I’M NOT AFRAID–I’M TERRIFIED
Monday, June 18th, 2012Author Tony DeMaio
PART I
Folks, I just got a letter from a friend of mine. He references
http://survivalist.com/food-storage-makes-you-a-terrorist.html
where flyers from The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ask that clerks forward information on suspicious customers to DHS. Such suspicious behavior consists of buying gold, large amounts of food (sent to a bulk food store), guns, ammunition, MREs, pays cash, etc. The flyer suggests the store demand I.D. before allowing such purchases, and forward the information to DHS.
Previous attempts to define “likely terrorist” or “suspicious persons” alluded to fingers missing, veteran, Christian, tea party member, objecting to paying taxes, critical of the government, and other such behavior/characteristics.
The latest flyer distributed to hobby shops suggests that anyone interested in radio controlled airplanes be reported as “suspicious“.
Now, folks, I don’t consider myself a “terrorist”, and I have enough of a stat/research background to know the accuracy of statistical prediction (while terrible, it is still better than “clinical” prediction–i.e. interviews.) HOWEVER, I DO pay cash, AM a Christian, have guns and ammunition, own gold, am a tea party member, and do object to paying (high) taxes (particularly when the money is wasted), have a considerable supply of food (much of it home canned), and even have a garden and fruit trees. To put the last nails in the coffin, I DO build and fly radio controlled model airplanes and have been and am “somewhat critical” of the government..
With such a profile, should I be concerned about the National Defense Authorization Act?
PART II
As many of you know, I am retired. I planned carefully for these days, sticking with a job that I hated because of other benefits (security, pension, health care, etc.)
I have several sources of income–none large, but quite diversified. I look at recent government actions/decisions, and I have become quite concerned. I have watched as each of my sources of income have become jeopardized by the actions and plans of my government. I suspect I may become a burden on my children–which will be quite difficult since I have no children, at least to speak of.
1. Consider CDs and Money Market funds: At 6%, a million dollar Vanguard money market account would pay about $5,000/mo–enough to live on. TODAY, due to the policy of keeping interest rates “low”, that same money market fund pays about $67/mo. My CDs are “worthless” in terms of cash flow–unless I withdraw principal.
2. Consider property: Due to the housing situation caused by a government that thought “everybody should own a house“, the property has been reduced in value by 40%–50%. As a hedge against inflation, it is useless; selling it would result in a loss–though it may be necessary to do so.
3. Consider PERS pensions: No problems there–YET. As is well known, most pension funds (including PERS) are seriously under funded. Due to the low interest rates, pension funds are not receiving the expected income from the fixed income part of their portfolio; the real estate part of their portfolio has been decimated; and they don‘t even talk about their stock returns.
Also well known is that California is broke(n). While courts have held that the state government has no borrowing authority against the funds and may not usurp them, it can apply pressure for the pension fund to buy California bonds at “favorable rates”. Although states cannot as yet file bankruptcy, recent actions of Congress indicate that such authorization may be forthcoming. Other public institutions (cities) have filed for bankruptcy and reduced the pensions of retirees–as have corporate entities. A bankruptcy would allow courts to “revise” ongoing pensions.
4. Consider stocks: Let’s not. Stocks have gone nowhere for the past four years. The S&P was about 1,400 four years ago and is 1,350 today. Dividends have been slashed.
5. Consider Social Security: As is well known, Social Security, like any Ponzi scheme, is not fiducially sound. As of now, outflow exceeds input, baby boomers are retiring putting a drain on the system, and the economy is such that many people are unemployed and not paying into the system. Many people who cannot find a job and have run out of unemployment insurance are filing for Social Security disability insurance–thus putting further drain on the system. About half the returning servicemen are filing for Social Security disability (e.g. PTSD). The system is broken and well on its way to being bankrupt. I expect “revisions” (e.g. means testing) to be put into effect in the near future.
6. Consider IRAs: There is over 17 trillion dollars invested in various retirement plans
http://www.ici.org/pressroom/news/ret_10_q4
The national public debt is about 15 trillion dollars. Does THAT give you any ideas of the possibilities? It certainly does give ideas to our government. Several years ago (Clinton administration) the government suggested confiscation of the retirement plans, or at least taxing them for the money that “should have been paid but was deferred”.
