Hey there, Big Spender. This is your day! (Or, is it?)
Since this is a half-day in the markets and since nothing much in government is moving, why not spend some time on spending? Besides, we’re all sick-to-death of political BS. So how about we pencil-out a rational approach to this Black Friday thing? Seems like a worthwhile effort to us….
Why People Shop
They want stuff? Well, sure…they want or need things, but let’s go deeper. Might we suggest the very first thing you do is consider your needs and motives first? Then, if there’s any dough leftover, without having a credit card balance going into the New Year, then a want or three.
Needs are pretty simple: I focused on these in my book The Millennial’s Missing Manual. Since you’re far too busy (statistically) making Zuke Markerberg rich by giving his minions free content to monetize (without sharing with you) from Farcebook, looking at life in a Spock-like logical way may seem foreign.
“Aye, Captain.“
To school, then: Your physical needs are Food, Shelter, Communications, Transportation, Energy, Environment, and Finance.
On the psychological side, toss in a few unbreakable relationships where unconditional love is shared along with some joint destinations in Life, and really, what more could there possibly be?
One answer is Learning & Motivation. In an information-dense world, other than seeking food and love, having better information and knowledge than others, almost ensures a profitable life.
You also need motivation. Which is why David Goggins’ book “Can’t Hurt Me: Master Your Mind and Defy the Odds” is our motivational book of the year. Click here for more Amazon Black Friday deals.
Generally Speaking
You need to be a great generalizer. Yeah…a what?
A generalizer can read the foregoing section and distill it down into recipe form. Recipes are thinking framemworks to hang facts on. A great generalizer could sum up today’s rap as Buying with Purpose. Which means:
- Physical Systems: Food, Shelter, Communications, Transportation, Energy, Environment, and Finance.
- Your Investors/Interpersonal Supports: Are you reciprocating and expressing to those who give you unconditional love?
- Knowledge Building: Are you buying “brain power?”
“That’s Shopping Advice?”
Hell yes, it is.
Look, you’ve only got so much money and so much time. While Google and the Zon plus Wally-World have been conditioning you for weeks with Black Friday programming, it doesn’t mean YOU have to play the game.
You can take the time to be strategic about this. Basic Peter Drucker “Management by Objective” here. Are you just “… buuuying a staaiirrway to heaven….“? Or, as you squeezing every nickel till it screams?
Do you ask before every click “Is this PAM?” (Pissing-Away-Money…)
Divide Spending into Three Piles
Put dollar values on how much to buy to support food, shelter, and yada yada…needs.
Then, how much you want to invest in the people who are invested in you? You invest in people; they invest in you. Are you an emotional deadbeat or do you issue dividends?
Last, but not least, what’s your Brain Budget for the next year?
Make up three discrete lists. Needs, Investments in People, and Buying Brains. Shop one list at a time. Focus. No distractions.
The hard part is working on one list as a time. It’s OK…you can do this.
Look at the Calendar
Almost NOTHING on sale today will be more expensive in January.
A couple of years back (and almost uselessly, coming after the annual Consumer Shakedown *(Christmas), CNBC offered a dandy article “The Best Time of the Year to Buy Everything.”
Want to buy that new gaming ‘puter? Wait until after the Back to School rush in September, for example. Besides, if the trade mess gets sorted out, new tech and lower prices may come. If not, money in the bank is the best video game of all.
Check-Run or Gift?
If you have a little money and are over 60, the cold reality is your kids are probably already dreaming about your “check-out time” because they expect a little “cashing-in.” It’s a hard thing to admit, but more true than we’d like. That’s their mee-mee-mee bullshit coming home to roost. It’s ALL about them and ‘fessing to Farcebook. Freaking idjits, seriously.
That side, though, can a 70+ year old adult with a ton of Life Experience really select a proper and useful “gift” for anyone under 40? Probably not.
The quickest way to deal with The Annual Shakedown is to either send a small check ($200/child, $50/grandchild, or whatever works) and call it good.
Above All: Money and gift cards have an amazing ability to “fit all sizes” and in 70+ years, I have never heard of a single instance of cash being “returned.”
