Inflation and my Toilet Paper!

No matter how you look at it, inflation is a bugger. It constantly eats away at our budgets, making our daily lives an ongoing battle of diminishing resources versus rising costs. Think of it this way, as the Federal Government prints more cash in order to meets its ongoing obligations; it dilutes the value of the money currently in circulation.

Such activities by our governments have been going on since the first government was formed. It allowed for politicians to deflate the costs of what they promised by destroying the value of the future money, but what really gets to me is while we see rising taxes and lower values of our precious dollars, we also see shrinking package sizes with higher costs. Take a look at the picture below. Nearly 9 months ago, we bought a 24-pack of toilet paper at a cost of $3.99, then another package about 6 months ago at $4.99 and finally the last package a week ago at $5.99. Do you see what I see?

Aggravating is it not? I am getting 15% less toilet paper at a price increase of 50%. In just the last 9 months, I am looking at a 65% inflation rate in my toilet paper. Roll this out to a one-year rate, and then the annual inflation rate of toilet paper is 86.5%. If this continues by the time next year is here and gone, I will be paying $ 13.88 for a 24 pack of toilet paper the same size as the width of a credit card. Credit cards don’t charge 33% interest just because they can, but it is what their money really costs. We can see that reflected in the cost of our toilet paper through higher costs and smaller roles.

If this is happening to toilet paper, it has to be happening to other things that we consume in our daily lives. That’s why toys break so easily, tires never last, and clothes fall apart after only a month of hard work.

Don’t you just love it?

Enjoy!

Frustrations with the New America.

I was listening the the Boortz show today and I heard a audio clip that really disturbed me. In the clip, a woman was complaining that she was just too stressed out with her job and that paying bills and working for a living was just too much to ask of her. She went on to say that she had taken a month off from work and found that without the demands from the people who pay her to work, she had a rather agreeable life that consisted of days doing the things she enjoyed. Furthermore, she indicated that society demanding that she pay back the money she borrowed for schooling, spent on food, housing and the basic needs of life in general was simply unjust. Land should be free, was it not so in the past? Food should be free, were we not able to gather it as we became hungry? And so it went on......

It's not the first time I had heard such garbage from the moochers of this nation, but it struck me that this woman now represents the majority of who we are as Americans today. We expect that if we are hungry food will be given to us at no cost. When we need shelter, it shall be provided, again at no cost and so on. How did this happen?

Do people not realize that if you get food for nothing, it was taken from someone else? Food does not just appear, it must be grown, gathered, transported, and stored! This does not come at no cost. Yes, I have also come across those who think that meat only comes in packages and so we have no need to kill animals or that canned carrots are created that way, so don't give them the type that touched the dirt as it is dirty! Despite that I still held out hope that we as a nation still had that urge to go it alone and create something new and better so that we could enjoy the wealth we created.

Now it seems that the only type of person that we now have (under 35 years old) are those who feel that they have been slighted in some way and they only reason they don't have a mansion, Rolls Royce and plenty of cash is that some evil @#%$@ has kept them from their true potential by stealing from them through low wages and unreasonable demands such as showing up to work each and every day on time.

That brings up another rant of mine. What is the deal with a work ethic? It is one thing to show up in pants around your knees with on hand on your pants and the other on your cell phone, but at least you showed up. Too many people now won't even make the effort to be at work on time and if they do, you need to pay them extra. My wife works at a big box store and they are constantly loosing people who chronicly complain that management demands too much for too little pay. Yet these are the very same people who call in at least 3 times each month, hurt themselves twice a year and are just a royal pain in the b#$# to work with.

Some how America has lost touch with the idea that we must work for what we eat, sweat for our shelter and save for our future and no one is responsible for ourselves but ourselves. It may simply be a case of my being old and addled, but then again if it is not, what future do we have as a people?

Enjoy!

It's All Over, But The Crying!

A recent report gave the debt ratio of the top debtor nations in the world today. I have transcribed the list and added comments of how these nations are currently doing in today's world.

1) Japan -- 213% of GDP----its economy has been DOA since the 1990s.
2) Greece--157%----riots are now common as people realize that they aren't getting theirs
3) Italy--129%---was just bailed out by the Euro Zone---we are now waiting for the shoe to drop
4) Iceland--121%---its dollar became worthless a few years ago
5) Ireland---120% ---was just bailed out by the Euro Zone---we are now waiting for the shoe to drop
6) Portugal---111%---a few riots and strikes, but was bailed out and now all is calm
7) United States--101%---you tell me what's in store for the US----

If the first 6 nations on the list have already had major problems, what do you think is in store for this nation over the next decade?

Enjoy!

The Cost of Debt!

There has been much ado about the level of the United States debt and how it affects the average citizen. For those who have not been following the ongoing debt crisis, and it is ongoing as we have not stopped racking up debt, we are looking at a debt to earnings ratio of 100%, (more and not less), as of the time of this blog. What that means for every dollar in goods and services that this nation creates this year, we owe that dollar to some one else. Furthermore, we are increasing that debt load by about 1 per cent per month or 12% annually.

You may ask why this is so important as the government can just raise taxes and print more money. In short, yes the government can increase the tax rate and print as much money as it wishes. That works for today, tomorrow and even this year, but what about next year? The year after? What happens is that inflation begins to raise its ugly head. Each dollar earned begins to purchase less and less. Employers who are forced to raise prices, cut costs and begin to build their inventories of dollars, (think hoarding cash and cutting jobs), This in turn causes the economy to slow down, resulting in more hoarding and job losses. Does this sound familiar? It is estimated that several of the top fortune 500 companies have more cash on hand than does the US Government and I mean that each of these companies have more cash on hand and not as a collective whole. We are also looking at the longest period of sustained high unemployment since the 1930s. In fact, if the US Government still measured unemployment as it did in 1980, we would have an official unemployment rate of over 17%.

How have such things been solved in the past? War! Conquest! Exploitation of Natural Resources! We are already in 3 different wars, (Libya is another undeclared war), any nation we may desire to conquer is in far worse shape than we are, and we have all but shut down our efforts to find and develop our natural resources.

With traditional options already used and proving ineffective we are left with the only option that all nations dread and fear. Collapse. For those who are doomers, the collapse is already at hand, but in truth, we are looking at 10-20 additional years of walking the same path before the wheels come off the cart. At that point in time, those who are on the back end of the boomer generation will be on government programs and the slacker generation that is now in the pipeline will be the main driving force in the nation's economy. Just think, that 20+ year old who is still living in his childhood bed, working 2-3 days a week at minimum wage will be the main source of all of the nation's economic activity. Thus, it is my belief that collapse will happen, and this nation will evolve into a more traditional nation with its Dictators, Ruling Councils, and Kings. Despite this inevitable collapse, we need not fear as is in most collapses, they tend to be quick and bloody. So if you can survive the first 180 days of change, you most likely will be fine.

Are you prepared for the change?

Red gage picture of the day----dragonfly

Enjoy!

A Simple Salsa Recipe!

