You cannot delegate your personal safety or preparedness. YOU are responsible. Accept The Challenge to prepare yourself - and your loved ones - for any threat or emergency that may come your way.
At least 3 years ago (I think it was longer) I caught these 3 trout. I vacuum sealed them in FoodSaver bags, and threw them in the freezer.
I was recently digging deep in the freezer and I found them. Hmmm. Would they still be good?
I thawed them out, threw them on the pan, gave them a light coating of olive oil, sprinkled them inside and out with lemon pepper and baked them in the oven.
They were absolutely fantastic.
My wife is not a big "fresh fish" fan - she doesn't like anything that is not store wrapped. Somehow, a product that has been handled by who knows how many people is safer and better than fresh-caught food. Go figure.
So I cooked this up, cut off the head, tail and fins, popped out the bones, and plated it up. She got home from a meeting and wolfed a piece down. She even commented about how great it tasted and there not being any fish smell.
Let's keep this just between us, OK?
---
Yesterday morning, my wife fairly bounced into my office and proceeded to stick a foot in my face.
She has had an ongoing problem with toe nail fungus for years. Her big toes, especially. She has seen a raft of doctors. Anti-fungal creams, prescriptions, nail removal - you name it. Nothing worked.
The foot that was in my face had a perfect set of nails. No gnarliness to be seen!
How did she fix it? Vicks Vapo-rub!
She got on the Internet and found an article, and decided to give it a try. She figured it couldn't hurt to try. Who knew?
Need to add some Vick's to the home medical kit...
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Since we're discussing fungus, let's bring San Francisco into the mix.
The Socialist-Haven-By-The-Bay is crumbling as we speak. They almost advertise to the region's homeless, "Come On Down!"
In good times, they were able to service all of these people. In bad times, not so much. So they need new ways to raise money.
These folks are true professionals in finding creative ways to steal your money. Their latest scam is to place yet another tax on alcohol. The pretense is that the money will be used to pay for the city's drug and alcohol programs.
We all know it will be dumped into the general fund, never to be seen again.
In addition to the supervisors, public-health officials and many community groups support the fee. They point to the city controller's reports, which conclude that the measure would have a negligible impact on San Francisco's economy since private-sector job losses would be offset by municipal revenue gains.
Translation: Sorry, sport, we're kickin' your job under the bus because the tax increase will make us more money than you will.
Feel the love....
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Copyright 2010 Bison Risk Management Associates. All rights reserved. You are encouraged to repost this information so long as it is credited to Bison Risk Management Associates. www.BisonRMA.com
News about Black graduation rates is getting a bit of play on the news right now. I'm actually surprised there isn't more reporting on this because this is one of the great ways for the federal government to justify taking more of our money and giving it to others. Well, BORROWING money on our backs to give to others.
The report (PDF) shows how the graduation rates for black males is significantly below that of white males. Big time. Only 47% of black males nationwide start the 9th grade and graduate with their classmates in 4 years. 78% of white males meet that standard.
And of course, this is the fault of whites. The implication of this study is that whites are standing at the perimeter of the good schools with pitchforks and rifles with bayonets keeping the "disadvantaged" out of their schools. Apparently, we let the Asians sneak through, because their graduation rates exceed that of whites.
The communist educational group (is that being redundant - communist and educational group?) tells us the reason blacks don't do as well as whites is because they don't have the same opportunities. They've even gone as far as to quantify this in their Opportunity To Learn Index (OTLI). Here's how they "do the math" -
OTLI compares the opportunity of students from disadvantaged groups to that of White, non-Latino students for access to those 25 percent of the schools in a state where nearly all students graduate on-time and college ready. For example, if 40 percent of a state’s White, non-Latino students are enrolled in the top quartile of that state’s schools, and 20 percent of students from disadvantaged groups are given the opportunity to study in such schools, the OTLI is 50 percent: disadvantaged students having half the Opportunity to Learn as White, non-Latino students in that state.
Of course, anyone can attend any school in America. You may need to MAKE THE DECISION to move, you may need to make some sacrifices or make other personal choices, but you can send your kid to any school in America if you have enough desire.
: lacking in the basic resources or conditions (as standard housing, medical and educational facilities, and civil rights) believed to be necessary for an equal position in society
Wow. Disadvantaged used to mean things that happened to you through no fault of your own. Things like being born deaf or blind. Bad things outside of your control.
In this study, you're considered disadvantaged for no reason other than the color of your skin. What's THAT teaching blacks? The thought of this - the incessant drumming of "the racial excuse" - turns my stomach.