Cynical, cold-hearted, and pissy? (Me???) Oh, uh…sure! But your life is about you and buying off kids (so the lil schitz call more often than the week before birthdays) ain’t contributing to your next two week Southern Caribbean Cruise, right?
They’ll come around when they get on the pension dole and no one calls them. If there’s a world left, by then, and a few dozen other qualifiers…
What Do YOU Need or Want?
My “gift for myself” will arrive on December 4th or 5th. It’s a collectible ham radio called an Icom 761. I got it because in +55 years in that hobby, that’s the one radio I enjoyed most. More so than a Collins S-Line.
Made an offer on eBay and picked it up for $303 plus shipping. It’s a grand radio and you don’t know this, but I wrote and produced the soundtrack for Icom America radio introduction film when that radio first came out. 1970-something. I had serial number 2 and worked with Icom’s marketing department doing voice-overs “back in the day.” Nostalgia, right?
Elaine says he doesn’t want anything. She has yet to open the air brushing kit I bought her earlier this year. More than anything, she wants great health to continue so we have all the gym equipment she can think of…We study health and longevity and stay active as all get-out.
I’ve asked about clothes, but honestly, modern clothing is mostly crap and artificial from the ground up.
Mee-Mee-Mee has killed fashion, too. Elaine has a marvelous mink and leather jacket she’d like to wear when it’s cold. But with “fashion out of style” and environmental wacko’s anxious to impose climate Naziism on anyone who thinks outside their prison, she’s afraid to wear it. Who wants to deal with rude 20-somethings? No gifts for them.
We also take care of our things. So, Elaine still has clothes from 20-years back that are classic (retro) and are irreplaceable. Cheap modern fabrics and crap that doesn’t hold up.
Noto that I don’t try: I go through the list of potential gifts, that hit the ad circuit last month. “No, my Lexus is fine,” she insists. (Our 2005 was built in Japan and is heavier than the newer models, and just turned over 100,000. The new ones are a bit noiser on backcountry roads and the ride isn’t as good – we try a new one every year or two, waiting for better.)
She can have anything she wants, though, and knows it.
TV Costs and Risks
After Christmas sales will be along. In March or April, refurbs will be hitting the market. And while Black Friday 43″ UHD TVs are going for around $229 at the Zon and Wally’s this morning, I picked one up (when needed) in October for $169. I was patient and approach spending like a patient fisherman.
Speaking of Televisions:
Listen up here: The Portland FBI office Tech Tuesday has come out with a warning about high tech TV’s being hacked. Especially those with built-in cameras. Their advice?
- Know exactly what features your TV has and how to control those features. Do a basic Internet search with your model number and the words “microphone,” “camera,” and “privacy.”
- Don’t depend on the default security settings. Change passwords if you can – and know how to turn off the microphones, cameras, and collection of personal information if possible. If you can’t turn them off, consider whether you are willing to take the risk of buying that model or using that service.
- If you can’t turn off a camera but want to, a simple piece of black tape over the camera eye is a back-to-basics option.
- Check the manufacturer’s ability to update your device with security patches. Can they do this? Have they done it in the past?
- Check the privacy policy for the TV manufacturer and the streaming services you use. Confirm what data they collect, how they store that data, and what they do with it.
“As always, if you have been victimized by a cyber fraud, be sure to report it to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center at www.IC3.gov or call your local FBI office.”
Security Gifts
Crime Stoppers Checkbook? Beyond the scope of this morning’s convo is electronic security. There still aren’t very many good, wireless, outdoor, high-rez, PTZ (pan, tilt, zoom) surveillance cameras.
Home security systems with motion-activation (and updates) are a good investment, in our view. You can get passable for less than the burglary insurance deductible.
But, again, these too will likely be on sale about the time the late-winter “demand letters” start arriving from the credit gangsters.
Man Stuff
Tools are a great “man gift” but more often than not, you can find either refurbs that work well, or hit the tool section of Craigslist as you can often find something there. Once your tool collection gets big enough, you can design and build your own specialized shop tools like cutting jigs, saw entensions, and such.
One thing acquired over the year that has been a great source of ideas and enjoyment has been old 1915 to mid 1960’s version of Popular Mechanics annual Shop Notes series. These are in print, make great “throne room reading” and will work when the internet fails.
