Survival 101: What to expect when bartering after SHTF

Published

9 months ago

October 13, 2023

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Some people are curious about prepping because they want to be more self-sufficient, while others may be considering this lifestyle to ensure their survival during more difficult times.

If you are worried about where to get supplies after your stockpile runs out when SHTF, you can try to learn more about bartering and the basics of trading in a post-collapse world.(h/t toTheOrganicPrepper.com)

The tips and information below come fromSelco Begovic, a man who survived one year inBosnia when his city was blockaded.

Begovic hails fromthe Balkan region, where residents struggled with harsh living conditions from 1992 to 1995. He lived there and survived for a yearin a city without running water, food distribution,electricity, fuel or supply of any goods.

The area also did not have any organized law or government.

While the information below is from an interview conducted in 2018,the topics discussed are still relevant for preppers or those who want to start prepping in 2023. Bartering after city lockdowns

According to Begovic, people started bartering weeks after the city was locked down. He added that ordinary folks only started bartering after several weeks went by because they did not immediately realize the severity of their situation.

As he tried to remember more about that time in his life,Begovic added thatthere were people who did not want to take money for goods. Instead, they asked for valuables like gold, jewelry or weapons for the items that they had wanted to trade with.

Some of these peoplewere smart enough to realize that money was going to become worthless soon.

Even valuables, such as gold and jewelry, were only good in the first period, and you would only benefit from themif you had a connection to the outside world to exchange them for something useful.

Ordinary people needed several weeks to get used to their situation, said Begovic. The process went from buying goods with money to buying goods from people who still accepted money but at outrageous prices, to the moment when money was worthless and people only accepted goods for other items.

While rare,Begovic said you could sometimes find someone who would sell you something for foreign money, but with at least 20 to 50 times higher prices. To illustrate,if a pack of cigarettes costs around 1.50 German Marks outside the war region,Begovic could buy that pack for 40 German Marks.

US dollars and Canadian dollars had even worse value. Thepeople who would accept that money had connections to the outside world, and some of them became millionaires because of that, said Begovic.

The same ratio was for precious metals and jewelry.For small and quick trades, the usual currency people used was cigarettes because of the large percentage of smokers in the area.

Sometimes, people would trade bullets.(Related: SHTF bartering must-haves: 13 Things that will be in demand after an EMP attack.) How to determine the value of trade items and setting terms

Begovic said nothing was fixed. During the lockdown,the value of goods went up and down based on different factors.

If aUnited Nations (UN) food convoy was able to enter the city and a local warlord took it all, which Begovic said happened often, and the majority of the food was canned fish, within that month those types of canned food would be cheaper than the month before.

In other cases, if U.S. airplanes managed to “hit” with airdrops in their area, then meals, ready-to-eat (MREs) were going to be cheaper.

Begovic also said once a rumor was planted by rival groups, such as rumors about “poisoned” cans of cookies, people did not value such items highly anymore.

However, some things did not change value too much during the whole period, such as alcohol, because it was available. The value of other things was a matter of the situation.

If your child was sick andyou needed antibiotics, once you spread the word, you can expect high prices because you gave out that information.Begovic added that usually, peopleknew the value of goods for that week, at least approximately.

The value of things and trading rules “on the ground” were similar to trade rules at normal life flea markets, said Begovic.

Some of those rules on the ground during trading were: If you need something, the price is going to increase. Begovic advised that it’s best not to look like you desperately need something to avoid this. You shouldn’t offer everything you have in “one hand” or on one try. Don’tgo to trade with your best items altogether because you will seem desperate, and you are losing the advantage. Don’t give someone a reason to take the risk of attacking you because you have too many desirable items or too many things with you. Before meeting up with someone,Begovic advised that you should only bring a set amount of food or ammo. If you need more items, do another trade at another time with more of your items. Always remember that people will take chances if they calculate it is a risk worth taking. Do not volunteer information abouthow much of the goods you actually have at home to avoid any incidents. Do nottrade at home, unless you trust the other person completely. This is important, especially if you are trading with someone you don’t know that well. Agreeing to trade at another person’s home might mean that you are at his “playground,” or he is stupid, and you are losing the advantage. Do not take the risk of trading on unknown terrain. Try to choose neutral ground where you can control the situation and give the other person the chance to feel safe, but not safer than you.

