Images of America

Coming to a town near you.  This happens to be in Sacramento, Ca -




Can someone again explain to me how a woman is supposed to protect herself against 3 young males unless she has a gun?  And how you're supposed to do that in a state where your ability to be granted permission to protect yourself is at the whim of an elected official?

Did you notice the real stud - the guy who threw the left-hook that put her down?  He had a work badge around his neck.  On one site, someone made note that it was an Apple, Inc., access badge (they've got a plant in close-by Elk Grove).

So, it's not like they were doing this for money.  It was sport.

Put those rabid dogs down.
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I found this simple little line in a bigger article on the "Occupy" protests -

Five other people wearing masks were arrested as demonstrators marched through Manhattan to Times Square.

WTF?  How can you arrest people for wearing masks?  What might be the charge?  Flagrantly wearing a mask while exercising your First Amendment rights?

Was this mask-wearer arrested as well?

I'm pretty sure the motto - if not the expected "tone" -  of police departments is, "To Protect and Serve,"  not "Supress and Intimidate".

Hey, with Holloween coming up, NYC has got to be a fun place.  Venture outside with a scary mask, end up in the joint.  That's if you're able to navigate your way through the maze of checkpoints. 

Nice... if you like a police state.
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More California insanity.  Did ya hear?  The youth drug epidemic has been solved.  We're banning gloves.  Really.

You've got to listen to this puddin' head.  THIS is the face of California politics.





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No pix:  I'm liking Herman Cain alot.  My one concern is one of the "9's" in his 9-9-9 plan.  The one that establishes a national sales tax.

If those maggots in DC get the national sales tax, we be screwed.  Pelosi & Company will melt into a hot pool of Commie Love - and it would have been handed to them by someone who appears to be a decent guy. 

Any hope of keeping the Commerce Clause contained to its stated limits - sales between states and with other countries - will be forever lost.  The Clause has already been used and abused, and this would simply render it irrelevant.
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If I haven't already pissed you off with my heartless callousness, this should put you over the edge.

I have this personality flaw:  I genuinely believe that I'm responsible for myself.  I know, I know, it's out of touch with today's times, but it is who I am.

I think this should apply to everyone.  If I make a mistake, it's up to me to fix it.  If I make a correct decision, I get to benefit from it.  It's simple.  Some might say simplistic, but I can live with that.

There are others that don't agree with me.  Most vote Democrat.  That's painting with a broad brush, but I've found it to be generally true.

It is their belief that we're all responsible for each other.  Shared sacrifice.  Economic/social/gender justice.

In short, socialism/communism.

I found this site [link] that has pictures of folks participating in the Occupy (fill in city name) protests (have you heard - they're not 'protesters' they're 'occupants' - LOL).  I was scanning the pix, and getting more and more pissed off as I proceeded. 

Take this one, for instance (click to enlarge) -

Here's some Tough Love from ol' Uncle Chief Instructor -

1. You got a Masters in something for which there's no demand?  You DID do some sort of market survey before you went to school, right?  You didn't go get one of those unmarketable degrees like 'ethnic studies' or 'protest dogma' or 'gender studies' did you?  Ah, cupcake, you've been led down the liberal garden path.  Lots of jobs for accountants, sales, marketing and the like.  Ain't as sexy or as interesting while chattin' up your buds at a bong-fest, but it helps keep meat on your bones.
2. Landmark research?  4.0 GPA?  LOL, BFD!  What can you DO to earn my business money?  It doesn't sound like you can DO anything (other than whine).
3. Can't find a job?  Naw, WON'T find a job is more like it.  Craig's List is full of jobs.  Maybe not the one you had dreamed about as you closed your eyes and clicked your ruby-clad heels, but they're there.  Take one, today, build some marketable skills, build some contacts, and become an adult.
4. $92K in loans for a degree that didn't provide you with skills the market demands?  Hmm, maybe you're too stupid to get a job.  YOU SPENT NEARLY $100,000 ON SOMETHING YOU LIKE BUT CAN'T SELL?!  Let that sink in, then go out and get any job you can land.  Today!  YOU can't be too picky.
5. You want to do what you studied to do.... ain't that sweet.  I want to sit around the pool all day sipping Jack and Coke while I [REDACTED CONTENT].  Guess what, cupcake?  Ain't gonna happen as long as I want to provide for myself and my family.  Sucks, huh?
6. Finally, contact Jesse Jackson, Jr.  He has proposed that the government pay all 15 million unemployed people $40,000 per year to do stuff we need.  Like cleaning up parks and stuff.  I'll bet if you asked really sweetly, he'd see if he could get your college debt eliminated as well.  The nice Democrats are like that.

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1. See above.
2. 42 hours a week?  Let's see.... the last time I worked 42 hours a week was ...... NEVER!  Princess, would things be better if you could work, say, 20 hours a week and make a couple million a year?  I hope you've got a hell of a fastball, and a wicked slider.  Otherwise, get your ass out of your mom's basement and get another job.  Ask for some OT.  REDUCE your spending (THERE'S a radical concept, huh?).  Become self-reliant as soon as is possible.
3. Hug and kiss your mom.

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1. Hey, at least you don't have $92k in college bills!
2. OK, do this:  Take this nickel.  Hold it between your knees, only removing it when you need to pee or poo.  Viola!  No more babies!
3. If you REALLY love that soon-to-be-baby, you'll give it up for adoption.  You can't take care of yourself, let alone another human being.  Both you and your baby will then have a chance to be positive, contributing members of society.

