Gub’mint Part IV, Ideas on Self Defense, the Bobcat and the Lynx, the Power Elite, and the Economy Mess
Here is another spoof on Gub’mint. My first spoof on Gub’mint ran in My Father’s Day Message about Gub’mint and How Gub’mint Works, posted June 20, 2010.The latest:
California: The Governor of California is jogging with his dog along a nature trail. A coyote jumps out, bites the Governor and attacks his dog.
1. The Governor starts to intervene, but reflects upon the movie “Bambi” and then realizes he should stop; the coyote is only doing what is natural.
2. He calls animal control. Animal Control captures coyote and bills the State $200 testing it for diseases and $500 for relocating it.
3. He calls a veterinarian. The vet collects the dead dog and bills the State $200 testing it for diseases.
4. The Governor goes to hospital and spends $3,500 getting checked for diseases from the coyote and on getting his bite wound bandaged.
5. The running trail gets shut down for 6 months while Fish & Game conducts a $100,000 survey to make sure the area is free of dangerous animals.
6. The Governor spends $50,000 in state funds implementing a “coyote awareness” program for residents of the area.
7. The State Legislature spends $2 million to study how to better treat rabies and how to permanently eradicate the disease throughout the world.
8. The Governor’s security agent is fired for not stopping the attack somehow and for letting the Governor attempt to intervene.
9. Additional cost to State of California: $75,000 to hire and train a new security agent with additional special training re: the nature of coyotes.
10. PETA protests the coyote’s relocation and files suit against the State.
Arizona: The Governor of Arizona is jogging with her dog along a nature trail. A Coyote jumps out and attacks her dog.
1. The Governor shoots the coyote with her State-issued pistol and keeps jogging. The Governor has spent $0.50 on a .45 ACP hollow point cartridge.
2. The Buzzards eat the dead coyote.
And that, boys and girls, is why California is broke …………….(end of spoof).
I am going to redact and register a few comments about self defense, and then we will come back to some economic considerations from my favorite, Richard Russell, and then wrap up this entry.
As you read through this posting, you may be thinking about what I refer to as “perceived level of threat.”
Some predators are going to be real ones for you, and you will need to know this. Other predators are not going to be true predators for you, and you might want to know this also so that you can both enjoy and learn something practical from the encounters.
In this gub’mint spoof scenario the author (unknown) has borrowed the imagry of the wily coyote from nature’s panorama of predators. The coyote plays the role of the perpetrator of the attack on the politician. However, this is not a type of coyote behavior that I am familiar with. These canines nimbly slide into invisibility when they are alone and they encounter a human. I have never heard of a coyote attack on a human. However, a pack of hungry coyotes encountering a lone human under certain circumstances might play out as a different story.
Let’s consider other types of predators. Had the author used a cougar (mountain lion) instead of a coyote, the story would be more believable, at least in terms of the accuracy of an animal attacking a human in an unprovoked manner. Cougar attacks of runners on running trails with their pets are even known to occur from time to time. I read of such an attack a few years ago over in The Big City.
The runner, a woman, successfully defended herself from this displaced and disjointed wild feline. She was strong, and she stood within herself. She did not freeze up. She respected her own life, obviously. If she had a seriously low self esteem and had cultured low self confidence, she may have just frozen. Just a point to consider in your journey into the wild world of adventure, whether it is into the great outdoors, or into the world of the urban street fighter.
In addition to Colorado, cougars are prospering in California where the number of attacks and human fatalities are increasing in the San Gabriel Mountain region. Cougars do definitely and purposefully attack humans, and there are numerous accounts of this happenstance. The attacks are increasing in frequency because the cougars’ habitat is being disturbed by humans, and/or there is cougar overpopulation pressure resulting in territorial and food scarcity compression.
If one is hiking with other hikers, the chance of a cougar attack is unlikely, but it has happened. If one is hiking in cougar territory (mountainous terrain) alone, one should carry some reasonable implement of self defense. It is not advisable to hike alone, but people do it anyway. Bear spray may work on a cougar if you find yourself suddenly in a close encounter, and IF you have enough seconds to deploy the spray. That is the big “IF.” Cougars move like lightning.
Here goes some unsolicited advice and information that you might find useful someday, although I hope you never have to use it:
Don’t spray the chemical into the wind; i.e., know the wind direction you are walking in at all times should you choose to carry defensive sprays. I have been incapacitated by a gentle breeze picking up some pepper spray that I once had to use, and the wind brought the stuff back to my airways. It was a low dose wisp of the stuff, but it was enough to have me coughing uncontrollably as I walked away from the wild canines in a fast fashion. And, they wanted none of me by that point.
