Saturday, February 27, 2016

Sandflea

Well so much for obstacles saving us from the robot overlords.

And He's Okay

And here we see the urban hipster displaced from his natural habitat, this time of year the man-bun has been cut off and will regrow over the summer months.

Weekend OCD Check


Friday, February 26, 2016

BeCos(play) It's Friday

 More not safe outside of Dragon-con below the break, and as always bonus nerd points for recognizing characters.

Friday, February 19, 2016

Thursday, February 18, 2016

Negative Interest Rates and You

Zero Hedge has laid out a lot of articles lately about how a central banks planned "final monetary solution" involves driving interest rates negative while curtailing the availability of cash. However most of their analysis and advice are geared to the macro economic level(aside for being heavy proponents of precious metals).

As a disclaimer this is just an ordinary persons speculation and you have to do your own research to decide what if anything to do with it.

So let's brainstorm a few things the average person can do to somewhat proof themselves against this. Using the examples that have occurred at Crete and Greece as well as reading the writings of prominent Keynesian academics(I hesitate to call them economists) these are a few ideas that I've had:

  1. Multiple banks, if currency controls are used like in the collapse like in Greece they are implemented limiting withdrawals from banks to so much per day. One option to deal with this might be to already have accounts with multiple banks. Then a $500 per week limit might well be changeable into a $1500 per week limit which gives you three times the ability to get out from below a "haircut". Additionally if this is anything like what happened in Crete then things are likely to hit large accounts first especially if things come from the banks being under-capitalized. So if you have an account that exceeds the FDIC limit (Why are you reading this blog, oh right the cheesecake) then you have one more reason to get all of your eggs out of the same banksket. Depending upon how currency control regulations are written it is conceivable Credit Unions might initially be left out so it might be worth keeping an account in one if it is available.
  2. If ACH transactions for bill pay and such are initially left alone it might be worth prepaying by overpaying some utilities as a method of getting out from under the negative interest rates. Since this is money that will be spent anyway a positive balance with the gas company beats -4% in your account.
  3. While many people recommend having enough cash at home for one month's bare expenses remember that physical stashes carry their own risks of fire and theft.
  4. Lastly any trade goods that you might choose to stockpile should be both fungible and LEGAL. Illegal or likely to be made illegal trade goods carry far too much additional risk so use the still for purifying water not mash.
That's all the thoughts I have for now put let me know if "financial prepping" is something that you have any interest in me putting more time into.

Illustrated Feminism


Justifiable Homicide


Monday, February 15, 2016

Negative Interest Rates

From the Telegraph:
One of the unintended consequences of global central banks' race to the bottom (which seemingly has no bottom) is that negative interest rates act as a tax on the banking system. By penalizing commercial lenders for parking their reserves at the central bank, it erodes the profit margin they make on charging already low interest rates while raising the cost of capital.
So far, "banks seem unable or unwilling to pass negative deposit rates to their retail customers, leaving them with few options to offset costs", note analysts at JP Morgan.
They also highlight that, should banks start imposing higher lending costs on their customers, this would have the reverse effect of easy monetary policy, crimping credit creation and tightening financial conditions.
All of this begs the question of whether the world has hit the limits of what monetary policy can achieve, as the distortions produced by sub-zero rates overwhelm its stimulatory benefits.
The current global recovery has been one of the most deflationary in modern times. Over the last six-and-a-half years, the nominal GDP of the advanced world - or the total cash value of their economies - has grown by just 11pc, according to Bank of America Merrill Lynch.
Meanwhile, more than $8 trillon of high grade sovereign debt is trading at a negative yield.
Distortions such as this have led prominent monetary policymakers to dub the move into negative interest rates a "gigantic fiscal policy failure".
Eight years on the from the financial crisis, central banks have done all the heavy lifting to get the world out of its low growth morass. Monetary policymakers have cut interest rates 637 times and purchased $12.3 trillion (£8.5  trillion) of assets since March 2008.
Mario Draghi, president of the European Central Bank, bemoans that his institution has provided the sole source of stimulus to the eurozone over the last six years. He renewed his calls for governments to finance mass public investment schemes and cut tax burdens to reflate their economies this week.
So although negative interest rates may herald new danger for financial markets, they could well be the catalyst jolting politicians and governments into finally making use of powerful fiscal policy tools to rescue the world from the grips of another slump.

