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I've thought about this idea, not from the economic side. If the Federal government defaults on our $10T national debt, we're all up the creek, so are all the banks, Wall Street, Main Street and the rest of the world.
My stockpile plan stems from a desire to survive Bird Flu, should it ever become a human-transmissible pandemic. If it ever gets to that stage, it could kill unknown numbers. The flu of 1918-1920 is estimated to have killed 20-100 million people worldwide. If the Bird / Avian Flu is as bad, or even worse, the toll could reach a billion, especially in places with teeming populations like China, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Malaysia, etc.
I have little faith in the Bush administration to do much about this. I envision Bush not shutting down airline flights between the USA and the Orient, rather he'll let our bankrupt airlines keep flying so they don't go totally belly up. I hope the air routes do get shut down, but it may come too late to do much good. If it does get here we're in a mess. The "cut my taxes" crowd in the country have all but killed the Public Health Service and local Health Departments along with it. A few hundred smart folks at the CDC in Atlanta won't be much help if a pandemic gets rolling and people drop like flies, but you can count on the cut-my-taxes crowd to be first in line demanding a vaccine shot.
I've thought of stockpiling canned goods, stuff with a LONG shelf life, like tuna, salmon, ham, peanut butter, crackers, canned milk, 8-10 gallon jugs of distilled water, soda pop, veggies, fruits, juices, flour (for bread baking), bathroom tissue, etc. To put this plan into play for a long time before the trouble starts requires "rotating stock" to keep things from expiring, which means eating the edibles "oldest first" and replacing them as I go with fresh stock.
To avoid exposure to risk, such as walking up the street to the mailbox pod, I've set up all the bills for electronic payment. I can go online to the USPS and shut down mail delivery for 30 days at a time. I'm retired, don't have to work, so I can hole up in here for some time.
There are some assumptions that must come true or all bets are off. We have to assume that water, electric, gas, sewer, and telephone services will continue as needed. The trains that bring coal to the power plants will need to keep running too, as do the mines. Emergency services and hospitals will need to keep operating. Having a firearm handy may prove essential to keep marauding bandits away if it really gets to a point that supermarkets are not restocked and run out of food.
Sounds like doomsday, but trying to gauge these things is difficult. When I did war planning for the Army we planned for worst case and over deployed / delivered what was needed, which was the best way to assure success.
I bought Tamiflu and another drug a few years back and by now they are expired, but at the time it seemed like a good idea. What makes you think Avian bird flu might happen? I thought we were out of the woods on that. I will be a sitting duck if things ever get to the point of marauding bandits, as I don't have a gun. Oh well, if things get that bad...then life as we know it is OVER. I already think it's over but most people do not realize it.
I keep enough food and water for two months' supply. No debt except school loans, paying that off monthly. No credit card debt. Guess we won't have to worry anymore if Obama has us all on the dole. Unless he gets a notion to take all of our "extra" portions, and gives it to whoever, so we can all be "equal"...
Just by the fact that you're wondering about that, you have an edge on 90% of those people. Now what will you do with it?
I just don't see the gloom and doom. Does no remember the stories of their parents through the depression? The main thing that you hear is that it was hard, and they were hungry, but they had a great time. We have to give up driving for a bit and we are ready for the world to collapse.
Under normal circumstances I always stock up on things like food and other household items. I HATE to grocery shop so I buy in bulk. I have an extra fridge and upright freezer in the garage. However I haven't had the money of late to do this.
With the way prices are going, it might not be such a bad idea. I can't believe how much the cost of food has gone up.
Why stock up on food if you lose your home? What would you do with the food? You couldn't carry it all with you.
I think if things get bad enough that everyone is losing their homes, the homes will cease to be singularly owned by their landlords and such. People will just start claiming land and homes and fight for that property. You can't kick us all out on our butts and expect us to lay down and die. Survival mode will kick in and people will just start fighting to keep a roof over their heads. With chaos comes a removal to simpler times, when fighting for survival was just a part of our everyday life. Let some banker or landlord try to keep people out when there are empty homes everywhere. It will definitely be a never ending battle. And one the home owners would lose. The best thing I could tell anyone who owns and rents property to people is this. If things start to turn really ugly, keep the tenants you have and just take what you can get from them as they can give it. Better to be alive and drawing an income of meat and wood than dead in a field with nothing. I don't know if things will ever get that bad, but all it would take is a breakdown of the trucking system that supplies us with food and we would be in serious trouble. Trading for food is definitely not that far-fetched!