Strong pepper spray is very effective, but you really have to be aware of its limitations and the abreactions that may occur. It is not the ideal defense against a cougar attack. However, if you are so fortunate as to see the cougar coming (stalking), then you may have the few seconds necessary to consider wind direction and cat direction, and other things you may do as acts of self defense.
If you encounter a cougar out in the wild, stay as calm as you possibly can, and make yourself look as big as you possibly can. Spread your poncho or jacket open like a batman with wings, take your backpack off and hold it in some manner to either make yourself look big, or to shield yourself should the event deteriorate. Should the cat pause, you are fortunate and then you should start to back away slowly, facing the cougar. Don’t turn your back on the cat. Don’t run and don’t freeze, and don’t look the cougar directly in the eyes. If you are attacked, fight back with all the force and strength that is there, but you never knew you had. Respect the strength and greatness of the spirit that moves your bones and inhabits your flesh. Come out on top, and survive.
It is a little more common to encounter a bear. In our mountains, it would be a black bear. In other mountain areas north of here, it might be a grizzly bear. These encounters are arguably more serious. The bear possesses enormous strength, and can outrun the fastest human on earth on the bear’s slowest day. I have seen a black bear rip a locked car door off of its hinges to get to the food the hikers left in their car. He warmed up on the door on one side of the car, met some resistance, worked up his bear juices, walked around to the other side, and then just ripped the opposite door off. Screetching metal sounds produced with probably just moderate exertion of bear energy. Vivid. They want the food they smell.
You may not fare well in bear encounters, especially if you have not considered the possibility of one. On the other hand, bears usually do not want to get entangled with humans either. Bear spray does work, but not consistently, and may enrage the beast even more. If the spray gets on the bear, who then gets on you, then you have 2 problems.
A couple of seasons ago, our friend Marcio was out bowhunting alone when he was charged by a large black bear which was his own size. When the bear was about 15 feet away Marcio shot him with an arrow that penetrated the the bear’s left upper chest. The bear tumbled, and then ran off into the woods. Marcio called the Division of Wildlfe rangers, who responded. They tracked the blood trail, found half of the arrow, but never the bear, who probably made its way into a hideaway lair to deal with an unknown fate.
Marcio was very fortunate in this encounter, and his composure saved him via the skillfully placed disabling shot. He would have had only one shot, and the shot that he took required that he nock the arrow (load it on the bowstring), a diffficult task under the circumstances. This is a rare survival encounter, and he will tell his son about it many times.
Most bear experts advise being loaded for bear; i.e., carrying a suitable sidearm to deal with the issue if you go hiking in bear country. There are caveats to consider here, and the first caveat is how large does the caliber of bullet and load have to be to deal with a charging bear. First of all, we are considering just going out for a day hike, or maybe an overnight backpacking excursion into the mountains.
We are not thinking that we are going out on a tactical mission, and so we are not going to be carrying the bear stopping weapon of choice, which, in my opinion will be a tactical shotgun loaded with 12 guage 3 inch magnum slugs up front, to be followed, if necessary with several double ought (00) buckshot; one slug in the chamber, one slug in the magazine, followed by 3 buckshot in the magazine, and then some extra rounds strapped on the shotgun. That is what I carry if I know that I may have to encounter a serious bear threat
That will stop any bear, if not several. If you are shooting at an aggressive bear with this kind of load, don’t worry about the shoulder bruise you will experience. If you have just had rotator cuff surgical repair, you would want to consider a different manner of deploying your shotgun. The recoil from 12 guage magnum shells is formidable. Maybe you are pretty good at shooting from the “ready” or from the hip position.
OK, so we are not out for an enjoyable hike in nature carrying our tactical shotgun. So, then what? I recommend either a 45 caliber semi automatic (1911 style or ACP=Automatic Colt Pistol) with the typical 240 grain load, jacketed hollow point bullet, and the typical 8 round magazine. Another option is a 44 magnum revolver with a 240 grain jacketed hollow point bullet, but a significantly larger powder load (more power). The 45 is not very heavy or unwieldy to carry on your day or overnight backpacking experience. The 44 is heavier and bulkier, and will require that you are very facile with it because you only have 6 shots, and you will be having to manage and master its revolver type action. A well placed shot from the 44 will stop the bear more readily, nonetheless. You just need to be very good with a revolver, that’s all.
