wdiaz03

I found north with a ham sandwich once...Meaning I had the sandwich with me while I found north....but maybe im nitpicking.

What a great show, I don't watch TV other than morning news. but this has been a breath of fresh air, Sad that this types of shows are usually foreign, Like Dawkins "Root of All Evil" etc. makes you realize how far behind the US tax farm is in comparison. I have watched up to the end of season 3 and I keep seeing similarities with the show and what Stefan talks about on his podcast. If you have not reached the end of season 3 and do not like spoilers do not keep reading. * * * STOP SPOILER ALERT * * * I wonder if Stefan has seen the show...Being a Canadian show and all

Seems like the same propaganda as "Family, forever, for always, No matter what" The predators among us have to keep making stuff like this up to keep the pray confused i guess. "Turn the other cheek", "Honor the father..." bla bla bla n other words, "be a good sheep"

Point taken, Interest rates will include a premium for risk as well as a premium for inflation etc. My point was the important function of interest rates in regulating economic activity by selecting higher return investments over lower. The market will determine the interest rate based on the time preference of savers. If a lot of people are saving it is a signal that they have no immediate need and are putting off consumption to the future, This lowers interest rates, allowing investments with lower return to be profitable, If there's little savings, this will push rates higher, cutting off lower return investments. This is why when the government keeps rates artificially low, there is mal-investment, because businessmen will think that their low return investment is now profitable and the current low rate. I quote Mises: "The lowering of the rate of interest stimulates economic activity. Projects which would not have been thought “profitable” if the rate of interest had not been influenced by the manipulation of the banks, and which, therefore, would not have been undertaken, are nevertheless found “profitable” and can be initiated" - The Austrian Theory of the Trade Cycle One last point. With my "purified bottled air" company, is not that I want a higher rate. The highest rate I can ask for is 4%. I would be happy with less if I can get it, But as you pointed out the risk premium is so high that the loan will never happen, Again Sorry if I confused this point, Its been a while since I read on the subject. but I hope this last point clears it up, don't want to highjack the thread on this tangent

I agree with you 100%. Owning a home also means fixing things that go wrong with it over time. If you are not a handy man expect to pay a lot more for repairs. To give you an example We had a clogged toilet (Don't ask...it was Mexican food week) Plummer asked for $120 for TRYING to unclog it. and another $80 or so to use a longer snake tool. I bought my own 25ft snake tool for $20 and did it myself...And this is one of many many things I had learned to fix over the years, washer machine, garage openner, fridge, faucets...AC units. A friend of mine (renter) just has to pick up the phone and gets everything fixed at no extra cost. From the OP post, It seems buying is not a good idea in my book. It makes sense to buy when you want to throw an ancher at a particular location because of schools or atmosphere for your kids to grow up in. Peter Schiff has made good arguments on this topic.For example, It also makes sense to buy if you can lock a low interest rate with little or no money down. as he expects inflation to lower the cost of the loan over its life. e.i. The last payment 30 years from now of $2500 would be the cost of a mail stamp.

All very nice but I ask you, "At what price?" Even a slave master "will come to your help" to cure the wounds from the whipping...that he inflicted on you moments earlier. Most people are not Evil all the time. Why not instead make choices in your life where you won't need to ask for rent money? Where you won't need to depend on evil people to bail you out.

My understanding of interest rates is that they are a way to weed out ideas with less return on investment (Less on demand), For example investors (on average) that know that their ideas will generate 10% ROI will bid up to 10% interest rates. while ideas that would generate 5% will be bided out. An investment that can potentially generate a high return is one that is in great demand by the consumers. ( its a free market way of prioritizing needs and resources) I don't see a correlation between interest rates and risks. A Fat burning diet pill or breast enlarging cream (that 100% works) will be able to bid a high interest rate on loans (Because they'll make a killing in the marked) and are as sure an investment as they come. Now I can see that as lenders analize Ideas...Those with higher risk in relation to others will have to pay a higher interest rate. But investors can only bid as high as the expected return...If my high risk "purified bottled air" idea is expected to generate 4% retun, I cannot ask for a loan with a higher interest rate because I would loose money. I hope this makes sense...again not an expert. Right, you make a good point. It almost seem that they feel like people would like them not because of what they achived but of what they have... A way of hearing "Nice bike" instead of "Nice 20 mile ride"? Doe sit give them the illusion of control? "I'm not sure if I can stick to the exersice routine, but I can control the equipment I buy" Is this related to obsesive behavior. For example someone who reads studies the bad effects of gluten in the body. an becomes obsesive with being gluten free. etc. Or not using shampoo or soap... Is this a way of trying to control at least one tiny variable of the infinetly many in our enviroment?

