Argentina

I have read about a family that has survived Argentina's economic collapse and what they had been through as they went through it.  (And are in fact still going through it.)   As a matter of fact, there is a blog by the guy.  Reading it has been very eye-opening and I have seen some of the stuff that led up to what happened in Argentina happening here.  It is also very disturbing.  I don't think of myself as an alarmist (I've met a few and find them to be rather alarming) however, reading this and catching up on news in this country has made me feel a bit disturbed by the things going on. 

While there is no way to stop as economic collapse myself, I did read about some of the things this gentleman recommends and some of the things he would do differently.  Some of the stuff he has recommended, we have already done.  (Generator, having a 4x4 truck, etc.)  Other things are things we would still need to work on.  The "it can't possibly happen in this country" mentality of people is more bothersome because it can.  And on a smaller scale is happening in different areas.  Look at some of the larger cities with the high unemployment rates. 

What can we as individuals do?  The first link had shared about a "gray market" where people traded skill for skill or "will work for food" type of things.  That already happens here.  Someone needed their clutch replaced and in exchange is going to help hang drywall.  There is a trading of cheese for produce or baked goods.  Most people around here have a garden.  There is a basic mentality of if you don't have a garden, you go hungry.  But some people are better at growing things than other people so there is the obvious exchange of produce for produce. 

We can't prevent a collapse, but also don't have to become the "bandits" or animals that has been described in Argentina.