RICHARD, DUNCAN & CARTER
     Even though JAM VIEWS is constantly imploring the world to question everyone and everything, to find our own truths, and to find our own paths to success, apparently there are still a few billion humans we have failed to reach!  Every week we continue to be barraged with wild stories, accusations and emphatic narratives from our leaders and media, most of which turn out to be completely false.
     As JAM VIEWS always ponders, are these people in positions of influence simply incompetent or are they proactively fraudulent?  I repeatedly provide you case studies because, otherwise, this constant flow of misinformation easily turns us all into "Joe Versus The Volcano" Tom Hanks cogs in the dystopian system.
     As you contemplate your 2020, please reject these influences.  Please write down some Big Hairy Audacious Goals (BHAG's)!  Differentiate yourself from the sheep!  Take Risks!  Do something every day that scares the hell out of you!  Put a Post-it Note on your bathroom mirror that screams at you every morning, "Loved by her Friends and Feared by her Foes!" [Reminder: don't join Planet Fitness until February 15th when the mass of C-Players have already quit, again].  And, to take control of your off-the-charts 2020, remember not to believe anything anyone tells you, good or bad, and to just charge down your own path.  The Dali Lama phrases this as, "Have no attachments, positive or negative."
     Everyone telling you how bad everyone else has behaved and telling you to be "realistic" about your own goals is simply promoting their own self-interests and fears and destroying your true destiny.  Just take the red pill in 2020, and see how deep the rabbit hole goes.  Morpheus implored Neo, "All I'm offering is the truth."  A couple examples this week to help us sharpen our saw:

1.  Have you had a chance to see Clint Eastwood's new movie "Richard Jewell?"  Clint, a great American, felt it was very important in today's environment to tell the country this story.  As you likely know, Richard found the bomb at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics and saved a large number of lives by clearing the area.  Yet, the FBI suspected Richard as being the one who also planted the bomb.  This was a reasonable option to pursue, but the FBI used the power of the government and the media to destroy Richard, making him then an easy target for criminal prosecution.  The FBI leaked this information to the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal, so that ABC, CBS, NBC and CNN could set up shop across from his home.  Then the FBI attempted to trick Richard into signing a false confession during a fake training video ruse.
     He was innocent, yet the entire country believed him to be guilty founded upon the overwhelming power of the FBI and media.  Today, a great number of Americans still believe him to be guilty because of this ingrained belief that positions of authority tell us the truth.  In a future post we will address the half-century orchestrated "partnership" between the government and Hollywood-Television.

2.  Duncan Robinson grew up in a good family, went to a small school, and "wanted to use basketball to get into a school that normally (he) wouldn't be able to get into."  Everyone told him that at 5-foot-7 this would not be possible.  His mother, Elisabeth Robinson, still remembers the incredulous response of his school's principal when she inquired about filming Duncan's games for college recruitment: "You don't think he's going to play basketball in college, do you?"
     So, he worked harder, and the universe responded to his indefatigable hope and commitment by granting him another foot to 6-foot-7!  He was accepted to the elite Williams College, a Division III sports program, but after a year the national powerhouse, Michigan, recruited him away.  He wasn't drafted into the NBA, but was granted a spot in the summer league, and then was rewarded with a contract with the Miami Heat's G-League development team (like AAA baseball).  The Heat then signed him to a two-year $3.1 million contract, each step more implausible than the one before.  Now, he's one of the NBA's most-efficient players, shooting 45% on 3-pointers this season [Math: that equates to shooting 67% on regular 2-pointers.  Unheard of!].
     Duncan never listened to the crowd or took their "advice," and neither did Mom!  He stayed in the "now," focused on everything that was within his control, and the universe continually worked to assist him.  He knew that all he could do was have BHAG's, keep hope and faith, and commit to simply outwork everyone else of the planet.  Good for him.

3.  Finally, staying with the FBI, it appears that 20-years after Richard Jewel's abuses, nothing has changed.  Carter Page recently began speaking out about the abusive investigation into his life by our intelligence agencies.  Inspector General Michael Horwitz's report, as well as the unprecedented rebuke from the FISA Court Judges themselves, claimed the FBI committed "at least 17 significant errors or omissions" in gaining a surveillance warrant against him, and continually leaked information to the media to destroy Carter.  He states, "From the day news of the investigation broke, I have faced threats to my life and have been forced to live like a fugitive.  I still don't' fee safe enough to establish a fixed residence."
     He continued, "After all this testimony, and after more than a year of round-the-click surveillance under FISA warrants, I have never been charged with a crime."  We must understand that most of what the world is telling us is false.

     This week, this New Year, I hope you are able to work through the fog and friction of modern life, and to become laser-focused on positive, honest and productive pursuits [Be Duncan!].  I pray that you may shelter yourself from the evil and distractions, and direct your energies to greatness for you and the people you love.  You will be loved by your friends and feared by your foes!  Happy New Year!  Peace and Prosperity!

