Since hitting the 77 mark this month, I have cut myself considerable slack. Things like “pressure” to keep UrbanSurvival going, publish still more books, and doing more research. I mean, eventually time runs out and what we leave with is all between-our ears, anyway.
Still, mornings like this? Good to sit in the recliner over at the house, swing a monitor around. And ask questions that “the news” never seems to get around to. Those are what give up the real gold in life.
But today, we will drop back into old-school “news” mode. Because it’s hard to garden in the dark. And three of the shop lights were killed by the super-cold winter with sub-10-degree temps.
With such limits, a few minutes trading – maybe. But to do that? We gotta look at numbers…
The Data Roll #1
First out is the National Federation of Independent Business. Maybe not as widely followed as the BLS job and inflation numbers. But hey! More dependable, right?
“The NFIB Small Business Optimism Index fell 0.2 points in January to 99.3 and remained above its 52-year average of 98. Of the 10 Optimism Index components, three increased and seven decreased. Expected real sales volume was the only component with substantial change, increasing by 6 points. The Uncertainty Index rose 7 points from December to 91. A rise in owners reporting uncertainty about whether it is a good time to expand their business was the primary driver of the rise in the Uncertainty Index. “
Data Roll #2 Retail
Second agenda item is the health of Retail. Economic theory holds that if the consumer is still going deep into the wallet (and usually debt) then it’s good for the country. OK, so it keeps going deeper in debt, too. But too early to quibble.
Advance estimates of U.S. retail and food services sales for December 2025, adjusted for seasonal variation and holiday and trading-day differences, but not for price changes, were $735.0 billion, virtually unchanged (±0.4 percent)* from the previous month, and up 2.4 percent (±0.5 percent) from December 2024. Total sales for the 12 months of 2025 were up 3.7 percent (±0.4 percent) from 2024. Total sales for the October 2025 through December 2025 period were up 3.0 percent (±0.4 percent) from the same period a year ago. The October 2025 to November 2025 percent change was unrevised from up 0.6 (±0.3
percent).
Layer #3 Employment Costs
There’s a kind of brutality in this next number. Because in the economics domain if the cost of labor is going up – more money for the workers! BUT, less to spread around to the greedy shareholders (like us, but that varies minute-to-minute).
Compensation costs for civilian workers increased 0.7 percent, seasonally adjusted, for the 3-month period ending in December 2025, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Wages and salaries increased 0.7 percent and benefit costs increased 0.7 percent from September 2025.
Compensation costs for state and local government workers increased 0.8 percent, seasonally adjusted, for the 3-month period ending in December 2025. Wages and salaries increased 0.8 percent and benefit costs increased 0.8 percent from September 2025.
Clearly, we should all be in government…
Maraschino #4
Import and Export prices are another one of those “mixed blessings.” Higher import prices improve the pro formas when looking at reshoring some of that American Greatness the free trade raiders conned us on. But – since self-control went missing in 1967, or so – higher import prices drive inflation. And those figures – which will be along tomorrow – are a likely “fear factor” in how markets price today.
U.S. import prices increased 0.1 percent in December, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Prices for U.S. exports advanced 0.3 percent in December. Over the past year, import prices were unchanged and export prices increased 3.1 percent.
(So! How about that Fed “2 percent inflation target” bullshit, huh?
We continue suffering through out here. Our year-to-date market gains are running 8.8 percent at their 1.1-month point. Which compounds to well over 100 percent per year. But who needs that kind of know-how? Well, except Peoplenomics subscribers. Also a shout-out to subscriber Mary and thanks for the kind words.
On tap tomorrow? “Beyond the Kidnapping Replay: How Cyclical Events from the Depression Era Could Arrive in the Modern World. ” I mentioned some time back that the Guthrie case is filling in the same kind of media frenzy as the Lindbergh baby kidnapping of 1932. Interesting to notice how it’s at the other end of the familial temporal dynamic. (Time studies doesn’t come with much documentation, so it’s a grand locale for self-learners.
Plus, there will be more notes on my recent study of state-variance extremes trading. So a fine time will be had by all, we assume.
The Flow to Go
Since we will be doing “barking mad” in Around the Ranch today, let’s (for the halibut) blow the liberal dog whistle a few times.
A Campaign to Revoke the Endangerment Finding Appears Near ‘Total Victory’ – The New York Times Which doesn’t seem to be that upset when China brought more than 50 NEW coal-fired power plants online in 2025. (Factually sourced, of course.) But hey! Who needs balance when you have a liberal agenda, right…I mean left! (Or an auto pen…)
Almost as upset as they seem to be about people who cost more than they benefit the country. Appeals Court Lets Trump Revoke Deportation Protections for 60,000 More Migrants – The New York Times. Guess the appeals court reads law, not TDS diagnoses?
