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Surviving the Economic Collapse
Economic experts keep telling us, its not if the collapse will happen, its when. The collapse is happening right before us. We see it all around us from the moving of major industry overseas, to job loss, inflation and the skyrocket cost of energy and health care.
I ran across an interesting article that I thought was timely and useful. Please feel free to leave a comment!
25 Things That You Should Do To Get Prepared For The Coming Economic Collapse
#1 An Emergency Fund
Do you remember what happened when the financial system almost
collapsed back in 2008? Millions of Americans suddenly lost their jobs,
and because many of them were living paycheck to paycheck, many of them
also got behind on their mortgages and lost their homes. You don’t
want to lose everything that you have worked for during this next major
economic downturn. It is imperative that you have an emergency fund.
It should be enough to cover all of your expenses for at least six
months, but I would encourage you to have an emergency fund that is even
larger than that.
#2 Don’t Put All Of Your Eggs Into One Basket
If the wealth confiscation
in Cyprus
has taught us anything, it is that we should not put all of our eggs in
one basket. If all of your money is in one single bank account, it
would be easy to wipe out. But if you have your money scattered around a
number of different places it will give you a little bit more security.
#3 Keep Some Cash At Home
This goes along with the previous point. While it is not wise to
keep all of your money at home, you do want to keep some cash on hand.
If there is an extended bank holiday or if a
giant burst from the sun
causes the ATM machines to go down, you want to be able to have enough
cash to buy the things that your family needs. Just ask the people of
Cyprus how crippling a bank holiday can be. One way to keep your cash
secure at home is by storing it in a concealed safe.
#4 Get Out Of Debt
A lot of people seem to assume that an economic collapse would wipe
out all debts, but that will probably not be the case. In fact, if you
are in a tremendous amount of debt you will be very vulnerable if the
economy collapses and you are not able to find a job. Just ask the
people who were overextended and lost their jobs during the last
recession. So please get out of debt. Many debt collectors are
becoming increasingly ruthless. In many areas of the country they are
now routinely putting debtors
into prison. You do not want to be a
slave to debt when the next wave of the economic collapse strikes.
#5 Gold And Silver
In the long-term, the U.S. dollar is going to lose a tremendous
amount of value and inflation is going to absolutely skyrocket. That is
one reason why so many people are investing very heavily in gold,
silver and other precious metals. All over the globe, the central banks
of the world are recklessly printing money. Everyone knows that this
is going to end very badly. In fact, there is already a push
in more than a dozen U.S. states
to allow gold and silver coins to be used as legal tender. Someday you
will be glad that you invested in gold and silver now while their
prices were still low.
#6 Reduce Your Expenses
A lot of people claim that they can’t put any money toward prepping,
but the truth is that we all have room to reduce our expenses. We all
spend money on things that we do not really need. Those that are “lean
and mean” will tend to do much better during the times that are coming.
#7 Start A Side Business
If you do not have much money, a great way to increase your income is
by starting a side business. And it does not take a lot of money –
there are many side businesses that you can start for next to nothing.
And starting a side business will allow you to become less dependent on
your job. In this economic environment, a job could disappear at
literally any time.
#8 Move Away From The Big Cities If Possible
For many people, this is simply not possible. Many Americans are
still completely and totally dependent on their jobs. But if you are
able, now is a good time to move away from the big cities. When the
next major economic downturn strikes, there will be rioting and a
dramatic rise in crime in the major cities. If you are able to move to a
more rural area you will probably be in much better shape.
#9 Store Food
Global food reserves have reached their lowest level
in nearly 40 years.
As the economy gets even worse and global weather patterns become even
more unstable, the price of food will go much higher and global food
supplies will become much tighter. In the long run, you will be glad
for the money that you put into long-term food storage now.
#10 Learn To Grow Your Own Food
This is a skill that most Americans possessed in the past, but that
most Americans today have forgotten. Growing your own food is a way to
become more independent of the system, and it is a way to get prepared
for what is ahead.
#11 Nobody Can Survive Without Water
Without water, you would not even make it a few days in an emergency
situation. It is imperative that you have a plan to provide clean
drinking water for your family when disaster strikes.
