120914.0 MTAS What Do We Do Now?

There are two types of Muslims in the world.  One type follows the Koran as peaceful adherents; the other perverts their religion into an intolerant, hate filled fanatical obsession.   I have no idea what the respective percentages are amongst the between 1.5 and 2.5 billion Muslims on the planet.  Whatever those percentages might be, there are many fanatics. 

++++++

Is the motivating factor (read excuse) for the fanatics the movie or the eleven-year anniversary of 11 September 2011disaster?  Are the actions of the fanatics spontaneous, planned, or both?

Note that we made a fuss over the anniversary, a First Amendment option, and that also may have spurred the radicals to action.

++++++

As of this morning, twelve US embassies and/or consulates are under assault and there are four dead Americans, one dead Yemeni, and another fatality in Lebanon.  American businesses are under attack in at least one country. 

The German and British embassies in the Sudan are under attack   The Swiss embassy in Iran under protest. 

The trouble spots are Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Nigeria, Pakistan, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, and Yemen. 

++++++

The Department of Defense, in coordination with the State Department, is sending Marine security teams in varying strengths to selected embassies.  On the surface that sounds like a good idea but there are considerations that are not readily apparent. 

The primary responsibility for embassy security falls on the host nation.  Any American security forces present are there only to “hold the fort” until the host nation removes the threat.  A prolonged defense by any embassy security force is not possible.  A fifty or a hundred person security force will not have the assets necessary to repel a lengthy, well-planned, and adequately resourced siege.  Outside relief is required. 

In a completely hostile environment, assignment to an embassy is a death sentence. 

++++++

About one hundred people in California, who produced the offending movie, are in danger of assignation by radical Islamic people be they organized or “lone wolfs”.  The mainstream media has identified many of these people.  They are in danger.  

++++++

What do we do now?

++++++

We could withdraw all personnel from all Middle East embassies but the fanatics would tout that as a victory over the “Great Satan”.  We could also recall all the government and non-government people that conduct humanitarian, educational, and charitable operations. 

We could terminate all foreign aid to the troubling nations but that would undermine whatever good that funding might do and, again, the fanatics would tout that as a victory over the “Great Satan”. 

We could bomb the troublemakers into the Stone Age except we do not have the resources for that. 

We could repeal the First Amendment and persecute those uttering “offensive” words.

We could apologize some more. 

We could do nothing.

++++++

The Islamic radicals have declared war on the United States in particular and western civilization in general.  Even if our current national leadership refuses to acknowledge it, these are dangerous times and they are not going to get better in the foreseeable future.  Ramifications, economic, political, and violent, are inevitable. 

++++++

Are you ready for anythimg?

120913.1 MTAS UPDATE – The Weimar Republic Then and The US Now

++++++ UPDATE

QE3 is 40 billion every month and it is open ended. 

The stock market, of course, reacted positively but not an awful lot.  However, what the stock market does, except for commodity prices, has little direct impact on the everyday consumer.  

Economists say this QE is powerful commitment to pump (read print) money into the economy until job growth picks up significantly.  That is not going to happen until the banks start lending again and they will not do that as long as the congress and the president present mixed signals that result in economic uncertainty.  Small businesses will not seek loans, expand, or hire for the same reason. 

Watch for commodity prices to increase.  It may not be a quick and rapid increase but it will begin as soon as the speculators become organized. 

Sometime in the probably not too distant future, the Weimar cycle will begin anew right here in America. 

Are you ready for anything?

++++++ ORIGINAL TEXT

The cause of the immense acceleration of prices that occurred during the German hyperinflation of 1922–23 seemed unclear and unpredictable to those who lived through it, but in retrospect was relatively simple. The Treaty of Versailles imposed a huge debt on Germany that to be paid only in gold or foreign currency.

Not by treaty but by willful deficit spending the US now has a huge national debt similar to Germany in the 1920s.

The German government attempted to buy foreign currency with German currency, but this caused the German Mark to fall rapidly in value, which greatly increased the number of Marks needed to buy more foreign currency. This caused German prices of goods to rise rapidly which increase the cost of operating the German government that could not be financed by raising taxes. The resulting budget deficit increased rapidly and was financed by the central bank creating more money (Quantitative Easing in today’s terms).

The dollar is suffering from the effects of the first two rounds of “Quantitative Easing” (QE1 and QE2) which is the same as printing money and diluting the value of the dollar. 

