When your country’s financial and economic systems collapse, and social upheaval threatens political stability, life as you know it will change drastically. In addition to the likely disruptions to the regular flow of commerce because of store closings and supply shortages, prolonged economic instability leads to massive job losses, wage cuts and the real possibility of a currency devaluation.
We need look only to Greece for a modern day harbinger of what we can expect if some or all of these events were to play out in a similar fashion here in the U.S.
With the future of their country uncertain, Greeks are finding it increasingly difficult just to get by. Many have been liquidating their assets to cover core personal expenses. The going has gotten very tough for the people of Greece many of whom, up until a year or two ago, would have be considered middle class by all accounts. Today those same middle class Greeks, who never imagined that one day something as basic and necessary as putting food on the table would become an exacting task, are being forced to sell everything of value just to survive.
Things are bad when you have to sell the teeth in your mouth to put food in your belly:
A smartly dressed woman waits as a young man behind a glass screen weighs her gold earrings, bracelets and rings and counts out 1,600 euros.
“I’ll see you again soon,” she says, slipping the bills into her purse. Behind her, a grey-haired man shuffles toward the counter.
“Do you buy gold teeth?” he asks.
…
In the Greek capital, gold is marking a divide between the “haves” and a growing number of “have nots.”
…
Many ordinary Greeks who prospered after the Mediterranean country entered the euro a decade ago are now being forced to sell their family treasures just to make ends meet.
With the worst recession since the 1970s grinding into its third year, fresh belt-tightening measures to appease international lenders are driving many middle-class Greeks to desperation.
Unemployment has climbed to more than 16 percent and real wages are down by around a fifth since the global financial crisis struck three years ago.
…
“These are not poor folks. They are ordinary, middle-class Greeks: a woman with three kids who needs to sell her wedding jewelry just to send her kids to school.”
Source: Reuters
For those (really) paying attention to the US economy, the sudden explosion of “We Buy Gold and Silver” stores in neighborhoods of varying socioeconomic status is an important sign of the serious problems we face. It’s a key indicator that people are not bringing in the same income streams as they were a few years ago, and that they are having to supplement their incomes by selling others assets (be it gold, stock holdings, land, etc.).
To demonstrate gold’s importance in times of uncertainty and panic we can look at both, the sellers of the gold as well as those who are buying.
Those who have savings and investment accounts have been slowly losing confidence in the governments of the world, and they’re moving their assets into a time tested store of wealth:
That is one side of the coin. On the other, many wealthy Greeks, worried by the political paralysis gripping their country, are pulling money out of the bank and buying gold, regarded as the ultimate safe haven in times of uncertainty.
Burnishing its appeal, the price of the precious metal has climbed to record highs over the last year, driven in part by anxiety in financial markets over Greece’s prolonged agony which has prompted a flight to stable assets.
We are nowhere near being clear of the wealth destruction to come.
Your income may be fine today, your assets intact. But a lot of things can change in a year or two. Chances are you know several people whose way of life has been adversely affected by this crisis. Now is the time to create and execute a contingency plan for the possibility of a personal economic collapse. This should include a variety of supplies and skills, as well as an understanding of what is money when the system collapses.
With respect to gold, if you have the ability to do so, it’s better to be a long-term buyer at this time than it is to be a seller. Acquire as much of this asset (and silver) as you are able to as part of your overall SHTF planning strategy.
Hat tip Steve Quayle
Has anyone noticed that people are beginning to wake up? Not only in places like Greece, but also here—even if only to the point where the majority of Americans are not as dismissive about the consequences of America’s predicaments. This indicates to me that we’re quickly approaching the point where conjecture meets the present. The most prescient quote excerpted by SHTFplan is: “In the Greek capital, gold is marking a divide between the ‘haves’ and a growing number of ‘have nots [sic].’” We’re entering scary times, folks; I hope you’re as prepared as you think you are.
Mac, where can I read about whom you are and why you know so much about what’s likely to come? I know this website isn’t about you, but I’d like read about who you are? Where can I get that info?
People are NOT waking up in middle-class suburban Texas….these chumps are like grass waiting for the lawnmower of reality to cut them down.
I was on a plane and sat next to a guy reading Atlas Shrugged. Turns out he was an exec at Lockheed Martin and it was clear he was waking up from his slumber. He didn’t know about gold, or these kinds of sites, or Alex Jones stuff, but from his own mind he was complaining that elites and special interests are controlling things and creating collapses. I gave him a list of websites and videos to watch and I think he probably did. Spread the word. It takes a while to reach critical mass.
Let us keep in mind that the reason Greece is in this position is because they are run by socialists who haven’t a clue about economics.
Lots of benefits, strong unions, high paying unnecessary government jobs, unsustainable pensions and Voila!, YOU’RE BROKE!.
Good riddance! stop interfering with it and let it collapse into something sustainable.
Go on a road trip through the U.S. and tell me who still has money. Universally you will find that the only people with money got it from the government. Police, teachers, firemen, government employees at the federal/state/local level, and businessmen whose primary (usually only) customer is the government and/or government employees. The rest? On food stamps and other forms of government hand outs.
