Keeping Sane
You are what you read. I believe that.
In 2008, just after our government stole a couple trillion from taxpayers and gave it to banks, (and cronies calling it stimulus) I decided to start paying attention to what these government bastards were up to. If the government could steal that kind of money in broad daylight without a single charge being filed- it was time to pay attention.
In fact- what the government did was illegal. They transferred public money to private coffers. Had I done that as a police chief, used budgeted money to pay off friends in various businesses, I would have been guilty of embezzlement. Had any politician done that on some scale smaller than the USG- they would have faced prosecution as well. I'd like to say one other thing. Government has no right and is not entitled to break the law for no other reason than there is no authority higher- to charge them with the offense. Interestingly enough- we have the old common law citizen arrest powers.
Citizen arrest powers. Can you imagine strolling in and saying I'd like Congress arrested for grand theft? Who would put them in jail? Who would prosecute? Holder?
We will pay for that theft. We will pay for it with higher taxes and a reduced standard of living. Like most Americans we are going to hope it's not too bad. It's all just a can kicking, musical chairs exercise until one day- when the music stops.
I read almost 100 blogs daily and I scan three or four media sources routinely. The world is a mess. It is worse than it has ever been. That doesn't mean you must run around like chicken little. It also does not mean that you must act like an ostrich or a stooge and pretend everything is hunky dory. This is how I keep my sanity.
I developed a plan several years ago that coincided with the hijacking of our national tax coffers and then our health care system. A personal plan. I developed my plan for two reasons. One is that I currently live on a fixed income and government cost of living increases have no basis in reality since they fudge the numbers. I am unwilling to become a poverty case simply because this government cannot stop spending. The second reason is that decent jobs have all but vanished. Re-educating yourself is possible but only if you have the dough and you are certain you can get a job in your field. That's an iffy proposition for most of us.
What I am going to do is based on my personal circumstances and what our government does. I have a plan. Whatever your circumstances are- you should develop a similar plan. If things turn very bad and you want to stay in the U.S. and let them steal every last dime they can get away with- that's fine. Perhaps you are so wealthy that it doesn't matter.We all have choices to make.
Currently, between city, county, real estate taxes and fees, sales tax and gas tax, state taxes, and federal taxes- I have lost 50% of my income. Losing any more is simply not tolerable.
On FG, I have tried to educate the people who stop by. Educate yourself as best you can. Don't get emotionally involved with the process- and don't take it personally. The United States is a mess. It ranks around 9th on the economic freedom scale and we are destined to drop further. It is no longer the best place to live- by various measures. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Index_of_Economic_Freedom In a month or two I am going to visit several central American countries starting with Belize and moving west and south. The cost of living is pretty cheap, the weather is gorgeous, people speak English, health insurance is less than 100 bucks a mo., and the government is not so bankrupt that they must steal every last cent that I have or force feed me some laws for my own good.
I'd like to stay in the U.S. but the reality is- is that we have no leadership and we are bankrupt. I am too old to fight any wars or stretch any number of well deserving political necks. I keep my sanity by staying emotionally and physically sound, reading and working out daily, and sticking to my plan. There are a number of ex-pats already, about 7 million, who have taken that plunge. I can see myself on a beach somewhere ignoring local politics. That seems sane to me.
In 2008, just after our government stole a couple trillion from taxpayers and gave it to banks, (and cronies calling it stimulus) I decided to start paying attention to what these government bastards were up to. If the government could steal that kind of money in broad daylight without a single charge being filed- it was time to pay attention.
In fact- what the government did was illegal. They transferred public money to private coffers. Had I done that as a police chief, used budgeted money to pay off friends in various businesses, I would have been guilty of embezzlement. Had any politician done that on some scale smaller than the USG- they would have faced prosecution as well. I'd like to say one other thing. Government has no right and is not entitled to break the law for no other reason than there is no authority higher- to charge them with the offense. Interestingly enough- we have the old common law citizen arrest powers.
Citizen arrest powers. Can you imagine strolling in and saying I'd like Congress arrested for grand theft? Who would put them in jail? Who would prosecute? Holder?
We will pay for that theft. We will pay for it with higher taxes and a reduced standard of living. Like most Americans we are going to hope it's not too bad. It's all just a can kicking, musical chairs exercise until one day- when the music stops.
I read almost 100 blogs daily and I scan three or four media sources routinely. The world is a mess. It is worse than it has ever been. That doesn't mean you must run around like chicken little. It also does not mean that you must act like an ostrich or a stooge and pretend everything is hunky dory. This is how I keep my sanity.
