I know that I have been characterized as “alarmist” and a “doomsayer” by many on this board in the past, but I would be remiss if I did not pass along some information to you all that I have learned from a very knowledgeable and well-placed source in the finance industry who has guided me for the past two years as I have attempted to navigate this crisis.

This source predicted, four (4) months ago, that the market would enter a heart-pounding phase in mid-late September. It would be as though, in his words, “the world would hold its breath” in anticipation of what would follow.

And then, on or about the first week of October, the dam would suddenly burst and the ride to hell would begin — for months. He predicted that the system would experience a massive seizure, such that all electronic forms of trade (stocks, banks, ATMS) would simply fail. And the much-delayed death of the dollar would begin in earnest.

This coincides almost exactly with what the think tank at LEAP (http://leap2020.eu/GEAB-in-English_r25.html) has been predicting for the past 18 months. I have studied each of their reports, in which they have consistently labeled Fall 2008 as the point in which the world in general, and the U.S. in particular, would enter the heart of the system crisis. The only variation I note is that LEAP estimates that the dollar’s role as the world’s reserve currency will cease around the end of the 2nd quarter of 2009. My source believes that it will happen sooner. Or perhaps it is the case that the process begins in October and culminates in June. In any event,
the Fall and Winter are going to be extraordinarily brutal.

I am hoping that all who read this will understand the message that I am trying to relay to you: time is short. Many of us have been expecting what is coming from months or years. Some have only awaken to what is coming a few months ago. Others still don’t understand what is coming. But as Wall St literally disintegrates before our eyes, I don’t think there can be any question at this point that we are on the verge of something unprecedented and catastrophic.

If you have money in the markets, you need to get it out NOW.

If you have a 401K and are fearful of a withdrawal penalty and taxes, keep in mind that 60% of something is better than 100% of nothing.

If you have more funds in your bank than the absolute minimum necessary to pay your expenses, then you’re playing Vegas odds. FDIC is technically insolvent as I write this, and one more major bank failure will trigger an unstoppable run on our retail banking system.

Buy a safe. Keep as much cash at home as you feel comfortable storing. BUY METALS. They will be volatile in the near term, but they are truly your best bet for asset protection in a world that is about to implode in a derivatives supernova.

The Chinese did something astounding today: they effectively broadcast to the world that a new world reserve currency is needed. The world heard them. And gold soared almost $100 today. I think that any thinking person can see that the unthinkable is now about to happen. The dollar is about to become irrelevant.

http://us.mobile.reuters.com/mobile/m/AnyArticle/p.rdt?URL=http://www.reuters.com/article/ousiv/idUSPEK4365020080917

And lastly, at the risk of sounding completely alarmist, I would advise you all to begin stocking up on goods that you will need to keep your household functioning in the near (and possibly long) term. When the system fails, there will be massive supply disruptions for a variety of reasons, not the least of which will be that panic will trigger a hoarding mentality, gas will be in short supply and inventories will be easily wiped off of store shelves. Can we buy enough food and supplies to last the rest of our lives? Of course not. The goal here is simply not to be a casualty in the first wave of the tsunami that will wipe out millions. Once the first wave has passed, we can pick ourselves up, look around for a place of safety and start moving.

I’m not advising anyone to buy a gun or any form of protection, although I think civil unrest is entirely possible, particularly in large metropolitan areas.

I am simply advising that, at a minimum, we all be prudent in preparing for what now seems inevitable. An ounce of prevention in these times is easily worth a ton of cure.

For those who may disagree with my post, I respect your opinion and would only ask that you not denigrate mine and simply move on to the next thread. I share this information with you all solely out of a concern for my fellow citizens.

I am hoping this thread will allow like-minded individuals to share practical information and advice as we all move into a grim and unchartered period in our nation’s history.

Good luck to us all.