FOOD SHORTAGES, A HOUSING BUBBLE, THE ECONOMY & CREDIT CARDS

2022 has been like no other year in my life. I have always been an individual who likes to pay attention to cultural events, educational opportunities, and political decisions since my high school years. All three of these things have been incredibly important in defining the type of individual that I have become. With politics, it is always a valid argument that for the majority of moments in your life, the behavior of our politicians really has no impact or effect on your life. Elections and political donations can be important when a particular cancerous individual has taken power and you feel the necessity to remove them democratically. But in your life, there will always be one moment when politics becomes incredibly important. If you believe in the idea of the Fourth Turning that every generation will experience some form of massive upheaval during their lives, then paying consideration to the politics of that era could become a matter of survival. This leads to my personal experience in 2022. Since the beginning of the year, my wife and I have spent over 10,000 dollars on updating our survival gear and food storage. No matter how bad things have gotten in this country, I never believed that there was a cause for dread. Now, I believe it is everyone’s responsibility to prepare themselves for a future of shortages.

FOOD SHORTAGES

Many economists, politicians, and cultural analysts agree. Food shortages are likely heading our way in the near future. These shortages appear to be the worst that any American will experience in their lifetime. Here is some evidence.

Michael Snyder

Joe Biden: If your president is warning you, absolutely believe that these shortages will be much worse than his rhetoric.

Baby Formula Shortages are already occurring (Due to inflation and supply chain issues caused by the Ukraine/Russia War and our own government’s incompetent monetary policy).

Fertilizer Shortages

Farmers are warning about food shortages in the near future.

Even Joe Rogan is concerned about it.

Zerohedge has been talking about this problem on a daily basis.

Then there is the weird case of about a decade of tragedy at food processing plants that just happens to occur in a very short time frame. Intentional? Impossible to know but this should be investigated.
This has led to a few organizations that firmly believe that government-enforced food rationing is right around the corner.

HOUSING COLLAPSE

An inevitable outcome with skyrocketing prices.

Consultants are warning buyers.

Even Zillow has gotten out.

TECH & CRYPTO COLLAPSE

Unfortunately, these two industries go hand in hand with one another.

Tech companies have been severely overvalued for the past decade. The incredible rise in their stock price and valuation was never legitimate. It was all speculation and faith. Now, reality has come home.

There are multiple causes. But the era of free 0% interest money is over. This is going to lead to a painful correction.

Crypto as a currency is proving to be closely tied to the value of tech stocks. So Bitcoin and hundreds of other coins are crashing as well.

Ron Paul called the economy of the last decade, “THE EVERYTHING BUBBLE.” Unlike the financial institution crashes of the 1990s, the tech crash of the early 2000s, or the housing market collapse in 2007-2009, this economic collapse will impact almost everything in our lives. Until deflation takes hold and prices drop to a more reasonable level, the next few years maybe some of the darkest times of our lives.

MY RECOMMENDATION

This obviously depends on your budget. Plus, there are some great deals out there if you look carefully.

Bass Pro Fish Shops: Got accepted for their credit card and used it to update our survival gear, camping supplies, weapons, outdoor clothing, and backpacks in case a quick escape becomes necessary. With the United States sending billions to Ukraine and escalating a conflict that could quickly slide into World War III while the Russians warn us about their potential usage of nuclear weapons if they face collapse, it may become necessary to escape into the wilderness for an undetermined amount of time. My best advice is to spend rationally and within your budget. My wife and I were able to pay off our purchases within 2 months mainly due to my budgeting and a lucky win at a Las Vegas casino.  Plus, with 2% back on the card, we were able to purchase another 200 dollars of free supplies that were forgotten during our first couple of trips. Once you are done, cancel the credit card. Because unless you live inside that store, there is no real reason to keep it for the future.

Gas: Keep at least ten gallons of gas inside your garage in storage. Getting at least 100 miles away from an urban center that could break into rioting and violence if there is a lack of food is important. Going 100 miles in a particular direction in any city should take you into rural areas.
Food: Store at least six months of food. If shortages are coming (And they are), keeping this supply is important if some of the necessities aren’t available. Dried and canned food is the best way to go. Any fresh or frozen food is fine as long as your electricity remains on. But if blackouts occur, your fresh food will likely have to be trashed.

Buy a Generator: Important to use the aforementioned ten gallons of gas or propane available for usage when necessary. Generators will also help keep the electricity flowing if you only experience rolling blackouts.

I also recommend getting some credit cards. Make sure they are low balance cards that can be paid off quickly. The reason for this is because many current credit cards have incredible benefits if you apply as a first-time user. Any credit score of 670 or more should get you a decent mid-tier card. There is nothing wrong with accumulating free money to help with your purchases. Here are the three I recommend, none of them have a maximum limit of over 2500. Each of these cards also have a zero balance because it is important to pay them off in their entirety every month if possible.

AMERICAN EXPRESS BLUE CASH PREFERRED: 6% cash back on grocery purchases, 3% cash back on gas.

US BANK ALTITUDE CONNECT VISA SIGNATURE: 4X Points for Travel and Gas.

FIDELITY REWARDS VISA SIGNATURE: All Purchases give you 2X back into your retirement fund whether a 401K or IRA.

Do what is best for you. Chase, Capital One, and Citibank have their own family of cards if you happen to be banking with them. Get creative and take advantage of these deals because in an inflationary environment, every dollar or “point” is important.

Next time, I will be doing Part 6 on my educational indoctrination at Arizona State University involving my Masters Degree program. Until then!