China Halts Bank Cash Transfers

http://www.forbes.com/sites/gordonchang/2014/01/26/china-halts-bank-cash-transfers-2/

thanks Dagny!

The People’s Bank of China , the central bank, has just ordered commercial banks to halt cash transfers.
This notice, for instance, appears on the online portal for Citigroup's Citibank unit for its China customers:

Important Notice:

1. Due to the system maintenance of People’s Bank of China, Domestic RMB Fund Transfer through Citibank (China) Online and Citi Mobile will be delayed during January 30th 2014, 16:00pm to February 2nd 2014, 18:30pm. As to the fund availability at the receiving bank, it depends on the processing requirements and turnaround time of the receiving bank. We apologize for any inconvenience caused.

2. During Spring Festival, Foreign Currency Transfer Transaction through Citibank (China) Online and Citi Mobile will be temporally not available from January 30, 2014 18:00pm to February 7, 2014 09:00am. We apologize for any inconvenience caused.

If you have any enquiries, please reach us via our 24-hour banking hotline at 800-830-1880 or credit card hotline at 400-821-1880. If you are calling from other parts of the world, please reach us at 86-20-38801267 for banking services or 86-21-38969500 for credit card services.

In short, there will be a three-day suspension of domestic renminbi transfers.  There will also be a suspension, spanning nine calendar days, of conversions of renminbi to foreign currency.

The specific reason given—“system maintenance” at the central bank—is preposterous.  It is not credible that during the highest usage period in the year—the weeklong Lunar New Year holiday beginning January 31—the central bank would schedule an upgrade and shut down cash transfers. 

A better explanation is that the country’s banking system is running dry.  Yes, there is an increased need for money in the run-up to and during the Lunar New Year holiday, but that is only a small factor.  After all, central bank officials knew this spike in demand was coming—it occurs every year at this time—and a core function of central banks is to manage seasonal liquidity fluctuations.  Moreover, the holiday has not started yet, and the PBOC, as that institution is known, could have added more liquidity to meet cash needs.

So what’s really going on?  This crunch follows similar incidents in June and December of last year.  In June, for instance, the central bank used the excuse of a “system upgrade” to allow banks to shut down their ATMs and online banking platforms.  As a result, they conserved cash and thereby avoided a nationwide meltdown. 

So today’s “system maintenance” notice is a sign of a fundamental problem.  Banks, in short, need cash to rollover ever-increasing amounts of nonperforming loans and wealth management products.  This month, cash needs are even higher than normal because of the impending default of the Credit Equals Gold wealth product scheduled for January 31.  Analysts are worried that the failure, if it occurs, will cause a China-wide panic.

Perhaps more important, the Federal Open Market Committee is holding its next meeting on January 28-29 so there could be an announcement on the 29^th on the trimming of bond purchases.  The suspension of FX transactions means that speculators will not be able to dump renminbi and buy dollars.  Fed Chair Bernanke’s words on tapering, beginning in May of last year, shook emerging markets.  A FOMC announcement this time could undermine China, especially because of the darkening perceptions about that country.

Pundits, pointing to the nation’s $3.82 trillion in foreign exchange reserves, are fond of saying that Beijing has enough money to weather any situation.  Yet China does not have a foreign currency crisis.  It has a domestic currency one where dollars, euros, pounds, and yen are not much use. 

Banks are evidently scrambling for cash.  They have, in the past, resorted to desperate maneuvers at the ends of calendar quarters to meet regulatory requirements.  The current crunch is even more alarming because it cannot be occurring for quarter-end reasons.

Something is very wrong in China at the moment.  Banks’ apparent need to conserve cash, coming just weeks after the last incident, looks ominous.

