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Good day. I enjoyed your book, and wish I had bought it before I wasted a lot of money.
The reason I am writing is to confirm or deny rumors about Argentina nationalizing all private pension plans. The rumor is being floated here in the U.S, along with rationing health care and a host of other problems our government is creating for us. Can you shed any light on this subject?
Thank you,
Dave
Hi Dave,
Thanks, glad you enjoyed my book.(for now, only available at Lulu's)
I would have saved money too if I knew what I know now, when I started preparing.
It’s experience and making mistakes. As they say, it’s better to learn from other’s mistakes.
It’s not a rumor, they did STEAL all our pension funds:
What’s funny is that they did it with a big enough press campaign, buying out opposing politicians and reporters, it ended up sounding as if they where doing us a favor.
I’d say most people here think it was a good thing.
For a survivalist, a prepper, someone that got rid of the pink colored glasses or whatever you want to call it, it’s important to understand this:
The mass is stupid.
The individual is smart, the truth is out there if you want to look around, but don’t expect smart reactions from the population in general. Few people even protested when they nationalized the pension funds.
It’s time for me to act like a know it all smartass: A few years ago several hardcore survivalists pretty much laughed when I even “suggested” the possibility of banks being nationalized in USA. I didn’t go nutty end of the world prediction, just said “Hey, happened here maybe could happen to you too. Most people here didn’t see it coming either”
But no, these experts said that if banks and companies were nationalized in USA … drums… it would be the end of the world!
Ah! zombies and raiders would roam the land while survivalists would spend their afternoons headshooting them from the roofs, occasionally scrounging the ruins of the burned down cities for a box of ammo or pack of noodles. I feel like playing Fallout 3 already.
The end of the world is so cool! I want an end of the world theme park just like Disney!
Yet… banks where nationalized, corporations saved, billions stolen from the hardworking taxpayers, and the end of the world?… nope:
More unemployment, more poor, more government control, more crime and the overall quality of life getting worse.
It’s just the same old same, just getting worse little by little.
Fallout 3 videogame and preparing for real, two very different things.
Fernando
16 comments:
There have been rumors here of bank holidays, basically closing the banks for an extended period so the fat cats can try to stop the bleeding. I know that many smaller regional and small town banks are in deep shit, and there's a good possibility that many small farmers and other small town businesspeople will lose everything once the national deposit insurance fund runs out of cash.
As you say, people get so shellshocked that they let the most extreme shit slide by without a peep. They tried to nationalize health care here, but when people realized that it meant euthanasia for the old and disabled to "save money", they got really upset and the politicians backed off. But they nationalized the banks, the insurance companies, the auto makers, and nobody cared.
They are now talking about a value added tax, just as you predicted they're trying to hike taxes to astronomical levels. The national debt is on track to consume 6% of the entire GDP just for interest payments, which is being hailed as the latest shoot-em-up tripwire by the trigger happy crowd, but of course it won't be, just another swoop in the downward spiral.
So many "Fallout" references! We can conclude one more thing about FerFal: Architect, prepper, blogger, and NERD! :)
There's a new TV series coming out here that's based on a book in which everybody on earth unexplainably blacks out for two minutes at the exact same time, during which they get a vision of a postapocalyptic world six months in the future, and then have to race against the clock to stop the world from ending. *sigh*
There seems to be an endless appetite for the apocalypse here in the US, and it's always something dramatic where civilization lies in ruins and the few survivors must scrounge to survive. Of course the stories all come out happy in the end, the catastrophe is always averted (except maybe in the movie Deep Impact where the writers had the honesty to show the asteroid hitting). It's gotten to the point where people seriously believe Rawles and his types and set up survival retreats in the forest.
Thank you for showing what happens in a REAL apocalypse, and it's nothing Hollywood would like, since there's no happy ending, nor is it dramatic. It's sort of like a tire that slowly loses its air, then sits flat for a while. You can't see it, but the tire ends up worthless. There's no reinflating a place like Argentina, and the same with the US, although that won't stop them from trying, greatly magnifying the eventual collapse.
I am surprised that there were no riots over this in Argentina. I know little about Argentina, but nationalization of pensions is easily seen as theft.
How do you think Americans would react, sir? Same way that Argentinians, did, modest protests only?
I pulled my money out of IRAs and my 401(k) 18 months ago, and got my long-term savings to a private bank in Switzerland earlier this year. I presume the U.S. government will seize our private pension accounts: 'For your safety, you may only invest your pension funds in U.S. Treasuries and guaranteed Depression Recovery Bonds.' Not my original idea -- it is from 'Conquer the Crash' -- but it made sense to me, and I acted upon it.
Keep up the good work, sir!
jg, how have Americans reacted to the various 401k ripoffs that have been pulled, like at the old Polaroid where the stock was not vested, despite orders from "holders", until it was at 4 cents a share? Or how about the phone companies that were gobbled up by Global Crossing or WorldCom, where pension funds were wiped out? The employees affected did only mild grousing, and resigned themselves. The outside public wasn't informed.
