Europe on the brink of Economic Collapse?

Often in discussions with friends, some of them in my survival group and some not, the topic of how the world's economy can effect or cause a depression or even an economic collapse of this country is discussed.

As simple as I understand it, as I am not a economist or involved in any aspects of financial markets,....the United States as a government, and as commercial enterprises (banks and the financial institutions) owns some of Europe's debt. Likewise, financial institutions and governments in Europe own some ofthe U.S. government debt.  If either suffers large losses, re-calling some or all of the owed debt could over burden the other, causing mild to hyper inflation, a depressions or even an economic collapse or collapse of that countries currency.

Lots of possibilities in my admittedly non-financial educated mind........hyper inflation on commodities from foods to fuels, especially what we have to import,.............the tanking of the dollar in value relative to other currencies or even the total collapse of the dollar. Pictures of German citizens prior to World War II pushing wheel barrows of money to a bakery to buy bread come to mind,....or more recently, images of Greeks standing in soup kitchen lines or de-foresting the rural areas for fire wood to heat their homes.

So just how likely is a collapse in Europe? Basically, all the Eurozone countries are at risk with the exception of Germany. Let's take a short look at some of them:

SPAIN

Spain’s unemployment rate is now at 26 per cent. The austerity measures of the Government is causing social unrest, especially upon the unemployed. The Government's efforts to rescue banks with money it has to borrow furthers angry in the private sector. Lower benefits for out of work employees and higher taxes further burden this economy which is on the brink of either a social collapse or a financial one. One will precede the other.

PORTUGAL

Portugal's unemployment rate is about 18%, only behind Spain and Greece. The economy fell over 3 percent last year causing the government to raise taxes and cut government pensions to try and bring in more revenue. (Sound familiar?)

The government is being forced to enact austerity measures in order to receive international money for a bailout. Most of these bailout's are usually phased providing minimal relief versus the increasing social pressure of the unemployed and entitled youth.

FRANCE

The Washington Times says that "Look no further than France to see where the faltering U.S. economy is headed. President Obama has adopted a distinctly European fashion when it comes to expanding government and imposing tax hikes. For this, we can expect to achieve the same results as our ally on the Continent. "

France is “totally bankrupt,” Labor Minister Michel Sapin admitted last month. Unemployment over 10% with a whopping 27% unemployment rate for French youth. The French government takes up over 55% of the Gross Domestic Product. There are demonstrations, after demonstrations of the public sector unions fighting what the government say's are necessary government spending and work force reduction.

GERMANY

Germany is the Uncle Bailout for many of these financially screwed European countries. Germany has a constant fear of the collapse of the Euro and with it the European Union, saying goodbye to all the debt that is owed Germany.

The German government is reportedly holding assets in order to cover giant potential losses.

ENGLAND

Unemployment is way up in England, while manufacturing and therefore job production is down. Industrial indexes are down to wear they were 25 years ago. The pound sterling is down to a 2.5 year low.

Inflation is running at over 3%, combined with the fall of industrial production and high employment is causing the analysts to think that a large recession is coming.

CYPRUS

The Cyprus government is announcing a plan to tax bank accounts. Are you kidding me? Unfortunately no. The U.S. is not far behind this concept with the US Government taxing health care plans. But at least our government does not tax our holds other than the interest earned on it.

GREECE

A plan to cut the government work force by 150,000 is being laid out in order to placate creditors that Greece is serious about reducing government debt. Austerity measures, also in order to gain bailout money, creating hostility towards the government on a large scale. This can be a chase your tail type of thing, if the government ever gets on track to stabilize the economy, they may run out of patience with the population and find themselves replaced with a different political party and philosophy. And while the Greece government is forecasting a recovery on late 2013, the population has been taking money out of their banks fearing a collapse.

Gold and Silver News

While there is continuing debate in the Survival-Prepper circles about the value of having silver and gold bullion, and silver coins for melt or barter value on hand for when the dollar or economic collapse occurs,....and it is apearing more and more likely that it is a question of "when" and not "if",........it is still a good idea, even if you do not subscribe to having precious metals, to keep on top of what is occuring in the gold and silver market.   

American Eagle gold bullion coin sales jump, by Kerry Hall, March 9, 2013 on www.mining.com

The US Mint sold 80,500 ounces of American Eagle gold bullion coins during February compared to 21,000 ounces the previous year in that month for a 283% increase, reports Mineweb.

In the first two months of 2013, sales were up 56% compared to the same period last year.

Overall, total gold coin sales for January and February were 430,500 ounces. During the same months last year, sales were 124,500 ounces.

January 2013 made the record book at sixth place with gold coin sales of 124,500 ounces.