Dumb and dumber plays San Francrisco: Live updates: SFUSD teachers strike, bargaining back on, schools closed Tuesday. SFUSD teacher jobs posted for 2026–2027 show salary ranges around $69,525 – $131,654 per year depending on placement and certification. But they have to make that much to afford living in Gruesome’s worker’s paradise where freedom is a rallying cry while accounting is a pseudo-science.
(Shall I continue? I’m trying to be an equal-opportunity realist here.)
“Don’t ask” meets “Don’t tell” – Ghislaine Maxwell appeals for clemency from Trump as she declines to answer questions : NPR. And we’ll be looking for an update of The King and I as Buckingham Palace says King Charles will aid police probe into former Prince Andrew’s Epstein links | AP News. But you know what they say in monarchies, right? Everything is relative.
The President of Borders and Real Estate: Trump threatens to block opening of Ontario-Michigan bridge financed by Canada – France 24. Meanwhile, we weren’t joking a while back when we said the Gaza carnage was a real estate eminent domain kind of deal. And see here: another fearless in-our-endo appears as Israel lays the ground for West Bank annexation, prompts world denunciations – AW.
We will skip the conspiracy theories linking Epstein to Israel and future events. Instead, we are patiently waiting for Iran talks (they’re playing for time) to end badly. Baked-in with Netanyahu wants Trump to demand more from Iran. The leaders will meet this week. Is the carrier Bush in the Med now?
Around the Ranch: Barking Mad Valentine’s
There are probably four reasons why Elaine and I both look at least 20 years younger than most people our ages.
First is good dental care. File this as “Don’t kiss what don’t floss.”
Second is a heavy-duty long-term anti-aging regimen which not only includes NMN, but also an OTC analog to TRIIM-X research, red light therapy which we have been using since 2016 when we laid the Light Crown Project out on Peoplenomics.
Virtually no sugar and now into gluten-free, too. Because too many “oldsters” will tell you that when bromine went into wheat processing, life downshifted. All those glysophate genetic critters – we like heritage seed-based foods.
Fourth is the one I don’t write about often. In fact, I last wrote about this in 2009, or so, and it’s no longer on the web. So I will give it to you straight.
This is going to sound nuts from here in — but stick with me, because the neuroscience is better than the optics
Barking and Meowing May Extend Life
No, I haven’t lost my mind. But yes it’s a hell of a tale.
See back in 2000, or so, Elaine and I were working on ways to communicate raw emotion without attachment (and all that spiraling into fights that comes glued-on to linguistics). We agreed to communicate in animal sounds.
“All men are dogs!” was Elaine’s view. So I have been using an assortment of high-emotional content barks (growls, baring of teeth) and such for 25+ years.
Elaine’s role is the pussy(cat) around here. She has an assortment of cat-sounds that would impress any clowder of ferals out there. If I do something she doesn’t like? Those long fingernails make a “coming to scratch you” gesture with accompanying effects.
“That just means Ure Crazy!”
No, hold up there Bubba. Let me go to the data.
First off, let’s dive into the science backing up why messing with language—like going bilingual or beyond—might just be a secret weapon against the brain’s aging pitfalls, including Alzheimer’s. This matters “bigly and hugely” to us. Because with both lost at the APOE-4 casino and carry one marker each.
We each had some “second language” skills. Elaine’s got some Spanish, (*right, punta?) I have three years of German and 60-some years of Morse Code in my head at high speeds. Which matters? (Don’t go getting lost on us…)
Numerous studies have shown that bilingual individuals experience a delayed onset of Alzheimer’s symptoms by an average of 4-5 years compared to monolinguals. This isn’t just anecdotal; research from institutions like the University of Edinburgh and York University in Toronto points to the “cognitive reserve” built by constantly switching between languages.
It’s like mental CrossFit: juggling vocabulary, grammar, and cultural nuances keeps neural pathways flexible and resilient. Beyond bilingualism, multilingual folks (those fluent in three or more languages) show even stronger effects, with enhanced executive function, better problem-solving, and reduced risk of cognitive decline overall.
A 2013 study in the journal Neurology found that lifelong bilingualism correlates with denser gray matter in brain regions tied to memory and attention, essentially buffering against dementia’s creep. So, if barking and meowing count as a “second language” in our household, who’s to say it isn’t rewiring our brains for the long haul?
There’s also the domain detachment angle that frees people up to do more relational thinking. See the detailed discussion in my book Mind Amplifiers. But the idea is having another language gives you a (very real) other way of thinking about things.
Cue the Pitchman
But wait, there’s more to this linguistic workout than just dodging Alzheimer’s. The benefits spill over into general aging markers, like maintaining sharper focus and emotional regulation well into later years.