OK, you are in a deadly encounter with a wild animal who is charging you. If it is the cougar, who is not presenting its side (bigger target to sight onto) to you because he is charging you, then you are looking at a rather thin and fast moving target. You aim at the center of mass. That would be where the head, shoulders, neck, and torso all join. If you are calmly sqeezing off rounds in a hurry in these precious seconds, and you make a hit on a cougar anywhere in this center of mass, then the cougar will, in all probability, lose interest in you as a target of its passions. If the animal remains dedicated to the charge, despite the hits, keep firing until he lands on you, and then fight him off. You will win, and then you can tell your story.
If all of your shots missed, then you are not a good shot under the pressure of a lethal encounter, but you still have a chance if the firearm is still loaded and is still in your hand, and the beast is on you. Just put the muzzle into whatever flesh you think is the most vulnerable, and keep pulling the trigger. Try not to shoot yourself here. If you are tangled up with a dedicated opponent, beast or human, the likelihood of a self inflicted wound increases.
If a bear charges you, you have a larger mass to acquire a sight picture on, but there are some other special considerations than in the case of the cougar. The skull of a bear is rather thick, and very slanted, and so don’t even think about a “Hollywood head shot” which will only give the bear a headache, and will enrage him. This type of shot to the bear’s head will likely graze off.
Your best target on a charging bear is center of mass, as with the cougar. Remember Marcio’s fortunate chest shot. Shots into the head, neck, chest center of mass of any charging creature will most definitely affect its sense of dedication to the pursuit.
But what if these shots don’t work out so well? You have split seconds now.
Your most lethal target on the charging bear is the cranio-ocular cavity, the facial space right around the eyes. A shot placed here will enter the cranium, and the encounter is over. On the bear’s face, unlike the human’s face, this is a very short and narrow aperture. The second best shot placement is in the center of the neck, hoping to transect the spinal cord. Encounter over, and yes, these types of shots under pressure are dicey to difficult, but it can be accomplished.
These are very small target zones to hit on a fast moving target. You will have to have developed the ”instinctive” type of shooting skills. There will be precious little time for proper sight alignment and sight picture and breath control and trigger control in the midst of these rapidly evolving seconds of eternity. Instinctive shooting skills come with repeated skill at arms practice. You just know how to handle the firearm, and its aim, without any significant thinking.
Much of our thinking just gets in the way of everything, and it’s all judgment anyway. Everything you are reading right now is judgment. Everything you think is a judgment. You never thought about that angle, did you? You are judging at this very moment, aren’t you?
Just stop thinking, and you will stop judging. It’s pretty straightforward how you develop The Symptoms of Inner Peace, isn’t it? Maybe reading about charging predators and wild beasts is not going to float the boat of Inner Peace, but…….
A shot to the chest in the heart lung region of a bear will penetrate, but the animal will still have enough momentum and life left to be on you and probably kill you before he dies.
If you encounter a grizzly bear, and not a black bear, then everything written above that you have just read, magnifies and amplifies by several orders of magnitude.
I have heard outdoorsmen advise that if a black bear is on you, that you should fight back. Duh.
The same good outdoorsman folks advise that if a grizzly is on you that you should play dead, and maybe he will leave you alone. You curl up in a defensive ball and play dead. In my opinion, this is a mild form of madness, or parasympathetic nervous system freeze and dissociation, at best. If I am walking around in grizzly territory, then I will be loaded for bear.
If one of those big bears gets on me and knocks me down, I ain’t gonna play dead. That would be like dishonoring my first, sixth, and seventh chakra rights and connections. For an idea of what this psychic pathway is about, see the page on the website about the Haelan LifeStream Model, and note the “swirly” anthropomorphic picture. My resoning here, respecting the nature dudes’ opinion, is that if the grizz thinks I am dead, then he is either going to chomp down on a section of my living feeling body and drag me off somewhere, or, he is just going to help himself, and commence to eating me alive.
Play dead, my ass. If he hasn’t already transected my spine, and if I can get to the big iron, I’ll be blazing away at his eyeballs and the center of his mass and neck.
Just get trained in firearms, and not pepper sprays, OK? And then, carry the piece on you, and know how to get it out of the holster expeditiously, and chamber the round quickly, and then let your training and instincts take care of you.
Marcio was very fortunate. He bowshot a tentative (not dedicated) charging bear. His shot placement is admirable, and must have produced some seriously distracting nerve irritation which halted the bear’s interest in further pursuit of Marcio. Marcio’s well placed arrow somehow scrambled the bear’s computer board, and he lost interest in Marcio in a hurry.
