by John Rubino
Facts have a different feel when they’re personal. And speaking personally, evidence that Americans are seriously spooked is starting to pile up. In the past few months:
• I checked in with a friend, a business owner and semi-professional poker player just back from a Seattle gambling trip. But instead of talking poker or kids we toured his stash of freeze-dried food and his growing arsenal that includes a Dirty Harry-style 44 magnum pistol and a very cool black pump-action shotgun. This guy is well-educated, well-traveled, and well-off, and he’s preparing to blow away looters from his bedroom window.
It’s no secret, of course, that small-denomination bullion is hard to come by and gun sales are way up, but finding out first-hand that this stuff is unavailable brings home the reality of the situation, which is that the social mood is growing darker. On the surface everything looks normal; no one is protesting in the streets, the trash is getting picked up, and elections are as orderly as ever. But the market is quietly reallocating resources as individuals insure against a systemic breakdown. Hope those Krugerrands come soon.
