Posted on 04/28/2012 2:26:45 PM PDT by blam
The Barter Value Of Skills
Tess Pennington
April 26th, 2012
This article has been generously contributed by Tess Pennington of Ready Nutrition. After joining the Dallas chapter of the American Red Cross in 1999 Tess worked as an Armed Forces Emergency Services Center specialist and is well versed in emergency and disaster management & response. You can follow her regular updates on Preparedness, Homesteading, and a host of other topics at www.readynutrition.com.
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Recently, we talked about the necessity of learning skills to aid us in a survival situation. Don’t underestimate the value of those skills for barter. If the grid goes down, people may be left with no access to medical care, serious gaps in their knowledge or the inability to repair vital items. If you possess those abilities, your skills will be in high demand.
In the situation of economic collapse, there will be a revival of the barter system. To barter means to exchange your goods or services for someone else’s goods or services. To complete a satisfactory barter transaction, each person must desire something from the other party. Despite the potential of desperation, it’s morally imperative to be fair to the party that is most in need. Remember that one day, that person who is most in need may be you.
Right now, if something breaks, the replacement is only as far away as the closest Wal-Mart. However, in the event of an economic collapse or a disaster that causes the trucks to stop running, it won’t be easy to replace broken items. The ability to repair broken items will be in very high demand. It will be a rare skill, because we live in a world of planned obsolescence. Few people actually know how to repair an item in a sturdy and long-lasting way.
Brandon Smith of Alt-Market calls this about bringing back the American Tradesman:
“If you wish to survive after the destruction of the mainstream system that has babied us for so long,” he says, “you must be able to either make a necessary product, repair a necessary product, or teach a necessary skill. A limited few have the capital required to stockpile enough barter goods or gold and silver to live indefinitely. The American Tradesman must return in full force, not only for the sake of self preservation, but also for the sake of our heritage at large.”
Check out Brandon’s excellent article on the barter system here.
There is no limit to the skills that could be used in a barter situation. Some examples would be:
First Aid for traumatic injuries Sutures
Midwifery/delivering babies
Dental care
Herbal remedies
Animal Husbandry
Veterinary Skills
Teaching children
Teaching skills to adults like knitting, gardening, machine repair, etc.
Mechanic’s skills: the ability to fix solar generators, small machines, automobiles, etc.
Other repair skills: the ability to repair tools, woodstoves, plumbing, etc.
Gardening/Farming
Construction
Gunsmithing/Weapon repair
Security services
Food Preservation
Sewing/Mending
Making soap and candles
Blacksmithing
If the grid goes down or the economy collapses in a long-term way, gone are the days of making your living doing IT work or ringing through purchases at the grocery store. You will need to become not only self-sufficient, but a provider of goods or services.
Consider what abilities and knowledge you possess that can be shared with others. Nobody can do it alone – there is always going to be something you need that you can’t provide for yourself.
Buy David Gingery’s books.
distilling alcohol
I have 9 of those listed skills.
Play blackjack for grains of rice.
When you win, bump up the stakes to pinto beans.
When you win, bump up the steaks.
Good article over here, K.
Hmmm. That means I should hoard rice, pinto beans, and decks of marked cards....
I have 12 skills on the list,plus a few more not listed.I still don’t feel like I’m prepared for what’s surely coming.
Many established people have been busybodies, rumor mongers and false accusers against the property rights and other civil rights of their neighbors. No contracts with them. They and anyone doing jobs for them will be on their own.
Heck, I'm not even sure where my teeth are right now.
/johnny
/johnny
Bump
The author forgot what will probably be the single most sought after skill set:
Brewing beer.
We put back enough ingredients for pretty near 50 gallons. I reckon we are going to be right popular when the SHTF.
L
Legally, in the US, every adult is allowed to brew 250 gallons of beer. I know some homebrew guys that keep enough materials on hand for 1000 gallons. And they aren't preppers. ;)
/johnny
50 gallons is enough to get things going, trade for other stuff, additional ingredients, etc. I’m mostly limited by the number of E-Z cap bottles we have. Those things are not cheap.
And we are adding to our stash as we can. Other items are taking priority right now, mostly those of the brass and lead persuasion.
And food. And more medical supplies....
And I’d be really polite to those thousand gallon home brew folks if I were you. LOL
“Heck, I’m not even sure where my teeth are right now.”
LOL! Mine are MIA, too.
"I have 12 skills on the list,plus a few more not listed.I still don’t feel like I’m prepared for what’s surely coming."
Mathew 6:33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.
/johnny
For normal in-house use, I've been using 2-liter recycled soda bottles. They can certainly handle the CO2 pressure, and they are easy to clean and sanitize.
/johnny
I know the theory behind most of those skills, but I’ll admit I haven’t gotten as much hands-on experience as I’d like.
But, I’m pretty good with gardening, food preservation, and sewing. And, I’m not sure what to call this, but I’m really good at improvising or figuring out other ways to do things with what’s at hand. I have a practical understanding of physics and chemistry, so that helps when improvising is needed.
In a shirt pocket in the laundry is always a good bet, in my case. ;)
/johnny
That’s what I used to use. I haven’t brewed in a couple years now, but I still have my 2 liter pop bottles cleaned up and stored in giant clear plastic bags. I have a bunch of 3 liter bottles too and a bunch of glass half gallon jugs. I always wanted to upgrade to cornelius kegs.
Thanks for the tip. I’ll give that a try. Best of luck to you.
My grandfather spent a year in prison during the Depression for making moonshine.
I may try doing this.
What is with all the bitterness that’s infecting FR these days, and which your post is but one example?
If you can find a copy of The Foxfire Books they’ve got instructions in there for making a small home pot still. And if you take the time to get to know your local brew shop owner you may find someone willing to make one for you.
