Luke Hamilton
Using the calm before the storm: it's time to prepare
By Luke Hamilton
The lull is almost over. Now what?
I don't need to tell the savvy readership of Clash Daily that this economic "recovery" has been a combination of smoke and mirrors, held together with a shoestring and bubble gum. The plummeting economy, triggered by the collapse of our government-inflated housing bubble, was temporarily slowed in its break-neck decline by the Obama administration's decision to shovel astronomic amounts of taxpayer money into a hole. In June 2010, after the first round of Quantitative Easing, the Fed had holdings of $2.054 trillion. In November 2010, deciding that things weren't improving fast enough, QE2 was launched and we bought up another $600 billion of assets/debt. When that failed to stimulate the market into a full-on recovery, QE3 was announced in September of 2012. At that point, the Fed declared that they would be buying $40 billion/month for an open-ended duration.
Should be sufficient, right? Even the piggish appetites of our central bankers should be sated by an open-ended allowance of 400 million dollars EVERY SINGLE MONTH, right? Wrong. Just 3 months after the announcement of QE3, the Federal Open Market Committee declared that the bond-buying would be increased from $40b a month to $85b, more than doubling the amount of debt the American people were being given every month. Make no mistake; there is no money to spend on these debt purchases. This is referred to as "fiat money" as it is created by fiat, not by any market mechanisms or wealth creation. Each time money is created in this fashion, the dollar you hold in your wallet or your 401(k) gets a little weaker. The greedy progressives behind this diabolical process have discovered that they can rob you without ever touching your billfold, simply by watering down the funds they already control.
This has worked, to a degree. Along with a slavish press, the sheer volume of money spent has provided them a little cover over the past couple years. The same way that 200 gallons of plasma would keep an abdominal gunshot victim alive for a time. But if the plasma runs out and surgery hasn't been done, dude won't be around too much longer. Our cupboard is now running dry. China is too highly leveraged to give us any more actual money and inflation is starting to creep into the economy. The Consumer Price Index for 2013 was the highest it's ever been, with a price inflation of 133% over 1982 prices. We're starting to look like the Town Drunk, hunched over a half-full glass of warm beer, 10 minutes after Last Call.
So now what? We know that Washington doesn't care about us once we've punched their chad in the voting booth. There are only a handful of politicians in DC who are willing to serve the people they represent and those few are increasingly ostracized from the legislative process by the statists on both sides of the aisle. It's true that things are looking increasingly hopeful for November's election; but even if we repeat the success of 2010, the fruits of this election will not be felt for months (perhaps years).
As the remnant has done throughout history, we must prepare. The storm is coming, there can be little question about that. Even Doctor Evil himself has tipped his hand enough to show that he believes a major market slow-down is likely. If even cretinous Marxists like Soros are openly preparing for another economic disaster, shouldn't we? There has never been a better time for the American people to batten the hatches and our window of opportunity might be closing soon.
What does preparation look like in today's world? On a most basic level, we need to be prepared physically to protect and provide for our families. That means equipping ourselves with the means to survive even if the social structure breaks down. Yes "prepper" supplies are a great idea, both for social collapse and disaster preparedness, but we should also be inculcating our families with survival knowledge that extends beyond the gear and supplies. There are plenty of good resources for this level of preparation, but two I follow and recommend are Creek Stewart of Willowhaven Outdoor and David Morris of Urban Survival.
Additionally, we should be preparing to protect ourselves and our families. In any scenario where the social compact breaks down, the predators emerge. Whether it is during a natural disaster, riots, or a targeted attack, the chaos which follows provides enough distraction for the asocial predators in our midst to operate. We must be prepared and aware enough to protect ourselves from them. Purchase a firearm. Practice with it until you are comfortable and accurate. Apply for your CCW permit, even if you don't plan to use it. By the time you need to use a firearm, it's too late to prepare.
Finally, we need to prepare mentally and spiritually. As much as we need to elect strong conservative men and women to office, our responsibilities do not stop at the polling place. We need to develop our knowledge of the issues facing our country. Gone are the days when we had scrupulous "experts" which could be (at least provisionally) relied on to do the right thing. Romans 3:10-18 has never been more apparent than today. Have you read Saul Alinski and Karl Marx? Are you familiar with the teachings of the Koran? Do you have a copy of The Coming Insurrection? These are the foundations upon which our opposition has built their campaign. There is no excuse for us to be unfamiliar with the enemy's foundational tracts and tactics.
We can no longer afford to be ignorant of the repugnant. As Oliver Cromwell so aptly stated, "Keep your faith in God, but keep your powder dry."
