“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did so. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.”
--Mark Twain
This year, I focused on acquiring new skills. I acquired 4 new ones - two legal, two illegal yet Constitutional. Unlike the soft-heads on Youtube, I won't be discussing the illegal yet Constitutional items.
On the legal side, I worked quite hard on my barter and negotiating skills. In particular, convincing people that owned something I wanted, but at the moment, did not know they wanted to sell or trade that item (or service.)
In my Precious Metals business, I have folks coming to me to either buy or sell. It takes no effort to guess that they want to do one or the other! What I've worked on, and I think quite successfully, is probing folks - outside of the PM store, via Craigslist, garage sales, rummage sales - with the right types of questions to let them understand that they don't really need what they've got, and that they should sell or trade with me (yes, this is all covered in the book I'm writing that I discussed a few weeks ago.)
And it's all done honestly, ethically and honorably. I'm a big believer in karma. What goes around, comes around. You may be able to "get over" on some folks, but it will eventually come back to bite you on the ass. It's all about educating people that making the sale or trade will benefit them more than retaining the item in question.
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The other legal item has been learning - or enhancing - the gathering of intelligence data. I'll give one example, but this applies to any topic in which you want a better understanding of who is doing what, and why.
We're seeing this militarization of our domestic police forces. It's not a matter of opinion, it's a fact. At this point in time, it's a done-deal, so understanding how it happened is irrelevant. What I want to know is how is this going to be used, and what types of events could trigger its widespread usage. Perhaps most importantly, what can I do to eliminate or minimize my chances of being on the receiving end of its use?
For part of your intel gathering, a simple, partial step is to watch TV. A great deal of intel is freely given on the numerous reality cop shows we are flooded with on TV nowadays.
These "elite units" (how can they ALL be elite units?) love seeing their mugs on TV, and they freely give you the "inside story" on how they prepare for and execute their (quite often) over-the-top raids.
Watch what they do. Watch how they think. Understand their weaknesses, their vanities, their tells. Pay attention.
If you're the target of their affection, are they more inclined to set a non-violent trap by sending two officers or detectives to grab you as you pick up groceries, or are they more inclined to violently invade your home at 3am, with flash-bangs, smoke bombs and overwhelming numerical superiority?
Regardless of you alleged crime, you'll likely get the latter treatment. Keepin' America safe, one joint roller at a time...
Hey, they've got the toys, and they want to play with them.
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Want some areas in which to gather intelligence?
Precious metals: If the ratio of ounces mined for silver and gold is 9:1 (9oz of silver mined for every 1oz of gold), why is the price ratio around 1:60? Who would benefit by this imbalance? How are they able to affect these supposedly "free markets". Either gold is too high, silver is too low, or a little bit of both.
Healthcare: We have the largest influx of people in the history of the country (Baby Boomers) moving into the Socialist Security and Medicare systems over the next twenty years or so. It will crush these systems. Why would it make sense to design Obamacare to push more people, more quickly into this system (due to being poor)? Who would benefit by this massive socialist move? When it collapses, how will the government pay for these benefits for which they've made promises?
Yes. There is a relationship between the two items...
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I'm going to do a bit of a format change for this site in 2014. I'm going to pull back from every post being a long, detailed novella, and hit you with more short-and-sweet insights and how-to's. I want to post more often, and writing a book every time I post just drags things out, and usually ends up meaning the post doesn't get posted. I've got well over a dozen half-done posts just sitting there in blogger purgatory.
I'll still do the longer posts when it's about something that has legs. How-to instructions, or broad societal trends, or financial stuff. I'll hit you short-and-sweet with the more topical, current events stuff.
We'll see how that works out.
Have a safe, healthy and prosperous 2014!
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Copyright 2013 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
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