When the German people realized that their money was rapidly losing value, they tried to spend it quickly. This increase in monetary velocity caused still more rapid increase in prices which created a vicious cycle.  This placed the government and banks between two unacceptable alternatives: if they stopped the inflation, this would cause immediate bankruptcies, unemployment, strikes, hunger, violence, collapse of civil order, insurrection, and revolution.  If they continued the inflation, they would default on their foreign debt. The attempts to avoid both unemployment and insolvency ultimately failed when Germany had both. 

Does any of this sound familiar? 

Today the Federal Reserve appears set to launch a third round Quantitative Easing monetary stimulus.   Whether or not there will be another QE will announced today at 1230.  If it happens, and it likely will, it could be either for a fixed amount of dollars or open-ended.  A fixed amount would be bad enough but an open-ended unlimited program would be the same thing that Germany did back in the 1920s. 

Read up on Germany in the 1920s and 1930s. 

Are you ready for anything? (Are You Ready For Anything? of 31 August in Scope Magazine)?

120912 MTAS USA Today Breaking News 0620120912

Libyan officials: U.S. ambassador killed in attack

CAIRO -- Libyan officials say the U.S. ambassador and three other Americans have been killed in an attack on the U.S. consulate in the eastern city of Benghazi by protesters angry over a film that ridiculed Islam's Prophet Muhammad.

The officials say Ambassador Chris Stevens was killed Tuesday night when he and a group of embassy employees went to the consulate to try to evacuate staff. The protesters were firing gunshots and rocket propelled grenades. 

++++++

The movie that prompted this violence was the exercise of free speech.  However, the people, an Israeli-American producer, 59 actors and about 45 people behind the camera, making the movie are located in California.  Standby California. 

++++++

We in the west have little, if any, understanding of how such irrationally violent religious fanaticism works; let alone how it can exist. 

One hundred years ago an incident similar to the attack on our embassy in Libya would have resulted in a declaration of war on the offending nation. 

++++++

Obama has not issued a statement; U.S. State Department representative Victoria Nuland said the U.S. condemned the attack "in the strongest terms".

++++++

Out of fifteen central mid-east nations, three are Islamic theocracies (Iran, Syria, and Egypt), three more will soon become Islamic theocracies (Iraq, Libya, and Somalia), and three more can be seen as in danger of joining the cause (Jordan, Yemen, and Oman).  Of the remaining six, five are not Islamic theocracies but are heavily Islamic in population and government.  Israel, of course, is not an Islamic theocracy. 

What does this mean?  It means that most probably within my lifetime (I am 67) we will see a radical Islamic empire starching from Libya to Iran and Egypt to Somalia.  I would not be very surprised to those nations merge into something like the United States of Islam. 

++++++

I have only one idea how to personally deal with the situation (see my article titled Are You Ready For Anything? of 31 August in Scope Magazine).  As to how we, as a nation, should respond my ideas go beyond speeches and platitudes.  

120908 MTAS Thank You Lord

The reason for all of this is that I am tired of legislators and government in general ignoring me, intruding into my life, and affecting my ability to live in retirement.  I have enjoyed as much as I can stand of that and it is time for me to get more vocal. 

Inspired by a promotional piece for a webcast, this is the first product of the “new and improved” My Thoughts and Stuff publishing empire (HA!)

Here goes…

++++++

Thank You Lord, we are past the political convention milepost.  I enjoyed more than I could stand of posturing, the over the top speeches, and mainstream media attempts to shape public perception.  I cannot recall when we have ever seen the candidate’s ideals and their party platforms so absolutely opposite.    

On one side, we have the far left socialist theory where government is everything, God does not exist, tolerance is touted as the supreme moral concept, and if you disagree then you are a vile, pandering racist who wants to suppress and enslave women.  Never mind the fact that the economy is in free-fall.   

On the other side, you have concepts that sort of align with the Constitution, but far from the original intent of that document.  The far right says that government is not a unifying model and that God and His precepts are above all and the basis for civil government. 

Both parties gave us the Patriot Act, the TSA, drones that watch our every move just to mention a few.  

Voting this November is going to be a crucial act in which we determine what kind of nation we are. 

The choice is between Socialism and mega-government intrusion or the Founding Father’s vision of limited government and liberty.  This election will determine and represent the nation’s beliefs and values, and in January 2013, the person who places his hand on the Bible will be whom we have chosen, and by extension, whom we deserve. 

++++++

Comments and topic suggestions are welcomed.

++++++

Please note that I am in the long process of redesigning and “remodeling” the website.  http://sites.google.com/site/mythoughtsandstuff88/

NOTE 0:  To unsubscribe from this bulletin, please reply to this e-mail to let me know and I will then remove you from the distribution list.  If you know of anyone who might like to receive these articles, let me know their e-mail address and I will add them to the distribution list.

