Prep now, save later.

Optimism and "hope" may be an important part of prepping.

I say this, because as someone who thinks the system as it is has entered the terminal stage of systemic collapse, I often have gloomy thoughts. How will I support my family? Will there be civil unrest in my city? What about the danger of disease, or government repression?

If you start on a chain of collapse reasoning, you can easily find yourself in a Mad Max world. I doubt it will come to that. Minnesota Nice may take a hit, but I do believe that a good portion of society will find ways to adapt and cooperate.

However, the portion that does not adapt is certainly a worry. Crime is a problem in Minneapolis in the best of times. I am sure it is set to skyrocket. That means securing your home - metal bars should cover glass doors, basement windows should be secured with something more solid than the old-fashioned paned windows. An alarm system is not unwarranted.

Getting too gloomy, however, is bad for your state of preparedness. It can lead to a lack of energy, hopelessness, or even depression. That is certainly not going to help you get prepared.

If you have a religion, start going to church again. Join a community group. Start a new neighborhood group on preparedness. (With that in mind, if anyone living in South Minneapolis would like to start such a group, place a comment under this posting with your email address).

Furthermore, even after a systemic collapse, there will still be an economy of sorts, even if it uses the barter system or some kind of alternative currency. The barter system has recently seen a resurgence in Russia, due to the economic troubles there. Thus, it is important to learn skills that will be valuable in the coming economic environment. Skills and products that people need, as opposed to just want (luxuries), will be in high demand. The fact that the local governments will be far too overwhelmed by budget woes means that you will be able to get away with working as an unlicensed tradesman. Just learn the skill, and forget about the government's roadblocks.

However bad it gets, have faith in the good half of humanity's nature, while being vigilant to avoid being victimized by the evil half that is sure to manifest itself as times get tough.