What will be good currency?

Skilled labor. I am an electrician and want to use my skill to help people understand the importance of energy independence before things get too bad. I want to make sure people have electricity before shit hits the fan. I do not want money for my labor. I want people to make sure we take care of each other. Luckily I live in an area with an abundance of natural resources.

Screw wind and solar farms. We have the capability to produce our own electricity with will be a very important necessity should things get real bad.

Have a garden. Get involved in the barter economy. Learn simple skills like haircutting, sewing, driving less. If we really hit a serious depression, no one will be buying your “boxes of stuff,” I can assure you.

@gail

I couldnt agree more with the garden. I have one in my yard and am starting one inside now. The key to where I live is electricity. It gets too cold to grow food outside, but I will be experimenting with a homemade greenhouse I made.

If we lose electricity, we are all lumbered, I fear. I have wood and a wood-burning stove but as I age, I find using it daily is exhausting and certainly horrible for the environment. My sis and I would probably end up huddling in a one-room shack eating her canned tomato sauce with a spoon and frozen berries with our fingers.

I have a wonderful passive solar house, but on cloudy or snowy days, it is tough.

I love the idea of a homemade greenhouse. (Where is home? Clearly not near the equator.)

My power and gas company are getting some of their electricity from wind power. I pay a little extra a month for the research.

I live in northern NJ, very close to the NY border. I am on a mountain that is close to 1000ft above sea level so it is at least 10 degrees cooler than the rest of NJ, but I have well water and a wood burning stove, so electricity is clutch. I finish my solar course next Tuesday and immediately plan on addressing the issue in my community.

@chris
How do you produce your own electricity? My husband is interested in some sort of personal wind or solor generator. Is that what you’re talking about? It would be interesting to hear your take.

@gail

My definition of energy independence is that we now have the ability to create our own energy. Not as a country, but as an individual. Denmark has solar and wind all over and use electric cars as storage devices. You get home, plug in your car, you go to work, you plug in your car. I am looking foward to this depression, as Americans will hopefully move toward self sustainability, not riots and “terrorism.”
We need to use technology to our advantage and implement it in our local communities to make our lives easier, not letting corporations control the technology, which makes our lives harder.
Bring on the depression. No currency is good currency. Value is manipulated. Prices are manipulated. The skills that people learn are manipulated. I look foward to using my knowledge of electricity to make sure people understand the freedom we actually have when we use ourselves, not the government to give our life and items value.

I have a well also, but without the electric pump, I am toast, or cold bread.

Chris; you are a wonderful resource. I only wish that I were younger and stronger. Even my pathetic attempts, except for clothsline, ultimately need some power source, other tha n Milo on his treadmill.

@judi

The first key to doing any change over to a resource like wind, solar, and hydro, is to first become familiar with conserving electricity. Change bulbs to compact fluorescent bulbs(CFL), install wood burning stove, and ceiling fans. After you bring down your energy bill. You then do figure out how much energy you will use each month. There are energy availability charts. Google can provide certain charts depending on where you live. They will show you the amount of solar energy available throughout the year.

So depending on what natural resources and how much determines on what and how much of an energy producer you will need. This is where local communities and neighbors come in. Your house might not be an optimal place for solar panels. Maybe a couple of trees shade a good portion of your roof for 6 months out of the year. Maybe your neighbor has a clear shot of the sun for 12 months out of the year. It is time we get together with our neighbors and work together. It might not be affordable for one person, due to lack of available resources, natural and man made(cash). But if your neighbor has the natural resources, but not enough of the man made(cash), if you chipped in, you both could afford it. I think communities need to focus on producing their own electricity, start building warehouses to process silicon, to make solar cells.

I know this is going to sound like extreme advice, but our financial system is crumbling. I know that people say,“but it always comes back.” But I got news for you. The system doesnt want people to retire. All of this retirement money that is invested in the market, is toast. When all the baby boomers retire, the bill will be $55 trillion. What better way to not pay that debt, then by not letting people retire. If you could understand this and the way our money system (watch at least the first 20 mintues to see, after the first five, you’ll be hooked anyway) it is going to collapse regardless. My advice, take all of the currency you possibly could right now(retirement, stock,etc.) and invest in producing your own electricity. I believe it will make the coming “depression” much easier to handle.

Sex will always be good currency.

@ chris;
I’m still watching it. Pretty depressing.

At the end though, it all comes together, and as long as we all play our role, it will all pay off. Its not about our government or other governments, its about us as humans.
I felt such a sense of relief after watching it. It sends a great message by watching it and I would recommend saving it to your computer before it gets erased from the internet.