All good points, One minor correction, consuming reduces the economic pie. Idle money is lent (to the highest bidder i.e to fund the greatest needs))or decreases the money supply, increasing everyone's purchasing power. In other words, the economy will shift towards high end gadgets to satisfy the "Lance Armstrongs" wannabes. The spending would be neutral or negative, but Don't see it as a positive point in this case. Right, The whole point of the biking is exercise, no one is competing here, Why would I want the most efficient machine known to man? It seems to make sense to have the 50lb steel bike, as inefficient as possible, and burn the calories in half the time and distance.

Hello, I would like your opinion and a recurring pattern of behavior that I have noticed in people, I'm sure you have as well. I call it "running to the extreme" for lack of a better name, where someone is interested in something and they have to get the absolutely best they can afford. For example, Someone getting into mountain biking would not just get a $150 bike but has to get the $2500 Gary Fisher carbon fiber frame. It is not a matter of needing that type of equipment, My cheap bike has done fine over the years with some minor upgrades to keep it running. Not many mountains in South Florida Or if they get into photography, they have to buy the $1000 cannon with a bunch of lenses. Of if the Galaxy 10x comes out they have to trade their Galaxy 9s for it etc. It puzzles me, I get a lot of satisfaction from getting away with the cheapest device for the job. Like a challenge. I don't know people who think like me but plenty from the other camp. Thanks

Thanks all for the replies. Zimobog, I was not approaching if from the angle of "bleeding the beast". My question involves the morality of being the best one can be for personal comfort while knowing that the more you achieve the more resources the farmer have to keep the cattle enslaved. For example, Say you are in a plantation and the more potatoes you collect the more food you are rewarded with etc. but the more potatoes you collect the more money the slave owner has to buy better chains, wips, and more slave handlers etc. In other words while you as an individual benefit the group of slaves as a whole is not better off. To take it to a biology analogy, Say you had a parasite that would get bigger the more and better you ate. The more you indulge in good food the bigger it gets...SO while your present self benefits from the nice flavors and satisfaction, your future self will pay the price. Why not refrain from indulging yourself from fancy food, remain at a confortable level and keep the parasite growth to a minimum, I hope this makes sense. I'm not talking about becoming a hobo. I'm talking about the fancy stuff people want and have to be more productive to get. in other words, if it makes sense to go the extra mile,

If we are all part of a tax farm. What is the rationale for becoming the best at what one does? Why should a slave be as much productive as he can be? Why not just get by and not feed the beast, The more productive you are, the more tax revenue that can be extracted, making the farmer wealthier and providng him with the resources to better enslave not only you but your fellow tax cows. Thoughts?

I would get a job and work on projects on the side. I like the idea of learning to grow my own food. specially if S$%^ is going to hit the fan like some predict. My two cents

Thanks, Glad to know it was my end, I did some digging and it was mediamonkey that lost the podcast address. I added the address and now it found up to 2471 Thanks again

Also Keeping it off. I've seem plenty of people that can stick to a diet for a while to later gain it all back. The OP needs to be on the right mental state to stay fit for life. Its a lifestyle. It you want to get somewhere you need speed and direction, Diets are "speed" some faster than others some with positive then negative speeds....some only speed up for a while to later grind to a halting stop. The mental state is the "direction" With the right direction you can experiment with the different speeds that will eventually get you where you want to go. I remember that podcast and the caller was in a liquid diet. That to me is unsustainable, but that was not what the call was about, he was looking for direction. From personal experience paleo (carb councious) diets have work the best for me and I feel like I can eat this way for the rest of my life. Best of luck to the OP.

Good info. When I started in my late teens I read a few books (Arnold: The Education of a Bodybuilder) was one of them. I made the training part of my lifestyle, something I do, like showering. And I have never been away from the gym more that a week since. I'm going to be 40 this year and noone can believe it, They all say I look 10 years younger. One thing I learned early, If you want results you'll need to make food 50% of your plan. Looking back I'm glad I got a head start because now I train very light just to maintain muscle and avoid injury.

For a while now When I update the postcast feed it does not pickup the newer podcasts, stock in 2458. yet I see that newer podcats exist. any ideas?

How early are you talking about? One would think that early humans probably ate more meat that veggies and fruits...Animals are around all the time, but veggies and fruits mght only come by once a year and don't stick around long since other animals might get to them first.

I pay around $18 a month for a gym membership. The gym is 2 blocks from my job and another 2 miles from my house. I workout 3 times a week (MWF) at lunchtime. ~45min. then shower and back to work. It works out great for me and I have time for other activities like team sports and biking on my free time. I agree with the other replies, and it can be done if you have the time. I come from the old school of weight training and old habits die hard. I've been going to gyms for years, but before I started I had a home gym that I outgrew in my late teens. Before I made the commidment of paying for a memership I made sure I could keep up with it no matter what, it meant attending when I had absolutely no desire, or not relying on people to go. Best of luck on your persue of fitness.