Posts Made By: James C Chandler Jr

Thanks Paul

A couple of dumb questions, or actually request for opinion. I don't have anything in the market, so it is mostly curiosity.

A friend who studies the issue, said that after the 1929 crash, it took three years to bottom out, and therefore there was plenty of time for folks to get out of that market without getting completely soaked, if they had known it would have continued to fall. Sure, would have lost some money, but not got clobbered.

He also said that if you stand away from the monitor to view the Nikkei 19 year chart, to blur the details, it appears pretty obviously just a straight line down. As with 1929, plenty of time to exit without being soaked, if someone had 'future knowledge' of the trend.

So if someone had been extremely cautious and waited several years to re-enter the Japanese market, they would still have got soaked unless they lucked up to sell on a transient up-spike?

Just curious about your opinon on those observations. I know less than nothing about it.

If a lot of people are of the same opinion, it seems that the market could go very low as they all exit the market 'as orderly as possible'?

Thanks

Brian, are you looking for 1.25" or 2" barlow?

Yup, McCain's gun record is less than stellar (from the perspective of gun-owners).

Have been waiting for the obligatory campaign photo-op with Obama dressed in RealTree, out huntin with the common man.

That was the de rigueur photo-op for Clinton, Gore, and Kerry, to definitively prove to all doubting hicks that they really, really, truly are pro-gun, regardless of their previous policy record (grin).

Or did the Obama Camo+Shotgun photo-op already happen but I missed it?

I'd like to see video of Obama firing full-tilt-boogie 12 ga shotgun slugs. Recoil is a situation where a little extra flab can be an advantage (grin).

Jake Tapper of ABC News is covering it now:

http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalpunch/2008/10/being-squirrell.html

No need for conspiracy associations. You can get it from the horse's mouth--

"I think when you spread the wealth around, it's good for everybody."
Barack Obama

"From each according to his ability, to each according to his need."
Karl Marx

Of course, it is a free country and if the majority of citizens want a marxist president, then that is what everyone will receive.

jeff glancy said:

...On balance, IMO Obama gives the impression of having better command of his information and knows how to convey a concept. I believe that Obama will win on points but not by as many as in Debate I and Debate II. Thank God it's over.

Yup. Gratitude to His Noodliness FSM that the debates are finally over. My summary of the content-- "blah, blah, blah..."

A shame that third parties get locked out of these things. If nothing else, more lively content than coke and pepsi belaboring minor distinctions of virtually identical product.

Watching the talking heads, one thing which puzzles me is the talking-head fixation with various 'style points' such as elegant delivery or 'presidential-ness' or whatever.

I don't hear the talking heads discuss much about credibility.

Guess everybody has different credibility filters. If a politician says, "I'll raise that other guy's taxes"-- I swallow that one hook line and sinker. Then when the guy says, "But I won't raise your taxes"-- I automatically think it is a lie. Perhaps am too cynical.

It doesn't matter to me how smoothly the lie is delivered. Clumsy or polished, it is the same ding on the wallet...

Both candidates are almost certainly selling 99% pure snake oil. But this set of candidates reminds me of--

I wanna build a modest house for $100,000. One prospective contractor is young, glib and slick, and he has all the answers. The other prospective contractor is an old grizzled coot with dirty overalls, poor verbal skills and slight body odor.

The young guy elegantly describes the 4000 square foot house, for only $90,000, beautifully outfitted, rain-proof, hurricane-proof, tornado-proof, and even bomb-proof. Ready in 3 weeks.

The old guy grumbles out that he can make a 1000 square foot house, simple and not too ugly. Guaranteed to keep out the rain and finished within 12 months. But it might end up costing $125,000 if materials go up.

Asked for references, the young guy says, "I've never done house contracting, but built doghouses and garages for 6 years, and have been carpenter on house crews the last four years."

The old guy says, "I've never done house contracting, but have been a house crew carpenter for 26 years."

====

Dunno. Maybe am too cynical. Of course I'd interview some other contractors, but it if was a choice between these two, the old guy sounds less likely to be a ripoff. The 4000 square foot show-house sounds nice, but as it is said, "If it sounds too good to be true, it probably isn't true"

I'm in the tank for Bob Barr. Perhaps Bob Barr is the most dour presidential candidate in USA history. My kind of guy (grin).

The most regressive tax is social security. And that one will never be removed, either by Republicans or Democrats.

Sales tax is also regressive, but at least it hits all income levels equally, at least for the things which qualify for sales tax. Higher tax brackets are not hit quite so hard by sales tax, simply because many things that rich folks buy, are not subject to sales tax.

One has to be self-employed to fully understand the burden of the Social Security tax. I'm not a high-roller. Have been self-employed over three decades. Sometimes the Social Security tax bill was higher than the income tax. The two add together of course. Add em togther and send Uncle a painful check. Tax refund? Self-Employed never get tax refunds unless they stupidly overestimate quarterly payments.

Have been 'lucky' because there was never a year so low I didn't owe income tax. Income has gotta get painfully low before Uncle Sugar doesn't charge income tax. But hardly any income is low enough to avoid Social Security.