She Stuff
Elaine’s “She Cave” (as my friend Gaye calls it) is the gym/art studio/guest room when we don’t have a house guest. Things “for her” included mostly computer-related items this year. Setting up Office 365 so she can work on her book in her cave, or over at her workstation in the house. Setting up the video projector to make sketching from photos (either web or self-taken) reduces time from art inspiration to canvas or paper.
We still haven’t gotten the 3D printer built and fired up, though it’s sitting there in the projects queue. Yeggi.com .STL files are slowly accumulating.
Good luck on the day and remember the famous words of Pappy Ure..
“You can only spend it once.”
And In Other News
Only a few headlines of interest, once we drop political BS from our holiday repertoire.
Amazon, UPS, FedEx cargo pilots seek more rest as busy holiday shipping season begins…but the reasons for this are pretty clear if you haven’t dozed-off, yet.
The lefty’s who are bought and paid for by the perpertual war and open borders crowd will no doubt scream upon learning Trump makes first visit to Afghanistan, reopening peace talks with Taliban. Trump may be many things, but this is a solid move in our view. Too many people – solid ring-knockers on down- are getting sick of the perpetual war model.
Russia as a tourism spot? Moscow Scoops Top City Prize in World Travel Awards. With lots of art and museums, we have kicked this one around. Relatively safe compared to other places. Numbeo figures show France is more dangerous than Russia if you look at 2019 mid-year crime index figures. (We credit France’s open border idiocy…)
Also, Russia is hooking into China; belt and road initiative (BRI), so here are 5 Facts About Russia’s First Highway Bridge to China.
Gastown to Claptown? Picked up off Promed this morning: ”
The rate of syphilis infection in British Columbia [Canada] is the highest it’s been in 30 years,..”
And as I told you in my 2012 book Broken Web: “The Global Internet Is Splintering Apart and No-One Is Patching It Up.” We’re usually right, but also usually early.
With Dow futures down 42, a lot of next week will likely hinge on retail hype and predictions.
NY Fed dumped $88+-billion in this morning via repos. Since only $65-billion-ish was maturing today, we might be ready for a rally into the close. We’ll be watching closely.
More tomorrow for Peoplenomics subscribers…(it’s a dandy year-long gift, BTW…)
Write when you get rich, or when the credit card burns heal.
george@ure.net
Cameras are easier to deal with on electronics than microphones, with color-coordinated duct tape being the remedy. In a partisan political surveillance state, the microphones may be a more serious hazard than the cameras. Many devices stay active even when powered down. Pulling the power on devices not in use is an inconvenient but effective option.
So is 20 minutes’ work with a pair of dikes and a soldering iron. A manual switch grants a person permanent, absolute discretion over when (or if) a potential privacy-breech can be functional. While I don’t know if LCDs can be used as viewers (cameras) like CRTs were, the thing to remember about all media electronics is:
EVERY permanent-magnet speaker is also a microphone,
and is much more sensitive than a purpose-built mic. The majority of clarity and crispness one would lose by utilizing a speaker as a receiving transducer, are software-compensatable. If’fn yer “smart-TV” has network connectivity, it is a listening device, even if has no microphone and is unplugged…
Finding limited-smart electronic components without microphones is getting harder.
Do you think a wireless android set-top box which stays unplugged 95% of the time, and feeds an hdmi monitor, can really be used for surveillance when it’s unplugged?
How about AC only computers with no microphone, no camera, and no speakers on the monitor,but with an external analog sound system?
Throw in a really good firewall server to filter all.
Phones are a bitch to secure, and are the real challenge. Soldering irons sound good, but aren’t going to be practical for most consumer electronics.
“Do you think a wireless android set-top box which stays unplugged 95% of the time, and feeds an hdmi monitor, can really be used for surveillance when it’s unplugged?”
Wireless? No, unless it has BIOS-level battery backup. Network-cabled, absolutely.
Just ponder a bit: If there is a connected and continuous path from a transducer to the Internet, there is a way to exploit that transducer. If there’s not, there’s not (unless you are so interesting that you’ve brought the CIA down on you), but a power switch makes no difference. Only a switch on the transducer itself will disable it.