That idea has resurfaced as either seizing the retirement funds and combining them with Social Security (thus solving two problems), or forcing the purchase of treasury bonds/bills with all or part of the money. Given the rate of return of treasuries (the ten year bill is about 1.5%), or the rate of return on Social Security (about ten cents on the dollar), I see little hope for my personal retirement plans in the near future.
7. Then, of course, there is medical insurance. Under the old (present) medical system, I had essentially “free” medical care between the payments made by Medicare and my (secondary) pension insurance. Under the “new” system, it is highly likely that my pension insurance will be dropped and I shall have to rely on Medicare. Given the various “ethics panels” (death panels), I fear for my life in terms of obtaining medical coverage.
It should be noted that, due to the stock market performance, low (bond) interest rates, and the devastation of real estate, insurance companies are not receiving their expected rate of return and are denying claims, cutting back on payments, raising rates, and refusing coverage. Some are no longer writing certain policies.
8. In spite of government proclamations to the contrary, inflation marches on. While official government figures state inflation is 1%-2%, others put the figure at closer to 10% (e.g. Shadow Stats). To any of you folks that go to the grocery store, fill your gas tank, or pay utility bills, YOU can decide which figure YOU believe is closer to the truth. Consequently, while the income is stagnant (or decreasing), expenses are rising.
PART III
Folks, I really fear for the future–not only for the country, but for ME, and others like me that thought they were prepared for retirement.
As you can easily see, all the “traditional” investments have been corrupted and made “unsound” or “unprofitable” or “unsafe” by various government policies.
One solution is to emigrate to a country with a sound economy that is more friendly to seniors and investments. At this time, Panama appears to be a good choice.
Another option is to inform DHS of my tendency toward terrorist activities, and allow them to seize my assets (such as they are) and send me to a camp where I will be taken care of. If you think this is impossible here in this land of the free, let me introduce you to some Japanese friends who were citizens here just after December 7, 1941. Matter of fact, although not mentioned much, there are some German and Italian folks that experienced the same “hospitality”.
Finally, the possibility of throwing a brick through a shop window and being arrested and sent to prison is becoming more and more alluring.
Related posts:
Val says:
June 18th, 2012
1:29 pm
Tony,
I think the reason DHS wants reports on who buys gold, weapons and bulk foods and pays in cash is not that they REALLY think those are potential terrorists, but so they know who’s door to come knocking on when they start confiscating all of those things “for the public good”. I’ve never seen one of these flyers. I’d like to think that a large majority of the people living in my area would just ignore them. I hope so. If not, then I am DEFINITELY on the list, too, for all of the reasons you cited above except a) I’m not actually a member of the Tea Party; and b) I’ve never had an interest in radio-controlled airplanes.
As to preparing for retirement in a way that the government can’t confiscate or destroy… is anything “safe”?
Tony says:
June 18th, 2012
2:08 pm
Val,
Yes, there is something that is safe. Invest in Radio Controlled Airplanes and sell them to terrorists.
What is somewhat “amusing” (if that’s the right word) is that financial advisors tell you that as you get older, you should eschew risk and put your money into “safe” investments.
always,
tony
Val says:
June 19th, 2012
6:52 am
So, the only real “safe investment” is to become a financial advisor and take other people’s money to dish out advice like that?
Desertrat says:
June 19th, 2012
1:10 pm
I’ve watched the Agora folks for some 20+ years, and their investment picks have been approximately 85% highly successful. They’ve always managed to cut their losses early enough to not get hurt. The Doug Casey folks have a similar track record.
I’ve done quite well without buying stocks, but have roughly parallelled their growth rate insofar as net worth–and a lot less paperwork.
BossLady and I set up where our overhead is very low. Food and fuel will have to go much, much higher than now for me to give a hoot. But I guess it’s fair to say it’s an age thing; Olde Pharts don’t need as much activity or “stuff”.
Back around the start of WW II, an older man bought a small house. Somebody asked him how he saved the money during the Depression. “Well, I couldn’t make it on six dollars a week any worse than not making it on eight dollars a week, so I saved two dollars a week for ten years.” Funny thing about the Depression: Gold mining stocks set record highs, as did corn prices.
