how will you know when the balloon goes up?

[Jonas]

The situation is more like a slow-motion train wreck than a rising balloon. How will I know when globs of brown stuff hit the rotating airfoil? Probably by piecing together first hand information from trusted people and sources on the internet and on SW radio. If, for instance, one major country's banks fail, I figure the way all large banks are interconnected now, that credit default swaps and derivatives would take down the rest of the world's major economies within a few days at best, and a few hours at worst.

Look to what happened to the people of Iceland, Greece, and Cyprus for the answers. In all three countries, people went to bed one night with money in the bank and woke up the next morning to the news that most or all of their assets had disappeared. When this happens to a major country (like Italy for example) I expect complete chaos.

What's the answer? None that will save all of us, but keep on prepping!