A down and dirty Salsa Recipe

If you have a hankering for salsa, but you really don’t want to drive to the store and spend $ 3.00 or more for a pint of the store variety. Try this simple recipe for making a great tasting salsa in about 15 minutes. The total cost will depend upon the ingredients you add, but in our case, it costs about $ 2.80 to make 36 ounces or about 2+ pints of fresh salsa versus the minimum of $ 3.00 you would spend at the store. I will take a 50% savings any day of the week.

Ingredients:

2 -15 ounce cans of unsalted, diced tomatoes. If you grow your own tomatoes, you will need 4 cups of diced tomatoes.

1 – large onion, diced. If you like a spicy salsa, use a red onion.

1 tablespoon of garlic powder

½ tablespoon of Cheyenne powder

1 teaspoon of crushed red pepper

Place all of the ingredients into a large mixing bowl and stir until everything is mixed well. Place in the refrigerator for about 10-15 minutes to chill or use right away per your preference.

If you want to add a little color, you can also add bell peppers, cilantro or even basil.

Note: if you grow your own vegetables and buy your spices in bulk. This recipe can cost virtually nothing. All you need is some fresh tomatoes, peppers, onions, etc from your garden. The spices would be your only cost at less than a dime in total cost.

Redgage picture of the day---Koi Fish

Enjoy!

The New Nazis!

Believe it or not, many of our nation’s voting public believe that it is conservatives who most remind them of that age old boogieman, Adolf Hitler and the Nazi party of World War II. This has happened in part due to the poor education system that our nation now enjoys, but the rhetoric of our political system is also to blame. Have you not heard our evening newscasters repeating vicious catch phrases about President Bush, being no better than Hitler himself? This was reinforced by the repeated airing of posters showing pictures of President Bush with the addition of the prototypical Hitler mustache.

Note: Did you know the Hitler mustache and Nazi salute were quite popular until the rise of Adolf Hitler and the beginning of World War II?

Despite the common belief of conservatives being no better than Nazis, it is much more apt to denote the commonalities between the current administration and those of the Nazi party itself. To begin with the Nazi party was in fact a socialist party and its name if translated into English, denotes this. But the similarities go farther than that. It is my belief that a case can be made that we are only a step or two from teetering over the edge to the same form of fascism that the Germans of the 2^nd world war were infamous for.

First, both Hitler and our current President were popularly elected with a mandate for change. In both cases, that mandate was to change the program of business as usual and effect real and lasting change. But that alone doesn’t really mean much, so let’s review the 2^nd point of similarity. In both cases the soon to be elected leaders mandated a need for a new civilian organization whose organization and equipment levels were to be as good as if not better than those of the established military. The purpose in our case is to help assist in the maintaining of security throughout the nation. In our case, a bill was introduced on 7-29-2009, (HR 675) which was to provide for the legal basis of such a force. As of now, the bill has not been passed, but if the Congress reverts back to one that is controlled by the Democrats, who knows.---read more here----

Redgage picture of the day----Stop Sign

Enjoy!

Government and Social Engineering

There has been much ado about the comments of Newt Gingrich regarding the efforts of Republicans to implement a bit of “right-wing social engineering” in regards to the implementation of a national medical program. In this day and age it seems that everyone has a plan to effect change upon the nation and the way we live our lives. Yet, I wonder if these efforts to “help” us are simply a case of misguided nanny state behavior at best or the first steps towards a united “mind-think” by our nation’s leaders at the point of a gun. So the question of the day would be, “is there a difference between right-wing and left-wing social engineering”?

To begin with, I am the type of person who would like to live without much interaction with those around me. In another time I might have been one of those secluded recluses or hermits that we read about in our history books. It has shaped my view on the world as one that believes that the more we are left to our own devices the better we are as a society, but despite that, I do see a need for a strong network of laws that help protect the weak from the predations of the strong. So when I see one group or another push an effort to “help” society, I have an automatic gut reaction of pushing back. That is the case where I see an effort from conservatives to prevent the people of this nation from enjoying the freedoms that our constitution promises as our God given rights as human beings. A case in point is not only the passage of laws that restrict our ability to travel freely, (TSA groping, warrant less searches), but also their efforts to pin down who I am and what I am doing with “real id” acts and NSA phone taps.---read more here----

Redgage picture of the day-----A garden spider

Enjoy!

Our Modern Laziness

We all know that society is in a constant flux and as the generations pass, new trends, fads and who knows what, become popular and then fade away. Yet throughout the generations, one thing remained constant to each and every family in this nation. Children played and caused all kinds of havoc while playing outside. It is that love of the outside that seems to be fading away as we become a nation of couch sitting, bed loving, slugs who no longer enjoy the bright outdoors. If fact, it seems the only reason to go outdoors anymore is to do our bit of traveling to go to school, work or at best for a rare day at the beach or amusement part being entertained by the activities of others. So we must ask ourselves, just when did we become so lazy and what have we done to our children?

An easy answer would be to blame those sick individuals who we see on the news each and every day. These are the people who kidnap the young and venerable then perform unspeakable acts before disposing of their victims. So in response we keep our children close kidding ourselves that it is in their best interest. Yet, all that seems to have accomplished is create a new generation of adults who no longer love the outdoors and the understanding of how nature works. If fact, I once overheard a conversation of a woman who was determined to save a bit of money growing a garden, but was hesitant do so. Her reason for the hesitation was the fact that she could not find the variety of vegetable that developed into cans when they ripened. I know, people can’t be that dumb, but in all honesty, it is a true story and she was deadly serious and I have run across dozens of individuals who wouldn’t eat any vegetable that actually grew in the dirt. They only wanted the vegetables that were grown dirt free. They didn’t want any of those diseases that were contained in the dirt.----read more here-----

Redgage picture of the day-----Roadside Flowers

Enjoy!

The Modern Parasites and how Government helps! HA HA HA

Have you ever had a case of parasites? I shudder at the thought of some disease ridden pest feeding off of the bounty of my body growing larger and hungrier each time it gobbles a portion of what I am. No one likes a parasite and as we look upon them we feel a degree of disgust, yet we live in a society that not only tolerates them, but also actually panders to their every need. I can imagine what you are thinking as you read this, another jab at the poor and unfortunate who just need a hand up in order to get on their feet. In truth, you are partly correct, but only partly. Yes, many parasites are poor, but many are better off and have no need to feed upon the host of American society and its economic bounty.

Do you realize that one in six Americans and many, who are not Americans, receive an allotment of food stamps each month? Is this a good thing? Perhaps it is, for no one likes the idea of someone starving in America, but why do we give them to non-citizens? Would it not be cheaper to buy first class tickets for those non-citizens to their home country? Do we not have a cornucopia of soup kitchens, charitable food banks, and other such charities in this nation? Then again, the idea of simply making sure that the people of this nation have enough to eat is not really a bad idea, and that doesn’t make them a parasite no matter what our politicians may argue.---read more here----

Redgage picture of the day-----Alligators

Enjoy!

What you shouldn't do when applying for an Apartment!

There are more than a few things in life that you shouldn’t do, but if you are applying to rent a house or apartment, I can give you five things right off the top of my head. Yes, I realize that being a landlord is perceived by many as being in a position of power and wealth, but in reality it is anything but. One of the more challenging aspects to being a landlord is the point in time when your home or apartment is finally ready to show to those people who are prospective tenants. For you have slaved for days or even months to get all the walls painted, the carpet freshly installed, appliances cleaned, and yard neatly manicured for those in need of a good home to live in. So what are those things you just shouldn’t do?

