It’s Going to Blow, Part 1 It’s Guaranteed!

Anytime the pressure in a container builds beyond the capacity of the container something has to give. The economy in the US is a container within another container, the world economy. There are several venues now in our, the US economy and our society that are approaching critical pressure.

One pressure is the stress on the buying power of the dollar. One is looming,  inflation. Another is the shadow of hyper-taxation. Still others are public apathy and anger due to the loss of self-determination perpetuated by over bearing and ever swelling governments. The public perception of these infringements by governmental agencies upon our natural God given inalienable rights may very well be real.

The first venue is the dwindling buying power of our money. The value of the US dollar is at great risk. As the pressure on the purchase power of the US dollar is assaulted, the pressure builds to equalize or counter balance somewhere else, and it will.

Mark my words, when we as a country print trillions of dollars to pump into the economy with nothing of value backing the new dollars, the dollar as we know it trends toward worthlessness. By nature of that event, to buy the same amount the goods or services demands more dollars. This, my friends is called inflation.

Placing your colored paper money in a tin can buried in the back yard for a period of time is akin to placing your money in a financial institution for a period of time. Either way the value in this day and age decreases every time the government authorizes another bailout or stimulus. You stop doing that, storing your hard earned dollars! You should use tangible assets until you need some cash.

This is the Money Miser saying store your dollars by buying something that can’t be used for toilet wipe or to light a cigar.

It’s Going to Blow, Part 2, or Inflation

The second in this series of venues that may blow with the top coming off or the side going out is inflation. The classic definition of inflation is, more dollars chasing fewer goods and services. When you pump, yes force pump trillions of dollars into the economy (stimulus package), at some point the expanded and accelerated inflation will come with a vengeance.

Artificial actions always manifest themselves somewhere. The pressure builds and it will happen. It’s going to blow. When, most likely just after this recession has started to turn around. Why and how do you predict these events you ask? Well with some ease. Everything goes in cycles. The timing is the tricky part. The market accelerates too fast and then it retracts. If it is expanded at a rapid rate then it will at a similar rate contract and so inflation.

The government will then cause interest rates to skyrocket to stem the flow of capitol and then we will be paying more, charging more, and having less for our productive effort.

What do you want to own, paper and paper related dollars or tangible assets when inflation takes off. I like tangible. I can walk on it, pick it up, I can count it, chase it in the pasture, stack it, eat it, and if deflation should take place (government takes our money) I can still use it.

This is the Money Miser and practically speaking I’m more of a value miser. I could give a hoot about the money.

It’s Going to Blow, Part 3 or Premeditated Taxation

The third part of four parts of this article will now address the taxation venue. How on earth are we going to pay back the cost of all this worthless trillions we voluntarily or involuntarily pump into our economy? It seems impossible. Ah, but it isn’t. You see it is a premeditated, oh, predetermined plan.

We will have to pay more tax on the more dollars that we will have to earn to sustain ourselves at the same or without a change in our standard of living. That is OK you see.

You do see don’t you that as we buy the same goods and services we will have to earn many times more dollars thus throwing each income earner into a higher and higher tax bracket. So, we pay off those valuable yesterday debt dollars with cheaper today real deflated dollars.

If you put your money in a can buried in the back yard it will corrode. If you put it in a financial institution, it will evaporate. If you put it in your pocket it will get spent, so spend it on something worth holding, something of worth, something tangible. Don’t use it as a tin can liner nor a pocketliner for some politician or financial institution executive.

You are going to pay taxes (and die), that is the two laws. At least understand why you are paying taxes, for what reason and to whom.

This is the Money Miser being greatly taxed and enjoying every minute of it!

It’s Going to Blow, Part 4 or Public Apathy and Anger

Public apathy and anger due to the loss of self-determination is a venue I consider quite serous. Throughout this land I perceive discontent on the left and the right. It is nothing now compared to what it will be when inflation comes around again.

It is evidenced by the radical change in the 2008 elections. It is evidenced by the coffee shop conversations throughout this great nation everywhere in small town America. It is evidenced by the slant of humor and what audiences laugh at on late night comedy shows.

There is a great underlying current and perception in the populous that government at all levels is infringing upon our natural God given inalienable rights and our hard fought for liberties. Patients are becoming worn thin.

The great perception is that we as individual citizens have little or no ability to fend for our selves or make decisions for our selves without intervention from one government agency or another. Thousands of upstanding citizens are feeling that way more and more. As further evidence of that I submit how popularity of conservative talk radio has grown within the last several years.

It is simply is evidence that people are looking for a place to associate and vent their concerns. If they didn’t have that venue the discontent would blow. Liberal politicians have no idea what a service the conservative talk radio does for them. Many of these people can let off steam in a controlled manner instead of exploding.

Believe me, there is a lot of steam through out our great nation to be purged.