Of course, it's all about personal choice. White and Asian families - in the aggregate - more often make the choice to do whatever is necessary to get their kids into the best possible schools.
As an example, when my boys were grammar school aged, we made the tuition payment for a private school BEFORE we made our mortgage payment. My wife (who is of Hispanic descent and who will punch you in your jaw if you call her 'disadvantaged') got a job at the school so we could get a tuition break. Still, for most months during their earliest school years, we didn't have enough money for both the mortgage and tuition.
THAT'S how important education was to our family.
What I would like to see is a study of graduation rates based upon family structure. How many of the non-graduating students, by race, had a single parent household?
Or maybe a, "non-essential devices-to-income" ratio. How many household with little or no income somehow find a way to buy an X-Box, but not pay for an education? Maybe we could also do a book-to-video game cartridge study as well.
But we're not going to see such a studies, at least not widely reported in the press. It would shoot holes in the whole idea of disadvantaged groups. Should you be considered "disadvantaged" when you've made the choices that put you into your current economic straits?
It's not my fault you chose to buy a big-screen TV or expensive "smart phone" instead of putting money away to move to a better neighborhood, or to pay for private school tuition.
It's not my fault you chose to get pregnant, have a kid, and not be able to support yourself or the kid.
It's not my fault you chose to accept the, "keepin' it real" outlook that is prevalent in the poor black community.
It's not my fault that you chose to rely on the government for your rent, food, clothing and education, effectively destroying your need and desire to provide for yourself.
Your primary oppressor is looking at you in the mirror.
If you want to remain a ward of the state, don't change a damned thing. The choice is yours. At least have the personal dignity not to bitch about it.
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If you want to get pissed off at someone other than yourself for your predicament, your first stop on The Hate Parade should be the teacher's unions. They are your biggest outside enemy, and they are the ones with the most to gain by you staying in your current predicament.
Ask them why they are bending over backwards to shut down or limit Charter Schools. In particular, you might want to ask them about The Harlem Success Academy.
This is a charter school in the poorest NYC borough, and it is almost all black. Their success rate is absolutely fantastic. They have 95% of their students at or above grade level proficiency. That's compared to only 56% of other NYC public schools being at the same level. Nearly twice the success rate in a virtually all-black school. It seems like the color of your skin is irrelevant when you make the right choices.
They have so many people trying to get into these schools that they must hold lotteries. WTF? These are black families that recognize the value of a good education, and they're literally being stopped at the door.
But the teacher's unions don't like it. They're not in control. Teachers are actually held to standards (GASP!) and that's just not acceptable.
Charter schools, which are public schools overseen by private boards of directors, have exploded in Harlem over the last few years, with 24 of Manhattan’s 29 charter schools located north of 96th Street.
The area is home to two equally passionate factions: those who believe that charters provide a focused quality of education better than Harlem’s district schools provide, and those who believe the growth of charters starves traditional schools of resources. Perkins has firmly aligned himself with the anti-charter activists, a position that came into focus at hearings he held on April 22 as chairman of the New York State Senate Committee on Corporations, Authorities, and Commissions.
Hey, NEWS FLASH! They DO starve traditional schools of resources. That's a great thing. Why would you want to continue dumping money into a system that has proven itself incompetent? Why would you want to continue depriving children of the ability to go to a school that actually produces smart kids?
Because the status quo is in the best interest of the teacher's unions. Your kids education, be damned.
Accept The Challenge
It's in all of our interest to have an educated citizenry. The more people are able to care and provide for themselves, the less burden is placed on social programs.
Realistically, I don't see the current Income Redistribution climate changing any time soon. We can look to the future, and there are some things we can do -
If you're in a district with low graduation rates, regardless of skin color, get in front of your school board members and ask why this is happening. Ask if they've drawn up plans to charter schools. Ask them why they should be re-elected if their districts are not performing.
Ask what they're doing to address low graduation rates aside from throwing more money at the problem. Tell them we've tried that for the last 40 years, and it hasn't worked. You want ideas that have worked elsewhere.
And remember, just because you don't have kids in school doesn't mean this issue doesn't affect you. If you pay taxes, you're affected!
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Copyright 2010 Bison Risk Management Associates. All rights reserved. You are encouraged to repost this information so long as it is credited to Bison Risk Management Associates. www.BisonRMA.com
Housing Starts Increase In July After Falling Sharply In Two Previous Months
My very first reaction was, "That is a bold-faced lie."
