As Goes Venezuela....

I've written before on the failure of Venezuelan socialism to improve the lives of its citizens. Now they are devaluing their currency, the Bolivar. It's not a stretch to imagine the same for the dollar.

As we continue to plunge ourselves into more debt paying for social programs which we must borrow money for, as well as pay for wars overseas, when our own borders are not secure, we weaken our own ability to repay these debts. As our ability to repay these debts is put in doubt, and we continue economic policies that disincentivize and penalize profit making (and therefore employment) we will not be able to keep the perceived value of the dollar strong. We can see this worldwide as the Arabic OPEC countries are looking for a pan-Arab currency, China is pushing for a currency tied to the values of base metals, and musicians and models ask to be paid in Euros.

Basically, everything is going to cost twice as much in Venezuela.

Wait, update, since I started writing.

Now, Chavez has threatened businesses that raise prices. The simple explanation goes something like this: Pretend you own a store. You bought Widget A for $10. But, due to the devaluation of your currency it now will cost producers $20 to get you a replacement Widget A. The producers aren't allowed to sell you Widget A at $20, they have to sell you it at $10. Neither are you, the shop owner, allowed to sell Widget A at $20, so that you have the necessary money (capital) to buy Widget A at its new production cost. As soon as Widget A is off the shelves, producers must either lose money making Widget A, find ways to make Widget A for half the cost, stop making Widget A and make a profitable Widget, or go out of business.

So, of the 4 choices, price controls guarantee that half the options leave you with no Widget A immediately. Unless the government subsidizes Widget A producers, they will go out of business eventually, once again leaving you without Widget A. And the second choice will likely leave you with a Widget A of inferior quality. Of course, those are the legal options. In reality, as during the American Prohibition Era, you will get a black market, where prices will reflect the actual cost of Widget A, plus a substantial markup for participating in an illegal activity (which reflects the increased risk of secret transportation/incarceration/etc).

As the credit worthiness of the US declines, we will see less purchasing of our debt. Or higher interest rates will need to be paid to entice buyers. That will make it more expensive to repay our debts, just like higher rates on a credit card make it harder to pay off the credit card. As this happens, the government will likely raise taxes which will give you less money to pay for your goods and services.

Then we will be in a situation similar to Venezuela. And, of course, the fewer dollars you have, the more this hurts. If you have $10 you'll effectively have $5. Or more accurately, that $10 item will now cost $20. That $100,000 house will cost $200,000. Your utility bill will be twice as much. Your groceries will be twice as much.

This is one of the few reasons I can think of (as a real estate professional) to buy property. If we have high inflation or a devaluation of the dollar, anything you buy prior to the inflation will be worth more in total dollars than when you bought it. Any credit card debt you have could be offset by buying a house. Suppose you bought a $50,000 house, and a 50% devaluation left you with a $100,000 house. You could sell it and pay off $50,000 of credit card debt with your profit. Of course, if food becomes twice as expensive, having a place to grow your own food might be an economically feasible way to reduce your grocery bills.

Now would be a good time (if you haven't started already) to start thinking about things you'll need for a few days, weeks, months, in case there's a shortage. It's time to be an ant, not a grasshopper.

Frontsight extends training special deadline.

We have been inundated with people calling us to say that they tried to take advantage of my "Turn Back Time" Offers on Wednesday evening but continued to get a busy phone signal.




I know I warned everybody that they should not wait until the last hours or that is exactly what would happen. I extended the offer once already and encouraged people to CALL EARLY to avoid busy phone lines.



All I can do is extend the "Turn Back Time" Offer ONE LAST TIME and I mean ONE LAST TIME. I cannot provide these unbelievable offers again so if you wait until the last hours of the deadline and all the lines are busy, you will miss out as I will not, and cannot, extend these offers again.



Here is the LAST Extended Deadline: 6:00pm PST, Sunday, January 10.



Please, to save yourself continuous busy signals in the last hours on Sunday, call us TODAY or on Saturday to secure your choice of our best offers of 2009.



My assistants Jon, Kendra, and Ian are in the office from 8:00am to 6:00pm PST to assist you. Please call them early to get in on these amazing "Turn Back Time" offers and avoid the dreaded busy signals in the last hours of Sunday.



Here is what has caused all the stir...and the chronically busy phone lines...



I am "turning back the clock" to give you another shot at our "Best of 2009" offers because I appreciate the fact that you read my Monday Blog each week and forward it to all your family and friends.



Please understand Front Sight's mission, our overriding purpose, is to positively change the image of gun ownership by arming and training responsible Americans to levels that exceed law enforcement and military standards without any boot camp mentality or drill instructor attitudes.



For this reason alone, I do everything I possibly can to make that happen with all the different opportunities I create and offer you.



