Prudence

Joe Doakes from Como Park writes:

I like this analogy, from Instapundit

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Don’t think that zero is as low as interest rates can go: money as a store of value is also threatened.

Primitive man often faced an interest rate of -%50 per hour, if he caught some meat for instance, and was trying to get it into the bellies of his family it spoiled or was snatched by competitors. Now you can store your income and wealth in financial instruments and only buy meat when you want to eat it, or keep it in the fridge or freezer for even greater convenience. We take all this for granted, but as near-zero nominal interest rates come to be paired with rising inflation–an outcome that is pretty much guaranteed under QE3–even coin and currency will no longer keep stored value from wasting away. We are heading into difficulties that should be a thing of the past, and its not just bedbugs and resistant disease. Government is squandering EVERYTHING.

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So we need to invest in stuff that won’t spoil, that people will be willing to trade for after the economy collapses. Honestly, gold bullion doesn’t strike me as useful for everyday living. More useful, durable stuff would be:

Whiskey

Bullets

Toilet paper

I’m pretty much good to go.

Joe Doakes

Como Park

Americans at large – other than Mormons – have never really taken the possibility of complete collapse seriously.

It’s looking smarter and smarter.

I bet I just got onto a DHS watchlist, didn’t I?

5 thoughts on “Prudence

  1. Go ahead, we can use the Keynesian demand stimulus. Your hoarding creates jobs. Which leads to more inflation, which leads to more hoarding, which leads to more jobs . . . .

  2. And maybe we will reach “economic recovery” after hitting 50 trillion in debt.

    Put down the Keynes-pipe, RickDFL. Keynes abuse is a serious problem.

  3. Joe, Many of us have a similar list of things as a must to keep on hand. I live rural and have a deep well pump that serves the home. The deep well pump is electric so I put a shallow well pump in the garden (both electric and hand operated). You mentioned having bullets over gold, that had me thinking of the phrase “plata o plomo” , I’m going with lead (wink). Also I try to keep all the vehicles, toys, and spare gas cans filled with gas. These things can be very useful in disasters, natural or man-made.

  4. A back up water supply is a very good idea. So is back up heat and enough food to last at least a few days.

    The Mormons do have a canning center in the southern twin cities area. They will show you how to can food and sell all the supplies at cost.

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