I just don't see the gloom and doom. Does no remember the stories of their parents through the depression? The main thing that you hear is that it was hard, and they were hungry, but they had a great time. We have to give up driving for a bit and we are ready for the world to collapse.
I'm afraid it is not just the fact that we have to drive a little less. Think about diesel fuel, and the fact that it is now $5 a gallon. Do you know how much fuel it takes to go coast to coast? California supplies a major portion of winter vegetables to the nation. This will all cease if truckers can't transport the goods. There could be a collapse of our monetary system, have you read about the banking/mortgage debacle? We are heading for seriously tough times, and people are out shopping with their 2008 Economic Stimulus check .
Look at the price of gold, look at how the dollar is continuing to fall. This country is one major disaster away from turmoil.
I don't get it!
Last edited by geogirl; 07-06-2008 at 08:03 PM..
Reason: typo
Not to mention if things were to get chaotic, how would anyone pay the mortgage anyway? I doubt the postman's pledge would apply at that point...
And a return to simpler times, is right, the way I see it.
Sometime in the future there will be a point where we have "maxed out" and just like a typewriter (remember those?), we'll hear "ding" and we'll be back to basics.
We'll be relying on our neighbors and families to come together and work together to keep our communities safe, rather than squabbling over who hasn't mowed their lawn often enough.
I think it's a natural progression; I mean, how can things just keep on going as they are?
As for the poster who said, ask our grandparents about the depression...they were "hungry but had a great time" I believe that's a fantasy. The depression affected many people so deeply (including all four of my late grandparents) that to this day they were unable to throw away a toothpick, tea bag, or twist tie without using it several times. Those were NOT good times and many people suffered.
I'd also like to note that today's people are not like the people back in the days of the depression.
Do we farm and can/preserve our own food? Do we know how to raise cattle and chickens to feed ourselves? Do we know how to butcher a deer if needed?
People back then knew how to survive.
This generation hasn't a clue.
This generation will either beg or rob to survive, and it ain't gonna be pretty.
Think of one event. One terrorist "dirty bomb" dropped in New York City (God forbid). Or even just a power outage of more than a few days, or cessation of trucks as another poster mentioned.
All those people, with nowhere to go, would flee the city for outlying areas. No food, no shelter, only desperation. And they will be on my doorstep and the doorsteps of my neighbors. Both the good AND the bad, ready to ask for help--and take it by force if needed, to survive.
Am I an alarmist? Maybe. But my mentality is this...make fun of me, roll your eyes at me because I'm being silly, or be mad at me because I hurt your feelings, whatever.
Since 9/11/2001, all bets are off in my book, and I will be caring for myself and my family with diligent preparation and vigilance.
I'm afraid it is not just the fact that we have to drive a little less. Think about diesel fuel, and the fact that it is now $5 a gallon. Do you know how much fuel it takes to go coast to coast? California supplies a major portion of winter vegetables to the nation. This will all cease if truckers can't transport the goods. There could be a collapse of our monetary system, have you read about the banking/mortgage debacle? We are heading for seriously tough times, and people are out shopping with their 2008 Economic Stimulus check .
Look at the price of gold, look at how the dollar is continuing to fall. This country is one major disaster away from turmoil.
I don't get it?
Well the mortgage fall out is almost over and it affected about 5 percent of the country. People who simply live their homes instead of thinking of them as bank accounts, are doing fine. I have lived through the oil shocks, the beef crisis, the gas crisis, etc. Guess what, I remember when we ate "canned" vegetables in the winter because it snows in the winter and we ate fresh vegetables in the summer. We had a small garden and canned and froze most of our summer vegetables. I just do not see the same horrors you do.
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Unless he gets a notion to take all of our "extra" portions, and gives it to whoever, so we can all be "equal"...
Its not just about driving
