Stop Pulling the Wagon

This is not my original piece.  It came to me via email but it fits so well with what I have previously written on this subject that I share it here.  Bob

JUST FOR FUN AND WITH TONGUE IN CHEEK. 

If  I wanted to destroy the United States economy and impoverish its citizens here is what I would do in five steps:

Step 1.  I would seek out and recruit incompetent people to infiltrate and take charge of our government.  Next, I would split them into two groups, which I will call, lets see, how about “Congress” and “Administration”.  The folks chosen  need not be co-conspirators,  just big spenders with big egos and no common sense.  All of these folks would be given unlimited borrowing and spending  power and the bills would be sent to the taxpayers.

Step 2.  I would have laws and regulations passed to make it nearly impossible for any individual or company to drill, mine, extract or in any way acquire any of the natural resources we need as a nation, within the physical boundaries or territorial waters of the United States.  All such needed materials would be required to be imported, preferably from countries not friendly to us.  This would be done in the name of protecting the environment.

Step 3.  I would have the government pass laws and regulations to punish hard work and financial success either by individuals or companies with a combination of regulations, fees and  confiscatory taxes.    For whatever “profits” were left over after the fees and taxes were paid I would unleash packs of morally bankrupt, ravenous Trial Lawyers to file endless lawsuits and litigation.   This would encourage any individual or company to move production (and jobs) out of the U.S. to places with more friendly environments to manufacturing and employers.

Step 4.  I would have “my” government reward laziness, incompetence and failure with government handouts, grants, promotions, do nothing projects and various “freebies”.  These same people could later be hired into government make work  jobs in a variety of government agencies and departments  where nothing useful or productive is accomplished or expected.   That way they could continue to get paid for producing nothing and retire to fat lifetime pensions and benefits .  They would fit right in.

Step 5.  I would make sure the government kept increasing the national debt to the point that even paying the interest on the debt became impossible.  They could then destroy any remaining wealth in the country by hyper-inflating the currency,  just as Germany did following World War I.   In Germany at that time it got to the point that it took a wheelbarrow full of money to buy a loaf of bread.  For a more recent example one need only look to Zimbabwe where inflation reached 79600000000% per month in just the last couple of years. 

What’s that you say?   I’m too late?  Somebody stole my idea? 

Like I said.  Just for Fun.  Something to think about.           ……..Bob

“WE HAVE MET THE ENEMY AND HE IS US”

POGO

I have always had a special place in my heart for the 1971 Pogo Cartoon strip by Walt Kelly (1913-1973) in which our little hero returns from a kind of scouting mission to announce what he discovered about possible invaders. (I think I have that right –  its been a while).   Although Pogo (and Walt Kelly’s ) web site makes a point of not wanting Pogos famous observation to promote any one group or cause, I am sure he would have no problem with the observation that the enemy we most encounter is, as Pogo so astutely observes, ourselves.  I would very much  put myself at, or near, the top of any list I might compose.

I believe that we, as a nation are at a tipping point, or crossroads if  you prefer.  One of our nations  founders wrote (and I paraphrase)  that our democracy would last until the people discovered that they could vote themselves money from the public treasury.  A sort of  “Day of Reckoning”.

Maybe the question we should be asking ourselves it whether we as individuals, and as a nation, can again return to our nations roots and  practice self discipline, financial discipline and the willingness to postpone gratification of desires until we can pay for them.  Or, do we continue to demand instant everything and let our credit cards  and  Uncle Sugar (the government)  pay for it with borrowed money.

I am old enough that I can remember when Lyndon Johnson was President and promised us that we could afford both “Guns and Butter”.  In other words we could afford to fight and pay for the Vietnam War and at the same time launch a massive “War on Poverty” transferring our nations wealth to those in need.  I was thrilled at the time thinking that poverty would be eradicated,  there would be no more poor people and we would all live in a land of plenty.  President Johnson was wrong and I was wrong.  What we did was to acquire several Trillion (thats Trillion with a T)  Dollars in debt while seriously damaging the family stucture for millions of people. All with the best of intentions.  In the process we also created a whole sub-culture who became entitlement “junkies”.

As a nation we are now 14 Trillion Dollars in debt and that total is growing at the rate of more than a Trillion Dollars a year.  We are rapidly reaching the point where just paying the interest on the debt will consume an ever increasing portion of the nations annual tax revenue.  Do we have the remaining discipline as a people to make the hard choices and practice self denial  to halt and reverse this process?  I am beginning to doubt this.

On its present course this government wagon is one  I do not want to help pull.   I think I will work on a way to not participate!

The Barbarians at the gate are us!

Something to think about………..     

Bob Bandy

Often while working on the computer I like to listen to the radio. 

GET RICH WORKING FROM HOME!                                     WORK PART TIME!                    

EARN $50,000 A YEAR OR MORE WORKING A FEW HOURS A WEEK!

 NO EXPERIENCE NEEDED!                    ANYBODY CAN DO IT!                   NO SELLING!

CALL FOR DETAILS!            OUR SECRET PLAN CAN MAKE YOU WEALTHY!                   

                        VISIT OUR WEBSITE!        www. LOOKINGFORSUCKERS.COM

I’ve got a question.   What do they need me for?   If the plans are that easy, why do they spend their money to recruit me?   Why don’t they just do it themselves and pocket all the profits?   

I have some good friends who got involved in one of these schemes (and I use the word intentionally).  They spent many thousands of dollars on a piece of equipment that creates a “wifi” computer zone.  This would allow customers at a restuarant to use their credit cards to go online.  The plan was that my friends would share in the revenues generated and have a large income with little or no work once they purchased the piece of equipment and found a place to locate it. 