In 30 years of playing with them, I’ve never examined a sound card to see if the outputs could be “backfed” back into the computer. My guess is “no” through an audio channel, but I have no idea whether (directional) HDMI can be hacked into a bi-directional communications “back-channel” protocol…
As for phones, there ain’t no security — not now, or in the future, or 50 years ago either. The only ways to communicate securely over cellphone are with “one and done” “burner phones” like the cartels and terrorists use, or by hacking them to access an OOB frequency and using them as “walkie-talkies.” Note that the above is extremely difficult and extremely illegal — to the tune of several lifetimes behind bars, even if the “talkie-phone” users aren’t engaging in any illegal activity not related to using their phones.” Now that Uncle has the ability to record and archive every syllable spoken or typed, he will NEVER give it up. Power sinks NEVER surrender power or information. They may deny such power exists, or sugar-coat their public spin, but in 7000 years of historical records and anecdotes, other than George Washington in 1789, there has never been a military or civilian leader or political entity anywhere, at any time, which has willingly surrendered either power or information.
…And anybody who thinks “If I’m not doing anything wrong, I have nothing to worry about” really, REALLY needs to read “3 Felonies a Day.”
“Are you just “… buuuying a staaiirrway to heaven….“? Or, as you squeezing every nickel till it screams?”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D9ioyEvdggk
No holliday spending here.. ( I am not a christmas person.. basically because I know what it is really based on)
not even my puzzles I love to give away.. LOL…I love the challenging puzzles.. like a chinese lacquer box.. put some money or a book in it..
I have been squeezing out eight books for someone that is in a place that she shouldn’t be.but then that is just something I put on the necessity list… and making sure they have enough to get the basics..
“The Portland FBI office Tech Tuesday has come out with a warning about high tech TV’s being hacked.”
HMM you think!!!! a few years ago china turned on all monitors and camera’s just to show they could do it.. all of them baby monitors phone camera’s.. the works.. they built it.. why not put a back door in for them…
“My “gift for myself””
this year my gift for myself.. is like every year.. I find someone that falls through the cracks and make sure they have a stress less xmas season…I already made my decision who..
https://donate.worldvision.org/gift-catalog/animals
I always give this way to but I do that more than at christmas.. one year I sent an compressed Earth block maker to some missionaries that were trying to build a clinic and school and needed tools..
https://dwellearth.com/auram-3000-block-press/
did you know its cheaper to send a tool like that to another country from another country than it is to have it shipped to the usa.. and usa firms don’t build tools like that..
I had one shipped to me.. my plan has been to build my shed storm shelter.. I want to use the formula that was found in egypt for stone blocks…. but so far the rain has been non stop I even have free labor.. college kids to help as a summer project.. dam if it hasn’t been one thing after another..
the other thing I hope to get started is…. the community stone soup cabinet.. need a little take a little have a little to much leave a little..even have the spot to put it.. my thoughts are.. people with the real needs.. are not greedy.. they take just what they need.. they also give back.. sort of like when they thought anyone on food stamps was using drugs… spent millions to find out it was only one or two in the bunch.. they totally forgot that it takes money for that LOL…
yet go to any country club and it is everywhere.. LOL..
“Lexus”.
I don’t want to jinx myself but I bought a new Camry 11/2012.
The car is pushing 190,000 miles and is fine with general maintenance. I plan on keeping the car until at least 11/2022.
The thing I noticed is replacement tires do not hold to the warranty. I’ve purchased the Michelins and Bridgestones. They’re supposed to last 80,000 miles but only go to about 60K. Nobody stands behind their tires.
The car does rattle because people smashed me. Once a plastic car is smashed it’s never right again. Over time I was rear-ended three times and someone smashed the front in a parking lot. I don’t care, no payments.
I let the wife have her way with the Zon since she has decided it is much more preferable to the idiocy of black Friday shopping but she still does her best to shop the deals. I still do my own for the kids.