For American Eagle silver bullion coins, reported sales were 3,368,500 ounces during the second month of the year. That's 126% more than the same month last year.

For January and February, silver coin sales were 10,866,500 ounces — up 43% from 2012 when 7,597,000 ounces were sold.

Will we see a silver breakout in 2013? from the Gold Report, March 13, 2013 on www.mining.com

Silver has been trading sideways so far in 2013, but what will the rest of the year bring? Will 2013 be the year silver prices break out or crash and burn?

What is a sustainable silver price for mining companies and where will the metal come from to supply the next generation of industrial and investment demand? Most important, how can investors make money off this volatile sector?

These were the burning questions The Gold Report took to analysts, money managers and heads of silver mining companies. The answers may surprise you.

One of the world's biggest silver investors, Eric Sprott, pointed to the availability ratio between silver and gold for why the metal price could jump from $30/ounce ($30/oz) to as high as $200/oz as he predicted in a recent radio interview.

He quotes statistics that show once the industrial use of silver and gold is subtracted from the production and recycling new supply calculations, three times more silver is available for purchase each year than gold. However sales of gold and silver at the U.S. Mint, through exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and Sprott's own Physical Trust, show that investors are buying many multiples more silver than gold and have been for years.

Sprott firmly believes that outsized demand in such a relatively small market ($9 trillion for gold and $150 million for silver) will result in price inflation. "We are surprised that the price of silver has remained at such a depressed level compared to gold. Historically, the price ratio between gold and silver has been 16:1. Today the ratio is 55:1, so what are the numbers telling us? We believe this is one of those times when smart investors will be well rewarded if they follow the money."

Will The Government Confiscate Food or Guns first?

We received this question from William...."I'd like you're opinion on whether the government will confiscate food supplies from commercial places and from the population. A friend of mine got me into prepping for TEOTWAKI and he told me there is presidential orders that would allow the government to confiscate food during emergencies. I understand the gun confiscation issue. The government would have a hard time trying to get guns from people who will just hide them. But it would be hard to hide food or hide your gardens. "

UrbanMan's comment: William, the government is more likely to try to control or nationalize food supplies commercially before they suspend the 4th amendment and confiscate food from individuals. This is simply based on resources available to effect control. Based mostly on an Executive Order signed by Obama in March of last year, titled National Defense Resources Preparedness, there is a belief that the Government now has the power to seize civil transportation assets, farm equipment, farm facilities (producing and processing), food resources, fertilizers, and even utilize the population in forced labor schemes. This, in my mind, could only come about in a large, chaotic collapse.

You are also right that efforts to control or confiscate food would probably come before gun confiscation, which would simply cause large scale violence even civil war. Plus the adege of "controlling the food, controlling the population comes to mind". One could envision a program of turning in guns, ammunition and other related items in order to get access to government controlled food.

You can read the NDRP executive order here, however the crux is in how the government intreprets any law.   Before the government conducts large scale food confiscation scheme, there would probably be a media campaign, psychological operations if you will, calling for people to "share" food stocks and capabilities, painting people who fail to comply as "food horders" and essentially pitting neighbors against neighbors.

However there is a movement in the government, to use someone else's term, called "Regulation Nation", that is restricting individuals rights to sell, trade or even produce food products. This follows a general orientation of government, especialy in the last four years, to restrict common and long standing freedoms.

Good luck trying to research you way into determining what powers the FDA and various levels of governments possess under the banners of "Food Safety", "Wholseale and Retail Food production and distribution",....again much if it is in how the government intreprets their powers.

Some agricultural communities see government regulation as a threat to their existing freedoms. The below article, taken from Food Renegade.com depicts the town of Sedgwick, Maine and their efforts to maintain their rights.

A small portion of the article:

Sedgwick, Maine has done what no other town in the United States has done. The town unanimously passed an ordinance giving its citizens the right “to produce, process, sell, purchase, and consume local foods of their choosing.” This includes raw milk, locally slaughtered meats, and just about anything else you can imagine. It’s also a decided bucking of state and federal laws.

This isn’t just a declaration of preference. The proposed warrant added, “It shall be unlawful for any law or regulation adopted by the state or federal government to interfere with the rights recognized by this Ordinance.” In other words, no state licensing requirements prohibiting certain farms from selling dairy products or producing their own chickens for sale to other citizens in the town.

What about potential legal liability and state or federal inspections? It’s all up to the seller and buyer to negotiate. “Patrons purchasing food for home consumption may enter into private agreements with those producers or processors of local foods to waive any liability for the consumption of that food. Producers or processors of local foods shall be exempt from licensure and inspection requirements for that food as long as those agreements are in effect.” Imagine that–buyer and seller can agree to cut out the lawyers. That’s almost un-American, isn’t it?

