I think that this economy is headed for an Argentinian-style financial meltdown. The deficit is unsustainable. The countries financing it (China, Japan) aren't going to keep the taps open forever. OPEC is going to consider switching the global oil market from dollars to euros, if current foreign policy trends continue.
Given all of this, below are the first two initial options that I am considering. I'd welcome advice on these and/or additional opinions on how we can survive the coming Bush depression.
Please recommend...
1. Shift savings out of US dollars, to a major foreign currency. Options here include euros, British pounds, Swiss francs, Japanese yen. All of these economies have demographic issues that affect their long-term growth prospects, but I see them as much safer bets in the short to medium-term. I wouldn't consider the Canadian dollar as an option -- too closely tied to the fate of the US economy due to NAFTA.
Does anyone have recommendations on how to open foreign-denominated accounts?
2. Change financing of housing and other long-term debt from adjustable to fixed-rate. A few months ago, Greenspan worried aloud about the proliferation of adjustable-rate mortgages in the US economy today, and the loose credit markets thanks to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. If there is a massive devaluation of the US dollar, then interest rates will automatically spike to double-digit levels, as any case study of devaluations in Latin America in the 1980s or Southeast Asia in 1998-99 are quick to point out.