the United States. We were invited to conduct the meetings and seminars offered to the public. These are our observations. First, the startling attendance indicated an intense level of community concern about the year 2000 problem (also called Y2K). This impression was confirmed during several lengthy question-and-answer sessions in which the audience revealed the nature and extent of their concerns. Simply put, they were worried about the basic stuff of life. They wanted to know if the year 2000 crisis might disrupt the availability of everyday necessities such as electricity, food, water, and medical treatment. They were anxious that government might be unable to provide critical services such as Social Security, air traffic control, and even military protection. The high attendance caught the local press by surprise. The seminar did receive excellent coverage before the fact by the local newspaper and broadcast media. There was no press coverage, however, at the three large seminar sessions. Some local political leaders were also caught unawares. The small city hall meeting in Medford saw representation from Medford, Ashland, Grants Pass, Butte Falls and Jackson County. Senator Smith (R-OR) sent a representative as well. As with the press, however, few, if any of these leaders were present at the larger seminar sessions. Nonetheless, those who did


Community Organizing support the event are to be commended because Medford, and the surrounding area, will soon be acclaimed as the first community in the nation with the vision to host a Y2K preparedness event at its city hall. The most surprising aspect of the Medford meetings was the broad diversity of the attendees. All political and religious persuasions seemed to be there. Young, Generation X working couples and Social Security recipients sat side-by-side in the audience. Environmental activists rubbed elbows with blue-collar workers. Christians and libertarians joined in serious conversation. New Age mystics and Joe Six Pack set aside their differences. For a day and a half, it was a magical manifestation of community togetherness. Political leaders across the country should take note of what took place in Medford. A powerful coalition for good is standing ready to take on the “millennium bug.” What impressed us the most, however, was the remarkable impact one concerned individual could have in a community. The Medford event was organized by Will Reishman, a local investment counselor who simply cares about his neighbors. Under the sponsorship of Icare, Inc., a charitable public service organization, he single-handedly willed the entire event into being. All expenses were defrayed through donation and all were invited to attend without charge. The Medford Y2K Community Preparedness Seminar reminds us of these two simple messages: The people do still care, and one person can still make a difference. The year 2000 computing crisis poses a frightening threat to almost every aspect of our way of life. Some believe it should be confronted with a remote cabin, a pile of dried food, a big dog, and a shotgun. This strategy, although perhaps rational on an individual basis, is unworkable for society as a whole. Medford shows us why it is unnecessary. Paloma O’Riley is the cofounder of the Cassandra Project. Jim Lord is the author of A Survival Guide for the Year 2000 Problem, a practical 270-page consumer’s guide to preparation for the year 2000 computer crisis. He is also the editor of the Year 2000 Survival Newsletter, which provides continuing updates on the progress of the year 2000 crisis. He is the most widely read Y2K columnist in the world at www.y2ktimebomb.com, and has appeared on 150 radio talk shows and on ABC Nightline.


Household & Neighborhood Preparedness: The Boulder Model


Household & Neighborhood Preparedness: The Boulder Model Boulder County, Colorado, provides an excellent example of community preparation for Y2K. We present here their story, followed by the guidelines developed by Boulder County Y2K Community Preparedness Group (BCY2K), which include meeting agendas, a flyer, a speech, and forms you may copy and fill out. Thanks to Kathy Garcia and BCY2K for sharing this information with all of us. —The editors

What Has Been Accomplished in Boulder County By Kathy Garcia, Margo King, and John Steiner We kicked off our Y2K Community Preparedness campaign with a free conference at the University of Colorado, Boulder Campus, from August 20 through 23, 1998. The conference was cosponsored by the City of Boulder, the University of Colorado, and the Cassandra Project. Present at the conference were national experts on Y2K, including: Jim Lord, Roleigh Martin, Doug Carmichael, Meg Wheatley, Paloma O’Riley, Cathy Moyer, Steve Davis and Rabbi Zalman Schachter Shalomi. The conference was attended by 700 people from across the United States. On Monday, August 24, 1998, we met for the first time with the Multiple Agency Coordinating System (MACS), which is led by the Office of Emergency Management for Boulder County. Boulder County consists of nine cities/towns, each with its own municipal government. Each town has representatives on MACS from fire and police departments, along with representatives from Red Cross, planning department, risk management, University of Colorado, school districts. We now have three citizen members sitting on MACS who are working with the community to prepare for Y2K or any other disaster that may strike. We have had educational Y2K meetings with the following groups: 1. Growers/farmers: asking for their assistance in encouraging individual gardening, harvest, storage, collection of seeds, and canning; and assisting farmers on how to get water to irrigate their fields.


Household & Neighborhood Preparedness: The Boulder Model 2.

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Religious community: asking for their assistance as possible shelters in the neighborhoods where they are located and educating their congregations. Hispanic community leaders: working to get information to local Spanish television and radio to educate the Hispanic community in the Denver Metro area. Hospitals: working with Boulder Community Hospital to set up a conference to educate medical personnel on Y2K and its impact on medications for patients (some HMOs only allow a 30-day supply), and inform them on the readiness of the hospital. BCH was also asked to work with two other large hospitals in Boulder County to share what they learned about their bio-med equipment and software. Human Service Agencies have been asked to educate their clients about Y2K and help them hook up to neighborhood preparedness groups. Youth from around the county are joining the efforts by becoming Certified Emergency Response Team members to help in all disasters, as well as assisting to weatherize the homes or trailers of elderly and low-income families.

Some wonderful things have happened here. 1. The City of Boulder has joined forces with our preparedness group by advocating with the university for free office space; holding a joint press conference to outline the “community plan” for 1999; allowing us to use city stationery to convey information about Y2K meetings throughout Boulder County, city FYI line to convey information about Y2K meetings. 2. “How To” meetings have been held throughout the county. (See the format description that follows.) 3. A town meeting was held on October 4 that included representatives from Public Service (utilities), US West (telephone), City of Boulder, Office of Emergency Management, The Cassandra Project, and Boulder Community Hospital. The meeting was attended by more than 400 people who applauded when Chief Stern of the OEM told people they needed to individually prepare and then prepare their neighborhoods. Somehow folks were waiting for permission to act. The biggest message sent by the citizens was “I want the truth” not “everything will be okay” or “we are handling it.” Future town meetings will be held every other month. 4. A rhythm of meetings in each municipality is now in place, from orientation (what is Y2K), to a neighborhood congress (how to conduct meetings), to open meetings (task forces present information to community on food preparedness, companies selling


Household & Neighborhood Preparedness

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products, and so forth), to community coordinator meetings (coordinators for each municipality get together to fill each other in on what is going on, support needed, and idea sharing). We have cooperation from our daily newspaper as well as our weekly paper; not sensationalized stories but ones that will keep the community informed.

We are working with many others in Boulder County to create a more sustainable and selfreliant community with Y2K as the catalyst. We contiune to work to transform cynicism and fear into creative and effective action by taking care of one another and by reaching beyond personal differences in a spirit of compassion, respect, trust, and interdependence. We work on a task force model with each task force consisting of a small group of volunteers with expertise in the subject, the time and ability to do thorough research and/or the ability to work collaboratively with public officials. The goal is to assist in the assessment, development, and implementation of sound contigency planning in each area: utilities, food, water, sewage and sanitation, business, communication, transportation, health care and delivery, emergency services and security, essential financial services, media and educational materials, neighborhood and constituency organizing, psychology, vision, and the Y2K volunteer network. Our website is www.y2kboulder.com Kathy Garcia is a neighborhood organizer for BCY2K and an active volunteer working with homeless families and with youth. She also serves on the local community corrections board. Kathy coordinates Holiday Food Basket, which feeds about 800 families in Boulder, and distributes toys and coats to them. Margo King’s bio appears on page 45. John Steiner works as networker, consultant, catalyst and organizer in many public interest arenas. He is a founding member of Boulder Y2K Community Preparedness Group and is currently involved in a variety of national Y2K projects. BCY2K is an informal group in Boulder County, Colorado, who have come together to take on different aspects of preparing Boulder County for Y2K.



Organizing Your Neighborhood for Y2K: Adapting the Boulder Model By Kathy Garcia There is a rhythm to neighborhood organizing just as there is in all of life. It usually begins with an idea of one person, talked out with another person, and then getting more people involved in the idea, which is now owned by the community. On the issue of Y2K, the outlook of the Boulder County Y2K Community Preparedness Group (BCY2K) is one of hope: “We can do this if we work together”; “This preparedness will help through any disaster such as that 100-year flood due to hit us”; “[This represents] an opportunity to create a caring community.” When you set out to organize your community, you might ask yourself, “How do I encourage people and offer hope?” Your attitude will make a huge difference in how people will accept your information. Take time to center yourself before a speaking engagement, have fun with the audience, don’t overbook yourself so that speaking becomes a burden instead of a joy.

Preparing for The First Meeting 1.

Write out what you know about Y2K and why you are concerned. Look over the information materials that helped you come to your conclusions. Choose materials that might help educate others without creating fear.

2.

Think about a neighbor you know whom you might want to talk to about what you have learned. You might take your neighbor to coffee and explain what you have learned and are concerned about. Your neighbor will probably need the basic Y2K information to educate her/himself. Give your neighbor a few days to a week to absorb the material. Once she/he has done this, your conversation could turn towards sharing this information with the rest of your neighbors.


Household & Neighborhood Preparedness: The Boulder Model 3.

You might decide to skip step two and put out a flyer inviting your neighbors to dessert and coffee, BBQ, or other get-together to discuss Y2K. Food is usually a good thing to have at the meeting. Whether you take step two or three, give people enough notice of the meeting. Think about the need for childcare.

4.

Before the meeting, make enough copies of materials to hand out. Think about other supplies you might need: colored pens, flip charts, and visual aids.

The meeting: “What I Found Out” 1. 2. 3. 4.

5.

6. 7.

8.

Welcome people and have everyone grab something to eat or drink before settling down. Let everyone know where the bathrooms are. Take time for introductions and have people sign in with address and phone numbers. “Hi! My name is _________________. I am helping prepare the community for possible disruptions by the year 2000 issue. How many here know what the year 2000 issue is?” (Solicit comments.) Find out what they heard and/or know. What are some of the implications they have thought about. “We abbreviate this issue by calling it Y2K. Y for year, 2 for two and K for thousand. It is not just a simple computer problem as some people seem to think. It is a systems problem caused when “00” indicates a year in software used by computer chips in the world. There are an estimated 20–60 billion of these computer chips, with only 5 percent containing the year problem. However, we do not know where this 5 percent is located. You remember the old Christmas tree lights where if one bulb went out all the others went out, and you had to test each one of the bulbs to see which one was bad? Well consider doing this with 20–60 billion chips. We have run out of time to fix this problem, and are attempting to fix critical systems only.” If you have a video or some other visual aid, show it now. Then take a break for refills of coffee and refreshments. Come back together. Let people know how you felt when you first learned about the information. You might inform your group that there are those who say “head for the hills” and others, like you, who believe in “strength in numbers.” Ask people what they learned and how they feel about the information. “As community members of the city of ______________ we need to


Household & Neighborhood Preparedness: The Boulder Model ask our government officials to tell us the status of water and sewage. Have they begun to address the problem? Have they done testing? What were the results of the testing? Repair timetable? Retesting timetable? Will they keep the community informed? “What about hospital status: have all emergency room and o.r. equipment been checked and certified with vendors? Tested? What is the status of phones if there is no electricity? Emergency generators? Fuel storage? Ambulance status? Water and sewage? What happens if medicare/medicaid cannot be received, will they see patients? What will they require? “Let me help you understand about Y2K being a “systems” problem. Take your local grocery store. How many hours/days of food does it have? If there is no electricity, how will the trucks get fuel to bring food to the store? Are the trucks computerized? How will the vendors get the food to the trucks to get to the store? How will the automated canners can food to get to the vendors, to get to the trucks, to get to the store? How will the farmers use combines, etc. to get the food to the canners, to get to the vendors, to get to the trucks, to get to the stores? You can see how this system works. The same can be done for any system ... electricity, telephone, gasoline, etc. “We as community members need to become responsible for our community by being individually prepared, then helping our neighborhoods to prepare, then helping our community to prepare for any possible disruptions. How can we do this?” (Open discussion.) 9.

Pass out materials if you have them* for people to take home and review at their leisure. Ask them if they would agree to a second meeting and set a date. Ask each of them to look through the newspapers and magazines and bring back any information on Y2K they find. 10. Find out who will bring refreshments for the next meeting and if there is another person who would like to host the meeting. Ask who will help with reminder calls. Let them know you will get information on preparedness to share with them for the next meeting. Thank them for coming.

Preparing for the Second Meeting 1.

You might want to go through your articles and materials and see what you want to share with your neighbors. You might want to begin

* See page 2 for information on how to get extra copies of this handbook for your community preparedness group. —ed.



2. 3.

making your list of what you can afford to buy and what you cannot. Make enough copies of the “Physical” and “Personal” inventory forms for each household. (A copy of each of these forms follows.) Telephone reminders of the next meeting should be made two days before the meeting. Check with the hostess/host if anything is needed.

“What Did We Learn” 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.

7.

8. 9.

Once again welcome everyone and have everyone grab something to eat or drink before settling down. Let everyone know where the bathrooms are. Take time again for introductions. Ask people to share what they learned. Again, check in with how they are feeling. Take the time to inform them about what others are doing. Discuss the “Individual Preparation” section of this handbook, or another similar list. Ask people to go home and make a list of what they can afford to purchase and what they cannot. Introduce the idea that maybe the neighborhood can pull together to help one another. Pass out the Personal and Physical Inventory forms. Let them know that these forms are worksheets that will stay in their possession. The purpose of the forms is to help them take an inventory of what they have and what they will need. The only form that might be turned in is the medical form if they need special assistance with medicines, oxygen, or food. Ask them if they would be willing to come back to another meeting to share information and form a plan for the neighborhood. Find out who will bring refreshments for the next meeting and if there is another person who would like to host the meeting. Ask who will help with reminder calls. Again, thank them for coming.