#12 Have A Plan For When The Grid Goes Down
What would you do if the grid went down and you suddenly did not have
power for an extended period of time? Anyone that has spent more than a
few hours without power knows how frustrating this can be. You need to
have a plan for how you are going to provide power to your home that is
independent of the power company.
#13 Have Blankets And Warm Clothing On Hand
This is more for emergency situations or for a complete meltdown of
society. During any major crisis, blankets and warm clothing are in
great demand. They also could potentially make great barter items.
#14 Store Personal Hygiene Supplies
A lot of preppers store up huge amounts of food, but they forget all
about personal hygiene supplies. During a long crisis, these are items
that you would greatly miss if you do not have them stored up. These
types of supplies would also be great for barter.
#15 Store Medicine And Medical Supplies
You will also want to store up medical supplies and any medicine that
you may need. In an emergency situation, you definitely would not want
to be without bandages and a first-aid kit. Over the course of a long
crisis, you do not want to run out of any medicines that are critical
for your health.
#16 Stock Up On Vitamins
A lot of preppers do not think about this either, but it is very
important. These days, it is becoming increasingly difficult to get
adequate nutrition from the foods that we eat. That is why it is very
important to have an adequate store of vitamins and other supplements.
#17 Make A List Of Other Supplies That You Will Need
During any crisis, there will be a lot of other things that you will
need in addition to food and water. The following are just a few basic
things that it would be wise to have on hand…
- an axe
- a can opener
- flashlights
- battery-powered radio
- extra batteries
- lighters or matches
- fire extinguisher
- sewing kit
- tools
This list could be much, much longer, but hopefully this will get you started.
#18 Don’t Forget The Special Needs Of Your Babies And Your Pets
Young children and pets have special needs. As you store supplies, don’t forget about the things that they will need as well.
#19 Entertainment
This may sound trivial, but the truth is that our
entertainment-addicted society would become very bored and very
frustrated if the grid suddenly went down for an extended period of
time. Card games and other basic forms of entertainment can make
enduring a crisis much easier.
#20 Self-Defense
In the years ahead, being able to defend your home and your family is
going to become increasingly important. When the economy crashes,
people are going to start to become very desperate. And desperate
people do desperate things.
#21 Get Your Ammunition While You Still Can
Your firearms will not do you much good if you do not have ammunition
for them. Already there are widespread reports of huge ammunition
shortages. The following is from a recent
CNS News article…
“The run on ammunition has manufacturers scrambling to
accommodate demand and reassure customers, as many new and seasoned gun
owners stock up over fears of new firearms regulations at both the state
and federal levels.”
Don’t just assume that you will always be able to purchase large
amounts of ammunition whenever you want. Get it now while you still
can.
#22 If You Have To Go…
Have a plan for what you and your family will do if you are forced to
leave your home. If you do have to go, the following are some items
that you will want to have on hand…
- a map of the area
- a compass
- backpacks for every member of the family
- sleeping bags
- warm clothing
- comfortable shoes or hiking boots
#23 Community
One of the most important assets in any crisis situation is
community. If you have friends or neighbors that you can depend upon,
that is invaluable. The time spent building those bonds now will pay
off greatly during a major crisis.
#24 Have A Back-Up Plan And Be Flexible
Mike Tyson once said the following…
“Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the mouth.”
No plan ever unfolds perfectly. When your plan is disrupted, what will you do?
It will be imperative for all of us to have a back-up plan and to be flexible during the years ahead.
#25 Keep Your Prepping To Yourself
Do not go around and tell everyone in the area where you live about
your prepping. If you do, then you may find yourself overwhelmed with
“visitors” when everything falls apart.
And please do not go on television and brag about your prepping to a national audience.
Prepping is something that you want to keep to yourself, unless you
want hordes of desperate people banging on your door in the future.
*****
For much more on prepping, I would encourage you to check out the
dozens of excellent websites out there that teach people advanced prepping techniques for free.
So what do you think about all of this?
Are you getting prepared for the coming economic depression?
Please feel free to share your perspective on prepping by posting a comment below…
Read More:
The Economic Collapse Blog
Reprinted & Distributed With Permission
Source:
http://theeconomiccollapseblog.com/archives/those-that-are-not-preparing-for-the-coming-economic-depression-are-going-to-bitterly-regret-it
