Hi EQF & Don,

As you two know, I am a supporter of earthquake prediction, however, a realist at the same time. It would not make a substatial difference in damage control with prediction. There isn't enough time to do anything about it before it occurs. Then once it does occur, you are still faced with the same types of problems we have today.

A. People are not ready in the mental state to accept these events are really going to happen.

B. If they have gotten beyond #A, then have they made it to point B? A plan for preparation.

C. If they make a plan do they follow it through and actually prepare?

D. There isn't enough money or time to fix all of the unsafe structures which will receive substantial damage from an earthquake, whether it is predicted or not.

E. The only answer is to be alert everywhere you go and know what you will do from the onset of the quake until the time it is over.

F. In foreign countries they could set up seismic alarms which allow a few seconds notice before quakes arrive. At that point though it would be dicey, everyone could grab their whistles, crawl under their beds and do the best they could to protect themselves from falling unreinforced masonry structures. But a whistle in those circumstances is an absolute necessity. A whistle would at least offer a greater possibility of finding people buried in rubble, than expecting them to scream when their throats are full of dust from cement.

EQF, I applaud your efforts and I hope you'll stay serious in your endeavors. If amateur astronomers can find more comets than scientists, then why can't amateur earthquake predictors outpace our scientists as well?

Our world is in serious trouble. From one matter to the next the entire planet and all of its residents are mostly suffering. Suffering from all kinds of problems. While much cannot be done to prepare for personal disasters, there is something that can be done to prepare for earthquake disasters, but you've got to kindle the interest to do so. That's the hardest nut to crack in comparison to the others.

Petra