Tag: gas

The Next Domestic Crises

The only thing more predatory than a politician are the credit card companies.

Carrying a balance on a credit card is by far worse than establishing a loan thru your financial institution. Those who can least afford it are frequently the target of predatory lending. PayDay loans and alike are one step away from borrowing from the mafia. Those who specialize in payday loans are not the financial institution you should deal with. They are the mob who will cash your check and attempt to solve all your problems by selling you magic beans for the cash, in the form of lottery tickets.

The root cause of the problem, however, is not those who seek to ‘assist’ those in need. The root cause is the need itself and a lack of intelligence when it comes to managing your finances.

If we glance at the past as in history, and then we look forward, we can see where this will end.

Having lived thru the lies of Carter, gas lines, odd and even days, and no more than ten gallons at any given time, we were happy just to get Gas, not really caring what it cost.

There is a price that is going to be the next crisis we must deal with.

I have not used a gas card in years. I used to have one that I did use to keep up with my expenses but that was a long time ago before frequent flyer miles.

The other day, unexpectedly, I received a new gas card. Why?

They know that there is about to be a boon to those who extend credit. We are used to budgeting X dollars a month for Gas. That expense has doubled. Depending upon how much you drive and what you drive, undoubtedly, you will feel it at the end of the month.

Not only is Gas twice the price, but food is also much more expensive. Heating and cooling costs have risen exceedingly fast.

Energy drives the prices for many things.

Where you might not have carried a balance in the past, you might now. Much like Sisyphus, pushing that rock uphill will break many.

Not to worry. A late fee is only $30, and your remaining balance might go up to 30%, but other than that, they have you covered.

If the current administration can blame all your pain on Putin, they stand a good chance to distract you from reality come election time.

It is imperative that you only listen to the very liberal media, which includes NPR.

Like Don Quixote, they truly believe that windmills will save the day. Tilting at tried-and-true methods of energy production, they seek to push this country back to the depression era. Little wooden shacks for the sharecroppers will dot the land in the middle of nowhere. They will need no amenities and will be totally dependent on their masters. Look no further than North Korea for a role model.

The poor management of your credit cards will be your undoing. Much like losing at Monopoly, you will mortgage your belongings to the very institutions that loaned you the money in the first place.

There are no do-overs. When you find yourself wishing for a solid cardboard box to keep the rain off your head, or fighting for a dry spot under a bridge, only then will you truly understand that this has never been about race, but a struggle between the have and the have nots.

Knowledge is power and that privilege that so many ignorant fools scream about. History is the source of that knowledge. It makes little difference if you like the history or hate it; it is there to learn from. Erasing history is just as foolish as thinking skin color is the solution or the problem.

If I were a gambling man, I would buy stock in companies that made loans. I would find companies that buy foreclosed homes and rent them out to invest in.

Most young people are stupid when it comes to money. They find renting is the quickest way to live the lifestyle they were accustomed to when mom and dad foot the bills. The attitude seems to be live for today, and tomorrow will take care of itself. If you look at their social media, you will discover what I mean. They are the market for the next breed of a predatory lender, those that buy foreclosed or ugly homes, spend as little as possible to restore or update them, and rent rent rent.

As prices continue to rise because of this administration’s piss poor policies, they will be among the first to suffer. Mom and Dad will be among the second to agonize as they end up opening their homes to their boomerang progeny along with their fur babies and maybe grandkids.

Mom and Dad, who saved for retirement, will end up using that retirement money to bail out their kids, who still think that playing video games all night is the equivalent of work.

Domestic disturbances will be over such things, and the entitled brats will be the spark that sets the next set of events into motion. The divorce, custody battles, and more money wasted on lawyers and court costs. Who could know this would happen??? Hello…

If you’re not putting money in the bank for a rainy day, you are screwing up. I would think that one should have at least three months of expenses saved in an account that you don’t touch. The wolf is at the door, and he is knocking.

When companies demand you return to the office, gas, tolls, and normal wear and tear costs return too. There will also be new clothes required. Are you ready?