A selection of comments on the article:

I’m not one of the “lawyers here” but my observation is that when the local law chooses to prohibit more than the rest of the state, nation or organization they will usually get by with it. It is when local law moves to allow more latitude that the trouble starts.

For example, I can imagine that if a county in PA would take a Humbolt, CA position on raw milk, the state would take an it’s-up-to-them position. But if local law in an area moved to allow raw butter, cream, kefir & yogurt… I’m sure it would not get to first base.

Still, I say Kudos to the fine folks of Sedgwick Maine. Their common sense bravery warms the heart of every awake American. If nothing else, their move will bring the ridiculousness of the situation to the consciousness of another percent or so of Americans. One American at a time the tipping point will be reached.

Emerging Biological Threat: New Super Bug

With the recent reports of the New Superbug it brings to light the necessity of having a plan, especially in the event of a collapse and expected refugee movement and degraded medical care making pandemics much more likely. This plan would be how you keep you and your survival team from being exposed to and infected by new and old communicable diseases. 

How you interact with strangers - which is bound to happen even in the lost remote locations.  Have you thought about quarantine protocols if and when these strangers/refugees or even members of your own group are thought to be contaminated?  What are your disinfectant and sterilization procedures, and when do they become necessary?  Do you have personal and group hygiene protocols?  Methods and resources for water purification? Do you have procedures and requirements for handling any livestock you may have such as chickens, goats, even cattle? 

The threat of rampant disease and pandemics, untreatable by any means we have now or the more minimal means we'll have in a total collapse scare the hell out of me as they should you.

CDC Article on the New Superbug

Emerging Superbug Requires Urgent Action, CDC Says.  An emerging superbug is infecting an increasing number of people in the United States, and health officials are calling for urgent action to stop its spread.

During the first six months of 2012, nearly 200 hospitals and long-term acute care facilities together treated at least one person who had been infected by the superbug, known as Carbapenem-Resistant Enterobacteriaceae, or CRE, according to a new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The bacteria is resistant to a class of antibiotics known as carbapenem, powerful drugs that are typically used as a last resort to treat resistant bacterial infections, thus the origin of the superbug's name.

CRE can cause pneumonia and blood and urinary tract infections. CRE infections are still rare, and so far, nearly all cases have been seen in people who've had long-term care in hospitals, nursing homes or other healthcare facilities. But once a person becomes ill, the disease can be lethal, killing up to half of people who develop serious infections, the CDC said.

"CRE are nightmare bacteria. Our strongest antibiotics don’t work and patients are left with potentially untreatable infections," said Dr. Tom Frieden, director of the CDC. Doctors, hospitals and public health officials must work together to implement strategies to stop CRE's spread, Frieden said.

Enterobacteriaceae are a family of bacteria that include E. coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae, and typically live in the digestive tract, but can cause infections if they spread outside the gut, the CDC said. Over time, some of these bacteria have developed resistance to carbapenems.

CRE were first identified in the U.S. in 2001, and have now spread to 42 states. The new report, which examined U.S. health care infections, found that the percentage of Enterobacteriaceae that are resistant to carbapenems has increased fourfold during the last decade.

In 2012, 4.6 percent of hospitals and 18 percent of long-term acute care facilities, reported having a patient with a CRE infection, the CDC report said.

Healthy people don't usually develop CRE infections. People most at risk for infection are those whose care requires devices such as a ventilator or catheter, and who require a long course of antibiotics, the CDC said.

Hospital workers who don't properly wash their hands can spread the bacteria between patients, and the bacteria themselves can spread resistance to other similar bacteria.

Unlike methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), CRE hasn't spread into the community, Frieden said.

"That's really a message of hope: we still have a window of opportunity to stop it" before it becomes as prevalent as other antibiotic-resistant organisms like MRSA, Frieden said.

In 2012, the CDC created guidelines for preventing CRE infections in hospitals and other care facilities. These include following proper hand hygiene recommendations (hand-washing); grouping patients together who have CRE; dedicating certain staff members and equipment to people who have CRE; knowing which patients in a hospital have CRE and alerting other health care facilities about the infection if the patient is transferred; and using antibiotics wisely.

Facilities that have implemented these measures have seen a drop in their CRE infection rates, Frieden said.

Patients can also play a role in prevention. For instance, if they have a catheter put in, they can ask how long it will be in place, and ask that it be removed as soon as possible, Frieden said.

Continued research into tests to detect CRE, and ways to treat it, is critical as well, Frieden said. The report will be published this week in the CDC's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.