So they order all the stocks to be sold off when the market is at 6000, and the money to be invested at face value in Treasuries and whatever funky bond scheme they can think of, all without telling people that they have no intention of ever letting them have their money back, and the people are blissfully unaware that anything is wrong until it's too late.
People would be mad, but after the first few massive wiping outs of protestors, people would get the hint and quiet down. The media would ignore it of course, like they ignored the massive protests on Wall Street last fall. Most people would have no idea that anybody was mad.
Healthcare in the US is rationed NOW. It's available to those who can afford insurance. Shrill tales of death panels and euthanasia are a lie -- none of this happens in Canada, the UK, Netherlands or any other developed country.
Unfortunately, the Obama government lacks credibility on this, because it has wasted so much taxpayer money bailing out Wall Street fatcats.
Wasa Bista, how long have you been a communist? "Fat Cats"? Seriously, that term is only ever used to whip up popular support for anti-capitalist politics. Besides, the TARP "bailout" money is being paid back WITH A PROFIT to the US govt. Unfortunately for obama, this program was a Bush initiative. However, obama does own the "stimulus" program, in which obama supporters are paid off using nearly a trillion USD taken from our grandchildren.
The thing no conservative wants is yet another inefficient, politics-driven government agency attempting to do what the private sector has always done better. Look at what a good job fannie mae and freddy mac did with mortgages! We do need more competition in the insurance market to keep the big companies honest and drive down costs. It's a good thing we can utilize free market economics to save the day! Too bad liberals in their smug, arrogant, self righteous fury will never understand that.
Seriously Wasa Bista, get a clue. Angry liberals are like pampered pekingese yapping because they want you to give them another treat. Just remember that the road to hell is paved with good intentions.
@Wasta Bista: Thank you for being a voice of reason. Health care is rationed now, just as you say.
I agree with 2 of the other commentors here. Health care is rationed already. I'm no liberal, but I'm not sure that a public option would be such a bad idea. Will it be poorly run? Probably. long wait times? I'd say so. But if the free market is so good, the private insurers would have nothing to fear from the public one right? If I have the cash, I'll just buy private insurance. If I have no money, I'm covered under the public insurance plan. Why is this bad? And speaking of long wait times and awful management, don't we already have that from the big health insurance companies? As for the crazy idea the public plan would run the private groups out of business... ever heard of a public library? Didn't manage to close down Barnes and Noble did it? The democrats have done lots of aweful things so far, but this health plan just may not be categorized as awful quite yet....
True it is rationed now, but will be much, much worse under Obamacare. However, read this for a good understanding of what should be done - allow medical care to be unfettered:
http://www.capitalism.net/articles/SOC_MED_files/The%20Real%20Right%20to%20Medical%20Care%20Versus%20Socialized%20Medicine.html
I agree with the last 2 posters, health care is a mess in this country. Its already rationed and the private insurers are just as bad as some conservatives think the public option will be. Long lines/wait times? Expensive procedures? Sound familiar? Its what we have right now. Think the public option will put the private groups out of business? I'm not so sure this will happen. Ever heard of a public library? Didn't cause Barnes and Noble to go bankrupt did it? It boils down to this, if I have cash, I'll pay for private insurance and get better service (hopefully). If I have no money, I'll take the public option and suffer through the lines and wait times cause it's free! Someone please tell me why this is a bad thing... And no I'm not a crazy liberal. I voted for Bush in 2000 and definately not Obama in 2008.
This is the most insightful perspective I've seen yet on health care, but I don't see it getting any traction.
http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/200909/health-care
I'm sorry the article is so long. But he is the only person I've seen yet who points out from the perspective of an economist that the system will never work as long as the doctors are working for the insurance companies. It messes up the whole incentive structure.
Hey ferfal,
Curious to hear your thoughts on Mexico decriminalizing small drug possession (all drugs) this week, and Argentina similarly smacking down a heavy marijuana auto-sentence law. It didn't get much play in the US media.
Effect on Mexico, effect on cartels, effect on America, personal sentiments..
http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/la-ed-druglaws2-2009sep02,0,4623257.story
Ferfal;
please don't let folks highjack your blog for health care propaganda.
I believe the topic was bank failures. So what do the politicians do with their money to keep it safe? The only thing I have seen mentioned so far is swiss bank accounts. Besides precious metals, what do you do with your money?
I am too old to start over with nothing. What should I do with my savings?
amos
I feel obliged to point out that health care is not rationed in the United States. Rationing means everyone gets the same amount and it's illegal to get more than your allotment. In the US it's possible to purchase health care with your own money. It is also possible to purchase your own health insurance if you so desire.
Being poor and not being able to afford health insurance is not rationing. Failing to recognize that you have a choice in how you pay for your health care is not rationing.
Thinking that someone else should pay for your health care is communism or at least socialism.
People need to wake up and realize the the heart of the debate really revolves around who is going to pay. Any way you do it, the individual is the one who ends up paying, either through premiums or taxes. Putting government in the middle will only serve to increase bureaucracy and cost to the detriment of everyone's health care.
great 'collapse' vids of argentina
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rH6_i8zuffs
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