First and foremost-don’t show up drunk. Yes, I have actually had a number of applicants arrive at the appointed time, barely able to stand and reeking of beer. If it had only happened once, I could always right it off as one of those weird things, but it has actually happened three times in the last three years. In each case they did have a ride, but dealing with a drunk who insists they are the best candidate for the rental is not what I would consider a good time. ---read more here---

Redgage picture of the day-----Kangaroos

Enjoy!

Starting a new business now??!!!???

With the economy as it is the thought of starting a new business has crossed the mind of more than one of us. In fact it has probably crossed the mind of almost everyone who has had a bad day at work, watched a fellow employee lose his job or had their hours cut. The problem is that no matter what we may believe about the jobs we hold as being “ours”; in fact they belong to our employers and as such they control the most basic aspect of our lives, the ability to earn a reliable living. It always wasn’t so, in fact until the industrial revolution most people in this nation worked for themselves, usually on small farms or in the shops that they owned. Yes, we had employers, but the vast majority of the population made a living on their own using the brains that God gave them. Unfortunately, during the last few decades, we have all become accustomed to the “golden age” in which we live with readily available jobs that left our wits withering in the wind. Yet, with the last paradigm shift in our economy, or as our esteemed economists refer to it, “the jobless recovery”, we no longer can let us or our wits wither any further. To do so, would leave us at the mercy of our politicians to legislate a policy of theft from those who produce a surplus leaving us no better than the cattle of the local farm. Livestock that is to be slaughtered or fattened depending upon the needs of the farmer. So as I found myself entering the Christmas season, I discovered that my hours from my employer of several years no longer available, in fact they had been cut in half leaving me with the need to generate a plan of survival for myself and family for the new year.

To begin with, my family and I have always lived below our means, doing things to stretch our dollars and invest in the future. The good news, that other than the house we lived in and our rental properties, we have no debt, a situation few in this nation enjoy. So not being pressed to find an immediate source of income, we decided that we needed to branch out and build upon what we had started and build a business of our own that would allow us to control our destiny well into the future.---read more here----


Redgage picture of the day----Spreading Flamingos


Enjoy!

Why are men today such women?

I was reading the postings on a forum that I like to read and the question was asked, (not for the first time), “What has happened to the manly man?” It got me to thinking about how society has changed over the last few decades. When I was young, women were just starting to work outside the home on a regular basis, the ERA amendment was in full swing and the sexual revolution was at its peak. Men of that time understood that their first task was to get up each and every morning and get their rear ends to work and earn a living so that they and their own were able to have a good life. That wasn’t to say that a number of women didn’t earn a good living and provide the needed income for the family, but the men of that period of time weren’t the lazy and shiftless bunch of half wits they seem to be today, rather they had a purpose and went about getting things done.

Today that is no longer the case. These days, I have found that whenever I watch a television program or even a commercial, the men are portrayed as being less than capable. For example, you don’t see the woman in the commercial being belittled for forgetting that they use the newest product, but rather it is the man. When something dumb happens, all eyes turn to the male in the scene, never the woman. Even the children get into the act as demonstrated on one commercial where they get after the father for not having a plate under his burger and thus staining the table cloth. It is not so much that men don’t do dumb things, but if you were to take your impressions of today’s male from the television you would think he is about 25 IQ points below the average dog.---read more here----

Redgage picture of the day-----Wild Turkeys

Enjoy!

Pokemon-Black vs. White

Finally the Black and White Pokemon versions are to be released in the United States. Pokemon fans of all ages have you collected all of the various Pokemon yet? Well grab your pokeball, because the fifth generation of Pokemon is coming you way. Fresh from Nintendo DS, both the Black and White versions of Pokemon will be introducing a generation of never before seen Pokemon. In addition, any Pokemon fans who subscribe to the game’s motto of “Gotta catch them all” will have 156 new and never seen before Pokemon to collect. These new Pokemon will be featured in a never before seen region with a great new story line to go with it.

Both versions will feature new Pokemon that players will be able to catch, train and enter into battle with, but a few of these new Pokemon will be catchable only in the Black and White versions. In addition, for the first time in the series the two games will not have the same arenas, but rather each will have its own unique arena. In the Black version of the game, a metropolitan, (called Black City), setting will be used while the White version fields a lush green forest called fittingly “The White Forest”. Another first for these new games will be the changing of the seasons. These seasons will rotate at the beginning of each month much like the day & night concept in the Gold/Silver games. As is usually the case with Pokemon games, as the seasons change, various Pokemon will become more readily available as well as new areas to explore....Yes, I do need to learn to spell Pokemon correctly, but you can click here to read more----

Redgage Picture of the day----Dino World

Enjoy!

Are you enjoying your standard of living?

With our economy in the tank a question of what will happen in the future is in the forefront of most people’s minds. We have been looking at nearly 3 years of anemic economic growth, higher prices, a devalued dollar, and what jobs there are to be had, are either working for the government or at McDonalds. In fact, it is being reported that fully half of all private sector jobs created last month were at McDonalds and I really doubt these were $40,000 a year jobs. In a nation that must have an economy that produces at least 200,000 new private sector jobs monthly to account for the population growth, this is a terrible thing that can only lead to one result. That result would be a lower standard of living for each and every one of us.

Granted, our standard of living won’t drop overnight, but if we are to deal with ever increasing budget deficits, increased taxes and growing government, should we not expect our standard of living to decline? To the point, I would ask each and every one of you the following question, “If we actually believe in doing what is right for this nation, should we not lower our expectations in regards to our standard of living”? That’s right, since we have allowed our political leaders to spend what our grandchildren have not even earned, is it not our duty as citizens to give up the luxuries that we so enjoy?

It is my belief that no matter what we think, that is exactly what will happen during the next generation. We can even see the first signs of what will become the norm of the land. Our housing prices are in a free fall; those who have respectable jobs tend to be older and not normally inclined to move too often. That means any who buy are planning to buy a home will be younger with a lower base income, as they work at McDonalds, so a bank will not lend them the amount of cash as we enjoyed during our generation.(read more here)


Redgage photo of the day----(holly plant)


Enjoy!

Our deteriorating school system?

As my children are no longer part of the public school system, I am now beginning to be able to lift my head from the daily grind of living. It has been a bit of fresh air as I watch them step out into life on their own and I look forward to the prospect of seeing grandchildren running around the house, breaking my wife’s most precious knickknacks. One day while contemplating what grandchildren will mean, I heard a radio report of how poorly the schools in my part of Georgia were doing and how they faced the potential of a government takeover.

So what are the benefits of a public school education in today’s world? I realize that all of us pay taxes and the cheapest method in which to educate our children, (as required by law in all 50 states), would be to send them to public school. But is that the best thing for them? In the past 100+ years we have become accustomed to the idea that there is only one option for us, and that option being public schooling, but it wasn’t always the case. In the past, people either paid individuals to educate their children or educated them at home. So why aren’t we doing so now?

