Should I start an "under the mattress" retirement fund?

People like this make me giggle.

a IRA is a private account not a government account like social security. So the government cant keep your money and not give it back. If the United States Dollar gets hyper inflated as your probably assuming and your IRA drops 35% in value over a month, the money you have under your mattress also loses value. Just because you have liquid money dosent mean it will be worth anything in a economic crash. Common sense people basic economics here.

Despite some of the recent downturns in the stock market, there are ways that you can create a portfolio cheaply (buying when markets are low) and sell at a profit when the time is right. You don't have to be a big time trader to make the markets work for you, just follow some really basic principles like 'how much risk am I prepared to take?', 'What do I hope to achieve?' and so on. Of course there are many ways of growing your money other than trading, savings accounts or typical financial tools. Research thoroughly, and always seek independent advice from several sources so you can form your own informed opinions. There is a free white paper here - http://www.wallstreetunlocked.com/ that you could check out for trading advice.

That's the only way to do it. Get a safe hidden in the floor and keep everything in it. When the government goes all the way broke they will clean out everyone's savings. Consider a Swiss account.

This is 100% what the government wants you to do.

I am convinced they also want you to spend all your money and not save anything

This is their goal - don't fall into their trap

Why on earth would you say that?