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| LUXURY GOODS |  |
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| 91 | Tea |
| 92 | Coffee |
| 93 | Nicotine |
| 94 | Alcohol (medicine and trade) |
| 97 | Candy and gum |
| Trade goods and luxury items are surprisingly low on the demand scale, however they are still popular enough to make the list. When times are hard, many people find comfort in vices, apparently. This has been true for most of human history, if not all of it. Items such as stimulants and nicotine are generally addictive substances, and candy is insidiously addictive in its own right. Alcohol has value as an anaesthetic, as alcohol was used as an anaesthetic in early times, and can be useful for cleaning wounds (if high purity), in addition to its recreational and trade value. It is worth noting that there are always those that will choose to drink rather than face the harsh realities of a survival situation. In the post collapse Soviet Union, alcoholism took an astoundingly high toll as many people lost hope. People often chose the oblivion of alcohol over practical necessities. While this happens to some degree in the modern world, in a disaster area this can be more prevelant. While items such as these can be destructive, they can be useful for trading for items that you may be in greater need of. The highest ranking of these are tea and coffee, which are relatively mundane stimulants and like many of these substances are widely used. Caffeine in particular is well suited for situations where extra alertness may be needed. Since coffee and chicle are not naturally growing substances in many regions, and these are popular habitual usage items, stockpiles diminish fast. If you are a coffee drinker and dread facing the day without a bit of java, then stockpiling dried or canned coffee may be a good investment. If you are not a coffee drinker, the ability to provide something which is clearly a luxury, may position you to trade for valuable items, food, tools or labor. Most of these items can be stockpiled in bulk in a relatively inexpensive fashion and when properly packaged have a long shelf life. |