Harvesting Game for Sustainable living after SHTF, the big myth

Like several of the wolf pack readers, I am an avid hunter. The wife and myself usually harvest 4-6 deer a year to fill our pantry with canned venison, and our 2 freezers. We also hunt and trap a wide assortment of small game such as rabbit, quail, raccoon an squirrels along with turkeys. Over the past 20 years, we have come to depend on this as a large part of our diet, along with our homegrown garden that we double and triple crop most of the year.

We raise cattle and chicken, ducks and turkey, using the cattle as a cash crop we do not eat, and eating the eggs and select poultry also. We pick and can/freeze/dry blackberries, raspberries, cherries, apples and pears here on our farm. Our weekly grocery bill is between $20-25, mostly for staples, due to our frugality and hard work. This leaves a lot more money in the budget for other needs, and prepping also! We both work a full-time job, but becoming more self-sufficient has become one of our main hobbies last few years.

Often in various discussions on other blogs, and locally I hear folks saying the extent of prepping is to raise a garden and shoot deer, fish and hunt and such and all will be well. Folks, they are in for a big surprise for several reasons. First of all, gardening for sustenance full on is a huge effort, most folks today don’t have a clue as to the labor or just the know how . As for the bringing in the wild game by the truckload, you can forget that. Every person out there has the same idea, and like game was here in the turn of the century, early 1900′s till about 1960′s, it was nearly all wiped out by people hunting to eat, and to survive!

Add to that the we have a huge influx of predators, coyotes, bears and bobcat populations have soared the last 5 years here in KY, that they would also have an effect on the wildlife population. Most of the big game, and small game would be gone within 1-2 years tops. Huge populations will soon be without access to meat, and what small amount of wildlife remains, would move away from populated areas. Also, after a social meltdown, there would be not government officers to protect wildlife, and all species would be hunted all year-long, without rest and a chance to reproduce. Their would be not protection of fish, and wholesale netting, gigging of all fish species would happen, you can bet on that.

What could you do, we ask ourselves then? I would lean towards raising animals for consumption that don’t take a lot of specialized feed. I am in the process of gearing up for goats, and possibly hogs’  have had extensive experience with them growing up on the farm here. Goats will thrive on plants that your cattle wont touch, along with the grasses that cattle love. My cattle could be replaced with several goats making a small herd, that would provide meat on an ongoing basis. Hogs are the same, and can be fenced into wooded areas to forage and clean out the under growth. Scraps from your garden and table can be fed to both species, any animal waste to the pork.

Goats will eat pumpkin, watermelon, cantaloupe rinds with relish as will hogs. Any greenery not eaten from your garden plants will make great high protein food for these two species. Also, goats and young hogs are easily slaughtered and butchered, and you can render the fat into lard from hogs for cooking, and to help in storing canned meats if needed. Goats also give a rich milk for drinking, and making yogurt or cheese, both made very simply, and that would go a long way to vary and enrich your daily diet. Well, this is some food for thought for you folks, I am daily adapting more and more of my life-style to the prepping mindset and taking action. I thought I would pass this on, maybe to jog your conscience into reality.

by Sam K

http://www.thesurvivalistblog.net/harvesting-game-for-sustainable-living-after-shtf-the-big-myth/

Stunnning Chart: Today’s Stock Market is Eerily Reminiscent of 1929…

With the Holiday shopping season off to a slow start according to preliminary retail sales numbers and with the stock market sitting near all time highs, one can’t help but wonder what will happen when investors realize the economy isn’t really doing as well as we’ve been told by the experts.

The evidence suggests that we can expect devastating global economic changes in 2014 as a result of our national debt, further impoverishment of the working class, and massive new tax burdens resulting from President Obama’s health care legislation. The fundamentals, by most accounts, are indicative of an economy on the cusp of atotal detonation within the next year.

Now, with the prospect of an abysmal shopping season for retailers because of tapped out consumers, the first quarter of 2014 could cause serious problems in financial markets as a result of lackluster performance in corporate earnings.

What’s more, the trajectory of our stock markets over the last eighteen months has been eerily reminiscent of markets back in 1929, right before the crash that led to a decade’s long depression in America.