For instance, a meta-analysis in Psychological Science reviewed over 60 studies and concluded that bilingualism boosts metacognition—the ability to monitor and control one’s own thinking—which helps in everything from decision-making to stress management.
This could explain why Elaine and I, with our animal-sound lexicon, look and feel decades younger: it’s not just about words, but the emotional agility it fosters. No spiraling arguments means lower chronic stress, which is a known accelerator of cellular aging (think telomeres shortening faster). Best of all? You don’t carry the same emotional response (hence body chemistry responses) to simple animal sounds.
Words spoken have secondary, tertiary, and even beyond levels of “carry” and now we’re bumping over to the Ebbinghaus forgetfulness curve. That’s how long your body can be impacted by an emotionally rough patch.
While most research focuses on traditional languages, the principle holds—any form of linguistic complexity that challenges the brain might contribute to that youthful vibe, even if it’s unconventional. Barks and meows are less “hooked” by recall.
Now, on the flip side, when it comes to emotion-loaded language specifically—like our raw, attachment-free barks and meows—and its direct link to slowing aging, the data cupboard is pretty bare.
There are zero peer-reviewed studies (that I could find) exploring how using highly emotional, non-verbal or pseudo-verbal communication impacts biological aging markers, such as inflammation, hormone levels, or epigenetic changes. Sure, there’s plenty on how positive emotions and reduced conflict extend lifespan (hello, Blue Zones research), but nothing ties it explicitly to “emotion-loaded language” as a variable.
This gap might be because science tends to stick to measurable, traditional linguistics, overlooking quirky personal adaptations like ours. Until researchers catch up, we’re left with observational perks: less emotional baggage means less cortisol-fueled wear and tear, potentially keeping us spry. Who knows—maybe our method is the next big anti-aging hack waiting for its study.
Meanwhile, my Scooby Doo “rut-roh” has become masterful. And neither one of us ever goes to bed angry. If you try it, you’ll be shocked by how some human emotions can be packaged as animal sounds and drop a lot of their temporal carry-value along the way.
The science-based summary? Use if animal noises/personas very likely contributes to:
- Long-term conflict minimization
- Low cortisol levels in the household
- No unresolved emotional loops overnight – you may sleep better.
Rarff!
Write when you get Friskies,
George@Ure.net
” Guthrie case ”
We are being force fed – but if you ask around most people still don’t know. Back during the Lindbergh days all correspondence was printed publicly. Not to forget the public at large was broke bored so everyone knew. They loved reading about John Dillinger back then too. And Al Capone. Bonnie & Clyde.
I think ‘Nanc was an inside job.
interesting . good thought . stimulating
An interesting ditty –
Metal-based compounds may be the future of antibiotics
Metallic medicine
“Robotic chemistry can be used to produce and test metal-based antibiotics, according to a study published in the journal Nature Communications. Most modern antibiotics are organic or carbon-based and tend to interact with bacteria in predictable ways. However, metal-containing compounds have a unique geometry that “allows them to interact with bacteria in completely different ways, potentially overcoming the resistance mechanisms that defeat current drugs,” said a release about the study.”
https://theweek.com/health/metal-based-antibiotics-robotic-chemistry-resistance?mc_cid=9e7ea9a28b&mc_eid=5c3c7d7f2e
Silver
Gold
https://www.rxlist.com/silvadene-drug.htm.
Shingles vaccine shown to prevent and slow existing dementia:
https://med.stanford.edu/news/all-news/2025/03/shingles-vaccination-dementia.html
Iggy and The Stooges – “I Wanna Be Your Dog”
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=m9xIm7Owyso&list=RDm9xIm7Owyso&start_radio=1&pp=ygUhSWdneSBQb3AgaSB3YW5uYSBiZSB5b3VyIGRvZyBsaXZloAcB
Who says that Bitcoin will never again pay off big?
It did for me last night at Yonkers,paying $65 for my deuce.
Brainless leading the Braindead .
They keep making up excuses for themselves, having royally “screwed the pooch” so full of FEAR and Greed. You see it is their greed that keeps such a tight grip on their $/Wallets.
Every single negative nellie on here regards crypto has same OS.
They have to call local Fire Dept to schedule the Jaws of Life, prior to Every single Purchase they make in their lives. This built in bias prevents quick thinking, and there fore anything Smart &Fast is out of their purview.
I call this behavior “Turtling” .
* Took my ole Scotty Dog – Paisely, less than an afternoon to chew through the side of a Eastern BoxTurtles’ Shell. The Russels are even quicker, but I dont let them harass the Turtles we stumble across in the local county park. And we dont have captive “Pet” Box Turtles anymore, since the kids done grown up.
Conspiracy ?
NO, try FACTS.
https://youtu.be/yKNxeF4KMsY?
conspiracy = Yellow
Sick bastards..