Begovic said the mostimportant thing to do is to understand that when SHTF, the only thing that protects you from losing everything is you.

Trade will require careful planning. Start with information about a person who has something you need, then check and double-check that information.

Communicate with him, then send information to let him know that you want to trade. Clearly set the terms about the place and number of people where you’re going to do the trade.

Usually, there would be rumors or information about who was safe to trade with. Begovic said there was also information about people who like to scam others during a trade.

If you completed a beneficial and fair trade with someone, remember him as a safe trader for future trade. The restis a matter of trust and your skills.

If you live in a nice town,Begovic said you might have access toa market where people can freely exchange their goods.

However, he never witnessed anything like that in Bosnia because a market like that requires an efficientsystem to back it. Bartering when SHTF is a high-risk situation because it is about resources, and there is no law or system in place to protect you and others. Skills vs. items

In the long run, Begovic said skills were more valuable because you can not “spend” your skills.

If you had medical skills, you could expect that over time, people would know about them through the word on the street. After SHTF, you will have different opportunities to get something for that skill.

After an SHTF event, skills for repairing would be valuable, along with technical skills. Begovic added that skills were safer to trade because if someone attacks or kills you, they still can’t take away your skills.

If you raise animalson your homestead, you can trade eggs, dairy or meat for other items that you need. With a home garden, you can trade fruits and vegetables for other pantry staples like flour or cooking oil.

Before SHTF, learn the basics of bartering so you can find more supplies before your stockpile runs out.

Watch the video below for tips on how to color-coordinate your pantry.

This video is fromThe Urban Prepper channel on Brighteon.com. More related stories:

Prepping for collapse, famine and nuclear war: 12 Tips that will help you be more resilient when SHTF.

Staying under the radar: Tips for efficient stealth prepping.

Prepper skills: How to barter effectively after SHTF.

Surces include:

TheOrganicPrepper.com

SHTFSchool.com

SurvivalFrog.com

Brighteon.com
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UK

First Universal theme park in Europe to generate ‘£50bn of economic benefits for UK’

Published

4 seconds ago

June 26, 2024

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First Universal theme park in Europe to generate '£50bn of economic benefits for UK'

New details have been unveiled for Universal’s first UK theme park – including plans for the attraction to be open 365 days a year.

Universal Destinations & Experiences – which is owned by Sky’s parent company Comcast – has bought land near Bedford as it plans to build Europe’s largest theme park with millions of visitors per year, as well as a 500-room hotel and dining area.

Economic benefits

Universal’s economic impact analysis, produced in line with HM Treasury guidelines on economic appraisal and published today suggests the attraction will generate nearly £50bn of economic benefits for the UK.

It said the net economic contribution of the potential project for the UK was forecast to be £35.1bn over the construction period and first 20 years of operation.

Up to a further £14.1bn was expected to be generated in extra taxes for the exchequer over the same period.

The analysis suggests the project will generate 20,000 jobs during the construction period which, at its peak, will see 5,000 workers on the site.

Once operational, it is expected to create an initial 8,000 new jobs, rising over time. The company has made a commitment to pay the living wage to employees.

‘The best location we’ve ever seen’

Universal has acquired almost 500 acres for the site, which is just south of Bedford between Kempston, Wootton, Stewartby and Wixams, with an option to buy up to a further 200 acres.

The new park, which would have a construction period of around six years, would be built on land once occupied by Kempston Hardwick brickworks, once the world’s largest brickworks in terms of output, which closed in 2008 and which was demolished in September 2021.

“I can tell you it’s going to be a world-class park with all experiences that people will love based upon the most popular films, video games and stories that people have enjoyed for decades,” said Page Thompson, the company’s president in charge of new ventures.

“We’ve spent the last decade looking all over Europe and the United Kingdom for locations, and we think this is the best location we’ve ever seen.”

Universal Destinations & Experiences currently has five theme parks around the world – in the United States, Japan, China and Singapore.