Already got my best present ever though. My 9 year old grandson came to the house yesterday with a large tote full of Legos. He had the saddest look on his face when he told me that it was the Mellenium Falcom we had gotten him for Christmas last year. Apparently his baby borther had gotten ahold of it. He spent a lot of time putting that together and his mom said he was very upset. He asked me if I could help him put it back together. He said he thinks some parts are missing and he wanted to know if I could help him make them.
Can’t wait to get started.
73
Hi Jim.. I am so sorry to hear about the falcon… Little brothers and sisters will do that..
if you want a great father and son project.. where both of you can have some fun.. check this out..
http://www.vectorvault.com/2008/12/18/free-vector-download-papercraft-millennium-falcon/
Over seas In france.. they actually push paper crafts.. the same in china and russia.. NASA does it to and so does the navy.. build a ship or plane.. but in france they have manned flight..( yup you can get the stuff to make it remote control..) or man free flight.. nothing like making a model than seeing it fly.. this one is just to hang up in the room..
the memories of building it will last forever…
god bless hope your holiday was an awesome one..
HI Jim…I thought I would add the addresses to get the parts.. and just in case you haven’t ever made a paper model.. the construction video’s as well.. I hope you and your son have a great time..
the first time you get one and it looks great you will be caught in the paper model world.. I always liked to print them on card stock.. for the chasis.. I also liked to make them a size bigger..
I hope you and your son have a great time with this.. enjoy.. there are thousands of them out there for you to do..
http://www7a.biglobe.ne.jp/sf-papercraft/sf/falcon/falcon-1.pdf
http://www7a.biglobe.ne.jp/sf-papercraft/sf/falcon/falcon-2.pdf
http://www7a.biglobe.ne.jp/sf-papercraft/sf/falcon/falcon-3.pdf
http://www7a.biglobe.ne.jp/sf-papercraft/sf/falcon/falcon-4.pdf
http://www7a.biglobe.ne.jp/sf-papercraft/sf/falcon/falcon-5.pdf
http://www7a.biglobe.ne.jp/sf-papercraft/sf/falcon/falcon-6.pdf
http://www7a.biglobe.ne.jp/sf-papercraft/sf/falcon/stand.pdf
http://www7a.biglobe.ne.jp/sf-papercraft/sf/falcon/falcon-ins1.pdf
http://www7a.biglobe.ne.jp/sf-papercraft/sf/falcon/falcon-ins2.pdf
https://youtu.be/e4KsmSt3A0k
https://youtu.be/1XrpyofSP-Y
https://youtu.be/U7UpsvKaglc
https://youtu.be/OLZ-jwQJ2gI
https://youtu.be/GRk0JecY8ZU
https://youtu.be/rJO2b9t0Z2s
https://youtu.be/IDEuDHkwPFA
https://youtu.be/0-aLs1RdQww
https://youtu.be/b2rN9vQs7Jk
https://youtu.be/TWZTvz7JIWs
Did you watch last night’s Disney so-called “Christmas Special”?
I must have missed it, but I didn’t see anything that had to do with the importance and meaning of Christmas.
Granted, I couldn’t stomach it all that much, on a full stomach!, but switching between football and Disney I might have missed a 15 second acknowledgement of the occasion.
Disney only thinks its party time and the opportunity to buy, buy, and buy –and go to Disneyland!
A bunch of oligarch whores. :(
Dam Dell… I don’t want to burst your bubble on Father Christmas.. or the holliday..that is why no one lets me tell the grandkids about my beliefs on christmas( I am allowed to tell them I am a fat man in red pajama’s and I leave gifts for them) or why I don’t celebrate the holiday…
Disney is just after a buck but then that is the name of the game..
Nimrod as Father Christmas
After Nimrod’s death, his so-called mother-wife, Semiramis, propagated the evil doctrine of the survival of Nimrod as a spirit being. She claimed a full-grown evergreen tree sprang overnight from a dead tree stump, which symbolized the springing forth unto new life of the dead Nimrod. On each anniversary of his birth, she claimed, Nimrod would visit the evergreen tree and leave gifts upon it. December 25th, was the birthday of Nimrod. This is the real origin of the Christmas tree.”
the saturnalia free for all.. LOL if you didn’t have a woman.. you could get one during the holiday.. what was it seven days.. kissing under the mistle toe..
https://www.ancient-origins.net/history-ancient-traditions/saturnalia-december-festival-joy-and-merriment-ancient-rome-004963
LOL…
George
“the cold reality is your kids are probably already dreaming about your “check-out time” because they expect a little “cashing-in.”