I had just finished up another article in a long line of reports that said residential housing was taking a beating. Housing prices are flat and we will soon have an official housing inventory equal to a full 12 months of demand. A full year's worth of demand!
These numbers don't include the tens of millions of homes held on the books of the banks - homes that have been foreclosed upon, but the banks are holding so that the prices don't get further depressed by a rush of homes hitting the market.
I also know that home builders aren't stupid. They are not going to be building homes in increasing volumes at a time when there is an over-supply of the products they manufacture.
So how could that headline be accurate?
It wasn't until the fourth paragraph of the article that the real story was presented -
The monthly increase was due to a jump in new construction of multi-family homes, which surged up by 17.3 percent to an annual rate of 95,000. On the other hand, new construction of single-family homes fell by 4.2 percent, the third consecutive monthly decrease.
Translation: More people are losing their homes and are being forced to move into apartments. There is increased market demand for residential housing owned by someone other than the occupant.
If you look at the headline, your impression is that things are all bright and rosy. The pinheads in the stock market are fairly wetting themselves over the "good" news, and the market is soaring. Really?!
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I'm finished with trying to "justify" why the press feels this need to spin the news one way or the other. The left-leaning press gives us, "puppies and kittens," and the right-leaning press gives us, "ghouls and goblins." They were in opposite roles when Bush was president.
I don't want them to spread doom-and-gloom, and I don't want them to blow happy-smoke up my butt. I just want them to accurately report what's going on so I can get a feel for what is going on in the world.
Accept The Challenge
I think of people like my mom. She's retired and very active. She almost couldn't care less what's going on in the "outside world". She doesn't have the time or inclination to read in-depth news stories. Her news consists of brief headlines and talking-heads on the local major network TV channels. I think the majority of Americans get their daily dose of news the exact same way.
No wonder we're in this mess. As long as the politicians we elect appear to be trustworthy, we elect them. We barely scratch the surface of what they've done. Most are professional politicians. It's all they've ever done.
All sizzle, no steak. All hat, no horse. A bunch of empty suits.
Instead of the media informing us, they actively work to influence us. Seriously, thank God for the Internet! At least those of us with the inclination to dig into a story have the ability to do so, and WE can use that knowledge to educate and inform others.
Sure, we will apply our "spin" on the events, but that's OK, as we're discussing our personal opinions. We don't have the pretense of Professional Journalist.
Read, read and read some more. There is so much going on right now - we have to stay informed, and we need to have confidence in the information we're receiving.
Question everything. Especially question things that report what you expect them say. For instance, I think gold and silver are going to continue to rise in value. When I read reports and stories that support that belief, I verify every point they make. Being suckered because they're telling us what we want to hear can end up quite badly.
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Copyright 2010 Bison Risk Management Associates. All rights reserved. You are encouraged to repost this information so long as it is credited to Bison Risk Management Associates. www.BisonRMA.com
Our One Bucket Per Month Challenge finished up on Sunday. In addition to the entries posted online, I got two more entries via email. I told both entrants that I had to be able to publish their entries to be in the running, and both declined. This confused me!
Anyways, we got some very good entries. Lots of great ideas. I know I will be taking parts of all of the entries, and incorporating ideas from each into my own buckets, which will be used for off-site caching.
I must say I was a bit swayed by Shy Wolf's "All Slim-Jim's-All-The-Time" idea, but had to decline it ;-)
What the choice came down to was: Variety, Longevity, Nutrition, Edibility and Ease of Preparation.
All of the entries met all of these items, albeit in varying degrees. With all of them, you'd still be alive and healthy after a month of eating from the bucket!
The solution that won is on the expensive side of the entries, but I think it would have best met one of those intangible items: Comfort.
I felt that all of this was best met by Pete Smith's (blog: Patriots Against The NWO) suggestion.
So, Pete, congrats! Shoot me an email, and I'll get your silver round in the mail.
Thanks again to all of you that sent in entries. Great creativity, folks!
Accept The Challenge
Go through the entries and exercise your brain. There really were some great ideas. Pick those ideas that make the most sense for you, your lifestyle and your pocketbook.
Get some food stored. It doesn't need to be an expensive solution - calories and nutrition should be your top concerns. What's important is that you act.
Get crackin'!
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Copyright 2010 Bison Risk Management Associates. All rights reserved. You are encouraged to repost this information so long as it is credited to Bison Risk Management Associates. www.BisonRMA.com
Wimp out post for today. I'm slammed the entire day.
