Bruce's Poor Man Bulletin
Your choice for urban survival resources!
Http://www.PoorManSurvival.com
Inside this issue:
Don't worry-be happy
New free resources-Unlocking the Code
End of season tomato recipe
Winter Weather Disaster Proofing Tips
Pemmican recipe
Senator Ernest Hollings, pointed out: "Obviously the first way to save social security is to stop looting it."
Don't Worry-Be happy! FEMA Coffins?
As many of you already know, our government is a master of manipulation, bender of the truth, princes of propaganda and what's left of mainstream media can no longer be relied upon to report the unbiased facts. Indeed, the challenge for any journalist is to sift through the many conspiracy theories in the search for truth.
Before he passed away, Ed, my longtime friend and CPA warned me against trusting the government and it took a long time for me to swallow that advice. But as many of us have discovered over the years, the government is organized crime and they have
stolen the American Dream.
It hasn't been to tough to see how our fiat currency and its purchasing power has been diluted during my lifetime. When I was in high school our neighbor predicted houses would eventually cost $200,000 and everyone thought he was crazy. A brand new VW cost $1700 then – try to find a good sized lawn tractor for that today!
As we all know, the government is solely responsible for this decline in our standard of living...or was it you?
Recently, a new subscriber sent me websites showing FEMA coffins (which look like human-sized plastic totes) stacked up in a warehouse and with it a videotaped interview of two workers who spoke of the FEMA camps set up for dissident citizens and how the coffins were short term, used for body storage only until they were transported to a crematorium. Is there any basis of truth for this? I simply do not know. Rumors and urban legends all have some basis in truth which is how they are spread about the planet.
Some of the
great government lies include the income tax, which when 'passed' the American public was told “this will never affect more than the top one percent of income earners in the country,” and everyone cheered! After all, we all want to 'stick it to the rich' until we become rich.
Another favorite was the great tobacco settlement done with the cooperation of all state governments and some legal vultures. The states made solemn promises to the public that all the money would be put into educating the young about the evils of smoking. Well, after all the lawyers made their millions and the states got their cash, guess what happened? Only one state lived up to their promise and the others promptly blew the money on pet projects until they were broke again – giving credence to that old saying about spending like drunken politicians!
Like the proverbial frog placed in a pot of cold water set to boil, none of us notice the Gestapo like methods and rules forced upon us in the name of protection or freedom (how much 1984 government double-speak can you take)?
So it's no wonder I take anything the government tells us with a grain of salt as like Native Americans are fond of saying...they “speak with forked tongues,” and that's not a conspiracy theory!
...excerpted from my forthcoming book,
Lies My Government Told Me
“Our 4th Amendment & Constitution – May it rest in peace”
This week's resources, freebies & money saving ideas...
Extras for creative learning-good resource for teachers. Site redistributes excess inventory, outdated stock, overruns or seconds to artists, teachers, group leaders, etc.
www.EXCLRecyles.org
Team EcoEtsy...members share eco-news, eco-tips, member features and how-to's-good resource for reducing, reusing and recycling.
Www.Blog.EcoEtsy.com
Find healthcare coverage fast
Researching health care coverage can be a lot of work. Here's a new government resource designed to make things easier (I've not checked it out). Find the right policy by logging on, select your state, answer a few questions, etc.
www.HealthCare.gov
At our recent family reunion many attendees remarked they disliked using facebook to share details of their lives with the entire universe (you know those aliens are watching)...here's a site that is free and provides a way to share news, events, photos, etc.
www.ChatterTree.com
Sneaky bankers want your cash...despite new laws designed to protect consumers from fees that gouge, banking lawyers are paid the big bucks to figure out new ways to continue fat banking profits at your expense. That means services such as free checking will likely vanish...be sure to double check your statements for sneaky fees as they will not be announced boldly.
A code which unlocks big savings. Sunday newspaper circulars still provide a bountiful harvest of coupons and you can use their online sites for added savings. For instance, at www.RedPlum.com, you normally type in your zip code to instantly get coupons. Here's the secret...enter a different zip code and get a whole new set of coupons.
Quick fix for dull scissors...I learned this from my late mother (she should have written her own book). Make a few cuts through a sheet of sandpaper...works every time!
...here's another I learned from her: kill those annoying weeds which grown between sidewalk cracks with common table salt (apply to base of plant) and they will soon die. Cheaper than commercial sprays.