Okay,
This one is very hard to process, this IS the article regards latest justus dept epSTAIN drop. Notice all the references to MK Ultra Training? – right outta the Text book. hmmmmmmm
*(Classrooms for these upside down evil practices/project were at China Lake. All connected underground maglev trains..colorado springs, Seattle..)-tbs. Trauma induced training to break the minds of young children, so they could be manipulated..
All the code words, all the usual subjects we have heard whispers about and seen grainy Pictures of. The attached article from WiseWolfMedia should be mandatory reading for any TRUE PATRIOT.
Says here – If you aint a Patriot, you cannot and will not make thru 2 paragraphs. Patriots ? OBD and company – highly RECOMMEND this article.
Open Ure Eyes Peeps – and take a look at molech/baal – “The Adversary” and his archons. Or as the ancient “Giants” (Good Guys like Dagda of Ireland fame) of old called him, The Seyhtanri.
Earlier in Time, when the 2 great rivers were CARVED out of the ground/bedrock (Tigress&Euphrates) he was called The Great Satam (Overseer of Fields of Eden). To the Greeks he was Zeus, To the ancient Egyptians – Set or Setes.
That dark evil POS is who/what they ( None Goys) worship. The Abar “priests” who evacuated Desir/Mars prior to Ben-Ben/eye of sound trashing the red Planet, used to worship “Item-Ra”, their creator in basments/catacombs of Mars. Vicious & Mad science officer behind the whole mess that brought the “fallen angels” here. Item-Ra was Enki/Nuddimud/Ptah/Osiris creator, ENKI & Naamu/Noriea in turn created Humanity, several versions.
How many times does the term GOY show up in the recently dropped files ? Over 900 times, read the article “SLAVES” and question WHO URE MASTER/S are.
– https://open.substack.com/pub/wisewolfmedia/p/epstein-baal-child-sacrifice?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web
Divine Born Humanity was, Time has come to rekindle the Fire, our Divine origin is why he whose name shall not be mentioned, enlil, HATES ALL Of HUMANITY.
Caution advised – after reading this you might be inclined to try something stronger than booze, dont bother It cannot be UNSEEN once Seen. No matter how much you scrub Ure tongue till it bleeds.
re: “Barking Mad; Valentines”
feat: ChatGPT
‘I howl at the moon but only for you. I’m barking mad, and it’s all quite true. Not sick, not wild, just hopelessly so – What am I, when February’s glow?’
The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin 1954 – 1959 Opening and Closing Theme
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Z_nclUG-0SQ&pp=ygUZQWR2ZW50dXJlcyBvZiByaW4gdGluIHRpbg%3D%3D
GU : “… three of the shop lights were killed by the super-cold winter with sub-10-degree temps …”
So begins the saga of the wild winter circa 2026 to be remembered by? Average here. Exciting since the sun is blazing on the ice cake and … it’s above freezing! Woot. Woo.
There are stupid cheap LED sets now George. I have installed (8) in the barn so far, to area illuminate in zones. There are also (2) banks of LED floods but they have too much altitude to do much good.
I have a signature mount for over the radial arm station with a final 4′ set and a 150W space ship set for my main toolset cluster. Or, we could wear forehead lights. One or the other (not both).
OpEd : for all the nutters who think the US Treasury / Treasury market is going down, Witness exquisite yield curve control by Sec. Bessent at Treaausry. I’m a (71)YO increasingly fond of a gay banker.
Not that there’s anything wrong with that?
Taste ‘o spring ~ enjoy.
NorthEgor
Storm Fern finally broke here w/outside temps rising above freezing for the first time since the storm was declared. 42F right now.
hey G , you are talking far too serious about this number thing . your knowledge you are looking at 3 digits brother . yep just a number.
this should be seen as an absolute tragedy
weed makes you retarded, and worst of all, it gives you the illusion of being fine
it causes an average 8 IQ points drop in habitual smokers, shrinks the hippocampus (your memory center), reduces sperm count, motility, and morphology, and reduces testosterone production
and it takes 1-3 months of complete abstinence just to recover basic attention and memory. most people cant even stop for a week
for heavy users who started before 18 and smoked for a decade or more, some cognitive effects are permanent.
crazy that’s even legal
https://x.com/IterIntellectus/status/2021132847843557835
The food service industry has to get people from somewhere. And no, the people who cook and serve you food are not drug tested. And that is why I pay cash at eateries.
90 years ago!