I’m taking a long term view of “check-out-time” and what comes after my demise for my four grand children and their progeny. My oldest grand daughter will be married in 2020. With that said I have started a new project. I call it Project Generations.
As I have some rural property tucked away in an off the beaten path it makes a good choice to be built into a self sufficient machine to keep my decendents alive in troubled times. I have been working on this for some time but never had a coordinated plan.
That has now changed. The center piece of the plan is the production of electrical power in quantity using a combination of solar and other technologies to have power 24/7. Once reliable power is available off grid food can be grown in green houses. They need not be large structures but small hoop type coverings over each plant bed. Aquaponics is an established technology that lets you grow veggies and edible fish year round. Waste heat from power production will keep the fish warm in winter. The rural property has a depression that covers several acres. This can be worked to create a pond about three acres in size. This can be linked to an existing natural pond that is feed year round by a steam. While I intend to increase well pumping capacity greatly having a large source of water handy for emergencies and as a heat sink is a good idea. Geothermal well water at 55 degrees F will be used to provide an HVAC medium, (Heating Ventilation Air Conditioning).
The property will be turned into a self sufficient machine with enough redundancy to keep going if a problem arises.
Theirs nothing new here except my will to provide a life boat to my family after I’m gone! Most people have a “They will get along” attitude about their family. I have a “My genes will prosper” philosophy!
I’v already invested in the education required to pull this off. The hardware will come as I can afford it. I’m about halfway there.
Wish me luck!
Rocket, I admire your thinking.
To All,
And now for something totally different and way cool!
“Underwater telecom cables make superb seismic network”
https://phys.org/news/2019-11-underwater-telecom-cables-superb-seismic.html
Till it breaks
About Afghanistan, I have never heard a politician mention the reason that we are there, it is all about the production of Poppies. No other logical reason.
And this is why the intels hate trump – he wants them out and they want money with no congressional oversight
Map of that part of the world: https://www.bing.com/maps?q=afghanistan+map&src=IE-SearchBox&FORM=IESR3A
There are probably lots of reasons, all best left for the closed door meetings —
a. It’s one of the most mineral rich countries on the planet and maybe we don’t want to share it with other (very large) countries not working in our interests (rare earths?);
b. It puts Pakistan in a vice between the U.S. and India;
c. It completes the surrounding of Iran to keep it from “misbehaving”. If reading memory serves, the ‘stans up north are pro-West.
d. There is probably something about ensuring the gas and oil flows west and not east, but that is probably more for the ‘stans up north.
e. There is no better training center for the U.S. armed forces. In the ’80’s and ’90’s, we had an entire generation of warfighting military personnel without combat experience. At the outbreak of the first Gulf War, soldiers were begging assignment officers for deployment orders. I doubt that will ever occur again. You can learn a lot about a soldier just by looking at the dress uniform. Look at the sleeves — each one of those slanted stripes is 3 years of service and each one of those short straight stripes is 6 months deployed. Used to be rare to see those deployed stripes. Now, careers get cut short if you don’t have them.
Hi BJ.. thought you might like to scope this out.. I could bury you with reading material.. but from what I have read this story pretty much puts whats really behind things into perspective.. not to mention all the raw resources that are available.. in the end it always seems to be a follow the money and control journey..
And obviously those behind it dont really care who gets hurt to get what they want..
http://www.courtfool.info/en_Pipelines_to_9_11.htm
George,
-Hope your T day was super.
-Regarding buying, my pal would say — put actual hundred dollar bills on a table, and take them away as each item is bought, and then see if people will actually still buy all that junk.
-Regarding your ongoing propaganda war on Lefties (here, blaming them for perpetual wars), may I remind you that it was the Conservatives that irreparably broke the Middle East, and all for the low, low price of only $8 trillion onto the national credit card.