© Luke Hamilton
February 24, 2014
The lull is almost over. Now what?
I don't need to tell the savvy readership of Clash Daily that this economic "recovery" has been a combination of smoke and mirrors, held together with a shoestring and bubble gum. The plummeting economy, triggered by the collapse of our government-inflated housing bubble, was temporarily slowed in its break-neck decline by the Obama administration's decision to shovel astronomic amounts of taxpayer money into a hole. In June 2010, after the first round of Quantitative Easing, the Fed had holdings of $2.054 trillion. In November 2010, deciding that things weren't improving fast enough, QE2 was launched and we bought up another $600 billion of assets/debt. When that failed to stimulate the market into a full-on recovery, QE3 was announced in September of 2012. At that point, the Fed declared that they would be buying $40 billion/month for an open-ended duration.
Should be sufficient, right? Even the piggish appetites of our central bankers should be sated by an open-ended allowance of 400 million dollars EVERY SINGLE MONTH, right? Wrong. Just 3 months after the announcement of QE3, the Federal Open Market Committee declared that the bond-buying would be increased from $40b a month to $85b, more than doubling the amount of debt the American people were being given every month. Make no mistake; there is no money to spend on these debt purchases. This is referred to as "fiat money" as it is created by fiat, not by any market mechanisms or wealth creation. Each time money is created in this fashion, the dollar you hold in your wallet or your 401(k) gets a little weaker. The greedy progressives behind this diabolical process have discovered that they can rob you without ever touching your billfold, simply by watering down the funds they already control.
This has worked, to a degree. Along with a slavish press, the sheer volume of money spent has provided them a little cover over the past couple years. The same way that 200 gallons of plasma would keep an abdominal gunshot victim alive for a time. But if the plasma runs out and surgery hasn't been done, dude won't be around too much longer. Our cupboard is now running dry. China is too highly leveraged to give us any more actual money and inflation is starting to creep into the economy. The Consumer Price Index for 2013 was the highest it's ever been, with a price inflation of 133% over 1982 prices. We're starting to look like the Town Drunk, hunched over a half-full glass of warm beer, 10 minutes after Last Call.
So now what? We know that Washington doesn't care about us once we've punched their chad in the voting booth. There are only a handful of politicians in DC who are willing to serve the people they represent and those few are increasingly ostracized from the legislative process by the statists on both sides of the aisle. It's true that things are looking increasingly hopeful for November's election; but even if we repeat the success of 2010, the fruits of this election will not be felt for months (perhaps years).
As the remnant has done throughout history, we must prepare. The storm is coming, there can be little question about that. Even Doctor Evil himself has tipped his hand enough to show that he believes a major market slow-down is likely. If even cretinous Marxists like Soros are openly preparing for another economic disaster, shouldn't we? There has never been a better time for the American people to batten the hatches and our window of opportunity might be closing soon.
What does preparation look like in today's world? On a most basic level, we need to be prepared physically to protect and provide for our families. That means equipping ourselves with the means to survive even if the social structure breaks down. Yes "prepper" supplies are a great idea, both for social collapse and disaster preparedness, but we should also be inculcating our families with survival knowledge that extends beyond the gear and supplies. There are plenty of good resources for this level of preparation, but two I follow and recommend are Creek Stewart of Willowhaven Outdoor and David Morris of Urban Survival.
Additionally, we should be preparing to protect ourselves and our families. In any scenario where the social compact breaks down, the predators emerge. Whether it is during a natural disaster, riots, or a targeted attack, the chaos which follows provides enough distraction for the asocial predators in our midst to operate. We must be prepared and aware enough to protect ourselves from them. Purchase a firearm. Practice with it until you are comfortable and accurate. Apply for your CCW permit, even if you don't plan to use it. By the time you need to use a firearm, it's too late to prepare.
Finally, we need to prepare mentally and spiritually. As much as we need to elect strong conservative men and women to office, our responsibilities do not stop at the polling place. We need to develop our knowledge of the issues facing our country. Gone are the days when we had scrupulous "experts" which could be (at least provisionally) relied on to do the right thing. Romans 3:10-18 has never been more apparent than today. Have you read Saul Alinski and Karl Marx? Are you familiar with the teachings of the Koran? Do you have a copy of The Coming Insurrection? These are the foundations upon which our opposition has built their campaign. There is no excuse for us to be unfamiliar with the enemy's foundational tracts and tactics.
We can no longer afford to be ignorant of the repugnant. As Oliver Cromwell so aptly stated, "Keep your faith in God, but keep your powder dry."
© Luke Hamilton
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