If you are so unfortunate to have a cougar stalking you, then you are, well, being stalked, and the outcome will likely be over before you even know it. With the bear, you ususally have some warning. If you are alone, you are more vulnerable, especially to the cougar encounter. Bears and cougars do not usually attack humans unless they feel a sense of threat when: 1) they have a fresh kill they are protecting, 2) they have young ones they are protecting, 3) you have managed to stumble on them while they are mating (most unlikely, but has happened) and 4) they are desperate for food, and their instinct tells them that they can overwhelm you.
I am familiar with an event when a cougar stalked a party of hikers, unseen to the hikers, and was able to steal a wayward child who wandered off trail from the group. His damaged remains and clothing were found later. If you take your kids on a hike with you in cougar country, you must be vigilant, just like the animal is vigilant with their young. You must stay together. You must understand these nature matters, and you should consider carrying some type of lethal force (protective) gear. That consideration will require that you are sufficiently trained in firearm usage and safety, and, you must practice!
You are in their territory, and you should remember this. When bears or cougars lose their fear of humans, then they will come into urban fringes and raid what they can, such as your garbage containers or your pets. One option is to have the animal experts trap and transport the animal. The other option to definitively deal with these wayward animals is to terminate them yourself, or have the appropriate authorities do this, and quickly, and deftly. They have lost their instinctive fear of humans, and if you encounter them unexpectedly on your property, then you are in serious danger. If it is a cougar or a grizzly, then you must deal with it. If it is a black bear, you usually can consider sub lethal options.
No Nonsense and I were visited by a large black bear on the property the other night. There are some traumatic components to this story, and some very tender aspects as well. It is a significant story that illustrates some of the points referenced above. Mostly it illustrated to me the enormous character of Jean. I came to admire her even more. Also, it illustrates a point about black bears in Crestone–people here don’t want you to kill them. The general thinking here goes something like this,”Well, if you move into this remote place, then you have to be willing to put up with the way creatures are here….”
Well, that is a really cool perspective, and I totally get it, and I really respect how folks must feel about this, but if you are a dangerous predator, and you come onto my land, and threaten anything that’s here, then you are going to have to put up with the way the owner creature (me) is also.
I am usually nice, until I am not. Seems kinda judgmental, huh?
I’ll have to write a Jounal entry about all that we experienced and learned in this encounter. The name of the entry shall be The Yankee White Woman Bee Charmer, the Bear, and Me. I’ll get around to it just as soon as I am able. Some components of the story are still playing out, and involve some other wonderful people and their skill sets, as well as alot of useful information we learned about our beloved bees. Jean is a bee charmer. I’m practicing.
As a side-liner story, I have had the pleasant good fortune of being visited by both lynx and bobcat on my property. The lynx visit was in February. I saw this beauty enter the property from the road, as I was driving in from the gym one day. I parked the truck, and ran around to the side of the property where I thought he might be by the time I arrived there. I picked up my field glasses, not a firearm, and went hunting. I encountered him coming down an arroyo straight toward me! High excitement. He was distracted by a group of alarmed crows, and was unaware that I stood in his path. Jean was with me, and when he saw us, he exited the arroyo, and vanished into the pinon forest adjacent to our property.
Jean, having enjoyed her encounter, went back inside, and I went hunting with my field glasses. It was pretty easy to follow him because of the noisy crows. The cat must have figured this out also, because the crows eventually became quieter and quieter. He was hiding from them and from me. I looked and looked everywhere and could not see him. Were this cat a larger cat, like a cougar, he could have had me during my moments of cluelessness about his whereabouts.
I stood extremely still and quiet in the snow and just peered into the trees. As my gaze relaxed, I found him sitting beneath a cluster of pinon trees in regal repose, like a sphinx, just eyeing me, and totally blending into his surroundings, camouflaged and cryptically hidden in plain view!
I sat down in the snow and glassed him. He was 20 yards away. This animal was meditatively opening and closing its eyes, taking a little rest, and figuring out what to make of my presence in his life. I was lost in the beauty of its markings and the luxurious nature of its fur which was thick and full and healthy, and full of gorgeous browns, tans, greys, and blacks. Such a handsome face I have never seen, not even on a person.
We sat with each other for a long time. We were simply visiting. One does not take such risks with bigger cats. After some minutes of sitting in the snow in my gym clothes, I stood up, and walked toward the cat. He let me get really close, but did not display high alarm. And then, he arose, and just glided across the snow on its wide massive paws, moving with extraordinary speed, but effortlessly, not even close to afterburners. He vanished into the pinon, gliding like magic.
