INDEXCARDNOVEL: Scrooge’s Scrooge

Saturday, August 4, 2007

He waived goodbye to his son Seth, wife, and their three children.

Seth had finally landed a job as the supervisor of a garbage dump reclamation project. We all knew it was a great job. It paid 800 of the new Kilo dollars per year. But with gas at 200K$ per gallon, he knew he’d never see them again. After all it was more than 300 miles away. It would take 30 gallons of gas or 6M$. And that doesn’t count the permits, taxes, and fees. So he knew he wouldn’t be comforted on his death bed. But he would be mourned at his graveside.

He had had a frank talk about that with Seth.

At his age, he would not be approved by Homeland Security to move with them. And when you “emigrate” more than 50 miles, all your real property is turned over to the town and auctioned. Like abandoned property, it all goes to pay for the welfare of those on the dole.

Seth and he had worked on hiding the “insurance policies” in the things that they are allowed to take. Since Seth didn’t own anything, and there was nothing for the government to steal, the inspectors would be unusually diligent in making sure that nothing left the jurisdiction.

Since they were not permitted to search or seize religious items, each one had a new cross crescent circle moon medallion. Made as the logo of the State religion, it was particularly immune. No one, except he and Seth, knew that they were pure gold. When they arrives at the new house, Seth would put them in some concrete somewhere. With the proper respect to the new “religion” of course.

He had also shaved out the insides of some hockey pucks and glued one “tenth” in each one. He carefully weighed the shave out against the gold coin’s tenth of an ounce. It was tricky work since it had to feel like a hockey puck to the inspector.

He had planned for this day. It’s amazing what you can do when you’re motivated. A doll’s shoes have gold leaf insoles. A hammer has a solid gold head with a steel cover. Gold coins in the car’s radiator. None of his Y2K gold, platinum, and pladdium coins were on the government radar. They were hard to spend because simple possession was illegal. But there was always a “black market”. The government taxed everything. And what they didn’t tax, if they wanted it, they just seized it.

He just couldn’t move with his beloved son because he still had 24 people living with him. It was some family, extended family, friends, and just people who had need a place to stay. His pensions, social security, and hoardings made him into like a cash cow. He always had to watch everything because the grifters, the mob, the cops, or the government were always trying to seize what he had. What happened to all those people when he died? He could do nothing about. Estate tax was 100%!

No one could be trusted. Nothing was sacred.

When he died, his son would NOT come back for the funeral. But he would be allowed to have the body shipped to his new home for burial. And, that’s how they’d move the diamonds. Ebineezer had read about the Jews in Germany and how they did it. Good thing that he was able to talk to those survivors when he was young. Nothing like it was ever mentioned in government school today. But, he knew how to swallow.

Everyone knows nothing like that or this could have happen here in New Amerika.

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(c) Copyright 2007 Reinke All rights reserved


MONEY: Ninja loans

Friday, August 3, 2007

http://www.economist.com/business/displaystory.cfm?story_id=9587542

The credit squeeze
Abandon ship
Aug 2nd 2007
From The Economist print edition
Investors sail into a credit storm amid worries about the debt markets

***Begin Quote***

Bank executives will be haunted by memories of Ninja loans (to people with No Income, No Job or Assets) and Pik toggles (agreements that gave firms the right to pay interest in the form of further IOUs rather than cold, hard cash).

***End Quote***

Now there’s a term I never heard before — ninja loans!

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RANT: Who keeps the police, bureaucrats, and politicians under scrutiny?

Friday, August 3, 2007

http://www.nbc11.com/news/13805507/detail.html

Police: Masked Gunman Kills Veteran Oakland Journalist
POSTED: 8:37 am PDT August 2, 2007
UPDATED: 8:01 pm PDT August 2, 2007

*** begin quote ***

OAKLAND, Calif. — Veteran journalist Chauncey Bailey, who recently was promoted to be editor of the Oakland Post, was fatally shot in downtown Oakland just before 7:30 a.m. Thursday in what appears to be a targeted shooting, according to an Oakland police spokesman.

*** end quote ***

I think this is a “We the People” issue. More so than even when one of “our” police are “resisted”, journalists occupy a special place in the “People’s Pecking Order”. Who keeps the police, bureaucrats, and politicians under scrutiny?

I suggest that this is a matter for everyone to be concerned about.

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INTERESTING: index card novels

Friday, August 3, 2007

Inspired by the six word memoir, is it possible to spawn a literary form based on that concept?


RANT: Some people get it

Friday, August 3, 2007

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/opinion/main.jhtml;jsessionid=SRSBFTUMBBYK5QFIQMFSFFOAVCBQ0IV0?xml=/opinion/2007/08/02/do0201.xml

Posted by Carl P on August 2, 2007 5:28 PM

*** begin quote ***

I live in South Korea now and I have to say that
JohnT has a point.

