When Lee approached me about doing a guest post, I was taken by surprise. Why in the world does this dude want to post something on my blog? And about prepping? Sheesh. Has he lost his mind? We aren't like those Doomsday Preppers on TV. Sheesh....
Then Rambob stepped in and confirmed it. Why yes, yes we are preppers. *gasp* WHAT!? HOW!? WHEN.DID.THIS.HAPPEN!? Noooooooo!!!!
After much thought, I must agree. We are preppers. We hunt. We fish. We butcher and process our own meat. We garden. We can. We make wine. We sew. We have bug out bags and bins (thanks to being married to a retired military officer and 9/11) We have survivial skills. We are preppers. Dang it.....LB
Bartering
After the Apocalypse: Having the Right Stuff
The
current level of interest in the apocalypse is higher than perhaps at any other
time in history. The theories abound: some centered on the Mayan calendar and
it’s supposed prediction that the end of the world will hit on December 21st
of this year, others on solar flares that are on track to hit planet Earth and
annihilate all mankind, or another theory suggesting that a so-called Planet X
(believed to be a brown dwarf star hidden by the sun) will enter the solar
system and destroy everyone. Plenty of people believe, quite passionately, in
these or other theories but even if you aren’t one of them you have probably
spent some time thinking about what to do in a crisis situation. The recent
pattern of severe natural disasters alone is cause for some preoccupation about
how to survive when the world seems to have turned upside down. Although it isn’t pleasant to think about,
the probability of being involved in some type of catastrophe is not altogether
unlikely and none of us want to feel underprepared if we find ourselves in that
type of situation.
One
of the most essential aspects of emergency preparation is food storage. Much
has been said about the necessity of having a good store of Emergency Foods and
there are now more options for finding, storing and planning out a supply than
ever before. Some of the benefits are pretty obvious—food is a necessity so
having a good supply brings peace of mind now and would be invaluable if
disaster were to strike. Other benefits are less immediately apparent—rotating
food storage and incorporating it into your day-to-day meal plans is a great
way to stretch your grocery budget without sacrificing taste or quality. One
other benefit, however, is commonly overlooked, despite being a potentially
crucial advantage.
If
(or maybe when) doomsday eventually comes, one of the most foreign and
intimidating probabilities is that our current economic system will be
completely displaced. In a world where paper money is valueless and credit is
worth even less, it is hard to fathom how we could possibly acquire the things
that we need. Although the “end of the world” has yet to occur and no one can
be exactly sure what to expect, we do have good reason to believe that the
dominant economic system will be based on bartering. Situations occurring after
devastating wars or the rebuilding that took place in post-communist Germany,
for example, lead most experts to assume that a fairly primitive system of
trade will dominant society in a post-apocalyptic world. If that is indeed the
case, we will all want to be sure we have something worth trading.
In
that scenario the luxuries will quickly lose value because they have little
practical application in a survival of the fittest society. Experts predict
that the basic necessities will be of the most value so a good supply of clean
drinking water and nutrient rich food storage will not only be invaluable to
your directly, it could also be extremely beneficial in terms of trade. While
it is probably wisest to stock up on the basics, many have suggested that
sweets, specifically chocolate, will be of high demand and could be big
bartering chips.
ABOUT
THE AUTHOR:
Lee
Flynn is a freelance writer and expert in outdoor survival
2 comments:
I'm all for being prepared for any type of emergency from bad storms to world war. However, if some folks are preparing to survive a BIBLICAL apocalypse, they've apparently missed the boat spiritually. Most scholars agree that Christians will be removed from this world BEFORE the apocalyse. Only those headed for hell will remain. Though they still have time to convert, they will probably pay with their lives for that decision.
Great information and LB, thanks for putting up his guest post. I have about 5 more years nitrogen packed grain than I need for myself. It's perfect bartering material and easy to tote (if I can still lift 50 pounds at a time).
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