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Copyright 2011 Bison Risk Management Associates. All rights reserved. Please note that in addition to owning Bison Risk Management, Chief Instructor is also a partner in a precious metals business. You are encouraged to repost this information so long as it is credited to Bison Risk Management Associates. www.BisonRMA.com

Funny How It All Came Together

I had mentioned in my last post that the Occupy Wall Street folks need to be focused.  They're trying to pattern themselves after the Tea Party movement, which is laser-focused:  Lower taxes and smaller government.

I saw 3 different "spokespersons" be asked the same question late last week, and they all had basically the same answer. "What are you trying to accomplish?  What are your goals?"  All three of them - San Francisco, DC and somewhere else basically said, "We don't know (WTF?!)  We've got a communications dude that will be figuring it out for us."

After the first one, I thought it was a joke.  Really?  You're out protesting, but you don't know why?  But it appeared as though it was the rule, and not the exception.
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They appear to now have more focus - they hate banks and Wall Street - but there's no agenda or end-game.  Some commie type guy called a radio station Sunday night, and the host was giving him all the rope he needed to hang himself.

"So.  Let's say you're successful, and you're able to shut down, oh, Bank Of America.  How will your life be better?"  Queue crickets chirping.

After the bilge water between his ears caught an electrical signal, he went back into the pre-planned rant against the banks, their evil white executives, blah, blah, blah.

The hostess tossed him another question:  "If you're able to shut down B of A, what will you tell the hundreds of thousands of employees that will have lost their jobs?"  More crickets.  Then rage.

This REALLY pissed him off.  He went into this hyper-wired rant about how "the people" would start a bank that was fair and equitable, and not have any profit, and blah, blah, blah.  It sounded like he envisioned a commune credit union that did business out of a cash drawer picked up at Office Depot.

The hostess noted that that would require Congress to re-write all of the banking laws, including those just force fed to us by the Dodd-Frank banking reform - the same laws that cut some fees banks were charging, so they just made new fees, and that's what you're out here protesting?  He was unclear on the concept.

Then, the hostess just got plain cruel.  She questioned the role of government.  Big government.  "And really, shouldn't you protesters be hammering the government, and not the banks, since it was the government that made the decision to give the banks the bailouts?"

I believe I heard his head explode on air.  A good time was had by all.
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Ooops.  It seems that some of this "spontaneous," grassroots, "of, by and for the people", protesting isn't quite so.  It seems that some of them are being paid to be there...

http://video.foxbusiness.com/v/1207109585001/wall-street-protestors-getting-paid/?intcmp=obinsite

Hey, at least it's kinda, sorta helping with the unemployment problem, huh?  The Tea Party organizers are just cheap, I guess.

Funny how I missed this story on the network TV news shows.  I'm sure if there had been paid Tea Partiers it wouldn't have made the news either....
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Did you hear what Governor Jerry "MoonBeam" Brown did here in California?  It's now illegal to get a tan, but if you're illegal, you can go to college.

Yep, if you're under 18, you can no longer go to a tanning salon.  The decision isn't up to you or your parents - the state knows best.  My guess is that going to the beach - unless you're in a burka - will soon be illegal as well.

But there is good news if you're here in California illegally:  You can now get government-paid financial support to go to college.  Isn't that special?  You're here breaking the law, so we heap benefits on you.

I sure am glad we're using up our state surplus on these high-minded programs.  We've got a surplus, right?
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That festering piece of Brown shit (sorry, I'm pissed off) also signed a bill making open carry illegal,.

All for good reason, though -

"We view the open carrying of unloaded handguns as a threat to the safety of the communities we police and the safety of our officers," said David L. Maggard, Jr., president of the California Police Chiefs Association.

Really, Dave? You want to explain that one? How in God's Name could it be a threat to the community by someone carrying an UNLOADED GUN?  Of course, there's an exemption... for police officers.

We're their boss, right?  Not the other way around?  Yet they've got more rights (again) than we do.  Hmm.

Not to leave good enough alone, Brown also signed a bill requiring the state to keep records of long gun purchases.

The justification for that one?

In a message accompanying the signed bill, AB809 by Assemblyman Mike Feuer, D-Los Angeles, Brown wrote, "Since the state already retains handgun purchaser information, I see no reason why the state should not also retain information pertaining to the sale of long guns."

Hey, we're already invading your privacy, why not do a little bit more, huh? What's the harm?
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I think I've known in my heart that I would eventually be leaving this state.  I've worked very hard to come up with alternatives.  Many of the more rural areas are less restrictive with gun laws, and we could just move there.

What is not changing is the insanity in Sacramento.  This over-arching need to spend money we just don't have.  This insane belief that we must be "moral and compassionate" and turn a blind eye to laws that are mean to people that are here illegally, or whom choose to "make a living" by not working.

I called one of my brothers yesterday and said that my own personal "line in the sand" had been crossed.  The event was something I had witnessed a hundred times before, but this time, it was one of those "Perfect Storm" moments.  More newly legislated state spending, more newly legislated reduction in personal liberty, and witnessing the result of this mind-set.  It dawned on me that California will NEVER change.  Never.  I just won't play any more.

Death By A Thousand Cuts has finally bled me out.

The event I witnessed was three generations  of women buying receiving food.  On my dime.  Grandma, mom and sissy, each with their own cart, each in turn pulling out their various forms of government script.  Mom and sissy each had cell phones plastered to their heads.  All three were adorned in beautiful clothes, each had newly quaffed hair and spiffed up nails.

What none of them had was an ounce of shame.  There was no attempt to cast their eyes away from the glare they were getting from me.  To the contrary.  Their look was one of, "I'm entitled."

