Power Grid Down… What Happens to Money?
I’ll keep saying this until I am blue in the face: the US power grid is old and overloaded. A once-in-100-years solar storm can wreck it, and replacing all the transformers could take six months. The US government recently decided not to fund an upgrade. This could be the worst mistake the US government has ever made. If the grid goes down, there goes heating and cooling, and the USA has some extreme weather. Gas stations won’t work, and places that will be relying on diesel generators, like hospitals, could be without power within days. Water won’t be pumped any more. Most likely millions will die. And what about money?
The first problems are obvious. ATMs will stop working, and banks won’t have access to account records. That means no more cash will be distributed. Few people carry more than a week’s worth of cash.
Credit and debit card payment systems won’t be working. So there is only cash, and pretty soon everyone has traded the cash in their wallets for any supplies they can get. I can envision stores with products on the shelves, and customers with no more cash – a stalemate. Because security systems are no longer functioning, and police are overburdened and without means of communication, crime will rise significantly. Store owners, or anyone with something worth stealing in this doomsday scenario, will quite likely choose to protect what they have with guns. And they will potentially lose their lives and property to criminals with guns. Before long the toughest, nastiest people will control a lot of the remaining supplies.
The good news is that you and your family will have somewhere safe, away from the city, and there will be 6 months worth of food and water. And your fuel tank will be full, and you’ll know the best back roads to get you there. And you’ll leave while everyone else is still coming to grips with the gravity of the situation.
So what about cash substitutes? What will be the SHTF currency and what can you trade?
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When and if it happens, solid gold and silver coins & rounds will be the only way to buy supplies. I truly believe that many of us are very awhere of this fact, so much so that the price of both metels has gone up a lot for the past couple of years.
Most dont care or think it could happen even on the smallest level… hope it doesnt happen before were half way prepared.