In Korea, there is no welfare state and in Seoul
there is little or no crime. People respect the
property of others.

The young kids know that stealing will result in
a prison sentence and after that they will be
unemployable for the rest of their lives. No job,
no life, basically homeless.

Their families will reject them and never talk to
them again and their peers will forget they ever
existed.

It has taken me almost 40 years to realise that
the biggest mistake in our country’s history is
the welfare state. It has led our young into a life
that will always be supported and encouraged no
matter what crimes they commit.

Just think James Bulger – the poor innocent little
boy disgustingly killed at the hands of young
teenagers – what are the killers now? living a
normal life at the hands of the state with a new
name and life. What is happening to James
Bulger’s life? … forgotten

I know this is extremism at is most right wing,
but I suggest the welfare state be disbanded and
people become more responsible for their
actions.

*** end quote ***

It seems so simple. Force is the root of all evil.

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INTERESTING: a firm position against the Iraq War

Friday, August 3, 2007

http://www.liberty-watch.com/volume03/issue05/coverstory.php

RON PAUL REVOLUTION
BY JARRET KEENE

***Begin Quote***

The new face of the freedom movement is Texas Congressman Ron Paul. The credit mostly goes to the Internet for having brought this principled politician into the light. And Paul is perhaps the only individual for whom “principled politician” isn’t an oxymoron. Among nontraditional campaign contributors online, Paul is the Republican presidential frontrunner, having outpaced Sen. John McCain in fundraising. While the mainstream media continues to blackout Paul, he’s setting the Internet ablaze with a firm position against the Iraq War, against taxes and against big government. Ultimately, more and more people every day are saying yes to Dr. No. (Paul earned the nickname because he is a physician and for voting against any and all tax increases, and against any legislation that expands the federal government’s power as a House Representative.)

***End Quote***

I think that’s re-love-ution!

:-)

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GUNS: Does the Commissioner go to prison WHEN someone

Thursday, August 2, 2007

http://www.nj.com/sports/ledger/index.ssf?/base/sports-0/1185942106132290.xml&coll=1url

Black bears getting grisly across state
Wednesday, August 01, 2007
BY FRED J. AUN
For the Star-Ledger

***Begin Quote***

Scary incidents involving black bears keep happening across North Jersey even as the Corzine Administration continues to say hunting is not a valid way to stop them.

*** AND ***

Despite these close calls, the DEP’s commissioner, who canceled the 2006 bear hunt, remains steadfast in her position that non-lethal methods of bear control must prove to be failures before a tried-and-true means of wildlife population control — hunting — will be allowed.

Commissioner Lisa Jackson … …

***End Quote***

Does the Commissioner go to prison WHEN someone get seriously hurt or worse?

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LIBERTY: why do we still have the draft law

Thursday, August 2, 2007

http://www.dayzerothemovie.com/

***Begin Quote***

Drafted … Thirty days to report for duty.

***End Quote***

So why do we still have the draft law still on the books? Didn’t the 16th free the slaves?

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INTERESTING: Shrimp eater pay more than they know!

Thursday, August 2, 2007

http://www.mises.org/story/2644

How the Shrimp Tariff Backfired
By Aleksandra Dunaeva and Don Mathews
Posted on 8/1/2007

***Begin Quote***

The great Frederic Bastiat (1801-–1850) taught that wealth can be obtained in two ways: it can be produced or it can be plundered. Production is undertaken by entrepreneurs. Plunder is often undertaken with the express assistance of government, taking the form of tariffs, taxes, subsidies, and other interventionist measures justified as policy in the public interest.

But entrepreneurs are not easily thwarted by government intervention. Sometimes entrepreneurs respond so creatively that they render the interventionist measure almost meaningless. A classic example of an entrepreneurial response to state-sponsored plunder is the case of the US anti-dumping tariff on imported shrimp.

***End Quote***

Bottom line: The American consumer got screwed and the politicians, lobbyists, and industry moguls got rich.

And, you think that the gooferment protect you?

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INTERESTING: What has Obama done?

Thursday, August 2, 2007

HILLARY GOOFED IN DEM DEBATE
By Dick Morris and Eileen McGann
July 30, 2007

***Begin Quote***

The polling is in and Hillary made a big mistake in her sharp disagreement with Obama over whether the president should meet with leaders of rogue nations. According to the Rasmussen Poll, Democrats agree with Obama over Hillary by 55%-22%. Without a poll to pretest her comments, Hillary instinctively took the “insider” position that the president should only meet with such leaders after extensive probing by subordinates to assure that the meetings would be productive. But she was wrong. Democrats want the president to meet with leaders of such nations without pre conditions.

***End Quote***

Interesting. I’d think that H would just keep emphasizing that O hadn’t done anything. But, then maybe that’s a two edged sword. Neither has she.

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