Posted: 2/14/2003 2:58:20 PM EDT
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For the first time in my life, I'm taking SHTF beyond an excuse to buy more guns and ammo. I didn't even buy an extra roll of toliet paper for Y2Knutcase. But now, I'm stockpiling water, food, bought a camp stove, etc etc. My question is - I got a little money put away in the bank. Not a whole bunch, but some savings. Since savings doesn't earn you jack crap in a hole for interest, does it make more sense to put your savings account away in cash in your gun safe, where you can get access? (assuming of course you have the discipline to save and not spend it) But if the world goes to Heck in a handcart, the FIRST thing that's gonna happen is they are gonna freeze all the financial institutions. NOT ONLY would you not have access to your bux, but if they lose their records, yer screwed harder than a machine screw. Whadda ya think??? |
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If the SHTF the banks are not going to be issuing any cash. I was at the bank a few months ago. I wanted to make a withdrawal, but the ATM was down so I went inside. The lady at the counter informed me that I could make a deposit but I could not withdraw any funds OR transfer any funds. When I asked why she told me it was because the computer system was down. I said how is it that you can take deposits? She informed me that I should fill out a deposit slip and it would be held behind the counter till it could be entered into the computer system, after it came back online. I said, well if a deposit slip can wait till the computer comes back online then certainly a withdrawal slip could as well. NO, NO, NO it could not. No withdrawls or transfers ONLY deposits. Now you tell me....why in the devil would I want to put MORE money into a place where I was ALREADY having trouble gettin MY money out?? I'd keep some cash in my safe if I were you. |
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It depends on the degree of SHTF. If you're talking total economic meltdown, then .22LR is probably going to be the "small change" of the future. If you're talking about a major disruption to our society, but not a total collapse (like the German hyper-inflation), then gold or silver coins would probably serve as a substitute to government money. The other thing...if there's a "Bank Holiday" that goes on for more than a few days...most people who rely on check cards or checks or their Visa and carry little cash will be in a world of hurt. Greenbacks will be in high demand, so you may want to keep a thousand bucks or so in the safe. A good book I just read about how the shit can hit the fan economically is "The Economic Time Bomb" by Harry Browne. It came out in 1989 and he made some predictions that aren't true yet, but he goes through several economic hard-times examples and talks about how each one will effect you differently and how the gov. would respond (bank holidays, gold confiscation, whatever). He covers hyper-inflation, deflation, recessions/depression and a couple others. It's a good book to read if you're interested in protecting yourself for SHTF, but don't think it will ever get as bad as in Mad Max or something. It's funny that this thread just came up. Just a few minutes ago I was thinking about the economy and how it's been so slow for so long. Japan's economy has been in the shitter for the last 10 years or so, and they are an economic powerhouse as well. Is the United States next???? I wish this whole middle east embroilment would be over with, then we could have a better idea. Either war fears and keeping the economy and stock market depressed, or we're headed the way of Japan. Or maybe neither. -Nick Viejo. |
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Think about it this way - What if you were one of those folks in the area where Hurricane Andrew hit, and the roofs were blown off ever street in the area, and a guy drives down the street offering to sell plywood and nails. You have cash. Your neighbor has American Express. The other neighbor has his check book. Who do thing will get the lumber and save what's left of their house? You can play plenty of scenarios where even a few hundred dollars at home can make or break you. I have my own bank in my safe. If I can't make it to the bank one week, I make a withdrawal from the safe. Same if the banks are down. That said, store some cash, some extra ammo and buy some supplies. BUT, remember to keep some in the bank for other emergencies, such as the truck breaking down right before the SHTF. You wouldn't want to get stuck at the end of civilization as we know it with your transportation parked for lack of funds. Or let's say you lose your job or get injured, you don't want to get kicked out of your house right away. Strike a balance. |
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If you're talking about a Biblical-disaster, total meltdown SHTF scenario, remember that the value of currency depends upon the liquidity of the government which issues it. In that scenario, currency might be better used as toilet paper. For an interesting and entertaining sci-fi treatment of that sort of situation, read "Lucifer's Hammer" by Larry Niven & Jerry Pournelle. IIRC it was Mel Tappan in his book "Survival Guns", and Jeff Cooper in his writings that said that .22 LR ammo might be the currency of the future if SHTF. And if nothing really bad happens, you can always enjoy shooting up your investment...... |