Preparing for the Third Meeting 1.

2. 3.

You may want to draw the physical layout of your neighborhood on a piece of paper as well as on a flip chart. Make sure you draw a square (or other shape) for each house on the block. Telephone reminders of the next meeting should be made two days before the meeting. Check with the hostess/host if anything is needed. Have markers and paper to write out people’s ideas and needs.


Household & Neighborhood Preparedness: The Boulder Model “What We Have—What We Need” 1.

Once again welcome everyone and have everyone grab something to eat or drink before settling down. 2. Let everyone know where the bathrooms are. 3. Take time again for introductions. 4. Begin by sharing your affordable and unaffordable “Food and Other Basic Supplies” list with the group. Ask each household to also share their lists. Create a list of what is needed by families in the neighborhood. 5. Once everyone has gone through their lists, see if they can think about how the neighborhood might come together to purchase needed items. You may want to reach consensus on the priority order of the list. 6. Go through the physical inventory of each household and use the legend on the neighborhood physical survey form to indicate where items are in each household, i.e. yard, basement, etc. 7. Ask if anyone has any medical conditions they would like relayed to the police or other local body so that they may prepare for any medical needs. 8. Fill in the skills worksheet. 9. Have the group respond to the questions on the second page of the neighborhood physical survey. What third party information do you need to respond to the questions? 10. Ask who is interested in getting the information needed to help the group make informed decisions. Assign names and deadlines for information to be brought back to the group. 11. Decide when the next meeting is. 12. As you all are busy doing your work, some of you might begin talking to your neighbors on an adjacent block to help them get a meeting started and share what you have learned. It’s all building blocks, one at a time with a solid foundation to make sure no one falls, no one is left out, and everyone is successful.

Other Thoughts The neighborhood might look at what trainings they might put on, that is, how to talk to your neighbors/community. What about specific task forces on food prep, utilities, and so forth. How about setting up a series of town meetings covering issues that would effect the entire community? We suggest that town meetings set the tone of partnership with utilities, government, business, not one of opposition. We are all in this together.



Will the lights come on? What about food, water and heat? How can I take care of myself and my family? How can I help my neighbors?

Y2K INFORMATION MEETING Discussion on: • the causes of the year 2000 computer problem; • possible consequences • ways to prepare yourself, your neighborhood, your city Date: Time: Location: For more information call: “Individual preparedness is for those who can ... Community preparedness is for those who cannot”

Sample poster or flyer 60 / Y2K Citizen’s Action Guide


A Possible Speech Hi! My name is _________________. I am helping prepare the community for possible disruptions by the year 2000 issue. How many here know what the year 2000 issue is? (Solicit comments) We abbreviate this issue by calling it Y2K. Y for year, 2 for two and K for thousand. It is not just a simple computer problem as some people seem to think. It is a systems problem caused when “00” indicates a year in software used by computer chips throughout the world. There are an estimated 20–60 billion of these computer chips, with only 5 percent containing the year problem. However, we do not know where this 5 percent is located. You remember the old Christmas tree lights where if one bulb went out all the others went out, and you had to test each one of the bulbs to see which one was bad? Well consider doing this with 20–60 billion chips. We have run out of time to fix this problem, and are attempting to fix critical systems only. (Show a video or other visuals if you have them.). Wow. I don’t know how you are feeling, but I was ______________ when I first heard about this issue. How are some of you feeling? (Open for discussion.) Let’s take a 10-minute break and come back together again. As community members of the city of ______________, we need to ask our government officials to tell us the status of water and sewage. Have they begun to address the problem? Have they done testing? What were the results of the testing? Repair timetable? Retesting timetable? Will they keep the community informed? What about hospital status: have all emergency room and o.r. equipment been checked and certified with vendors? Tested? What is the status of phones if there is no electricity? Emergency generators? Fuel storage? Ambulance status? Water and sewage? What happens if medicare/medicaid cannot be received ... will they see patients? What will they require? Let me help you understand about Y2K being a “systems” problem. Take your local grocery store. How many hours/days of food does it have? If there is no electricity, how will the trucks get fuel to bring food to the store? Are the trucks computerized? How will the vendors get the food to the trucks to get to the store? How will the automated canners can food to get to the vendors, to get to the trucks, to get to the store? How will the farmers


Household & Neighborhood Preparedness: The Boulder Model use combines, etc. to get the food to the cannners, to get to the vendors, to get to the trucks, to get to the stores? You can see how this system works. The same can be done for any system ... electricity, telephone, gasoline, etc. You as community members need to become responsible for your community by being individually prepared, then helping your neighborhood to prepare, then helping your community to prepare for any possible disruptions. How can we do this? (Open discussion. See meeting format).

Instructions for Use of Attached Forms Attached you will find two sets of forms: Personal Inventory Neighborhood Survey We suggest you ask individual households within a neighborhood to fill out the Personal Inventory form, and to bring the completed form to a meeting where the information can be shared and included in the “Neighborhood Survey.” The Neighborhood Coordinator(s) should make a copy of the completed Survey form and send it to a community-wide coordinator or appropriate agency, if neighbors have special medical needs that emergency management may need to know in order to give assistance. This information is also important so that the neighborhood can set up a plan to address the special needs of neighbors.



Personal Inventory (Information to be shared with neighborhood coordinator(s)) Address: ______________________________________________ ______________________________________________________ Phone:________________________________________________

Adults in Household: Name

Age

Life Threatening Allergies

Children in Household: Name

Age

Life Threatening Allergies

Special Needs: Need Medicine Type: Quantity: Type: Quantity Type: Quantity: Oxygen Wheel-chair bound Chemical Sensitivities Illness: Alzheimers Heart Disease Mental Illness Down syndrome Physically handicapped Visually handicapped Hearing Impaired Other needs: (e.g., special formula)

Yes


No

Name of Person


SKILLS INVENTORY No. Skill Construction Carpenter Plumber Electrician Welder Dentist Medical Doctor (type) Pediatrician Surgeon Nurse Natural Doctor Other Medical Chiropractor EMT Midwife Veterinarian Childcare Teacher Car Mechanic Police Officer Fireman Other (e.g., musician, cook, storyteller, etc.)


Name of Person, Address


Neighborhood Survey (To be filled in and used by Neighborhood Coordinator(s)) Coordinator’s Name: __________________ Phone No.: ___________ Coordinator’s Name:__________________ Phone No.: ___________ Addresses covered by neighborhood: __________________________ Draw a picture of your neighborhood. For example, one block (both sides of the street?); cul-de-sac; building, etc. Include squares for each house, mobile home, apartment, with address.

Mark each home as follows: Last name of family and address B—basement (not in flood zone)

Y—yard space (size)

G—gardening space (size) E—electricity (stove, heaters, water heaters) S—sewage (septic, other)

NG—natural gas (stove, heaters, fireplace, water heaters,) W—water (well, tap)

List of Skills for Entire Neighborhood No.

Skill Construction Carpenter Plumber Electrician Welder Dentist


Name of Family Member

No.

Skill Medical Doctor (type) Pediatrician Surgeon

Name of Family Member

Nurse Natural Doctor Other Medical Chiropractor EMT Midwife Veterinarian Childcare Teacher Car Mechanic Police Officer Fireman Other PHYSICAL INVENTORY for each home in neighborhood Address:____________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________ Physical Inventory complete? Yes No Basement (not in a flood zone) Yard Vegetable garden space (approx. size: ________) Natural Gas: Heater Water heater


Physical Inventory complete? Fireplace Stove Electric: Heater Water heater Fireplace Stove Water: City fed Well Other: (explain) Sewage: Septic City Other: (explain) Solar panels Generator Propane Fueled Water storage Pets: Type & # of each type: Vaccinations current Food and water accounted for Camping equipment Type: Fire extinguishers (current) Battery-powered carbon monoxide detector Battery powered fire alarms Root cellars Weatherization CB radios Ham radio operators Flashlights (get bulbs too) Solar Products: Radio Flashlights Battery-powered clocks


Yes

No

Household & Neighborhood Preparedness: The Boulder Model Answer the following questions based on the assumption of no electricity: Physical Security: 1. How will you light your community? Think of solar street lights, generators to provide light, etc. Communication: 2. How will you check on people in the neighborhood? (Universal large dot of red for trouble, yellow for need help, green for okay) Need for citizen’s patrol—how often, special cases, etc. 3. If emergency transportation is needed to nearest medical facility, how will this be handled? 4. Where will all children be housed if there is an emergency? Who will be the adults in charge of their care? (Do all children know these adults, are they considered “safe”, etc.) Sanitation: 5. How will garbage be disposed of? Is everyone composting? What can be recycled? 6. How will human waste be handled if sewers are not operating? Animals: 7. How will the neighborhood handle situations with wild animals? 8. For those that have pets, how will the pets be cared for? Water Storage Areas: (capacity, container, siphon, filter) Neighborhood Information: 09. Number of children? 10.Number of teens? 11.Number of Elderly? 12.Number of disabled? 13.Number of people requiring special medical attention (attach personal inventory sheet).


Personal Preparedness



Individual Preparation for Y2K By Paloma O’Riley There are no emergencies for those who are truly prepared. —James Talmadge Stevens Somewhere between predictions of technological doomsday and those who say that Y2K is the invention of rabid money-hungry consultants, lies reality. In the absence of hard facts and data, we are left with only one option— to take precautions. When it comes to health and safety we must always err on the side of caution and skepticism, and take what we feel are necessary and appropriate steps to safeguard our family, friends and neighbors. Preparing for the worst doesn’t mean you believe it will happen, it means only that you accept that the possibility exists. You don’t need proof that your house will burn down before you buy fire insurance, nor that you will have an automobile accident to purchase car insurance. In the same way, you do not need to believe worst-case Y2K scenarios will happen to take out another kind of insurance—emergency preparedness. Ed. note: Paloma O’Riley recommends that you make a thorough assessment of what you have before determining what you need. For her detailed advice on how to do this, see the longer version of this article on the Cassandra Project Web site, which is listed at the end of this article. The following preparation information is based on worst-case scenario. Our belief and purpose is it is always best to prepare for the worst, and hope for the best. (See disclaimer below.)

I. Food and Other Basic Supplies A. Food 1. What to Do When the Electricity Goes Off (courtesy of FEMA) • •

First, use perishable food and foods from the refrigerator. Then use the foods from the freezer. To minimize the number of times you open the freezer door, post a list of freezer contents on it.



•

In a well-filled, well-insulated freezer, foods will usually still have ice crystals in their centers (meaning foods are safe to eat) for at least three days. Finally, begin to use nonperishable foods and staples.

2. What You Need Long-Term Food Supplies (courtesy of FEMA) The best approach is to store large amounts of staples along with a variety of canned and dried foods. Bulk quantities of wheat, corn, beans and salt are inexpensive and have nearly unlimited shelf life. If necessary, you could survive for years on small daily amounts of these staples. Stock the following amounts per person, per month: Brown rice or whole wheat—20 pounds Powdered milk (for babies and infants)*—20 pounds Corn—20 pounds Iodized salt—1 pound Soybeans—10 pounds Vitamin C**—15 grams * Buy in nitrogen-packed cans ** Rotate every two years

Also include: • Ready-to-eat canned meats, fruits and vegetables • Canned juices, milk, soup (if powdered, store extra water) • Staples—sugar, pepper • Vitamins • Ready-to-eat cereals and uncooked instant cereals (in metal containers) • Dry, crisp crackers (in metal container) • Potatoes (fresh or dried flakes) • Foods for the elderly or those on special diets • Comfort/stress foods—cookies, hard candy, sweetened cereals, lollipops, instant coffee, tea bags, cocoa, chocolate bars, canned nuts • High energy foods—peanut butter, jelly, crackers, granola bars, trail mix • Vegetable oils • Dried spices (garlic, onion, oregano, chili powder, etc.) • Baking powder • Beans • Non-carbonated soft drinks • White rice • Bouillon products • Dry pasta


Personal Preparedness If these staples comprise your entire menu, you must eat all of them together to stay healthy. To avoid serious digestive problems, you’ll need to grind the corn and wheat into flour and cook them, as well as boil the beans, before eating. Many health food stores sell hand-cranked grain mills or can tell you where you can get one. Make sure you buy one that can grind corn.

3. Ways to Supplement Your Long-Term Stockpile (Courtesy of FEMA) The above staples offer a limited menu, but you can supplement them with commercially packed air-dried or freeze-dried foods and supermarket goods. Rice, popcorn and varieties of beans are nutritious and long-lasting. The more supplements you include, the more expensive your stockpile will be. The following is an easy approach to long-term food storage: 1. Buy a supply of the bulk staples listed above. 2. Build up your everyday stock of canned goods until you have a twoweek to one-month surplus. 3. Rotate it periodically to maintain a supply of common foods that will not require special preparation, water or cooking. 4. From a sporting or camping equipment store, buy commercially packaged, freeze-dried or air-dried foods. Although costly, this will be your best form of stored meat, so buy accordingly.

