Great stuff amigo. May I ask... where do you buy your metals from? I am looking to begin this transition of moving my savings into metals.

Fantastic idea on the memory jar. My daughter and I would love that. Will begin today!

Rrsps, tfsa's, and a pensioned job. I think if any countries economy will survive it will be canada... But I still prep in any case. I know that I will probobly get some heat over saving money and not spending it on preps, but the way I figure it if there is an economic collapse I will have at least one week to pull everything out. But don't get me wrong, a large portion of my income goes towards preps... But as this post stated, one of my "preps" is prepping for a future where my savings will still be there when I retire. That's the risk I am willing to take right now.

Also I should mention... My savings are not in the stock market. Only my banker and myself know what mattress I have them hidden underr.

I buy bullion at Diverse Equities on 16 ave NE across from peters drive in http://www.diverseequities.com
There are several other dealers listed in the silver thread. As long as they are lisenced and will do it anonymously you should be good at any of them.
I also said "a good prepper should incororporate this" but I'd like to revise that to an ESTABLISHED prepper. Although I believe in preparing for whatever the future may hold we should get our houses in order for a post SHTF world before pursuing gold/silver and other investment vehicles. I rolled my assets like stocks/rrsps into metal but use my monthly budget for food and other life or death assets.

Canada is tied to the USD and we will be hurting. Our pensions are tied to American companies to. We hold US debt etc, it is not pretty.

Here is an interesting bit of information on how Canada is tied to the US economy and results if US economy crashes.
http://www.resourceinvestor.com/2011/06/03/canada-is-no-haven-from-us-dollar-collapse

I see a few "holes" in that article myself as well. Here is another I just finished going over... has some key points but I still see some of them holes I mentioned.

Is the Collapse of the U.S. Dollar Imminent?

By Kimberly Amadeo, About.com Guide

What Is a Dollar Collapse?:

A dollar collapse is when the value of the dollar falls so fast that all those who hold dollars panic, and sell them at any cost. In this scenario, sellers would include: foreign governments who hold U.S. Treasuries, traders in exchange rate futures who trade the dollar versus other currencies, and individual investors who demand assets denominated in anything other than dollars. The collapse of the dollar means that everyone is trying to sell their dollar-denominated assets, and no one wants to buy them, driving the value of the dollar down to near zero.

What Would Cause the Dollar to Collapse?:

Several conditions must be in place before the dollar could collapse. First, there must be an underlying weakness. Second, there must be a viable currency alternative for everyone to stampede into. Third, a triggering event would need to occur.

The first condition does exist. The dollar declined 54.7% against the euro between 2002 and 2012. Why? The U.S. debt nearly tripled during that time period, from $5.9 trillion to $15 trillion. This increases the chance the U.S. will let the dollar's value slide, allowing it to repay the debt with cheaper money.

Is There a Viable Alternative to the Dollar?:

The dollar became the world's reserve currency when President Nixon abandoned the gold standard in the 1970s. The dollar is used for 43% of all cross-border transactions. The dollar's value is strong as measured by central bank reserves -- 61% of the these foreign currency reserves are in dollars. The next most popular currency? The euro, which comprises less than 30% of reserves. The eurozone debt crisis has only weakened the euro as a viable alternative to the dollar as a global currency.

China and others have argued for a new global currency. However, replacing the dollar would be a massive undertaking, would require great global resolve and not happen quickly.

What Event Could Trigger a Dollar Collapse?:

Altogether, foreign countries own $5 trillion in U.S. debt (as of December 2011). If China, Japan or other major holders started dumping these holdings of Treasury notes on the secondary market, this could cause a panic leading to collapse. China owns more than $1 trillion in U.S. Treasuries. That's because China pegs its currency, the yuan, to the dollar. This keeps the prices of its exports to the U.S. relatively cheap. Japan owns more than $800 billion in Treasuries, also keeping its currency, the yen, low to stimulate exports to the U.S. Japan is trying to move out of a 15 year deflationary cycle, and the 2011 earthquake and nuclear disaster hasn't helped.

China and Japan Can, But Won't, Trigger a Dollar Collapse:

Would China and Japan ever really do this? Only if they saw their holdings declining in value too fast AND they had another market to sell their products to. The economies of Japan and China are dependent on U.S. consumers. They know that if they sell their dollars, their products will cost more in the U.S., and their economies will suffer. Right now, it's still in their best interest to hold onto their dollar reserves.

China and Japan are selling more to other Asian countries, who are gradually becoming wealthier. However, the U.S. is still the best market in the world. (See Demand in the U.S. Economy)

If the Dollar Collapses, What Would Happen?:

A sudden dollar collapse would create global economic turmoil as investors rush to other currencies, such as the euro, or other assets, such as gold or other commodities. Demand for Treasuries would plummet, driving up interest rates. Import prices would skyrocket, causing inflation.

U.S. exports would be dirt cheap, boosting the economy briefly. Unfortunately, uncertainty, inflation and high interest rates would strangle possible business growth. Unemployment would worsen, sending the U.S. back into recession or even creating a depression.