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I keep an amount of cash I can live with losing (via theft, fire, whatever) in my truck, about the same amount in my BOB, a larger amount in my safe, and just enough in the bank to keep the account open so I can cash cheques. As has been already said, it's a matter of balance...and appropriate distribution. cynic |
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Despite the fact that I don't believe there will be a true SHTF situation in our lifetime, I think there is a fair possibility that there could be a disruption of the US electronic banking system that would effectively shut down ATMs and normal banking for a period of time. With no access to cash, Visa cards, or the like, plenty of people would be in trouble. Just remember, the stock markets were shut-down for a week on 9/11. Imagine what would happen if the damage was to the New York's Financial District! Of course it would get repaired, but how long would it take? For this reason, I think it is wise to keep a reasonable amount of cash on hand. I define reasonable as what I normally spend in two months time. In hard times, that could be stretched for six months or more if needed. Let's face it folks, if society breaks down to the point that the US dollar is worthless, the world has truly ended. Everybody's long-term survival is in serious doubt then. All the blustering about "I'll take what I need." is just macho bull-crap. That may work for a day, or a week, or even a month. Ultimately, there is always at least one bad-ass worse than you just around the tree line. I'm not saying don't go out with a bang, but don't delude yourself either. Even weapons are just a tool, not a guarantee of survival. Those that survive will do so because of organization, not because of a sack of gold or a box of bullets. |
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During the Y2K fiasco, I stocked up on extra bartering goods just in case TS did HTF.. And I told myself that I would never sell items for "cash" and would only barter for things I needed. Many of the "rich" feel as though they can buy what they need when they need it from those who prepared..Well dammit, I worked my tail off preparing for bad situations and I'll be damned if some idiot with lots of cash will be able to "buy" a friggin thing from me...They had their chance and blew it off... "F" em! If TSHTF and you come up to me with cash for food or ammo or whatever, you'll probably get a severe beating... Now, I will trade or barter for things I need. Everything but guns or ammo! Never barter or trade guns or ammo! For obvious reasons... Use your cash and buy gold and silver now. Silver would be a better choice since it can be used in smaller denominations..It'll be hard to break an ounce gold eagle...Buy barter items NOW..Don't wait. Good barter items: Booze Tobacco Sugar/Flour/Salt Dry Milk Tampons Condoms Coffee Pre 1964 silver coins TP Medicine/First Aid Supplies Batteries Bleach Shoes/Boots Underwear Lice Treatment Etc. Dump the cash..Buy yourself barter items and stuff you need..Cash will be worthless if the economy takes a dump anyway...Precious metals are the way to go. Gold, silver, brass, and lead. Just my .02 |
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It all depends on if there will be a return to a resemblance of normalcy i.e. bartertown. If yes, then I would invest in junk silver because paper money can be devalued by the stroke of a pen but precious metals can't. This means pre-64 dimes, nickels, half dollars and dollars that are in a condition which are sold mostly based on silver content instead of numismatic or collector value. If no, well then it would be up to you to decide what material items you think people in your area will value most. I think you already have, but read PATRIOTS for some ideas. |
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[url]http://www.ar15.com/forums/topic.html?b=1&f=123&t=159238[/url] There was a conversation that started a few weeks ago in the survival forum about precious metals. I personally think that it would have to be post Thunderdome for .22 to become a form of currency, but I can see the logic in the notion. |
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Quoted: Quoted: ... Without question, NFA class III weapons are the best investment one can make right now. It is so fucking, fucking, fucking sad that this is true. They are a great investment. However, You will do just as good with a semiauto if you know what you are doing. Should one feel inadaqute that their selector doesn't rotate further? Naw, just buy 2 semis and other useful supplies and then you'll be just as prepared. |
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In an event that lasts 2-4 weeks (by far the most likely situation), standard US currency will be what most people will expect and accept, with small amounts of bartering. Initially, asking prices for everything will be very high. After a while, when people figure out that the amount of actual cash in circulation is fairly small, people will realize that smaller amounts of cash are "worth more." Only if a major disruption lasts longer than a month will things like precious metals (in SMALL pieces; a single gold coin worth $350 today would be far too big, and difficult to "change") and ammo be usable as money. So would things like bottled water, TP, and other every-day consumables. -Troy |