“Can you say 'quantitative easing?'
---2025 Government Theft Chapter from the Controlled Collapse Chronicles
End of season tomatoes...
Our crop was darn good n tasty this year but everyone always ends up with a final crop which can be canned in order to enjoy over the winter. Canning is a lot of work so here's a recipe which can be frozen...quick n easy gazpacho.
In a blender, mix 4 whole tomatoes-chopped
2 cucumbers,chopped
1 bell pepper-stemmed, seeded & chopped
1 large onion-chopped
1 bunch of cilantro
2 cloves of garlic and splash of red wine vinegar.
Blend till somewhat soupy but chunky and add salt and/or pepper to taste
Freeze in ziploc or other containers-thaw by placing in the fridge overnight.
Save $$$ on home repairs...leaky faucet, jammed window or other problem? Try the easy repair instructions at:
www.FixitClub.com
Need Parts for that car or truck but unwilling to buy them new? It's been reported that using parts from a store to build a car from the ground up would cost 10-30 times higher than off the showroom floor! Try the largest online USA recycling directory at:
www.junkyardjeffs.com
Hamburger Pemmican Bars
The Poor Man first tried pemmican while in the Boy Scouts – yech! This food bar started with the Native Americans who used mostly buffalo meat. It was a staple item among Indians and fur traders and some camping supply places sell it too. For this recipe it's recommended that some of the fat can be eliminated by tilting the pan when heat drying and pouring it off. You can add some berries for flavor or a crushed vitamin C tablet to prevent scurvy. Here you go:
1lb lean hamburger
¼ tsp black pepper, 1tsp garlic salt, 1 tsp salt, 1tsp honey, 1 vitamin C tablet powdered
1 tsp lemon juice, 1 tsp brown sugar, 1 tsp liquid smoke or soy, some red wine to soak
Soak all ingredients overnight in fridge, flatten on a cookie sheet and place in low over (300); tilt pan to collect melted fat and pour it off, then slice into bars and complete by air drying.
Thanks Sam for this recipe. I met Sam at the
Woods n Water Expo in MI this weekend-a well attended outdoors festival where I also met many more like-minded folks, some of which I'll be writing about in future issues (especially about the S510 so-called food bill which threatens your right to grow food).
3/2010...Rasmussen Report Shows 59% of Americans
believe states should opt out of unconstitutional federal programs.
56% favor getting out of Obamacare!
Disaster Proofing Tips-Winter Weather
In this part of the world it seemed as if summer ended and autumn started overnight. Winter can bring on a new set of challenges during emergencies as snow and ice storms can paralyze entire regions as we witnessed last season in the north east and Atlantic seaboard states. Power outages can last for days and it's important to have backup power supplies as we wrote about a few issues back in regard to choosing a generator.
Long-lasting cold can burst your water pipes, so prepare your home by shutting off the water supply at the source; then open the lowest faucet and drain your pipes...be sure to save some water for drinking and cooking and cleaning. Remember: eating snow is a dangerous way to hydrate and can lead to hypothermia.
Stay home during storms. Nearly 70% of winter fatalities occur in cars...so stay indoors and off the road! That's why it is important to stockpile extra food – this helps you avoid dangerous trips to the grocer. Camp out in your living room if you don't have a generator, it will keep the family warmer.
If your toilet freezes or you want to prevent it from freezing, pour some RV grade anti-freeze into it or in a pinch, some vodka.
Remember to clean your gutters before winter hits so they don't back up and freeze.
Recent large-scale blackouts/power outages have lasted as long as three weeks and can happen anywhere, anytime due to our aging power grid. It's important to keep a generator or other means of power, crank-style radio, flashlights and batteries, candles, emergency food supply on hand. Landlines and cell phones may not always work. A useful and free service called “I'm OK” can create an emergency contact list for you which will allow a single text message to get out. Go to: www.imokapp.appspot.com
You're always ahead of the game by making weatherization improvements to your home before winter arrives. Have your furnace, wood stove, sump pump, etc. checked beforehand and make necessary adjustments.