After they had bagged their bounty, they all proceeded to the section of the store where cigarettes and alcohol are sold.  I bagged up, and went to my car and waited.  Grandma and sissy cooled their heels at the curb while mom went and got the car.  A few minutes later, she pulled up in a late model SUV.  The hatch was popped, the bounty was secured, and off they went.

I felt the life drain from me.
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I've lived my entire 52 years in California.  My entire family lives here.  I've worked hard to find a way to stay here to stay close - "Maybe I can move to XYZ county and it won't be quite so bad."

Well, it's just not going to work.  The political pandering will continue.  The welfare state will expand.  Personal liberty will be reduced.  I know all of this as fact.

This state has a terminal cancer.  No amount of chemo or surgery can help. The model we've built is one of parent and child.  The state, as the parent, is dying.  The children are being stuck with the hospital bill.  Some of the kids are furiously working to pay the bills.  Some of the kids are stealing the parent's meds.  More and more, kids like me recognize the parent is terminal, and withdraw.

We're sad.  We remember how lively and vibrant our parent used to be  We wonder if there was something we could have done differently.

But the parent has no chance of recovery.  Death in imminent.  We only hope it happens quickly.

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Copyright 2011 Bison Risk Management Associates. All rights reserved. Please note that in addition to owning Bison Risk Management, Chief Instructor is also a partner in a precious metals business. You are encouraged to repost this information so long as it is credited to Bison Risk Management Associates. www.BisonRMA.com

Money Grab, Preps With Leftovers, Caveman!

Debit card charges. Bank of America is now going to charge customers a $5 fee to use their debit cards each month.  This is just like banks did with ATM cards.  They get you addicted to using them, then they start affixing fees to access your money - even though it's MUCH less expensive for them to deliver the cash via a machine instead of a human teller.  

Bank of New York, I believe, is now charging customers a service fee for making deposits.  Why dat?  They can't make any money lending it out - in fact, it costs them money, as they must pay the FDIC insurance fee.  No one is borrowing money - regardless of how low the interest rates might be - so they've got to make it up by charging you to warehouse your own money.

Do you need more reason to take your money out of the bank?
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Occupy Wall Street protesters:  Growing, and spreading [link].

Gotta say, I agree with the general premise, but they need focus.  Too many folks with differing causes.  Stay focused on the banks and the bailouts, and they'll get some popular support.

As Ol' Remus says, "Stay away from crowds."  So far, the protests have focused mainly on cities with Federal Reserve Bank branches.  The SF Fed is located right next to the first BART (subway) station that enters San Francisco.  If their protest spread to the BART station, business in SF would be seriously hindered.  This same line goes all the way to the SF airport as well, so that could mess things up as well.

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Made up a batch of cream cheese with some fresh milk that was on its way to not being fresh any longer.  In the past, I've made a non-rennet cheese out of non-fat dry milk that was getting a bit gamey ["Gettin' Cheesy" link].  This time, I made it out of some fresh 2% milk that was a week past it's expiration date (still smelled and tasted great).

I brought about 3/4 of a gallon up to 180F, and added 2 tbs of white vinegar, gave it a stir, and..... nuthin'.  It wouldn't break into the curds and whey.  I eventually added another tbs and turned the heat back on and it broke up very nicely.

It was MUCH softer than the dried milk stuff.  I'm guessing that was because of the added fat.  I poured it into a cheesecloth-lined colander, where I rinsed out the vinegar with warm water.  I let that drain a bit more, and decided I was going to make a cream cheese of sorts.

I added dehydrated onions, garlic powder, salt, black pepper and perhaps a quarter cup of milk and stirred it all up.  Awesome!  I filled up some ramekins with the cheese spread, and it will adorn my morning bagels over the coming weeks.
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I made up some killer Asian-style spare ribs this weekend.  Knowing I'd have lots left over (I have difficulty not cooking for an Army, even though it's just me and my wife!), I decided to do some prepping with beans and the leftover ribs.  I reserved the excess marinade, plus the drippings from the ribs (I cooked them in the oven).  The marinade was a homemade teriyaki sauce.

First up, I took my overnight-soaked beans (4lbs dry), added them to a pot with sauted onions and carrots.  I covered them with water to about an inch over the beans.  I then poured in the reserved marinade (about 1 1/2 cups) and let the beans soak in some of the flavor.  I brought the beans to a boil and let them go for about 45 minutes.

While this was happening, I got my canner, jars, lids and rings ready, and started taking the meat off the ribs.  I ended up with about 3 cups of shredded meat.  I broke this into 10 piles (my canner holds 10 pints).

I pulled the 10 jars from the canner (where they were in 180F water) and put one pile of meat into each.  I then filled each jar with beans to within an inch of the rim.  The jars were then filled to within a half inch of the rim with the bean broth.

Ten pounds pressure for 75 minutes, and I have ten pints of Asian BBQ beans on the shelf!
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I still had a butt-load of beans left.  I cooked them - without meat - for another 4 hours or so.  I then followed  the dehydrating process outlined in a post I did way back in 2009 ("Dehydrating Beans" [link]).

When I did the beans for the post in 2009, they were unflavored.  This batch has the Asian BBQ flavoring, and are very, very good.  Two thumbs up!

They'll go with the rest of my Just Add Water [link] preps.
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You know how to make a great teriyaki sauce, right?  Equal parts soy sauce and sweet - brown or white sugar, or honey - is the key.  Then I usually add some orange juice, grated ginger, Chinese Five Spice and some hot chile/garlic paste.

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Hey, did you see the mini-documentary, "I, Caveman [link]" last night?  Pretty damned interesting.