As much as the stock market is a rigged game we're rapidly coming to the point that it will be important to have most of your savings in real & productive assets. If you need capital equipment and can pay cash for it now might be the time.

Classical Education


Monday Made Me Laugh


Saturday, February 13, 2016

Aaaaand We're Fucked

Ladies and gentlemen our future best and brightest.


Courtesy Life

Attention clueless fuck-knuckles of Wal-mart. Just because it is currently illegal to turn your intestines into a decorative hat doesn't mean that stopping with your cart in the middle of an aisle so that it blocks everyone from both directions is okay. 

Similarly I have no particular desires to see what a charming muffin-top that your pajama pants give you. The answer as always is a disgusting one.

And lastly just because Death Race 2000 is a few years over due doesn't mean that you stop walking in the middle of the driving area of the parking lot to slowly dial your phone, it tempts some of us to begin beta testing the points scoring system.

Weekend OCD Check


Marriage Material?


Friday, February 12, 2016

Philosophising


Ancient Athens shows just how the people can become the mob, and how even the most enlightened cultures of their times can succumb to a suicidal collective hysteria. All due to a desire for the easy "fix" to problems. People vote for whatever short term satisfaction their collective Id wants: revenge, safety, or luxury. Eventually the processes of democracy are too slow to satisfy them, so they find a strongman who promises quick and easy solutions if only he is given the power to do them....history has yet to record this ending well.

Words to the wise.

BeCos(play) It's Friday

 More not safe for the tiny below the break, yes a lot of these are from the same talented cosplayer (luck of the draw) I've tried not to repeat the same costumes too much. As always bonus nerd points if you recognize characters.

Socialist Irony


Wednesday, February 10, 2016

After 8 Years Of Obama Purges


Picking Which Half of the State Motto

According to Breitbart News, Byron York reported that "in a nearly one-hour speech, Trump railed against pharmaceutical companies.  He railed against oil companies.  And insurance companies.  And defense contractors.  And he set himself against a political system that he said allows big-money corporate 'bloodsuckers' to control the government with campaign contributions."
In case this confuses you: According to Trump, the problem is business, not government.  No, government is as pure as the wind-driven snow.  The problem with health care is big pharma and not the precious, amazing government bureaucrats.
And by the way, what kind of mathematical mind thinks big oil is gouging anyone right now?  In 2011, Trump was obsessed with OPEC.  Of course, it was American "big oil" and not Trump's negotiating Jedi mind tricks that made the cartel irrelevant.
Additionally, it seems the Donald thinks that big pharma and big hospital and big insurance went to Obama and begged him to totally ruin our health care system.  Either that or he's just flat pandering and lying because he thinks the odd ball liberals in New Hampshire will lap it up.  Obviously they did.
Oh, and for the record, underlying Trump's premise is that only rich people should run for office.  Now there's a conservative principle if there ever was one.

Now I know that some of my readers disagree with me as far as Trump goes, all I can respectfully say is that I sincerely hope you're right about him and that I'm dead wrong.

Old NFO Teaches the P-8 Kids a Thing or Two

I know it's not a P-8 but the "lemme show you something" is an amusing mental picture.

Cuts Down Trees, Wears High Heels.........

...supendies and a....

Friday, February 5, 2016

BeCos(play) It's Friday

 More unsafe possibilities below the break, and as always bonus nerd points for recognizing characters.

Thursday, February 4, 2016

Wednesday, February 3, 2016

Use Your Head for Something Besides a Hat-rack

and yes I accept that this applies to me, that's why there are things I believe that will never see this blog. Because the risk to benefit ratio is far too lopsided. The word to those wise enough to hear it is think first, plan long, and use your intellect guided by experience not unchecked emotion or blind fervor.

I can honestly say that times that I've acted or spoken with unthinking passion were some of my poorer moments, leave such to the poets and the artists. I don't remember who said, "There is always time to think, maybe not a lot of time; but if you ever find yourself in a situation where there isn't any time to think then you've already lost."