The bulk of the American economy is already state run. We live in a fascist nation that is over 50% state run. Thank the military-industrial-congressional-security complex for that one.
My suggestion to you is get yourself a 6 figure government job before the music stops and everyone realizes all the chairs were stolen and expropriated to secret bank accounts in Hong Kong and the Caymans.
Hummm, sounds like some other country that I know about
It sounds to me like you’re talking about the USA and not Greece. I believe we have become just like them. We will never spend out way out of this for generations to come. I blame us the people for allowing this to happen. We put irresponsible people into power believing that they would do the right thing. I’m surprised that rioting hasn’t happened here yet – Greek style.
Goldenfoxx,
How can you blame the victims of the banksters for the results of the crimes the banks and gov corp have committed? We did not put anybody in power, the corp did.
In the current system, there are victims and criminals. Don;t blame one for the actions of the other.
Being that my home & wheels are paid for, prepped to the hilt and seen this coming since silver was $7 and gold was $287, I’m going to blame Mr. Wilson and all of the current politicians, but one prior politician stands out the most by the name of “Greenspan” for letting the Fed Reserve have their way for many years.
“In the absence of the gold standard, there is no way to protect savings from confiscation through inflation. There is no safe store of value.” Alan Greenspan
And just how did the corps put the PTB into power? They may play a role in getting bills signed by lobbying, but being elected? There’s no doubt how Obummer got into office – the black vote that’s how, along with all the liberals voting for him. People expecting something for nothing like Peggy Joseph for instance. I wonder how that hope and no change is working out for her these days? Elections do have consequences. We are up $hits creek without a paddle and I see no way out of this.
Best anyone can do is to take care of themselves, beans, bullets and band aids.
Thank you God’s Creation!
goldenfoxx says
“And just how did the corps put the PTB into power?”
They are one and the same. The PTB created and passed laws granting them limited liability for their crimes when done through corporations.
————–
Article I, Section 22 of the Tennessee Constitution says
§ 22. Perpetuities and monopolies
That perpetuities and monopolies are contrary to the genius of a free State, and shall not be allowed.
—————
The STATE OF TENNESSEE, a federal corporation, paid no heed to the Law of Tennessee and allows both of these criminal entities to exist unimpeded.
If an individual did the things corporations do, they would end up dead very quickly. But corps are perpetual and there is no one that can be held liable for crimes and injury.
That is how the PTB get away with what they do. They established laws to protect themselves and allow their fortunes and companies to live forever.
Without limited liability, shareholders could be held responsible for the debt and actions of the corps they own.
Perpetual corporations are the creation of the PTB, to protect the PTB form the people they rob.
Dave,
Amen! The quicker it collapses there and here, the quicker we can get to work to put the final nail in the socialist coffin and get this country back on a growth and prosperity path.
Socialism (Greece) and crony capitalism/socialism (USA) have done more to destroy these countries than standing armies could have done.
Good riddance.
The United States is run by similar socialists who are bent on bleeding the country dry while there’s still blood in it. Everything they do is pro-bank, and anti-citizen.
“Socialists” gives them too much credit. They are authoritarian statist elitists, regardless of whatever political ideology they choose to feed to the public. Do you really think Obama is a socialist? A leftist? Maybe in the fascist national socialist sense, which is hardly different than Bush Jr.
Call a spade a spade. These people are members of the neo-feudal aristocracy that is setting itself up to rule humanity forever under the New World Order. Socialist? No. Tyrannical elites? Yes.
They use socialism as tool to control the masses.
good expose on that here….
http://www.reveresride.net/2011/05/16/marxism-global-government-and-the-tangled-web-they-weave-part-1/
OK, Obama is a spade
That is the stated plan of the UN Agenda 21, the Bilderberg group and our Pres. They will bleed us dry and bring us to our knees and force us into the One World Government. No one would join unless they were forced or already a socilist/communist.
USSR stands for Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. Do you doubt they are communist? Do they seem any different than communist China?
Socialist= Communist= BigGovernment= Poice State
And people are not free in any of these governments. People are to be controlled and used and abused to serve the controlers of the government, the elite.
Just another harbinger of whats to come in the U.S. Stock up with as much food as you can afford. Green Giant canned veggies are on sale here @ 49 cents, gonna make a pantry run this evening. Hope they’re some left, seems alot of folks are starting to see the handwriting on the wall which is a good thing.
Is it a good thing? It means we’re closer to the abyss than ever before.
You know the wisdom that when you hear taxi drivers and hair dressers talking about an investment it’s time to exit? Well when taxi drivers and hair dressers start prepping, it’s probably about to hit the fan.
Other than those of you that were in the military and know what life in a war zone under martial law is like, none of you are truly prepared. Storing food and silver ain’t gonna cut it. You should be focused on weapons and tactics first, and the day to day accoutrements of “survival” later.
Isit, agreed on the gun and runs. You gotta eat though, gotta make the 1200 calorie min. I’d love to take a Vickers class, but it ain’t in the cards right now. Maybe soon. Got my eagle indust. duty belt, monkey stompers(doubles) and a Tactical tailor vest outfitted with some bf gear pouches. Wanna keep it light, mission drives equipment.
isit,
I have to disagree with you. Even a Special Forces Green Beret can’t fight worth squat if he doesn’t have water and food. Yes, we all need weapons and training to protect our families and our supplies, but at the same time we need the supplies.