As so many of my Monday Blog Posts have demonstrated, there is GREAT benefit to you, your family, your neighborhood, community, and ultimately our country when YOU and YOUR FAMILY become Front Sight trained.



It seems with each passing year, the importance of being armed and trained becomes more vital. 2010 will prove it once again.



This mission is Front Sight's passion and you have an entire organization of dedicated men and women working long hours and weekends to assist you in this goal. So please take advantage of what we offer.



As the subject line of this e-mail states, I have something better than Front Sight just saying, "Happy New Year."



I'm going to "turn back time" a bit and give you and your family the opportunity to take advantage of ANY of the unbelievable training opportunities I offered during 2009 that you may have missed.



That's right! You know, the great offers that you procrastinated in responding to and missed the deadline... or were on vacation and when you checked your e-mail upon your return, the offer had come and gone... or the offer you had wanted so badly but at the time, you just could not swing it... whatever the reason, here's your chance to grab it but you must call NOW.



Again, THIS OFFER IS GOOD UNTIL 6:00pm PST Sunday, January 10. Don't miss this!



My office staff, Jon, Kendra and Ian, will be working 8:00am to 6:00pm PST so you can call and take advantage of my "Turn Back Time" offer.



Call them today at 1.800.987.7719.



To refresh your memory on some of the great offers you may have missed, here are a few of them...



Any Two Day Course Certificate for only $100. Good for new or returning students. Minimum order of 5 or more Certificates, purchase with a credit card over the phone. Call 1.800.987.7719 and Kendra or Ian will take your order.



OR



Four Day Defensive Handgun Course Certificate for only $300. Must be for student's first course. Minimum order of 2 or more Certificates, purchase with a credit card. Call 1.800.987.7719 and Kendra or Ian will take your order.



OR



ANY COURSE Certificate for only $500. Good for new or returning students. Minimum order of 1 or more Certificates, purchase with a credit card over the phone.



OR



Special Two Day Course LIFETIME MEMBERSHIP with Bonus AK-47, Mossberg Shotgun, or Pocket Pistol.



Attend the Two Day Defensive Handgun, Two Day Tactical Shotgun, and Two Day Practical Rifle courses as many times as you wish for the rest of your life and pay for it with 3 Easy Payment Options of:



____ 48 monthly credit card payments of just $25 for a total cost of $1,200 or



____ 36 monthly credit card payments of $30 for a total cost of $1,080 OR

or



____ Single payment of $995 (You Save $205!) THAT'S RIGHT! Only $995.



PLUS... As a SPECIAL BONUS, for the FIRST 500 who pay with a single payment of $995, I will give you YOUR CHOICE of EITHER a Kel Tec 9mm Pocket Pistol OR Mossberg 500 Combo 12 Gauge Shotgun OR Romanian AK-47.



Call 1.800.987.7719 and Jon, Kendra or Ian will take your order.



OR



For those of you who participated in any marches on Washington DC or Tea Party Rallies or Pro Gun events anywhere in the country here is another chance at the VERY Special Reward I offered you:



The Front Sight 9/12 Lifetime Membership provides the following benefits:



Attend the following courses Free of Charge and As Many Times As You Wish FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIFE:



- Two Day Defensive Handgun

- Two Day Tactical Shotgun

- Two Day Practical Rifle

- Four Day Defensive Handgun

- Four Day Tactical Shotgun

- Four Day Practical Rifle

- Two Day Handgun Skill Builder

- Two Day Advanced Tactical Handgun

- Four Day Handgun Combat Master Prep



Total cost for a Front Sight 9/12 Lifetime Membership is a single payment $912.00



That's right! Only $912 for a lifetime of training in our 9 most popular two day and four day courses, but you have to have been one of the patriots who marched on Washington DC or in any of the Pro Gun or Tea Party Rallies.



Call 1.800.987.7719 and Jon, Kendra or Ian will take your order.



There certainly were more great offers in 2009 than what is listed above, so if there was one you really wanted, but for any reason missed it, call 1.800.987.7719 and Jon, Kendra or Ian will take your order.



I hope you agree that my "Turn Back Time" offers above are better than just wishing you a "Happy New Year" and I sincerely hope that if you couldn't take advantage of any of our great offers in 2009, you can take advantage of their brief return TODAY only.



Here's wishing you and your family an "Armed and Trained" 2010.



(This may be the year you and the rest of the country really need it!)



Call 1.800.987.7719 and Jon, Kendra or Ian will take your order.



Sincerely,



Dr. Ignatius Piazza

Founder and Director

Front Sight Firearms Training Institute

P.O. Box 2619

Aptos, CA 95001

http://www.frontsight.com

info@frontsight.com

1.800.987.7719

Reasons real estate may drop

I've been mentioning for months that real estate, in most cases is going to drop. In special cases like beach front property, and areas where development is limited or not allowed, this won't be true, or as true.