How Can I Protect Myself from a Dollar Collapse?:

Protect yourself from a dollar collapse by first defending yourself from a gradual dollar decline. Keep your assets well-diversified by holding foreign mutual funds, gold and other commodities. A dollar collapse would create global economic turmoil. To respond to this kind of uncertainty, you must be mobile. Keep your assets liquid, so you can shift them as needed. Make sure your job skills are transferable. Update your passport, in case things get so bad for so long that you need to move quickly to another country.

Is a Dollar Collapse Imminent?:

Fortunately, it's highly unlikely that the dollar will collapse. That's because any of the countries who have the power to make that happen (China, Japan and other foreign dollar-holders) don't want it to occur. It's not in their best interest. Why bankrupt your best customer? Instead, the dollar will probably continue to decline gradually, as these countries slowly find other markets. For more, see Dollar Decline or Dollar Collapse? (Article updated March 1, 2012)

Canada is also tied to every other major economy in the world, and in a big way. We have what people want, and in vast amounts. Don't own stock in any american company, or have any mutual funds that are directly tied in to the american economy. I have seen my investments grow steadily over the last few years of turmoil because more and more countries are slowly backing away from the us and moving their interests to canada and china. If the dollar collapsed, or even worse if the united states as a sovereign entity collapsed, we would be effected... And traumatically. But I believe we will recover and stabilize in good time. There will always be demand, as long as people are alive, and there is some semblance of international trade. in the future if there is a drastic change in the monetary system, it will not happen over night (for example... Tommorow everyone in the world says "no more money!!! Back to a barter system!") I think ill have enough time to pull my funds out and purchase real world goods.

And if none of the above happens, I will be sitting pretty for early retirement, my kids will go to university, and ill be happy as a clam. Now if there is an emp, or some other disaster that occurs where it is impossible for me to retrieve these funds at a moments notice, then that money and investment is lost, and I'm on the hook. Which is why I have diversified real, physical, investments as well, including my prepping goods that I am steadily massing. And if there was an emp... I think the money I lose will be the least of my worries lol.

How will I listen to my ipod!!!

Hahaha... you and your iPod. Sheesh. I'm more concerned about my iPad!! 😉

Here is some more interesting stuff on the subject. http://www.simplewealth.com/2012/06/01/middle-class-meltdown-its-coming/

Alberta Prepper: We should care about others, as times get tougher we will have fewer and fewer good people. Just because the world has been corrupted by greed and wealth doesn't mean we should turn our backs on each other. Try to educate people within your community. The movement is growing as more and more people wake up. there is still hope for communities just not globalization. I firmly believe that those who can abandon the selfish ways of the world and learn to work together may actually thrive when the collapse happens. I will not disagree that huge changes are ahead. I just don't know how it will all play out. SHTF implies we wake up one day and somebody has thrown a big bag of poop at the big ceiling fan in the sky where as a gradual decline will force communities to start working together. you may have a lot to offer in this situation. We shouldn't be so quick to write off everyone else. People tend to be resilient.

The minority perhaps, but the majority are opprotunistic to the nth degree. All it would take is trusting the wrong person one time, and that's it. I know it my be skepticisim... But I don't think a smart prepper would be helpful to every tom dick and harry who came by with a smile on their face and their hands reached out. That doesn't mean good people arnt out there, it just means they will be tough to find. Some people just arnt willing to take the chance of harming their familys well being.

I think the best bet for the future is to develop your own group. People you have known for years, and have gotten very close to, and are also on board with the idea of prepping. Not the "oh, well if shtf we'll just come to your place", but real quality people with solid character. It takes time to find them, and longer still to build that kind of trust. But that's a discussion for another thread I think.

Ever see the movie "the green mile"? They hire a guy to help maintain their farm... He eats with them, helps with the workload, plays with their dogs and kids... And then he rapes and murders their 2 little girls.

I was not saying that we should welcome every stranger we meet into our home and break bread with them. I was saying that we should care about others. If you have an opportunity to help your community you should. If two starving children show up at my door i will help them post event just as i will now. Anyways, I started this thread to hear about the plans others may have and if a non SHTF scenario factors into their preps. What kind of "event" could happen has about ten other threads on this board. My decisions are based on faith and wisdom. Pretty simple really 🙂

Food storage has been a part of my life for a long time...The S has HTF a few times at my home...twice my grown son needed some food...once my grown daughter needed some food...and once, many years ago, I fell on hard times and needed my food storage so you see, food storage and preparing is not always for a major disaster...food storage is for your neighbour who lost his job, it's for charity...there are all sorts of different scenarios that we can think of where our food storage can help...and we too sleep better knowing that we are preparing...

Rain

Food storage has been a part of my life for a long time...The S has HTF a few times at my home...twice my grown son needed some food...once my grown daughter needed some food...and once, many years ago, I fell on hard times and needed my food storage so you see, food storage and preparing is not always for a major disaster...food storage is for your neighbour who lost his job, it's for charity...there are all sorts of different scenarios that we can think of where our food storage can help...and we too sleep better knowing that we are preparing...

Rain

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