-Best

We are but Pawns on the chessboard of life. @oann

Today’s news regarding the slide of oil prices brings back the memories of the volatile world in which we live and just how much of it centers around our lack of energy independence.

Still fresh in my mind are the long lines at the gas pumps of the “world coming to an end” oil shortage of 1973.

Much like the world ending “Global Warming Hoax,” I do not trust any of them. (with good reason…they lie!)

If you really want to know what it means…follow the money… Who gets rich if we stop using coal, or we all use sunshine and unicorn magic instead of fossil fuel? If Al gets to sell you his carbon credits that he already has printed, who gets the money for them, and what do they do with that money?

Many of my readers are too young to remember or know about the oil shortage hoax, so for those of you that were not driving in the 70’s here is the deal.

In 1972 Gas was about .50 a gallon. $5 dollars would fill my car…The price per barrel of crude was $14.00. Minimum wage was $1.85. I made minimum wage for a while until I went to work flipping burgers making $2.10. “I was of course in school; this was popcorn, gas and movie money.”

All of the sudden there was this “Energy Crisis!” We had gas lines and limited supplies. According to Carter, we were going dry and in a few years’ time, there would be no more gas…ever!

There were oil tankers crashing into each other as well as running in to under water obstructions spilling millions of gallons of oil into the ocean. The shipping lanes, which they had navigated safely for years prior and years since; all of the sudden became more dangerous…?

My contention is that those ships were sitting off shore waiting for orders to make their delivery and ran into things because they were in places that they should not have been.

As Americans went from paying .50 cents a gallon and allowed to purchase all the gas that they wanted, that changed overnight. Suddenly it was mandated as to how much and when we could purchase gas. No more than 10 gallons on odd or even days depending upon your license plate, and of course, the price jumped. Like sheep, we fell in line because our leader was someone we could trust, and if he told us this, we would do it.

President Carter responded to the crises thusly…. This is part of his speech…

“The oil and natural gas that we rely on for 75 percent of our energy are simply running out.… World oil production can probably keep going up for another 6 or 8 years. But sometime in the 1980’s, it can’t go up any more. Demand will overtake production. We have no choice about that.”

“To some degree, the sacrifices will be painful—but so is any meaningful sacrifice. It will lead to some higher costs and to some greater inconvenience for everyone. But the sacrifices can be gradual, realistic, and they are necessary.”

“We must not be selfish or timid if we hope to have a decent world for our children and our grandchildren.”

This is not the first time a sitting president has lied to us….Nor will it be the last.

Oil production during this period was steady with a slight linear progression all except one…The Middle East.

In 1970, The Middle East topped the oil production of North America, continuing its production to 21.894,000 and in 1974 to finally peak in to 22,020,550 in 1979. At which time they cut production back to a low 10,645.400 1984.

There were other players in the market, but make no mistake, the Middle East was the driving force.

During this time, Asia Pacific was ramping up its use of Oil… In 1979, they peaked usage to 10,917,244 barrels a day. At this same time, North America was sitting at 21,483,623 with the largest consumer of oil being Europe and Eurasia coming in at 25,117,430 barrels a day.

The problem was the OPEC Embargo. Egypt and Syria announced that they were no longer selling oil to countries that supported Israel. Less supply of oil caused prices to rise 134%. In response to this Saudi Arabia, Iran, Iraq, Abu Dhabi, Kuwait, and Qatar unilaterally raised prices by 17 percent.

These events caused issues with our markets and eventually negatively affected our GDP.

Once again, we were held hostage over oil in the 1979 Iranian Revolution. OPEC once again raised prices by another 14.5%. The US then halted Imports from IRAN and Kuwait, Iran and Libya cut production. Saudi Arabia eventually raised the prices of crude to $24 a barrel. These factors brought an increase of oil up another 118% in one year. The Gulf War precipitated another increase of 113% in 1990… This adversely effected the strength of the US dollar as the feds started to lower interests’ rates.

Lines

We had long lines at the gas pumps because the Middle East who we now relied upon for oil. Years of negotiations finally eased supply but the price was no longer .50 a gallon. Today the barrel of oil dropped below $30 a barrel. If things were equal that should make a gallon of gas about a dollar.