I wish I knew what grocery store chain because I’d be buying also. Hang in there patriot, I enjoy your posts.
Acme supermarket, have to buy minimum of ten.
boxes of ramen noodles $1.49 each at wallyworld. ISIT: agreed, you can last a few days without water, a week without food. but if the shtf in your backyard, you’ve a couple minutes max without a gun and a plan
Get your noodles from your local Asian super market the taste better and will last longer.
Been saying for years the way to ride this out is own a small (10-20ac) farmstead w/good water source, free and clear, raise most of your own food, (and hopefully enough excess to sell/trade) produce your own power (solar/wind/hydro), heat with your own wood, and so on. Stock up on what you can’t make, and buy some gold/silver if you have leftover currency, and you’ll be fine, absent a total SHTF situation.
TnAndy,
While I agree with your idea I find it stunning to read how some governments will punish self reliance, individualism, resourcefulness, and plain old hard work. Here is an example from England:
http://www.truthistreason.net/govt-forces-family-living-off-grid-growing-own-food-on-own-land-to-return-to-societys-rat-race-or-face-penalty
We just bought 30+ acres with stocked ponds, well, multiple springs, abundant wildlife, 20 acrea pasture – so great farming potential, run down barn.
But no house.
Any suggestions for a very cheap homestead? We’ve considered FEMA trailers but they are trashed. We also considered a used metal building. We don’t want to finance anything.
Used RV on military base for sale.
You could patch up the barn and live there at least temporarily. I’ve seen many excellent barn/house conversions on the British renovation show “Grand Designs”.
dig a hole and build a home underground
out of sight out of mind…dont tell no one what your doing, just do it..
you will have a cool house in the summer, a warm house in the winter..and a bunker when its needed all in one.
if it were me..this is what i would do
Great idea VRF
I’ll jump here in the middle of this conversation. I wish I could share what I am building, but OPSEC prevents my doing so.
I will say that I building an underground is the best off grid option you have. First off you need land that has no visible structures from roadways, no power lines leading into the property. Nothing to draw attention to the property. It if comes to it, you want the Golden Horde to just walk on by.
There are only a handful of underground designs you can build without spending a ton of money. As Daisy said later in this string, shipping containers are sometimes used for this purpose. You have to do a lot of structural reinforcement to the walls and especially the ceiling. Better find a friend with a lot of steel fabrication experience. Then water proofing is a concern. Placing it on the right grade and in the right soil type is critical.
Another unique underground structure is called a WOFATI.
I heard about this on Thesurvivalpodcast.com. Paul Wheaton explains what this is. Pretty cool. Cheap if you have a lot of natural wood available. You could use store bought, but the original idea was based on building this as cheap as humanly possible. Coolest thing about this design is unless you are in extreme climates, it requires no heating or cooling. Check out
Richsoil.com and click on the WOFATI link.
Another option is to go with Earth Bags, you could build a partial buried structure. These are fairly cheap and can be stored on site and build your structure after TSHTF if need be. Check out this site. http://earthbagbuilding.com/projects/mandala.htm
I found one of the sources listed on this site sells a dark green bag, I bought 5000 of them so when I get to that phase of my project they are ready and waiting. If you look through their resource links, you will find them. I have had one lying out in the sun for over 12 months now testing the UV resistance, so far it looks like a good product. I think they were about .38c each in bundles of 1000.
Another idea is to dig a hole and set a container under ground and them place a travel trailer or cabin over the top of it. The container doubles as a storm shelter, great hiding place if your place gets robbed.
Honestly the biggest problem I have run into is how many different people you need to make even the simple BOL effort worthwhile. Unless you are lucky and find a county that doesn’t have building codes you have to follow, you will need to hire plumbers, electricians, concrete workers and so on. There goes your OPSEC.
Good luck trying to insure something like this or worse yet to finance it.
The answer is to build a community of like minded friends, people with specific skill sets that will be needed during the construction and then afterwords once TSHTF. Think about security and how many people it would take to man a 24 hr security detail on the property. Who is going to cook and tend the garden with so many on security. It’s a big project, but doable.
Sorry if I started rambling on here, but I could write a book on this, if I wasn’t so busy doing it. Hope this helps some of you with your ideas.
You can build a simple 20 x 20 cabin for about 5K, and add rooms as you can.
You can also fix up a trashed out FEMA trailer if you have just a little skill.
I know back-hoe and septic people—tell me where these people are who work so cheaply??? PUH—LEEZE.
It took us half that much to set up a trailer in Tennessee…and that was in he 70’s while I attended school!!!
JJ
YOU are those people. If you can’t do things yourself, you will be screwed. A hammer, nails, saw, wood, a level and a square are tools everybody should be able to use.
You find these people on craigslist. I had so many projects completed lately for almost nothing! When the say $600 I say $300 or ba bye.