4. Storage No power means no refrigerators or freezers. Prepackaged foods store best, as they won’t spoil until opened. Cans, boxed food, beans, rice, pasta and other nonperishables will all survive without refrigeration. Military rations (MREs) can be bought at army surplus stores, and camp food (dried and dehydrated) at a camping supply store. Note: MREs were designed as short -term emergency rations, not meant to be eaten for an extended period of time. Do not rely on them as your sole source of food as they have been known to cause digestive problems. Milk may be purchased in cans, vacuum-packed containers, or in powder form. Eggs can be bought in a powdered form (canned), though the taste can leave something to be desired. Baby formula can be bought canned or powdered (check the expiration dates carefully). Word of caution—if you do purchase canned perishables, be sure they are sized for use. You won’t be able to store opened cans of milk, etc., without risking food poisoning if you don’t have refrigeration. Another benefit of canned foods is that they don’t require cooking, water or special preparation. One option for keeping foods cold are coolers, though you need a ready source of ice. However, those that live in cold climates have an advantage. If the temperature outside is consistently below 40 degrees, a Styrofoam cooler outdoors will work well for items like milk, margarine, cheese, etc.


Personal Preparedness Just protect it from animals and curious passers-by. Store wheat, corn and beans in sealed cans or plastic buckets. Buy powdered milk in nitrogen-packed cans. Leave salt and vitamin C in their original packages. Use only food-grade plastic containers for long-term food storage.

Storage Tips (Courtesy of FEMA ) • • • • • • • •

Keep food in the driest and coolest spot in the house—a dark area if possible. Keep food covered at all times. Open food boxes or cans carefully so that you can close them tightly after each use. Wrap cookies and crackers in plastic bags, and keep them in tight containers. Empty opened packages of sugar, dried fruits and nuts into screwtop jars or air-tight cans to protect them from pests. Inspect all food containers regularly for signs of spoilage, and before use. Use foods before they go bad and replace them with fresh supplies, dated with ink or marker. Place new items at the back of the storage area and older ones in front.

5. Purchase Most of us buy our food at supermarkets. If there is a breakdown in the supply chain, we could experience shortages or store closures. The best alternative is, of course, buying what you need ahead of time. Start laying in nonperishable basics today, such as toilet paper, tissue, dry and canned goods, and so forth. The cheapest way to purchase goods is by case-lot. It’s not always easy to find, but talk to the managers of your favorite store, and see if they’ll order them for you. If the local market closes, you may be able to turn to the local barter market. For more information about it, see section V. Financial.

6. Preservation For favorite foods such as strawberries, bananas, or other perishables, you might consider purchasing far in advance and dehydrating. Today’s dehydrators are simple to use and very effective. Storage can be as simple as Ziplock bags or vacuum-seal jars. To extend shelf-life, you can store dehydrated foods in your freezer until needed. Rehydration is simply a matter of adding water, or you can eat them as is, or add to your morning cereal, or in your baking. You can also use your dehydrator or oven to make jerky. If you’re more ambitious, you can try canning. However, make sure you follow USDA guidelines carefully to avoid any contamination or later spoilage.


Personal Preparedness 7. Preparation You can treat emergency situations as an unplanned camp-out. A propane or kerosene stove works fine for most stove-top cooking. The only problem is enough fuel, and proper ventilation. Fire danger increases as well. Make sure you have one or more multi-use fire extinguishers always close at hand—small canister, ABC type. (These can be purchased at most hardware stores.) Also, never leave an open flame unattended, especially when small children are nearby. An outdoor charcoal or propane grill can do double duty, as well as your woodstove and fireplace (as long as it is wood burning). You can also heat food with candle warmers, nonelectric chafing dishes and fondue pots. Canned foods can be eaten right out of the can and don’t require cooking, water or special preparation (though it may affect taste). If you heat the food while in the can, be sure to open the can first and remove the label. Putting a sealed can on an active woodstove, for instance, may give you a very explosive and messy surprise! Most camping-supply stores have quite a wide variety of devices with which you can cook—from solar, to the old sterno cans. Ask them for what would be appropriate for your needs. Also, make any purchases well in advance. Prices may go up, and availability may go down as “the day” approaches.

B. Basic Supplies You might want to store the following in large covered plastic storage bins until needed.

Supplies • • • • • • • • • • • • •

Mess kits, or paper cups, plates and plastic utensils (you don’t want to waste drinking water washing dishes!) Disposable baby bottle liners Flashlight and extra batteries Manual can opener, utility knife Matches (a waterproof container is useful as well) Aluminum foil (better than dirtying pans) Plastic storage containers Needles, thread Medicine dropper Shut-off wrench (to turn off household gas and water) Candles, lamps and lamp oil Battery operated smoke alarm Plastic sheeting (in case of leaks, etc.)

Sanitation •

Toilet paper, towelettes (especially for babies)


Personal Preparedness • • • • • • • • • • • •

Soap, liquid detergent (antibacterial soap that doesn’t use water is available) Feminine supplies Personal hygiene items (especially deodorant!) Baby needs (diapers, ointments, etc.) Contact lenses and solution Denture needs Extra eyeglasses Plastic garbage bags, ties, various sizes (for personal sanitation uses, etc.) Plastic buckets with tight lids (serve as great potties!) Disinfectant Household chlorine bleach Room deodorizer (spray or solid. No wall plug-ins!)

Pets • • • • •

Food (canned and dried) Chew toys Vitamins Litter Bedding

II. Water A. What You Need A normally active person needs to drink at least two quarts of water each day. Hot environments and intense physical activity can double that amount. Children, nursing mothers and ill people will need more. Store one gallon of water per person per day (two quarts for drinking, two quarts for food preparation/sanitation). And don’t forget your pets need clean drinking water as well.

B. Water Treatment (Courtesy of FEMA) There are three main methods for treating water: boiling, disinfection and distillation. For additional methods of purification, contact your local Red Cross. Boiling is the safest method of purifying water. Bring the water to a rolling boil for 10 minutes. Let the water cool before drinking or storing. Boiled water will taste better if you put oxygen back into it by pouring it back and forth between two containers. This will also improve the taste of stored water. Disinfection: before storing your water, treat it with a preservative, such as chlorine bleach, to prevent the growth of microorganisms. Use liquid bleach that contains 5.25 percent sodium hypochlorite and no soap. Some containers warn, “Not For Personal Use”. You can disregard these warnings only if the


Personal Preparedness label states sodium hypochlorite is the only active ingredient; and if you use only the small quantities in these instructions. Add four drops of bleach per quart of water (or two scant teaspoons per 10 gallons), and stir. Seal your water containers tightly, label them and store them in a cool, dark place. Distillation involves boiling water and then collecting the vapor that condenses back to water. The condensed vapor will not include salt and other impurities. To distill, fill a pot halfway with water. Tie a cup to the handle on the pot’s lid so that the cup will hang right-side-up when the lid is upside-down (make sure the cup is not dangling into the water) and boil the water for 20 minutes. The water that drips from the lid into the cup is distilled. Store as directed.

C. Storage Store water in thoroughly washed plastic, fiberglass or enamel-lined metal containers. Never use a container that has held toxic substances, because tiny amounts may remain in the container’s pores. Sound plastic containers, such as soft-drink bottles, are good. You can also purchase food-grade plastic buckets or drums. Avoid using containers that will decompose or break, such as milk cartons or glass bottles. Rotate stored water every six months.

D. Sources of Drinking Water Two good sources of water is large containers you can purchase at your grocery store, and from your own tap. Since there is some debate of the purity of tap water, make sure you treat it before storing it long-term.

Hidden Water Sources in Your Home (Courtesy of FEMA) If a disaster catches you without a stored supply of clean water, you can use water in your hot-water tank, in your plumbing and in ice cubes. As a last resort, you can use water in the reservoir tank of your toilet (not the bowl), but purify it first. Water beds hold up to 400 gallons, but some water beds contain toxic chemicals that are may not be fully removed by many purifiers. If you designate a water bed in your home as an emergency resource, drain it yearly and refill it with fresh water containing two ounces of bleach per 120 gallons. You may use the water for toilet flushing only. To use the water in your pipes, let air into the plumbing by turning on the highest (elevation) faucet in your house and draining the water from the lowest one. To use the water in your hot-water tank, be sure the electricity or gas is off, and open the drain at the bottom of the tank. Start the water flowing by turning off the water intake valve and turning on a hot-water faucet. Do not turn on the gas or electricity when the tank is empty.


Personal Preparedness Do you know the location of your incoming water valve? You’ll need to shut if off to stop contaminated water from entering your home if you hear reports of broken water or sewage lines. Also, in cold climates, frozen pipes may burst if there is no heat. Shut off the water and drain the pipes if there’s a strong possibility of this occurring.

Emergency Outdoor Water Sources (Courtesy of FEMA) If you need to find water outside your home, be sure to purify the water before drinking it. Avoid water with floating material, an odor or dark color. Use saltwater only if you distill it first. You should not drink flood water. Outdoor water sources include: rainwater, streams and rivers, ponds and lakes, natural springs, and snow.

D. Wastewater Wastewater- and sewage-treatment facilities are highly automated, and environmental emissions monitoring and control systems depend on year-2000vulnerable embedded controls. Malfunctions due to year 2000 problems could lead to polluting releases and emissions that could endanger local residents. One mission-critical program where work on year-2000 issues was lagging, according to a recent status report, was the pump-station network—a system that monitors stations to keep track of sewage and waste-water flows. Be wary of tap water, and “gray” water used for outside purposes. Home water testing kits can help you check. The best defense is a store of emergency water.

III. Sanitation and Refuse As for solid waste, expect delays in garbage collection and other services. Rodents can be a major health threat where garbage accumulates; so make sure you have enough sturdy, lidded containers to hold refuse produced over a two-week period. Be prepared to keep your yard clean if other peoples’ refuse finds its way to you. Don’t allow garbage to accumulate outside your home. In some rural areas, trash can be a particular attractant for a variety of wildlife—some dangerous. Store paper and other flammables away from any heat sources or open flames. If waste builds up, consider burying bags in pits and use lime to cut down on smell and contamination. As for personal waste, use water straight from the tap to flush the toilet after every use. Don’t use your drinking water if you can help it. Filling up the bathtub ahead of time should provide enough water for a week or more. If your shower works, don’t let all the water drain afterwards. Bleach can be used to deodorize and disinfect the toilet when added to the water; just don’t let your pets use it for drinking!


Personal Preparedness If the local sewage system fails, consider buying chemical or composting toilets. Portable ones are great for camping and can be used in RVs. Outhouses may be an alternative in rural areas, but they must be built and the waste treated properly to avoid health problems and contamination.

IV. Health A. First Aid Training Maintaining your health is extremely important during an crisis, and minimizes the need to call for emergency services. We strongly urge you do the following: • Take at least a basic first-aid course, with more advanced courses later • Learn CPR • Take an EMT course, if possible • Take a fire safety course Many of these courses are available from the Red Cross, local community colleges and fire departments. Some are available on the Internet.

B. First Aid Kit Put together a basic first-aid kit. You can obtain a first-aid manual from your local American Red Cross chapter. Include the following: • Sterile adhesive bandages in assorted sizes • 2-inch sterile gauze pads (4–6) • 4-inch sterile gauze pads (4–6) • Hypo allergenic adhesive tape • Triangular bandages (3) • 2-inch sterile roller bandages (3 rolls) • 3-inch sterile roller bandages (3 rolls) • Scissors • Tweezers • Needles • Moistened towelettes • Antiseptic • Thermometer • Tongue blades (2) • Tube of petroleum jelly or other lubricant • Assorted sizes of safety pins • Cleansing agent/soap • Latex gloves (2 pair) • Sunscreen • Nonprescription drugs: - Aspirin or nonaspirin pain reliever


Personal Preparedness -

Antidiarrhea medication Antacid (for stomach upset) Syrup of Ipecac (use to induce vomiting if advised by the poison control center) Laxative Activated charcoal (use if advised by the poison control center)

C. Medical and Dental Care Try to schedule needed exams, tests, and other procedures so that results will be returned well before the end of 1999. You may also want to make sure your immunizations are up to date, and even get shots that you would get if you were traveling to a third-world country. If you have any medical or dental problems you’ve been putting off, take care of them now. Doctors who have not paid attention to the Y2K problem may “misplace” medical records. Get hard copies of your medical file, X rays, and other records. If you require medication, ask if the doctor will give you a prescription in advance. Some HMO’s will not allow doctors to write advance prescriptions. You’ll need to discuss alternatives with your provider and local pharmacy. Consider postponing any elective surgery just before or just after the turn of the century. Elective meaning not required for treatment of a life- or healththreatening or sustaining condition.

Emergencies The greatest concern in an emergency is reaching someone who can help. If the phone lines are down, you might be able to reach emergency services by CB. However, even if phones work, there’s no guarantee that the machines and equipment emergency personnel use will work, and correctly. That leaves it up to you. Find out what to do in a variety of situations, such as a knocked-out tooth, fever, broken bones, falls, and other emergencies. Make sure you have all the medications needed, and extra prescriptions filled. Learning how to deal with such situations yourself will reduce the likelihood of panic, and increase the chances of survival for the ill or injured person. If you can’t contact an ambulance, you’ll need to transport the person yourself, properly and safely. Make sure you know the location of the nearest emergency facilities, and try to contact them before you go. Check with such places before the turn of the century to see what their contingency plans are in the event that ambulance service, communications, and power fail, or if emergency personnel are unavailable. Remember, don’t expect the same quality of care you are used to if there is


Personal Preparedness a general emergency in your community. Try to help out, not demand immediate treatment.