Basically, it was about 10 regular folks to go out into the wilds of Colorado for 10 days.  They can only use the tools of the caveman to survive.  They were given two days worth of water, caveman clothes, and a shelter (they also got a two day survival course prior to being set out on their own).

Good Lord, are we a soft bunch of humans.  The main thing I got from it was, in the event of a societal break-down where we are forced to form small groups for mutual benefit, the first rule will be, "Don't work?  Don't eat!"

Spoiler Alert!  The scientists that were watching these folks realized they had little or no chance of supplying themselves with enough protein.  They introduced one of the first primitive weapons, something called an "atlatl".  It's a dart/arrow flinging contraption.

Somehow, these folks brought down a bull elk with this thing.  Holy crap!

A magazine called, "Make" has a PDF of an article [link] that includes instructions and diagrams for making one of these things, their darts and how to use it.  Pretty cool...
 

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Copyright 2011 Bison Risk Management Associates. All rights reserved. Please note that in addition to owning Bison Risk Management, Chief Instructor is also a partner in a precious metals business. You are encouraged to repost this information so long as it is credited to Bison Risk Management Associates. www.BisonRMA.com

Paper vs. Physical

There's an interesting phenomenon going on right now with physical gold and silver bullion.  Not much is being sold locally right now.  This has nothing to do with demand - we've got folks calling and showing up in our shop, fairly begging to buy bullion.  It also has nothing to do with actual supply - we've got plenty of bullion in stock.

We're just not selling.  And we're not alone.

For those of you who don't track this sort of thing, gold and silver have had huge drops over the past week or so.  Going back to September 5th, gold is down about 15% - or around $300 an ounce.  Silver is down about 30% in this same period.

It's been ugly, but it's almost been expected.  And let me say this loudly:  It's likely to happen again, yet my partners and I are still buying as much gold and silver as we can get our hands on.  I believe you should be doing the same (assuming you have cash available, and your food, equipment and self-defense preps are up to snuff.).

Why dat?  Because these recent drops have been caused by the "paper" world of finance.  Stocks, bonds and precious metals contracts.  Every one of these things are leveraged to the hilt.  Just like during the first Great Depression, when the paper world crashes, it can take a lot of other parts of the economy down with it.

But, at the end of the day, if you have physical PMs, you'll have something.
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So, why aren't we selling our PM bullion in our store?  Well, we are, but just not at standard premiums.  For instance, one ounce gold usually sells for 3-5% over spot.  We're selling ours, but for a minimum of 10% over spot, usually a bit higher.  Our 1/10th ounce American Gold Eagles are going for around 20% over spot.

If we thought that this recent PM price decline was real - that the economic fundamentals of America were getting better - lower real inflation, lower real unemployment, lower federal deficits - we'd be selling every piece of gold and silver we owned.

But the fundamentals haven't changed.  We've been witnessing a "domino effect" in the paper wealth markets.

As previously noted, Uncle Ben Bernanke introduced Operation Twist.  It caused the stock market to plummet.  This caused the brokerage houses to increase their margin requirements (people that buy stock with only a partial cash payment had to increase the amount of cash in their accounts).  This caused people to sell assets - such as gold and silver - to cover their accounts.  This made PM prices plummet.  This PM price drop caused the COMEX (the market for commodities) to increase THEIR margin requirements, which resulted in further PM price drops.

Individuals are now flocking to physical PMs to take advantage of these drops, and finding them much more difficult to locate.  Virtually every local PM shop I've spoken with is holding firm.  Even our primary regional wholesaler is holding tough.  About the only place you can get gold at "normal" margins is if you buy online.  SCPM.com, APMEX.com and Kitco.com.  They're selling 1 ounce American Gold Eagles for around 5% over spot.  All of them are getting hammered right now, and are posting notices that delivery will be slow.

As we've been telling our customers, if their primary goal right now is to get gold cheap, this is their best option.  The downside is that you have to include shipping and insurance costs, PLUS you lose the biggee - your anonymity.  Still, unless you're making a VERY large purchase, making a purchase or two online shouldn't put you on too many government lists.
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For our business, this is obviously a risky strategy - sending customers to competitors.  I can say that every single customer I've spoken with understands what we're doing.  They've all checked other local shops and are seeing we're actually at or below their prices, even with our high margins.  They've all said that even if they do make online purchases, they will be back because they love our customer service, immediate possession and anonymity.

Time will tell....
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A related aside:

Speaking of anonymity,  please tell me that you don't use any of the "social media" - Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn - in your real name.

I get a lot of requests from friends and former customers of my gun business to be a LinkedIn friend (or whatever they call it).  I send them an email letting them know that I don't participate in those sorts of media.  Most are OK with it.

I don't see the benefit to me for doing this.  It seems like all of these social media gigs are little more than popularity contests.  The more "friends" you have, the better of a person or business you must be.  Pretty shallow.

All I can see is risk.  If I get a hair up my butt and say something bad, it's there online forever.  Yeah, yeah, yeah, they say you can delete your stuff, but I know this to be untrue.  Once it's digitized, it's there forever.  It might be there on some back-up tape or in some directory that's not public, but it's there.  And it will raise its ugly head at the least opportune time.
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Copyright 2011 Bison Risk Management Associates. All rights reserved. Please note that in addition to owning Bison Risk Management, Chief Instructor is also a partner in a precious metals business. You are encouraged to repost this information so long as it is credited to Bison Risk Management Associates. www.BisonRMA.com

Twist and Pout

The following text, in italics, was written yesterday after the markets had closed.  I got busy, and didn't hit the 'post' button.  Today's comments are at the bottom of the post...

You may have noticed today that just about everything in the financial markets went all to hell.  The stock market got slammed.  Precious metals got slammed.  Oil got slammed.  About the only thing that showed a gain was, shockingly, the US dollar.

