Guard Dog

I don't make panic decisions with money. I got out of stocks for multiple reasons. The biggest of which is I needed money to buy enough arable real estate for my idea to work. None of my "farm" lots are mortgaged. I paid cash for all of them. No property I currently own is mortgaged. There is a reason for that: I have no plans to sell in the near future. These are long term investments. I'm betting that Dyersburg, Union City, and Brownsville are going to continue to grow. 10 years, 20 years down the road I'm betting all of these lots will be rezoned for commercial/industrial or residential. THEN they will pay off in a big way. What I paid tens of thousands for might be worth millions. In the mean time they are earning a quarterly income. It will never be enough to "pay off" the price but that will happen when I sell, one way or another. That is how i work when it comes to managing money. I am no gambler. I don't even consider short term gains. I don't "play" stocks, I don't "flip" property. I look for low risk opportunities that have a good chance of long term gain. Gold is almost never a bad bet. I started buying it in 2008 when it looked like Obama might be elected. It was trading for around $900/oz then. I didn't have a lot of money back then. I was still living paycheck to paycheck. But I bought as much as I could every month. Because everything I read predicted Obama was going to win, spend a f--k load of money and the long term effect would be debt monetization by currency devaluation. That made gold a good bet over the next 5 years. And oh my god was it ever. I sold it all over $2100 and had real money for investments for the first time in my life. Right now gold is north of $1600. Not such a great deal for growth. The thing to remember about a commodity, ANY commodity, is that is has a real objective value. Gold has an objective value of around $1100/oz. The objective value of a commodity is tied to it's market price like a tether. The higher the trading price of a commodity rises the more it's objective value will begin to pull it down. Panic buying a thing, but in the end the #1 rule of money management is still "Never pay more for a widget that it's worth". One of two things will happen to the banking system. It will collapse or it won't. If it does we are back to the 1930's for a time. Hopefully that great depression won't take a World War to pull out of. Maybe if that happens we'll reset to a more proven economic management model. Or a more oppressive one. If it does not, Mr. Keynes wins out again and we'll go back to the boom and bust cycle, growth then recession, of the last 80 years. No matter what happens, we'll be fine in a few years as long as this is not taken as an opportunity to do some radical remaking of the economy.

you are not wrong there. The banking repo market has been in trouble for some time. The problem with the modern day fascination with Keynes is the failure to understand the "trap" part of a liquidity trap. It does not good to "give" banks money to stabilize them if they treat that money as loanable funds. Bah, don't even get me started. I have gotten out of the stock market altogether. I have a new investment strategy that I am very happy with. I've been buying land zoned for agricultural use and then leasing it to local agri-business. You won't get rich but unlike residential rentals it covers it's own costs, provides a modest income, and has appreciation value because towns and cities are only going to get bigger. This is the way @Gromnir. Residential is no damn good for anybody.

I worked in the garden this morning and spend the afternoon at target practice. The Browning X-Bolt in 6.5 Creedmoor is the finest rifle I have ever used. My longest target frame is 910 meters. At that range from a bench rest I shot a 2.5" group of 5. From offhand it was a 4" group. Most of the rest of the session was using .44 sp target rounds from 100m. They are a LOT cheaper. Marksmanship is a perishable skill. You have got to practice.

Which is just about everyone with a 401k, IRA, Pension, College Fund, or isn't burying their money in the back yard.

One of many

I doubt Crozier's career is over. Unless he want's it to be. But the Roosevelt will likely be his last combat command. And he will never receive a flag promotion. He will likely end up as a base commander at Saratoga Springs, or NAS New Orleans, or down the road from me at Millington. Or if they are really mad at him Diego Garcia. That's what the military does with guys they'd rather not have around. Send you to a s--t detail. I knew one guy who f----d up so bad he ruined a deployment. Never touched the radar again. He spent his last 18 month of service on loan to barracks support.

