If something truly drastic occurs, there will be no stability for a short period of time, relative or otherwise, which will likely be followed by a period of st

If something truly drastic occurs, there will be no stability for a short period of time, relative or otherwise, which will likely be followed by a period of stagnation and corruption. It'll be dangerous and ugly. Lets hope it does not happen! I think you were more asking "if something bad happens, but law and order remain, how do I protect my purchasing power." Short answer: hard assets. Medium answer: As a business, you want to be out of cash and into inventory. This is because you can always increase the price of the hard goods you have that others want, so you can always receive true value. However, once you have traded the goods for cash, that cash immediately begins loosing value. Longer answer: You want physical, tangible goods that you can barter for other goods or whatever is locally being used as currency. Think about what money looks like in shape and form. Light, a little thing can represent a lot of value, has a long shelf life, is widely accepted and equally valued. Think about what people want to have or need to have even when money is tight. Cross off that list anything with a shelf life or that is so hard to transport and trade that it wouldn't be worth doing. Have a good amount of what remains on your list, stored in a place you can secure. That is kind of vague, so here's a list of things to consider: * Preserved Food (beprepared.com) * Gold and Silver (apmex.com) * Hard Liquor * Cigarettes * Ammo * Firearms * Farm Animals * Farm Land All of the things on my list have increased in value during our current debt crisis.