This is the Money Miser saying “It’s time to wake up!“

Stop It, Buy Healthy Food, and “Bon appetite”

Saving money while shopping is a challenge. It is more convenient to purchase prepared meals because they save time at home and more specifically reduce effort, preparation and effort, that is, so we think. When you do purchase prepared meals there is a trade off. The manufactures have to preserve the food in the meal in order to make it last long enough it gets to your table. That includes most frozen and preserved meals. This in fact includes most ready to eat store bought foods in a package. As a result of that need to stem spoilage, the preservation process raises the manufacturing cost significantly.

What do you loose and what do you gain? By reducing the amount of prepared dinners that you consume you loose the excess sugar, salt, and preservatives. The trade off here is that by preparing fresh foods and cooking healthy meals at home you don’t loose as many of desired nutrients. It is easier for you to retain the nutrients from natural non-preserved foods, which come from fresh food, vegetables, and fruits.

The better tasting foods that nature intended for the human body to consume will save you money in the long run because of the healthier life style. Loose weight, control diabetes, high blood pressure and getting aerobic exercise will further enhance your health and healthy lifestyle. You might loose some of those extra pounds the public is over weight by. You might gain an aroused appreciation for eating a delight you have prepared yourself in the kitchen.

We as a public need to consume less spuds, pasta, and consume more whole grains, fruits and vegetables. I guarantee that a handful of carrots will fill you faster if chewed than a Big Chunk TV dinner. By using your shopping list to purchase the raw ingredients you can prepare for less cost, eat more healthy meals, and save many trips per week to the grocery store thereby reducing impulsive spending and reducing your overall cost while foraging at the grocery store. Don’t forage, use a shopping list!

This is The Money Miser at Income Increase Recource Page saying, “Bon appetite”

How Good A Deal It Is!

In the last blog entry “Cash For Clunkers, Boon or Boondoggle?” I said I would quote what was published in “The Energy Advocate”, October 2009[1], a monthly newsletter promoting energy and technology.

In that issue, quote, David Luken writes:

I guess I must be on the wrong page…

• A vehicle at 15 mpg and 12,000 miles per year uses 800 gallons a year of gasoline.
• A vehicle at 25 mpg and 12,000 miles per year uses 480 gallons a year.
• So, the average clunker transaction will reduce US gasoline consumption by 320 gallons per year.
• They claim 700,000 vehicles – so that’s 224 million gallons / year.
• That equates to a bit over 5 million barrels of oil.
• 5 million barrels of oil is about ¼ of one day’s US consumption. And, 5 million barrels of oil costs about $350 million dollars at $75/bbl.
• So, we all contributed to spending $3 billion to save $350 million.

How good a deal was that???  Money source: hundreds of millions of taxpayers.  Beneficiaries: 700,000 car buyers. CO2: one millionth of annual atmospheric increase.

Unquote!

Now, it is up to you as a consumer to think about your actions and the consequences of your actions. Training and education about fiscal and financial accountability is the ultimate goal of The Financial Growth Report whether it is in every day consumer spending on groceries or on larger purchases such as transportation and housing. That goes for government and all of it we have. If I can jib wasteful government management now and again, I will.

We as consumers must be vigilant and not allow the temptations of glamour or the enticements like “cash for clunkers” and other sudo good deals lead us down the rosy path. That is a good deal not to be led astray. Do not be lead by the Judas Goat like the proverbial lamb to the financial slaughter.

The Money Miser says, “don’t swallow everything offered you, especially by any government”.

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[1] You may request a sample issue from corkhayden@comcast.net

Cash For Clunkers, Boon or Boondoggle?

If a person is vigilant one can upon occasion avail him or herself of money saving opportunities. These seem to present themselves automatically no matter how ludicrous the end results may be.

Being wise as our government often is, and having made available wonderful savings for the consumers of new automobiles through the “cash for clunkers” program, we find a stellar example of an opportunity to spend now, save now, and pay pay pay……., later. Pay in loan payments, pay in higher license fees, pay in increased insurance, and pay sales tax for the purchase. Question, might this be a revenue builder for state and local governments?

Another question. Was that really a sound program for the consumer or even the American taxpayer? You receive a $4,000.00 (in many cases actually only $3,000) credit on trade-in for your old car.  Now you are paying a payment for the next 60 to 72 months which when calculated out is more costly than if you would have kept the clunker or bought an inexpensive replacement.

Well, all said, now let’s say your purchase was a wash financially. You now are driving a new car with new expensive plates and insurance. What is the cost to the public in terms of defecates and environmental impact. In my next blog entry I will quote a startling article that was published in “The Energy Advocate”, October 2009. This is a monthly newsletter promoting energy and technology.

Is it wise to go out and enslave yourself to additional obligations and loan payments on a depreciating asset just because you can? There is great pleasure for some of us in seeing a well maintained older or yes even a vintage auto headed down the road. No shame, even pride of ownership and a far greater and less expensive value.

