Most sellers who own gasoline stocks enough to sell recognize the sight and value and portability of silver US coins, pre 1964 quarters, dimes etc, and Morgan dollars.
Right now the value of one Morgan dollar would fill up my gas tank. How many bags of rice could you offer a seller as a comparable?
One silver dime today's value will buy a loaf of bread. How much ammo will you trade for flour?
Two golden eagles will pay for a year of community college. How many bags of rice are you willing to offer the college?
I think most of the folks who see the wisdom in stockpiling food stuffs and selected commodities other than precious metals expect a total worldwide meltdown of society and the financial systems. They are not worried about paying for college...
In that scenario gold will have little value to those that survive as it wont be denominated in dollars it will be denominated in a third world like barter economy and its true worth is what it can be exchanged for to provide sustenance shelter or defense. Gold is only good when you have a marginally stable economy (like that in the US today) with a class of folks with an excess of whatever the local currency is and are willing to put that excess into gold.. Ive spent a lot of time in third world economies and no one in the masses there are the least concerned with the price of gold. They are concerned where the next meal is coming from... If you think the system will somehow survive then an argument can be made for holding a small amount. If you believe and are preparing for the SHTF then gold is a very poor investment in spite of what the folks peddling the stuff will tell you...
If things here were really to go to hell in a handbasket, college courses would be the least of anyone’s worries. If some version of a shooting war broke out in the US, life as you know it would pretty much grind to a screeching halt. Fuel? Power? Electricity and utilites? Communications? Transportation? Those would be the first targets of a destroy the command, control, and infrastructure campaign by an oppresive army.