The simple answer is that we have been trained and educated to believe that there is only one best option, that of public schools. But in fact, the best educated people in our nation today are those who are home schooled followed by private education and trailed distantly by that of public education. So why don’t you education your children at home? Is it because you can’t afford it? It is my contention that we have been tricked into believing that if we don’t own the latest cell phone, newest car and the biggest house, we are not living the American dream. It has caused us to take on a two-income family, send our children to others to watch and acquire debt like no generation has ever before. For what purpose do we do such things? Don’t we want the best for our children or have we become so self-centered that we no longer think that the next generation must do better than the last? Are we the last and 2^nd greatest generation, 2^nd only to our parents who lived during the middle half of the 20^th century? (read more here)

Redgage photo of the day----(hibiscus)

Enjoy!

Do you eat locally? How far does your food travel?

Did you know that in the United States on average a single can, bag or portion of food would travel 1500 miles before it is consumed? Amazing, but true as we become more and more globalized we are increasingly relying on a more sophisticated and complicated distribution system for our food. For example, did you realize that all the food that is consumed at your local McDonalds comes from one of 19 distributors located throughout the United States? The largest of which is located in Irvine, California. So if you just used the distance the food is shipped from one of the distributors, it would be several hundred miles, but wait! If you looked a little closer, and determined who provided that food to the distributor, that range of transport would increase. If we used chicken nuggets as an example, most chicken nuggets are made at the Tyson factory in Nashville Arkansas, so it would not be inconceivable for those nuggets to travel from Nashville to California and back to Texas, thus reaching if not exceeding the average travel distance for the food we consume. If you were to add in the total amount of food that we import, such as winter grapes and vegetables from South America, it quickly becomes easy to understand why our food travels so much before it reaches out plates.

So you ask yourself, what is the big deal? Our food does a bit of travel before we buy it, we have the best system in the world and we can afford it! In general that is true, in fact I would even stipulate that 99.9% of the time being able to buy fresh grapes, vegetables and the like during the winter months is a good thing, but it is that one in a thousand that can really ruin your day, week or even take your life.

Yes, I firmly believe that we have the best systems in the civilized world. Furthermore, I believe that we can and will do ever better things in the future, but and there is always “a but”! There are too many people in this world who simply take pleasure in pulling down those who have done better than they have. It doesn’t matter the motivation of those who are envious of those who achieve, it is best to know that they exist and when you get enough of those who fall into the trap of envy, problems will arise. These problems can be as simple as a few protests and can quickly escalate into riots, (with looting), or even active terrorism and war. No matter how or why they occur, they will occur and do so on a regular basis. Couple this with an opportunity for a particularly bad storm or natural disaster and before you know it, the food distribution system breaks down.

(read more here)

 Redgage photo of the day-----pepper plant

Enjoy!

Is Gold really worth zero?

Have you heard those commercials that hawk the availability of gold and how it is an urgent need of any investor in today’s market? If not, you must have been living under a rock as they are everywhere and you can’t get away from them even by listening to the radio or reading the Internet. It’s almost like scabies, something you catch, yet can’t seem to determine where it came from or how to get rid of. Unfortunately, advertising is part of our world and it will always be that way, but for any investor a word of caution, investing in gold is one of those things that simply aren’t possible. You can own gold or sell gold, but you can never invest in it. Gold has no ability to expand or contract, grow or shrink, it simply is and unlike a company that can grow, the best use of gold is that of a pretty necklace or as part of an expensive watch that you can flash before your friends. Yet, though all of those gold commercials, one aspect strikes me as particularly funny. It’s the quote where they say, “gold has never been worth nothing”.

Think about that statement for a moment. Is it really true that gold has never been worth nothing? I find that statement to be rather hard to believe, for almost anything is possible though highly improbable. So can gold always retain value or is it one of those things, that we disillusion ourselves about in order to feel good. Much like we do when we say that the United States will never default upon its debts or the US Dollar is still the best currency to hold. Ten years ago, I might have believe that, 20 years ago, I would have been convinced, but today I know that the possibility of the United States government defaulting upon its debt is a very strong possibility and the only value the US Dollar holds is that of the inertia it has from being the default currency of the world. Once the world finds a new currency that it feels has better value or stronger legs, we will see just how strong it is. If you don’t believe me, ask someone about the Roman Denarius. A currency that was once dominant in the world and(read more here)


Redgage picture of the day-----black bear




Enjoy!

Heron's Steam Engine!

It is the hubris of most men, who look upon to the centuries of long ago, to feel that we are the most intelligent, advanced and civilized of any that has ever been. Yet, I wonder if that is actually true? Then the idea came to me one day while I was watching a bit of cable television, actually it was the history channel and they were talking about ancient technologies that mimic that of today’s world. After a bit it occurred to me that we as men and women of the 21^st century, are probably not the best there ever was. In fact, we are probably not even in the top five if we are to be honest about the way things are today.

First, if we are to look at military technology, many of us think we were the first to think of many of the modern weapons that we use in war today. That is far from the truth; take for example the flamethrower. A fearsome weapon that was first seen during the 2^nd World War and was feared by all those who faced it, but was it first seen at that time? Actually no, Greek fire has been known about and used at least two thousand years before the advent of the modern flamethrower. For those who are unfamiliar with Greek fire, it was a weapon that used a sticky and highly flammable fluid under pressure that shot a flame as far as 50 feet into the air. This weapon was so feared that many fleets simply would not engage the enemy if they though the enemy had the “fire”. Then there was the case of hand grenades. This is again a weapon that we all associate with the 2^nd World War, but were actually used by many nations including the Chinese. The same could be said for the advent of rockets, cannons, armored cars, etc.

Yet, if we searched we could find a number of examples where our forefathers used and developed technology that we associate with modern society. The clock is an example, where ancient Chinese and Greek, used water or the sun to tell time, we use quartz. Yet, the result was the same. There is the ample evidence of robots being used as part of religious ceremonies to awe the masses. In fact, one researcher suggested that one good way to improve your membership as well as the collection plate in ancient times was through the use of technology. Since, there is no evidence of television, the good old fashion church gathering was considered an excellent method of entertainment for the masses. So the churches of the time did their best to have the latest and greatest of entertainments in order to inspire the awe of their members. Robots and mechanical technology played a significant part in this. Something we only associate with modern society.

(read more here)

Redgage picture of the day-----fountain grass

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A lack of hobbies and our disposible society!

Things have changed since we were children. When we were young we played outside, climbing trees, building forts and generally exploring the world as no one before us ever had. It was through this wonder of exploration we matured and developed until we reached the point of our early teens and began to develop our life interests, which quickly developed into hobbies. Generally, many of these hobbies were the same ones our parents enjoyed, but as with each generation they were updated to modern times. Fathers who worked on tractors and other large machinery had sons and daughters who morphed that love to one of cars and hot rods. Others enjoyed woodworking and building rockets, or other more mundane hobbies such as coin collecting or antiques. Yet today, we have children whose greatest desire in life is to play video games and hunker down before the television for days on end. What has happened to our youth today, a youth were there is no desire to see what the greater world has, but rather would be content to fill their faces with a bit of fast food chicken and be living at home until they are 35.