Reefer Madness (1936) Original Trailer [HD]
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=R_vo0UEteKU&pp=ygUZUmVlZmVyIG1hZG5lc3MgdHJhaWxlciAxOQ%3D%3D
Effects of marijuana are negligible compared to alcohol:
https://www.mpp.org/special/marijuana-is-safer/
alcohol makes one stupid right away, almost lost my son to alcohol,,, almost sent me away also
a little cannabis after a day is done, is an ‘OK’ thing,,, but don’t be a retard and smoke all day long, like some do, and like some drunks, drink all day every day.
my opinion is,,, your link is just an opinion
as I have lost a nephew to vodka,, it is my experience that alcohol has caused way more human damage than cannabis
Seems Whats Amatta U has gotten themselves a new provost.
Has that pending GRINORMOUS hole(new Data Ctr) in Indiana sucked all the common sense outta Youse recently?
This is exactly what happens to Peeps experiencing cognitive decline with creeping dementia, like Rome in her decline.
And U with Musicians in Ure Family ???
Oh well praying for the Peace makers, positive THOUGHTS for the “propagandists” ???
“Yo, no have.”
Aging and Dementia:
“Brain train game may help protect against dementia for up to 20 years”
NBC News:
https://www.nbcnews.com/health/aging/brain-training-game-protect-dementia-research-decades-alzheimers-rcna257790?utm_source=firefox-newtab-en-us
Link to the game:
https://b-h-q-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/release/v3/app/ufov-en-us.html?tut=y&dlg=v4&npm=y&grid=0&x=1&y=0&ctx=eyJjdHgiOiJzdGFuZGFsb25lIiwicHRoIjp7ImV4IjoiYXVkX3N3ZWVwcyIsImdyaWQiOjAsIngiOjAsInkiOjB9LCJ0MCI6MCwiY29tcGwiOnsiZiI6InY0X2Fub24iLCJhIjpbXX0sInJlcHMiOjAsInJlZiI6W119
Here’s a classic –
“Venezuela is shipping its first crude oil cargo to Israel in years, marking a reopening of oil exports after the ousting of President Nicolas Maduro. The cargo is destined for Bazan Group, Israel’s leading crude processor.”
oust
drive out or expel (someone) from a position or place.
Vs say kidnapping.
This is:
U.S. Secretary of War, Pete Hegseth.
@SecWar
“The CIA denies what the rest of us figured out in ten minutes: that when a COVID virus originates from a town where there’s a top-level COVID lab, you might want to look there first.”
WHISTLEBLOWER CONFIRMS BEYOND A SHADOW OF A DOUBT:
The CIA Director Gina Haspel, bribed its own analysts to change their story about the origins of Xi Jinping-19 — while Anthony Fauci was running in and out of CIA headquarters without signing in or out.
https://x.com/Real_RobN/status/2021281041009476024
Steve Milloy
@JunkScience
Californicated: Super Bowl-winning Seattle Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold won $188,000 in prize money for the game. His tax bill from Democrat-run California will be $202,000.
https://x.com/JunkScience/status/2021213872409985097
Liz Churchill
@liz_churchill10
ARREST these Motherfuckers NOW. WE HAVE SEEN ENOUGH.
“Cool…was thinking about the question you asked Bill Gates…how do we get rid of all of the poor people…”
https://x.com/liz_churchill10/status/2021264732343140545
also…
Forestcui07
@forestcui07
Dr. Naomi Wolf:
Pfizer is controlled by the CCP! BioNTech transfers 100% of its vaccine technology to the CCP! Pfizer subsidiary biontech and CCP Fosun Pharma jointly produce Covid-19 vaccine! People can be easily killed or injured by changing the temperature of vaccine storage!
CDC triples the dose of the Covid-19 vaccine and adds it to the list of routine vaccinations injections for children!
https://x.com/forestcui07/status/2021291051387060385
OpenClaw for TradingView just dropped.
AI agents analyzing charts and executing trades in real-time.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CEJ_R5226xE
This is about a week old.
I found it interesting that within hours of the drop, the first wave of hackbots, hijacks, and a shit-ton of malicious plug-ins also dropped…
Magic Jack …
Just got a renewal notice from Magic Jack, used them for many years with NO problems, and thought I would bring to everyone’s attention that you can have TWO separate Magic Jack locations on the same phone number. That is something they do not advertise or put in their literature. (can also do old style conference calling which they also do not advertise)
Place up north, place in Florida? .. rings both places at the same time on the same phone number all at the cheap Magic Jack pricing (you do have to pay for BOTH lines separately – about $35/yr/line, but the separate lines work together).
You do also get regular 911 service with Magic Jack but if there is a local government add on charge you do have to pay that separately.
Also many don’t need it anymore but a simple Magic Jack line will do a regular FAX, both incoming and outgoing, without having to pay anything extra.
Magic Jack’s LD is free to anywhere in the US and I believe also Canada and the Virgin Islands /Puerto Rico.
Sound Quality is much better than cell phones though not as good as the old twisted pair AT&T hard wired phone lines, it does however use a standard RJ11 phone jack so you can use your old phones with it.
