I think it’s high time we all accept that the apocalypse is coming, whether we’re prepared for it or not. Sure, we can continue to laugh at the preppers with their months of canned and dry food, weapons store, and ways to ensure clean drinking water, but when the s*%t goes down, whose houses are we going to flock to, hmm?
Just something to consider.
Something else to consider is what you might need to stockpile in order to use it as currency once money is no longer of value – and these 16 people have some decent ideas on the matter.
16. Of course.
NFTs
By which I mean Nonperishable Food Tins, of course.
15. People are really going to want those.
Allergy meds.
There’s a reason you don’t see any survivors sneezing in apocalypse movies.
14. No one knows how to make fire anymore.
I was told by an ex military friend of mine who served as a peacekeeper in a few warzones that “matches” are always a reliable one when things really fall apart.
My great grandmother that lived through 2 world wars always stored ample of matches and salt.
13. People can’t live without it. Apparently.
If the early pandemic taught me anything, it’s that Chef Boyardi Spaghetti and Meatballs will be the currency of the apocalypse.
12. Not so far-fetched.
Growing up my friend and I used to always joke that sauce packets (ketchup, Taco Bell sauce, etc.) would become currency in an apocalyptic scenario.
When I got older and I learned about the spice trade I started to realize just how not far fetched this idea actually was.
11. It depends.
Depends on the kind of apocalypse to be honest
War torn societal collapse? Likely ammo and guns
Post nuclear? Likely safe food and water
10. It might take awhile…
It starts with food, water, safety in a barter system.
Eventually you would have small communities which would pool resources (no barter within the community). People who are good at farming farm for the community, people who are good at shooting protect the community.
As those communities get large enough and needs become less immediate (I want to eat my meals at a table instead of just wanting a meal), each community would develop some type of currency. This happens because “how many bullets in exchange for one table?” is a silly question … especially if you already have a table … or if you make tables and don’t know how a gun works. But, you can sell a table for 100 currency, and buy 3 chickens, 2 sets of curtains, and a bag of potatoes (none of which the bullet guy had).
At this point you pick something relatively rare (some kind of metal, maybe), form it into a regulated size, put an identifying mark on it … bang, currency.
9. You’ve gotta know your barterer.
Depends on the type of apocalypse. Food, medication, ammunition, lead… in post WWII Germany, they used cigarettes sometimes.
8. Their weight in gold.
Antibiotics.
Not every infection will be antibiotic resistant. Even if only 1/10 infections respond to antibiotics, then antibiotics will still be worth their weight in gold.
Anything boosting your survival chances by 10% is immense.
7. Just saying…
Ammunition is great currency, you could probably get everything someone had on them with just one bullet.
6. Because people never change.
Well, based on my parents stories of Poland in the 70s and 80s, vodka.
5. It could be just about anything.
Batteries, hand sanitizer, band-aids, isopropyl alcohol wipes (those single wrap kind)… it most certainly would be a barter system, not a “currency” system though.
One of the zombie shows had a sniper competition… when the group rolled up and said “how much to get in?”, the guy said “7”… they said “7 what?”… he said “Whatcha got?”. Just about anything will be “currency” then.
4. The more you know.
Spices/salt, silver/gold, ammo, medications, gasoline/solar power. Food and clean water to a lesser extent after the initial adjustment period. (Simply put, people will either figure out how to grow food or clean water or they’ll die.)
Eventually knowledge will become a great bartering tool; the guy who knows how to build a water wheel or the lady who can sew clothes will be given priority over the lawyer.
3. So, the same as today?
drugs, s^x, food, clean water…
2. I hope we’ve all learned our lesson.
Toilet paper.
1. If you want to be reasonable about it…
Water is too heavy to use as currency.
S*x is not fungible and cannot be accumulated.
Non perishable food or healthy seeds could be used as currency.
Pre-apocalypse drugs could be currency for a while but they are perishable and probably won’t be abundant long enough to be currency. Drugs produced after the apocalypse would have too much risk of counterfeiting.
Bullets would probably be currency for at least the first decade or two. Abundant. Intrinsic value. Difficult to fake. Light enough to carry. Long lasting.
I mean, it never hurts to be prepared, right? Like the Boy Scouts tried to tell you!
What do you think might come in handy at the end of the world? Drop your thoughts in the comments!