And deliberately lied and connived to do it — even to the point of outing our own spy because her husband wouldn’t play ball in the scheme.
-And now, apparently because your guy got caught in 8 felonies, literally, all of a sudden we all have to hate law enforcement?
-And now because your guy used to launder Putin’s money, conservatives like Tucker Carlson openly root for Russia to absorb its satellites like the Ukraine, and we no longer like the Conservatives’ domino theory?
Best, Mike
Go you one better, this being Black Friday (and we have a sale on)
We not only blame Clinton, but Busk I and II and Obama as well for abandoning America to the intel-corporate alliance.
Feel better now?
Truman regretted signing the 1947 National Security Act which created the CIA, which he felt was inappropriately unbounded on matters pertaining to National Security. So it goes back 70+ years.
George,
Thank you for some more insight…
“NY Fed dumped $88+-billion in this morning via repos. Since only $65-billion-ish was maturing today, we might be ready for a rally into the close. We’ll be watching closely.”
I never considered what happens when there was some change leftover. So, I guess you could use this as a strategy if you are into casino investing?
Since the Fed has been doing this since September, I’m amazed it’s not a bigger story.
It would be, but part of it is the US bailing out Europe.
Two things in play here, Stu, near as I can figure it.
1. When EU rates went negative, the US had to “fill the gap” with liquidity or it would all be going down in flames globally right now.
2. Europe and their banks are way underwater because of their accounting for reserves. Going from memory, US needs to havbe 10% reserves, end of day basis. In Europe, it’s something like 1% and that can be hit any time during the day (say 11 AM German time). Which means, effectively, the EU banks can “kite” to hit reserves.
It’s all quite crooked, but that’s today’s world, for yah…
Needs are finite, Wants are unlimited! Reason ADS exploit “Wants!” How many beers do I need, vs, how many cars do I want? (or Imelda Marcos with shoes)
a little bit of bad can do a lot of good,,,the old empire and the domain force are in combat and the domain force is winning
,https://youtu.be/TM6WKeZ43s4
sooooo dont drink to much but just enough ,,,,,lol
and make sure you do some breathing or the breathers will have to carry away the permanent non breathers ,lol simplicity at its best ,whoooo,whoooo,whooo , i think iam getting the hang of it, at the age of 68 , hay i might make it to 69 , youall have a good day and may all beings be lovingly fulfilled, financially fulfilled,and readily fulfilled,so be it , so now doing some experiment with the solar panels, its cloudy outside all day and just connecting 1 -150 watt solar panel to the BLUESKYBLUE solar controller (this controller has issues with burning batteries up ,but i never had a problem in over 2 years until i started making mistakes and sparks flying,,,,,, dont drink too much while,,,lol and 1 regular car battery and 1-1500/3000 inverter .,and have a 200 watt personal little tiny heater and watching the controller specs and the inverter specs,,,,,,—-so my view is you gotta have at least 10 times more solar when its cloudy, —-survival is learning how to breathe and i bet you nobody ever taught you that ,just like hoe to drink beer , G,U,s dad taught him that trick, if not where would urbansurvival.com be today,so we are all here to learn and lets try and let our intuition work by starting an urbansurvival 24 hr forecast from viewers ,,, ok i.ll start it out the markets are going up tomorrow and lets have a discord site for members to use for results and analogies… ok iam tired ,time to sip more of that nectar—-beer
[ part redacted because it linked to a copyright infringing source ripping off authors – g]
near perfect sound on the cheap products of the year:
https://www.amazon.com/SMSL-SA-98E-TDA7498E-Digital-Amplifier/dp/B01N19ZHVV/ref=sr_1_7?keywords=smsl+amp&link_code=qs&qid=1575056567&sourceid=Mozilla-search&sr=8-7
https://www.parts-express.com/dayton-audio-dac01-usb-audio-dac-24-bit-96-khz-rca-output–230-510
now i can finally stop buying hifi equipment lol.
as for cars my 95 gs-r is at 377k. still a super reliable and fun fun fun analog driving experience. dont make em like that anymore.
https://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/a15142652/acura-integra-gs-r-archived-long-term-test-review/
https://www.glennbeck.com/glenn-beck/all-the-evidence-for-ukraine-the-scandal-explained?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=20191128GBDAILY&utm_term=Glenn Beck
Great article
Can a 90+ year old adult with a ton of Life Experience really select a proper and useful “gift” for anyone under 40? Yes, NOTHING, unless it’s a very needy person, indeed ;-). And aren’t we all sooo needy?