The most important thing to understand about the military is that it is a machine and you are a cog in it. When objections and protests fall on deaf ears you have two choices. You say "aye aye sir" and keep your mouth shut or you follow your conscience if it is in conflict. But do the latter knowing there will be consequences for more than just you. No one person in any chain of command knows the reasons why orders are given. That is why it is so important that they be followed. A conscious decision not to follow them will always be one made in ignorance to one degree or another. Look, the truth is my opinion of the US Military has changed on the long years since I turned my rifle in. Not about the services themselves. I still find them all admirable and honorable. But about they way they are used by political leadership. I started to see it while i was in but was very fortunate never to be victimized by it. Our motto was "Semper Fidelis" Always Faithful. I see now that fidelity only runs one way most of the time. Maybe it's not my opinion of the military that has changed so much as the nation it serves. In my younger years I was the quintessential "red blooded American" stereotype. USA all the way and all that. The Marines are the perfect place for a man like that. Despite everything I got out of the experience I still think joining the military is about the most unselfish decision a person can make. Because I believed in "big" things like Country, Religion, Liberty, and Freedom. Now, I don't. Fighting for ideals, for "big" things like that might seem important but it's actually futile. It's like an ant pushing a mountain. They will take eveything you have to give them, even your very life. They will never give anything back. Even the gravest of sacrifices are honored only for a moment if they are acknowledged at all. Maybe only small things are worth taking up arms for. I'd fight to defend my family such as it is. Two sickly dogs and a pen full of chickens. But they are mine, They depend on me and even love me after a fashion. Your country does not, can not, and never will. Abstractions are not things worth fighting for. Maybe if I thought that way then I would not have joined the Corps. I don't know. That would have been a shame because i did get a lot out if it. Anyway, if you actually read through all that thanks for the indulgence. I get philosophical somewhere between my 2nd & 4th glass.

Canadian man attempting solo circumnavigation of the globe is the safest man on Earth: https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/lone-canadian-sailing-the-globe-may-be-literally-the-safest-human-on-earth/

Michigan man uses $900 savings to buy gas for nurses

This Brooklyn Landlord Just Canceled Rent for Hundreds of Tenants

They were not. They were congressmen, DOD types. Even if one of them did leak the letter the fact that he went to them is every bit as bad. I know it sounds wrong to some folks but you know as well as I do that is just not done.

Captain Crozier was fired for going to the media. In the military that kind of thing just is not done. If your immediate superior is not acting in the best interests of the country, the men in your command, etc. there is a process to go around him. And around the next level also. It's called Request Mast and it works. I saw it done twice in my service and it worked. But you DO NOT go to the news media and announce to the world (China, Russia, NK, Iran, etc) that 1/7 of our Naval Force Projection and deterrent is in any way compromised. Relieving him of command was not just the right move, it was the ONLY move. I'd bet $1k he knew this too. He knew the outcome and did it anyway. Caps off to him for accepting the consequences and doing what he thought was right. I would not have done the same. I would have used the chain of command. There are a number of vets on this board. Manifested, Shady, Gfted, 213374U, Nep, myself, and others. This is true not just of the US military but ANY military. The rules of normal society do not apply. There are rules that MUST be followed that would never be tolerated in the "real world". And by joining you are agreeing to follow them.

America's Favorite Movie According to them it's Shawshank Redemption followed by The Godfather. Both great movies IMO. But neither in my top 3. My top three are: The Outlaw Josey Wales: Jeramiah Johnson No Country For Old Men If you haven't seen any of these take care of that right away!

Re-reading Pat Frank's Alas Babylon. Seems appropriate.

Well... wouldn't THIS be awkward! When a DNA Test Reveals Your Daughter Is Not Your Biological Child

It's cloudy and cool today. Probably not good for fishing. But I FEEL like going fishing! I love where I live. I have a creek and two rivers in walking distance and 100% guarantee I will not see another human being on the way. THIS is how you spend the apocalypse!

If I saw that I'd think "There goes a man with plumbing problems!"

Completely agree with this!

I went fishing. Didn't get a nibble. But it was still great.

I can fix all that right now! People get mad when their tax dollars go to support people who entered the country illegally right? Simple solution: no more taxes. If you don't tax no one's hard earned is wasted giving anyone else a "free ride" or whatever it was they were getting. And without taxes there is no refugee camps, or ICE rounding people up. See how easy that was? I just LOVE when the thorniest problems have simple solutions!

Where did you hear that?

Mystery Mom Has Been Leaving Out Free Bagged Lunches ‘Made With Love’ for Anyone Who May Need Them

Sounds like something that would happen to Gorgon.