These are the scant few facts that history tells but… I would really like to know the rest of the story. Who profited? Why did Carter fill our heads with lies? Who was pulling his strings?

The Embargo that inconvenienced millions was a political play. Today we have a glut of oil on the market bringing the prices down to record lows taking the world stock markets with it. They are blaming the glut on less demand … are you trying to tell me that there are less cars?

The Middle East for some reason, “economics” is crushing its competition by making oil supplies more abundant. This adversely effects the other oil companies, as now exploration…fracking… and other sources of obtaining oil is no longer profitable. With oil at $30.00 a barrel, all of the oil producing countries of the world will be effected, with Russia, amongst one of the countries hardest hit.

Enjoy your cheap fill-ups as your 401K is adversely suffering because of this.

“Do they still teach economics in school?”
“Have they common cored our people into actual stupidity?”

lily-james-2016-golden-globe-awards-in-beverly-hills-2.jpg — Now she is pretty…This is far more important than your survival…look at that pretty dress…that bracelet is stunning…I wonder who did her hair… Sarcasm..yep!

If the kids of today understood anything other than who got an award in Hollywood or who was sleeping with whom, or…what video game is great and why…they might actually protest our out of control politicians. These overpaid bags of hot air who paint with unicorn blood and fairy dust, create rosy pictures for those of you who watch passively the greatest president that we ever had…ever…give the greatest State of the Union address ever! If you do not believe me…ask him….he will tell you that himself if, he can pull himself away from his selfie stick or mirror! “Yes, that is sarcasm.” If the only politics you followed are on MSNBC or CNN and then watched the State of the Union Address you would buy the lies.

Screen-Shot-2015-11-09-at-10.40.54-AM-1000x600.png — There is some sort of scandal with her and mean girls but that really does not interests me…She is attractive … but completely not germane to anything that I am talking about.

“Folks, they are lies…. People such as myself are not going to be able to keep this fight up forever…you had best engage and smarten up, unless you want to go the way of Greece.”

Protest in Greece turns violent… Out of free money…

I will take this opportunity to put a plug in for a news network that is strictly news. No opinions, just the facts. http://www.oann.com/

I actually think she is great! I think she went to the Blaze …

Their reporters at time are sophomoric, but I find that part of the charm. Just the facts, no spin. They are currently in a battle with the major news networks, as the multi media giants are pulling strings to keep them off cable networks. Verizon still has them but Time Warner and Charter who seem to be under the thumb of certain people in the administration, do not want them. The FCC is going to have to get involved with this one but I am certain that they “the multi media giants” can drag this out until after the election, as to keep the left wing loons influencing politics as they have been doing forever.

Seek the truth my friends!

-Best

download (12).jpg — My Shameless plug for the Blaze…

Nose Blind or You Stink!

Not terrible long ago I was traveling through Colorado. I love Colorado! The people are great “for the most part,” The air is clean “for the most part,” and the terrain is different in that it is flat to the east and mountainous to the west!

Thirty Five miles south of Greeley the pungent odor of dog crap suddenly overwhelmed my senses. Dog crap is exactly what the odor smelled of but yet I had not been out of the car in a hundred miles or so!

Instinctively I looked at the bottoms of my shoes to find, nothing out of the way there.

I rolled down the window at this point to let the odor out and to my surprise the odor was magnified by thousands. The smell was so profound that my eyes begin to water. There was absolutely no excuse that I could find for the odor. I pressed on hoping that whatever I had passed by on the road would leave as quickly as it began. No such Luck!

The further I pressed on to the north, the more profound the odor became.

Arriving in Greeley for an early meeting was a task as I was having trouble keeping my stomach in check.

Folks, I have worked in some pretty bad places in my days, including around dead burned bodies. This was bad!

Here is the rub, when I was able to turn the conversation around to the town and why it stank the person who I was talking to said and I quote “what smell?”

The issue is that one becomes nose blind to the odor. While it may seem not as bad one day or even hardly noticeable it is not because the odor is any less, it is because the brain tunes it out as normal.

There is theory that it has to do with becoming accustom to your environment and our brains turn off certain signals that would otherwise alert us to some issue as that is a normal odor.