I went to the local Christmas market and observed the public passing by where I was sitting. A chair was out of place and impeded the normal flow of traffic. You’d think one person passing would move that chair into the place where it belonged? Thousands passed by inconveniently moving around the obstacle, before I finally got up and moved the chair to its proper place. So much about us human beings. May our good Lord bless ’em ALL!
They want stuff? Well, sure… they want or need things, but let’s go deeper. Might we suggest the very first thing you do is consider your needs and motives first?
When we were kids, spending was pigeonholed as necessities, conveniences, and luxuries. That was two generations ago. Nowadays, people consider most “conveniences” and “luxuries” as “necessities” and most necessities as “annoyances,” because we’ve become spoiled by our own advances in technology and efficiency. If you can figure out a way to explain to Millennials (and X-ers) that nothing powered by electricity or petroleum is an absolute “necessity,” please share the technique…
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Almost NOTHING on sale today will be more expensive in January.
…Which is why what little “Christmas shopping” I do occurs between January 15th and March 15th. “Universal gift certificates” (cash) works much better for most recipients.
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There still aren’t very many good, wireless, outdoor, high-rez, PTZ (pan, tilt, zoom) surveillance cameras.
Sure there are. They cost as much (each) as a new Lexus, though. As long as somebody can convince municipalities and militaries that they need these cams, they’re not likely to drop much in price, either…
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The lefty’s who are bought and paid for by the perpertual war and open borders crowd will no doubt scream upon learning Trump makes first visit to Afghanistan, reopening peace talks with Taliban.
There are two “hawk” factions — First are the “Congressional hawks” (There are a bunch of ’em — usedta mostly be Republicans like Sen. Graham, but are now more Democrat) who will always favor war over peace. Second are the Democrat strategists, who NEED for Trump to get us into a shooting war so they can get their (currently listlessly apathetic) antiwar contingent out in the streets with signs and megaphones, to stir up Democrat voters. Every “fight” Trump walks away from makes a few of the strategists’ heads explode, and I’m okay with that…
Hi, George,
Here’s wishing you and yours a very Happy Thanksgiving holiday and post holiday eating.
I recently read an article about the current melt-down of the Tewoo Group of China, the state owned Chinese firm that includes Bohai Steel, the Hsin Chong Group, and the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China. This is shocking stock markets across the globe, as anyone who thought investing in a company totally backed by the government in Beijing could ever fail but is actually failing. The question is, how will the finance committee in Beijing handle this situation it finds itself in; will they initiate a complete bailout, or will they entertain offers from other countries to buy into their businesses. I always thought it quite strange that a totalitarian communist government could operate a stock market and appear to entertain investment businesses. I think that this interesting situation could impact trade negotiations between the US and China, and it may also affect China’s deals with other countries that have robust economies. Did you add this ingredient into your financial recipe for a stock market failure? Thanks.
“the current melt-down of the Tewoo Group of China, the state owned Chinese firm”
I wonder…. is that a random fail??? or is it a constructed fail??? if you look at this as a business model… who benefits.. what if they start a bargain basement sale to gain funds..Using worthless US treasury bonds printed only to buy our selves out of debt.. could it collapse our economy.. all of us are so closely tied together one moves the other moves in a wave fashion.. could this be a strategically constructed failure?
https://thesaker.is/new-world-order-in-meltdown-but-russia-stronger-than-ever/
https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/3030445/chinas-bond-defaults-are-about-take-turn-worse-us78-billion-debt
https://www.presstv.com/Detail/2019/11/26/612172/Russia:-White-Helmets,-militants-preparing-false-flag-chemical-attacks-in-Syria
The world’s 2nd largest economy, China, already having bank runs (llke the ’30’s)
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-11-01/bank-run-in-rural-china-tests-faith-in-thousands-of-lenders