Ya gotta pay attention. When the government is buying, the suppliers to the giant conglomerates which sell to the government are doing quite well. Same for those who support the energy developers. I woulldn’t buy Exxon; I’d buy the pipeline company which transports the oil to the Exxon refinery.
Tony says:
June 19th, 2012
3:07 pm
Val,
You’ve got it.
Let me hold your money.
always,
tony
James the Wanderer says:
June 20th, 2012
6:30 pm
Tony,
You got the idea. Find an even wider diversification, including overseas investments, so that if it all goes sideways you have SOMETHING left, somewhere. Pick a foreign country to live in that you find liveable and interesting – there’s bound to be one somewhere.
The lying thieves and thieving liars have left little of value or truth in the country – so find another! Be aware that you may feel out of place – so find a local church, synagogue or whatever and help people. You’ll probably be accepted a lot quicker when Rosita or Zukich looks up and says, “Oh, not that gringo! He’s a good one, he helped Ilka when he needed money for medicine! Let him alone, for my sake!”
Keep your assets out of the banking system, so that they’re harder to seize. Keep a low profile, modest lifestyle and wait for events to overtake the power-mad control freaks now in control – control itself is only an illusion, and better times follow hard times. Best of luck to you and yours, as this unfolds.
Cheers!
JtW
Desertrat says:
June 20th, 2012
8:42 pm
“With such a profile, should I be concerned about the National Defense Authorization Act?”
Not unless you’ve been noisily running your mouth about all your views and “stash”. Even then, you’re among millions of people.
It’s customary for my wife or for me to pay cash for groceries at Wally’s. They never seem to have trouble making change; beaucoup other people pay cash. Not all Walmartians use the food stamp cards. I’ve built up a sizable larder, but I don’t buy a ton at a time. Easy enough to follow that process for reloading supplies and fuel–and all the other little niceties which could possibly either become scarce or increase dramatically in price.
It’s not difficult to keep a low profile.
Funny-weird: DHS is worried about radio-controlled model airplanes, but it’s the government which is flying drones all over the place, even proposing to have as many as 30,000 buzzing around inside the US within a few years.
Tony says:
June 21st, 2012
6:30 pm
James,
Yep, I agree. See my article “off shore account”. Been looking for a place to store what little money I have, and for a place to run to. My main consideration is medical care; second is a hobby shop for radio control. Surprisingly enough, it appears that medical care is quite good and reasonable in most central/south American countries. Each country has its goods and bads–I’m still looking for nirvana. As stated above, Panama is in the lead. It was my original intention to stick around if Obozocare is repealed–but that was before the deluge of police state laws.
=============================================
Rat
Wot??? ME sound off against the gubbermint?? Oh, how cruel youse is.
With me, it’s about the same. I bought a considerable amount of guns/ammo, but it took me over a year. It’s easy enough to buy considerable amounts of food without calling attention to yourself if you buy at different places. Probably not necessary here in Texas where folks pretty much mind their own business. Also, a considerable amount of stored food is home canned from my garden/fruit trees.
At this time, I give a considerable amount of my garden produce away, since I’m running out of room to store it.
always,
tony
Tex Norton says:
June 22nd, 2012
9:15 am
Okay, I admit to “lurking” while trying to keep a low profile. Unable to keep my mouth shut any longer, here goes:
It may surprise you, Tony, but a large portion of our automatic monthly income comes from CalPERS due to my wife’s 33-year stint in law enforcement in CA. Yet we both know the dubious reliability of that entity. California is, and has been, run by absolutely vicious, left-wing radicals from Sacramento on down. Their interference with the market forces is starting to come back to bite them and they’re totally helpless. They tried to mandate that CalPERS market return completely offset the give-away payments to public employees and now they’re finding out how real-world economics works. So while we accept the monthly PERS checks, we don’t hold our breath that those checks will continue indefinitely.
Instead, I have always made it my business to be responsible for my self; to live within my means and independent of any government handouts. As a result, I don’t have to stand on top of a roof in New Orleans holding a “Help Me” sign.