Here are some links and reasons:
3 reasons home prices are heading lower


http://money.cnn.com/2009/12/31/real_estate/home_price_drop/index.htm

Housing Inventory Still Dramatically Oversupplied — Before You Add In The Foreclosures

http://newobservations.net/2009/12/27/housing-inventory-still-dramatically-oversupplied/


Resets Projected to Cause Mortgage Crisis in 2010

http://www.dsnews.com/articles/index/loan-resets-projected-to-cause-mortgage-crisis-in-2010-2009-12-11http://www.dsnews.com/articles/index/loan-resets-projected-to-cause-mortgage-crisis-in-2010-2009-12-11

Q3 2009 U.S. Foreclosure Heat Map
http://www.foreclosurepulse.com/blogs/mainblog/archive/2009/10/27/q3-2009-u-s-foreclosure-heat-map.aspx

A nationwide forecast for real estate is below. If you look to the left side, you can click on your state

http://www.housingpredictor.com/better.html

Useful reference tool

I don't have this problem with my neighbors. In fact we like each other and are armed.

Which One Are You?

Definitions - Basic Principles



If a conservative doesn’t like guns, he doesn't buy one.

If a liberal doesn't like guns, he wants all guns outlawed.



If a conservative is a vegetarian, he doesn't eat meat.

If a liberal is a vegetarian, he wants all meat products banned for everyone.



If a conservative sees a foreign threat, he thinks about how to defeat his enemy.

A liberal wonders how to surrender gracefully and still look good.



If a conservative is homosexual, he quietly leads his life.

If a liberal is homosexual, he demands legislated respect.



If a conservative is down-and-out, he thinks about how to better his situation.

A liberal wonders who is going to take care of him.



If a conservative doesn’t like a talk show host, he switches channels.

Liberals demand that those they don’t like be shut down.



If a conservative is a non-believer, he doesn’t go to church.

A liberal non-believer wants any mention of God and religion silenced. (Unless it’s a foreign religion, of course!)



If a conservative decides he needs health care, he goes about shopping for it, or may choose a job that provides it.

A liberal demands that the rest of us pay for his.



If a conservative slips and falls in a store, he gets up, laughs and is embarrassed.

If a liberal slips and falls, he grabs his neck, moans like he's in labor and then sues.



If a conservative reads this, he'll forward the link so his friends can have a good laugh.

A liberal will flag it because he's "offended".

Eco-Socialism Continues to Fail

In this article from Breitbart.com we can see that Venezuela will be rationing electricity. The fact that Venezuela is an oil producing country is significant. Venezuela is, of course, headed by noted socialist Hugo Chavez. Since the nationalization of Venezuela's oil production has fallen by 2.1million barrels daily.

However, the country uses primarily hydroelectric plants to provide electricity internally. So in addition to punishing the oil extraction companies by stealing their property, Chavez also punishes the people of Venezuela by not expanding energy production that would help to make his country more independent. Instead he leaves the populace hostage to the vagaries of rainfall, for electric power. Of course, Chavez is also rationing water.

Evidently, Chavez antipathy to business, has led him to cut services to businesses. So the people providing the largest tax base, are the ones punished first.Is it any wonder that Venezuela is having problems? Punish those who invest by stealing their property, and punish them more when government policies cause shortages.
This will likely be mirrored in the near future in the US.

Much of our recent legislation has added more burdens to business people. Even when legislation does not have any direct cost to a business, there is the cost of complying with any changes, and the cost of finding out which, if any, changes apply to your business. Combine the cost of regulation, with the expiration of the Bush tax cuts, the added burden to businesses of the proposed energy taxes (and the money we've pledged at Copenhagen to fight 'climate change'--all of which must be borrowed from China), and we can expect businesses to fair poorly in the coming year.
I think it is obvious, that small businesses will have to pay a larger percentage of their income to comply with regulations. As small businesses provide 70% of the jobs in the US, the burden of compliance falls more heavily on the employment practices of the small business. We won't see employees who are never hired due to the added costs to an employer. Nor will we see the small businesses that don't open due to the increased start up costs caused by the regulations (which primarily protect businesses that are larger or already licensed).
So, as the anti-profit governments work to defeat the profit motive of business people, we will continue to see shortages across the spectrum: energy, food, and employment to name a few. And, as more businesses close and more people become unemployed, we will see more houses foreclosed on, combined with higher food and energy prices as demand puts pressure on the short supply.
I would urge people to become as independent of the system as their life permits. You may not be able to find the food and power that we so easily have access to now.