What happened?  Yesterday, good, old Uncle Ben Bernanke announced, "Operation Twist".

The short explanation of this centrally planned economy move was the Fed's intent to "flatten" the yield curve.  Basically, they want to make short-term interest rates much closer to long-term interest rates.  The thinking is, by making long-term loans more affordable, more people and businesses will borrow, and the economy will miraculously shake off this depression.

Yeah.  How's that working out?

Well, bank stocks, in particular, took a beating.  Banks earn money on the difference between short-term rates (which is usually the rate by which they borrow from the Fed) and the long-term rates.  Tighten margins, and you lower profits.  Lower profits, kill stock price.  A pretty simple concept.

Simple to those of us that are able to think outside of the "impact models" the Fed surely used when they crafted this ill-conceived plan.  Don't ya just love central planning?

Uncle Ben also noted that, contrary to previous reports, the ENTIRE economy is sucking wind.  Shocking news, I know.  After he let it be known that the whole economy is in trouble, the rest of the stock in the market started to crater.

This little event apparently triggered margin calls.  Big Dog investors can buy stocks by only having to put up a percentage of the actual price of the stock they've purchased.  If the price of the stock goes down, the brokerage houses get panicy, and require the buyers to increase the amount in their margin accounts.  That means they have to come up with more cash.

If you don't have it sitting in a bank account, you must sell assets.  Many of these folks sold precious metals.  If you looked at the make-up of the drop in PM prices, approximately 1/3 of the drop was due to a rising dollar, and the rest was due to sell-offs.

Look at this chart -

It is showing the relationship between the Dow Jones Industrial Average, and the price of gold for the last 10 years.  Quite the trend, no?

So, back in 2000 and 2001, it would cost you around 40 ounces of gold to buy one share of each of the Dow companies.  You'll notice that the chart only goes to August 2009, and that ratio was down to 9.98 ounces to one share.  That means that over the 10 year period, gold gotten 4 times more valuable than the Dow (or the Dow was only 1/4 as valuable as gold).

What's it look like with today's close?  6.18:1.  Holy crap.
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What's next?

Who friggin' knows?!  Personally, I'm sticking to my plan:  Until the federal government stops printing money, and they start running a balanced budget, I'm holding my precious metals.  I'll continue to buy more each month (or buy other tangible products).

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As mentioned, the idea behind Operation Twist was to push down rates so consumers and businesses would rush out, get loans and SPEND, SPEND, SPEND!

Two problems with that:  First, consumers aren't buying lots of homes or cars right now.  Uncertainty with jobs and the economy have people jittery.  Home values also continue to drop.  Why would you rush out to buy a home with the high expectation that its value would drop in the near future?

The second problem is with businesses.  If you don't absolutely, positively need something, you don't buy it.  There's no fluff.  Right now, you're looking for ways to trim costs, not increase expenditures.  The only type of credit businesses are interested in are for cash flow - Accounts Receivable factoring, lines of credit, etc.  Few are looking to buy long term assets like heavy equipment or real property.

Banks aren't making a lot of these cash flow loans because they don't think businesses will have the ability to repay them.  Many businesses understand this, and THIS is one of the reasons they're hoarding cash.  They realize that they have to pay their bills strictly from their internal cash, and if they want to expand, or to take advantage of business opportunities, they're going to have to fund the purchases 'organically' - with their own money.  The old fashioned way.

Bottom line:  Buckle up, it's gonna be a bumpy ride for a while...
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Back to today:

My oh my.  Right now, the Dow is up a smidge, but precious metals are continuing their decline.  Big time.  Gold is down about another $60 an ounce.  Silver is now approaching its prices near the beginning of the year, and is down over 10% TODAY.

The talking-heads on TV are finally discussing how this is because the margin buyers are literally having to cover their asses because of their paper losses.

Disturbingly, the talking heads (at least those on Fox Business Channel) are posing the question:  What will it take to spur more lending?

Everyone wants the 'quick fix'.  Our national mindset has got to change.  The 'go-go-go' economy moves very quickly, and when things start to go badly, they go badly in a big way.  Steady, measured, non-hyped growth is manageable and allows companies to adjust course when needed.

Throw in a government that is bent on central planning - looking to do what it can to control the economy to get more tax revenues - and you end up with the mess we've got.

Everyone wants to be the hare, but the tortoise is the one that usually finishes the race...

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Copyright 2011 Bison Risk Management Associates. All rights reserved. Please note that in addition to owning Bison Risk Management, Chief Instructor is also a partner in a precious metals business. You are encouraged to repost this information so long as it is credited to Bison Risk Management Associates. www.BisonRMA.com

Just Some Stuff To Think About

I saw an article over at SHTFPlan.com [link] on governments restricting access to precious metals.  Take a peek.

Precious metals directly challenge the authority and control of government at all levels.  It gives you the option to "hide" assets (as if that's a bad thing that only criminals do).  It gives you the option to make a profit without paying a tax.  It gives you the ability to not need government in every facet, in every second of your life.

Here's a for instance:  You can come into my PM shop and buy $10,000 in gold or silver.  If you use a debit or credit card, or a personal check, you walk in and out, in as long as it takes you to choose the PM of your liking.  Bring in $10,000 cash, and you get put on a "special list".  A list that was developed to track drug dealers, terrorists and other ne'er-do-wells.

The difference?  Checks (which are now fully electronic - even the paper ones) and debit/credit cards leave an audit trail.  Cash?  Not so much.  Just like walking into Walmart and paying cash for a 3-pack of boxer shorts, if you buy PMs with cash, there's no need for your identity to be known.

