Like anything, Ham Radio can be quite expensive, especially if you're the type that always has to have two of the newest, latest, greatest toys (one for everyday use, the other to impress visitors <img src="images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" /> ) but it can be quite cheap too. If you're reasonably technical you should be able to pass the basic exam with self-study. Technically, you don't need to buy a radio; I didn't when I first got my Ham ticket. (I've since bought two - a Yaesu FT-817 and a Yaesu FT-1500, plus a magnetic mounted VHF antenna for my car.) But if money is tight, you should be able to pick up some pretty decent 2nd-hand ("pre-loved") equipment at swap fests; if money is really tight, you could even do without (just getting to know fellow hams will probably give you some useful contacts who are of like mind when it comes to being prepared <img src="images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" /> )

Of course, it TEOTWAWKI comes, being busted for operating an unlicensed Ham rig is probably going to be the least of your worries <img src="images/graemlins/shocked.gif" alt="" /> Having the skill to fix the radio if it's busted, though, could be a lifesaver. (Remember the book "Alive" by Piers Paul Read? One of the survivors on the plane was an electronics engineering student, IIRC, who made several attempts to fix the aircraft HF transmitter but was unable to do so. There might have been many more survivors if he'd had a Ham radio study guide with him.)