Disneyland Paris, which with the associated Walt Disney Studios Park is currently Europe’s biggest theme park, attracts around 15 million visitors per year.

New details

“Our phase one plans consist of a theme park, a 500-room hotel and a dining area that people can come to even if they don’t have a theme park ticket,” Mr Thompson told Sky News.

“Over time, I would expect the number of hotels to grow.

“Our intention is that this park would be open 365 days a year, just like all of our other major theme parks.

“We have a whole series of special events, like our Halloween Horror Nights and carnival parties… and it just allows us to attract people throughout this time.”

Universal said evidence from its other theme parks suggested that for every job supported within the parks at least 1.5 further jobs could be supported in the supply chain and neighbouring parts of the economy – leading to its expectation of a net additional 20,000 jobs.

Plenty of competition

The investment is not without risks and not least because of its scale.

Of Europe’s 20 most visited theme parks, four – Legoland Windsor, Alton Towers, Chessington World of Adventures and Thorpe Park – are in the UK, all owned by the former FTSE-100 giant Merlin Entertainments. Their combined visitor numbers annually come to around half of what Universal is targeting.

There is also plenty of competition.

Locally, not far from the proposed Bedfordshire site is the Harry Potter Experience at the Warner Bros studio tour near Watford, while there is Woburn Safari Park to the immediate north and Whipsnade Zoo to the immediate west of Luton.

There is no shortage of quality options for family days out. Further afield Europe already has more than 1,000 theme and amusement parks, many of them owned by Merlin, renowned for its astute management.

The weather issue

A third factor, potentially, is the weather. This is something that already handicaps a lot of theme parks in northern Europe, such as Liseberg in the Swedish city of Gothenburg, the Tivoli Gardens in the Danish capital Copenhagen and the original Legoland, in the Danish city of Billund, which close for some or all of the winter. So does Phantasialand, one of Germany’s biggest and most popular attractions.

Universal Destinations & Experiences, however, is thought to be undeterred by the English weather and points to the fact that the weather is not always perfect in other parts of the world in which it operates, most notably China and Japan.

The Paris experience

The company also appears undeterred by the experience of Disney in Paris.

The original Euro Disney was loss-making for many years – partly due to mismanagement and partly due to a misunderstanding of what European and particularly French consumers were looking for – and it has only really been since it was fully consumed by the Walt Disney Company, in 2017, that it has been effectively run.

Transport challenges

Another big risk is the transport links. Universal Destinations & Experiences – the name was changed last year from Universal Parks & Resorts to better reflect the kind of services customers will be offered in future in both the physical and virtual worlds – has selected the site primarily for its rail and road links to London and, with one in three visitors expected to come from overseas, for its proximity to Luton Airport.

Yet those links are not currently up to handling the kind of visitor numbers Universal Destinations & Experiences is expecting.

The M1, the main road link to London, is frequently congested around the Luton turn-off at junction 10 and the road links from there to the site in need of improvement.

Accordingly, Universal Destinations & Experiences will be seeking government incentives to invest in local road and rail links.

Support could also come from East West Rail, the proposed new main line railway connecting East Anglia and South Wales, the first phase of which is a line between Oxford and Cambridge and for which a new station at Kempston Hardwick – whose existing station backs onto the land the park would operate – has been proposed.

The planning process

Riskiest of all, perhaps, is the planning process. Local businesses and MPs are supportive while both Jeremy Hunt, the Chancellor and Mark Harper, the Transport Secretary, have been briefed on the project. Planning proposals have been submitted and Universal Destinations & Experiences has held talks with Bedford Borough and Central Bedfordshire Councils.

However, Mr Thompson confirmed that Universal Destinations & Experiences is seeking planning permission via a so-called special development order – which would take the decision out of the hands of the local authorities and instead leave the final decision on planning consent with the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities.

A roll of the dice

So this is a big roll of the dice by Universal Destinations & Experiences.

The investment – the first phase of which will be several billion pounds – will take many years to pay off while thrill-seekers should probably not expect the resort to be up and running much before the end of the decade.

