Now,more than ever, it's time to prepare for hard times.

All through his campaign, Trump was railing against "unfair" trade practices, and the president doubled down on that theme during his inaugural address.

We can hope that Congress will modify some of his promises, but he still has a phone and a pen. And if the GOP congress decides to go along with him, look out.

Do you need radios, boots, solar panels, sneakers,and other clothing? Thinking about getting a new smartphone, or a new computer? Better get them now. A smartphone made in China costs several hundred dollars; one made in the USA would cost thousands.

Do you think you're going to buy stuff made in America anyway, so the price increases won't affect you? Think again. The people who make those things depend on imported goods, too. Can you guess what's going to happen to those prices?

If President Trump does what he says he's going to do, we are about to enter a period of inflation that will make the 1970's look like child's play. Prices for everything are about to skyrocket.

Buy food. Buy clothing. buy any electronics you need. And, it goes without saying, if you don't have enough ammo now (and you don't), buy it now. Buy gold and silver.

I'm hearing stories about people who think, now that "our guy" is in the White House, it's no longer necessary to prepare.

Those people are in for a very unpleasant surprise.

Onward and upward,
airforce

Buying ammo is what I do best

Good clothing can be bought at a thrift store, you can grow your own food and no one needs another dumb phone. The used market is flooded with electronics.

It's about time we started becoming self sufficient again, both on a personal as well as industrial level.

Trump has already called the leaders of Canada and Mexico...told them get ready to discuss NAFTA. In the long run we would all be better off if the factories were brought back to this hemisphere.

I'm not certain inflation will rise much above interest rates. I think there will be inflation but with proportional rises in interest rates. This will mean that while prices will rise, so will returns on investments and bank accounts. If this is coupled with a rise in actual gdp of similar proportions, the effect of prices rising will be higher wages and higher returns on investment. Which will lead to more investment and more growth.

Interest rates will keep inflation from being a major issue. If there is some deregulation this should fuel all sorts of investments and if taxes are reduced, takehome pay will increase and there will then be a true market for labor. Will the market be free? No, but it might be freer. That will mean more entrepreneurship, more investmment, more need for labor. Labor can demand higher wages due to the increase in demand.

I'm not happy about trade wars but I think we'll see some growth anyways if Trump actually can do the other things.

If interest rates on credit cards, car loans, and mortgages rise, it won't be good. Interest on savings would likely increase, but not nearly as much. And anyone who has invested in bonds will take a huge hit.

I lived through the inflation in the 1970's. Prices were going up 10% to 15%, while President Carter was capping military pay at 6%. It got so bad that even I, a staff sergeant with a wife and two children, would have qualified for food stamps - but military personnel stationed overseas couldn't get food stamps. And people wondered why morale in the military was so low. :rolleyes:

No, inflation is not good.

Onward and upward,
airforce

It is a myth that we haven't been living under inflation all these years. The gov. deliberately skews the numbers to make their pet economic plans look good. The reality is much different. Actual workers pay has been stagnant since the 70's; in many cases it has decreased. On top of that the actual purchasing power of our dollars has decreased as well.

True enough. My COLA - which is supposed to make up for inflation - was 0.3%, which is laughable.

Onward and upward,
airforce

I just don't think inflation will rise that much. I'm thinking max 5% with a 3% rise in interest rates (a 2% actual inflation), with a 7% increase in gdp. If taxes go down, trump spends money on infrastructure and the military, the dollar continues strengthening, I think aggregate demand rises enough to do it. Investment, one of the elements of GDP, will increase. Consumption will increase as money that would be spent to the treasury department are spent on the street, increasing by a factor inverse to the percentage people are saving and then adding to the existent money supply. Dollars will go round and round, which increases, inflation, true. But it means dollars are going round and round...

It depends on what happens with his trade policies. If cell phones suddenly cost a few thousand dollars, and other imports go up in price the same way, we could conceivably be looking at triple-digit inflation. Hopefully congress won't let it go that far, but Trump has the phone and the pen now. Am I pessimistic? I sure hope so.

Onward and upward,
airforce

I have been a survivalist all of my adult life and learned some hard lessons about other people's integrity, or lack thereof, in the last few years from people who were just positive that SHTF was right around the corner so their behavior would somehow be justified and rewarded in what they did by ending up on top of their claims of other people's goods and labor. I have messed up a few times, learned and taught a few harsh lessons and lived long enough to understand the cycles that a lot of this goes with.

So now, no shit is on the fan but we all know who the predatory assholes and scheming bitches are.

In the end, nobody survives this world. What you do here to make it a better place is what matters, I guess it's up to each on their own to decide how to define that.

I am perfectly happy with the popular preppy Prepper types finding another fad. There are going to be some great deals on all sorts of cool stuff coming up. I am seeing some real,bargain on survival retreat properties in Califnia right now. Turn key off grid stuff at really good prices because there is no projected shit on any fan, the gun laws are driving off the wimps, lumber harvesting is played out and weed prices have dropped to the point that it's not profitable for the small homestead operators. That means some property in the redwoods is getting to be priced really right.

People think survivalists and preppers are the same thing. They're not.

Survivalists are in it for the long haul...it's a way of life for them. Far too many preppers do it out of fear or because it's the latest cool fad.

I knew a guy who invested a lot of money preparing for y2k. When it didn't happen he was pissed off that he "had wasted so much money on junk" he didn't need. Told me "prepping was stupid because nothing bad will ever happen". A year later I happily took all that "junk" off his hands for pennies on the dollar.

A survivalist is like taking the boy scout motto to the extreme. America used to be ready for anything that came there way and didn't expect help,because they were the help. Rugged individuals with the skills to Forge through anything. That spirit only lives on in the few.

I sort of drifted into prepping back in the 1970's when inflation was high, and became a survivalist after my experiences in Chad. I guess I'm back to being more of a prepper now, since my health makes me unlikely to survive a doomsday scenario anyway. I guess my kids and grandkids are something of a hybrid now too.

Onward and upward,
airforce

I'm all in

My bet is for the long haul. I'll buy on market dips for what I call "civilization insurance". If the economy booms for a couple years and the short term bettors get out of the "civilization insurance" market, well that's great news. 1., we have more time. 2., we can acquire assets. If you're a long haul investor, when other people get out of the market your mouth waters.