I don't really understand what you are saying about pegging currencies onto the US Dollar, particularly if the US Dollar is no longer the 'reserve' currency that seems to be a contradictory statement to me.
I read the Wall Street Journal you linked to and yes it did say investors were worried, it didn't say they were panicking and preparing to lay in for a siege did it? Also, these paragraphs quoted from it, whilst accepting there are issues in the Asia markets and the China effect is still causing wobbles, provide a more balanced view:
“Asia as a region is still expected to lead global growth,” Ms. Lagarde said in a speech at the University of Indonesia. But even in Asia, the pace “is turning out a little bit slower than expected—with the risk that it may even slow further given the recent spike in global risk aversion and in financial market volatility.”
Despite continued worries overseas, newly released economic data in the U.S. has remained rather buoyant. Last Friday, the Commerce Department said U.S. consumer spending rose in July, and last Thursday a reading of gross domestic product showed a stronger second-quarter expansion than initially estimated.
So far, Mr. Freedman said he sees no change in U.S. fundamentals and remains relatively upbeat about the long-term performance of U.S. stocks. He added that he was encouraging clients to use this as an opportunity to invest in sectors such as technology and energy rather than have alarm bells go off.
Therefore, no, I don't think we need to panic.
This phrase you wrote: "Like I said, I don't want to be the sucker in Mimi's story running around, and risking my child's life for our next meal" is what the dangerous scaremongering trumpeted by the OP and Mr McBride leads to and for me that is irresponsible in the extreme. We don't know what happened where Mimi was living, or what caused it so we have no knowledge of the circumstances that led to her having to leave.