Personally I don't think there's anything wrong with being prepared, as long as it's for the right reasons. For example when hurricane Sandy hit, a lot of people around my area were without power for weeks and there was a lot of destruction.

I don't recall there being a lot of looting or crime but I wasn't really listening to the news very much - too depressing. The point is that even I loaded up on some supplies to prepare for the worst and my mindset is to take my chances with the rest of the people affected.

I ended up being pretty lucky, but I can imagine situations like maybe a major pandemic where things might get dodgy and you might need to fend for yourself.

The thing is, if you don't have anything, or at least everyone BELIEVES you have nothing, then you'll be much less likely to become a target. So really the best preparation is to make people believe that you are completely UN-prepared.

Another article in Bloomberg Business Week
Technology: Bitcoin Dreams
The Bitcoin-Mining Arms Race Heats Up:

“Mining was supposed to be a democratized thing, but it’s now only accessible to the elite of the elites,” says Chris Larsen, CEO of Ripple Labs, which has introduced a virtual currency called Ripple. It’s similar to Bitcoin but without the mining. (The company gradually hands out increments of the currency to supporters.) “Hordes of brilliant engineers are raising money for mining equipment that regular folks can’t compete with,” Larsen says.

http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2014-01-...oups-competition-heats-up