The bobcat encounter was in April. This cat just walked down my driveway! He climbed over the game fence, and just sat in the shadows. Once again, I had my field glasses, and we visited each other, 10 yards apart. He looked somewhat tired, and maybe a bit hungry. Bobcats are not as good at hunting as their lynx cousins. The bobcat is in the lynx family, but is a smaller cat, with a short stubbby tail (lynx tail about 9 inches long), same tufted ears, but different coat markings than the lynx.
Both of these cats were no threat. They knew that I was no threat to them either. We were just visiting, my intention being to admire them, not shoot them. If I found a cougar on my property, I would at least have been appropriately armed (the tactical shotgun option), and on high alert. As to whether I would really enforce the termination advice I advised above would likely depend on my sense of the cat’s intentions, and my perceived level of threat. One has to consider one’s family members when a larger predator is about.
Usually, in the wild, these animals are elusive, and they have sensed your presence before you have sensed their presence, and they are moving on away from you. You usually don’t ever even see them. I just got lucky with the lynx and the bobcat.
If other hikers see you carrying a sidearm, they might become upset, agitated, or something in the ballpark of slightly freaked out. You have just ruined their hike. This is more their problem than your’s. You are not the one who is paranoid here. They are. Remember, you have the firearm, not them.
Not to seem too arrogant here, or anything. It is not like you are out hiking and brandishing a sidearm (such action will get you a court appearance, a citation, and a fine), but you do want the big iron on your hip where you can get your hand on it in a hurry should you need it. If your big iron is in your daypack (because you don’t want to freak any other hikers out of their new age skin) when you need it, you have placed yourself at a disadvantage.
In anticipation of these types of unnecessarily uncomfortable human encounters, and if the encountered human party starts going sideways with you: 1) be aware of the laws in your state regarding “open carry,” 2) consider having a concealed carry permit (Recommended, as this is your still present Second Amendment right. You have to be trained, and you must have a squeaky clean record to obtain one from your county sheriff.), and 3) try to reassure your fellow trail companions as pleasantly and compassionately and confidently as possible that you have absolutely no intention of harming anyone except the cougar or bear (or wild mountain man) that may be your adversary. And then just keep walking up the trail, ignoring their ignorant remonstrations. Most likely, if they see you carrying a sidearm, they are just going to keep on trucking down that trail also.
A lot of hiker type mentalities just may not understand firearms or why one might decide to carry one, and so they justifiably become a trifle anxious. They also probably might be one of those types that thinks that if you feel like you need to carry a firearm, then you are broadcasting your fear, and you will just attract a negative situation.
I don’t believe that angle. I understand The Law of Attraction, lemme tell you. If I am carrying self protection, and I am confident in my skill at arms, I rather doubt that I will “attract a negative situation.” Quite the opposite is more likely.
You might be wondering through reading all of this about wild animals and self protection and firearms, what in the world is such a piece of writing doing on a website dedicated to human health, and the healing of Gaia.
You were wondering that, weren’t you?
The answer to this curiosity lies in the realization that you, and only you, are responsible for your health and safety under all circumstances. If our social structure devolves into anything slightly chaotic, then you will encounter unpleasant, scary, and probably lethal situations, and you should be acquainted with how to maintain your health with the correct “supplements.”
In my own case, I have been shot at (automobile riddled, I escaped unharmed), I have been held up at gunpoint (escorting 2 companions, we escaped unharmed), gave the wildman everything he wanted out of my pockets, seen people and neighbors shot dead in the streets, witnessed ongoing police firefights into and through the night (machine gun fire on dedicated desperados), operated on dozens and dozens of gun shot and knife stabbed urban warriors, and have been bathed to the skin in their blood more times than I can recall.
If you have ever been muzzled, shot at, seen people and friends gunned down, been around firefights, or been in and out of blown up bodies, then you will have developed a certain type of awareness.
Yes, I have lived an exciting life on many levels, and I have experienced several different types of extraordinary reality checks. I didn’t even have to join the military to learn about these matters! Most military people never even get to experience so much human excitement and acts of desperation.
If you have lived a sheltered life, and if you regard the murderous rampages of “going postal” desperados as events that are distantly remote from you, and are not going to happen where you live, then you are a desensitized moron, an imbecile, perhaps an idiot, or you want to just continue enjoy wearing your comfort zone blinders, and/or you want to keep your head in the sand. You might be in for a humbling reality check coming to a neighborhood near you pretty soon.