"For me, the perfect New Year's Eve involves going to bed early, before midnight, and maybe some caviar and vodka.  It's hard to find the best caviar now.  The caviar from a company called Roe is somewhat delicious, but nothing's as good as what I used to eat in Moscow."  -  You've gotta love Martha Stewart!

** Thank you to the WSJ, Forbes and Fortune for the above quotes and statistics.

** For more information on Jeff's Books, Blog, and Legal Challenge, please visit www.jeffmartinovich.com.

** To access JAM Views directly please visit jeffreyamartinovich.blogspot.com 

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CORNUCOPIA OF DUMB ECONOMICS
     Has the world taken the holidays off from reading their weekend JAM VIEWS?  They must have because the news is overflowing with dumb projects which violate every behavioral economics truism we attempt to populate in order to save the world!  I think they must be doubling up on the brunch mimosas and bellinis and forgetting their 10-minutes of weekend JAM VIEWS wisdom.  Let's do a quick review:

1.  Simone Barron, a restaurant worker in Seattle, wrote that she lost her job because "the restaurant where I've worked for six years is closing as a consequence of the city's harmful minimum-wage experiment."  Simone worked for Tom Douglas, one of Seattle's best known chef-restaurateurs for 30 years, but he couldn't overcome the 73% rise in minimum wages from $9.47 in 2015 to $16.39 today, not including the significant tips!  That's just plain dumb.  So Tom's restaurant Tanakasan had to close.  Simone attempted to return to working at Sitka and Spruce, operated by James Beard Award-winning owner, Matt Dillon, but after 14 years it is closing also.  Finally, Simone landed an interview at Super Bueno, owned by established chef Ethan Stowell, but before she could make her pitch Mr. Stowell announced that Super Bueno will close at the end of the year.  Simone summarized, "I'm proudly progressive in my politics, but my experience shows that progressives should reconsider minimum wage laws that hurt the very workers they're trying to protect."  A central JAM VIEWS theme.

2.  The House passed the $738 billion National Defense Authorization Act, the Senate is expected to approve, and President Trump is expected to sign.  On top of including payments to the military-industrial complex defense contractors whose cost-plus contracts go over budget by, literally, billions of dollars (another Post), the compromise pork added to the bill includes 12 weeks (3 months) of PAID leave for all 2.1 million civilian federal workers.
      So, if John's wife has a baby, John may take 3 months off work and receive his normal paycheck, and his desk will, by law, be waiting for him.  Now, I am a huge believer and supporter of early child care, bonding, and this neuroscience.  You label it, I love it!  Yet, I love it with my own money, and you can choose to love it with your own money, or not.  Where is this in the Constitution?  Can you envision walking into Joe's Auto Body and saying, "Hey Joe, if you didn't hear, Roxanne and I just had our fourth, so I will be gone for the next 3 months.  Oh, and remember just like last time, keep sending my checks to the house and make sure my stall is waiting for me when I get back."
     Of course, no real business could stay alive if this was the case, but government employees can do it because there is no bottom line, no stock options, no incentive to operate under-budget, and they are spending YOUR money. (Remember Post: "The Government Has No Money").  Michael Jackson told us, "If you can't feed the baby then don't have the baby!"  Then once John eventually returns to work, and the Chinese are 3-more months ahead of him, he then wants YOU to pay for the childcare for John Junior.  Bad policies incentivize unproductive, irresponsible, nanny-state behavior.  Maybe that's the plan?

3.  Speaking of unproductive nanny-states, French President Emmanuel Macron is again trying to find a capitalist bone in his body and extend France's retirement age and pension payouts.  He is attempting to consolidate the country's 42 different pension plans into one universal system, and he has tried to pay bonuses to get people to work to age 64.  They are rioting in the streets!  I know plenty of 64-year-olds who can work circles around French 40-year-old C-Players, not to mention they possess incredible wisdom and experience so valuable to any organization.
      With increased life expectancies, what do Jean val Jean and Cosette plan on doing for the next 30 years?  Better yet, the Paris Opera Ballet is on strike because Macron wants to extend their pension eligibility date past age 42.  "If the government insists on making dancers perform beyond a youthful age, it won't be pretty, argued dancer Alexandre Carniato."  Will someone please tell Alexandre we are not asking him to dance Swan Lake until age 62, but instead telling him to go get another job and support himself once he decides to make a change? (see Rockettes, B-52's, et. al.).  We laugh at much of this, but it is overtaking the U.S. while we sleep (and dream of dancing sugar plums).

