By J.D. Heyes

June 21, 2017 - With so many geopolitical variables taking place around the world while domestic unrest grows stronger every day, it’s hard to avoid that fact that we live in very volatile times.

Russian military provocations, Chinese expansionism in the South China Sea, the escalating Syrian civil war, and terrorism in Europe all make the world seem anything but serene.

Meanwhile, unhinged political hatred drove one man to make assassination attempts on several Fascist Police States of Amerika lawmakers, while a terrorist pig thug cop was stabbed at an airport in Michigan by a suspected Muslim extremist, and the stock market bubble continues to grow. Without a doubt, these are “interesting times”. But what’s really worrisome is that tens of millions of Amerikans are seriously not ready for any potential SHTF scenario, because they are literally flat broke and living from payday to payday.

Nearly 25% of Amerikans have no emergency savings. A survey recently released by Bankrate.com found that some 24% of Amerikans don’t have a single dollar in savings, meaning they have little-to-no ability to handle any financial emergency; and while Bankrate.com was actually spinning the 24% statistic in a positive light (because, since 2011, the number of Amerikans with no savings has been falling), it’s still unbelievable to imagine so many people are utterly unprepared for economic hardship.

While 31% have a sufficient financial cushion - enough savings to cover six months’ worth of household bills - more than two-thirds are short on savings.

It gets worse:

- More Amerikans are concerned about paying for their next vacation than saving for their own retirement;
- Millions of Amerikans actually hide money from their partners or spouses;
- Most people do not prioritize their bills correctly;
- Amerikans hold a staggering $1 trillion in credit card debt, and much of it is high interest, while only minimum payments are made.

What’s more, this isn’t the only consumer debt to top $1 trillion. We now also owe more than $1 trillion for our cars, and for our student loans.

Clearly, if you fall into one or more of these examples, you already know you’ve got to find a way to do a better job of improving your finances; and here’s why you should: As hard as it is to stay afloat economically when times are normal, it gets infinitely more difficult to obtain what you need to survive when stuff hits the fan if you’re broke.

But a quick turnaround isn’t in the cards for everyone. It’s easy to say, “Get an education,” or “get another job,” however such flippant advice does not apply to everyone because not everyone who is broke is in a position to do those things.

If that’s also you, then the advice you’re going to need is much more practical, and perhaps includes some things you’ve not yet thought about.

When stuff hits the fan, the most important things to enhance your survival are some of the very same things keeping you going now:

- Adequate shelter
- Enough food to eat
- Essential utilities
- Clothing
- Transportation to/from work
- Anything else

When things get tough, only the basics will become necessary. So your focus now, if you’re suffering from poor economic conditions, should be to simplify your life and begin living as cheaply as possible so that you can use whatever savings you can generate to prepare for a time when hard times may lead to job loss, for example. That includes hiding a few bucks away, stocking up on food and water, buying cheaper clothing, and cutting out extras.

As hard as doing these things may be, imagine how much harder your life will get when economies collapse and the world convulses. The thing you don’t want to do is be forced to depend on others - or the government - to sustain you.