“It’s difficult to imagine what one should hoard first; seeds, bullets or lightbulbs?”
In the past I’ve stocked up on freon and pesticide (both of which I still have and still use). Light bulbs were pretty far down my list, but since they’re going away, I figured that I better get them too. Like others have said, if you have the room, you might make a killing on E-Bay 5 years from now selling bulbs (R-12 went for $0.99 per can to $50 per can at its peak, maybe 10 years ago...now down a bit as the cars disappear. One semi-trailer would have nabbed $1M in profit.). Of course, the light bulb ban could get reversed, so there is some risk in speculating.
Other things to consider: Gold - which is good in a post-meltdown economy (i.e., after things stabilize and all money saved in dollars is worthless) - or to get our of a really tight spot (like Vietnam, after it was ‘liberated’ by Obama’s friends). But my next set of purchases will be non-perishables - everything from toothpaste to toilet paper - about 3 years worth (I have a list of about 100 items, cost will be $5K to $10K). I expect hyper-inflation followed by price controls...which assures shortages. Having the goods on hand simply means having what you want, paying a fair price, and not having to wait on line when you need more. Life will suck for all, but my family’s life might just be a bit better. It’s simply level of comfort that I’m shooting for.
What is on your list of 100? I would like to be prepared also.
I forgot to mention anti-biotics.