So, where are you at? What are you going to do when you see someone gunned down? Or your life or the lives of your family are threatened?
Just think of yourself as the bear or the cougar who is just trying to protect her young, and then think of everyone that you love and care for as your own children, and then let some time go by, and learn in “the news” about some more and more frequent “going postal” events, and then just check in with yourself at the level of the now famous Bear Bryant expression, “gut check time.”
Maybe let some more murderous rampages go by, maybe keep thinking about it……
As my mother Dr. Jane used to say, “You can’t make chicken salad out of chicken shit.” She was a pretty courageous woman, and she understood the need to carry a piece under certain conditions.
If your predator is not a cougar or a bear, and if your predator is a human predator, and if he is a dedicated aggressor, or is jacked up on PCP, or some other mind altering chemical substance, then some of the same considerations noted above will apply. Please, have no qualms here. This person is intent on harming you. He is beyond antisocial behavior. He is asocial. You will need to disable him, or make his ghost leave his body by some means (kill him), or your ass is grass.
All of the above considerations apply except for your order of target zones and shot placement. You want to take out the hydraulics first and then the circuit board, and so your shot placement is 2 shots to the left of the sternum (heart pump), and one shot to the cranio-ocular cavity (brain computer). It is tap, tap, and then, tap. 1,2 and then, 3. Do it quickly. Don’t think about it too much. Just do it once you have an awareness that you are about to become a victim of asocial behavior. You will know.
That should do it, depending on the variables of how nimble you are, how calm you are, how aware you are, how practiced you are, how much you value your own life, how good of a shot you are, and what caliber of projectile you are deploying.
In order to develop the type of instinctive reaction ability and accuracy required for this type of self defense against dedicated asocial individuals intent on harming you or a loved one, you will need professional training. And so, I request that you seriously consider doing that. There are many good resources. One very good and accessible resource is FrontSight over in Nevada. They are very user friendly, and they will train you well. You will develop ability and confidence.
If this information feels even remotely overwhelming to you right now, then just take a good deep old fashioned calming breath, stop thinking about the Hollywood bullshit you have watched, and just think about the value of your own life, and the lives of the ones you love and cherish.
When it comes down to it, you will give your life for the lives of the ones you love, unless you are suffering from narcissism and other similar cowardly entrainments. I can help you with your shadow pride problems, and I can also train you on how to run a firearm. Better yet, I’ll just refer you to some of my many firearms mentors for that training, and I’ll help you evolve past being afraid. Just give me a call, and we can have an initial and confidential discussion. Now, back to our dedicated aggressor problem:
After your aggressor falls to the ground under the influence of gravity on his disabled body, DO NOT then go postal on your downed aggressor and empty the magazine into him. The soon to arrive law enforcement folks will consider such activity as “an agresssive and unnecessary use of force.” They are quite familiar with this type of behavior, right?
Your empty cartridge casings on the ground and the number of bullet holes in your victim’s body will alert the friendly law enforcement officials that you may have lost it here, and so be careful what you say when they ask you why there are 8 bullet holes in this guy’s corpus. This important observation by your police will be brought up subsequently in your upcoming court case, and may be used against you, even though you were simply defending your life. Our judicial system has many quirks.
If you have stopped a dedicated aggressor with 1-3 shots, continue to scan for other threats. The event may not be over, and so you might need those rounds that are still in your chamber and magazine. When you ascertain that you are safe, take control of your sympathetic nervous system (your now over-the-top fight/flight energetics) and just feel your body, and breathe, and chill out. You have just successfully defended your own life from one who would have taken it from you.
Now, let’s move on to some economic and financial considerations. Here is a recent posting from the 86 years old venerable financial sage, Richard Russell.
The Dow Theory Letters, by Richard L. Russell, July 16, 2010
“The Obama administration has increased US marketable debt to a record $7.96 trillion as it vainly tries to battle the sinking US economy. One of my old friends, Marty Zweig’s rule was “don’t fight the Fed.” Now we see the Fed and the Obama administration fighting the primary trend of the market. They are building a sand and seaweed wall against the ocean tide. They are also saddling America with a scandalous amount of debt in their pathetic battle.
The Russell prescription — President Obama, it’s time to talk to the nation and treat them as adults. Tell them the whole sad story. Tell them the US must sacrifice and walk the walk. Then let the bear market run to conclusion and stop wasting our money and running up outlandish debts. Is this politically possible? In the end, it will be easier than what we face ahead. But is this politically possible? Somehow I doubt it. Obama fails to see the picture, and even if he did, I doubt that he would have the guts to implement it.