This is The Money Miser saying “Happy motoring inexpensively”, I will get back to saving while shopping very soon.

Save Money at The Grocery Store

The whole idea of this Blog is to help people save money. Sometimes the amount that could be saved may be just a small amount and sometimes it can be a large amount. Remember that you can’t have a million dollars with out that last penny and you can’t have a million dollars without the first penny. The adage “a penny saved is a penny earned” does apply.

This rendering will be about not what we could save as in the last writing by thinning our government, but a most practical every day grocery shopping-day saving tip. The retail market is totally geared toward separating you from your money. Retailers employ every possible tactic including placing better than life color adds in the shopping flyers, placing products in specific shelf placement, utilizing graphic package collaring and design, and laying out store design which forces you to run the gauntlet of tantalizing taste-bud ticklers just to get you to the essentials of life, the milk, bread and eggs. It is all set to loosen your dollar from your pocket. Once you know these techniques they are less effective against you. The sweetest cereals are placed at child eye level so when your children see them they will lovingly coerce you into the reward they earned for doing something they should have done in the first place without the extra reward.

How do you not over spend you ask? First, use a list. Buy only what is on the list. Use it like you would a checking account. You deposit the item you want to purchase by writing it on the list. You do the same with each item to be purchased. When you are shopping you can only spend what is on your list, otherwise consider your shopping list overdrawn. If you overdraft your checking account it can cost you a heavy overdraft fee. When you overdraft your shopping list it costs you extra money. Consider that an overdraft fee.

There will be several more articles on how to save money at the grocery store or other shopping ventures like using coupons in my next blog.

As for now, this is The Money Miser saying, “Stick to the list, it saves, it pays”!

Time is Money and The Government Squanders Ours

It is a fact that as more laws are passed by our lawmakers it costs the taxpayer, the public more in order to maintain and enforce the new law. When necessary to modify or make changes in the new law because it may not have been quite right or as comprehensive as first thought upon its inception costs the public too in time and actions taken to comply with the changes. The cost to you and I as taxpayers is just beyond comprehension. The overburden in expense to each of us from so many new laws and regulations overwhelms the imagination.

In years past I have considered where all these many extra and most often conflicting laws were taking our society, then it came to me in the Lords year of 2000. I composed the following writing and would like to see it chiseled into the pillars of all legislature meeting halls.

By passing one more law we could eliminate wasteful government programs and the cost of administrations that accompany each law. We could eliminate so much of the paralyzed actions of government because of conflicting law. Eventually all but the bare minimum regulation and essential rules would find a level of palatable acceptability.

So here you are, I present “One More Law”!

One More Law

By Keith V. Loucks

All of life has moral issues

It’s always been that a way

But give it to the legislature

It’ll be law some day

Known what’s right, what’s wrong?

It’s a moral choice you know

But when it became legislated

The tablet began to grow

If Moses had our law to carry

More than the original ten

He’d either have to bring a truck

Or be a strong strong man

One more law is what we need

It would be the ultimate and best

With any new law that we ever passed

Just eliminate two of the rest

It wouldn’t take long at any rate

To get back where we come from

To the original ten, that’s all we need

Just teach what’s right from wrong

© June 8, 2000 Keith V. Loucks

It speaks for its self!

This is The Money Miser saying here are many ways to save money and time (time is money) on a regular basis. This could be a great one!

The Money Miser comments for September 5, 2009

The sole purpose of any rendering by me The Money Miser is to show people how to; 1st save money on what they spend, 2nd generate savings on expenditures that may be unnecessary, and 3rd point out ways to develop streams of income or additional sources of revenue.

The Internet, airwaves, news media, advertisers, and direct marketing programs are full of “get rich quick” programs, or at lease programs designed to separate you from your money. The Money Miser will point some of these out and will publish those thoughts on the free Financial Growth Report. This is designed to show you how to save on purchases, show you how to not spend on junk, assist you in lifestyle changes that are fun, healthy, and a far more effective in ways of financial management of personal finances and business finances.

My purpose is not to give legal advice, medical advice, or any advice that requires a license to do so. I will however make recomedations that the average, ordinary, and common man (woman), person should understand. i.e. consider a second opinion about medical procedures, ask questions about listed costs of a real estate transaction or a home loan, and so forth.

If anybody gleans even one penny of value for themselves from these publications it will all have been worth while. You see when I taught basic “Financial Health 101” I taught that to be a millionaire you had to have the first penny, and you had to have the last penny, because otherwise without either you weren’t a millionaire just somebody with $999,999.99 and makes you NOT a millionaire.

So now let’s get with the program and see if we can’t help you save, or earn, or generate that first or 496th of eighty-five thousandth penny.

This is The Money Miser at Income Increase Resource Page asking your finances to be blessed.