I developed a plan several years ago that coincided with the hijacking of our national tax coffers and then our health care system. A personal plan. I developed my plan for two reasons. One is that I currently live on a fixed income and government cost of living increases have no basis in reality since they fudge the numbers. I am unwilling to become a poverty case simply because this government cannot stop spending. The second reason is that decent jobs have all but vanished. Re-educating yourself is possible but only if you have the dough and you are certain you can get a job in your field. That's an iffy proposition for most of us.
What I am going to do is based on my personal circumstances and what our government does. I have a plan. Whatever your circumstances are- you should develop a similar plan. If things turn very bad and you want to stay in the U.S. and let them steal every last dime they can get away with- that's fine. Perhaps you are so wealthy that it doesn't matter.We all have choices to make.
Currently, between city, county, real estate taxes and fees, sales tax and gas tax, state taxes, and federal taxes- I have lost 50% of my income. Losing any more is simply not tolerable.
On FG, I have tried to educate the people who stop by. Educate yourself as best you can. Don't get emotionally involved with the process- and don't take it personally. The United States is a mess. It ranks around 9th on the economic freedom scale and we are destined to drop further. It is no longer the best place to live- by various measures. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Index_of_Economic_Freedom In a month or two I am going to visit several central American countries starting with Belize and moving west and south. The cost of living is pretty cheap, the weather is gorgeous, people speak English, health insurance is less than 100 bucks a mo., and the government is not so bankrupt that they must steal every last cent that I have or force feed me some laws for my own good.
I'd like to stay in the U.S. but the reality is- is that we have no leadership and we are bankrupt. I am too old to fight any wars or stretch any number of well deserving political necks. I keep my sanity by staying emotionally and physically sound, reading and working out daily, and sticking to my plan. There are a number of ex-pats already, about 7 million, who have taken that plunge. I can see myself on a beach somewhere ignoring local politics. That seems sane to me.
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http://bulletsbeansandbullion.blogspot.com/
On the 19th of April 1775 when word was spread to gather in Lexington, news of the British advance came to Cambridge street where Hezekiah Wyman fifty-five years of age, mounted his white horse, and with musket in hand, set off for Lexington. Like other men from Woburn, he was too late for the fighting at Lexington Common but, continuing up the road, met the British soldiers returning from Concord. All along the route back to Boston was made the legend of the white horseman who charged again and again against the British, killing and wounding a number of the enemy, but always escaping untouched by the shower of bullets around him. According to the newspaper account (first printed in the Boston Pearl, repeated in the Woburn Journal., 29 July 1887) "his exploits were well nigh fabulous."
When he met the British he began blazing away at them vigorously with his deadly firearm. Mounted on his strong steed he rode furiously in the direction of the British ranks. His aim was taken at close quarters, and his shots were sent with constant fatal effect.
"His tall guant form, his grey locks floating in the breeze, and the color of his steed distinguishing him from the other Americans, and the British gave him the name of "Death on the Pale Horse". The utmost endeavors of his enemies to kill him were unavailing. He passed through the whole melee unscathed and unhurt. Once a bayonet charge drove the old man and the party with which he was acting to a distance from the foe, but he was out of ammunition and was then compelled to pick some up, but he ere long returned to the charge and this time killed an officer, and after that exploit, the report of his piece was frequently heard till the close of the fight. His powerful white horse careening at full speed over the hills with the dauntless old man on his back, was continuously seen. The British learned to dread the frequent appearances of this dire rider at unexpected points along he route of their passage, for his aim was true, and the economical principals in which he was trained forbade his wasting powder and ball.
He lingered at Menotomy long enough to aid in a plot laid by Ammi Cutter for the taking of the British baggage wagon and their guards (with the old men of Menotomy)... The story says that Hezekiah pursued the British even after they entered Charlestown and then, turning his horse's head, returned to his home.
Wyman's name appears on a list of those who either paid for others to serve or did their own personal service in Captain Samuel Belknap's company and is listed for five months service at Ticonderoga and three months in Jersey. In march 1777 the Town of Woburn voted to pay him 8 pounds, 16 shillings, and 10 pence in part for his service in the war. Wyman survived his part in the war as did the white mare, which he willed to one of his sons, and lived out his days, until his death during the summer of 1779 in his house not far from the corner of Cambridge and Wildwood streets (site of 195 Cambridge St.) He owned a large section of land upon which much of the west side is now built, where generations of descendants succeeded him. The neighborhood was often called Wyman Plains and, until recently, the family name was perpetuated through a succession of Wyman School.
Your never too old to do the right thing. The choice is yours of course, but we will need good men to stand with us. You have earned your right to live on a beach in peace and quiet. But the drums of war sounding against your people will still echo across the water...