If there is no root cellar on the property, I suggest digging one first, then put-up a “shack” over it until you can build something more permanent. A 12’x16′ hole in the ground 8′ deep will provide shelter from storms (natural and manmade, give you a place to store things at a stable temperature (keeps food and people from freezing in winter and melting in the heat of the summer)and is great place to stockpile preps. I don’t know how handy you are, but I have seen log cabin plans around the net. Also companies like Sportsmanguide regularly sell cabin kits. Hope this helps!
do you put a covering over the hole? and then put a shack on top of that?
Learn how to make clay bricks…..your dirt and water should mix into solid walls and quality housing in a slow but affordable way.
Well, thank you everyone. Fantastic suggestions. I feel confident we can come up with something.
Mr B: FEMA trailors are contaminated too. I like Suzy’s idea of fixing up the barn and VRF’s of digging a hole. I would dig the hole inside a corner of the barn, layer and insulate it with stone or mud brick, seal it, and then plaster the floors and walls with mortar. I would leave the top open and build a portion of the barn out, room by room.
I built a 13′ x 26′ shack at my mine to create a space from the weather to work in. Rented a buldozer to level a depression in an Arroyo, allowing for drainage and it created an earth shelter from the elements.
I cemented the floor on a block base. I built the panels one at a time (4’x 8′) loaded them into the truck, took them to the mine and attached them to each other one by one, so that the 2″ by 4″s butted against each other. A little unconventional but very sturdy.
Slanted the roof from 8′ to 10′ and applied the plywood to the rafters. The slant is oriented for solar. Did everything my self. It won’t be featured in Architectual Digest anytime soon, but it looks good and works well.
I’ve seen some really awesome homes made from shipping containers, but probably your cheapest option is getting a mobile home and putting it on a foundation. That way you will have the wiring and plumbing in place already.
Residential wiring is easy. If you are far enough off the beaten track, ignore building regulations. Make it sturdy and safe, but building codes are mostly for tax revenue and easy-job-for my-brother-in-law creation.
You could try a straw bale house too. Mother Earth News has all kinds of articles on how to build them.
Sutherlands has many different house and barn kits (build it yourself or hire someone) that are moderately priced. Check to see if Sutherlands delivers in your area. Also, look into Morgan sheds/buildings. Morgan buildings are perfect for doing interior work at your own pace. I got a show room 16’X32′ shed/building(bran new) for under $11,000.00. Thats 512 sq.ft. plus the high ceiling.
The current worldwide economic crisis is all happening by design. TPTB and the elites want to put us all into such dire straights financially that we will beg them to form their long coveted ONE WORLD GOVERNMENT and make all our pain go away ….. things will be ‘mo better’.
To do so they first need to destroy the United States as a Democratic Republic. They need to be very careful as to how they go about this because, unlike Greece; Americans are armed to the max. It won’t be rocks, bottles and the occasional gas bomb that they face in the streets of the United States.
No matter how everything shakes out in the end …. it’s going to be damned interesting.
God Bless & good luck to all.
MM–you left out the best part–when they destroy our food supply—and with the burning of wheat and other fields and fires, the floods of farmland, and volcanoes killing fishes for just a glimpse at what they’re accomplishing–then they will come for the guns….swap food for guns when our children are hungry and then game over.
Agreed MM: The PTB have kept an open border policy against the wishes of the American electorate to allow the infiltration of Latino Nation.
The intent is to make them “new Americans” and get them to vote in a Referendum to dissolve the US Constitution and merge with Mexico in the NAU under a UN Compact as a prelude to that One World Government.
There are two parties in DC: Globalists and Patriots. WE must ensure that Patriots are elected to The Senate, Congress, and the White House.
Its not too late to turn the tide.
Looks like many will have to give up their “bling” in order to eat.
Food inflation is unbelievably high. But do you see anything in the state-controlled mainstream media? Nope. Not a peep.
It’s not part of the “agenda” and it hurts the progressive cause.
I’ll bet the morticians have been saving gold for generations. I’m waiting to hear in the news about city hoods getting their teeth pulled out without their permission.
Just got today’s mail……US Dept of Education sent me default papers on a loan I still owe $239.00 on….wonder of the SOB’s are going to SWAT my house and kick in my door?
Are they likely to try and repossess something of yours that’s worth $239, or will they want more? Have they given you much time? 🙁
I think it is time to TAKE the property back from the banks. I am looking for an abandoned, bank owned house to claim as my own. Mow the yard, clean it up, set up utilities, and then let the bank PROVE ownership by furnishing the land patent in ITS name.
Will it work? Don’t know, but we have to do something.
Meanwhile, I stock up on food and water, the only two things that really matter. And my latest addition is portable solar power and water filtering when not in my home.
http://www.diysolarpanelbuilding.com
Look people, it’s us against the Banks and Govcorp. Don’t wait until it is too late and we are all too broke to fight.
If thousands of PEOPLE make claims to bankcorp land they have acquired through the Federal Reserve Fraud without putting up any consideration, they will have a difficult time and a lot of expense trying to take back what they have stolen once we have taken it back.
good idea, and it will force them to use monitary resources to try and fight us..thus digging their own grave faster and deeper..