If for example you have animals in your home, you may find that their smells are less objectionable than when you first got them which would indicate that you are doing an OK job at managing their odors.

Surprise, you stink!

I know several people who have too many animals in their homes and when you go over to their house the smells of the animals about knock you over. The people don’t understand or appreciate that those very smells bind with the fabric in their clothes and in their hair and when they are out of that environment at work or some other social event, the odor of their home goes with them, and in some cases in advance of them.

Not terribly long ago I was in a restaurant when an elderly couple came in. As they passed by me the odors of dog overwhelmed the scent of my dinner that was in front of me. The waitress knew them and in greeting them, seating them etc. she asked about how the dogs were doing? Did she ask because of the smell or simply because she was being nice?

So not only do you stink but, your house may very well smell badly as well! Seek your most honest and best of friends to tell you if they smell something out of the way. It is the kind of friend that would tell you that your zipper was down or you had something in your teeth. You need to know!

After researching this I began to wonder, does oxygen (o2) have a smell?

I know that o3, Ozone smells so it begs the question what about o2?

I would have to say yes but because we are oxygen breathing creatures that smell has been “nulled” by our brains. So what it smells like is something we may never know unless we can come up with a “Sniff-o-meter” to tell us if we stink!

I can actually envision this as a Raspberry Pi project, with some kind of sensor that we currently use to detect gases of different types. Assign each chemical some sort of value etc…

Can you imagine some sort of device that we blow into, or rub it against our clothes, or hold it in our armpits, while pressing a button to tell us if we stink!? IT would be nice to have something that would alert you if your house had an odor that you had tuned out as normal. Shark Tank anyone?

-Best

$#fracking #earthquake Is it really worth it? @thewellsreport$

#fracking #earthquake Is it really worth it? @thewellsreport

Fracking…Food for thought

$frackingex$

Denton County in North Texas made it illegal to “frack” in the city limits.

Certain radio commentators “who do not live there” are calling “Dentonites” Stupid!

http://www.660amtheanswer.com/local-personalities/the-wells-report/

Having lived in Texas (and in Denton County) since 1962 the only earthquakes I have ever felt prior to recently, have been while traveling; non here in Texas until last year… after Fracking started.

When earthquakes started occurring in places where fracking was taking place the gas companies produced studies and other scientific data that conclusively proved it had nothing to do with what they are doing, simply a coincidence. Hmmmm Bullshit!

My problem is not with lower energy cost, or even the small earthquakes from time to time, my problem is A: the sons of bitches lied about it, and continue to do so. B: they are putting toxic substances in the ground that could and most probably will end up in the water that you drink and C: We are getting nothing for assuming the risk.

Lets take them in order, shall we? Fracking turns solid rock formations into gravel. What was once a stable solid “billions year old” rock formation is now gravel. The solid rock that was keeping any movements of the plates from happening is now no longer solid thus, the plate is moving.

$fracking-myths-01-0911-mdn$

Knowing something about this, I doubt that there will be anything like in California but, it could happen. There are major faults not too far from here and turning things in to gravel could relieve enough tension in the plates to allow the fault to move in a large way, affecting millions. And where will they be if this happens? Again they will prevaricate their way out of it, provide scientific proof from “the global warming scientist” that it was inevitable, and they had nothing to do with it, while they just fade into the background while the people bury their dead, pick up the pieces, and so forth.

I don’t trust them, and neither do the good Folks of Denton Mr. Wells!

B: We need civilian oversight that has nothing to gain by lying. We have so many people who will sell their sole for the buck that we need a Ralph Nader type organization to watch these folks to make certain that everything that they do is above board. If people get cancer or die of other contamination due to fracking their message will be “not us, we were never there!”

C: I would like to see them purchase earthquake insurance for the citizens in the areas that they are fracking. If they buy it by the boatloads it should be cheap enough as here in Texas, unless the insurance companies have changed, one cannot even purchase it, as until recently the ground has never moved, even a little.

Summary:

Civilian oversight

Ground water test, streams, lakes, wells etc.