4.  Pay attention to elite coasties in New York, Connecticut, New Jersey and California attempting to quietly pass a new bill in the House which raises the $10,000 cap on state and local taxes (SALT) deductible on federal returns.  These politicians for the elites are attempting to raise income tax rates to offset this end-around, because there is a giant sucking sound of citizens leaving these states for the American freedom of Texas and Florida.  They again want to nullify the tax reforms of 2017 which canceled your state (you) and my state (me) paying for their "luxurious lifestyles," to borrow a phrase from some U.S. Attorneys I know.  Wait, I thought these were all the same people saying they help the poor and middle class!

5.  Finally, as you likely know, Elizabeth upped her wealth tax from 3% to 6% per year.  Now since these rich people don't keep their billions sitting in a Navy Federal Credit Union Passbook Christmas Fund Account, they have to sell shares of their companies each year to pay Elizabeth.  They will have to first pay capital gains tax (rising from 20% to 39.6%), plus the state and local taxes, before getting her the check.  All of her Silicon Valley supporters will have to actually pay 71.5% to get Elizabeth her money.  The hilarious part will be watching Zuckerberg and Bezos sell 61% of Facebook and Amazon to pay the income, capital gains and wealth taxes over just the first five years.  Now this has potential!  Professor Hank Adler of Chapman University calls this the "trifecta of tax increases!"

     Over the holidays, try to keep you blood pressure low as the proposals get crazier and crazier, but stay diligent.  The more they repeat the false narratives, the more we begin to think they may be true.  This is how it works.  This week nod your head as the visiting relatives pull from the Cornucopia of Dumb, and just order another mimosa.  Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah and a peaceful and prosperous New Year!

"Great leaders don't just out-perform their rivals.  They transform the sense of what's possible in their fields."  - Bill Taylor

**Photo credit goes to KLM Royal Dutch Airlines.

** Thank you to the WSJ, Forbes and Fortune for the above quotes and statistics.

** For more information on Jeff's Books, Blog, and Legal Challenge, please visit www.jeffmartinovich.com.

** To access JAM Views directly please visit jeffreyamartinovich.blogspot.com 

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DIFFERENTIATE NOW WITH QUALITY & SUBSTANCE
     Famous "car guy" David E. Davis Jr. once said, "The problem with General Motors is that nowhere in the United States is there a 14-year-old boy with tears in his eyes saying, 'Please, Dad, buy a Lumina.'"  This says it all.  For your business, charity, and you, personally, to be successful today you must differentiate, do something special, and inspire people!
     We know that vanilla just doesn't work anymore, and unfortunately, the masses now believe that to get attention you must become the loudest, most-obnoxious, most-classless voice out there.  We all think it is now proper to be outrageous, watch couples throwing plates in restaurants, and follow whatever activist screams the loudest.
     But this week I want to help us follow the advice of class and grace leaders, true influencers, who substantially differentiate themselves and their organizations so smoothly that many times you never notice their "cool factor."  A short list for the week:

1.  Say what you mean, and do what you say, regardless of how inconvenient or painful.  The loudmouths and people in authority out there have a tremendous problem keeping their word. [Secret: because no one makes them].

2.  If you have to, speak of what you have done, not what great accomplishments you are planning.  Talk is cheap and is totally discounted today by anyone who matters.  Yoda said it best, "Do or do not, there is no try."  In our investment firm, every teammate, top to bottom, would stand up before the entire company once a quarter with one slide of what their targets were for the upcoming quarter, but more importantly with a second slide of what they told us last quarter and the objective-quantifiable results. [Tip: this process helps the C-Players resign before the next quarter without you having to fire them].

3.  When customers/clients walk into your office or shop, shock the hell out of them with the receptionist jumping to their feet, shaking hands and greeting them with a warm welcome.  Lead them to the coffee and snack bar, and before their appointment let them relax with peaceful background music and a soothing lavender fragrance. [Hint: olfactory senses are the most powerful memory makers].  Thank you to cool-guy-receptionist Justin for teaching me.

4.  When you and your team make a mistake, blow away your customer with your aggressive follow up to fix the problem and turn this disadvantage into an advantage.  The extra phone call the next week stating "we just wanted to double check," seals their loyalty to the company for eternity. [Market Research: Ritz Carlton claims that the average hotel guest rates them a 4 out of 5, but if they screw something up during the stay and then blow them away with the fix and hospitality, the guest scores them repeatedly 5/5 and increases their frequency of stays].

5.  Implement a mandatory phone/email/messaging etiquette program and separate your team from nearly everyone on the planet.  When a customer says "thank you," everyone says, "my pleasure."  Read the great many books on proper systems/voicemails/emails/messaging management, decide what works in your business and then put it in stone - zero excuses!  For example, our organizations must return all voicemails (internal or external) by the end of the day if received before Noon, and before tomorrow Noon if received in the afternoon. [Tip: I would many times make the call driving to my son's lacrosse game, "John, hey I just wanted to call you to let you know I received your message, and I wasn't able to get that answer today, but wanted to let you know I will get it to you tomorrow."  John would say, "Oh...okay, thanks so much for calling."  In 30-seconds you have forever differentiated yourself from the masses and secured John as a client for life].