D. Medical Devices If you or anyone you know is dependent on medical devices, it is important to contact the manufacturer. Get their assurance—in writing—that the device will function correctly and safely. Also, speak to your doctor and express your concerns about the devices. Ask your doctor what alternatives there are to electronic or electrical medical devices, or what you can do if the device fails for any reason. Education is really your only option in this area. According to FEMA, anyone requiring any type of life support that uses electricity should register with their local Emergency Management office— regardless of possible circumstances. Devices that may be affected include: • Infusion pumps in intravenous drips • Heart defibrillators • Pacemakers • Intensive care monitors • MRIs • CT and PET scans • Dialysis • Chemotherapy and radiation equipment • Laboratory, radiology and other diagnostic systems • Monitoring and control systems, including environmental and safety equipment

E. Medical Conditions The frail, elderly, people with particular medical problems requiring a caregiver, and people with other disabilities must make special plans for their safety in the event that emergency services fail. Those who have the following conditions may be especially at risk and should take special precautions: • Acute or chronic respirator illnesses • Heart aliments • Unstable or juvenile diabetes • Dependence on tube feeding • Epilepsy • Tracheotomies • Urinary catheters • Colostomies • Dialysis dependence


Personal Preparedness F. Pharmacies and Medication Your pharmacy maintains its records on computers, as do most businesses; and they are subject to the same problems. If you take medication regularly, ask your doctor to write you an additional prescription. Pharmacies may experience any number of problems or delays filling prescriptions. Potential problems: prematurely expired prescriptions, old file information no longer current, recently changed medications or dosages; they may also “lose” your information, or have trouble processing it with your insurance carrier. Don’t forget to bring cash (see VI: Finances) with you when it’s time to purchase. If you do get medication during and immediately after the date change, review the information on the prescription carefully. Check to see that your name, drug name, dosage, quantity, expiration date—that everything is accurate. Errors are always possible, and it’s a good habit to check these things anyway.

V. Communication/Entertainment A. Phone Communication is extremely important, often invaluable, especially in emergencies. If there are phone communication failures, you could be cut off from emergency medical, police, and fire services. Therefore, prepare as if you will have no communication. One way of maintaining some form of contact within your family or the outside world is a CB radio and/or a family-channel walkie-talkie. Of course, you must make sure than none of these will be affected by the Y2K problem. As a backup, you can always use children’s walkie-talkies, as they are the most likely to work. However, they are only toys. Don’t count on them for any significant use. (And make sure you have adequate batteries!)

B. Pager If phones are not working, it’s likely pagers aren’t either. We could not come up with anything that works as a substitute (signal flares, maybe? Pacifiers?).

C. Television If there are power failures, plan for life with no television for at least a couple of days. If you have young children, prepare by having plenty of games available, and be willing to play. This may be a good time to read to them, or teach a new craft. Do expect to be the sole source of entertainment for yourself and your family.


Personal Preparedness D. Radio During any sort of an emergency, information becomes extremely important. Radio is more likely to be available. Make sure you have a portable battery-operated AM/FM radio with good reception, and enough battery power for at least a week of continuous play. How many batteries you will need will depend on the type of radio you have. Check with the manufacturer or test it yourself. By inserting fresh batteries and leaving it on, you can time how long the radio will operate and buy batteries accordingly. If a family member will be away for more than a couple of hours, they should have a means to communicate with them (i.e., walkie-talkie, CB, or something).

Ham Radio Ham radio equipment can operate on electricity, batteries, or solar units. With batteries and portable solar units, the transmitters and receivers can be carried from place to place, so that Ham operators can be “stationed” in various locales during an emergency. Hand-held devices are also available. For more information on Amateur Radio see: Beginner’s Guide to Ham Radio, on-line at: http://www.irony.com/ham-howto.html; Amateur Radio Relay League, Colorado Public Information Coordinator, Erik Dyce, Phone: (303) 751-4605; and Cassandra Project research available at our Website.

E. Other Entertainment systems, Walkmans, VCRs, etc., may or may not be affected directly by Y2K problems, but make sure they can run on batteries. Do not rely on these to entertain you. There’s nothing like having a few simple (nonelectronic) instruments around for fun.

VI. Financial A. Banks/Financial Records It’s extremely important that you get hard copy receipts for your records because if there is ever any question about an account the burden of proof—as always— will be on you. Keep hard copies of all bank statements, mortgage, car and rent payments, IRAs, and other financial records. Keep canceled checks or carbons.

B. Getting Paid The best defense is a good offense. Because most accounting systems are automated, expect some interruptions or problems with paychecks, government benefits, and the like. If you live from paycheck to paycheck like many people, you may be severely hit if the money does not post to your account as scheduled. However, preparing in advance will make it easier to get through periods when


Personal Preparedness income may be interrupted. Getting checks delivered by mail rather than by automatic payment to your account will not ensure that you receive it.

C. Paying Bills Do not count on your bills being paid for you if you have automatic payment plans. Pay them manually at least three to four months in advance, for a two-month period, extending into February of 2000. Make sure you keep track of all payments and have receipts. If there’s a problem, it’ll be up to you to prove you made the payment. If there are penalties associated with pre- or advance payments, discuss this with your creditor. Ask if they will waive penalty fees even if only for a few months. If they won’t, try to work out an agreement of suspending any late fees if automatic payments fail to work. Get any and all agreements in writing.

D. Cash Cash is often best in an emergency. Expect prices to go up, especially if there are shortages of any goods like food. Put any cash in a safe place in a discrete, readily accessible. As difficult as it can be, set some cash aside for emergencies. Checks may or may not be accepted, nor may credit or debit cards. How much should you set aside? Monitor your expenditures for a month, all of them, even the incidental. Barring unusual expenses, that will give you a approximation of how much you spend in a month. You can then decide if you want to set aside more or less as your finances permit. Expect prices to go up if shortages occur. Inflation is caused by many things—not the least of which is greed. Make sure you know of more than one source to purchase goods, and that they are reliable. However, do expect shortages. Even with enough money, some things just may not be available. The best hedge against inflation and price hikes is purchasing in advance. Don’t allow yourself to be caught short.

E. Barter If you aren’t able to put aside as much cash as you like, look into the barter economy. Barter is common practice in many areas. For more information about bartering, we recommend • “Les French” (one of the oldest bartering networks), http:// www.lesfrench.com/html/tutorial.htm • “Trade World,” http://www.thetradeworld.com/ • “The Barter Station” provides barter services at no charge, http:// www.solutions-4u.com/barter/aboutbs.htm.


Personal Preparedness •

Survival Bartering, by Duncan Long (Loompanics Unlimited, retails for about $8.00), a good starter book.

F. Credit and Debit Cards Even if retailers have managed to work out their problems with credit cards using “00” in the expiration date, they still need power, and for the telephones to be working. The stores need to be open and operating and willing to accept them. Debit cards have the same liabilities as credit cards. Expect to use cash or barter for most purchases.

VII. Power, Heat and Light A. Alternative Power Sources Generators can be expensive, temperamental, and noisy. The power generated is often not ‘clean,’ with frequent spikes and surges that can damage equipment. Fuel needs to be stored for it, which can be hazardous, and many fuels don’t store well long-term. Because of these reasons, unless there is a clear medical need for one, we suggest looking for low-tech alternatives such as woodstoves, kerosene heaters, propane refrigerators. Solar power is on the rise. There are many good companies out there. Solar power devices can be expensive to install, and they do need to be maintained. Batteries and converters are some of the peripheral equipment you may need. It’s a good long-term solution to reduce your reliance on the electric grid.

B. Heating and Cooling In cold climates, lack of heat can be life threatening. The ill, the elderly and small children are particularly susceptible. If the power goes off, it’s likely you will not be able to heat your house. If power does not go off, you may still be vulnerable if your home temperature-control system shuts down. If heat is cut off, a fireplace, wood stove, or freestanding kerosene or propane heater may serve as an alternate heat source. Since heat circulation without fans is difficult, restrict heating to one or two rooms of the house and shut the doors on the rest. Try not to enter or exit the house from the room of the source of your primary heat. However, do make sure there is adequate ventilation to prevent the buildup of carbon monoxide, other gases or smoke. Buy a battery-powered carbon monoxide detector. Pile up mattresses, sleeping bags, thick blankets and pillows across from the heat source, but not too near it. Expect to wear additional clothes indoors, such as sweaters or sweatshirts, and thick socks, even to bed. If you have children, have them sleep together, between you and your spouse, and/or with the family pet.


Personal Preparedness Dogs, in particular, are great sources of heat. (Ever hear of a three-dog night?). They also make great alarm systems if there are any problems in the night. The same is true of very hot climates. If you depend on air conditioners, fans or other cooling devices, you face the same problems. A cool, darkened basement may be good refuge during the heat of the day. Also, battery-powered fans should help keep the air circulating, making you more comfortable. Always drink plenty of water to combat dehydration in hot climates, and dress accordingly. Restrict activity to the cooler parts of the day. Cover the inside of windows with aluminum foil to reflect the heat away from the house, or use a blanket or sheets. You can also rig a shelter on the shady side of the house using a large tarp; or rig a tarp to shade the front of the house to keep interior heat down.

C. Light Though not necessary to our physical survival, light is very important to our emotional health and stability. Light sources include: candles, hurricane lamps, flashlights, and battery-powered camping lights. Fireplaces and wood stoves also make cozy evening light. Don’t expect to light a room to the degree you are used to with electric light. It won’t hurt your eyes to use subdued lighting, even for an extended period of time. Make sure any open flame is well away from children, pets, or flammables, and secure from accidental contact. Always keep a fire extinguisher close at hand. For safety, carry a flashlight when using the stairs or accessing darkened cabinets or rooms. If you need light close to children (to change diapers, for example), batterypowered is by far the safest. You might consider giving them their own small flashlights for fun and as a way to make them feel more secure (but have plenty of batteries!). Light sticks are marvelous, they are easy to carry, tough, and safe to play with. Be sure they are nontoxic. Whatever light source(s) you use, be sure you have an adequate supply of fuel or batteries. Store them where they are easily accessible, safe, and away from children and pets.

VIII. Safety Do everything you can to prevent accidents, injuries and fires in your home. Check for frayed or loose rugs, unnecessary objects on stairs, halls and walkways, and protruding objects on walls (that may be bumped into in the dark), and other hazards. Common-sense safety precautions become doubly important when emergency services are uncertain.


Personal Preparedness Preventing Accidents • • • • •

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If you use candles, place them in a safe place away from any flammable material. Be sure all children know the dangers of candles, chafing dishes, potpourri scent pots, the fireplace and space heaters. Never leave children alone near an open flame or with matches. Keep clutter away from the stove while cooking. If grease catches fire, do not throw water on it. Cover the pan with a lid. Be careful. Moving the pan can cause the fire to spread. Never pour water on grease fires or try to beat it out with a towel. Always keep a fire extinguisher close at hand. Do not store combustible materials in closed areas or near a heat source. In order to avoid injury, turn pot handles away from the edge on the stove, and never wear loose clothing while cooking. Don’t leave cooking food unattended for extended periods of time— this is the most common cause of cooking-related fires. Only burn wood in the fireplace, and small amounts of paper at a time, to avoid a chimney fire. Have your chimney cleaned and flue checked before using. Buy a battery-operated smoke detector. If you already have one, clean and test it. A working smoke detector can double your chances of survival. Practice home fire drills: designate two exits from every room, make sure all family members are aware of an outside meeting place, and get out quickly. If your house catches fire, do not attempt to put it out. Fire spreads faster than you can possibly imagine—in a matter of seconds. Evacuate immediately. Contact the local fire department after you have left the building. Even if you can’t reach the fire department, do not try to put out the fire yourself. Never go back into a burning building to retrieve belongings or pets.

Security Security systems include CCTV, motion and heat detectors, and pressure pads, to name a few. These systems all depend on electricity—whether from the grid or backup power systems. Since backups kick in if the power goes out, make sure your backup system will function. The only way to know is to ask the manufacturer. Don’t assume anything, and get it in writing. If the security system is for your home or office, be prepared to make a physical inspection of the site to ensure security if power fails. It is also possible to hire temporary security personnel. Security specialists are available for advice, though hiring their services can be expensive. Your local police


Personal Preparedness department is probably the best source of information if you have questions or special needs. Don’t forget, however, that in an emergency, home or office security is not a police priority, so don’t expect it. Install residential steel doors with deadbolts; good locks on your windows, sliding doors and gates; and motion-detection lighting. Talk to your local hardware store or locksmith for more information about securing your home. There are now very good exterior solar lights that are equipped with motion detectors. Many last a week or more without charging. If you are concerned about valuables, remove them from your home or business. Bank vaults are still the safest place to keep them. Use vaults only if you won’t need the items for a week or so. Office equipment is usually covered by insurance if stolen, but don’t expect replacements for at least 4–8 weeks, if not longer. Check with your insurance agent on this, never make assumptions. If security is still a concern, consider a watch dog or manual alarm device. (Teenagers seem to be very clever at rigging their rooms to prevent unwanted parental intrusion.) The best security is probably a well-lit area, the presence of a number of people, and the possibility of animal protection. Dogs, “Beware of Dog” signs, very large bones and food bowls left where they can be easily seen, are proven deterrents.

1. Electronic Locks If electronic locks rely on electricity, it’s likely they either won’t open, possibly locking a person in or out; or fail in “safe mode” by releasing the lock. Check to see if there is a manual override; if there is, make sure you have the key or information to use it. If not, you may need to force the door if entry or egress is necessary. If you feel it’s likely the lock will fail, you can keep the door open or block the locking mechanism from engaging. This may cause an alarm to go off. It’s best to notify police and fire in advance that you will be testing, or be prepared to explain it to them when they show up!

2. Key Cards or Code Locks Key cards are likely to suffer the same problems as electronic locks. Locks into which you punch a code may also fail to operate, depending on whether they are manual or electronic.

C. Weapons Whether or not to ‘arm’ yourself for crisis situations is a hotly debated topic. The only one who can decide if the benefits are worth the risk is you—but only if you’ve done the necessary research. If you believe that just having the


Personal Preparedness weapon in your house makes you safe(r), then more research and study is needed. It takes many hours of professional training to use a weapon safely, correctly, and under stressful conditions or in crisis situations. If you wish to buy guns, it is absolutely essential that you spend the time and money on good weapons handling, maintenance, training and regular practice. We recommend as an alternative working with your neighbors and local police department to establish block watches, and develop contingency plans for possible security situations. Don’t overlook the fact that the best security is often the simplest: attentive neighbors, good doors, locks, lights, a dog.