I realize that this is more of a rant, but where is society going? We are looking at not one but several generations in a row where each generation seems to have more book knowledge, but less ability. Every family has the desire for each generation to do better than the last and in many cases the best hope of doing better was to increase one’s education and use that increased knowledge to move forward and upward in society. (read more here)




Redgage picture of the day----Uncle Sam


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Does personal responsibility still exist?

I was watching a little television with my parents today and saw a show that normally wouldn’t even pop up on my radar screen. It was the Judge Joe Brown show where people who have a beef with each other volunteer, (with pay of course), to air their differences in front of a national television audience. Of course, we are entertained throughout the show with the snaky comments from the Judge himself, but what caught my attention was one particular episode when a man “borrowed” his girlfriend’s car and then rolled it. Since the car was basically totaled, the owner, who did not have comprehensive coverage, demanded compensation for her damaged car. The demand for compensation to the owner was quickly denied as being unreasonable and that boyfriend indicated that he was not responsible for any damages due to the accident not being his “fault”. In other words, since someone cut him off, anything that happened after that was no longer his responsibility. Though the Judge ruled that the boyfriend was responsible, it was clear that not only was the boyfriend upset, but so was the owner’s daughter, (the girlfriend). The looks on the faces of the couple made me think!  What has happened to personal responsibility in the world today?

Time was, if someone borrowed, used or otherwise took possession for an object that you owned, they always returned it not only when they said they would, but it would be clean and in as good as working order as when they borrowed it. If they stayed the night, they would clean up after themselves and even offered to help with the dishes. That doesn’t seem to happen anymore in this nation of ours. I have a friend that recently let another borrow a sander, after six months it still hadn’t been returned even though it was promised to be back within a day or two. Later the borrower confessed that he had actually lost it and since he didn’t have the money and it wasn’t his fault that his wife moved it, he shouldn’t have to pay for a new one. Needless to say, this didn’t go down well and it was agreed, (after the threat of broken knees), that the borrower would have a new sander in my friend’s hand the next day. The fact that someone would borrow something and not return it, simply floored me. I had always lived with the motto, never borrow unless you must and if you do, then treat it better than if it was your own. The fact that most people don’t live by this motto is totally alien to me.(read more here)

Redgage picture of the day-----parrot

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You earn too much! Let's limit your pay!

Last year there was a great deal of news on the administration’s new plan to limit the pay of the CEOs and top officials at a number of companies. These limits were suggested and implemented, (with a new Pay Czar), with the intent of getting a handle on those companies, (primarily banks), who executive pay was out of line with their bottom lines or as we like to say, profits. Needless to say, as with many things going on today, this unconstitutional exercise of power, (see the 10^th Amendment), by the Executive Branch has gone unchallenged by the nation’s top banks. Many have speculated the reasons for the lack of contention is due to the level of power held by the Federal Reserve over the nation’s largest financial institutions. In essence, if you piss off the Federal Reserve and you are a financials institution, you will be out of business by the end of the day and new owners will be sitting in your desk. The result is a new acceptance by the people of this nation that the Federal Government has not only the power, but the right to dictate just how much pay you can receive for your labors.

Think about that for a moment, here you are working hard, spending your evenings and many a weekend so that the company you work for has a chance to expand and improve its net worth and profit levels. You have ignored your family and friends and many a pleasure with the idea that soon you can grab that brass ring of executive pay with the potential for bonuses. Your heart is overworked, blood pressure is high and your health in general is not what is should be, yet none of that matters as you have finally reached the goal you set out for a contract that will pay you millions as long as you demonstrate a continued ability to perform. Happiness is at hand. Your family is set, and all of the struggle and financial difficulties are a thing of the past, then it happens. A federal agency steps in and tells your company that they are paying you too much and it must stop. How would you react? Well that is happening to hundreds of people in this nation every year.

Those who risk nothing, but are allowed to stand in judgment are denying the rewards for those who hard work has finally yielded results. Is this the way of America and our way of life? For all of my life I have been told that you work hard and do well and you can have the opportunity to do well and finally become rich beyond you wildest dreams. I know it is easy to argue that these people are being overpaid, and in some cases they are. In fact, I would argue that in many cases they are and would go further to agree that in some cases they are using the company as a piggy bank. So what!(read more here)


Redgage photo of the day----(baby giraffe)


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We all hate them! Lawyers!

It’s pretty universally agreed, even among those who are part of this much-maligned group, people just hate lawyers. I know there are some great people who happen to be lawyers and there are even lawyers who perform acts of charity out of the goodness of their hearts, but I still find it hard to find someone who actually likes lawyers. Yes, you may consider your lawyer great and he does a good job representing you, but that does not change the fact that lawyers are generally viewed just below the bubonic plague with a touch of leprosy added in for good measure on the scale of humanity. With that being said, why do people simply hate lawyers?

As we are a nation of laws, the value of lawyers cannot be understated as an asset to functioning of our society for if we didn’t have lawyers how else could we interpret our laws and regulations? Who would represent us in the courts? The age-old piece of wisdom that “the man who represents himself has a fool for a client” is true, for how many of us could stand before a court of law with a straight face and inform the court that the true responsibility for the death of the victim was the Twinkies that were eaten in the hours before the murder? Yes, the consumption of Twinkies was used as a basis for the defense of a man who killed a councilman and the mayor of San Francisco many years ago. To be totally truthful, the defense argued that the man charged was clinically depressed and the Twinkies aggravated that depression, he was convicted despite the defense claims.

Perhaps the cause of our dislike for lawyers is the idea the laws themselves are so detailed and complicated that only someone who spends his entire life studying the law has even the slightest chance of understanding the law. The laws and regulations for just the Federal Tax Code is over 13,000 pages long. That’s just to be able to file your taxes properly. Does anyone actually know all of the rules, regulations and requirements? That’s just for the privilege of paying taxes, something that affects each and every one in this nation and a law that no one can ignore unless you actually have a desire to spend your time in jail. How can you be assured you are doing them correctly? The truth of the matter, you can’t, that is you cannot be sure unless you hire a lawyer at several hundred dollars an hour to argue your case before a judge. A situation where, you are screwed either way. If you lawyer fails to convince the judge and you go to jail, if he succeeds in arguing your case, then you will be flat broke. Sometimes it is hard to decide which is better? (read more here)

Redgage picture of the day----bottlebrush

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The new American Plague!

A new plague has hit humanity and it is worse than anything we have ever seen. No I am not talking about some new virus or toxin with out a cure, which kills within 48 hours leaving nothing of its victims more than a pool of slush. In fact, that type of plague would be of benefit to all of mankind in comparison to the plaque that is popping up in our most populated centers. Rather this plaque tears apart the very fabric of society and turns its victims into a form of locust. We are all familiar with locusts; they have been a bane on civilizations since before the bible. Traditionally locusts are a simply grasshoppers who go about their lives eating what they can, but doing no real damage, then one day without warning their population grows and they morph into an eating machine that destroys all they touch. This is exactly what this new plaque does to the youth of our nation. It transforms what are normal teenagers who spend their time being bored with life, into a mass of flesh that seems to have one purpose, destroy everything around them.