However, starting with a blank sheet of paper as it opens its first European venue, Universal Destinations & Experiences has the opportunity to bring something genuinely new not just to the UK but to Europe.

The name change made by the business last year reflects the fact that, in future, the business expects to be offering branded entertainment, culinary, gaming and consumer product experiences that go a lot further than the traditional theme park and resort offerings.

There could even be experiences at the resort which have yet to be conceived. It could be quite the ride.

UK

Election 2024: I spent a week travelling on night buses to see a view of the UK politicians don’t

Published

4 seconds ago

June 26, 2024

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Election 2024: I spent a week travelling on night buses to see a view of the UK politicians don't

There is a rhythm to a night at the Bolton Interchange.

People dart from arriving buses, racing across the concourse to catch departing ones. Sometimes they do, sometimes they don’t. Each rush is followed by a brief lull.

Every night, hundreds of lives intersect at the Bolton Interchange. The night-shift workers and commuters, those out on the town and those just a little bit lost.

Each one has their own story, some are happy to chat, most lose themselves in whatever is playing through their headphones.

I spent a week on the night buses. With the election looming, what the politicians are experiencing on their campaign battle buses is not what ordinary people are seeing. Theirs is a very different perspective.

There is an unmistakeable despair about the state of the country, an indifference to what the political process might do about it and a dark humour about the future. There are very few flickers of optimism.

From the bus-spotter who says the country needs “a good clean”, to those who yearn for a Britain of a different age, to Pete, the elderly bluegrass guitarist heading for an open-mic night.

What does he think of Britain today? “Me and 50 mates are going to go to Lake Windermere to take a s*** in the water. We’ll see if they do anything to stop us, because they don’t seem to be stopping the water companies.”

It is just one of the many raw expressions of the frustration and hopelessness that I hear. As Carl, the night supervisor at the interchange, says: “Late shifts are different here. It is a real eye-opener.”

‘Vote? I just can’t be bothered’

With her shock of white hair and ankle-length peach quilted coat, Sophia Talbot is hard to miss as she jogs across the interchange concourse. She turned 80 a few weeks ago but is still working full-time. She is taking the 125 bus home after completing filming in Bolton as an extra on the TV drama, Waterloo Road.

Sophia: The country is a mess. When I first came to Bolton 21 years ago it was a really nice place and now it’s all run down and boarded up and I think that speaks for everywhere.

Every time I go to the supermarket, I seem to get less for my money. I can drive but I can’t afford a car so that’s why I take the bus.

I do the extras work for a bit of extra money. Extra extra money, I call it.

I don’t think I’ll last long enough to see things in this country change for the better. It will take a long time for that to happen because it has gone down too far.

I probably won’t even vote. I didn’t last time or the time before if I remember right. I just can’t be bothered, and I know that’s not good because if you don’t do it, you can’t blame anybody but yourself, can you?

‘I’m treated as third class, common muck’

It is just after 8pm, still light on this early summer evening, and Janey Fairhurst is passing through the interchange on her way from Bury to Wigan, after spending the day with a bereaved friend. She lost her job in medical research in November and, after 10 interviews, is still searching for work.

Janey: My life is drastically different to what it was. There are just not enough jobs. There are jobs down South but I feel the North gets forgotten about quite a lot when it comes to politics. Maybe they need to remember that we started the industrial revolution and they wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for that so maybe give the North some more funding and more jobs.

The empire is over, Britain has just crumbled, it has been going in the wrong direction for a long time and there’s no trust between the people and the politicians.

When I was in work I felt like I was winning. I could buy the Tropicana instead of Tesco’s own brand orange juice. You don’t really think about the politics of it all when you’ve got the money.

Now, I feel like I’m treated as third class, common muck and I’m not. I come from a good family. I feel frustrated, angry, sad, belittled, in a way – judged. I worked so hard to get where I was and now I can’t get back into it.

‘The cost of living has put a lot on people’

Three buses in the morning and three more in the evening are the routine of Saila Shabir’s working life. From her home in Great Lever to her job in Manchester, she says her time spent travelling has given her perspective on the value of community and the state of the country.