A link to this video was sent to me by one of my brothers. The first part is from 1958, then it goes to 1974. Pretty amazing stuff. It could not be more on point.
I don't know much about the John Birch Society. Anecdotally, I heard they were a bunch of whacked-out, right-wing religious zealots. I have no idea if it's true or not.
I got kind of a creepy feeling while I was over at their site, reading some articles and (especially) the comments. I can't put my finger on it.
Still, I can say that I agree with virtually every word spoken in this video.
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Copyright 2010 Bison Risk Management Associates. All rights reserved. You are encouraged to repost this information so long as it is credited to Bison Risk Management Associates. www.BisonRMA.com
I'm on the mailing lists of probably two dozen or so emergency preparedness company newsletters. These folks sell everything from food to equipment to ammunition. Probably 6 months ago, I mentioned to a friend that it seemed like everyone was having a sale. Free shipping morphed into free product or serious discounts. Many were having Going Out Of Business sales.
I figured this was potentially due to a few things:
Either everyone who was going to prep had pretty well covered their bases, OR
They were doing lower-cost alternatives, like making up their own MREs or Just Add Water foods, OR
They just didn't have the money to buy additional food due to the crappy economy.
My guess was that the answer was probably a bit of each.
I got an interesting email letter yesterday from MREDepot.com. I have made a number of purchases from them in the past, and have therefore been on their mailing list for quite a while. I mention this because this guy makes a comment about not being a Chicken Little. And he's right - I can't ever recall him making a comment about broad economic issues.
Rather than push conspiracy theories or stretch the truth to try and make you believe something is worse than it really is like many in my industry do, once in a blue moon if I think the situation warrants it, I will just pass on the facts to you and let you make your own decisions with regard to what impact (if any) it may have on you and your family instead of trying to insult your intelligence by telling you what I think it may mean to you.
...
OK, so let me get off my soap box and get to the point/pass on the news. I'll bet I'm not telling you anything that you have not already heard or seen at your local market with your own eyes, but because I am now seeing it with our vendors, suppliers and products personally, I need to let you know that we're going to be facing some large cost increases on many food items in the near future.
You've already seen/heard me tell you about increases in worldwide dairy prices, and you've seen first hand what it is doing to things like our Canned Butter and Canned Cheese, but it looks like our Canned Meats are next, as we are seeing dramatic spikes in costs and demand at the producer level which will mean that in the near future I am going to have to pass on some potentially large price increases to you - probably in the next week.
He doesn't discuss what he thinks is causing these price increases. I think I know what's going on: I think this is like a micro-economic view of what will be coming in the broader macro-economy.
As we've discussed before, it is very common for there to be deflation - price decreases - prior to the onset of inflation - price increases.
Why?
Quite simply, people have less money to buy stuff, so demand goes down. The farmers, manufacturers and processors over-produce based on historical demand, and the product sits on the shelves. The retailers have to sell it at a discount to get rid of the excess stock.
During the next business cycle, the farmers, manufacturers and processors have less demand than before, but they still must make a profit to stay in business. So, they make less product, but charge higher per-piece prices. Hello, Inflation!
I think that may be what we're seeing in the small "survival food" market. There was low demand so they almost gave the stuff away. Now, the next business cycle is coming on line, but the cost-per-piece is going to skyrocket if the producers want to stay in business.
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The writer of the newsletter discussed some prices that have been increasing in the consumer food markets. Personally, I haven't seen it. I see the prices for processed and unprocessed food either being stable or decreasing.
Rice, sugar, wheat, corn and any type of bean haven't moved an inch, and pork, chicken and beef have all recently dropped in price.
Is this because we currently have surpluses that exceed demand? Is this the start of the deflationary price drop that precedes the inflationary period?
If any of us could answer those questions with certainty, we'd be rich enough to not need to worry!
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He also made an interesting point worth noting. The price of shipping is going up, as is the price of packaging.
It is also important to note that with canned foods there are more than just the costs what's in the can to consider. Steel, which is obviously used for the can itself, has risen in price dramatically over the last year. Corrugated/cardboard costs have also risen just as dramatically in the last 18 months. We obviously rely on cardboard for the case packaging as well as for the outer shipping box and inner packaging materials/void fill. The costs for cardboard and paper products are mainly driven by fuel prices today since the process of harvesting the timber, transporting it to the mill and powering the machinery used in producing the finished product still rely very heavily on fossil fuels.