Speaking of “lack of guts,” note that Russia has instituted a 15% flat tax. C’mon Obama, here’s your golden chance to be brave and get on a winning horse. The US needs to get rid of its complex and totally idiotic tax system. If Russia and Hong Kong can do it, we should be able to. Of course, Congress would be against a flat tax. The tax system works for Congress where they can make special tax laws to fit their re-election chances. A flat tax — the US needs one, and it needs one badly.”
Roger that.
Just remember, a trillion has 12 zeroes behind the number. One trillion is the number of seconds of time that there is in 31,710 years of time!
The following excerpt is from The American Spectator, and is taken from the July-August, 2010 issue. The author of this excellent thesis is Angelo M. Codevilla who is Professor Emeritus of International Relations at Boston University. The title of this lengthy and excellent thesis, which is the feature article, is America’s Ruling Class—And the Perils of Revolution.
The author is also a Fellow of the Claremont Institute. The Claremont Institute is a conservative think tank based in Claremont, California. The mission of the Claremont Institute is “to restore the principles of the American founding fathers to their rightful, preeminent authority in our national life.” To this end, the institute seeks to establish a limited and accountable government that respects private property, promotes stable family life, and maintains a strong national defense.
The URL for the complete article is:
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The Agenda: Power
“Our ruling class’s agenda is power for itself. While it stakes its claim through intellectual-moral pretense, it holds power by one of the oldest and most prosaic of means: patronage and promises thereof. Like left-wing parties always and everywhere, it is a “machine,” that is, based on providing tangible rewards to its members. Such parties often provide rank-and-file activists with modest livelihoods and enhance mightily the upper levels’ wealth. Because this is so, whatever else such parties might accomplish, they must feed the machine by transferring money or jobs or privileges — civic as well as economic — to the party’s clients, directly or indirectly. This, incidentally, is close to Aristotle’s view of democracy. Hence our ruling class’s standard approach to any and all matters, its solution to any and all problems, is to increase the power of the government — meaning of those who run it, meaning themselves, to profit those who pay with political support for privileged jobs, contracts, etc. Hence more power for the ruling class has been our ruling class’s solution not just for economic downturns and social ills but also for hurricanes and tornadoes, global cooling and global warming. A priori, one might wonder whether enriching and empowering individuals of a certain kind can make Americans kinder and gentler, much less control the weather. But there can be no doubt that such power and money makes Americans ever more dependent on those who wield it.
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Here is a link to an article which appeared in the Sunday edition (7-25-10) of “The Washington Post” entitled The Case for Breaking up Washington–and Scattering Government across America, by Alec MacGillis:
I like that idea—an interesting future paradigm…..
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Below are some of the R-Man’s (Richard Russell) predictions for the shifting of future paradigms:
From The Dow Theory Letters, by Richard L.Russell, July 20, 2010
Russell looks ahead to these trends in America –
(1) More empowerment for women. There are a huge number of women lawyers in the US now. This alone will work towards empowering women.
(2) Nationwide legalization of pot in the US, it’s just a matter of time. And think of the taxes states could collect (“Follow the money”) if pot is legalized. California will be the first state to legalize pot.
(3) A national flat tax or a national sales tax. The current tax system is too insane, too expensive, too skewed toward helping the politicians. Billions of man-hours are wasted every year on our current mindless tax system. It’s far too expensive to hang on to.
(4) Outlawing capital punishment. Every other civilized nation has done it. Even France, inventor of the dreaded guillotine, has outlawed capital punishment.
(5) Less meat eating and less sodium intake. Both would be healthy developments. The conditions of factory farming are disgusting as are slaughter houses. Kindness and civility will extend to animals as mankind becomes more civilized and empathetic.
(6) Acceptance of gay men and lesbian women plus laws allowing them to be married. Perhaps one of every ten Americans are homosexual. It’s become almost chic. Gays and lesbians constitute a huge portion of the nation’s voters. They’ put huge pressure on reluctant politicians. Plus gays and lesbians possess enormous purchasing power. They are huge spenders. Follow the money, always.
(7) Americans will slowly move back to the basics and economies that existed before World War II. Credit cards and borrowing and “lay-away” plans will be despised, and austerity will become the trend of the future.