At least that’s what I’ve heard anyway.
Wow, My mothers family did this and it was a way of life...I became a hater of alchohol because when I was a kid I tried moonshine...They lived in a dry state and it was the only way to actually make a way to put food on the table.
My wifes an ER Doctor.
What can I trade her for?
I got a Mossberg 500 and two cases of beer. Am I in the running for her?
;^)
5.56mm
Security services expanded – Protective Service Detail and Physical Security Operations one will need people trained at setting up defences and protecting important people.
Primitive survival skills, Wood craft, oak tannin and brain leather making,
Geologist – specifically subsurface hydrology and surface limnology post SHTF finding/knowing where to look for fresh potable water will be a huge skill set to have.
Electronics repair specifically radio repairs and engine control units.
The ability to solder electronics- surface mount and through hole.
Ability to read Blue prints, technical diagrams , electrical schematics and understand engineering scales.
Surveying with engineering stake out- Total Station, RTK GPS, and classic steel chain and theodolite - critical to the rebuilding phase.
Communication operator- Morris code , proper net protocols on a crowded radio band how to operate a SSB and CW long distance radios.
Mathematics - modern and classic , Roman math, Babylonian math (think base 60 and sun moon cycles if we lose our time keeping ability the harvest / plantings are screwed unless you can read lunar and solar cycles) the ability teach others to use a Roman abacus, or Chinese abacus as well as the Roman calculi board and or Slide-rule capable should an EMP attack happen forget about calculators and computers. Also Geometry, Trig, Algebra will be needed post SHTF for innumerable issues in rebuilding. I hate to say it but favorite my math professor was right one day math might just save your life.
I figure I've got those covered with 2 EMTs and a registered nurse in the immediate family.
As for teeth, I'll gum 'em to death.
/johnny
I like this list... it means all my bosses will die.
/johnny
Soooo. The new Ruger 10/22 take down rifle is on the market..what’s a good price out there. I know they aren’t plentiful, but my local gun place has a couple. want one really bad! fun, fun, fun!
My group of Former Marines and Soldiers will offer our protective services for you and your wife in exchange for medical attention should it be needed :) We also would consider food for your both in the deal we are avid hunters of all critters large and small. 2 of the girls er women on our oh Sh1t team are ER trauma nurses one of there boy friends is also one of our warrior types. Our group stands at 30 right now with 2 nurses, 20 warriors of all types of combat skill sets and 8 "others" , a mechanic , a electrician, a butcher being notable. We could use a good Doc that has experience with bullet wounds as they would be inevitable in the SHTF times.
Don't know, I'm the wrong person to ask. I quit buying new years ago.
I've seen articles on it and it does look good. Wouldn't mind having one myself, but my old AR-7 does the take-down job well, and floats.
/johnny
Check out Dicks Sporting Goods if one is near by. I just got a Marlin 795 for 99 bucks brand new man is it fun to shoot with a 3x9 scope on it squirrel sized critters within 100 meters are toast. One cannot ask much more than that from a 22 semi auto. At the 50m line it shoots 2 inch groups not bad for cheap Winchester grey box fodder. I am normally not a Marlin kinda guy but hitting cantaloupes at 100M in light or no wind is silly easy once you get it sighted in as there is no recoil. Its plink splat, plink splat all day though the scope. That was until I lost it in a tragic boating accident last week...
I just paid $350 for one, but I wasn’t willing to wait for the “wow factor” to depreciate on it.
I’ve been waiting for a 22 like this one to hit the market for many years.
Here are my skills, but sadly, none of adult children want to “larn-em” - Target and Walmart are so handy, you know!
I can clean and spin wool straight from the smelly old sheep, and know which breeds are good for what kind of wool, what type of garment
can design and knit woolen garments, socks, sweaters, shawls, blankets, using the right wool for the planned use
can thread and operate a loom to weave cloth
can sew clothing (dresses, shirts, pants) from basic patterns
can plant a garden, manage pests with companion planting instead of chemicals
can preserve the harvest with both a water canner and a pressure canner
can also dry the harvest, either by electrical dryers, or the old-fashioned way (sun-drying)
can cook on a wood stove, a camp stove, or more primitive methods.
know enough about nutritional needs to keep people from getting scurvy and other illnesses
can keep baby chicks alive to adulthood for eggs.
know how to train farm dogs to protect home and property.
hand cut, hand piece, and hand quilt bedding.
grind wheat and bake bread
milk a cow or goat by hand
make baskets
Maybe I should auction myself odd as an old granny, good for “larnin’ the young’s, but now much good for plowin’ these days. Can still stir the jam pot, though.
odd= off.
Old eyes and arthritis makes for many keyboard funnies.
I'm thinking that she may be assessing YOUR value at some point in the future, ahem.
My mother said her family seemed to 'fair' better that the other farmers around them during the depression. I'm thinking the money from the moonshine may be the reason.
My father, who's family was near by, "damn near starved."
You sound like a cool granny to have around.
I can shear (hate it), I can spin (hate it), I can weave (would rather build the loom), I am good with a sewing machine (AF did that to me), and everything in the kitchen (culinary school, and countless restaurants, and AF).
I did make a quilt out of my old AF uniforms (won't do that again). Never made a basket, but I can weave mats for draining cheese or rolling sushi.
And I've got the engineering side of my careers...
/johnny
I think every neighbor has at least one other neighbor that fits that category.
” good for “larnin’ the young’s, but now much good for plowin’ these days. “
I got a feeling that, in extremis, we “Useless Eaters” will become priceless assets to our communities...
“What to do and how to do it” can be taught - “When” and “Why” comes from a lifetime of experience... ;)
/johnny
50 gallons is a nice starter;)
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