Ken Jorgustin of Modern Survival Blog writes:

Is there a major financial crash in our near future? You must check out this stunning analogy between the current day Dow Jones Industrial Index compared with the time period 1928-1929 leading up to the memorable stock market crash…
The pattern of stock price movements looks VERY close to the lead-up to the 1929 top.
A lead-up to just any old top is one thing, but the 1929 top was followed by a memorable decline, which makes it all the more worthy of our attention…

Ken stops short of predicting that stock markets will do the same thing this January as they did in 1929, but take a look at this amazing comparison and decide for yourself if it’s possible that this whole thing will break wide open on or around January 14th of 2014:

Chart by McClellan Financial Publications via Modern Survival Blog

Could be nothin’… But what if?

Thanks Dagny!!

SHTF Survival: How To Prevent Infections 

This article was written by Tess Pennington and originally published at Ready Nutrition
Storing medical supplies, especially antiseptic is a must when planning for an emergency event where hospitals and other types of medical care will be difficult to access. We all know that accidents happen, but when they get infected then they become life threatening.

Those that are preparing for short term and long term disasters more than likely have begun stocking up on certain supplies, such as bleach, water and baking soda mainly due to their versatility. But did you know that when these three items are combined together, they create a powerful antiseptic that can save a life? This antiseptic, otherwise known as Dakin’s Solution (diluted sodium hydrochlorite solution 0.5%) can be used to kill most bacterias and viruses.

This antiseptic was first discovered during World War I, when doctors on the battlefield were trying to find ways to kill germs and prevent bacterial related infections, such as gangrene and putrefacation from setting in. Doctors found that when they used Dakin’s solution before and after surgical procedures and for wound irrigation the patient’s condition improved. It was most beneficial after the wound had been adequately cleaned and foreign material and dead tissue had been removed.
Uses For Dakin’s Solution

• Minor scrapes
• Skin and tissue infections
• Can be used before and after surgical procedures to prevent infection
• Can be used as a mouth wash (should not be swallowed)
• Used as a wound irrigator solution to clean wounds
• Can be applied as a wet-to-moist dressing for wounds

Supplies Needed:

• Sodium hydrochlorite solution at 5.25% (Bleach-unscented)
  
• Baking soda
  
• Clean tap water
  
• Clean pan with lid
  
• Sterile measuring cups and spoons
  
• Sterile jar with a sterile lid
  
• Label for jar to label antiseptic,date, time and discard date
  

To Make Solution:

1.  Wash your hands well with soap and water.
2.  Measure out 32 ounces (4 cups) of clean water.  Pour into a clean pan and allow water to boil for  15 minutes. Remove pan from heat.
3.  Using a sterile measuring spoon, add 1/2 tsp. of of baking soda to the water.
4. Measure the bleach according to the strength that is desired:

- For full strength – add 3 oz. bleach or 95 ml.
- For 1/2 strength – add 3 tbls. + 1/2 tsp. or 48 ml.
- For 1/4 strength – add 1 tbls. +2 tsp. or 24 ml.
- For 1/8 strength – add 2 1/2 tsp. or 12-14 ml.

5.  Place the solution in a jar and close it tightly with a sterile lid. Cover the closed jar with tin foil to protect it from sunlight.
6.  Throw away any unused portion of the antiseptic within 48 hours of use.  This solution can be made up to a month prior to using and stored away.

According to WebMD, “The body’s own wound-healing tissues and fluids can decrease the antibacterial effect of Dakin’s solution. Therefore, this solution is often used only once daily for minor wounds and twice daily for heavily draining or contaminated wounds… Additionally, protect the surrounding healthy skin with a moisture barrier ointment (i.e. petroleum jelly) or skin sealant as needed to prevent irritation.”
Additional Information on Dakins Solution
http://www.alt-market.com/articles/1846-shtf-survival-how-to-prevent-infections