Notes for Friday – September 19, 2014

On September 19th, 1778, the Continental Congress passed the first budget of the United States. While the budget may have passed, the states responded poorly to the call for taxes to fund the government, and the government resorted to printing paper money to cover debts. In effect, the first budget was a failure, due in large part to the states not responding to the demands of Congress and the depreciation of fiat paper money. Are we talking about 1778 or 2014 here? Also, on this date in 1796, George Washington addressed the nation in his farewell address as president. o …




Challenge of Prepping, by R.W.

How My Insights Have Changed With Time I became interested in prepping and survival 12 years ago. It wasn’t so much an event or reading about survival, it was what I believe was a message from God. I was 49 years old and had just finished leading a Bible study in a suburb of Minneapolis, Minnesota. On the way home, my wife and I stopped at a Dairy Queen for our usual weekend treat. It was a beautiful, summer day with lots of white summer clouds floating by. As we finished and were sitting there enjoying the beautiful downtown skyline …




Letter Re: Septic Systems

Mr. Hugh, My house was built in 1978. I don’t know if you would consider it “modern”. It is built on a concrete slab with brick veneer and is air conditioned. I noticed in your comments about things going into the septic tank, especially water from the washing machine. This a source of major problems for septic systems. When my plumber stubbed out the sewer drain lines there were three. He offered me some good advice, which I followed. The larger 4-inch line I ran to my septic tank, which was the waste from my toilets, bath tub/shower, and lavatories. …




Economics and Investing:

America’s Big Bet On Natural Gas And Big Short On Coal. – J.S. o o o The Collapse of the Concept of Fiat Currency o o o Items from Mr. Econocobas: The Fed’s Laughable GDP “Forecast” Just Got Even Funnier Fed Officials Predict Fed Funds Rate to Rise to 1.375% End-2015 Fed Keeps ‘Considerable Time’ Pledge as Growth ‘Moderate’ Europe’s Winners and Losers from Russia Trouble




Odds ‘n Sods:

This interview with Russian hardliner Federov (a Deputy of the State Duma) is most revealing on several levels, especially vis-a-vis the dollar-tied Central Bank of the Russian Federation. Clearly, the great game continues: The Purge is coming. Evgeny Fedorov Federov covers a lot of ground in this interview, perhaps tipping his hand more than he intended. A transcript can be found online. Parenthetically, if Federov’s prediction is correct, then look for an announcement of the nationalization (or perhaps a “dissolution” or “reorganization”) of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation and the issue of a gold-baked ruble as the catalyzing …