I like it
Find the repo you want in a SHTF location, keep an eye on it, and when the SHTF, grab it. By the time the dust settles, the bank is back in business, and they have found an appraiser to inspect the property its yours under adverse possession!
I will not leave my home except under threat of force, and then will squat in an abandoned home. Make them prove you are not allowed to be there. I used to have tenants who were experts at this. A dirtbag tenant or squatter can lead a merry chase.
Be careful with that mind set ” make them prove you are not allowed to be there”. You as a home owner have already been put on their lists of potential terrorists, especially if your not indebted to a financial institute.
Advice: try not to draw attention to yourself, many of the law enforcement are more nervous about enforcing bogus laws. All they need to hear, before firing their weapons, is ” he’s got a gun “. Then after the fact (AAR-
after action report) will have statements of ‘ we don’t know who fired the first shot’ to ‘we saw the perp aim his weapon’. I know from talking to many cops.
I have been paying attention to some of the arrests made
and a disturbing trend i see being reported to make “Survivalists” or preppers out to being Nut cases or to discredit anyone who owns more then one gun as some kind of threat..
Last news story i read
They have been trying to do this since the TEA Parties first started to form. Drudge had link today to a story where Bachmann claims Obama thinks Tea Partiers are a bunch of toothless hillbillies.
They sell everything that can be considered as an asset, and can be valued relatively well.
Not only gold teeth, but old coins also, precious stamps collections (REALLY PRECIOUS), bicycles, motorbikes, antique weaponry, jewlery of any kind, televisions, watches, cars, cell phones, sunglasses etc.
I’m not counting the real estate. Now that things lead to the total German control, land and housing will be very cheap to buy.
Small owners will sell whatever they got in order to make ends meet, and rich people or companies will buy it.
Mac has it right. It’s not the low class or the very poor ones. It has to do with the destruction of the middle class; people like you and me.
Many of my neighbours cannot afford the electricity and telephone expense anymore.
Gasoline is very expensive to buy, and everyone has decreased all unecessary rides.
This will continue for the next 5 years or so. At the end of this mess, there will be the upper class of the 1 to 2% and the slaves.
Don’t let this happen there. Don’t be fooled by the mass media. Greeks were, and still are, hard working and honest people. Our mistake was that we trusted thieves as our leaders.
You will see the same movie in Portugal, Spain, and Italy very soon.
Be safe everybody
Thanks, Manos, for that timely message. Be safe.
Well, you heard the man(os), people. If you ain’t prepped by now, you better get that way! We’re so close, I can hear the gunfire already.
It’s not as much about the preps as it is the fight. The only question remaining is can the 98% that are slaves defeat the 2% that are thieves.
I say YES, if we adopt that as out fight.
If someone insiste upon buying all of your guns, you will NEED them quite soon.
sorry lost connection
last story i read , a guy that was arrested for some crime im not sure of, they went and ransacked his home and “found a cashe of guns”
so he is now a radical, a possible terrorist..and will more then likely be tried for something additional he is not.
there are a ton of us that fit their profile of a terrorist due to the fact we own more then one gun..
oh they also said he had food stored, ammo stored, and survival books
sound familiar folks..were being targeted.
The media will report this, and will make anyone out to look like a nut case to further this adgenda..
but they wont cover the Floods, they wont cover the effects of the after math of BP oil spill in the Gulf, they wont report on the spill In Montana, they wont report on the nuke threat in our own country..but they will drag this gun owner and “survivalist” thru the mud
to make an example of him
How can storing food make us a target when the FEMA promotes it??? When NASA promotes it??
Just to state a few!!!
only when its ok with them, and not if they want to use you as an example..also no where in the FEMA or NASA promo’s do they say anything about Guns and ammo..or many guns and multiple rounds of ammo..that is the dig..they dont like the possibility of a show of force
and GC is correct he refused to play by their fucked up game, they wanted in his residence without a warrent, and he wasnt having any of that..so he got labled and fucked with
what law did he break??
He refused to rely on the corp…
I think it was a victimless crime..you know the ones where they want to prosecute you for living your life the way you want to without hurting anyone, but the government doesnt like what your doing so they want to fuck with you and try to incarcerate you for a crime with no victim..something like that.
to me , after they violated his rights it really didnt matter what he did, they didnt follow their own rules, and broke every dam one of his freedoms, than went on to lable him, and smear his name.
and still entered his residence with out “real” evidence of needing to do so..and than to make a cover for thier actions..used the “cashe of guns and ammo” as the “good enough for you” reason..
Gun rights advocates are here:
http://shtfweapons.blogspot.com/
Just takes one neighbor, relative, co worker or spouse commenting to the wrong person to get the attention of the crooked police. We talk to much when we should be focusing on the job at hand!
Another “collector” goes to jail? Check out the gun rights links at SHTF America, and support them with a ten spot.
We had a local guy get arrested a year ago, the media talked about how he has a ‘cache’ of guns and ammo. 1 hunting rifle, 1 shotgun and 1 22cal piston, a couple hundred rounds. Wonder what they would call me? 🙂
A vendor?
I knew I should have gotten gold caps instead of porcelain!
They did it in the concentration camps. Nothing new here folks, move along. Next.