If my memory serves me correctly my friend told me that they received exactly one “Revenue Sharing” check for $9.00 and never another dime.  The machine/equipment that cost them thousands of dollars became a “dinosaur” within a very short period of time and the company that advertised and sold it would not buy it back at any amount.  The equipment ended up at home in their garage and the only “benefit” they ever got from it was the business loss writeoff on their income taxes.  In other words they lost all their money.  The company that advertised the business plan was really only in the business of selling the equipment.  IF THEIR BUSINESS PLAN HAD ANY REAL MERIT THEY DID NOT NEED MY FRIENDS.  THEY COULD SIMPLY HAVE HAD THE PIECE OF EQUIPMENT INSTALLED THEMSELVES AND KEPT ALL OF THE PROMISED REVENUE/INCOME FROM ITS USE!  Their only real business plan involved was to sucker people into buying the equipment with an unproven “blue sky” promise of  “easy” profits.

The truth is that you can make money working from home but it doesn’t involve any pre-packaged “plans” being sold to you.  It involves you putting together a workable plan based on something you have expertise in that is marketable.  It also involves discipline and hard work.  In the process I found out that the worst boss I have ever had is me. 

THE GOOD NEWS ABOUT HAVING YOUR OWN HOME BUSINESS IS THAT IT IS CONVENIENT AND THE BAD NEWS ABOUT HAVING YOUR OWN HOME BUSINESS IS THAT IT IS CONVENIENT!   THAT IS YOU FIND YOURSELF WORKING ALL THE TIME IF YOU WANT TO SUCCEED.

So, the next time you hear one of those ads ask yourself these two questions:  1. Why are they spending their money to run this ad?  And, if it is that easy, why do they need me?  A third question to ask yourself is:  What are they selling?

Just something to think about.                                  

Bob Bandy

I have long believed that the word ‘FREE’ is perhaps the most abused and misused word in our language.

Almost nothing is truly ‘FREE’. Somebody, usually you, paid something for whatever it is, either directly or indirectly.

Does anybody feel that anything you get from the government is free?  Really?

But even on a consumer level consider the following:

For example: BUY ONE – GET ONE FREE!  The cost of the item you are getting ‘FREE’ is ‘buried’ in the profit of the one you paid for. It would be more accurate and truthful to say something like: Buy one item and receive an additional item “free” of additional cost but in today’s world that is not ‘smart’ advertising.

We got into a big fight with eBay because they “strongly suggested” to us as a Seller to start listing our items with “Free Shipping”.  “Strongly suggested” is a phrase that I remember from my days long ago in the Army when it was often phrased “We can’t make you do this but we can make you wish you had”  I argued with eBay that there is no such  thing as “Free” shipping because shipping costs money.  Their reply was that it is not dis-honest or unreasonable to build the cost of shipping into the cost of the product and therefor you can offer “Free Shipping” because you do not have to add an additional amount to the purchase price to cover the cost of  delivery.  When a potential buyer looks at the product they do not have to do the mental math to add on the shipping charge.  In the end we found out eBay was right (from a marketing perspective).  Customers love ” Free” shipping.  To this day I hate it that eBay was right.  Maybe I’m just a sore loser.  Still, it violates all logic from my perspective.

In fact the logic behind all this “FREE” stuff just makes me crazy but it is rampant in our world today.  Everywhere you look, somebody is offering something for “FREE”.  I believe we need to remember that the bean counters who rule our world have built the true cost of “FREE” into the cost of the products we buy.  In the end “it ain’t Free”.  There is a cost for “Free”.

Remember that the cost to the seller for the “FREE” coupons you use is built into the average selling price you pay for the products you buy.

Here is another thought to lock away.  If you think your home is “FREE and CLEAR” when you pay off your mortgage,  try not paying your property taxes for a couple of years and see what happens.  You see, you can never truly own your home as “FREE and CLEAR”  property.  In reality, you are only renting it from the government.

Learn to be naturally suspicious when someone offers you something for “FREE”.

Who was the singer whose song included the line “Freedoms just another word for nothing left to lose”?  (Janis Joplin – from her song “Me and Bobby McGee”)

……Bob

LET ME SEE IF I UNDERSTAND THIS CORRECTLY.

OUR GOVERNMENT HAS HALTED  NEW DRILLING FOR OIL IN THE GULF OF MEXICO FOR AT LEAST SEVEN YEARS.

CHINA, VENEZUELA, CUBA, MEXICO, BRAZIL AND OTHERS ARE STILL DRILLING AND PLAN TO EXPAND DRILLING IN THE GULF OF MEXICO.

SINCE THE UNITED STATES WILL NOT BE DRILLING WE WILL CONTINUE TO HAVE AN OIL SHORTAGE.

TO FILL OUR DOMESTIC NEEDS FOR OIL WE WILL NEED TO IMPORT OIL.

I BELIEVE IT IS SAFE TO ASSUME THAT WE WILL HAVE TO PAY FOR THIS IMPORTED OIL.

NOW FOR A QUICK REVIEW TO MAKE SURE I UNDERSTAND THIS CORRECTLY:

1. WE AMERICANS CANNOT DRILL FOR AND GET THE OIL OURSELVES.

2. OTHER COUNTRIES, NOT ALWAYS FRIENDLY TO US, CAN GO AND GET THIS SAME OIL FROM THE SAME SITES WE ARE NOT ALLOWED TO DRILL IN.

3. THESE OTHER COUNTRIES CAN THEN SELL THIS  OIL TO US AT A PROFIT.

4. THIS ALL MAKES SENSE.

NOW I GET IT.  GUESS I WAS JUST HAVING A PROBLEM WITH GOOD ECONOMIC AND POLITICAL LOGIC.

BOB