Preparing for Uncertainty and Self Reliance

[C-Mag]

A lot of folks don't know that any transaction you have of more than $2000 is tracked by the Federalis. If there is better more anonymous way to stored wealth than metals, please let me know. I think its pretty naïve to image that the Feds wouldn't track any electronic wealth exchange. Hell they are listening to your plans about Yoga classes after all.

[SilverEagle]

Looks like government is tracking bitcoin to some degree, you know what comes next, taxes.
https://cointelegraph.com/news/bitcoin- ... base-users

As indicated by the summons, two things are clear: one, the IRS has tracked Bitcoin-related activity sufficiently to be able to determine that certain users may not be in compliance with tax law, and two, this activity has been traced back to Coinbase wallets. As Coinbase is an AML/KYC compliant entity, they are required to collect personal information concerning the identity of their customers, meaning that transactions traced back to Coinbase wallets can reveal the real identity of its users.

I see, thanks for the article. I'm not an expert but Coinbase is kind of "The Man" of bitcoin exchanges and they require significant personal information because of Know Your Customer (I believe they require a bank account and scanned copy of driver's license) in order to buy bitcoin. I'm totally open to the idea that our government has more advanced ways of tracking the bitcoins but it's absolutely no surprise that Coinbase users would be tracked by the IRS when they directly tied that account to their bank account.

There used to be more ways to exchange USD but I've seen them disappear or start requiring this excessive information.

I keep my Bitcoin on https://btc-e.com/

[Speaker to Animals]

In the context of prepping, bitcoin is a fucking ridiculous choice. Let's accept that and move on. I mean.. if you want to talk about how bitcoin is awesome, maybe create a bitcoin thread. But if you are talking about economic collapse or whatever, putting your money into bitcoins is probably worse than just giving away your discretionary funds to heroin addicts, really. At least the heroin addicts might off themselves with the money and not represent a threat to you in a time of emergency. Your bitcoins will mean fuck all.

[C-Mag]

In the context of prepping, bitcoin is a fucking ridiculous choice. Let's accept that and move on. I mean.. if you want to talk about how bitcoin is awesome, maybe create a bitcoin thread. But if you are talking about economic collapse or whatever, putting your money into bitcoins is probably worse than just giving away your discretionary funds to heroin addicts, really. At least the heroin addicts might off themselves with the money and not represent a threat to you in a time of emergency. Your bitcoins will mean fuck all.

If someone wants to choose Bitcoin, fine they can deal with however that turns out. I personally don't see it as a reliable way to store wealth as it is in the hands of a huge network that you can easily get cut off from.

The point is, everyone should have some wealth stored up. Diversification is generally a great way to go. Whenever you look at crisis situations from history there are some common forms of wealth that are always present. Metals, to a lesser extent gems and jewelry and then barter items. Drugs - Tobacco, Alcohol and other drugs.

Now a lot of Preppers like your JW Rawles rail against stockpiling Tobacco and Alcohol as immoral choices. I'm like, wake the hell up. You are supposed to be an expert in this apocalypse shit. Tobacco and Alcohol will be widely traded, and Alcohol at least is a great asset to have. Liquor keeps forever, it's relatively cheap, and you aren't going to change human nature.

[Speaker to Animals]

In the context of prepping, bitcoin is a fucking ridiculous choice. Let's accept that and move on. I mean.. if you want to talk about how bitcoin is awesome, maybe create a bitcoin thread. But if you are talking about economic collapse or whatever, putting your money into bitcoins is probably worse than just giving away your discretionary funds to heroin addicts, really. At least the heroin addicts might off themselves with the money and not represent a threat to you in a time of emergency. Your bitcoins will mean fuck all.

If someone wants to choose Bitcoin, fine they can deal with however that turns out. I personally don't see it as a reliable way to store wealth as it is in the hands of a huge network that you can easily get cut off from.

The point is, everyone should have some wealth stored up. Diversification is generally a great way to go. Whenever you look at crisis situations from history there are some common forms of wealth that are always present. Metals, to a lesser extent gems and jewelry and then barter items. Drugs - Tobacco, Alcohol and other drugs.

Now a lot of Preppers like your JW Rawles rail against stockpiling Tobacco and Alcohol as immoral choices. I'm like, wake the hell up. You are supposed to be an expert in this apocalypse shit. Tobacco and Alcohol will be widely traded, and Alcohol at least is a great asset to have. Liquor keeps forever, it's relatively cheap, and you aren't going to change human nature.

It's still an immoral choice. Alcohol at least can be used as a disinfectant. But the last thing you want to do is get lots of people drunk during a time like that. Tobacco might seem okay to those of you who are smokers, but consider what you could have bought instead of tobacco (like more food, ammunition, etc). Tobacco was always a discretionary good for trade. People traded it in the good times. That first winter at Jamestown wasn't exactly known as a smoker's paradise.