Remember, these folks are selling assets for cash. So keep some cash set aside so you can mine the yard and garage sales for the tools you still need. You can pretty much forget any of these sales in the more metropolitan areas as all they have is electronic entertainment crap that won’t do you much good.
Things usually get far worse before it gets better.
More battles have been lost by failing to make a decision than by making the wrong decision. Ergo, time to tie the ribbons on your preps.
“Do or do not, there is no try.” Yoda
———————
Were I living in/near the city, I would break out the metal detector and hit all the recreational areas. Use to pick up a fair bit of change, jewelery and wallets walking the ski slopes in the summer.
Manos, I really feel sorry for your conditions there. Can I ask you a question? Are the problems there a result of a government promissing a unrealistic package of retirement age, medical coverage, etc?
Were the expectations a bit excessive? We don’t know here in the States what to believe anymore. Could you elaborate the kind of benefits that were promissed which are now being withdrawn?
I pray you will be alright and be able to deal with the adversity there. God Bless,James
James,
For the employees of the private sector and the free lancers the package was-is always the same. Retirement around 67, crapy health coverage, and pension of the 65% of the average salary of the 5 last working years.
Now for the employees of the public sector (public servants, army, police, fire dept., teachers etc), retirement around 50, a good retirement bonus, good pension.
Most public servants actually served as the election deposit for all parliament members.
So let’s say that you James wanted to get elected as a parliament member. What you do is to approach people you know, relatives, friends, or even strangers, and start promising; whatever.
A position in the police dept, or a position in the town hall, or in the electricity company, or some bank.
So you get precious votes by promising stuff. It doesn’t matter if you fullfil those expectations or not. In 4 years time nobody will remember, and in any case you can find other suckers.
Now this happened since 1974, so you do the math.
Adding all those stollen money from the polititians, all those briberies to German and French companies, all those money spent to the Olympic games of 2004, well here is your debt.
In order to decrease the debt, those brilliant minds, first decreased all pensions. This is illegal of course, because all people have paid that money to the state as a pre-deposit, if i may use such a word.
There is a debt but there were many other sources to go first.
But it’s the easy money James. From what i read, they are ready to touch your retirement packages also.
Be safe man, tough times ahead.
Oops forgot about cheap housing.
Adobe brick works in areas that have low rainfall but they are a quick way to die in earthquake zones. Highly labor intensive. Better choice rammed earth with a few % cement added. Move the dirt just once. Still some problems with quakes. Both need plastering to keep out the weather.
Another option, straw bale houses. Need straw and same problem with the need to plaster the walls because of critters taking up residence in the walls.
Quickest and cheapest option. Gers aka yurts especially the version made by a lady-friend down the road coined GerTees. She has built several from small to big and lives in them year round. I haven’t visited her when the temps were -25F or colder, but with the wood stove going, they are quit livable. The temps reach -60F and colder in her immediate area (low spot). Maybe she is just one of those rare women that is tougher than a roll of barbed wire. Or everyone else is a wuss.
Anyway, she has chronicled her passion for building and living in gertees over the last several years and her book on it will be coming out soon. It has all the design stuff worked out for you. The big difference between the manufactured gers and the traditionals is her use of whatever she can scrounge up for materials: spruce poles, tarps, etc. She even couples them together to make multi-room dwellings.
You can see some of the pictures on her blog if you dig for it. Most of her writings are about anti-communitarianism. Good stuff in its own right.
http://nikiraapana.blogspot.com/
I don’t get anything out of this, but I will be getting a copy for when my family comes running home and I need the additional housing. Gertees will be the only housing I can afford for my adult offspring and their kids. No problem for my youngest. She moved into a tent in March in Alaska as a kid and grew up in a 16’x24′ cabin.
I think the Greek citizens were protesting and rioting to have their government REJECT last week’s austerity package. Without its passage, Greece would have to default. If they default, they get their country back and can get out of the EU. Look at Iceland as a prime example. The first to default, recovers first. MSM presents a bunch of spoiled entitled people rioting for MORE benefits…I tend to think people just want their country/currency back.
If they are selling these items for cash does it not indicate a deflationary state? Cash suddenly being king instead of the commodities?
That is correct. That’s why you should plan for everything. They’re experiencing a sort of deflationary collapse that would be followed by hyperinflation if they had their own currency. Likely the PIIGS will domino into deflationary collapse and if they aren’t kicked out of the euro they’ll take it down.
Ding ding. We have a winner. Wise words Morphed & Talnik. Short and simple but the IMF doesn’t care “butt” for themself.
Ag/Au up today. I want slow & steady this time…
Today even the thought that back in 1971 every 35 US dollars were backed by one ounce of gold is absurd. Take the blue pill Sam & Charlie. We’re waiting…
Let’s put the blame squarely where it belongs for all the crisis over the years. I blame my parents, grandparents, great-grandparents, etc for being duped by centuries of criminal banksters… and then leaving it up to me to suffer the final collapse, while centuries of my own family were too stupid or weak to realize what the system was doing to them, and to do something about it much earlier.
That cycle ended with ME 10 years ago.
Fred, can I blame your parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents too?