My Thoughts and Stuff (MTAS) 7 September 2012

Dear People:

I apologize to those of you who receive multiple copies of this message.  I am using three distribution lists to send this and I know there are duplicates within those lists. 

I have been known to write what might be called editorials, opinion pieces, or research reports.  These works are similar to the comments I occasionally put into the Weekly Grocery Alert and Legislation Update newsletters but are longer and more detailed.  I submit “letters to the editor” and articles to various commercial publications like The Day, Norwich Bulletin, Hartford Courant,  Montville Patch, and Scope Magazine. 

I am a moderate conservative and I write from that position. 

There is no schedule, I write them when something I see and/or hear “trips my trigger”.  Months can go by between them. 

I would like to know if you would like to receive them.  You could always unsubscribe.  Let me know at oldnavyguy88@gmail.com

New Posting Philosophy

In the past, I have posted to the site in haphazard manner.  I have posted only when extremely motivated.  Well, I have gotten my life more organized and recent events have led me to publish an e-newsletter called, amazingly enough, “My Thoughts and Stuff”.  I do not have many subscribers yet but I expect that to change.  I am going to post those letters here.  Today is the “catch up day”. 

If you wish to subscribe to the e-newsletter, contact me at oldnavyguy88@gmail.com.

I had a knee-jerk reaction to the Supreme Court ruling on ObamaCare - ObamaTax and I wrote this editorial to address my concerns with that and one other thing.  The two combined worry me.  I know this is not directly related to buying groceries nor is it about firearms legislation but now that I have slept on it for a week or so, I still think you folks should have a chance to read it.  

* * *

Dear People:

I really, really do not want be alarmist.  Believe me it is one of the last things I would ever want but I am a bit worried. 

We have two events working against us when it comes to putting food on the table every day.

First, there are near drought, or near drought conditions in the heartland and the southeast.  Crop reductions and failures are almost certain.  The result will be short-term shortages of some food items and higher prices for those that are available.  Fresh produce will be particularly affected except for some local products. 

My advice is that, if you have the resources, buy ahead as much as you can.  It would be in your best interest to seriously consider gardening for at least some of your produce.  It is a bit late for planting but there is still time for crops like peas, green beans, zucchini, and cucumbers. 

Second, is the ObamaTax.  I am not an economist and I want to keep politics out of this as much as possible.  However, it is obvious, even to me, that nothing good will come of it with regard to the general economy.  

The ObamaTax carries some good things for healthcare and I would like to see those put back in place after the repeal of ObamaTax. 

There are twenty-one tax code changes in ObamaTax.  None of them levels or decreases the tax burden for anyone.  I am not going to list or explain them here.  If you want to read them all, look athttp://www.atr.org/obamacares-first-birthday-commemorates-twenty-one-a5963

What I do want to say, however, is that the long-term effect of ObamaTax, in conjunction with expiring tax law, on farms, small business, and the self-employed will be negative to the point of devastation.  Who knows what the “ripple effect” will be on the overall economy. 

I do not know what to do about it other than to become more active politically.  However, that is not the reason for this missive.  My intent is to offer advice on how to put food on your table without going broke.

I also have few ideas on how to accomplish that in the long-term.  However, I do see some things one could do. 

One, buy as many canned goods as you are able to now.  Do not wait; prices are going to go up, way up.  Buy only what you regularly eat.  Buy good food; do not waste money the junk stuff. 

Two, if you have the resources, buy freeze-dried and/or dehydrated foods for long-term storage.  Do not wait; prices are going to go up, way up.  Buy only what you regularly eat. 

Three, convert the sunniest parts of your lawn into gardens and plant what you will eat.  Do not sell anything as that would bring unwanted government attention. 

Four, if possible, get together with your neighbors for community gardening in order to produce larger yields.  Do not sell anything as that would bring unwanted government attention. 

Five, acquire pickling and canning equipment and supplies and learn how to use them.  This could be another opportunity to involve your neighbors in a community effort. 

I have absolutely no ideas about how to easily deal with meat and dairy products.  I only see two alternatives right now.  One is to buy canned meat and instant dairy products both everyday items and those that are prepared for long-term storage. 

The second alternative is near Impossible in urban settings and may be difficult at best in suburban areas.  That alternative is to raise your own livestock for meat and dairy; I will not go into that now. 

Thanks for reading this.  I do not like being so pessimistic but I tend to be realistic and I do not like what I think I see coming down the road.  I sincerely hope that I have not offended anyone. 

Your comments and questions are welcome.  I will respond to them as best as I am able.