The introduction of a marker in the chemicals that they use to inject, that would make their contamination easily traced back to them. Gasoline companies have used something like this for years, the technology is there, make a law.

$fracking$

Total transparency; so we don’t have to worry about them saying things like they were never there. If something screws up they need to be held accountable.

Purchase insurance that pays for the repair of anything damaged as a direct or indirect result of fracking from the start of the project; until 50 years past the end of the project.

If they have a problem with this, than I would move to outlaw it. Not just here, but everywhere!

Customer Service

Customer Service

Throughout my history as a business professional, one of the things that I have to offer consistently is superior customer service. Think about this; when someone calls me they are in a fix as something is broken. There are a myriad of emotions in play from anxiety to anger.

As the guy who is going to take care of all of their problems the first thing that I have to do is understand where they are coming from. Then listen to them and take notes. This helps me to remember the points of the discussion and if in front of the customer, it helps them to calm down as they see me doing something.

These are some of the things that I would make sure my technicians carried with them into the field.

I truly believe that we as a country are drifting away from giving a damn about clients. It is almost like we are the post office or the phone company; we are all that there is so we just don’t care about your problems. But wait! We are not all that there is. The phone company has competition as does the USPS. Granted e-mail, FedX and UPS, are not the end all of competition, but it is a start. Vonage and Magic Jack to name two, are good alternatives and much less expensive then the phone company, not to mention the cell phone.

Competition drives us to be good at what we do, and that includes customer service.

Exploring new shopping places as I like to do from time to time, I had occasion to shop at a place called Central Market. http://www.centralmarket.com The layout of the store was well thought out. There were people who came up from time to time to see if I needed any help and here is the biggie; they not only bagged my groceries but they carried them out to the car and put them into the car for me. When I tried to give the guy a tip, he refused it politely! While their prices are a little higher than that of Wal-Mart, or Kroger, the service was excellent and the choices were fresh and plentiful. With people offering help that cut down on my time in the store and time is money!

A lot of you are most likely not old enough to have ever purchased gasoline where it was pumped for you by a friendly attendant. While they were filling your car up, they would wash your windshield, check your oil, and other fluids and check the air in your tires. At the end of the transaction you might get “green stamps” or even a dish or other some such give-away as a token of their appreciation for doing business with them. While I too am not old enough for this to have happened to me; I do remember vividly this very transaction process with my parents. I also remember how nice they were and how they really seemed to appreciate the business.

In stark contrast today, if you do need anything other than what you can do outside at the pump, there is a strong likelihood that the person behind the counter will speak limited English and really wont give a damn if you like the product or not.

I was in a Kroger a few years ago when they first put in the self-checkout machine. I was appalled by this for several reasons. First, I want that little bit of customer service when I patronize a store. Secondly, those kiosks hardly ever work flawlessly and unless you are only buying a handful of items, they are a pain the rear. Lastly and this is the part that I really wanted to drive home, these things are taking jobs away. I remember that night vibrantly as not one checker was at his post. When I found someone he directed me to the self-checkout. I told him that either he checked me out or he could put all of the groceries in my cart back from where they came! Begrudgingly he went to his register and checked me out! What an idiot, a lazy star-studded blazing example of the entitled society that we have raised! Not only did he not want to do his job, he was trying his best for me to do his job and was incensed when I called him on his attitude.

I think we need to vote with our feet or in this case, with your pocket-book. I will happily pay a little more for a little extra service. I actually like to be told to have a nice day! Do you really feel appreciated when a machine says thank you on the screen?

The world in which we live changes daily; some of those changes are for the better; and some not so much. Society needs to dictate to the business world, what is acceptable and what is not. Like sheep we all too often simply roll with it. We forget however that we are the boss. I have to provide superior customer service to keep my customers coming back time after time. We the consumer should expect that and demand that from the different vendors that we frequent. You do that in a myriad of different ways but the best way; the way that they will listen to, is to spend your money where you get the best value for it, including customer service.

If there are places that you like to shop because of the customer service, send a message and I will post it. Consumers need a bill of rights, not only when they are flying but when they are spending their hard-earned money on anything from products, service or otherwise.

-Best to you and those that you care about.