Although I have lived in quasi-urban, suburban, exurban areas and the boondocks, I really view the future from a boondocks perspective since that is where I have been for the past 30 years.

I think Jeff Vail's Rhizome Communities (see his post of February 11. 2008 at http://www.JeffVail.com ) are, perhaps, the most realistic, best case as to how the future might play out.

One of the things about the boondocks is that we recognize our interdependedness, especially in difficult situations. At the same time, the old-timers/true survivors have the skill-sets and resources necessary to pull it off alone if necessary. To put survival in perspective, many years ago the snow was so deep that when my neighbor went to check his sheep, his horse couldn't get through the snow with him on its back. Instead, he hung onto the horse's tail and was dragged a mile through the snow to home.

Further, we all "owe" each other. If I help a neighbor, he "owes" me. The thing is this happens so often, and no one keeps track, that we simply respond when called upon. This is vastly different than "city people" who never develop these kinds of necessary interrelationships.

Let me put this into a real life context. Last year my 4x4 was in the shop and we had a snow storm (I'm in the northern CA mountains) and my wife had to get to a conference. My neighbor said would get her out. He not only did this but he and a friend had to spend two hours cutting up an oak tree that had fallen across the road to even get to our house. Now, David didn't have to do this...but he promised he would get Ginny out and he did. His word, and all of our words, are our bond.

I never saw this sort of thing in other areas where we have lived. But, this is what it is going to take to survive.

Todd