If TPTB don't know who's got the gold, they don't know who to go after for their piece of the pie (or from whom to confiscate if it comes to that.  Again.) if the PMs are sold.

As the SHTFPlan.com article notes - and I was unaware of - some areas of the US are now requiring identification when selling..... PMs.  If they know who sold it, they know who to go after for the tax bite.  After all, people selling now are virtually guaranteed to have made a profit.  If you did, you need to pay.  Evade the tax and you're a criminal, subject to asset forfeiture.  Wanna guess what kind of assets they'll take?
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The idea is to move to fully electronic "money".  Food stamps are now mostly a debit card.  Checks are scanned at their point of acceptance - be it a bank or a merchant - and often returned right to the customer as their paid receipt.

Think what you can buy with your debit or credit card - any store, any restaurant, any gas station, many vending machines, doctors, car repair, groceries, porn, gambling, utilities - you get it.... almost anything.  Off the top of my head, I can't think of anything other than paying tips for a valet parking kid that you can't do with plastic.

Every book, every gun, every case of ammo, every box of MREs, every pack of seeds, every backpack, every case of water, every single purchase you make as a prepper - a clear indication that you're an anti-government terrorist - can be marked, cataloged and remembered until needed.

"He was a fringe survivalist, with a large cache of guns, gold and a hoard of food - enough for several people for several years.  Clearly, he's an anti-social threat to society, and just a plain nut!  Based on his purchase records, authorities are concerned that a good deal of his ammunition was not present at this heavily-fortified compound in the quiet, tree-lined neighborhood."

Translation:  He had supplies for the bad(der) times ahead, he practiced his shooting, and he had an alarm system and dead-bolt for his home in the 'burbs.

Pay cash, while you still can.  Green, fold-able fiat currency.
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Question:  What is the purpose of non-lethal self-defense items such as pepper spray or stun guns?  It's to temporarily stop the attacker to allow you to escape.  Nothing more.

This is great if you're a potential mugging victim.  Immobilize the bastard and beat feet.

What if you're a home or business owner "guarding" valuable equipment, goods or valuables (like cash or precious metals)?

Bad guy enters your "space" and you hose him down with spray.  Then what?  If you flee to safety, his friends come in and clean you out ('cause there WILL be at least two of them).  If you've called the police after you hosed the guy down, how long before they get there?  Are you going to wrestle this guy down and hold him til the cops arrive?

If you've fled, jumped into your car and gotten to a safe location, you've burned 5 minutes or so.  Another 5 to ten minutes before the police arrive.  How much gold, guns, equipment, jewelry, cash, computers and other goodies could the bad guy grab in 8 minutes or so (leaving plenty of time to escape)?

Lots.  You may have won the battle but lost the war.

You need to think about why you've set up a defensive plan, and how it will be employed.  If part of that plan is it guard stuff, you almost have to include lethal tools into your plan.

Also, remember to have a layered defense.  You may not be there when the bad guys come calling.  Think "onion" - you've got to peel back a number of layers to get to the core.  Locked door.  Alarm system.  Locked safe/closet/storage area.  Punji sticks. Personal defensive tools.
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More stuff to cringe about....

This guy [link], a blogger, was prosecuted for, "felony inciting injury and a misdemeanor charge of threatening".  Against public officials, no less.  Thankfully, he was found not guilty on the charges, but is still in custody for threatening 3 Chicago judges.

On the other hand, this second guy openly called for the killing of an entire race of people.  Yet, he goes unprosecuted.




Why dat?  Here's your multiple-choice quiz:

1. Was the first guy prosecuted because he was white, and the second guy not prosecuted because he's black?
2. Was the first guy prosecuted because he threatened public officials and the second guy only threatened regular old, common folks (implying that public officials are superior to common folks)?
3. Eric Holder ('nuff said)?
4. All of the above.

Thank God the jury for the first guy had some sense of the Constitution.  You're allowed to be offensive in your speech, even when it's directed towards public officials.

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Copyright 2011 Bison Risk Management Associates. All rights reserved. Please note that in addition to owning Bison Risk Management, Chief Instructor is also a partner in a precious metals business. You are encouraged to repost this information so long as it is credited to Bison Risk Management Associates. www.BisonRMA.com

Health Care Home Run

I heard this clip on my favorite radio station this morning. One of the hosts made the point that society DOES NOT equal government, as Wolfie was implying, and as most people think.





Of course, the health care system, like our government itself, won't voluntarily change. They both make too much money and have too many special interest groups dependent on their existence.

Only a full-on crash will fix it. Close your eyes and envision one of the World Trade Centers imploding into dust. When that happens to our economy, we have a chance of getting back on track.
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Some hope: The number of folks in the audience that whooped it up when Wolfie asked if the 30 year old should just be allowed to die. Why is this concept of personal choice/personal responsibility such a foreign concept to us now?

Mr. 30-something wanted a boat and fast car instead of health insurance. He crashes one of them and doesn't have the money to pay for his own care. Somehow, I'm supposed to feel bad about his situation, and fork over money for his care. Are you kidding me?

If I'd been in the audience, I'd have been standing on my chair, tossing streamers and blowing those funny little horns you hear on New Years Eve.

"Let 'em croak! It'll send a message to others that are making the same choice of trying to foist their bad choices on the wallet of America. Whoop!"

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Copyright 2011 Bison Risk Management Associates. All rights reserved. Please note that in addition to owning Bison Risk Management, Chief Instructor is also a partner in a precious metals business. You are encouraged to repost this information so long as it is credited to Bison Risk Management Associates. www.BisonRMA.com

The "Bunched Panties" Syndrome

A call into a local 911 Emergency Call Center:

911:  Emergency Services.  What's your emergency? 