Hooking up the device directly to your Internet Router Box means it is up and running all the time versus only when your computer is on (though you do have the option to run it through a standard thumb drive port on your computer). At home I have my router and the Magic Jack device powered through a standard uninterruptable computer battery backup box so for shorter power outages – 24 hours or so – my internet and the Magic Jack both keep working.
If you need EXCELLENT quality phone calls or business level features Magic Jack does have an entirely separate division run out of entirely different location, “Magic Jack Business”, for which one utilizes top of the line IP phones. The pricing is BETTER than for any other reputable IP phone system supplier that I could find out there. I switched our office phones to Magic Jack Business shortly after they started operating and couldn’t be happier, cut our office IP phone service bill by more than 2/3 (had used both 8×8 and Nextiva over many years …. both are excellent providers btw). The voice quality of Magic Jack Business via IP phones is ABOVE that of the old AT&T paired wire devices!! Amazing voice quality – broadcast standard quality I would say.
I was an early subscriber to Magic Jack Business and when we switched I found a couple of features that I did not like how they worked plus a couple features I thought they needed (after utilizing IP phone systems for many years) so I sent them an email. Their technical people called me back on the phone the next day and they REWROTE THEIR CODE to add the features I thought they needed to add with me being the outside Beta Tester (going beyond what 8×8, Nextiva, and AT&T had) plus also changed the features that I didn’t like how they worked to something more consumer friendly. I was amazed to say the least!!
Cheap hard wired phone service (but through your internet connection) that means you can still have a virtually hard wired phone at home with real 911 service for only about $35/yr.
OH … paid for my son to get a Magic Jack line and also got him old style wireless phones (hardwired Panasonic main unit with 2 wireless handsets – I think the Panasonics are the best out there) to use and for the kids it works GREAT! (all are under 12) The kids quickly learned how to call 911, don’t have to have individual cell phones since they can use, and do use, the House Phones to call their friends, and the “House Phones” actually rings like house phones of old when you call it. PERFECT for when you have kids in your house and are leary of giving them their own cell phones.
The best feature of Magic Jack is their call screening feature. It is very effective in stopping robo calls. I wish the cell phone was available with that feature without costly add-on services.
Magic Jack is a VOIP service, and is the cheapest I have found. I have paid much more for VOIP services that were not any better, and didn’t have the call screening feature.
Set up of the hardware is a bit confused, but once you get it up and running, you can plug it in to your router or gateway directly, and use it like any other VOIP line.
I too use the wireless phones with the Magic Jack.
I am a satisfied user
Stephen2 : a good reminder. I have our town hard line # ported to here at the lake through VOIP served by Coop fiber. But, it’s not cheap. Wonder if you can port an existing number onto their platform. Will check. Thx, Egor
Hey Lake E,
What happened to using Semafore Signals?
Ure Alpha,Bravo, Charlie..Yankee, Zulu hand signals and naughty Flags ? What about ole reliable Plains Indian Smoke Signal Systems ?
You ole farts dont need no new fangled tech ,no need to be voiping around high tech comms. No Luddaticians should stay in their lanes, and stick to the ole beverage can system.. all it costs you 2 Metal Cans and some string or wire..easypeasy. Or try Loobs’ system, just stick Ure Head out the Car window and Yell.
No monthly fees, no need upgrades, for planned obsolescence, no cell towers, no CANCER causing radiation inonizing those few remaining brain cells..danger danger.
Bev Can Celllular – Were Cheap and Easy.
To add … for LD service to foreign countries not covered in the “Free LD Service Area” you can put money into your account and that account is then charged for those extra foreign calls. The per minute charges are CHEAP CHEAP CHEAP
… though of course if you are talking to one person regularly (say your mom/dad or kids who are overseas) why not just get them their own Magic Jack US line with a phone to put in their home/apt?
Agree about the robo calling blocking … only about one calls a WEEK sneaks through on my home line, NONE on the business lines!! Also wish my cell was as good … I must have hundreds of numbers now blocked and still get 1 to 4 robo calls a DAY on my cell.
fwiw they do put a daily call limit on the personal Magic Jack line so as to try to keep it from being used by businesses, I think it is 50 calls a day(?), but there is no limit on my business lines with MJ Business.
OH … and they do port numbers. When I switch my home service to them years ago I ported my long time home phone number since that is what all my friends and family had put in their Rolodexes – remember those? LOL – over the previous 25+- years
Just a thought.
Im sure youve been there in your mind.
You pump out a lot of info daily. Can you cut your posts in half ( for example ) then have a second day ready to go ?
Cut one day off out of each week ? Say Saturday.
Also , I request something along the lines of a flash drive with all of your posts on it. All of it. Apologies if that is possible already.
