In a deposition submitted under oath, Frank Masingill said:
 FM>    How quickly it could all end as though in a flash of lightening.  A
 FM> sudden diminution in the availability of fuel, a breakdown (now
 FM> capable of having earth-wide proportions) in labor relations, even an
 FM> unexpected shift in the distance of the earth from the sun or other
 FM> phenomena could have throngs of people suddenly undergoing suffering
 FM> and death.
    I've thought of this myself on occasion, usually after finishing
 off some novel as Stephen King's _The Stand_ or _On the Beach_
 (author's name forgotten).  As far as fuel goes, I think the time has
 long been nigh to find a renewable energy source, rather than depending
 upon on the relatively rare, dirty-burning fossil fuel we use now.  Our
 dependency puts all at risk, since any threat to our access would/has
 caused war, and eventually it will run out.
    Labor relations seem to me to be not integrated enough between the
 various parts of the link between the farms and the grocery stores that
 we couldn't overcome any breakdown before there was mass starvation.
    Now, a shift in the earth's orbital distance would about wipe out
 the human population, if it was even a minor shift.  There's not much
 any agency, private or public, could do to help.
... Ban animal testing! They get all nervous and give the wrong answers.
--- PPoint 2.05
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