The events and news stories of recent years have shown us that a total economic meltdown is not all that inconceivable. Most people believe that we are teetering on the edge of a serious crisis. However, not all of those people are doing anything to get ready for, what seems to me, to be a highly likely scenario. To get prepared for something like a complete economic meltdown, it is good to methodically think through all of the repercussions. You should ask yourself, “How would life as I know it be affected by…” Here are some ideas to get you started.
If the dollar became worthless, how would you obtain goods like food, water, gasoline, medicine, personal supplies, etc. The U.S. dollar is a piece of paper. The only reason that it has any value is that the U.S. government says that it does and we believe them. If we stopped believing them, and if other countries stopped believing them, it would plummet in value overnight. All of your hard earned cash sitting in the bank (actually, an electronic entry saying how much you own) would become virtually worthless and you would not be able to cover living expenses. There are a number of solutions you can start working on now. First, consider building up a stockpile of some of the most necessary and vital goods for survival and protection. Think food storage, water storage, medical supply storage, guns and ammunition. Next, consider investing in some precious metals. Unlike the American dollar, precious metals like gold and silver are not going to become worthless overnight. You can rest assured that they will at least hold their value, if not significantly increase in value if the dollar becomes worthless.
If there was no food in the stores, most people would starve within a month. The average American has four days worth of food in his or her house. We are all so used to dining out or running to the grocery store whenever we want to. If both of those options are off the table, a lot of people will be unfortunately out of luck. The solution to this problem is to build up a food storage supply in case of emergency or a sustained period of instability. You should also learn all that you can about hunting, fishing, trapping and gardening so that you can supplement your food storage supply.
If there are no open hospitals, people injured from rioting, looting, etc. will not be able to get the medical help that they need. In an unstable economy, there is going to be more violence and more serious injuries. Hospitals are businesses. If there is no money coming in, they will shut down. Even though there are charitable hospitals and a lot of noble medically trained individuals, eventually, the shortage of medical professionals and supplies, in conjunction with the hoards of people needing medical assistance, will overburden what resources are available. To prepare for this, you should do all that you can to obtain basic first aid and intermediate medical knowledge and skills. Take classes, become CPR certified, attend local church or civic sponsored training events, etc. Also, there is a great deal of information on the internet, including training video tutorials.
If people are starving and thirsty, they will do almost anything to appease the hunger or quench the thirst. Humans behave, for the most part, rationally. However, when a person’s current needs are at a base level of survival, then the kill or be killed mentality kicks in. People will steal and kill to survive. Therefore, you should prepare to defend yourself and your loved ones against looters and murderers. Learn basic self defense and firearms skills and stock up on guns and ammunition.
In conclusion, these are some of the main considerations that you should take into account as you plan for surviving an economic meltdown.