Howsabout giving the password to one of the posters ? Letting them choose the topic and responding , if need be , to any posts.
Time to slow it down a little bit there partner…
A person who speaks 2 languages… bilingual
3 or more languages — multilingual
A person who speaks 1 language… American!
well, there is always the otherside of the coin, sometimes they don’t speak english, while driving semis in USA
https://x.com/WallStreetApes/status/2021448279515660698?s=20
I guess then that all people who live “in the Hood”, or southern Louisiana, are bilingual!!
(watch “Airplane” if you don’t understand ;-0 )
Yo Stephen2,
You wouldnt be one of those Jive Turkeys, now would you?
asking for a friend.. Gobble, gobble, nerk-nerk.
(“Dumb and dumber plays San Francrisco: Live updates: SFUSD teachers strike, bargaining back on, schools closed Tuesday. SFUSD teacher jobs posted for 2026–2027 show salary ranges around $69,525 – $131,654 per year depending on placement and certification. But they have to make that much to afford living in Gruesome’s worker’s paradise where freedom is a rallying cry while accounting is a pseudo-science.”)
Hmm…consider the two thousand a month rent on A bunk bed..A city doesn’t get to call itself compassionate when the math of basic survival forces even solidly middle?class workers onto assistance programs.
When food?stamp eligibility climbs toward $170,000 a year, that isn’t proof of generosity — it’s proof that the cost of staying alive has broken loose from reality leaving teachers in the poverty level income status. facing drama from other people under a great deal more stress. If a teacher needs six figures just to tread water, the system is already upside?down. And once professionals are struggling, the picture for the people who hold the city together — the McDonald’s workers, janitors, home?health aides, bus drivers, grocery clerks — becomes almost impossible. They’re expected to serve a city they can’t afford to live in, commute hours from distant counties, or squeeze into bunk beds that rent for more than a mortgage in most of the country. A place that depends on low?wage labor but prices those workers out of a front door isn’t thriving; it’s cannibalizing the very people who keep it running.
If a teacher needs $130k to survive, what happens to the McDonald’s worker? The janitor? The grocery clerk?
They don’t disappear. They still exist. They still have to live somewhere. But the system forces them into one of a few paths: leaving them homeless beggars on the street..using the sidewalks and retail isles as their restrooms..
https://youtu.be/s-zTXIhDIQg?si=eGgn1L9woMUtkEzj
now seriously..how many of those are the teachers …
https://youtu.be/Gq4uXAs7ELg?si=idCF_6p-cRFddrCS
yet…Against that backdrop, California’s decision to purchase or build housing for newly arrived migrants adds another layer of strain. Public funds are finite, and directing large amounts toward new housing programs while long?time workers can’t secure stable homes creates a sense of imbalance. Taxpayers who are already stretched by high costs see additional obligations placed on them, while their own housing challenges remain unresolved. That gap between who receives support and who continues to struggle deepens frustration and contributes to the broader discouragement among workers who feel the system isn’t designed with their survival in mind.
Silly me but…since basic survival in San Francisco already sits around $200,000 a year at food stamp level, the entire income ladder has to shift upward. What used to be solidly upper middle?class in most of the country becomes the bare minimum just to stay afloat. In that kind of environment, the categories people use to describe income stop matching reality.
A survival income around $200,000 means someone can hardly cover rent, food, transportation, taxes, and basic healthcare, but not much more and that’s putting them in my lifestyle level category.
A moderate income around $300,000 simply buys basic stability — the ability to handle small emergencies, pay for childcare but still need government childcare assistance, and maybe take the wife to a movie once in A while. And what would be considered upper-class almost anywhere else, Then around $400,000, becomes the level where a household can finally live a normal middle?class life: owning a modest home, raising kids without constant financial strain, and planning for the future.
Those three tiers — $200k to survive, $300k for moderate stability, $400k for a middle?class lifestyle — aren’t exaggerations. They’re the logical outcome of a city where a bunk bed can cost $2,000 a month and food?stamp eligibility approaches six?figure incomes. When the cost of living pushes the entire income structure upward like that, the people earning $40k, $60k, or $80k — the workers who keep the city running — are pushed completely out of the local economy.I totally see why the teachers are seeking more income in San-francisco..if your at the level where your basic survival requires you to feel humiliated because you need federal assistance programs where your constantly reminded that your a leach on society..yet leave you with substantial educational loans that you thought would allow you a tier up in society..only to discover your sitting on the bottom.
Its all the same pattern that pushes San Francisco’s “survival income” toward $200,000 which isn’t new. Versions of this very same pattern showed up in Weimar Germany, Zimbabwe, Argentina, and Greece — different countries, different eras, but the same underlying economic mechanics: when the cost of basic living rises faster than wages, the meaning of income levels gets distorted until ordinary workers are pushed out of the economy.