You might be better off storing tobacco seeds. That's worth more than just processed tobacco anyway. But you are talking about a really, really long period of time of hardship for that to make any sense. That's dark ages upon us territory.

[Speaker to Animals]

It seems to me that you can divide preppers into two camps: dark and light. Dark is like the dark enlightenment folks. These preppers are willing to commit to wholly immoral strategies precisely because no laws will exist to enforce morality. They would be willing to trade drugs in order to take advantage of the sick and addicted. Some of them I have seen even openly (but anonymously) discussing the possibility of raiding and banditry as a viable survival strategy.

The other side discuss prepping in terms of how to strengthen their communities. The first and foremost want to help themselves, but if it's at all possible to help others, they still consider it. They try to help others become preppers because they know the more people in their community prepare for emergencies, the stronger their community will be if it happens, and the more likely they will have a community at all in that event.

[C-Mag]

It's still an immoral choice. Alcohol at least can be used as a disinfectant. But the last thing you want to do is get lots of people drunk during a time like that. Tobacco might seem okay to those of you who are smokers, but consider what you could have bought instead of tobacco (like more food, ammunition, etc). Tobacco was always a discretionary good for trade. People traded it in the good times. That first winter at Jamestown wasn't exactly known as a smoker's paradise.

You might be better off storing tobacco seeds. That's worth more than just processed tobacco anyway.

The Walking Dead has jumped the shark, but one of the points I do like about the show is that everyone is forced to do some immoral things during the apocalypse. I think that's broadly true of huge crisis situations.

I'm never going to be growing weed or selling it. No background, no knowledge of the culture, etc. However, in these scenarios having assets set aside that include a case or two of whiskey or having the ability to make alcohol is a great way to diversify your assets. If you look at crisis situations there is always an economy of some kind running, having something to barter other than your wife, girlfriend or daughter or son is important.

Your point of considering what you could have bought is smart. Gotta weigh things out. Let's inject my example before of who can fix a tire. $500 of booze vs $500 of tire repair supplies, which is the better bet ?

I know in my area having some whiskey is a good hedge. Hell, if it never gets used my kids can drink it at my funeral. There are a lot of folks out there with some background in growing weed. Maybe in their area that's a good bet for them. Being Self-Reliant is more about skills than stuff. It's having the skills and at least the minimum stuff you need to use those skills.

[C-Mag]

It seems to me that you can divide preppers into two camps: dark and light. Dark is like the dark enlightenment folks. These preppers are willing to commit to wholly immoral strategies precisely because no laws will exist to enforce morality. They would be willing to trade drugs in order to take advantage of the sick and addicted. Some of them I have seen even openly (but anonymously) discussing the possibility of raiding and banditry as a viable survival strategy.

The other side discuss prepping in terms of how to strengthen their communities. The first and foremost want to help themselves, but if it's at all possible to help others, they still consider it. They try to help others become preppers because they know the more people in their community prepare for emergencies, the stronger their community will be if it happens, and the more likely they will have a community at all in that event.

I think that's a broad generality. I would divide things differently. Let me give that some thought.
But I get what you are saying.

As far as those two examples, I would be firmly in the community camp. Gotta have support, gotta have the human value of helping out. Where I differ from some of these JW Rawles type prohibitions is, having or trading some booze doesn't put you in the Golden Horde raider category and I feel that is how he paints it.

[Speaker to Animals]

There would be no shortage of whiskey in Appalachia. If anything, if this is your strategy, stockpile sugar, yeast, and copper lines.

Sugar in a vacuum sealed bucket should last a good fifteen years at least. Not sure about yeast, but it's probably similar.

If I were going the route you suggest, I'd focus on productive capabilities rather than stocking up like a retailer.

If you have plenty of land, store heirloom seeds for corn and sugar. If you can't grow sugar outside, keep the materials you need to build greenhouses. Just don't use bright white colors.

Go for sustainability and renewable production.

[Speaker to Animals]

It seems to me that you can divide preppers into two camps: dark and light. Dark is like the dark enlightenment folks. These preppers are willing to commit to wholly immoral strategies precisely because no laws will exist to enforce morality. They would be willing to trade drugs in order to take advantage of the sick and addicted. Some of them I have seen even openly (but anonymously) discussing the possibility of raiding and banditry as a viable survival strategy.

The other side discuss prepping in terms of how to strengthen their communities. The first and foremost want to help themselves, but if it's at all possible to help others, they still consider it. They try to help others become preppers because they know the more people in their community prepare for emergencies, the stronger their community will be if it happens, and the more likely they will have a community at all in that event.

I think that's a broad generality. I would divide things differently. Let me give that some thought.
But I get what you are saying.

As far as those two examples, I would be firmly in the community camp. Gotta have support, gotta have the human value of helping out. Where I differ from some of these JW Rawles type prohibitions is, having or trading some booze doesn't put you in the Golden Horde raider category and I feel that is how he paints it.

The other side have their own alternative to community: tribalism. Listen to what some of the heathen community and neotribalists are saying.