Fred,
Your parents, grandparents, etc, all lived in a time when the government was trusted to do what was right. They had real money to use, at least until 1971. They were lied to, but had no way to learn the truth.
Unless you learned everything you know in law BOOKS in a LIBRARY, you can’t blame them for not understanding the massive fraud against them.
You have the internet and thousands of people explaining the truth to you. Otherwise you would not have figured it out either. I am not sure you have really figured it out yet if you are blaming victims in your own family for what has happened.
The banks knew their scam would only work if it was kept hidden. Now the banks know their scam has been exposed to MILLIONS of people and their game is just about up.
The people of Greece are on the front lines right now fighting it. Soon it will be your turn, and my turn.
There is no one to blame but the banksters and those who helped along the way in exchange for money and favors.
Certainly not the innocent victims of what has happened.
Excellent post, GC!!! Couldn’t agree more!!
one thing I’ve noticed is people going to extremes to save on food. Huge amounts of coupons, discount stores are full, buying in bulk.
I work at a friends coin shop on Saturdays to get SHTF money and we are already buying gold teeth here at his shop. I’d say we are not far behind.
The real problem in the United States is that nothing at all has been done to fix the very problems that caused this great recession in the first place.
For every news report we hear that things are starting to pick up a bit, we hear another that says things are still a looking a little bit shakey.
So could this be an illusion?
And where does the truth lie?
The signs that we are still heading into the greatest depression the world has ever known remain.
Many experts are predicting that by late 2012, we are going to see a global depression on a scale that no one has ever known of before. No history books will have a written comparison. The picture that is painted by some expert forecasters is quite grim indeed.
Billions unemployed, left homeless and starving, trade packs broken, Tariffs raised, boarders closed, anti immigration will be huge. Immigrants brought in during boom times, will be rounded up and deported, blamed for everything from crime to rising taxes to lack of jobs.
Things are going to be very dark indeed.
Don’t wait for it to start ….start preparing NOW.
Chief of police and city council over ride and shit on mayor adn womans freedom of speech
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Ihl1yMWKkE&feature=player_embedded
It appears the corp can’t even get along with itself.
Fact is, there were no law enforcement there. Only the police, who enforce corporate policy.
I wonder how long it will be before the Citizens decide to become the enforcers of the law and start firing on cops who do those sorts of things, as well as the councilman who instigated it to cover his own ass.
Its incredible in some ways, sad in others trying to convince people of the necessity holding PMs. The most common response I hear from people is that things will magically work themselves out, somehow, and that its best not to speculate. It gets frustrating trying to convince others to protect their assets. There will soon be a day when it is too late.
I’ll gladly hold ALL your PM’s in my secure vault. I’m sure we can come to some kind of arrangement where I will steal every last penny from you as they dig your corpse up in the desert 10 months later (if they ever find it).
You folks are missing a major point. SHUT THE FUCK UP ABOUT WHAT YOU ARE DOING!!!! Paint a reflective target on your heads and let the stealth bomber of criminality be dropped on your heads. Your assets, and your asses… will be kicked. Unless you simply stop talking. Jesus… just shut the Phuck UP about your OPSEC!!!!
Erik,
Don’t get too caught up trying to convince others. I have been speaking out to so many of my family and friends. I loan them books, send them articles, links to video’s in the hopes that something will wake them up. With most it has been a waste of time.
PM’s are only a part of what they need to be doing to prepare. To me being prepared is more than just having a BOB and a tank full of gas. It is a mindset more than just a closet full of stuff. Most people won’t let themselves think in those terms.
This will sound extreme to most, but the way I see it is you have to prepare for what could be the worst possible scenario imaginable. To me that is an EMP attack or CMI that shorts out our electrical grid. If you do all that you can to prepare for an event such as that, then just about anything else they throw at us is easy.
Jim Kunstler had a good point in his book “The Long Emergency” when he postulated that WTSHTF, the omnipressant and ever-expanding U.S. government will have trouble just answering the phones… let-alone getting down to the business of extracting every remaining drop of sweat and blood from the U.S. Taxpayer.
The public-paid sector will turn on their master…just like in Greece…as soon as those cozy government checks stop covering monthly expenses and the millions of layoffs and furloughs are handed out.
Your worst enemies in this crisis in the short term are Obama’s federalized minions….in the long term it’s the $300K a year yuppie chump across the street with 3 kids, 3 cars, 3 sets of golf clubs a retirement plan and NO FREAKIN IDEA about what’s going to happen to him.
I don’t think I’ll be going anywhere, as many of my friends will probably bug out to my house, after they can’t afford their rents anymore. I’m one of the only ones who owns a home, and half of the backyard is under vegies. They can dig up the other half if they want to eat. 🙂
Suzy,
I wish more poeple would think like you. I have already started my garden as well. I just hope I can keep it hidden and protected from unwanted guests if you know what I mean. I was able to help others prepare as well with survival seed safe at http://www.bereadytosurvive.com Keep up the good work.
Thanks. As far as opportunistic vegie hunters go, there are hundreds of houses in my street, and some have no fencing at all. None (look like they) have locked gates. I think I have the best fencing, though it doesn’t look formidable. Not formidable enough to look like I have something to protect. Basically, there are so many other easy targets around here, that an opportunist would hit all of them first, and if that started happening in my street, I’d move.
