Category: Economy

Do You Now Understand Why You Need To Prepare For Emergencies? This Has Been The Worst Year For Natural Disasters In U.S. History

There has been a natural disaster that has caused at least a billion dollars of damage inside the United States every single month so far this year.  According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, there have been 10 major disasters in the United States this year.  On average, usually there are only about 3 major disasters a year.  At this point, disasters are happening inside the United States so frequently that there seems to be no gap between them.  We just seem to go from one major disaster to the next.  Last year, FEMA declared an all-time record of 81 disasters inside the United States.  This year, we are on pace for well over 100.  We just got done dealing with Hurricane Irene, and now we are dealing with historic wildfires in Texas and unprecedented flooding up in the northeast part of the country.  This has been the worst year for natural disasters in U.S. history, and we still have nearly four months left to go.  Hopefully after everything that has happened this year it has become abundantly clear to all of us why we need to prepare for emergencies.  The world is becoming an increasingly unstable place, and you never know what is going to happen next.

Read the rest of the article for more (and there’s a lot more):

Do You Now Understand Why You Need To Prepare For Emergencies? This Has Been The Worst Year For Natural Disasters In U.S. History

 

Living in a Shanty Town

The link goes to a photo article of a group of homeless people in NJ.  It shows life living in a shanty town.  If you study the pictures, you can learn a lot about what life like this is like and what is important for survival.  You’ll notice that being comfortable, even in a minimal sense, is important and shouldn’t be underestimated.  Surviving isn’t a camping trip, it’s everyday life.

THE GREAT RECESSION: Life In “Tent City” In Lakewood New Jersey

The Economy Continues Its Downward Spiral

The economy continues its downward spiral and gold and approaching $2000 per ounce.  Where do we go from here?

Silver is also starting to rise again, which some people, including me, think might be a better indicator of how spooked people really are about the economy. Rich people can buy gold anytime they want, but when the average person finally realizes that they need to protect their savings from inflation, silver is usually a better option for them, because it’s cheaper.

In the podcast, I again dispel a myth about why it’s too late to buy precious metals (gold and silver) and discuss the ongoing issues of what we can expect as we continue on this path to hyperinflation.

Markets are continuing their “bouncing down the stairs” motion. However, watching the markets is a poor indicator of the current state of the economy, because it’s mainly reactionary.

Most Americans Can’t Afford A $1,000 Emergency Expense

Most Americans can’t afford a $1,000 emergency expense – Aug. 10, 2011

Prepping isn’t just about doom and gloom, it’s about surviving the things that everyday life throws at you.

We’ve talked about the various levels of disasters on several podcasts and how the personal level are the most likely to occur to you. Things like car repairs and sick children are just a couple of things that come to mind. Most of us have family in another state, if you need to take an emergency flight to be with them, it’s expensive to buy last minute plane tickets.

If you don’t already have an emergency fund, start saving for it now. If you do have an emergency fund, keep adding to it. One thing I do is when my emergency fund grows large enough, I take some of that and convert into silver.  It’s still easy to liquidate, but also retains the value of that savings.

Why $1764 Gold is Important

In a recent podcast, I completely flubbed the explanation for why gold reaching $1764 per ounce was important. I’ll blame it on an early morning and a late night (and I’m sticking to that story :o ).

Anyway, I found this video interview with Jim Sinclair, the man who’s pegged this important price point in gold, and he explains it much better than I.

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