A few days ago I posted a YouTube video by The Lord Humungus titled Think you are going to barter when SHTF? Think again! that I generally agreed with, though, some of his specific examples as to why bartering wouldn’t work probably won’t apply in a SHTF situation, in my opinion. Regardless, I have many concerns about bartering including:
- OPSEC – You’re showing off what you have and who you are, at least, that which you’re willing to barter with.
- Security – You may be putting yourself, family, and supplies at risk simply by showing yourself at a place to barter. Who knows who’s watching you.
- Timing – I wouldn’t expect most people to be ready, willing, and able to barter for quite some time after a grid-down scenario… we have to cull the masses first.
- Thieves / con artists – People will try to steal from you, swindle you, fast-talk you, and more. I’m still not sure whether this will be more or less of a problem in a long-term barter society but it WILL still happen.
- Why are you bartering in the first place? – You should always work to be as self-sufficient as possible and, therefore, not need anything from anybody else. Certainly, this isn’t 100% feasible but I would rather attempt to have everything I could possibly need and then only choose to trade for supplies I didn’t have or couldn’t easily procure on my own with nearby, trustworthy neighbors. Granted, I recognize this isn’t always possible to do either.
Despite the above concerns, I wanted to focus on yet another concern: you and whomever you’re trading with just won’t see eye-to-eye with what each of you want to give or receive. Just as the video pointed out, people could very well want to barter all sorts of things you wouldn’t want and probably won’t need either. Of course, I should note that bartering is an age-old method of procuring goods and is, in fact, still a part of some cultures. As such, bartering can be done and done relatively successfully… eventually.
That said, I think The Lord Humungus brings up a very real concern and that is simply this: what makes you think that the other guy is going to have anything that you really want or need?
Let’s say that you’ve chosen to stockpile an assortment of oft-mentioned barter supplies, including disposable lighters, matches, any type of fuel, ammo (not the best thing to barter), maybe some long-term foods, soap, vitamins, perhaps alcohol, and a wide assortment of other stuff people will probably want. Great. You’ve done your part and you’re ready to barter. And you have a few things in mind. But, guess what?
The other guy wants to trade you a pallet full of ceramic tiles! What are you going to do with that? You don’t need or want those. Ok, maybe he’s got a valuable skill to trade instead, such as being an electrician. That might prove useful but odds are he’s accustomed to working on house AC and, well, everything you’ve got runs on DC and, besides, you already know how to work on all that… you put it together yourself. So, you keep searching. Maybe you find somebody you can work with, maybe not.
You see, the inherent problem I have with expecting to barter in a post-SHTF world is that a direct goods-for-goods bartering system will be darn hard to work out since it’s likely difficult to make a “fair” trade for both parties. Sure, you could probably figure out how to add or subtract other supplies or equipment to balance out the equation but then you open yourself up to possibly taking things you didn’t really want in the first place. And this, my friends, is why money was invented.
But, wait, you have a solution! Let’s go back to a gold-based (or silver-based) economy. After all, you thought ahead wisely and choose to stockpile a nice stash of gold and silver coins for just such an occasion. Great. Did the other guy? What are you going to do if the other guy is the one owing you money but he doesn’t have it, or doesn’t have the type of money that you want? More importantly, I really feel it would take a long time for society to stabilize enough to where peaceable transactions could take place in which both valuable goods and an alternative currency could be exchanged. I’m thinking years to be honest.
Now, I know I’m being a little silly with my examples such as the other guy wanting to barter a pallet full of ceramic tiles. And I’m sure that people will quickly figure out that nobody wants ceramic tiles post-SHTF and they wouldn’t even bother. Obviously, therefore, they’re going to choose to bring supplies that you and others will probably be interested in. Duh! That said, I do see situations–especially shortly after SHTF–where you could have desperate people attempting precisely these types of transactions (e.g., wanting to trade a pallet full of tiles for a single meal) of which you’re still not interested and really only wastes your time and, more importantly, opens you up to being highly vulnerable because you’re now assuredly dealing with desperate people.
See where I’m going with this? After a SHTF event, people will be desperate enough to trade nearly anything they have for the basics they do NOT have and if you then willfully offer some of the supplies you’ve procured as barter items you’ll likely only wind up in situations like this (trading for things you don’t want) or, at the very least, put a giant bullseye on your back as “being the guy who has stuff” that they want… er, NEED!
I know there are ways around this problem, such as trading through a third-party but they would have to be a VERY trustworthy individual (or group) for me to be willing to do that for a variety of other reasons, including your continued safety. Honestly, I don’t think there’s a good answer regarding bartering post-SHTF.
Yes, eventually a barter economy and an alternative currency (or several) will emerge. People will try to trade ridiculous things. You WILL also want (and/or need) to barter eventually too. I’m sure I will too. But I would suggest you do your best to hold off for as long as possible and let other people take the brunt of the ridiculous trades and bullseyes on their backs before you really consider bartering as a viable option.
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