Saila: I think it wouldn’t do any harm for everyone to get on the night bus and experience life from this side of things. It might not be their cup of tea but it is a way to understand what people are saying and doing.

I find it uplifting travelling on the bus in the evening because you get to see people from all sorts of backgrounds. It is amazing, really, and it opens your mind that there’s huge prospects and a really expansive community that we could all bring together under one roof.

I’m not going to say I’m despairing but the cost of living has put a lot on people. People need to work together, we can’t just rely on one set of people to do it all. I am hopeful because I do trust the right people will do the job properly. I do see the darker side of life on the buses sometimes but you need the dark to see the light.

‘I have never known this country in such a state’

From his blue suede boots to his embroidered collar, Rick Conlon is dressed for a night on the town. It is 11pm and he is making his way home to Rochdale. At 6ft4in with a shaved head, it’s easy to see why he’s well known in local boxing circles. He is jovial despite despairing of Britain today.

Rick: I’m 58 and I’m not political particularly but I have never known this country in such a state. I just think it’s really tough at the moment. I know inflation has come down but there’s a lot of people far worse off than me struggling for food and the basic necessities.

We’re the fifth-richest country in the world, I find it incredible. When I was 16, 17, 18, in Margaret Thatcher’s time, 1981 and 1982, with all that political and social unrest, the country was still a better country. We had massive unemployment but the country was still a better country. People were looked after.

There’s that old saying about how you can judge a country by how it looks after its elderly. It’s just ridiculous how little they’re paid and how little they’re thought of.

If there’s one thing that makes me optimistic, bus fares make me optimistic. Two pounds – you can’t argue with that. Even then they’re probably subsidised but that’s great, because this is a great country, it’s just the government letting us down.

‘If it was up to me, I’d move country’

Muj Malik is travelling home with his partner Tabitha and five-month-old son, Zair, after another exhausting day searching for a new family home. They have faced months of frustration on growing council house waiting lists and, they say, see countless videos on TikTok from other young families in the same situation.

Muj: Things are not good in this country. My grandma moved here from Pakistan and my mum was born here so I’m third generation but, if it was up to me, I’d move country. I don’t want to live here for the rest of my life. I don’t see the point because the country is just going sideways.

At the end of the day, I’ve got a mixed-race baby, I grew up in a predominantly white area. I like the country and the people and I know there are people far worse off than us. But you’ve got war veterans from this country, people who have gone to war for this country, they’ve put their lives on the line, they’ve lost friends, and you’ve got them sitting outside of Asda homeless with no help whatsoever.

This country is fading miserably. I like the people, it’s not about the people, it’s about the way the country is run.

UK

Man arrested over unsolicited messages sent to MPs and others in Westminster honey trap scandal

Published

49 mins ago

June 26, 2024

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Man arrested over unsolicited messages sent to MPs and others in Westminster honey trap scandal

A man has been arrested as part of the police investigation into the Westminster honeytrap scandal.

The Metropolitan Police said they arrested a man in Islington, north London, on Wednesday morning on suspicion of harassment and offences under the Online Safety Act.

Multiple victims were informed by the police shortly afterwards.

Earlier this year, several men, working mostly in politics, said they had received unsolicited, flirtatious WhatsApp messages from people calling themselves “Charlie” or “Abi”.

Explicit images were exchanged in some instances.

A Met Police spokesman said: “On Wednesday, 26 June, police executed a warrant at an address in Islington.

“A man was arrested on suspicion of harassment and committing offences under the Online Safety Act. He was taken into custody where he remains.

“The arrest relates to an investigation being carried out by the Met’s Parliamentary Liaison and Investigation Team following reports of unsolicited messages sent to MPs and others.

“The investigation remains ongoing.”

William Wragg stepped down from the Conservative Party when the scandal erupted in April after sharing other politicians’ personal numbers to someone he met on a dating app who threatened to release compromising information and pictures he had sent them.

Conservative Dr Luke Evans also revealed he was approached in March by two different numbers on WhatsApp “who purported to know me”.

He said he was the victim of cyber flashing and malicious communications “and blew the whistle by reporting it to the police and the parliamentary authorities as soon as this happened”.

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