This could all just be his company's way of trying to justify a price increase that was actually caused by something else. Who knows? It rings true to me, but it could just be playing into what I expect to hear more and more in the coming months.
Some things are increasing in price - gasoline most recently. But most other things seem pretty well priced right now. My gut says it's just the calm before the storm.
Also, it was recently announced that Russia has halted all wheat shipments. Their recent wild fires consumed 20% of their crop. I would expect to see raw wheat and wheat products increase in price because of this.
These types of shortages also tend to increase the prices of alternatives as demand is shifted to the other products. For instance, you may give up making or buying wheat bread and switch to corn bread or tortillas, causing an increased demand for corn.
And of course, the 800 pound gorilla that's sitting on your chest is the federal government. The Federal Reserve just announced that they will increase their "quantitative easing" (printing up money out of thin air) and monetize our debt (they will buy US Treasury bonds with the money they created).
All of that by itself is going to cause inflation. Couple that with inflation caused by a horrible economy and you're looking at hyper-inflation.
If someone - ANYONE - can explain how this won't happen, I'd love to hear their rationale. As I've said before, to me, it's just a matter of figuring out when it will happen, not if it will happen.
Accept The Challenge
Has the broader economy hit the tipping point? It's tough to tell right now. Things like the survival food industry announcing coming increases might be an indication, or it might not be. We'll only know the real answer sometime in the future.
In our last post, we had an article in the Wall Street Journal that discussed 10 things to keep our eyes on. I think this is a prudent thing to do. Our job is to take in the information and validate it. If we hear distressing information, check the sources and assumptions. If we hear up-beat information, do the same.
With either type of information, consider the source. Does the "reporter" have a reason for spinning the information in a particular direction? Political reasons, economic reasons, societal reasons. Consider them all.
And that includes the information you read here. PLEASE, don't take my opinions as the final word. That would be insane. Take them as a starting point or to augment your own research so you can come up with your own opinions.
Those personal opinions will shape your plans, and your plans will result in action. THAT'S what is important. Don't be a passive spectator in how your life is affected by events that are beyond your control, be an active participant.
I'm personally on a purchasing campaign of my Four "B's" of emergency prep - Beans, Bullets, Band-aids and Bullion. Prices are good right now, and I'm stocking up while I'm able to do so.
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Copyright 2010 Bison Risk Management Associates. All rights reserved. You are encouraged to repost this information so long as it is credited to Bison Risk Management Associates. www.BisonRMA.com
Foraging - a buddy and I (and two of his children) headed out to the levies yesterday, and we got a bunch of blackberries. I ended up with just shy of 3 1/2 pounds. They stayed after I left, and they found the "Mother Lode" of blackberries just up the road from where I left off.
He made his berries into jam. If I remember correctly, he got 15 half-pint jars and 4 pints!
I'm going to make mine into jam today. It looks like I'll have enough to get 10 half-pint jars...
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Putting My Foot Down - I've just written my first Letter To The Editor in my own name. It was in response to this letter ("Don’t cultivate images of violence").
These two local church leaders were complaining about how the local Tea Party had a speaker that was complaining about (another) upcoming California law that would outlaw Open Carry.
My response -
Editor:
This is in response to Reverend Alexis Easton's and Reverend Will McGarvey's letter regarding "Tea Party Open Carry" -
The Reverends ask:
"What does open carry communicate? That the world is an unsafe place; that we are in imminent danger anywhere and anytime and that it is appropriate to be ready with an armed response. Open carry feeds fear, not trust or confidence."
What good are "trust and confidence" when you have a gun to your head or a knife to your throat?
I wonder if the Reverends feel fear when they see a police officer with a loaded, openly-carried gun. If not, why not? Are they suggesting that only the police are able to receive handgun training and render aid to others? What if the police aren't there when someone you love is being attacked?
If they do feel uneasy seeing a policeman with a handgun, are they suggesting that the police be disarmed because the sight of their guns gives them images of, "anger and anxiety" as they mentioned in their letter?
What the Reverends ignore is that all of these gun laws and "feel good" restrictions only apply to law-abiding citizens. The criminals - being criminals - disregard them. Where does that leave the law-abiding citizen?
Defenseless.
If I were to enter a coffee shop or any other business that allowed handguns to be worn on their premises, I would feel an INCREASE in my sense of safety. A criminal will see that there may be resistance to their criminal behavior. They'll look for an easier, less risky business to rob.