I can see your face now you don’t believe me! But the truth of the matter is that these human locusts do exist and have been seen tearing through the cities of our nation. In fact, one of the latest cases occurred in Manhattan. In this case what was called a “flash mob” crashed into a local Dunkin Donuts and began a rampage of destruction. They took what they wanted and trashed the rest. It occurred so quickly that the employees of the store were left stunned. Fortunately this plague did not physically hurt any of the employees but such an escalation is not beyond the scope of this new scourge. An example of such an escalation occurred recently in Egypt where a mob of human locusts attacked and raped a news reporter, leaving her for dead in its wake.

As these human plagues spread throughout the nation, we must ask ourselves what can be done to counter its destructive power? To date, no one has been able to prevent the damage that these mobs create and in the case of most human endeavors, the greater the success that they achieve the bolder they feel. Mobs of these human locust have been seen from coast to coast, ranging from Las Vegas to Washington D.C. one of the most secure cities in the nation. Many could argue that if the employees were armed that these instances of barbarism could have been avoided. I ask you, just how could they have been avoided. Even with a gun, you are no better than the farmers of old, who desperately tried to prevent the destruction of their farms, yet were unable to stop the destruction due to the mass of living flesh that was brought to bear. The same applies here, even if you had a weapon with an unlimited amount of firepower, the best that you could do is simply stop a few of the individuals, while the body of the locust continued on with its destruction.(read more here)

Redgage picture of the day-----(Cooper's Hawk)

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Zombies, they actually exist!

Recently the Center for Disease Control otherwise known as the CDC has released an interesting pamphlet detailing what to do in the event of an out of control epidemic resulting in the “attack” of the zombies. Many of the news organizations, even those in which we place a great deal of trust, treated the information regarding zombies as a joke. They spent several days detailing the evolution of the zombie from the original slow and clumsy to the speedy and dangerous. In fact, you can find a pretty good analysis of what the current version of what a zombie can do in the movie “28 days”. If you want to see a really scary end of the world movie that leaves you unsettled, rent it. The first thing you need to know is that zombies are not only real, but very dangerous to you and your family. But that doesn’t answer the question as to what are zombies and where do they come from?

In a word, the zombie that the CDC refers to is none other than you and your family. If you were to look at it from their perspective a zombie is anyone who is not part of the in-group or in other words, part of the government. From a more personal point of view a zombie is anyone outside of your family, friends or neighbors with whom you have a great deal of trust. Traditionally, zombies can be classified as one of three groups. First, the looter / rapist zombie is the zombie who during a time of disaster leaves the comfort of his home and begins a rampage. They typically zero in on areas where there is no or limited government control. The recent tornados in the state of Louisiana are an example. In some cases the zombies traveled from as far as Florida to find victims to rob and rape.

Then there is the 2^nd example of a zombie, the hungry and cold zombie. The truth is that this is probably the most passive zombie of the bunch. Typically this type of zombie can also be found in places where disaster has struck, but this is not absolute. One example of a hungry zombie out of his normal environment was during the recent handout of applications for energy vouchers in Atlanta Georgia. In this case the zombies rioted in search of victims to punish for the lack of applications. You can find a few good examples of this type of zombie on youtube. Overall, the hungry zombie can be found in shelters or evacuation centers and as long as there is a steady supply of what the zombie requires, (food, water, etc.) there will be no aggressive action on part of the zombies. If by chance you think the zombie phenomenon is limited to a specific class or ethnic group, read the recent articles where a cruise liner lost power and within 24 hours the passengers were on the verge of tearing apart the crew and fellow passengers.(read more here)

Redgage photo of the day---(bunny rabbits)

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Did you know your dollar is worth less?

Have you heard about the Federal Reserve’s plan to end QE2? If not, you are not alone. For the last several years the Federal Reserve has embarked on a plan to ease the nation’s credit and economic problems though the use of a plan called “quantitative easing” or also known in short hand as QE. To date there has been a total of two phases to the program in which the Federal Reserve buys the debt of the Treasury Department. Sounds great? Not really, as the money that the Federal Reserve uses to buy the debt has nothing to back it up. It’s just simply cash that the Federal Reserve bought from the Treasury Department and then returned in exchange for bonds. Bonds that the Federal Government promises to pay back to the Federal Reserve with money it prints or receives in taxes at a later point in time? Confused yet? Well many people are. What our Federal Government is doing is nothing new and in fact has been repeated over the centuries by all nations at some point in time and generally has resulted in the death or decline in that nation.

Surely it can’t be that bad, you ask? Actually it can be much worse! A history lesson is needed, but it will demonstrate the results of a government issuing currency with promises that it has no ability to fulfill. We have all heard of World War I in which Germany tried and failed to conquer large parts of the world. Needless to say, they lost that war, but it lead to a treaty in which the winning nations, dreadfully short of hard currency, (read gold and silver), decided that Germany would be responsible for the cost of the war. Being the winners, they had no problem with a reparation program, (read taxes), that basically devastated the economy of Germany. Germany detached its currency from the gold standard and began printing money. It tried to borrow money on the open market, but that only speed up the decline in the value of it money. Does this sound familiar? Think hard! In the United States, we no longer have a gold standard; we are the largest borrower in the world by far. In fact our borrowing rate dwarfs the economies of Canada (9^th largest) or Russia (10^th largest) and is almost as large as the economies of either Italy (7^th largest) or Brazil (8^th largest). In fact, the printing and borrowing has gotten so bad that there is no chance of it being reduced anytime in the near term as we now have a whole class of people who are now dependant upon the money they receive, (entitlements) in order to survive. We have lost that many jobs in this nation.(read more here)

Redgage photo of the day----(whooping crane)

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Do you believe in Peak Oil?

The question has been around for years and as time goes by it becomes of greater importance as we look at rising gasoline prices. When will the world reach the point of “peak oil”? Peak Oil you ask? What is that? Simply said, peak oil is the point in time where we reach the maximum ability to discover, develop and produce oil throughout the world. After that point, the amount of oil that is brought to market no longer increases, but rather begins a steady decline to the zero point, or the point in which there is no longer any oil to exploit.

There are a number of points of view when it comes to peak oil, but it boils down to the following two sides. First, that we will never reach the point of peak oil as we are always discovering new sources, better technology and greater efficiency in our consumption. Though each aspect of that argument is valid, the idea that world oil is infinite is simply silly. Nothing, even the power of the sun is infinite. No matter what we do, there is always a point of diminishing returns and as the world population grows and becomes more addicted to the luxuries of life, (television, air conditioning, etc), our demand will increase as our locations in which to search declines. You could even argue that there is always more oil being produced and as we have never discovered how it is made, we can never be sure that we will ever run out. That is also true, but again if you were to run these arguments though a logic test, they would fail. They would fail for the following reasons, first the argument is that we will at some point reach our maximum of oil production and after that it will begin to fall. All things in nature, (including civilization), goes through cycles and oil production are the same. We will reach a point of where we can no longer produce ever increasing amounts, the laws of entropy would assure us of that point. Even if we drilled in every location possible for as long as possible, we would reach a maximum point of production and the decline would begin. Lastly, the argument of improvements in our efficiency of consumption are not relevant, for the whole discussion regarding peak oil is that of depleting a resource and not our use of that resource. So how fast we use our world oil is not related to how much we produce beyond the determination of rates of consumption. (read more here)

Redgage photo of the day----(komodo dragon)

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Do you have privacy??

