Poor Man
Survival
Self
Reliance tools for independent minded people…
A Digest of Urban Survival Resources
"Only two
things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about
the former."
-Albert Einstein
-Albert Einstein
As the World Burns
We have a very short
window of relative stability in the United States, yet most Americans don't
seem too concerned about our long-term problems. Most have their heads buried
in the sand or have faith that our "leaders" will be able to find a
way to muddle through whatever challenges are ahead…
Americans are
dangerously ignorant about their own history and world affairs. Many
are thoroughly enamored with mundane, the trite and the superficial. A look at what passed for entertainment today
indicates how far we’ve fallen. Our
appetite for crap entertainment, pop culture, sports and celebrity nonsense is
insatiable and growing.
Most of us are closed
off to new ideas, subjects and other information through artificially created
filter bubbles via search engines such as Google. Others have called this the closing of the American mind… [What the
internet is hiding from you - users get less exposure to conflicting viewpoints and are
isolated intellectually in their own informational bubble] We know, for instance, that only 4% of Americans
are active news consumers, down 12% from just a few years ago.**
Growing numbers don’t want to face reality
and are truly ignorant about the world around them. Most of them, like our leaders, are fiddling
while our nation burns.
Of course,
politicians who have been feeding at the public trough for life enjoy this
knowing stupid people are easier to control and fewer of them vote or become
involved in politics.
Personally, I’ve had
it with so many years of incompetent and mediocre leaders at all levels of
government. It has led to a mind numbing
state of affairs…
**Recommended
reading: How to Find Out Anything by Don
MacLeod
Do
you still think the economy is getting better?
2015 Store Closing Roundup - Office Depot,
Radio Shack, Barnes & Noble
The mainstream media is constantly telling us about
the "employment recovery" that is happening in the United States, but
the truth is that it is just an illusion.
If you listen and
believe the news reports and government concocted statistics, yes it is
better. If you are in MI, the economy is
booming…cars are selling, restaurants are booming, people are attending
sporting events in record numbers.
However, the shadow
stats aren’t as rosy and as history has shown for consumers, they’ll the blow
any extra money they get their hands on just like a drunk politicians.
The truth isn’t as
sparkling. Just like our escalating
national debt, consumers are again piling debt onto their credit cards.
As a nation, we buy
far more from the rest of the world than they buy from us. In other
words, we perpetually consume far more wealth than we produce. This is a
recipe for national economic suicide. Our current account balance soared
to obscene levels just prior to the last recession, and now we have almost
gotten back to those levels...
Many are spending
like it is 1999 as the old song goes and now reports are surfacing that many
college kids and others are selling their food stamp dollars or exchanging them
for drugs and alcohol.
The
wealthy are hoarding cash and precious metals right now. In fact, one
British news report stated that sales of gold bars to wealthy customers are up 243 percent so far this
year. The stock market here and in Canada has dropped considerably
this month…reminds me of the beginning of the big crash of 2008-09! Is anyone paying attention? Not really.
U.S. Retail Chain Store Closing Plans and Total Numbers - U.S. and Global
What follows is a complete
roundup of U.S. retail chain store closing plans, and total numbers of store
closings that retail chains have announced will take place in the U.S. and
globally. Information for this 2015 Store Closing List was obtained
from reports made available to the general public through news reports,
corporate documents, and company press releases, and will be compiled and
aggregated as new information is released throughout 2015.
Here’s
why our economy adds so few living wage jobs while discouraging business
startups…
We Can’t Afford the $2 Trillion Price Tag of Government
Regulations
In recent years regulations have also been used to promote
social policies’
The federal government takes its toll in taxes but
there are insidious and intrusive hidden regulatory costs that eat into our
household budgets to an extent that is equal to or greater than what we pay in
taxes, according to Dan Weber, president of the Association of Mature American
Citizens.
“Regulations are supposed to make things better and
safer, but in recent years they have also been used to promote social policies
such as green energy. Why else would federal regulators create onerous
rules, for example, that inhibit the use of the nation’s vast fossil fuel
resources?”
The EPA would decimate the nation’s coal industry
with restrictive carbon emission regulations despite the fact that technology
exists to allow for the clean use of coal to generate electricity.
“Bear in mind that coal generates about 41 percent
of our electricity and is our cheapest source of power. Because American
coal is so plentiful and inexpensive, it can be construed that it is a
hindrance to the development of solar and wind power,” Weber pointed out.
He noted that rules governing such things as the
operations of public transportation and financial markets, the sale of
pharmaceuticals, workplace safety, drinking water, etc. have a practical role
to play in our society. But, he added, “when the government uses its
regulatory authority to further social goals without so much as a debate on the
issues and a Congressional vote, it is downright wrong-headed. Not to
mention the costs it imposes on American households.”
The Competitive
Enterprise Institute estimated that in 2013 the cost of complying with
federal regulations amounted to nearly $15,000 for the average U.S.
household. Many of the rules were, of course, necessary and beneficial,
but the CEI pointed out that in recent years the government has been imposing
as many 3,500 regulations per annum.
“It begs the question: are all those new rules
really essential in the midst of an excruciatingly slow economic recovery?”
“The issue
of government regulatory authority run-amok is not a political issue.
It’s an American issue that requires bi-partisan attention because we simply
can’t afford the nearly $2 trillion dollar price tag,” Weber concluded.
Obama Added
Over $1 Trillion in Red Ink in Fiscal 2014
The federal government’s fiscal year ended last week, on
September 30. The accounting is dismal. Even though 2014 has been a
booming year in the economy, with rapidly rising (+8.5%) tax collections, the
total federal debt increased by $1.077 trillion to reach $17.823 trillion.
The reported federal deficit for the year was “only” $583 billion, but that’s
because the government ignores various increases in debt. If you look at
the total federal deficit between September 30 in 2013 and 2014, the increase
was $1.077 trillion. In the last six
years, President Obama has added more debt than any other President in history,
almost doubling the cumulative total, from $9 trillion to almost $18 trillion.
Most people are stupid, especially when they’re panicked. This can easily be
evidenced by the many sheeple still among us. They’re everywhere. Worse,
they’re really going to be EVERYWHERE during an emergency…
If
you’re not planning ahead, you’re already in trouble…I’m giving this library
away…get it now while you still can!
How to Survive the…
War on Middle Class and All 9 Bonus Reports can be
downloaded here:
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2 comments:
Yes indeed, many Americans have their head buried in the sand, oblivious to anything except the Big Game. By the way, congratulations, we hear you ranked in the top 50 best self reliance sites and in Yahoo's top 100 best political commentary polls!
You always post top notch content...guess your health is improving?
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