But this issue is bigger than Open Carry. The Reverends seem to have been swept up by the National Media portrayal of Tea Party members and others who believe in personal freedom and responsibility, as outside the norms of society. Their words insinuate that we must fully entrust our personal safety to the government.
I reject that idea. I will not delegate my personal safety to anyone else. I am responsible for myself.
Another question for the Reverends: How would they suggest a smallish, 5 foot, 100 pound woman react when attacked by a 6 foot 3 inch, 250 pound male assailant? The likelihood of her successfully fighting the larger, stronger man are slim.
Should the woman just "give in?" What if she's out with her kids? Should she not be able to defend herself and her children? What kind of fear is she feeling when she realizes she has no way to defend herself?
In our society, there are three types of people: Wolves, Sheep and Sheep Dogs. The wolves prey on the sheep. The Sheep Dogs - regular Good Samaritan citizens and sworn police officers alike - won't stand idly by while crimes are being committed.
In America, you can ascribe to any belief system to which you feel comfortable. You may feel uncomfortable owning, handling or carrying a handgun. That is your right. Our Constitution does not require you to defend yourself, it simply guarantees your God-given right to do so.
But, you don't have the right to impose your beliefs on others. When you support laws of your liking that restrict the Constitutional rights of others, the proverbial "slippery slope" comes into play. Some day, a right you cherish may be eliminated, and you will have no one to blame but yourself.
If you don't exercise your rights, they will be taken away.
We'll see if it gets published.
I will not stand by and watch this gun-grabbing propaganda to unchallenged. If they don't acknowledge that it will be published, I'll post it in the comments section of the original article, and pass it along to the local Tea Party organizer so she can spread the word.
Don't forget: Our One Bucket Per Month Challenge runs through Sunday. Get your entry posted and you may win a bright and shiny ounce of solid silver.
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Copyright 2010 Bison Risk Management Associates. All rights reserved. You are encouraged to repost this information so long as it is credited to Bison Risk Management Associates. www.BisonRMA.com
I was reading an article that was comparing murder rates in different countries. They were trying to imply that because our murder rate by handgun was so much higher than the other country, CLEARLY, handguns were the reason for the murders. Ban 'em all!
I knew this was garbage. Societal problems cause murders, not the tools the murderers use. So I went and found the overall murder rates (here). If you look at the list, almost all of the 40+ countries with higher murder rates have outlawed the private ownership of handguns.
Kinda punches a hole in the ol' gun grabbers argument, no?
Anyways, I saw something that was interesting. Just below the US is Argentina. Here's the data I saw -
From left to right, the blue columns are for 2000, 2001, 2002, etc. The last column on the right being the latest data that is available.
What interested me is that in Argentina in 2001, they saw a pretty significant spike in the murder rate. Again in 2002. Then it began a fairly steady decline.
Hmmmm. What happened in Argentina in 2001 and 2002? Oh, I remember: It's when their economy imploded.
Considering that we are doing the exact same things that caused the Argentinian economy to crater, if you don't think violence will break out when the American "public safety net" gets shredded, you're not in touch with reality.
Get training or practice the skills you've acquired. Now.
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Want to stay up at night?
Take a look at this article ("John Williams: Approaching The Abyss"). A friend of mine sent it to me. It's an interview of the owner of ShadowStats.com. They're the guys that take the government financial statistics that have been doctored beyond recognition, and tell us what the numbers really mean (or should be).
Take the time to read and digest the whole thing.
A snippet -
Nevertheless, on a quarter-to quarter-basis, I think we'll see GDP down again in the third quarter. With the bulk of the reported GDP in the first half due to inventory building, the stage for renewed contraction has been set. By then we'll find the consensus pretty much in the camp that we're in a double-dip recession. The popular press will describe it as a double dip, but we never had a recovery. Actually, this is just a very protracted, very deep downturn that has had a pattern of falling off a cliff, bottoming out, having a little bit of bump due to stimulus and then turning down again. Sort of shaped like the path of a novice skier going down a jump for the first time. Speeding sharply down the hill, he goes up in the air and starts spinning wildly as he tries to figure out which end is up with his skis. Then he takes a pretty bad tumble. We're beginning to spin in the air.
Get your financial house in order. Be prepared to take advantage of a sharp price decline (deflation) which will be followed by ugly, ugly price spikes (inflation).
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Wow, the markets are being turned on their heads right now. As I write this, the Dow is down over 230 points. The Federal Reserve came out yesterday and said the economy might not be quite the bed of rose petals the administration is making it out to be.