We hear it all the time, “if you have nothing to hide, then you have no reason not to let me search your house, search your car, give me your cell phone records, etc” What does that really mean? For some it means that they as law a biding citizens, feel that have nothing to fear from their government. As such it is considered not only wrong, but also a sign of guilt if a citizen of this nation refuses to allow the government free access to what ever they want. For others it is simply a way to try and pressure a citizen to allow access to things that the government simply has no business having access to. Yet there is much more to this than simply a matter of guilt or innocence.

First, whenever a government official confronts you, you are a target for some reason. That reason can be as benign as mistaken identity or as serious as, well you can decide what is truly serious, but no matter what everything you say or do will be recorded and used as information for the government’s benefit and not yours. We have all seen the television shows that dramatically show a suspect being hauled in for interrogation and then arrested, charged and put on trial. Later we find that a mistake has been made and the suspect is released. Yet what is not often conveyed is that the suspects own actions of talking and allowing access that put them into that situation in the first place.(read more here)

redgage picture of the day---storks

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Privacy, GPS and mind your own business!

In this day and age of GPS, cameras on every corner, and the neighborhood watch it seems that no matter what we do there is someone there watching what we do and how we do it. In my mind that generally is not a problem, as we as good people try and blend with society and it norms, but there is a disturbing trend of people who just can’t seem to mind their own business. It can range from the simple neighborhood busybody who likes to peep out of her curtains or the local homeowner chairman demanding their rights to measure the depth of your grass and see the color of your child’s bedroom paint. Unfortunately, no matter where you believe we are on the spectrum of nosy neighbors, it just seems to be getting worse as this nation grows. Thus the question has arisen, are we truly “our brother’s keepers” and if so, what rights and responsibilities do we have as such?

First, there is no question in my mind that as members of a healthy society we do have a responsibility to be aware of our own actions and to an extent those of our fellow members of society. All societies if they are going to survive must have some sort of control mechanism if they are to remain healthy and survive more than a short period of time. Call it the human need to socialize or even the desire to be part of something greater, even the most repulsive of our society has that innate desire at some level. That brings us to the question of to what extent does this mechanism need to permeate our society to be effective? In other words, do we bear the responsibility to simply keep others from deviating from the norm or do we allow them to do what ever they wish?(read more here)

Redgage Picture of the day----dusted yellow flower

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Don't you just love that debt?

Trading and man have gone together as long as there have been two people with one having something the other wanted. In fact, you can find records of trade stamped into clay tablets going back for thousands of years. So has been the history of man, gather, hunt and create, but use the excess to trade for the things that you just couldn’t get yourself. Unfortunately, debt has probably been around almost as long as trade has. Being somewhat cynical, I would suggest that debt probably came into existence about 5 minutes after the first traders got together and discovered that one had more to trade than the other. Then again, when it comes to evil in this world, I tend to lean towards the pessimistic side of things. Never the less, though debt has been with us a long time, the fight to eliminate debt has been going on almost as long. We can find arguments against debt in the Bible and in most of the major religions of the world. Yet, we are a nation of debtors who seem to not only enjoy debt, but now view it as such an incremental part of society that anyone who lacks debt is viewed as being weird or abnormal.

How did this happen to a nation of hardworking industrious people? Though there was a time where personal debt was considered something to avoid, that really changed after the 2^nd World War. At that time, our troops were returning home after several years of war and were looking to get married, start families, and begin the life they put on hold to serve our nation. Yet, most didn’t have a dime to their name and no job on top of that. Then comes our good Uncle who offers us low down or no down loans on housing, school loans so that we could continue our education, etc. It was the beginning of our addiction. Since then, we have been bombarded with messages of how easy it was to acquire the goods and services of our dreams, all we needed was to be able to afford the payments. How many of us remember the easy lay-a-way programs that all of the major departments stores once had? Under the lay-a-way terms, you put small cash down payment and paid the rest over a 30-90 day period. Then the item was yours to take home, but things changed and money became easier to borrow. The credit card became a real moneymaker for the banks. (read more here)

Redgage picture of the day-----purple flowers

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A Democratic America!?

I believe we are in for a substantial transformation within the borders of this nation. We are fast approaching the point in time where America will no longer hold onto to the notion of being a Republic and instead will embrace the idea that we must become, a Democracy! Yes, for those who are undereducated or simply ignorant of the facts, America since it inception has been a Republic with Republican ideals of popular representation (The House of Representatives) offset by the egalitarian representation of powerful state interests by the Senate. All of this was topped off by the election of a national leader by an archaic process called the Electoral College. The good news is that soon these aged and obsolete methods of governing will no longer apply as we move this nation closer to that most ideal of governments, the democratically elected government or as some would call it, a government of the majority.

Sounds good doesn’t it? For far too long, we the people have been held in subjugation by those with power and influence who use the United States Constitution as a barrier to the free expression of the majority of Americans. In the past, we have been denied our due rights to food, housing, medical care, and the basic luxuries of life that we so richly deserve though the indirect elections of our US Senators, President and Vice President. It is these indirect elections that have allowed those with special interests to bribe, cajole and deflect the true wishes of the American people. Yet, despite these barriers, we have made progress. One such example was the passage of the 17^th Amendment. This Amendment allowed for the first time the direct election of each State’s Senators. This Amendment was the first step in breaking the stranglehold that the Governors and State Legislators had upon the US Senate. It gave the people of this nation the power to directly control both houses in the legislative branch and with that control; state’s rights were no longer relevant. The power of the Federal government to make laws, set tax rates and punish those we deemed unpopular squarely in the hands of the masses. (read more here)

Redgage picture of the day----fly by

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Anarchy in just 2 months!

Do you realize that we as a city, state, nation, and world are only 47 days from Anarchy? It’s true, floods, drought, wars have decimated world food supplies, and population increases. I know that is a little hard to swallow, but according to the latest government reports, the entire world has only 47 days of food at any point in time. That’s hardly enough time to raise a cow, pig or goat, but more than enough time to plant a few radishes. In truth, the human race is always growing something somewhere to replenish that 47 day supply, but if you consider the state of the world today, are you willing to risk the chance of war or some other disruption in the food supply? It has happened before and will happen again. In fact, it has been nearly 200 years since the “year without a summer”. In that case, a volcano erupted and all but blotted out the sun causing crops to fail throughout the world.

Wait, isn’t America the breadbasket of the world? Yes it is and will continue to be for some time to come, but being a breadbasket and having food is not the same thing! First, we are a capitalist nation where products and services are for sale to the highest bidder. What do you think will happen if a portion of the world suffered a famine? Well let’s use the Middle East as an example. With all of the dollars we have been sending there for the last 50 years, they would easily be able to buy as much food as they desire from our American farmers and who would fault the farmers for selling them the food? They have been racked by debt, government regulations and foreign subsidies for decades. So if a portion of our food was reallocated to foreign nations, what would that do for our own domestic supplies? If this were the 1970s, not much would happen as at that point in time we had a 7-year supply of food for each and every American citizen. So selling a good chunk of our food overseas wouldn’t have been a problem, but things change. Since the early 1980s, we have been giving, selling and distributing that stored food without replenishment. Short sighted, but what can you expect from our Federal government. They can’t even keep enough MREs in stock for our military and have been running hand to mouth for the last few years. One disruption and would soldiers would be going hungry!(read more here)

Redgage Picture of the day----meal time

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Do you know the price of freedom?

