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My Money Blog:

Like scary stories? I usually stay away from the horror movies section, but I was intrigued by the idea behind of Financial Armageddon: Protecting Your Future From Economic Collapse by Michael Panzer. This is a book about why our economic system is in danger, how it will collapse, and the bleak future ahead. Keep in mind that this was initially published in March 2007, even before the peak of the subprime mortgage mess and current economic slowdown. The book is separated into four parts: Threats, Risks, Fallout, and Defenses.

Threats
Here, the author lays out a relatively convincing picture of how fragile our economic system really is right now. This is the best part of the book in my opinion, and what you should read it for.

Debt. Our nation is in huge debt. Many consumers are also in huge debt or living paycheck-to-paycheck. We spend and spend, and don’t save for a rainy day. Guess what? Neither does the government. Does this sound healthy?

The Retirement System. We all know that more people are on their own with plans like 401ks, for better or worse (mostly worse). The problems with Social Security are relatively well-known. After a few big blow-ups like United, we now know that many private pensions are underfunded. And you know what? Many public pensions are underfunded as well. This is what happens when you allow politicians who need to get re-elected every few years to make promises for the next 100 years. If you think municipal…