Sadly San Francisco is the canary in the coal mine because it reached that imbalance earlier than most places in the USA. The pressures that make a bunk bed cost $2,000 a month and push food?assistance eligibility toward six?figure incomes are the same pressures that strained those other economies. When the cost of living out runs the pay of the people who keep a society functioning, the system starts to fracture from the bottom up.
Discontent grows fastest when two worlds exist side by side but only one of them feels the pressure oh hey the tale of two city’s….
since its a slow read here’s the audio book..
https://youtu.be/_MNyBPmmans?si=58q1sG97bWcnCyYt
That’s the danger point every strained society has hit before things turned darker. When the people closest to the ground feel the squeeze first, their warnings sound like complaining. When the people in the gated neighborhoods finally feel it, it feels sudden, shocking, and unfair — even though the signs were there for years and they ask when did this happen..I was shocked when I stayed two weeks in one went of those neighborhoods.. the real life drama I live day to day simply..doesn’t exist..trust me I tried to figure out how I could simply become the visiting relative that wouldnt leave..lol…or find a way to squeeze myself into that environment.. of course its just my opinion…lol lol and who am i..the crazy old fool of the wastelands
Yet the pattern is an old one taught in every school from age 14-30 that In every stressed civilization, the early symptoms will first show up among the workers who live closest to the real economy: the rising costs, shrinking wages, impossible housing, and the sense that survival takes more effort every year.
But the people insulated by comfort don’t see it. Their world still works. Their stores are stocked, their neighborhoods are quiet, their routines are unchanged. The struggle is something that happens “out there,” to someone else. Then the discontent…
The real Danger is When the discontent grows fast and when people feel like the system us only working for those at the very top, and when the everyday workers see their own costs rising, their wages falling behind, and public decisions that seem to benefit only the wealthiest or the most politically visible groups, the frustration doesn’t stay quiet forever. It builds layer by layer until it becomes the kind of pressure that past civilizations failed to recognize until it was too late.
In Russia before the revolution, in France before 1789, and in Rome during its decline, the same divide appeared: the people doing the daily work felt the strain first, while the insulated classes lived as if nothing was wrong. Inside the estates, palaces, or gated districts, life looked normal. Outside them, the cost of living rose, wages stagnated, and the sense of being ignored grew stronger. The people at the top often didn’t see the warning signs because none of the hardship touched their world. By the time it finally reached them, the damage was already deep and then.. the let them eat cake if they don’t like it..yet in each case..IF.. those leading the countries had attempted to meet the basic needs of the working class.. none of what happened there would have..in the end..a basic worker only wants to provide the food see the kids get medical assistance instead of being turned away or bankrupted..
instead well we all know how past civilizations fared..
https://youtu.be/c2G18nIVpNE?si=1GW0tuJJhY5QqPNW
preview of movie on prime.. good movie
https://www.amazon.com/s?k=civil+war+prime+video&crid=3HC956SHWY4L1&sprefix=Civil+war+prim%2Caps%2C468&ref=nb_sb_ss_p13n-expert-pd-ops-ranker_1_14
And yet – just recently when US Govmint subsidies were CUTOFF, DORITO’s prices mysteriously got 15 % Cheaper ? -ZH
Those elites you always exonerate for being Ignorant to plight of the Poor – is pure BULLSCEISSE.
Those “people” at the top of society, they Never gave a flying FUCK about any of the poor peeps. They have always looked down on them as less educated, stupid beasts.
Its is generational in their thinking, customs.
Dont kid Ureself, not a single one of them has ever mentioned much less thought of the Less Fortunate, while Blessing a Family Holiday Dinner Meal. If anything they are thankful for moar Sheep to Fleece in coming year, thankful for MOAR pounds of Flesh with which to extract from the “Goys’ backsides.
I dont have any more backside left, the evil ravenous fkrs have taken it all – so all I am left with is my will to Fight – FOR LIFE .
All those economic GDP numbers and what notz – above example shows how f-ing FRAUDULENT the whole Govmint Statistic Shebangabangs Are. Its all made up Bullscheisse, including the Fraud(footballcoach) in the Mask for last 4 YEARS. Its all over epSTAIN files – all over.
People BELEIVE anything anymore, ZERO Discernment – ZERO
“saving israHELL for last” – BWAhahahahah – Saving is key word hear..duh-ooh!
George, found you that perfect project:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/257355121795
Even before clicking – I knew what you were going to point to, Ray. SX-88 partly doggy but with elbow grease…yeah…um…too many other projects but hell yeah – thank you.
Hey, I’ve had my 88 (and my 115) for years, and you’re better with a silly scope than me. Wouldn’t want you to miss out on a potentially needful item. That one is rough but it’s cheap, and looks original…