Letters to Mom-in-Law

Buttercup's Mom occasionally forwards emails from the conservative action sites she frequents.  This morning, she sent one from GOPUSA the contents of which led to a link for a Stansberry Research letter  [ad].  (If you click to close the tab it will ask you if you want to skip the video but stay on the page.  I exercised that option.)

Below find the contents of my commentary response email while also remembering:

1. this blog's disclaimer (see very bottom of the page);
2. I am not qualified, certified, or entitled to provide anyone advice;
3. to have a Merry Christmas and/or Happy Holiday;
4. that anonymous charity is a true Gentleman's calling.

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i had to stop listening because there was too much self-promotion at the beginning, but when it offered to let me read the note that he wrote i skimmed it -

facts are facts - the us fed now owns more treasury debt than any other sovereign nation in the world, china, britain, etc. that is true -

also true, those 14-17% of americans on food stamps are a continuing flow of inflation via debt monetization as they exchange a parallel cash currency for products - on the other hand, we must ask ourselves if the world casts the US into a confidence crisis would our money be more, or less valuable?  our debts more or less impactful?  as an inflationist, i believe that people who hold money are actually in favorable position because they can generate flow to offset relative declining flow against real property - for those without cash coverage on their notes, the above is actually the very reason why i would recommend any unsophisticated investor that is around my age to treat houses not as investments, but as expensive necessities - in paying down a mortgage you earn 4-8% compounding interest by not owing the bank that same interest - addition by subtraction, as it were -

in my view, gold bugs are late to the party, while silver remains cheap relative to its industrial applications -

ultimately, currencies and economies built in fiat money are confidence based, and are therefore the very definition of ponzi schemes - many times i have posited that governments do not act to protect their citizens, but to keep them indoctrinated in a system through bank debt, taxation, and some semblance of a legal system etc., to keep them believing that everything is real, even if it isn't - that everything is fair, even if it isn't -

all of the above noted, i'd rather own my house than a stock i'd want to hold for 10 years, i'd rather have knowledge of how to grow food than have dehydrated milk stuffed in the floor boards, and i'd rather own guns than gold - in other words, preparing for every eventuality, even if rooted in fiscal misappropriation, extends well beyond the small, incestuous world of bankers and their political toys -

The Six Stages of [Trader] Development

While drawing on the hunting metaphor for Insider Trading:  Where's the Sport in that? I recalled the Six Stages of Hunter Development** taught in local hunter education classes.  The stages read like a Disney plot of childish excitement, greed, then personal development, and a punchline.  And perhaps human nature always follows such a path.  While some mire in the early, greedy stages most of the rest of the world is deeper than that, and it's good to be reminded so when rising to an unwritten, unspoken cause seems lonely.

1. Shooting Stage - The priority is getting off a shot, rather than patiently waiting for a good shot.
2. Limiting-out Stage - Success is determined by bagging the limit.  In extreme cases, this need to limit out can cause hunters to take unsafe shots.
3. Trophy Stage - The hunter is selective and judges success by quality rather than quantity.  Typically, the focus is on big game and anything that doesn't measure up to the desired trophy is ignored.
4. Method Stage - In this stage, the process of hunting becomes the focus.  A hunter may still want to bag a limit, but places a high priority on how it is accomplished.
5. Sportsman Stage - Success is measured by the total experience - the appreciation of the environment, the game, the process of the hunt, and the companionship of fellow hunters.
6. "Give-Back" Stage - Hunters are interested in introducing others to hunting and passing on the proper hunting values.  These hunters also teach others about safety and the responsibilities of hunting.

If good deeds, like cards in their frailty, are many to build a house, then it only takes one developmentally stunted jerk to screw everything up.  Those who find joy in the construction, though, shall never be disappointed.

** - the numbered list above is copyright by Kalkomey Enterprises, Inc., it is reprinted without permission, but hopefully the fact that I don't make any money from this blog, as well as the fact that I am trying to make a point for the cause of idealism will earn me a pass.