Surviving A Global Depression – When Cash Becomes Worthless

Your food storage space requirements will likely equal your water. You’re going to need a lot of space to store your supplies, so make sure that you’re prepared for that. Unless you have years of experience as a hunter or fisher, don't expect that you can live off the land. Although depending on where you are and what the land around you bears can have an impact on how much you can glean by resorting to "hunter gatherer" techniques, in most cases it seems that unfortunately you're going to have to get the vast majority of your provisions from conventional food distribution sources.

Other indispensable items are lots of basic, sturdy clothes, cold and rain gear, several good flashlights, lots of fresh batteries, candles, stay-dry matches, tools, razors, cutlery, dishes, cups, pots, toilet paper, painkillers, a sewing kit, playing cards, games, books and best of all, dish detergent. You can use it for every washing purpose, from the one intended all the way to laundry and shampoo. Have at least a gallon of bleach per person per week with you, and make sure you have a comprehensive first-aid kit. Make sure that at least two of the people with you are trained in first aid. Fuel is critical. Don’t count on the electricity or the gas staying on. If you are in a wooded area have a good axe handy and use it carefully.

Having a windup radio is priceless. Keep abreast of news developments. Don’t leave until the news announces that the depression has completely passed. As long as ISPs are functioning, broadband is a necessity to keep in touch with the outside world. It’s worth remembering to take plenty of books and board games to pass the time. You don’t want boredom making you take risks, such as venturing back towards urban areas.

Of course you need cash and lots of it. Empty your bank account and savings and turn it all into lower denomination banknotes that are easy to use for smaller purchases. Keep lots of cash with you in a very safe place at all times, as the whole idea is that you are not going to be able to get to a bank machine or anywhere else people are. Besides, your bank may fail during the depression and your cash is safer with you than in some failed bank’s computer memory.

Beware of the cash itself, however. Currency devaluations and hyper inflation can decimate the value of a currency overnight. You might want to start thinking along the lines of what you can buy with currency today that will have a stable and reliable trading barter value tomorrow. It is not completely unthinkable to believe that in the not too distant future we may all be involved in a barter economy where cash is just a piece of paper you can use to kindle a fire, and the true value is in basic skills which can be traded for a chicken, eggs, or some milk. This would be a time when a computer programmer or physics professor is irrelevant, but a blacksmith or a carpenter is at the top of the professional pyramid.

Next: Surviving A Global Depression – Locating Your Depression Haven

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