Politics and Monetary Policy
Blessings upon you and your family
For all who read this, merry Christmas, happy Hanukkah, asalam-u-alaikum, and blessed be. Whatever road you follow, let us all join in hoping and praying for peace.
And while I hesitate to mix politics with a simple holiday greeting, or with the message of this site, I fear I must. Our nation has reached a critical turning point in its history.
If peace, prosperity, and freedom are at all important to you, I urge you to support Ron Paul in your state’s upcoming primary election. If you don’t know who he is, just read about him. Check his record. Listen to what he has to say. That’s all it took to change me from being apathetic and cynical about the future of our republic to energized and hopeful. It can do the same for you, and it will, if you simply listen to the message with an open mind.
“Ask not what your country can do for you — ask what you can do for your country.”
— John F. Kennedy
“The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.”
— Franklin Delano Roosevelt
Ask yourself what the “mainstream” political candidates offer you other than fear itself.
The Republicans offer your fear of shadowy threats from overseas that “hate our freedom.” (Why can’t they conceive of the notion that perhaps they hate us because we occupy their countries and prop up brutal dictators?) They offer you fear itself.
The Democrats offer you fear that you cannot survive without the government there to protect and support you. They offer you fear itself.
Meanwhile both parties offer staggering amounts of your hard-earned tax dollars to the corporate interests that finance their campaigns and keep them in power. But to you and your family? Fear itself! Nothing more.
In 2006 the voters of this country overwhelming voted to send the GOP bums home, hoping for a dramatic change in course. What has changed? Nothing. Nothing at all. We’re still in Iraq, still going bankrupt, still seeing our freedoms eroding more and more every day. For the love of God and all that is holy, we’re actually debating whether water-boarding, a favorite tactic of the Spanish Inquisition, is acceptable in America! How can we have let things slip this far?
Ron Paul is the only candidate who offers change. True change. He wants to give the Republic back to you and your family. His message is simple, honest, and consistent: freedom, and an end to the American empire. But don’t take it from me. Just google his name. Watch a few videos on YouTube. Visit his site: RonPaul2008.com. Decide for yourself. Don’t let the bobble-heads on TV tell you who is a “legitimate” candidate. Don’t let them dictate who has a chance and who doesn’t. Don’t let them cow you into apathy. Think for yourself, and decide for yourself. For God’s sake, decide for yourself now, if you ever want to do so again.
Peace be with you this holiday season. Peace be with us all.
Stop buying stuff!
You’re destroying the planet, you’re keeping yourself poor and miserable, and screwing up your life. Don’t believe me? Watch this. Think about the true costs of the useless crap you buy every day that fills up your closet and eventually ends up in the landfill. Learn about, study, and ponder externalities. How many are you (at least partially) responsible for?
Ask yourself this, and answer honestly: Would you really be all that bad off if you gave up everything you own except basic kitchen fixtures, a bed, and a modest roof over your head? (Ok, you can have some more basic furniture and a simple wardrobe, but you must buy it all used at thrift shops. And you can have basic utilities, so long as you don’t overuse them.) Would that ruin your life? Would it really have any appreciable effect on your well being at all? Most people derive 90% of their happiness from their family and friends. And to fill in that last 10%, you can get unlimited entertainment, enough for a lifetime, free at any local library, along with a free Internet connection.
Now consider how much money you’ve blown over the years on items that aren’t on that list. Imagine if you had saved it all, and invested it at a modest 8% return. Seriously, run the numbers and see. For most middle class Americans, the result would be more than enough to create a lifetime of financial independence.
It’s not too late. You can just stop. You really can!
In fact, I ought to launch another site called “Million Dollar Closet.” The rules would be the same, except your starting stake can come from selling crap you already own on eBay or Craig’s list. The hook - no buying ANYTHING new until you have a million in the bank. You can buy food (but not at restaurants), pay your bills, and pay to repair stuff you already have, but that’s it. I’m confident most people could get rich in much less time than they imagine this way. So why not do it?