Suzy,
Sounds like you expect some company if things turn bad, better make sure some of them come armed and prepared to defend your veggies because once the hordes find your backyard, it will be picked clean in no time.
There is already a movement of university/hippie types in my city, called “freegans” who do tours of the kind of edible plants you’re likely to see on public land, parks and such. Unfortunately, they also include trees on the street in front of peoples houses, and consider trees on PRIVATE property, which happen to have branches overhanging near the sidewalk, to be fair game, fruit-wise. I commented that if a passing walking tour was interested in my garden, i’d probably show it to them myself, but if anyone wandered into my front yard and started filling their pockets, I’d… well, I’d react. 🙂
Our pretender-n-chief says everything is on the table. You don’t believe that do you?
I have no illusions that Obama is going to WIN in 2012. There are literally enough aggrieved minorities, stupid people, welfare sluts, gays, commies, reality-handicapped libs and bought-off judges & politicians to make it happen…
When it does, the traitorous, constution-crushing Obama party will strike against anyone who will not submit.
Things aren’t going to shit…they already have.
I’m with you Fred. Think OpSec, engage in OpSec, maintain OpSec.
Perhaps you all failed to see the news report about reporters for Murdock’s London newspaper hiring private detectives to hack into phone accounts. Don’tcha reckon the run of the mill hackers can hack into any online source and get your IP addy?
Now consider a somewhat well funded group searching the web for those who hold the gold. Do you really think that as the economy crumbles, there aren’t some of this new breed of crook out there?
I may tend to be a bit casual myself. Probably because I haven’t got anything that most would find valuable or usable. Most of my assets are in skills, tools and reference books. Then I’m a gazillion miles from nowhere in rural Alaska (itself a questionable choice for location).
Folks, Fred said it well. Operational security (OpSec) can make or break your survival probability. It only takes one leak. Imagine you show Bob your stash of wheat. 7 months later, Bob mentions this to Sam. 2 months later, Sam gets hard up for money and … the “cash-for-gold” scenario has branched out with “cash-for-stash info.”
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At “Cash-for-Stash”, we pay finder’s fees higher than our competition. Bring us your tidbit and if it pays, we’ll pay you a 2% finder’s fee. Imagine how this would help your family. Won’t your neighbors be jealous of your new car? Your information will be held in strictest confidence. Always remember, if you know, someone else does too. There is no second-place finder’s fee, so don’t try to be a second-place winner. Talk to us today. We have buyers for all sorts of information ready to pay you cash. Don’t lose out. Operators are standing by.
Over,
That’s a sick thought, but a damn good one. What good neighbor wouldn’t sell you out when it’s his kids that are starving, and you won’t share.
Gonzales: see anything Harry?
Callahan: nothing much…. just a couple of kids making out.
Gonzales:(to himself) Boys or girls?
overtheedge is correct. From all that I have experienced and read, this is the only way to go. Obey the laws and don’t get busted. Know your local authorities and obtain information that may assist you. There are similarities and differences in economic melt downs depending on what part of the world you live in. Cities are no place to be when this goes down and this one fact is the same no matter where you live. Opsec is very difficult or impossible to maintain in the city. Being a soft target way out in the country is also a bad choice, (Africa, Argentina, Arizona…). Stable communities appear to be the best solution. Get to know those near by, without divulging that you store any long term stuff as FEMA suggests! Establish evac routes and have a family plan. Yah! all the stuff that our gov suggests that we do. One thing that they don’t mention is a good reliable 1911 and the training for when and when NOT to use it. You will have to beef up your security around the house and on your property so if you havn’t started, now is probably a good idea!
This is one slow moving train wreck and will end badly. Gerald Celente says that there will be a big war. I tend to agree since this is so profitable for bankers and defense contractors. Another false flag op is all that is needed at this point and who knows where the fiat currencies will end up. Cash is king right after an economic eruption so keep a stash of cash for this. Crisp $10.00 dollar bills in new cans work for this but afterwards, metals are the place to be or in a more stable currency if you are allowed to trade. Crap! I don’t like this. Thanks for the article Mac. Be careful Manos! I really liked Athens.
Friends, the reality is that this is already happening here. I’m a dentist who takes gold and silver in payment for dental services. Just today, I took 17.74 grams of gold crowns in payment for dentistry done today and previously. This is not a unique or one-time occurrence. Although I agree with the above that it’s a good idea to keep cash available, I fully believe that all paper currency will become essentially worthless.
So whoTF is it thats hurtin? I still see everybody walkin or drivin with a cell phone glued to their ear,I can’t afford one, even a tracphone requires min every month used or not, I don’t know many people like me still on dialUp (cause its cheap). And all I use is a 19″ old model TV with basic cable no HBO or showtime, like those poor unemployed or college grad folks. that have all the time to watch all thise new movies and sports games.
Yet I’m the group who is supposed to be living so high on those “entitlements” and needs more cuts. yeah right,…. my ass!!!
IF U DONT LIKE OBAMA U R JUST A RACIST