Not in my neighborhood! Anyway, scarcity adds value. And, if you are wishing the total collapse of society on our heads, why do you have any scruples? If you want to stash gold and guns and shoot your neighbors, entertain Conan the Barbarian on Viagra fantasies, why not just enslave them with narcotics? Saves ammunition!

They'll be easy to barter, provide analgesics as the medical system is destroyed, and they're easily stored with little deterioration. the IRS doesn't track the cash-ought to be perfect for you doomer anarchists would-be warlords.

Insted of praying for the apocalypse, you will be preying on the apocalypse. So think it through, it will be much more practical than precious metals.

IFeelFree...Gold, silver or prescious stones during times when the necessities of life are scarce will have value only to those that have plenty of the necessities and want to trade some of them for a more portable and longer lived store of wealth. When people are searching for their daily bread they will not be interested in trading their bread, if found, for gold. In a situation of a financial collapse I dont see much use for a store of gold until some order is restored from the resulting chaos of financial collapse. After order is restored, if it is, then gold will become very valuable. Below is a link to an article about the suspension of M3 monthly reports in March 2006 by the Federal Reserve. Note that the excuse the Fed used was 'we want to save money and the elimination of compiling M3 will accomplish that.' Pure bs. When did the current administration and Fed show so much restraint in spending money? The government clerks that compile M1 and M2 are still on the payroll so how much money did the Fed save?
http://inflationdata.com/inflation/Articles/M3_Money_supply.asp
I have linked below to an article and charts showing the increase of M3 in the form of more fiat dollar printing injected into our economy since 1959. The rise in M3 was moderate untill 1980 and then began a rapid increase. Since 2001 the rise has been breathtaking. The most bizarre feature of this upward spiral in M3 is that M1 figures remained almost flat, meaning that the 'new money' being created was electronic. Only one dollar in ten in the US is a real greenback, the other nine are electronic. Most of the real dollars are held overseas in foreign banks in the form of reserves. How difficult is it to erase an electronic dollar?
http://www.gold-eagle.com/editorials_05/tacinv112505.html
After looking at the charts and reading the accompanying article you can draw your own conclusions about why M3 reporting was dropped. Those in the US that hold a great deal of wealth are not going to hold it all in dollars when they see the money supply skyrocketing. They know that their wealth is being stolen by inflation, a hidden tax imposed by the Fed. The other 98% of us are going to live in interesting times. BTW, I am not affiliated with any financial institution, gold outlet, etc. I am a retired electrical engineer and not a trained economist but I do pay attention to what our government is doing, or not doing.
I have an interesting tid bit of information for those that want to live on a small farm and be self sufficient 'after the collapse.' During the middle ages in Europe when wars of every sort were continually sweeping the lands the farmers turned to growing potatos instead of cereal grains. The farmers found from bad experience that the armies and thieves would not take the trouble to dig the potatos and destroy them but they would set fire to a crop of cereal grain if they did not stop to harvest it and steal it outright. This allowed the peasant to escape to hiding while the danger was present and return to his plot of land to find potatos to survive on when the thugs had gone moved on. It is estimated that about 1/3 of the population of Europe died off during these wars, primarily by starvation and disease, and they did not have an oil based economy and were not confronted with climate change.
Just another day in paradise...

I don't subscribe to the "mad max" scenario of collapse. What we face will not be a sudden collapse of everything or anarchy, but a slow or multiple stage collapse where people and institutions have some time to adapt, albeit, without the wherewithal to adapt successfully. Each failed attempt to adapt leading to the next stage of collapse.

The US occupation of Iraq may well be an example of an attempt to adapt to new global realities, but without the wherewithal to do it properly. Result, advancement to the next level or stage of collapse. Turning food into fuel may well be another.

I suspect the first phase of collapse will be economic in nature, secondly the ecosystem and finally energy. Except, of course, that each phase will not be discrete and all elements will be present during each phase to some degree and influence the outcome.

As for gold and silver, it is only an assumption that they will play their historic monetary role, it is not a foregone conclusion. As they say; "assumption is the mother of all f*@k ups". I suggest that it will be cultural preference rather than historic precedence that will define what we use to facilitate trade and transactions.

For example, I've been helping out some of the neighbours with their unruly gardens. In payment, as they insist on it, I simply ask for something towards the fuel costs. If money was no longer trustworthy, I would simply ask for the fuel instead.

I believe gold and silver will have a role to play, but likely much further up the chain than at a personal or even local level. It may form the basis for a currency, but not be legal tender in itself. It may also be confiscated by the State in its attempt to adapt to new economic realities.

Triumvirate of collapse - Economy, Ecosystem, Energy

I take it we are looking for sensible suggestions for long term barter savings.

I have thought about this a bit. It needs firstly a long life, then it must be hideable [survive burying or damp, still air etc].

Cheap chinese running shoes - start with your size
Tea lights [small candles]
Toilet paper [bulky, fire risk etc]
Hooch

Drugs may have a shelf life. I have always wanted to know which euthenasia drugs can be obtained and last forever without refrigeration [because I'm 40 years away from thinking about it]. Heroin seems a bit complicated to obtain outside afghanistan. Any easy painless suggestions? These would be very tradeable one day.