Well, there's a shock! Who'd a-thunk it? Uhm, all of us that have two brain cells to rub together, that's who.
I expected to see a huge up-tick in the price of gold. Nope. It is slightly down. Why might that be? From the front page of Kitco.com -
For some unfathomable reason, the dollar is getting stronger. Well, not unfathomable, just one based on fairy tales, unicorns and cute little puppies. I know, I know, this is based on the dollar's relative strength to other world fiat currencies. But still, really?!
What I found very interesting is that most of that decline is being offset by people buying gold. They're taking their money out of the stock market and putting it in to gold.
It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World. Maybe some sanity is returning...
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We've had a great start to our One Bucket Per Month Challenge. Those of you still on the sidelines, get crackin'! There's silver in them thar ideas!
Accept The Challenge
If you believe the pablum being fed to us about the economy by the administration, just move along. I think there's a PeeWee's Playhouse marathon being run on PBS that you'd find more to your liking.
For the rest of you, it seems like things might be coming to a head. I've been hoping that this serious downturn would wait for 2 more years, but it's beginning to look like things might decline more quickly. Six months to a year? I don't know. I need to digest all of this for a bit.
Check and double-check your supplies. When was the last time you rotated your food supplies? When was the last time you checked the condition of your equipment? Practiced your life saving skills lately?
I just did an inventory of my ammunition, and found - to my horror - that my usage has seriously exceeded my replacement, especially with my primary handgun round. I will be correcting that in short order.
Get as "cash heavy" as you can. With the upcoming deflationary price drops, this will be an excellent opportunity to stock up on the food, supplies and equipment you may not have had the chance to buy before.
Make your list, and start scanning Craigslist now. Take a look at a post from back in March ("Efficient Use Of The Online Marketplace") and see how you can set up RSS feeds to track your wishlist.
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Copyright 2010 Bison Risk Management Associates. All rights reserved. You are encouraged to repost this information so long as it is credited to Bison Risk Management Associates. www.BisonRMA.com
An anonymous poster made a suggestion in a comment to a post ("Focusing Your Skills Building") that I want to follow-up on. The comment said,
I have been trying to find the ideal contents for a 5 gal bucket cache of food for one person for one month. The easy to prepare foods that store a long time and provide the primary calories for a meal. The intent is to hunt and gather greens, fish, small game, roots, etc. to supplement the cache. It would be an interesting post for your blog to open it up for discussion. One bucket = one month. 12 buckets = 12 months. Simple, repeatable and invaluable. I could easily dig 12 holes outback to protect my food in case I am forced to leave my home either temporarily or long term. But a years supply on shelves is problematic if someone is breaking down the front door or you have to bug out for any reason. Any ideas?
Sounds like Contest Time, to me!
I'm going to change the rules just a bit, and provide some guidelines:
The contents of the bucket have to provide food for one person for one month.
Assume it is the dead of winter, and you can ONLY survive on the supplies in the bucket. The one exception is, you can assume you have unlimited access to clean water.
The bucket will be a 6-gallon bucket. For general guidelines, these will hold about 40 pounds of dry rice or beans, leaving you with a bit of head room. The food you store must be able to have a shelf-life of at least 5 years. If you want to use mylar bags, FoodSaver bags, desiccants, oxygen scrubbers or anything else to promote longer life, go right ahead.
Expect to need 2,000 calories a day. That would be approximately 60,000 calories for a 30-day bucket. I know, I know, it may be more or less than that, but we need to add some number to at least have a starting place.
It should come close to the USDAs Recommended Daily Allowances (PDF) numbers for protein (91g), carbohydrates (271g) and fat (65g). Think about vitamins and minerals as well.
Equipment available to you to cook/prepare the food: Whatever you want. If you want a full-blown kitchen, or a standard camping set-up, that's your call. Design your bucket accordingly. And NO, the cooking equipment doesn't also have to fit in the bucket!
Price is no limit. Like the food prep guidelines, spend in whatever price range as fits your lifestyle.
Include the item, amount, calories and grams of protein, carbs and fat.
Post your ideas in the comments section. Be sure you have an email address attached to your post or your profile so I can contact you to arrange delivery (which I'll pay, of course).
Alternatively, if you want some privacy, you may send me a private email to the "info @ BisonRMA.com" email address with any code you'd like - say "12345" or "Big Ears" or whatever you'd like.