The guy who nets $1000 a year mowing lawns, or the guy who nets $100,000 a year consulting-- In 2008 both of those guys have to pay Uncle Sugar 15.30% off the net, with no credits or deductions. But any feller who earns more than $102,000, doesn't have to pay SS tax any higher than the $102,000 mark. That is what makes it a 'poor and middle class only' tax.

The non-self-employed, only pay half that, and the employer pays the other half. Any half-way decent employer could painlessly give you a 7.15% pay raise if Social Security tax was abolished.

The standard argument is that this is fair, because it is a 'retirement program'. However, all the SS receipts go into the general fund and are spent as soon as they come in. SS payout system has always been a 'welfare program for old folks'. I think a welfare program for old and disabled makes perfect sense. Its only right.

But it ain't a retirement program. If it was a retirement program, if I die before retirement, the govt would cut my wife a check for all my SS payments + interest.

The FIRST thing we could do to make the tax system fair, is slightly adjust income tax rates (for revenue neutrality), and eliminate the Social Security tax.

NOBODY, EVER, from either party, ever suggests that. It would remove too huge a cash slush fund, paid almost entirely by the poor and middle class.

That is a very alert looking pooch!

When stargazing, my dogs get bored and go inside to warm their favorite chairs. Lucky there are not many coons around the immediate neighborhood. Would have to lock-in the coonhounds all night to avoid waking the entire neighborhood. They have very specialized interests. Will run right thru a parked covey of quail, ignoring them completely in search of squirrels and chipmunks.

Is your dog 'stand-offish' to strangers, and at best neutral to friends? Just wondering, because the German Shepherds I've met were loyal and affectionate to the family but didn't have much use for strangers. Dunno if it is a general characteristic of the breed. A good quality in a dog if it can be controlled.

My dogs make a lot of noise over visitors. It is impossible for anything to sneak up. But they would joyfully welcome-in Charles Manson or Freddy Krueger. At least we are safe from coons, cats, squirrels and rhodents (grin).

I get bricks of .22LR and gun cleaning supplies from wally world.

Am a 9mm and .357 reloader, and don't have a shotgun, so .22LR is about all I buy there. During fall hunting season, local walmarts look like they have enough shotgun ammo to start WWIII.

That looks like a great little .22 semi-auto, Lee. There is a nice free range only a few miles away at a state park, but haven't gone shooting for over a year. Been busy remodeling the house. Oughta go shootin before it gets too cold.

The top receiver of that Magtech/Mossberg looks reminiscent of a Ruger 10/22? Maybe not. Been awhile since looking at a 10/22. Weren't there some Marlin .22's that had a similar look? Or maybe that is what most semi-auto .22's are gonna look like. Dunno much about it.

A lightweight .22 semi-auto would be fun. Years ago hankered for a .22 rifle, considered a 10/22, but decided it would be good to get a rifle accurate enough that I couldn't blame bad accuracy on the gun. Ended up with a bolt-action Remington 541T HB target rifle. It is accurate, but incredibly heavy, and inconvenient to use shooting left-handed.

The 541T is so heavy that it isn't any fun to shoot except bench-rest targets. Something light like your Mossberg would get used a lot more.

Chris Myers said:
David Wagner, on this forum, equates socialism with such disparate people and ideas as Obama, Bush, liberalism and neo conservatives among others. Even though these are diametrically opposed to each other ideologically and usually in practice.

Hi Chris

If socialism is defined as the government heavily meddling with the economy, then perhaps David has a point. I'm too dumb to know. Don't know much of anything really.

In some North European nations, apparently you pay heavy tax and then the govt takes care of everybody cradle-to-grave. Limited economic freedom, but personal freedom is very high. As long as you give the govt most of yer money, nobody much cares if you openly cohabitate with a Volvo and a rose bush (grin).

But it doesn't have to be thataway. One could just as 'logically' have cradle-to-grave benign socialism where citizens must attend the state church under penalty of death.

In the USA, Pro-Abortion sentiments seem at least mildly correlated with Pro-Union sentiments. Anti-Abortion sentiments seem correlated with Anti-Union sentiments. What the heck does abortion have to do with unions?

Toss all causes in a hat. Shake vigorously. Select half at random-- Voila, a party platform!

About anything fits anything else. Folks are excellent at double-think. One could imagine a Radical Green Flat-Tax Party. Or an Anti-Abortion Socialist Party. Randomly assign Keith Olbermann to one party and Bill O'Reilly to the other. They can easily devise pseudo-logical justifications then convince themselves that they really believe it.

What if left-wing and right-wing busybodies make alliance for the good of the world? Busybodies of the world unite!

Imagine PETA, Earth First, and the Anti-Smoking Movement allied with ultra-social-conservatives. Perhaps Pat Robertson and Henry Waxman could work something out. No fried chicken- No ceegars- No booze- No cars- No air conditioning- No leather- No paper- Women in burkas- No politically incorrect action, language, or thought. Jonestown comes to mind. (grin)