The Propeht of Doom Syndrome v Enlightened Self Interest

No doubt about it, these are troubled times Spiritually, Ethically and Financially, from Bank Collapses to Nationalization to Inflation to increasing structural costs, and of course anyone who is even partially serious about a Religious Faith is the subject of scorn.

Times like these a Jeremiah or a Nietzsche arises to pronounce this era is the most trying ever and destruction is certain to come. It's human nature to seek out what we feel is the "truth" for the times, in good times, Anthony Robbins or Chris Warren, in bad times Gerald Celente or Peter Schiff.

The Prophet of Doom is set upon a pedastal and either praised or mocked depending on what one's views are, the Sunny Optimist is either called out of touch or bringer of hope, depending one what one wishes to hear. 

As a Preparedness Aware Individual, it is wise to maintain a balance between both, to be Optimistic about one's preparations but a Prophet of Doom subscriber is not a mutually exclusive philosophy, in fact, it is simple Enlightened Self Interest to grasp the fact that times are never as bad as they seem, nor as prosperous as they seem.

A year's worth of supplies should cost about a month's pay depending on family size and Cadillac tastes, and using the Alpha Strategy, one is insured either way, it is a safe bet that inflation will be a fact of life, so prebuying items that will cost more later makes sense in the case of job loss, or hyper inflation or simple piece of mind. So one has effectively hedged against both a crash or even a return to normalcy.

I enjoy Gerald Celente's work, I also like Rick Warren's outlook, I don't plan on moving to the hinterlands (yet) nor do I plan on putting on a happy face...

Ammunition is literally disappearing off the store shelves in what can only be described as a "panic". 

Nothing wrong with that, people should cherish their Rights, the problem is, how do you save money and still remain armed and accurate? 

Enter the ChiCom .177 pellet rifle, typically sells for 50 dollars or less, pellets are relatively cheap, and they hit hard enough to bring down small game such as rabbits or squirrels or soda bottles and since they are modeled after the SKS (which is now a 300 dollar rifle, weren't they 59 dollars not that long ago?) one can also have some training time behind a similar rifle. The cheapy ChiCom also allows for a telescopic site to be added which helps with accuracy a great deal.

This gentleman used his pellet rifle to successfully bring home some supper:

http://www.americanairgunhunter.com/huntingwithchineseAG.html

The price increase in SKS rifles is a great example of inflation in action, when they first became available in the early 90's, they were viewed as semi crappy fixed magazine rifles that could be had for next to nothing, now they command a week's pay and the ammunition is no longer 1.99 per 20 cartridges..and that happened in 13 years or so.

And so it begins, we are beginning to see the effects of all of the money that has been created even down to the "can of sauce" level of the economy, what used to be 98 cents is now 1.19, add in the coming increase in sales taxes and we are looking at a 1.25 a unit price.

The way around this is to rely on oneself and purchase Canning Jars and lids and the industrial sized cans of stewed tomatoes, and stir up your own sauce with a blender and can it before hand. Doing thus also lets the cook make their own sauces to taste, add basil from the garden or oregano or extra onions or garlic in either whole form, or powdered form.

Another clever way to enjoy pasta and to save some money is to harvest wild greens such as Nettle Tops or Kale or what have you, and make Pesto sauce with them, leave out the pine nuts and such pesto will be much more affordable to create and it utilizes one's own environment to improve your bottom line.