Yet keeping a low profile and living miserly has never been my objective. Rather, I’ve tried to make the most of every opportunity life has presented to me. I’ve traveled extensively and gotten to know folks in many other countries; up close and personal. I like the folks. What I don’t like are the politicians; any politicians in any country. My objective has been to live my life to the fullest without letting the Pols interfere and to the best of my ability. I think I’ve done fairly well. When a particular job was no-longer fun, I quit and found something else that WAS fun. Life is far too short to spend it doing something that is not enjoyable. Work should not be a 4-letter word.
Today, we’re faced with yet another false alternative: would you like a broken arm or would you prefer a broken leg? “Neither” is not an acceptable answer in today’s world. The old cigarette commercial “I’d rather switch than fight” still applies.
I read about all the Preppers and the hunker-downers and the keep-a-low-profile folks, and I wondered how that could provide any semblance of living a good life? I’ve done what I think is prudent to provide for myself, but absolutely NOT to the exclusion of enjoying life each and every day; at least to the extent to which I am capable. After all, that’s how I came to be a Texan; I saw no possible future left in California, and I’d lived in CA since 1941. My research showed that Texas was the best alternative, at least as of 14 years ago when I made the switch.
Today, Texas is still okay but no where near what it was when I first moved here. Furthermore, with the pretender in the White House, normal living conditions no-longer exist anywhere in the USA as far as I can determine. I’m not holding my breath that a change in occupants will make much difference since all mainstream politics favors bigger and bigger government.
Hence, I once again choose to switch than fight. This time, out of the country. As Doug Casey so aptly opines, “I rather watch unfolding events on my flat screen TV than out of my front window.”
A reasonable question would be “why?” bother to switch at my age? I decided the answer, for me, is that it would be worth it even if I only had a month left to live. One thing that New Hampshire got right is their motto “Live Free or Die.” I choose to live as freely as I possibly can in this totally upside-down world, and I will make the effort required to always seek out where that location might be.
Desertrat says:
June 22nd, 2012
4:58 pm
When I say “low profile”, I mostly mean with respect to the federal government. Easy enough to do, and in no way inhibitory on living the good life. Prepping does not necessitate hunkering.
I’ve long been partial to Costa Rica, were I to bail out of the US. I could easily hack it, but the BossLady does not function well with “new”. Just one of those things, and at almost 78 I’m not all that concerned, anyway.
Financial advisors? Agora’s been talking about lithium, and one of their stock picks has recently doubled. Demands for batteries. Here again, they’re benefitting from watching government: The push for battery-powered cars. Then there is all the cell-phone/iPod stuff.
Allen Currie says:
June 26th, 2012
2:01 pm
Well, I come out of my cave and Spain is doing its thing, Cypress has its hand out, about 50 banks have been downgraded, the Mideast is on fire, moreso than usual, and assorted other things. Methinks it is a good time to be stocking up on food. Think feed and seed mills and bags or garbage cans on wheels. Beans is monotonous but filling. Pasta is a great way to store grains. 30 year shelf life. Just in time is gonna git ya.
What do you wanna bet the Germany is back on the Deutschemark within two years?
Tony Don’t it rile ya all the ways arrogant governments and banks find to steal your money and the zillions of rules they make up to bind you hand and foot? Then too, all the anal-ists who think the US solved all the problems in Aug 2008. Now some are recommending that Europe follow that “successful” strategy, as if government ever solved anything.
JtW I don’t ever plan to keep more than $100 overnite in any financial institution and that number is going to drop in the next 30 days.
Allen Currie
tony says:
June 27th, 2012
9:25 am
Allen
Youse sed:
Don’t it rile ya all the ways arrogant governments and banks find to steal your money and the zillions of rules they make up to bind you hand and foot?
And while THEY pass rules to control US, they don’t follow their own rules. Hence, a “budget every year”?–hell no; no politicking from the White House?–no controlling authority; the DORMA Act?–I won’t enforce it; voter intimidation?–not if you’re black; no authority to stop off-shore drilling?–I won’t issue “permits”; checking papers of illegals appropriate–I won’t come and get them; Congress makes immigration laws?–shove it; Congress won’t pass “Dream Act” or “Cap and Trade”?–then I will; no insider trading?–that don’t apply to US.
Ain’t it “strange” that most laws have a section which says, “Does not apply to Congress”?