Buy yourself an Easter present. Silver is cheap. ( conspiracy )

submitted by WhyNoDonuts

If you don't already have some, a dozen silver coins is a great thing to have. Gold is pricier, and just for your consideration: it costs almost $1000/oz in a developed country to mine, refine, and mint a gold coin.

Hell, splurge on a case of 22longs, they will never lose their value. just don't buy plastic. There are enough posts here explaining why our money will be worthless one day, let alone that useless "thing" advertised as a must-have.

Edit: a spelling

ZF_1

Silver is not a rare earth metal

WhyNoDonuts

How would one go about amassing rare earth metals, and once obtained, who would buy them and at what established prices? I was only suggesting silver because gold coins are really expensive. Besides, a mix of metals is best - but don't leave them in safety deposit boxes!

ZF_1

http://www.australianminesatlas.gov.au/education/fact_sheets/silver.html The earth makes silver naturally. Gold, Platinum and Palladium all come from space. I have invested in BTC which seems to be easier to use. Also im not one for buying jewelry but i prefer buying Tanzanite for my wife when i do. It can only be found in one location in the world.

likestodrawnaked

I love the fact I have gold coins as a fall back on my savings.

cthulian_axioms

If a dozen silver coins is a good thing to have, two dozen are better. In various denominations, for various sizes of purchases. Ain't but a few people gonna be able to make change from a silver Eagle.

WhyNoDonuts

Good point. Those .9999 full ounce coins will be the larger denominations (and i know four nines silver is made in smaller coin sizes) but maybe pre-1965 dimes and quarters could act as the smaller change? Those bags you can buy by weight might be the way to go, with 75% silver within. Maybe real-copper pennies will come back too? Anything with value, really.... High quality seeing needles may be the most sought after, it's hard to tell. If you're thinking of a full SHTF situation, practically anything useable that you can stock up on now is better than trading precious metals for later. If a less drastic situation is what you have in mind, inflation is making sure that unused money still eats away at your long-term buying power, but metals can help hedge against. Have a decent (not high tech) bike yet? If not, get one, and some extra tubes, tools, and know how to fix it. Learn to true a tire and become a local legend today, if not also in a post-? Scenario.

People seem to forget that services are what hold a community together, not bartering. The last thing I want is to be the only guy on my street with all the goods. Being someone with useable skills is a much better thing to be known for. There are collapse related groups for that already though, and lots of cool info available. Just don't forget to rotate your emergency food into daily life so you can keep expiry dates in check - but also get the kids used to those foods.

I'm interested in metals as a way to hedge against currency failures, but I don't think that will automatically lead to mayhem. The very real possibility that the buying power of a new currency (let's just call it the Amero) is a fraction of what the USD was - is my fear.

cthulian_axioms

I forget where I read this, but it is said that there are four levels of wealth a person can accumulate:

  1. Skills and knowledge;
  2. Tools and raw materials;
  3. Silver and gold; and finally
  4. Fiat currency Monopoly money.

You sound like a person who groks those four levels in fullness. The sewing needle thing is a really good idea.

Have a decent (not high tech) bike yet?

Yup, and I ride it to work every day. Haven't had to do a field-repair in a while (which is nice) but it's sure in need of a tune-up.

Learn to true a tire and become a local legend today

Truing wheels is a fucking black art . I don't know how people do it.

Being someone with useable skills is a much better thing to be known for

Damn straight. I would recommend that people who aspire in this regard should pick up a copy of John Michael Greer's "Green Wizardry". Read it. Learn it. Live it.

WhyNoDonuts

As long as we are giving anonymous advice I gotta also add: get away from big cities. In the likely slow-fizzle economic scenario, folks will be able to emigrate to their location of choice -but the earliest bird gets the tastiest worm. In a bang-pop kind of scenario you will get as far as the gas in your tank will take you. It might be nice to be a few hours away from any city over 200,000. I found the small town of my dreams years ago, but I still have "somewhere else" to go.

Another random tip: even if you don't garden, buying $10 worth of discounted end-season seeds (bean, carrot, various leafy greens, cherry tomato) and some free starter trays from the back of the gardening selection might bring some joy and vitamins into your life later on! Even if everything is going well. Berry bushes are great but they attract bears.

I will check out the wizardry. This weekend I finally found time to sign up and post here, but getting through a book is a challenge thesee days. I will promise a hearty skim but hopefully it's more than that!

cthulian_axioms

You won't be disappointed. The book is designed to be read chapter-by-chapter, with exercises after each one.