Caller:  I have information about a bank that's going to be robbed. 

911:  What's your name, sir? 

Caller:  That's not important.  Let's just say you know me very well.  I'm credible.  A bank in the city is going to be robbed in the next few days.  The robbers are armed to the teeth - AK47s, big ol' 30 round banana magazines, bunches of other evil assault weapons, and explosives.  Lots of explosives. 

911:  OK, sir, settle down.  Tell me what bank is going to be robbed. 

Caller:  I dunno.  It's one of the banks with lots of money. 

911:  Hmm.  Tell me who is going to rob the bank.  Can you give me names and descriptions? 

Caller:  No.  All I know is that 3 or 4 guys are going to rob a bank, and it's going to be very violent.  They're going to take over the bank and plant bombs at all of the exits.  After they take the money, they're going to kill everyone in the bank, and blow it up.  It's going to be gruesome. 

911:  Wow.  When is this robbery going to happen? 

Caller:  I dunno.  It's just going to happen really soon.  Really violent.  Lots of death and dismemberment and carnage. 

911:  How do you know this is going to happen? 

Caller:  I heard it from a guy.  He knows a guy that knows a guy that's going to do it.  He HATES banks.  It's gonna be bloody.

Dozens of banks are robbed every day in America.  Many are "take over" robberies where the bad guys pull guns and point them in the faces of the bank employees and customers.  The likelihood of a violent bank robbery is very high every day in America.

How do you think the local, state and federal authorities would deal with this fictitious 911 call - being in possession of information from a credible source that a violent and deadly bank robbery was going to take place?

Do you think they would shut down the city and search every car that was near a bank?  Do you think they would search every person that entered every bank in the city?

Of course not.  So why do we have people in America such as this anonymous poster that think it's A-OK to turn NYC into Fascist Checkpointville and stop and question every citizen who happens to be on the road after authorities have received "credible, but unsubstantiated information" about a terrorist attack?

So we should just let the terrorists attack and not try to catch them?

Catch who?  Attack what?  Using your logic, apparently anyone and everyone is a terrorist suspect, so we all need to be rounded up and "processed".

What the hell is wrong with you?

Here in America, you have to have probable cause before the government can stop and question you.  You need to be swerving on the road before they can pull you over for drunk driving, for instance.  They can then question and evaluate you to determine if you are likely to be drunk.

The exact same thing SHOULD go for possible terrorist activities.  If you know 3 males aged 30 to 40 are traveling in NYC in a dark colored SUV, go ahead and stop THEM.  You have information that would support this police action.

The anonymous commenter also tossed in this fear mongering' straw man argument -

What the CIA knows is it is only a matter of time until the terrorists get WMDs, probably a nuke. When the mushroom cloud rises over your city would you say the government did too much to stop it or not enough. It absolutely will happen in our lifetime. Islam declared war on us back in the late 70's we just didn't accept that fact until 9/11. They will probably win this war.

Let's take your opening sentence as fact:  Terrorists WILL get WMD.

I'm going to turn the rest of it around on you.  With this knowledge, what would YOU suggest we do?  Are you suggesting that since we know with absolute certainty that the US will be hit with a terrorist WMD, that every person in this country is subject to government search at any time, any where?

Isn't that your only logical course of action?  Since we have no way of knowing when, where or who will deliver the WMD, mustn't we all be suspects, all of the time?  After all, as was demonstrated with 9/11, the bad guys can sometimes hide among us and catch us off guard.  Everyone must be a suspect at all times.

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I'm telling you, I have no doubt that some sort of terrorist attack will happen again in America.  Absolutely guaranteed to happen.  Whether it's real or a 'false flag' incident (ala 'Fast and Furious' gun running), I just don't know.  I just know it will happen.

It will be used to justify further encroachments on our liberties.  Just like Bush did with the USA PATRIOT Act.  Dead Americans equals good news for those bent on restricting our freedoms.

It's the "Bunched Panties" syndrome.  Scare Americans with a boogie man, and get whatever laws passed you want.  It's all in the name of keeping Americans safe!

To answer Anonymous' 'mushroom cloud' question, if the attack is some sort of nuke, I will loudly criticize our government.  Since there is no way to mix up a batch of nuclear material in your basement, it will mean that our government failed in its job to protect our borders.  Again.

But, just like when the 9/11 terrorists were able to defeat our laughable immigration policies, the punishment will be meted out on us, not on those who failed to do their job.


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Copyright 2011 Bison Risk Management Associates. All rights reserved. Please note that in addition to owning Bison Risk Management, Chief Instructor is also a partner in a precious metals business. You are encouraged to repost this information so long as it is credited to Bison Risk Management Associates. www.BisonRMA.com

I'm Sorrowful, For Sure

Why are we remembering this day?  Honestly, I don't get it.  We got our ass kicked ten years ago.

As a direct result of that ass kicking, we've pissed on the Constitution - mostly via the USA PATRIOT Act.  For God's sake, a government agent can merely whisper, "terrorist" and an American citizen can be snatched up and put into a hole, that old rag from the 1700's be damned.

If I want to fly on a private aircraft, I am subjected to government goons fondling me and my family before we're granted boarding privileges.  The goons that are doing the fondling are, at the very best, horrible at their jobs.  Seventy-five percent of the time when they are tested with fake guns or bombs, they fail.  Every single terrorist that has tried to take down a plane since 9/11 GOT ON THE PLANE!  They were simply more incompetent than the TSA "professionals" charged with stopping them.

