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One event that has sustained emotional resonance is that evening on the outskirts of Moscow. I was a kid of six or so. It was 1995ish and my mother and I were ferried to some bestial monument to Brutalism in a creme colored Soviet Era drandulet.

As we approached the long low apartment complex shrouded in trees and twilight I noted an eerie passage to some inky basement.

My mother mentioned something about the spirit of death lingering there. And we scurried past the monstrosity into a green tinted hallway and up a flight of stairs.

At the time I was often surprised that not evervyone lived eleven stories high.

We’d arrived for tea. As with all such memories of early life I can’t for the life of me recall if we were the guests of friends or family.

Anyhow the sixtyish woman and her husband were hospitable as all great Russians are. Offering the best of a meager stock of crackers and aromatic Chai.

Though the reminiseces the adults had seemed pleasant there was notheless a certain pensiveness. And then the conversation turned to hunger.

So, I suppose my mother was right. The spirit of death did linger there.

It was the spectre of famine, the monster of want.

Though he was gone he lingered.

Here some twenty five years later in the post industrial land of endless buffets such a beast seems less likely than unicorns.

But, perhaps this is an illusion.

As I said, the emotional resonance of that night, the tension in the air, has been sustained throughout my life.

So, I am keenly aware of the precarious balance of agriculture and transport that makes our plenty so commonplace.

Unfortunately, this balance may be skewing towards a dangerous direction.

Alarm is the enemy of wisdom.

But, when Tyson big wigs warn of food shortages, eyebrows should be raised.

Yes, of course there is corporate interest there in spinning things towards favorable legislation but that doesn’t change the fact that our infrastructure is a miracle hanging on a thread.

Here is Ron Paul’s excellent video on this troubling development:

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