Disaster Scenario | Financial Collapse
There are several scenarios that are discussed as possible ways society could collapse. Financial breakdown and collapse is quite possibly the most probable of them all with past examples in human history. Society, and more importantly, American society has come back from each collapse but it did take some time and sacrifices to do so. The most memorable financial collapse was the Great Depression.
There are actually still people alive today who have lived through the Great Depression which began in August 1929 but didn’t get serious until the Wall Street crash in October. There was a run on banks who didn’t have enough paper and coin currency to disperse to their bank members, inflation skyrocketed, unemployment jumped up and the economy collapsed. These are only a few of the many factors that had to take place to have a collapse that was felt world wide.
During this time, food and resources were scarce and the value tangible assets skyrocketed. The United States didn’t really come out of the depression until the beginning of World War 2 in 1941. This was more than a decade of hardship for the United States and the world. We witnessed an extended recession in 2008 where the Dow Industrial took a hit and the US is finally beginning to recover in 2018.
How do you prepare for such a scenario? What do you purchase? What information do you need? Let’s take a look at what Kimberly Amadeo of The Balance has to say in her article called, “U.S. Economy Collapse – What Will Happen and How to Prepare”:
How to Prepare for a Collapse
Protecting yourself from a U.S. economic collapse is difficult.
A catastrophic failure can happen without warning. In most crises, people survive through their knowledge, wits, and by helping each other. Make sure you understand basic economic concepts so you can see warning signs of instability. One of the first signs is a stock market crash. If it’s bad enough, a market crash can cause a recession.
Second, keep as many assets as liquid as possible so that you can withdraw them within a week. In addition to your regular job, make sure you have skills that you’d need in a traditional economy, such as farming, cooking or repair.
Make sure your passport is current in case you’d need to leave the country on short notice. Research target countries now and travel there on vacation, so you are familiar with your destination.
Keep yourself in top physical shape. Know basic survival skills, such as self-defense, foraging, hunting, and farming. Practice now with camping trips. If you can, move near a wildlife preserve in a temperate climate. That way, if a collapse occurs, you can live off the land in a relatively unpopulated area.
As for cash, it may not be useful in a total economic collapse because its value might be decimated. Stockpiles of gold bullion may not help because they would be difficult to transport if you needed to move quickly. In a severe collapse, they may not be accepted as currency. But it would be good to have a stash of $20 bills and gold coins, just in case. During many crisis situations, these are commonly accepted as bribes.
Here at TruPrep.com we also recommend having a well balanced supply of food and water to weather a prolonged depression or collapse. Food security is an important asset to have in such an emergency. We offer many varieties of food-stores to fit any scenario and price-point.
