Originally published at Notes from the bunker…. You can comment here or there.
I am, regrettably, still convinced that this economic…downturn…we’re experiencing is not done. Economy aside there are still ‘old’ threats still out there…Muslim terrorists, bird flu, natural disasters, etc, etc.
I hope 2009 isnt going to be worse than 2008 but I don;t see how it can’t be. I can’t believe anyone would really think that the Carter II administration is somehow going to pull us out of this. I saw a cover of Time magazine that had Obama caricatured as the new FDR. Lets not forget a couple things about FDR – he is, hands down, the father of the .gov nannystate…so much so that he threatened to stack the Supreme Court if his New Deal programs continued to be assailed as ‘unconstitutional’..and that FDR didn’t end the Depression. FDR never presided over anything except a Depression economy or a wartime economy. Make no mistake…WW2 ended the Depression (some may argue FDR got us into WW2 for that very reason). To imagine Obama as a new FDR means that the person making the comparison is either ignorant of history or acutely aware of it.
I think 2009 will be a tough year. I have no intention of this being the year we get a new house, new car, new television or cruise through the Med. This will be a year of looking over one’s shoulder while stuffing money into the mattress. However, when all this turns around…and it will eventually turn around…I plan on us being there to see it. Ideally, in much the same situation we are now…safely rooted in our house, with cabinets full of food, a safe full of guns, enough cash to handle a crisis, and ourselves steeled against the uncertain.
I suppose my point, if I have one at all here, is that you shouldn’t be lulled into a sense of security that things are getting better…that a rebound is right around the corner…that ‘hope’ and ‘change’ are coming…it would be foolish to think the clouds have broken and that its okay to drop $4200 on a bigscreen HDTV only to have your job eliminated the week after you start making the payments.
What will be the signs that things are ‘back to the way they used to be’? Not sure. I do know what those signs won’t be though….most of the ones we’re seeing now.
Uhg, I wish I could say the same here. As scary as the idea is at this point in history (and that’s probably why I have been putting it off), a new home is one essential on my list of preps that I haven’t checked off yet.
Right now if you are signing up for payments on anything, i.e. something you can’t pay cash for, you are a moron.
That’s been pretty much my approach to everything except houses for most of my life. I only took out car loans when I was starting out to help establish credit.
Don’t get me wrong, there are times where I feel it is useful to spend other people’s money and pay a premium over time to do so. But anything guaranteed to lose value is typically not one of those things. A house is a good idea. Your first auto is probably likewise a needed evil. (I’m a big proponent of used but in good shape cars.) Home electronics, dining out, more clothes, etc., BAD IDEA.
Exactly.
My last new car is 27 years old and my used truck is 23 years old, both still going strong. Why buy a new vehicle at a price that’s more than what I’ve paid for houses in the past? Especially since they’re now so complicated that you can’t repair them yourself. I’m actually regretting selling my ’51 Chev pickup. That was simple, basic transportation!
I feel silly driving around that ’95 Corolla by comparison. 🙂
My old car still gets over 30mpg and the old 4×4 truck still gets around 22mpg – both do better on the highway. That tempers my desire for a new car that might require large repair costs – almost $1000 for a set of new headlights (Prius) – and not be much more economical. I consider my truck to be reliable enough for long road trips, and the car would be if I tore into the front end and fixed some bearing clearance problems. So the idea of an expensive new car gets tempered by hard reality and the realization that I already have the means to get from here to there just fine 😉
beans, bullets, band aids
My ’69 Bronco does just fine. The wife’s 2000 Taurus is getting a little tired but with only 85k on the speedo can’t really justify a new one, yet, but it’s coming. The motorcycle only has 10k on it and runs like a top.
Rather than cash in the matress (which is a good idea) I’m buying 10 oz of silver a month, mostly silver eagles. Not too extragant but should be a good cushion and spend easily. I cruise the gun shows, pawn shops and gun stores keeping my eye out for deals, not many out there. My buddy told me today he knows a guy at the local military Base that can get all the free ammo cans we want. I will ask for some and see if he is just talk or the real deal.
Loading all my empty brass. Just cleaned 300 cases of 30-06 today, with a mixture of vinegar and lemon juice, then tumble, and will start loading them. All go into plastic cartridge boxes from Midway and then into ammo cans. Tangibles people, tangibles. Beans, bullets, band aids.
as much as I got
been rather stingy on a strict budget paying the bills and buying just the basics. if inflation/shortages hit, having cash on hand is better than no money available. Wildflower 09