IX. Transportation A. Auto Anyone who says software in cars isn’t a problem has forgotten the recent General Motors recall. About 292,860 Pontiacs, Oldsmobiles and Buicks from the 1996 and 1997 model years were recalled due to an engine software problem. GM said a faulty engine system sequence can cause a backfire during start-up, possibly resulting in a cracked intake manifold, which could erupt in a fire. Could your car fail to function? Once again, you’ll need written assurance from the manufacturer. Even with that, start considering alternate transportation such as bicycles, low-tech motorcycles, low-tech cars. Of course, walking is a healthy alternative. If you live in a rural area, horses and carts might be an option. Another aspect may be lack of fuel. Gas stations may experience a variety of electrical or electronic problems, and/or delays in fuel delivery. Storing gas can be extremely expensive and hazardous, and we don’t recommend it.

B. Public Transportation Busses trolleys, light-rail and any other form of mass transit will likely experience the same problems as cars. Alternate transportation would be the same as above.

C. Airplanes Several airline companies have publicly announced that they may not fly if they are not confident that every aspect of flight control, monitoring, communication and so forth will function and do so correctly at the turn of the century. Don’t plan plane trips over the century change, or, if you do, leave at least two weeks ahead of time, and plan an extended stay. Also, several insurance companies such as Lloyds of London have said they may not insure air carriers if compliance at every phase of a trip cannot be


Personal Preparedness proven. This will effectively ground airplanes more surely than the possibility of controller problems.

D. Train The rail industry is already experiencing severe problems due to computer malfunctions not related to Y2K. Don’t expect trains to be any more likely to run than other public transportation. Beware of rail crossings. It has been reported that some microprocessor-based gate and signaling controls have experience Y2K problems during testing.

E. Traffic Systems Many traffic systems are microprocessor controlled. If driving, treat every light as if it were a stop sign—even if green. Also be wary of express lanes that use gates to control the flow of traffic. Personally, I’d avoid them completely. As a pedestrian, distrust crossing lights and fall back to “looking both ways” first.

IX. Other Preparations. A. Your Neighborhood The best security is a prepared neighbor. Talk to your neighbors. You don’t have to convince them Y2K is a problem. Merely explain that it’s something you’re concerned about, and give them information or materials to review when they wish. Let them know that you are preparing, and if they wish to talk about it, they’re welcome to talk to you any time. If several neighbors become interested, then start holding regular meetings. Discuss some of the problems Y2K may cause and how you can pull together to handle them, and how you can share resources to help those who are physically or financially unable to prepare.

B. Your Community Offer your services to the local police, fire and emergency services. You can assist by helping to raise funds for compliant equipment, alternative and/or backup energy, and communication sources and equipment. Get several neighbors together and speak at city council meetings, public hearings and other functions.

C. Some Final Thoughts on Preparedness Many people who prepare for Y2K are labeled “survivalists,” “alarmists,” or worse. They see no difference between taking prudent precautions and extreme lifestyle changes. Those of us who prepare are in good company!

Disclaimer: This publication is designed to provide general information in regard to the subject matter covered. It is distributed with the understanding that neither


Personal Preparedness the author nor publisher is engaged in rendering legal, medical, or other professional services; it is not be used as a substitute for professional legal, medical, or technical advice or services. The author permits individuals to copy or distribute this document—in whole or in part—with accompanying credits. It is not to be sold. Questions or comments to: Paloma O’Riley, The Cassandra Project, PO Box 8, Louisville, CO 800270008; 303-664-5227 e-mail: [email protected] Website: http://CassandraProject.org/home.htm The Cassandra Project is a nonprofit whose focus is Y2K public health and safety related issues, and community preparedness. It promotes at-home grass roots participation in contingency planning for individual and community preparedness activities. It does not charge for any information or services. Donations, made out to The Cassandra project, are welcome. The project has helped foster development of (currently) 100+ community preparedness groups in the US and Canada; is working with Colorado State and Governor’s office to enhance their current Year 2000 Project. The website was launched in September 1997, and attracts over 500,000 visitors on average a month. Paloma O’Riley spent part of her life homesteading in Alaskan bush; has been head of computing security for Boeing’s human resources division in Seattle, Wa.; served as a Division of Emergency Management volunteer. Most recently she was a year 2000 project manager for Rover Group, Ltd., in England. Paloma cofounded “The Cassandra Project” in June 1997.


Inner Preparedness


Inner Preparedness

The Psychological Challenges of Y2K By Gordon Davidson and Corinne McLaughlin The Y2K computer problem is especially challenging to the traditional rational mind that requires indisputable factual data before it can act. We have watched hundreds of bright, talented leaders wrestle internally with the inherently nebulous, indefinable and unknown consequences of what may happen as a result of the Y2K problem. In one conference of frustrated, facthungry political leaders and economic forecasters, understanding Y2K was decribed as “trying to nail a cream pie to the wall.” Just as people go through distinct psychological stages when first learning that they have a terminal illness, so people pass through different stages when trying to come to terms with Y2K: 1. Denial. This is the most common response. People think it can’t be that serious. Or they think that technical wizards will come up with a magic bullet to fix it just in time. “Oh, Bill Gates will come up with a solution.” For those who don’t think systemically, it’s difficult to assimilate the potential severe cascading systemic effects that could result from a loss of power in the electric grid, failures in thousand-mile-long food-supply lines or water- or sewage-treatment plants. Many people have the attitude that “I don’t even use a computer, so why should I care about it?” The sheer improbability of it all is another barrier. The idea that the most powerful nation on earth and much of the world civilization could be brought to its knees because of some misprogrammed computer codes simply boggles the mind. It is difficult to integrate because most of us simply do not understand how totally dependent we are on computers for everything from our food supply with its computerized “just in time” inventory systems, rail-delivery systems, to all our financial transactions with every nation in the world. 2. Anger. The second stage is often anger and blaming corporate and government managers for short-term, bottom-line thinking. People ask


Inner Preparedness accusingly, “How could they be so stupid? Why didn’t they tell us sooner that this could be a major problem? How much are they still not telling us? What else are they hiding?” 3. Fear. The next stage can be fear, when people get in a survivalist mode and try to protect themselves—running out to buy and store food, water, and other supplies. They think, “If I just do the right things I will be OK.” 4. Depression and Panic: Next, people realize that even if they buy food and store water and totally prepare, they could still be without electricity and transportation systems. They worry that other people who are desperate may try to steal their food or become violent. They then may feel a sense of hopelessness—that everything will come crashing down. They feel overwhelmed with the magnitude of it. This is the dangerous stage, as mass panic may ensue if large numbers of people go through this stage at the same time. 5. Acceptance and Cooperation. Finally, people can reach the stage of accepting the inevitability of this massive change, and asking realistically what they can do as part of the larger community to cooperate and to make sure everyone is as ready as possible. In order for this possibility to become a reality, it seems essential that as many people as possible become informed about Y2K as rapidly as possible. This gives them time to go through a personal and psychological process to reach the stage of acceptance and working with others. If the current official policy of withholding information about the severity of potential disruptions continues, and people do not find out until mid-1999, with little time left to prepare, they will be angry, frightened, less trustful and less likely to work together. Individual survivalism becomes a useless strategy if you are the only house on your block with food and water, and others are also in need. If you hide in the hills with your fear, your food and a gun, the quality of life you would be living would leave little real reason for living. We need to start spreading the word about Y2K early enough that people can go through their personal process and work through their fear and panic while they still have time to prepare. If people have time to acknowledge and plan for the disruptions, we will have a better opportunity to build a network of community relationships that will support everyone in working together, sharing resources, skills and expertise and building a stable society. Businesses will also have time to gear up to meet new demands for


Inner Preparedness canned foods, wood stoves, bottled water, and so forth. People are not just waiting for leaders to take action. An August 1998 poll by Americans Talk Issues Foundation showed that 10 percent of Americans have purchased emergency home supplies and 39 percent are considering it. Over a hundred community preparedness groups have sprung up all around the country, and churches, foundations and other organizations are beginning to gear up to help prepare the public for the likely impact of widespread systemic disruptions. Some are seeing the Y2K crisis as a social change opportunity. People who have been working their entire lives for political, social and cultural change immediately see its transformational potential. A common response among this group is, “This is what I came here for,” or “I’ve been waiting my entire life for this.” They immediately see the systemic implications of the issue, and use their carefully developed prototype projects as seed examples of how we can meet some of the real human needs in this new situation. What many people are realizing is that if there are breakdowns in the infrastructure of the modern world, the seeds that have been planted by all these movements are likely to see exponential growth. Previously uninvolved members of the public will see them as practical solutions they can use in neighborhoods and communities to meet real-life needs. Using well-developed dialoguing and visioning processes involving the entire community, people could develop new ways to organize themselves with community-supported agriculture, barter and alternative currencies, solar and wind energy, wholistic and complementary medicine, and co-ops of all kinds. As people realize they can mobilize their personal resources and contribute to community-preparedness efforts, they feel more confident and empowered that they can get through this Y2K crisis. Corinne McLaughlin and Gordon Davidson are coauthors of Spiritual Politics: Changing the World from the Inside Out (Ballantine, 1994), and Builders of the Dawn. They are cofounders of The Center for Visionary Leadership in Washington, D.C. and cofounders of Sirius, an ecological village and educational community in Massachusetts. Corinne coordinated a national task force for President Clinton’s Council on Sustainable Development and taught politics at American University, and Gordon was formerly the executive director of the Social Investment Forum and of The Center for Environmentally Responsible Economics. They can be reached at: The Center for Visionary Leadership, 3408 Wisconsin Ave. NW., Suite 200, Washington, DC 20016; (202) 237-2800.


Inner Preparedness

From Chaos to Coherence: The Emotional Challenge of Y2K by Doc Childre and Bruce Cryer The Y2K problem is clearly unprecedented, requiring creativity, ingenuity, and above all, emotional balance. It arrives at a time when uncertainty and the pace of change are already increasing at breakneck speed. Much like trying to predict the path and devastation of an approaching hurricane, little can be known beforehand as to how widespread the impending destruction will be, how extensive the infrastructure breakdowns, or how long-lasting the effects. But the silver lining in this otherwise gloomy scenario is the potential we each have to prepare ourselves, our families and our communities, internally—emotionally—for what is to come. Begin thinking now that the Y2K challenge revolves not just around preparing to survive and avoiding inconvenience, but around a set of opportunities for personal growth and community resilience. This Action Guide has done much to educate you about the potential impact of Y2K on your business and personal life. It is now up to you to choose how you’ll respond and how your emotions and behavior will affect your spheres of influence: family, friends, organization, community. Some will prepare in rational, measured ways. Others, especially those who hear only brief fear-based snippets in the media, will make decisions out of worry and paranoia. Readers on the other side of the millenium will look back at how we as a global community have dealt with the first truly global, man-made disaster. Did we prepare well? Did we pull together in a sense of community to address the issues maturely and with balance? Or did we overreact and allow selfish interests to distort more balanced perspectives? Did the tendency to assign blame result in a frenzy of litigation? Or did it give us a new perspective on how technology dependent we had become? Did we look for and find hope in the midst of gloom? The Institute of HeartMath has worked with teachers, nurses, business executives, police chiefs and many other people and organizations from all


Inner Preparedness walks of life over the last 10 years. We have learned that even in the midst of the most frustrating chaos, a new level of coherence can emerge. Our view is that new levels of personal, family and organizational efficiency, synchronization, and effectiveness are possible. In the face of Y2K, a situation fraught with a variety of emotional traps such as denial, paralysis, shock and panic, discovering how to unlock new levels of human intelligence and cooperation is our best and perhaps only hope. One of the most effective things individuals can do is to maintain personal responsibility for their emotions and not add to the stress and chaos of the situation. HeartMath offers tools that you can use to manage your emotions and gain mental and intuitive clarity about what to do. Institute of HeartMath research shows that aligning the mind with the heart increases intelligence, enhances intuition and helps you find creative solutions in balance with the needs of other people. We call it “intuitechnology”—the unfolding of intuition and the mind’s fuller capacities. Core heart values, such as care, respect, appreciation and love, are what create the alignment between heart and mind. Without these core heart feelings, the mind cannot achieve its potential. It short circuits. As people engage their core heart values, an awareness emerges that brings new intelligence and practical solutions.

Freeze Frame The principal tool we use in all our workshops and trainings to achieve heart/mind alignment or synchronization is called Freeze-Frame. Its effectiveness has been scientifically proven in a variety of research studies. This research demonstrates what many of us already know intuitively—that our mental and emotional attitudes, our immune system and our happiness are directly related to the health of our heart. Freeze-Frame means telling yourself to stop and freeze whatever internal program you are experiencing so that you can evaluate any situation with more clarity. You know what your TV looks like when you press the pause button on the VCR. The picture freezes. When you practice Freeze-Frame, you simply become still inside and frame the moment. Then by activating the heart you gain more objectivity and clarity needed for improved decision-making. We have all heard the saying, “Be still and know.” FreezeFrame shows you how.


Inner Preparedness Here are the steps: 1. 2.

3. 4.

5.

Recognize the stressful feeling and Freeze-Frame it. Take a time out. Make a sincere effort to shift your focus to the area around your heart. Pretend you are breathing through the heart to help you focus your energy in this area. Keep your focus there for 10 seconds or more. Recall a fun, positive feeling or time you’ve had in your life and attempt to re-experience it. Now, using your intuition, common sense, and sincerity, ask your heart what would be a more efficient response to the situation, one that would minimize future stress? Listen to what your heart says in answer to your question.