(8) Our young generations will increasingly run America. They are already far more socially liberal than their parents, probably more patriotic, and surprisingly more conservative in some ways – the US Constitution may even come back into favor as per the Tea Party along with Ron Paul. By the way, Ron is no longer considered to be a kook. He’s a patriotic backer of the US Constitution (and there aren’t many of them).
(9) Despite the Fed’s efforts, gold will be accepted as the ultimate safe haven and the standard for money. You can’t keep all the people dummied down forever.
(10) As competitive devaluations will continue (“we must export, and that means a cheaper, competitive currency”), the public will perceive that all fiat money is losing purchasing power. For this reason, scepticism towards fiat money will increase, and anger towards central banks will fester.
I will register a few comments regarding the above, and then I’m outta here:
1) I’m in favor of a more matriarchal system. The old greedy power mongering men who have created all of the old men wars, have really messed with mother Gaia, and she may just shake us off like so many fleas.
2) Marijuana usage has some health concerns, but I am not against its legalization. I am neutral. I have never dealt with a motor vehicle accident victim who was high on “G,” as I call it. I have dealt with innumerable alcohol intoxicated MVA victims. Regular marijuana users can call me up, and we can discuss your neurotransmitter imbalance that is driving your perceived need to keep doing G.
3) No kidding….
4) No kidding, but don’t confuse and mix up my previous comments about defending your own life from an asocial individual with compassion for the same incarcerated individuals. We have a very violent and dysfunctional society, especially in The Big City areas. We need beter parenting. The most important parent is the Mother. A correctly integrated and loving Mother will produce better daughters, and better sons, and then maybe the problem of the greedy power drooling old men that have screwed up Gaia will evolve away.
5) I agree with the R-Man’s comments about the cruelty and disgusting manner in which animals are treated and raised for slaughter. This must be corrected. I also am a nutritional proponent of Loren Cordain, Ph.D.’s book The Paleo Diet and the 7 principles of a paleo diet (see page 22).
Vegetarians do not ingest carnitine, carnosine, and creatine. Carnitine is one of the 6 essential nutrients for the production of ATP (the energy molecule of the cell which is produced in the mitochondria). No good ATP means no good energy. Carnosine is a very important anti-glycating nutrient (anti-aging by preventing glucose impairment of protein function and structure). Creatine is essential for a healthy central nervous system and all forms of muscular health. For correct absorption, the creatine must be in an alkalinized form. Yet another reason why I prefer the nutritional supplement company Designs for Health, 800-847-8302, or www.designsforhealth.com.
6) If you are a homophobe (you wouldn’t know your fear by this terminology because you are in denial), then you do not understand yourself, other people, and you have some significant issues with your own sexuality and sexual confidence. Get some professional advice and counsel. Think about the murderous anger you carry about anyone who is different from you sexually. And what’s so great about your sexuality anyway, huh? Yeah, right…
7) Amen! Get your personal affairs in neat order on the ASAP, and be willing to do more with less. Become resouceful and resilient.
8) My fondness for the Gen X generation has been expressed on several of these Journal entries. If you are a baby Boomer, and if you are intimate with Gen X’ers, do everything you can to assist their development from your own level of maturity and development. They will reconstruct the Phoenix out of the ashes. They are the future leaders who lived in past lives which prepared them for what is upon us now.
9) Yes
10) Yes
As I finish this writing, the United States military is conducting a series of military exercises with the South Koreans. The North Koreans torpedoed a South Korean warship a few months back, and 46 sailors were killed. There has been no reworking of the Armistice treaty from the Korean War of the 1950’s. You think Hilary can do ithe has been over there exchanging barbs with her North korean counterpart.
She is not, at all, my idea of a Matriarch, but I guess she is some sort a start. I think she is utterly power deluded. We really need to evolve spiritually. Then we won’t have to consider defending ourselves against asocial psychopaths, and we can also develop some more conscious mothering on this planet.
The North Koreans are posturing for war. They have the 4th largest standing army in the world. They are allied with China.
Israel is still preparing for a preemptive airstrike on Iran via Saudi cooperation.
Hurricane season is here, and I have not yet covered some of the dark covert issues brewing in the illusion of the BP oil spill.
The month of August holds much in store. Dicey times.
Pray for a Peaceful World.
Pray with the feeling of what it feels like when your prayers are answered, the feelings of abundance and gratitude. Don’t pray with a feeling of fear or scarcity. If you do, the Universe will feel that, and bring more of it to you.
Embrace as many Gen X people as possible.
Signing off from Crestone and Beyond.
Love.