Glenn Beck said the one world currency will be the only currency very soon.

Food and water i believe. Those are the 2 most crucial things for a human being.

Monsanto is locking up the food industry.

Glenn Beck is not someone whose opinion I listen to.

Thats very open minded of you. Ive learned to not stop listening to people just because they say some things I disagree with. But I expect that from the close minded 2 party system. Everything that is against the “right’’ or “left” is irrelevant to you.

@ Chris. Should I try to buy one of these?
http://www.mobilesolarpower.net/pdf/MS300.pdf

I don’t have an opinion on Glenn Beck’s politics, I just think he’s obnoxious and contributes to fear mongering.

I agree that he promotes fear mongering when it comes to foreign policy. He might even be fear mongering the economic problem. There is nothing to be scared of, except letting the government take control of everything.

Grow weed, cook meth, and distill moonshine. People love that stuff and you can trade it off for goods, services, and what not.

Wow, this is scary

Go rent a copy of The Road Warrior. Gasoline, nonperishable food, ammunition, and basic materials like thread and baling wire. And, of course, all the duct tape you can store.

There won’t be. just barter for your wants.

In this country it would probably be snack food.

All commodities. Things that have intrinsic value. Metals-steel, gold, aluminum, etc., minerals-salt especially, foods- crops, livestock, etc. energy sources-oil, plutonium,etc. and clean water sources-reservoirs, processing plants, desalination plants.
Pet Rocks, Cabbage Patch Kids…ok not those last two.

The US Dollar

@Noel_S_Leitmotiv
Bullish on the Dollar?
@Judi
I guess it depends on how pessimistic or optimistic you are about the future economy.
In a seriously depressed world the only thing that has value is something of immediate usefulness. Trading collectibles and other assorted junk that we accumulate has little true value.
The day after Obama’s Inauguration the NY TIMES paper was going for over $200.00. Today it’s hardly worth the paper it’s written on. During the Revolutionary War in Mel Gibson’s Patriot, he’s seen melting down his son’s lead toy soldiers for bullets.
A knife to hunt, a pan to cook, silver and gold to trade as precious metal. These have been historically proven hedges. Everything else is really just useless. You can’t cook on a Chippendale but it makes a good fire.

@SeventhSense Don’t forget alcohol, tobacco and sex… people will probably always barter for them!

@augustlan
No diggity dawg.

Whiskey and guns sounds about right. Do I hear a banjo a playin’? The Canadian Looney is a solid investment; smart people, not too many of ‘em spread over a dozen time zones of land, no enemies and (fairly) decent Obama Health care. Used to be 50 cents. Now it’s about even with the Buck. Buy now, it’s gonna pass the Monopoly money dollar come next war.

Gold

Golems. Ammunition. Toiletries. The skills needed to manufacture the conveniences of modern life.

Gold.

And the Israeli shekel.

I said it as Zen_ and as Seazen_ and I’ll say it again; Gold. And the Looney. And shekel. And the US dollar – now that BL has been erased.

At this time of year, I’d love 50 lbs. of aged horse manure, accompanied by by a strong young man and a pitchfork.

I live on a 38-foot sloop. My electrical needs, which include air conditioning, can be met by my wind generator high in the mast when there is wind and some solar panels at the stern when there is sun. I have good battery storage. I have a water maker. Fishing is good in my area. I know where there are good orchards for fruit and vegetable farms near the shore. I have a little silver and gold. I have a shotgun and a handgun on board, some ammo, but I really can’t see using them on people unless they actually threatened my life. Won’t even think about it. I have some skills when it comes to fixing things, boats, etc., that might be traded for food. I’m in the medical field and am well-versed in field expedient medicine. I didn’t put all this together in anticipation of some horrible societal collapse, it’s just good stuff to have when long-distance sailing. I’m real good at hooking into free wifi. But, I figure if there was a total economic collapse on the level anticipated in this string, I probably wouldn’t last very long. One good storm could sink me and destroy my home. I’m male, nearly 60, in pretty good shape, big and muscular, fairly good looking, but I seriously doubt anyone would pay me for sex. I’m pretty good around the fire at night, got some strories to tell—that’s about it. At best, I’m a fairly charming, interesting old man with some gray in his goatee. Not sure how far that will get me if everyone is out there scrambling for food and water, crazy with guns. I’ll just do the best I can and last as long as I can. An apocalyptic world, well, I’m really not equipt emotionally for it. If things get wierd onshore, I’ll just keep shoving off. I’ve had a good life and will probably die at sea.