It’s good to close your eyes while learning how to Freeze-Frame. It can also be helpful to put your hand on your heart in step two to help focus your attention there. Sometimes you may not get an answer right away or the answer you get may be simple common sense, or something you already knew. Other times you may experience a major shift in perspective. With sincere practice, Freeze-Frame can produce these kinds of shifts with consistency.

Building Coherence Our model for building coherence out of chaos is composed of four dynamics: 1. Internal self-management 2. Coherent communication 3. Boosting organizational climates 4. Strategic processes and renewal This model shows that internal self-management—reducing our emotional overreactions to achieve balance and equanimity—is the bottom line of individual and social effectiveness. It recognizes the negative impact stress has on people while providing the science and tools for neutralizing the negative effects. We must remember that even without the strain of Y2K, many people are already feeling overstressed and on the edge of personal chaos. Achieving coherent communication in an increasingly noisy world is particularly important when we consider the emotional charge of much of the Y2K-related information. Next, a growing body of research reveals that the emotional climate people live and work in is critically important to their


Inner Preparedness long-term health and well-being. Y2K challenges our social and organizational systems to become even more adaptable and resilient at a time when a “bunker mentality” could seem quite reasonable. And finally, we all have an ongoing need for renewal at every step of the way, especially when the potential for emotional drain is so prevalent.

Internal Self-Management Consider that families and organizations are living systems composed of people who think and feel. Each system is a large complex organism whose health and resilience depend on many of the same factors that determine an individual’s health and balance. Y2K is like a virus not only attacking computer systems and microprocessors, but also threatening the security and stability of millions of people globally. The very technology we have grown so dependent upon has suddenly become a threat: what will it do to our lifestyle, our children, our conveniences, our sense of hope for the future? The mature and wise among us will prepare carefully for inconveniences while remaining keenly aware there will be life after Y2K. We can grow in intelligence through this crisis or let it take us down. A few things are clear: • The pressure on the individual will increase dramatically over the next few years, heightened by, but not solely because of, Y2K. Individuals and groups need to increase flexibility, adaptability and resilience in the face of this increasing pressure. • Reducing and neutralizing stress in other areas of one’s life saves energy for Y2K-related issues. Start by identifying and plugging leaks in your own personal system. Use the Freeze-Frame tool. • Any system—human, biological or mechanical—needs time to be renewed, lubricated, aligned and recharged. Intelligent capacity will then increase. Research conducted at the Institute of HeartMath over the past 10 years has revealed new understandings about the intelligence of the human system and how to maximize intelligent adaptations to change. The human body is an incredible system—roughly seven trillion cells with a mind-boggling level of physical and biochemical coordination necessary just to turn a page, scratch an itch, or drive a car. When you consider how little of it you have to think about, it becomes even more amazing. When was the last time you reminded your heart to beat, your lungs to expand and contract, or your digestive organs to secrete just the right chemicals at just the right time? These and a myriad of other processes are handled unconsciously for us


Inner Preparedness every moment we live. Intelligence—much of it unconscious—manages the whole system. But what is also becoming increasingly apparent is that these same processes are profoundly affected by what we consciously do: what we think, what we feel, how we react. Research is now clear that the inability to manage oneself emotionally in an efficient manner leads to premature aging, diminished mental clarity, and blocked access to our innate intelligence. Emotional reactiveness, fear and internal emotional noise all inhibit the processing capability in the cortex, the seat of our higher brain functions. Unresolved emotional turmoil also taints our social interactions, making collaboration and cooperation strained at best. This is why smart people can do stupid things. The converse is also true: Increasing internal coherence leads to more efficiency in all physiological systems and greater creativity, adaptability, and flexibility. The greater degree of emotional balance we are able to achieve and sustain, the greater access we have to creative, innovative solutions to problems such as Y2K. Consciously shifting to more positive emotional states turns out to offer high-speed access to greater intelligence, intuition and creativity. Beyond just achieving a “feel-good” state, the increased internal coherence we experience when we feel positive emotionally allows all internal systems to synchronize, thereby maximizing intelligent access. Whether the problem is a relationship with a child or partner or the degree of preparedness that will bring you security and relief, finding a positive emotional experience—a silver lining—to focus on can jumpstart a new creative process. Even reminding oneself that “the situation truly could be worse,” can help neutralize runaway emotional juggernauts. The heart and brain are connected in every human being through elaborate nerve pathways allowing two-way communication of vital information. This inner information highway is often congested due to unrecognized emotional stress, anxiety or fear. But synchronization between heart and brain— between the intuition of the heart and the intellect of the brain—results in greater fulfillment and far more balanced decision making. The positive emotional states of care, appreciation, or love, which are often associated at least metaphorically with the heart, have a dramatic positive impact on this information highway. Our research, and that of others, shows that when people are feeling positive emotionally, their brain function is enhanced while their cardiovascular function is also made more efficient. It’s easy to see how the opposite of this is also true: when we are frustrated,


Inner Preparedness anxious, or fear driven, decisions are often shortsighted and narrow. Biologically speaking, our intelligent capacity is impaired by the volume of this internal emotional noise. We say things we regret, we overreact over “little things,” and we strain our own system needlessly. Finding a positive emotional experience to focus on, particularly when stress is high, can be challenging to say the least. But the effort can pay surprising dividends. Even achieving a “neutral” emotional state can lead to saved energy, better decisions and more balanced relationships. In all Y2K discussions and reflections, ask your heart what are the balanced approaches to take. Listening only to a frantic mind can make matters worse. The emotional energy you save as you prepare yields greater energy when you need it most. In any planning sessions surrounding your personal or organizational response to Y2K, keep the emotional volume to a minimum. This principle is particularly essential in the area of communication.

Coherent Communication The communication challenges surrounding Y2K are considerable. What to believe? Which information is truly balanced and carefully considered versus alarmist and extreme? As the typical media frenzy to uncover the next stimulating story really catches on to Y2K, we could be in for a wild ride. Here are some essential points to reflect on: • Reduce emotionalism in all Y2K-related communication. • Avoid feeding paranoia, fear and anxiety while keeping realistic, balanced perspectives. • Be authentic in telling the story, as best you know it. When the quality of communication is low, when the importance of it is ignored, or when we simply tell ourselves “other things are more pressing,” organizational and personal efficiency suffer. Y2K makes these patterns worse. Coherent communication is based on four key principles: 1. Achieve understanding first. 2. Listen nonjudgmentally. 3. Listen for the essence. 4. Be authentic. Underlying these principles is the belief that compassion, mature understanding, and intuitive sensitivity are needed to weather the Y2K storm. These qualities often emerge after disasters as neighbors help neighbors, and whole communities reach out to other communities devastated by a flood, earthquake or tornado. We can engage them beforehand, to the benefit of all.


Inner Preparedness Boosting Family, Social and Organizational Climates In the social interactions of people, certain key elements can keep attitudes and energy high. The lack of these prepare the environment for an outbreak of what we have called the emotional virus. Many researchers have looked at what makes social climates strong and resilient. Invariably the common factors involve the following: • Contribution—the sense that the contribution one makes is worthwhile • Recognition—the feeling that one’s contribution is recognized and appreciated • Clarity—the degree of clarity about what is expected of an individual • Self-expression—feeling free to question the way things are done • Challenge—feeling that one’s work is challenging • Supportive management—the extent to which people feel supported by their immediate manager How could these same factors be applied to your Y2K efforts? Whether your primary social unit is your family, your community, or the organization that employs you, these same human qualities underlie effectiveness in all Y2K activities. Explore how you’re doing in these areas, and which ones need bolstering. Openly ask each other where the climate—the morale and well-being of the group—is suffering. In many Y2K efforts, a quiet emotional virus has started to take hold, feeding off the fear and strain of the individuals struggling to make headway and stay balanced with time running out. An emotional virus is the net effect of emotional mismanagement within a person or social unit. As with other viruses, an emotional virus is highly infectious. People think it is okay to complain, whine, and sarcastically laugh—about the worried coworker, the stressed-out boss who ignores voice mail or e-mail, the department that just cannot get its act together—not realizing they have caught the emotional virus bug. Each casual complaint and unconscious judgment is like coughing in a colleague’s face, thus spreading the germs of negative emotions and creating a caustic, unfulfilling environment. The emotional virus is extremely draining to all involved, making true collaboration difficult at best, and forcing creativity into the background. The group’s internal dynamics become the issue, gloom and doom abound, and balanced responses are nowhere to be found. Hope is absent. Paying attention to the principles of internal self-management, coherent communi-


Inner Preparedness cation, and a healthy climate can do much to mitigate the virus’s effect in work teams and families. Having lived 10 miles from the epicenter of the 1989 Bay Area earthquake, it was fascinating to watch our neighbors’ reactions to the disaster. Some panicked and fled the state. Others were traumatized but struggled to get through. Still others saw an outpouring of a “family feeling,” of people carpooling, helping each other clear away debris and reaching out to friends and strangers alike to address immediate needs and rebuild our community. Events such as natural or man-made disasters are like a giant forced FreezeFrame: life stands still as we are compelled to look at everything through new eyes. Disasters can bring people of various religions, races, ethnic groups and socioeconomic levels together. Some experience deep bonding with people they wouldn’t have even talked to before. This is because in times of crisis, people naturally tend to go to their hearts and pull together. In preparing for Y2K there needs to be a focus on bonding because that strengthens emotional and social support. Extraordinary numbers of people have over the past few years been forming support groups, both formal or informal, in churches and synagogues, healing and recovery groups, book clubs and study circles, and a variety of other settings. These gatherings amount to a grassroots movement, and may form the basis for the paradigm shift that people and businesses have talked about for years. In these groups people are learning to increase their love, care and compassion. If you happen to be in a support group, remember to actually support each other. Don’t turn it into a gripe session, spending most of your time together complaining or sharing anxieties, because that adds to emotional stress. Instead, find ways to help and care for each other, for your family, your workplace, and your neighborhood. Respect and honor each other’s different beliefs and love each other more sincerely. At the very least, learn to back off on the judgments. Allow people to come into their own understanding of what’s best for them and the whole. Children are emotionally sensitive. Children of all ages are feeling more anxiety, fear and symptoms of uneasiness these days. They don’t know why they are feeling that way, but they pick up on the emotional virus levels throughout society, in the home and at school. While we pressure kids to learn computer skills and math to stay abreast of technological advances,


Inner Preparedness it’s emotional balance that children need most to deal with the chaos and stress of Y2K. It’s time to teach ourselves and our children how to care deeply about something, and to have strongly held beliefs and opinions, without judging others. Judgments only end up hurting the one who judges. We recommend that you learn and teach them to Freeze-Frame. Your best course of action invariably comes from the core values of your heart.

Strategic Processes and Renewal We have emphasized the importance of emotional balance in all preparedness efforts. In this way you have an opportunity to keep yourself and your group renewed instead of drained. As with any team process, the team itself needs to be renewed, to do things to recharge its batteries, to have fun. Thinking strategically about your personal or organizational future will be enhanced when your emotional state is positive and balanced. Teams of people who function at high levels of creativity and collaboration are entrained. Entrainment is a term used in physics to describe the tendency of systems to synchronize to allow maximum efficiency. When a team is entrained, much more energy and innovation is unleashed than when a team is incoherent, its goals and values fuzzy, and its communication frustrated or mired in bickering. Entrained teams result when the individual members have a high degree of internal self-management and when communication is coherent and sincere. The planning you do for Y2K can be done from the heart, with the goal of achieving the highest level of personal security and group cooperation, or you can succumb to selfish survivalism. With stress continuing to increase throughout the world, petty annoyances and antagonism can easily deflate collaborative efforts. Be on the lookout for strain in each other, and with compassion and understanding, lend a helping hand and a mature heart. Helping each other manage the emotional strain of Y2K can yield creative alternatives and build a new foundation for heart-based human communication and hope. Adapted from From Chaos to Coherence: Advancing Emotional and Organizational Intelligence through Inner Quality Management, by Doc Childre and Bruce Cryer. Published November 1998 by ButterworthHeinemann.


Inner Preparedness Doc Childre is Chairman and CEO of HeartMath LLC, an innovative training and consulting firm based near Silicon Valley in California. Doc is a consultant to business leaders and CEOs and founded the Institute of HeartMath in 1990 to research practical new approaches to the challenges of change, stress, health, and productivity. He is the author of six books on the applications of the HeartMath system and the composer of two albums of music designed to increase mental and emotional balance. Bruce Cryer is Vice President, Global Business Development, for HeartMath LLC. A key architect of HeartMath’s Inner Quality Management program, Bruce has consulted to such global companies as Motorola, Hewlett-Packard, Shell, Cathay Pacific Airways, and Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce. He is on the faculty of the Stanford Executive Program and has worked extensively with private and public sector organizations on three continents. HeartMath®, Freeze-Frame®, intui-technology®, and Inner Quality Management® are registered trademarks of the Institute of HeartMath. The steps for Freeze-Frame are copyrighted by Planetary LLC. The Institute of HeartMath is a nonprofit organization. For information on their research, clinical services and volunteer programs, call (831) 3388500 or visit their website at http://www.heartmath.org. For Information on the HeartMath system programs and educational materials call (800) 450-9111 or visit their web site.


Appendices


Appendices

The U.S. Committee on Government Reform and Oversight Introduction The Committee on Government Reform and Oversight has primary legislative and oversight jurisdiction with respect to the overall economy, efficiency and management of government operations and activities. Pursuant to this authority, the Subcommittee on Government Management, Information and Tecnology convened an oversight hearing on April 16, 1996, to examine whether computers throughout the Federal Government, the United States, and the world would be able to handle the transition from the year 1999 to the year 2000. The subcommittee has continued this investigation throughout the 105th Congress. Here follows their latest recommendations, as of October 8, 1998. For the full report, visit the Web page, http://www.house.gov/reform/gmit/y2k/y/.

