Where is the U.S. Dollar Headed?

 Things have really changed in the U.S. economy since 2007.  The real estate we've held has dropped dramatically, cutting into our networth in the hundreds of thousands. I am thankful for a good job that pays me well, but I don't even begin to assume that I'll have that forever.  I've seen some amazingly talented workers get laid off in the last 2 years.  I've watched them struggle to find jobs, make mortgage payments, and many have filed bankruptcy or simply lost their homes.  We've all heard the stories.  The lines at the food banks get longer each week while our country's leaders borrow more in a misguided effort to stimulate the economy.  Most of us know that with our own household budgets, you cut spending when you can't meet your bills; borrowing more simply leads to a bigger fall in the end.

So what do we do?  Do we sit back and passively wait to see what the Federal Reserve and the White House comes up with to try to save our economy?  Or, do we do some legwork of our own to find out what history can tell us about other countries that have struggled similarly?  How did the people survive when their monetary system crashed?  How can we personally avoid adding to the problem and actually become part of the solution?

Just some questions and thoughts that have been on my mind lately.  I'll post more with links to some research I've done of late.  I know that this is not a popular subject.  We all would like life to go on as it has for decades.  I just really don't think that is going to be the case.  I think the next 10 years is going to look dramatically different than the last 10 and I want to be as ready for it as I can possibly be.

Image: Salvatore Vuono / FreeDigitalPhotos.net