Keep a supply of candles, oil lamps & lamp oil on hand and board games and books to occupy yourself and family during power outages. DIY video on lighting http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rUS6oBcI1h8&feature=related or this site: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kgDWjESSuLk&feature=related
Most folks, especially retirees, opt for keeping money in the bank as opposed to making simple home improvements and other damage preventing tasks...most think damages only happen to others and are willing to gamble against natural disasters such as winter storms, hurricanes, floods, and the like. You can't protect your home and family while the damn wind is blowing over your home as it is too late then. Don't be one of those fighting over the last bag of Frito-Lays at the grocery store, take steps now to assess the range of threats you might face in your neck of the woods.
On the general side of preparedness, experts suggest that families plan out escape routes, have an emergency 'get-away' kit always packed (see PM issue from three weeks ago), create a plan for contacting family members during a crisis. Contact your local Red Cross for more information on such planning or visit the Poor Man site for additional resources.
Government workers don't pay taxes-they consume them!
Parting thoughts-gems of wisdom
I recently read of a study performed on the fate of lottery winners in Florida...kind of interesting and its matches other studies I've heard about. The majority of them had declared bankruptcy in the 5th year and had few or no assets to speak of.
Few schools teach money management or even how to balance a checkbook; they do teach you how to graduate college with a useless degree and tens of thousands of dollars of debt as a means of starting out in life. The study concluded that many of these lottery winners typified many of us during the go-go years in that we all needed to join Spendthrifts Anonymous. Many had wasted their winnings on depreciating assets such as cars, boats, jewelry and other baubles and toys.
Others looked to instant gratification, buying friendships and other status enhancing items to blow their funds. Few had a home to show for their efforts, though some might say how homes have lost their value too and that is true...if you have a mortgage, this would not be a good thing.
I've been poor and I've been rich. In a previous life I learned the richer I became, the faster my former spouse would blow our money on many of the above items...none of it ever made her happier as there was always something else she wanted. If and when she got that next 'thing' she'd be happy – for about a minute and then she'd begin plotting her next 'gotta have it' purchase.
My basic rule of thumb for purchases falls into the following categories:
Buy for resale – buy cheap, sell for more>>basic business
Buy to make my business run better, faster, cheaper, make more money
Buy assets that will increase in value (generally not the stock market)
Invest in learning new skills to improve my life or business
After I sold my business and got divorced, losing a half million or more in the process, I managed (through creative financing) to purchase an 18,000 sq ft mansion where I was able continue selling my seminar and marketing services and a how to manual I had written...boy, did that piss off the ex! The point is...you should always be looking to acquire new skills for yourself and/or upgrade old skills and your network of contacts. When the publishing business was lost and newspapers in general began their decline, I had already developed other skill sets to keep afloat – and some months, that was all I could do!
I had managed to hang onto an extensive coin collection, something the ex knew nothing about, otherwise that too would have become hers. Cashing that in became somewhat of a salvation as it gave me the working capital I needed at the time.
The point is even during tough times, rough real estate markets and so on, opportunities exist. If I were a younger man, now would be the time for instance, to snatch up bargain properties. Fix them up and rent them out – even to Section 8 renters...at least you know you'd get a rent check each month and if you maintain or improve the property, some equity is built and you could eventually sell them. I have done this after the divorce and poured sweat equity into the homes and due to a bad economy then, I sold them all on a special lease-option program that I adapted from some how-to courses I had taken!
Living frugally even during good times allows you to live well. When you subscribed to this letter did you take advantage of our Eco Guide to Saving Money on Utilities? The money you save is like having it in the bank as opposed to making the utility company wealthier.
The Profits I generated allowed me and my current wife to live well without an income for nearly two years...what opportunities are you overlooking?
Finally, you've probably seen the national news regarding the 7-year-old Oregon girl who faced up to $500 in fines for selling lemonade due to some government creep; she was eventually given a reprieve after a public outcry but it smacks of Gestapo like action.
I keep getting reports regarding the coming war with Iran and how it will sink our economy and it wouldn't surprise me...as I reported last week, Israel now has a flight corridor open to them straight to Iran...won't surprise me if that country takes out Iran soon as it has performed similar actions in the past.
See the Voice of Reason to learn how our economy has become socialistic
http://www.voiceofreason.ws/
Yours for better living – your patriot poor man!
Patronize and share out sites...
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Don't Get Caught With Your Pantry Down – the all time best book on family preparedness has been updated & now includes an online video segment as well. Highly recommended 11th Edition. http://tinyurl. com/PMBasics
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... available now as a download only (you get it faster and we now include other bonuses too)