Committee Recommendations 1. The President and the Executive Branch of the United States Government Must Approach the Year 2000 Problem with Greater Urgency. Executive leadership is the key to rectifying the year 2000 problem. Senior executive management in Federal agencies, other levels of government, and forprofit and nonprofit organizations throughout society must make year 2000 efforts a priority. This involves accepting the responsibility, freeing up the necessary resources, and insisting on a timeline for finishing the job before January 1, 2000. This is especially true for the Federal Government. The Federal Government is uniquely positioned to publicize the year 2000 crisis as a national priority and to take a leadership role. The President is the elected leader of the Nation. All efforts to combat the year 2000 problem take their cue from the top. The current evidence points to considerable year 2000 failure unless the rate of progress throughout society improves considerably. In too many sectors,


Appendices there is simply no reliable information about year 2000 vulnerability. We cannot head into the new millennium unprepared. It is time for the President to declare that the year 2000 problem is a National Priority. If sufficient progress is not made by an intermediate deadline, he may even need to escalate the year 2000 problem to a National Emergency. The point of calling for such urgency is not to trigger panic, but in fact to avoid panic. If this problem does not receive the attention it demands during the next six to nine months, and if we allow the date change to approach without knowing our vulnerability, panic will be the inevitable result. The only way to avoid this is to act now. The President must sound the alarm and address to the Nation now in order to avoid panic later.

2. Public and Private Organizations as Well as Federal, State, and Local Governments Must all Work in Partnership to Prepare for the year 2000 Date Change. America needs a national year 2000 Conversion strategy. As the year 2000 approaches, anxiety will increase throughout society. One major aggravation to this anxiety, which could cause more problems than the technology failure itself, is lack of information. It is imperative that citizens have as much information as possible. This includes information that can help individuals, families, and organizations prepare for the year 2000. This also includes information on how others are preparing: the Federal Government, State and local governments, telephone companies, utility companies, schools, banks, and so on. It also includes information on all kinds of products, from complex medical equipment to microwave ovens. Making this type of information available will have the double benefit of preparing citizens and pressuring organizations to complete their year 2000 fixes on time. Along with Congress, State, and local representatives, the President must work in partnership with private companies and associations to define a year 2000 action plan and make this information available. In addition to specific action items, a minimal strategy should include goals, objectives, benchmarks, and performance measures. Most Federal departments and agencies have a year 2000 strategy and are well on their way to satisfying requirements. The private sector has a much broader range of effort. Some have just begun their effort. Others are nearing completion. At the current time, the most logical mechanism for establishing a year 2000 strategy to coordinate efforts, share information, and alert citizens to the status of year 2000 preparations is the President’s Council on the Year


Appendices 2000 Conversion. It is headed by Assistant to the President John Koskinen. As noted above, this Council has already established a number of working groups to focus on particular sectors of society, but these efforts seem to be taking place behind closed doors. Openness is crucial: dissemination of information should be a primary function of these working groups. For example, each of these groups should establish a database of compliant and noncompliant products as well as other information relevant to the sector. A coordinated, public/private effort, under the leadership of the President, could effectively bring together the key economic sectors to coordinate the Nation’s year 2000 efforts and ensure that all sectors, as well as interdependencies between sectors, are being adequately addressed, and that the American people are fully informed as the year 2000 approaches.

3. Congress and the President Should Establish Carefully Limited Federal Liability Protection for Organizations that Share Information in Order to Facilitate Year 2000 Repairs. Companies that go out of their way to inform other companies and the public of their year 2000 status should not be exposed to civil liability for unintentionally inaccurate statements. Limited protection from such liability would facilitate information sharing as the clock ticks toward January 1, 2000. S. 2392, the “Year 2000 Information Disclosure Act,” establishes a uniform standard of legal liability to protect those who, in good faith, share information on the year 2000 problem and solutions to it. This bill passed the Senate on September 28, 1998. The House of Representatives passed the same bill by unanimous consent on October 1, 1998. The key provision of the bill shields companies that make inaccurate statements on year 2000 issues from civil liability unless the statements are knowingly false or negligent. The bill also ensures that there is no threat of product defamation from inaccurate year 2000 statements unless they are knowingly false or negligent. Even well-tested systems can fail, especially in unusual situations. The bill would not relieve companies of liability for building bad products. It protects sharing of information, but nothing more. The committee believes it would be counterproductive to relieve companies of liability for building bad products, doing sloppy work, or being careless with the truth. But with this legislation, Congress recognized that mistakes can be made, and that it is now more important for organizations to share year 2000 information than to argue over liability. The real work must begin in earnest as time is short. By taking the liability card off the table, organizations can


Appendices share crucial information and focus on getting the year 2000 job done.

4. Year 2000 Problem Managers Should Develop Goals that are Linked to Readiness Measures. Effective oversight by Congress and the Executive branch needs to measure regular progress towards year 2000 compliance for both public and private sectors. Year 2000 management should develop sector-by-sector goals. These goals should be linked to year 2000 readiness measures. The measures will provide a basis for determining what is being accomplished. The year 2000 problem must not be allowed to spark a national crisis. Good measures of year 2000 readiness will be both a technological and psychological antidote to panic. For example, the subcommittee has measured how well the Federal Government is meeting the year 2000 challenge. It has developed a report card for the critical computer systems in the Executive branch. Grades are determined by the number of year 2000 compliant systems which are remediated by each agency achieves. This model should be replicated. Markers or benchmarks must be developed for the broad spectrum of year 2000 problems across the country. The year 2000 computer problem will not be resolved unless we approach it systematically. A results-oriented approach to year 2000 will go a long way to moving the United States constructively into the 21st century. One of the most difficult jobs in any human organization is to develop these markers, the behavioral standards, benchmarks, the points along the way toward achieving goals. These markers measure performance and are meant to hold people accountable for their performance. A few State and national governments have shown leadership here.

5. Citizens Should Demand Information on Year 2000 Readiness from their State and Local Governments, their Utility Companies, and Other Organizations upon which they are Dependent. As noted above, there are at least two significant barriers to effective year 2000 remediation: (1) Management denial: the reluctance of senior management to recognize the year 2000 problem and make the hard choices necessary to solve it; and (2) fear of legal liability, which can have the effect of stifling the kind of disclosure and exchange of information necessary to solve the problem. These barriers to serious year 2000 efforts must be broken down. Perhaps the most effective means of doing so is public


Appendices pressure. Profit-making organizations respond to pressure from consumers; political institutions respond to pressure from constituents; nonprofit organizations respond to their donors and public opinion as well. Furthermore, the year 2000 problem raises the specter of widespread panic. There has been talk of customers withdrawing their money out of banks, stockpiling weapons, and taking other steps that could be more dangerous than the technological failure itself. One of the best antidotes to this panic is information. People need to speak directly with their banks, utility companies, and other organizations whose failure would have drastic consequences. They need to assure themselves that the fixes will be made. They need to know, based on direct contact, that there is no reason to panic. And they need to know what reasonable steps should be taken to prepare as January 1, 2000 approaches ... The ProFutures Financial Group stated that investors have not been given adequate disclosure of year 2000 issues by public companies. In addition, the ProFutures Financial Group stated that the Federal Reserve must start releasing the names of banks which are behind in their compliance programs. A consultant with Roma International stated that many vendors, suppliers, customers are either refusing to respond to year 2000 inquiries or are responding with vague generalities on the advice of their legal counsels. This consultant was uncertain whether a “safe harbor” bill would improve the situation. B-373 Rayburn House Office Building, Washington D.C. 20515 Phone: (202) 225-5147. Fax: (202) 225-2373

Committee Members: Republicans Stephen Horn, Chairman of the Subcommittee, 38th District, California; Pete Sessions, Vice Chairman of the Subcommittee, 5th District, Texas; Tom Davis, 11th District, Virginia; Joe Scarborough, 1st District, Florida; Mark Sanford, 1st District, South Carolina; John Sununu, 1st District, New Hampshire; Ron Lewis, 2nd District, Kentucky; Dan Burton (Ex Officio), Chairman, Full Committee, 6th District, Indiana

Democrats Dennis Kucinich. Ranking Minority Member, 10th District, Ohio; Paul Kanjorski, 11th District, Pennsylvania; Major Owens, 11th District, New York; Carolyn Maloney, 14th District, New York; James Turner, 2nd District, Texas; Henry Waxman (Ex Officio), Ranking Minority Member, Full Committee, 29th District, California


Appendices

Proposed Citizens Y2K Financial Protection Act The Cassandra Project has recently put forward at the state level “Citizens Y2K Financial Protection Act”; a bill that would limit or place a moratorium on foreclosures, repossessions, evictions, utility shutoffs, etc., over the century-date-change time period. In draft is also “Citizens Y2K Healthcare Assurance Act,” which would guarantee medical care in the event Medicaid/Medicare or private medical insurance programs experience financial or records problems. The “Citizens Y2K Individual and Community Support Act” (in draft), would require cities or towns to provide a clearinghouse for Y2K preparedness activities and information, and allow individuals to deduct a portion of preparing their homes (e.g., purchase of generators if you have a medical need for one); and deduct the costs of attending Y2K preparedness education seminars, first aid and CPR classes, etc. It would also allow neighborhood groups to deduct the cost of printing, advertising and sponsoring local Y2K preparedness education seminars. PREAMBLE WHEREAS, Our society is heavily reliant upon computers, technology and the rapid transfer and exchange of accurate information and data via electronic means, and relies heavily upon computer technology for most all aspects of daily living and business, and WHEREAS, It is recognized and understood universally that the rapid growth of technology has often outpaced the equipment, software and hardware that our society utilizes for the exchange and transfer of data and other information, and, WHEREAS, It is apparent in our society that computer technology which was principally utilized a few years ago and is a major operational basis for much of our current hardware and software, contains an operational basis that may not recognize the change in our calendars beyond the year 1999, such that in the year 2000, many computer-based systems may fail or cause incorrect data information to be processed. This deficiency in computers


Appendices world wide is often referred to as the Y2K Bug and may cause significant problems with the exchange of data and information in the year 2000 and beyond. THEREFORE, In order to exercise the duty of this lawmaking body to protect its citizenry, this law is hereby enacted as part of this body’s duty to the citizens of this State and shall be known as the CITIZENS Y2K FINANCIAL PROTECTION ACT. IT IS HEREBY ENACTED: DEFINITIONS * [as needed] * 1. No entity or citizen of [this state] or who transacts business with the citizens of [this state] on matters directly or indirectly affecting property, mortgages, credit accounts, banking and/or financial transactions of persons, tangible or intangible property or property interests in this State shall cause or permit a foreclosure, default or other adverse action against any person as a result of the improper or incorrect transmission or inability to cause transaction to occur, which is caused wholly or in part to a failure or inability to accurately or timely process any information or data, payment, transfer or processing of same, due directly or indirectly to the failure or malfunction of any computer processor to accurately or properly recognize, calculate, display, sort or otherwise process dates or times or other data as a consequence of such system to incorrectly process the proper date which may result in inaccurate, incorrect operations or applications, or inability to operate. 2. Further, no such person or entity may take any adverse or enforcement action whether based on contract or otherwise against any person or entity who is unable to cause payment, acts, forbearance, or other transaction in a timely manner, to occur where such failure or inability of such obligor to access or receive funds or to otherwise cause a proper transaction to occur, is due wholly or in party to the inability of either party to have such necessary data, information, payments, fund transfer, checking or other such financial transaction to occur, where it is due to the obligor’s inability to properly account or the obligee’s inability to access or cause their source of such transaction to occur properly. 3. The prohibition of such enforcement of obligations, shall apply particularly, but not exclusively to, mortgages, contracts, landlord tenant relations, consumer credit obligations, utilities and banking transactions.


Appendices 4. No enforcement shall resume until said obligor has a reasonable time after the full restoration of the ability to regularly receive and dispense necessary financial transactions relative to such obligations. 5. This law shall not effect those transactions upon which such default has occurred prior to any such disruption of financial or data transfer operations upon either party, from whatever source or case such disruption has occurred. 6. This law shall not dissolve but shall only suspend the enforcement of such obligations. 7. This law shall prohibit the negative entry to any credit reporting agency, which operates in [this state], in whole or in part, of any negative credit information which is due in whole or in part to the disruption of the otherwise proper processing of financial responsibilities and information, or the inability of the consumer to cause payments to be made to creditors where such inability is due in whole or in part to the disruption or otherwise malfunctioning of computer processing, banking or other related matters. 8. This law shall remain in effect until December 31, 2006 or such other extensions as approved by this legislative body. 9. All other laws to the contrary, notwithstanding where in the Code of Laws they shall appear, are hereby amended to comply with this law. By: David C. Cole, ESQ Atlanta, GA For: The Cassandra Project PO Box 8 Louisville, CO 80027 (303) 664-5227 Permission granted to reproduce.