Someone, somewhere, heard some guy in some unknown corner of the world say that a, "credible, but unconfirmed" attack is going to happen in NYC or DC.  Real soon.  On Friday, they didn't even know the names OR DESCRIPTIONS of the kinda-maybe terrorists.

The result:  Checkpoints searching every nook and cranny of every car going into a tunnel or on to a bridge.  WTF?  Shut 'er down, button 'er up, show me your papers, bub.

It's all Security Theater.  The same government that failed to stop the initial attacks because of their incompetence in enforcing our immigration laws, has gone all Jabba The Hut on us.  Huge and immobile, but pretty damned powerful.  Bordering on omnipotent.

We get codes and color schemes and serious looking officials telling us sheep how they're keeping us alive.  "Give a little of your freedom so you can live another day."

Bin Laden won.  We're bankrupt both financially and Constitutionally.

Why would I celebrate that?

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Copyright 2011 Bison Risk Management Associates. All rights reserved. Please note that in addition to owning Bison Risk Management, Chief Instructor is also a partner in a precious metals business. You are encouraged to repost this information so long as it is credited to Bison Risk Management Associates. www.BisonRMA.com

They Just Don't Get It

Obama:  We're going to give businesses a $4000 credit if they hire someone who has been unemployed for 6 months or more.

As a businessman, why do you think the length of unemployment would be a primary selection criteria?  More importantly, why would I risk my business by hiring someone simply because Nanny is offering me a carrot?

His mindset is that of union workers.  Time equals superiority equals preference.  Quality is not part of the equation.  Maybe that's why unionism in the private workplace has plummeted (to something like 6% of the workforce).

This is along the lines of having a "diverse" workforce.  Gotta have the "proper" number of blacks, Asians, Hispanics, women, non-white men, gays, disabled, elderly, blah, blah, blah.  Mostly, it's about race.

Bullshit.  Whenever I hear that, I state, "I only want a homogeneous workforce.  They're ALL the very best candidates.  Their skin color is irrelevant."

I get the nervous chuckles and the clucking, "Oh, of course, of course.  Quality of character, not color of skin," and then they look at me with that, "Hmmm, must be one of those ghastly 'Tea Bagger' types I heard about on the news.  I hope he doesn't beat me with his bible or shoot me dead where I stand.  Oops, I just soiled myself."

They just don't get it.
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Our Monarch-In-Chief proceed to tell us how he needs a gazzillion more dollars to pay for his visionary plan, and that it would all be paid for. His plan called for additional cuts to government spending.  Those savings would be used to "pay" for his new programs.

Wait a minute!  I thought he was already running the government as close to the bone as was compassionately possible.  So, what he's now saying is he's willing to throw someone under the bus - whoever is going to be cut - in favor of some other "more deserving" special interest group.

Does anyone with two gray cells to rub together really think anything will be cut?  The spending will happen NOW and the cuts will be deferred to sometime in the future.  Meaning they will never happen.

They just don't get it.
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Quote of the day, perhaps the year -

At the Republican debate, Rick Perry when commenting on what the Monarch-In-Chief has done correctly -

I give more props to those Navy SEALs that did the job, but -- and the other thing this president's done, he has proven for once and for all that government spending will not create one job. Keynesian policy and Keynesian theory is now done. We'll never have to have that experiment on America again.

It didn't work during the Great Depression.  It didn't work when BushCo gave us Stimulus 1.  It didn't work when the Monarch-In-Chief did it in Stimulus 2.  It won't work for Stimulus 3,4,5... 100.

Government is the most inefficient spender of money.  Bar none.  Look at private charities (government, for the most part, has become a giant PUBLIC charity organization).  If private charity overhead is in excess of 12% they're looked at suspiciously and donations drop off.  Government inefficiencies are rewarded with increased taxes or increased national debt.

They suck more money from the economy in the belief that their inefficient use of capital will provide a better Return On Investment than private investment.  They know better.

History shows them to be mistaken.  Communism and central planning have never worked anywhere at any time.  Yet they persist because the beast they've built must be fed.  They believe that they are smarter and more enlightened than any communists in history.  They've got it figured out.  They'll make it work.

They just don't get it.
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They probably DO get it.  The elites, at least.  They want to see our country crumble.  They know that they have to sell the idea of, "something for nothing" to the masses.  Vote for us, and will give you stuff.  Food, money, housing, education, clothing.  We'll design the system to remove the stigma of being 'kept'.  What's not to like?  Do nothing, and get paid for it.

We "Tea Baggers" are nothing but greedy haters that don't care for our fellow man.  How could we not want to help the Monarch-In-Chief create jobs?  How could we not want to feed the "disadvantaged" among us? How could we not want to extend unemployment payouts?  How could we not want to save poor old Fred's home from foreclosure?

Just a bunch of greedy haters.  Racists greedy haters.  Gun toting, bible thumping, racist, greedy haters.

Well, I guess by the current definition of all of those words, I'm guilty as charged.

I want private industry to create new jobs, since that's what they do best.  I want private charity to feed the poor, since private charities can discriminate between the truly poor and the loafers.  I want the chronically unemployed to 'man up' and take jobs that are below their education and experience, and for them to re-train themselves for jobs that are needed.  I want old Fred to figure out what to do with his home, and not dump his problem on me.  I don't recall spending the night at his home, or getting the tax benefits he had during the good times.

I just don't get it.


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Copyright 2011 Bison Risk Management Associates. All rights reserved. Please note that in addition to owning Bison Risk Management, Chief Instructor is also a partner in a precious metals business. You are encouraged to repost this information so long as it is credited to Bison Risk Management Associates. www.BisonRMA.com