What is the price of freedom? If you pay any attention to the world today, that is a question that occurs to each of us at some point. As I watched the riots erupt in the Middle East and later the tearing down of the border fences in Israel, I had to ask myself what would I do to protect my family and myself. Would I show as much restraint or would I lose myself in the moment and do something that would haunt me for the rest of my life? This is a question that has validity when it comes to our personal freedoms here in the United States. Unlike Israel, we here in the United States do not have to deal with hostile nations on three sides rather we have an immigration problem that has been persistent since the formation of the nation itself. Yet, despite our relative safety we still face the ever-present danger of losing our most basic rights to those who represent us.

One of our most basic rights is that of speaking our mind. This is embodied in the 1^st Amendment of our “Bill of Rights” which says:

“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”  (read more here)

The redgage picture of the day----yellow flower

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Do you have a boomerang child?

They are everywhere, living in basements, filling our bedrooms, and dozing in our garage studio apartments. Who are they and what do they want? They are our children and they have come home to roost. After what we thought was a final goodbye with the scheduled weekly phone call and the hectic visit from hoped for grandchildren, we sent our offspring into the big bad world with hopes high as we dialed the phone number to that travel agent so we could book that dream vacation. Yet, like a boomerang, they flew into the night only to curve in a graceful arc right back into our homes and daily lives. We ask ourselves, what did we do wrong? Did we fail to supply enough emotional, educational and financial support so that they would be able to fend for themselves?

Well the answer to those questions are as varied as there are snowflakes in a blizzard and like a blizzard the children we call boomerangs returned to the safety and security of our loving arms. Never the less, we can break the problem into several key points that help explain why so many children have this urge / need to return. First and foremost, there is the cost of living today. Not since the Great Depression have people starting out on their own had such a hard time not only finding employment, but employment that is lucrative enough to allow one to live on their own. What people are now calling the great recession, (which using the textbook definition was a depression), has eroded the buying power of our wages to an extent that the cost of the basics in life can no longer be afforded by the average wage earner. Despite what the federal government says, if we used the same methods to calculate unemployment and inflation as we did in 1980, then the official unemployment rate would be 19% and inflation would be 10%. Significantly higher than what our beloved politicians are willing to admit.(read more here)

Redgage picture of the day----butterfly

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What is your effective tax rate?

As the next elections grow nearer, we are hearing more and more about how we need to bring our deficit into balance not only on the federal level, but also on the state and local levels. So the question has come to mind, what is your effective tax rate and how do you feel about it? Effective tax rate you say and what is an effective tax rate? Simply said, if you added all of the fees, taxes, and charges that your government charges you each year, and divide that by the total income you earn, the percentage you end up with would be your effective tax rate. Have you tried it before? Do you really know how much you actually pay in taxes each year? You really ought to know, for information is power and with that power you can work not only harder, but smarter towards a better life!

So let’s begin the exercise using the income and taxes accrued by my family. Though we don’t make much, we do pay a bit in taxes each year. As of last year we earned, through our various jobs, etc a total of $ 36,000. Yes, we will do a bit of rounding here as it makes things easier to understand. Though we have rentals, they are a family business that we derive no income from of any type. Though for this exercise, you would include any and all sources such as dividends, interest, etc. Do not include company reimbursements for expenses as part of your job.

Totals to date:

Income                        $ 36,000

Then there are the taxes that we pay each year to the local, county, state and federal governments. These are lengthy in their list, but must be listed so bear with me. Also, any time you are mandated to spend money by any government agency that would be a tax. So if your state mandates that you buy car or health insurance 
(read more here)

Redgage Picture of the day---sunrise


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Why we should protect American Industry

With the economy in the tank and each day looking bleaker and bleaker, it seems that the United States is on the road to collapse in just a few short years. This was once a nation of ideas and industry, a place where the world looked to see what was new and novel. A place where each and every other nation wished to emulate as they grew their own economies using the same tools and ideas that we discarded as we developed new methods to improve what we already had. We were a nation of exporters as well as consumers, yet as we look around today, all that we see is a nation of couch potatoes who have no more ambition than that of a rotten egg rolling down the sidewalk. What can we do to improve our lot and bring back what once was?

In a word, we need to renew the process of protecting our own industry as those who surround us do each and every day. Did you know that a car built in the United States and later shipped to China has a duty tax of nearly 100%? Or that in times past, the nation of Japan would submit our electronics to rigorous testing that would include submersion in water in order to restrict the flow of imports into their nation? Unfair you say! Yes, it is unfair, but life in general is unfair and anyone who believes differently is not only a fool, but also part of the problem in this nation today. (read more here)

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Why a Democrat?

We all have our political affiliations and as such, we each have our own carefully thought out justifications for why we vote and for whom we vote. As such, I felt it would be of benefit for each of us to have a better grasp of what the differing political parties actually stand for and why people associate with them. Today’s focus will be that of why I am a Democrat and how I can make you one also. The world of the Democrat is one of constant strife for a playing field that is level and just, for without that “level playing field” there can be no fairness and without fairness, how is one to succeed in this constantly evolving world of ours?

Let’s begin with the basic tenant of why I am a Democrat! I believe in fairness in all aspects of life for all of those who are part of this great nation of ours. For without that childhood notion of fairness that we all have, where would we be? Is it not fair for everyone to have the same access to a job regardless of their qualifications? Those who demand that I be able to read, write, use a computer, much less show up on time and on a regular basis for the job for which I have been hired are simply the bigots and racists who have bedeviled our society since its formation over 200 years ago. When they terminate me for my sloth are they not being unfair? I can name a hundred others who would do just as bad of a job! It is unfair for any company to take away my income that I so desperately need in order to pay my bills. After all, it is my job and I can use it anyway I want! I want politicians who understand my needs and are willing to use the force of government to assure me of a “living wage” no matter what my true worth.(read more here)

Redgage picture of the day-----dock

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The End of the 4th Amendment!

It has finally happened! After years of chipping away at our 4^th Amendment rights, a court in Indiana has finally admitted the truth with a 3/2 ruling that simply stated, the people of Indiana have no legal right to prevent government agents from entering their home at will. The ruling was the result of a case where the police entered an apartment after following a couple that indicated that they needed no further assistance from the police. The husband protested and after being moved aside by the police, he defended himself by pushing aside the police officer against a wall to prevent his further entry into the home. The officer’s partner then used his taser to subdue the husband whom then taken into custody for assault upon a police officer. In this ruling the court indicated that the previous standards by which officers could enter a home without a warrant were no longer valid and in the interests of public safety and modern interpretation of our 4^th Amendment rights the use of home owner consent or exigent circumstances we no longer needed. The court also indicated that any individual who felt they were wronged still had the option of a civil suit against the officer, but that individual’s ability to reasonably resist the intrusion by government officials were against good government policy.

The 4^th Amendment states that:

The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.  (read more here)

Redgage picture of the day----orange flower

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