This email must be time stamped BEFORE your post in the comments section. When you post your entry, just start or end it with "code 12345" or whatever you chose. That way, I'll have a way to contact you if you win. Any email addresses I receive will be used for this contest ALONE. I hate spammers, and I won't be one!
I'll run this until Sunday, 8/15 at 11:59pm, then pick a winner. Picking the winner is my decision, and mine alone.
The winner will receive a one ounce .999 silver bullion coin. This one, in fact -
The one with the Bison, of course!
Here's my entry to get you started (no, I can't win!) -
Powdered eggs, white rice, pinto beans, 30 multi-vitamins. I'd add as much salt, pepper and other spices in ziplocks and/or FoodSaver bags as would fit in the bucket after the food.
With the powdered eggs, I'd need 4 of the #10 cans. I'd transfer each can to a FoodSaver bag. Each of the 15 pounds of rice and beans would be in separate mylar bags, each with 2-500cc oxygen scrubbers.
Packing the bucket would take a couple of days. I'd start with 15 pounds of beans in a mylar bag and then I'd seal it up as shown in this video. After the air had been evacuated, I'd place another mylar bag on top of the beans, fill it with rice, and repeat the process. The powdered eggs in the 4 FoodSaver bags, along with the vitamins in a ziplock would then be placed on top, and the lid would be pounded on.
Here are the stats -
Spartan? Boring? Yep, but you'd be alive after a month. The cost for the food would be about $135 for the eggs, $12 for the beans, $7 for the rice and (I'm guessing) $5 for the vitamins = $159. The bucket, gasketed lid, mylar bags, FoodSaver bags and oxygen scrubbers would run less than $20.
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Now get to it! I really like this idea, especially the thought of a full month of food in a nice, compact, easily transportable container.
Be creative. Maybe sneak in some sweets, different whole grains, more spices - whatever. Just remember: That's all you'll be eating for a whole month...
Enjoy!
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Copyright 2010 Bison Risk Management Associates. All rights reserved. You are encouraged to repost this information so long as it is credited to Bison Risk Management Associates. www.BisonRMA.com
The Buying Precious Metals series will continue tomorrow. Until then, I just "penned" this letter to one of my federal representatives (the other two being Babs Boxer and Diane Feinstein - do ya feel my pain?!).
My congressman is named Jerry McNerney. He lied to us to get in, and he's lied to us to stay in. I'm working hard to get him voted out of office this next term. If he doesn't get re-elected, he won't get the sweet congressional health and retirement benefits.
I'm working really hard on this.
---
Mr. McNerney,
Two comments on your latest newsletter -
The Stop Outsourcing and Create American Jobs Act of 2010 is nothing more than "feel good" legislation. The plan is to tax those evil corporations? As I'm sure you're aware, not a single corporation in America pays one cent of tax. Every dollar you tax or fine them gets passed back to the consumer.
How do you think big businesses will respond to such foolish legislation? They've already moved much of their operations because the cost of doing business here is too high. Ya think they might move everything else?
If you really wanted to, "get the economy moving and create high quality jobs for California families," you'd work to reduce the tax burden on business.
LOL! Great chance of THAT ever happening from you.
My other comment is on the Financial Reform bill. Tell me: How many of the 2500+ pages did you read before you voted for it? Not a one, I'd guess.
Would you mind explaining to me how granting the SEC an exemption from FOIA requests makes our money any safer? The Bernie Madoff's of the world will certainly sleep better.
Me? Not so much.
Would you like to tell me how having small businesses have to complete IRS form 1099 for every single purchase over $600 will help to strengthen our financial system?
It's going to bury businesses of all sizes in unnecessary paperwork. I think the estimated tax revenues from this are something like $1.7 billion a year ($17 billion over 10 years). The cost to business to comply with this law will be unimaginable.
If I've done my math right, that $1.7 billion will run our $3.5 trillion government for about 4.25 hours. Woo hoo! We're on the road to recovery!
Is that how you're helping to, "get the economy moving and create high quality jobs for California families?"
American business is already in a hole, and you're giving us more shovels.
Thanks, but no thanks.
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We've got to scream and yell while it's still allowed, folks. This blog post would probably have been disallowed (as political advertising or some other such garbage) if it were done too close to election day, had the DISCLOSE Act - which McNerney also voted for - passed.
Scream and yell, folks. Scream and yell.
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Copyright 2010 Bison Risk Management Associates. All rights reserved. You are encouraged to repost this information so long as it is credited to Bison Risk Management Associates. www.BisonRMA.com