Appendices

Resources Compiled by the Nathan Cummings Foundation Web Citations to Important Articles, Reports, and Testimony “Oversight Findings” by the House Subcommittee on Government Management, Information & Technology, October 8, 1998 (http://www.house.gov/reform/gmit/y2k/index.htm) Expert Testimony by the Gartner Group to the U.S. Senate Special Committee on the Year 2000 Technology Problem, October 7, 1998 (http://gartner11.gartnerweb.com/public/static/aboutgg/pressrel/testimony1098.html) “Year 2000 Problem Impacts and Actions,” OECD Report, Sept. 30, 1998 (http://www.oecd.org/puma/gvrnance/it/y2k.htm) “Survey: The Millennium Bug,” The Economist, September 19, 1998 (http://www.economist.co.uk/editorial/freeforall/19-9-98survey/index_survey.html) (The Economist may remove this article from its site at some point.) “Year 2000 Recession?” by Dr. Edward Yardeni (http://www.yardeni.com/y2kbook.html) “The Year 2000: Social Chaos or Social Transformation?” by John L Petersen, Margaret Wheatley, and Myron Kellner-Rogers; and “The National and Global Implications of the Year 2000 Embedded Systems Crisis” and “Draft Summary of a White Paper on National and Global Y2K Initiatives” by Paula D. Gordon, Ph.D. (http://www.year2000.com/y2karchive.html) “Dealing with the Year 2000 Problem: What Local Government Should be Doing About the Year 2000 Problem” and “Dealing with the Year 2000 Problem: International Compliant Community Initiative” by Steve Davis (http://www.itpolicy.gsa.gov/mks/yr2000/y2kconf/papers.htm) “Weekly Notes” on Y2K by Douglass Carmichael and Mark Frautschi (http://www.tmn.com/~doug/) United Way of America’s Year 2000 Technical Guide (http://www.unitedway.org/year2000/)

News and Opinion Sites Y2KToday (http://www.y2ktoday.com/modules/home/default.asp) (daily feed of


Appendices some 500 stories from a special reporting team, plus wire reports) Sanger’s Review of Y2K News Reports (http://www.cruxnet.com/~sanger/y2k/) Peter de Jager’s web page of daily Y2K press clippings (http://www.year2000.com/y2karticles.html) Doug Carmichael’s weekly musings (http://www.tmn.com/y2k) Westergaard Y2K website (http://www.y2ktimebomb.com/) Dr. Edward Yardeni’s Y2K CyberEconomics web page (http://www.yardeni.com/cyber.html) Ed Yourdon’s Y2K RESOURCES (http://www.yourdon.com/index.htm)

Federal Government Sites The President’s Council on Year 2000 Conversion (http://www.y2k.gov/) (with links to Y2K speeches by the president and vice president and to Y2K information by sector) The Senate Special Committee on the Year 2000 Technology Problem, chaired by Senator Robert Bennett (R-Utah) (http://www.senate.gov/~y2k/). Heath’s Links to Y2K Congressional testimony (http://home.swbell.net/adheath/testimony.htm) GAO Y2K Reports (http://www.gao.gov/y2kr.htm) U.S. Small Business Administration, small business help for the year 2000 (http://www.sba.gov/y2k/index.html)

State & Local Government Sites Public Technology, Inc’s Y2K website (http://pti.nw.dc.us/membership/y2k/) Y2K coordinators (http://www.nasire.org/year2000/coordinators.html)

Community Preparedness Sites The Cassandra Project website (http://www.millennia-bcs.com/casframe.htm) Lowell, Massachusetts website on community Y2K preparation (http://lowellonline.org/bna/y2k/) Napa Valley (California) website (http://www.y2knapa.com/) The Co-Intelligence Institute’s Y2K Home Page (http://www.co-intelligence.org/y2k_breakthrough.html)


Appendices Santa Cruz, California’s draft document for Y2K community planning (http://www.co-intelligence.org/y2k_communityplan2.html) “Year 2000 contingency planning for municipal governments,” by Capers Jones (http://www.angelfire.com/mn/inforest/capersj989.html) Rick Ingrasci’s site on community resilience (http://www.y2kcommunity.org)

Finding Our Way To Sustainability Through Y2K Compiled by Gayle M. Parrish, Panther Wilde, and Tom Atlee When some folks contemplate the really bad Y2K scenarios—no juice in the wires, no water in the tap, no food in the stores—they begin to wonder whether total dependence on the global infrastructure is smart. Even if they’re not ready to let go of Mastercard, Starbucks and The Grid, they start thinking about solar panels, gardens and local currency systems. If you are interested in more local, sustainable, self-reliant systems that could make your community (and your life) more resilient, take a look at some of these resources.

Alternative Products Real Goods Company, 555 Leslie St., Ukiah, CA 95482; 1-800-762-7325 (www.realgoods.com), the oldest and largest US supplier of renewable products for energy independence. Jade Mountain, PO Box 4616, Boulder CO 80306; 303-449-6601 (www.jademountain.com), specializes in “appropriate technology” of all kinds. Lehmann’s Non-Electric Catalog, Box 41, Kidron, OH 44635

Books Awakening: The Upside of Y2K, edited by Judy Laddon, Tom Atlee, and Larry Shook (The Printed Word, 1998). Going Local: Creating Self-Reliant Communities in a Global Age, by Michael H. Shuman (The Free Press, 1998). Restoring the Earth: Visionary Solutions from the Bioneers, by Kenny Ausubel (H.J.Kramer, 1997). The Way of Council: Jack Zimmerman and Virginia Coyle (Bramble Books, 1996, LasVegas, NV). The Joy of Conversation: the Complete Guide to Salons (Utne Reader Books, 1997). The Good Life; Mastering the Art of Everyday Living, (Utne Reader Books, 1997). Gaviotas: A Village to Reinvent the World, by Alan Weisman (Chelsea Green, 1998). The Natural House Catalog: Everything You Need to Create an Environmentally Friendly Home, by David Pearson (Fireside Books/Simon & Schuster, 1996).


Appendices Practical Preparedness—A Y2K Resource Handbook, by Howard and Sharon Silver (Practical Preparedness, Lafayette, CO). A Pattern Language: Towns, Buildings, Construction, and A Timeless Way of Building, by Christopher Alexander, Sara Ishikawa, and Murray Silverstein (1977, Oxford University Press, New York). The Passive Solar House, James Kachadorian (Chelsea Green, 1997). The Home Water Supply: How to Find, Filter, Store and Conserve Water, by Stu Campbell (Storey, 1983). Rainwater Harvesting: The Collection of Rainfall and Runoff in Rural Areas, by Arnold Pacey and Adrian Cullis (Intermediate Technology, 1986). Introduction to Permaculture, by Bill Mollison (1995, Tagari Publications, Tyalgum, NSW, AU). How to Grow More Vegetables, by John Jeavons (1995, Ten Speed Press, Berkeley, CA). The Future is Abundant: A Guide to Sustainable Agriculture in the Pacific Northwest, edited by Larry Korn, Barbara Snyder and Mark Musick (1982, Tilth). The Millennium Whole Earth Catalog: Access to Tools and Ideas for the TwentyFirst Century, ed. by Howard Rheingold (1994, Harper, San Francisco). Towards Sustainable Communities: Resources for Cities and Their Governments, by Mark Roseland (1998, New Society Publishers, Gabriola Island, BC). Living on Less: An Authoritative Guide to Affordable Food, Fuel and Shelter, edited by John Vivian and The Mother Earth News (1998, Chelsea Green, White River Junction, VT). The Cobber’s Companion: How to Build Your Own Earthen Home, by Michael Smith (1997, The Cob Cottage Company, Cottage Grove, OR). The Humanure Handbook, by Joseph C. Jenkins (1996, Chelsea Green, White River Junction, VT). The Encyclopedia of Country Living, by Carla Emery (1994, Sasquatch Books, Seattle). The Ecology of Commerce, by Paul Hawken (1993, HarperCollins, New York). Creating Community Anywhere: Finding Support and Connection in a Fragmented World, by Carolyn Shaffer and Kristin Anundsen (1993, Tarcher, New York).

Magazines Yes! A Journal of Positive Futures, quarterly, $24/yr, PO Box 10818, Bainbridge Island, WA 98110; 1-800-937-4451. (www.futurenet.org). Earthlight—A Magazine of Spiritual Ecology, quarterly, $18/yr, 111 Fairmount Ave., Oakland, CA 94611; 510-451-4926 (www.earthlight.org). Permaculture Activist, 3 issues, $19/yr, PO Box 1209, Black Mountain NC 28711; 704-298-2812 Utne Reader, six issues, $19.97/yr, PO Box 7460, Red Oak, IA 51591-0460.

Internet Resources The Co-Intelligence Institute (www.co-intelligence.org). The leading website on Y2K as an opportunity for individual, community and cultural transformation.


Appendices Real Goods Company (www.realgoods.com). Geri Guidetti’s Ark Seed Institute (www.arkinstitute.com). How to Build a Clay Oven (www.tomifobia.com/oven.html). Solstice Sustainable Building site (http://solstice.crest.org/index.shtml). Low-Cost Living (www.lowcostliving.com). Intergarden: Regenerative Agriculture, Renewable Energy, Permaculture and Bioregionalism (http://sunSITE.unc.edu/london/The_Sustainable_ Farmstead.html Biointensive Gardening website (www.speakeasy.org/~tilth/sustgrow/biomethd.htm) Overcoming Consumerism (www.hooked.net/users/verdant/index.htm) Sprouting and Raw Foods (www.living-foods.com/articles/) Ithaca HOURS (www.lightlink.com/hours/ithacahours/) lists North American local currency systems and offers Hometown Money Starter Kit. Fellowship of Intentional Communities (www.ic.org) includes many sustainability links as well as communities. TraNet (www.nonviolence.org/tranet) and the Context Institute (www.context.org) both have rich archives of their sustainability journals. Communications for a Sustainable Future (http://csf.colorado.edu/sustainability), which has a permaculture and sustainable living page (csf.colorado.edu/perma) and a self-sufficient sustainable village page (csf.Colorado.edu/perma/village]), neither of which are easily accessible from the home page) Empowerment Resources (www.EmpowermentResources.com) People in Action for a Better World (www.gn.apc.org/peopleinaction) One Earth (www.1earth.com) Motherheart (http://gnv.fdt.net/~mother), especially the community section Sustainable Development (www.lib.kth.se/~lg/sustain.htm) Utne Reader Online (www.utne.com)

Videos Ed Yourdon's Y2K Home Preparation Video, http://www.readyfory2k.com or call 919-933-8533 The best collection of videos we know (from August,1998, Y2K Conference in Boulder, CO) contact http://www.webeone.net or call 303-448-8838 —Jim Lord: "What is the Millennium Bug?" —Paloma O'Riley: "Personal Preparation" —Paloma O'Riley: "Community Preparation" —Joel Ackerman: "Y2K Impacts on Healthcare" —Steve Davis: "Role of City and County Governments" —Roleigh Martin: "Impacts on Critical Infrastructure" —Margaret Wheatley: "Complex Systems and Community Planning Approaches" —Jim Lord: "Personal Finance"


Afterword By Eric Utne I sincerely hope that the turn of the millennium will pass without incident, and that all the anxiety and concern that surrounds Y2K will amount to nothing more than a tempest in a teapot. No one really knows what will happen come Y2K, least of all me. Still, I do believe in being prepared. It’s just good, common sense to prepare for the unexpected, whether it be a natural disaster, like floods, fires, earthquakes and tornadoes, or a man-made catastrophe. We don’t know whether or not the anticipated computer problems will cascade into social disruptions, but, as the New York Times editorialized last August, “It makes sense to prepare for the worst.” Once people start taking the Y2K problem seriously they immediately begin thinking about how to take care of their loved ones and especially their family and friends. This is natural and normal and right. Just as the airlines remind passengers before every flight to “place the oxygen mask securely over your own face before assisting small children,” it’s proper to begin preparing your home before you organize your entire neighborhood. Nonetheless, remember Paloma O’Riley’s words, “The best security you have is a prepared neighbor.” Treat your neighbor like family, as best you can, and treat the rest of the world like your neighborhood. Become a public citizen, and insist that officials in every sector create and communicate Y2K contingency plans. Start or join a community preparedness group (see Cassandra Project listing in “Resources”). Contact elected officials and insist they pass legislation like the “Citizens Y2K Financial Protection Act.” And finally, become the kind of person you’d want helping you in times of need: knowledgeable, compassionate, secure, available, willing to work hard, attentive to the needs of others, emotionally balanced, with a wacky sense of humor fully intact. Now that you know more about the Y2K issue and have read some ideas about how to prepare, you face a choice. According to contributor Tom Atlee, “The choice goes like this: “a) We can step out of our own personal business-as-usual so we can


respond really creatively to this situation, or, “b) We can wait until the situation is worse and we have less time, fewer resources, and more chaos, with barely enough energy to keep our heads above water.” So go ahead, start now. The things you’ll do to prepare yourself and your community for Y2K will lead to the kind of fearless, engaged, connected and committed life you really want to live anyway.

Y2K Citizen’s Action Guide is funded by generous individual and foundation donors. It is one of several community-organizing, education, and awareness initiatives we’re contemplating. If you’d like to help us with a taxdeductible contribution, send checks (and suggestions for worthy Y2K causes) made out to the “Citizens League/Y2K,” and mail it to: Y2K Project, c/o The Citizens League, 708 S. 3rd Street, Suite 500, Minneapolis, MN 55415. If you want help organizing your community, contact The Cassandra Project (www.millenia-bcs.com). If you find that your area has no community preparedness groups yet, and you’d like to start one, send an email to Webpales, an organization that connects people interested in Y2K, at: [email protected]. Their web page is at www.webpal.org/list.htm.


Supplement to Utne Reader

"The best security you have is a prepared neighbor." —Paloma O’Riley, Cofounder, The Cassandra Project "This is a time for each of us to take responsibility not only for the people who live close to us...but for those vulnerable people and countries who so often go unseen and neglected. In this highly interdependent world we have created, their problems are, in fact, our problems." —Charles R. Halpern, President, The Nathan Cummings Foundation "...The greatest antidote to worry, whether you're getting ready for spaceflight or facing a problem of daily life, is preparation ...the more you try to envision what might happen and what your best response and options are, the more you are able to allay your fears about the future." —Senator John Glenn "The Y2K bug provides us with an extraordinary opportunity to ask ourselves the profound questions which have been buried by our wealth and our technology. It is a time for us to ask what we really value and how we can preserve the ecological systems on which all life depends. It is a wonderful time to be alive." —Robert Theobald, economist and futurist "If life is a process of discovering who we are, Y2K is when we find out." —Tom Atlee, President, rev. 11/10/98 Co-Intelligence Institute

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