6.  Look sharp.  It has nothing to do with money.  Don't dress like a slob, but instead make a statement that you have a little style, you care about yourself, and you respect the people with whom you are working or socializing.  As we taught you in earlier Posts, drive a car with a little style, and buy it after the early depreciation so you spend even less than your neighbor with the Lumina.  Your lawn looks amazing, you stay healthy and strong, your office has character, and people don't look past you like another one of the sheep. [Secret: Have your kids bounce out of their chair and give a firm handshake and look the adults in the eyes during the next introduction, and everyone will be baffled by how you are doing this].

7.  Greatly separate yourself by applying our many Posts stressing leadership-by-example.  Don't voice loud opinions about how others have failed us until you commit to greatness yourself.  Don't tell your employees what to do, but instead show them and do it with them.  Clean the office kitchen, go to Staples and pick up the supplies, go on sales calls regularly with the rookies, beat everyone to the office every day, take responsibility for every mistake in the organization, play third base on the company softball team, the list is endless [Hint: the best part is that your competitor leaders are not doing any of this - I guarantee it!].

8.  Finally, focus every day on being that class and grace leader we frequently discuss.  Be the leader you always wanted to be.  While your competitor is beating their chest, screaming and doing something stupid, stay focused on the prize.  Actions, not words.  Productivity, not nonsense activity.  Build your resume of accomplishments which gives you the confidence to stay the course for quality and character. [Truth: Give your spouse and kids someone to truly look up to - they know the truth].

     Well, I hope I don't sound like your grandfather, but the stupidity of today's reality TV and social media cultures provides us an incredible opportunity!  It has never been easier to differentiate your business or differentiate yourself on the climb up the corporate ladder.  So many out there are just phoning it in, and when they do finally get motivated, so many times it's about all the wrong things.  Don't buy the Lumina, and don't study international politics with Matt, Ben and LeBron.  Think these things through!  Have a great week!

"We will not lie, steal or cheat, nor tolerate among us anyone who does."  -  USAFA, 1956

**Photo credit goes to www.Forbes.com.mx

** For more information on Jeff's Books, Blog, and Legal Challenge, please visit www.jeffmartinovich.com.

** To access JAM Views directly please visit jeffreyamartinovich.blogspot.com 

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LESSONS FROM THE SERBS
     JAM VIEWS continuously urges us all to open our minds, see business and the world differently, and find our own truths.  This week I want to tell you an incredible story which incorporates so many lessons we strive to teach and instill with our JAM VIEWS Mission: greatness requires risks, question everyone and everything, we are exponentially stronger and smarter than we ever imagined, there are amazing adventures out there in business and life if we just get off the couch, and the universe conspires to provide us incredible success if we just keep the faith and finish the race!
     During World War II, American B-17 and B-24 bombers crews were ordered by President Franklin D. Roosevelt to undertake risky missions bombing oil fields and refineries in Ploesti, Romania, approximately 35 miles north of Bucharest.  This massive complex was producing almost a million tons of oil a month, accounting for nearly a third of the petroleum products that fueled Hitler's tanks, battleships, submarines and aircraft.
     Unfortunately for our courageous airmen, Ploesti was protected by the best German fighter pilots in the Luftwaffe.  These necessary low-level raids were terrifying and difficult, and getting back home was even more problematic as the German Messerschmitt fighters hunted our vulnerable bombers.  A large number of our planes were lost, and another large number of our aircrews parachuted into occupied Yugoslavia when their planes were mortally wounded on the route back to Allied bases.
     But, the universe would intervene.  Serbian General Draza Mihailovich had moved his army up into the hills of Yugoslavia to resist the Germans, and to resist General Josip Broz Tito, the socialist Partisans leader battling to move Yugoslavia into the Soviet communist cradle at the close of the war. [Envision current socialist politicians or university professors].
     When airmen would land, they would be met with Serbian men, women and children and an outpouring of hugs, kisses on both cheeks, and chants of "Hero Americans!" [Full disclosure; Martinovich is Serbian for "Son of Martin."].  Mihailovich's army and these loyal followers would hide the airmen, nurse them to health, and share their homes, clothes and minimal food.  Most importantly, they shared their plum brandy!  The General protected all of these Serbians from the raping, pillaging, murdering Germans and, being a lover of America, assigned Serb fighters to protect each individual American.  These airmen, which grew into the hundreds, were secretly transported to Pranjane, Yugoslavia, Mihailovich's stronghold, in order to best protect and care for them.
     Meanwhile, U.S. and British intelligence had been infiltrated by socialists and communists whom obfuscated the truth on the ground, and manipulated FDR and Churchill into supporting Tito in Yugoslavia while abandoning Mihailovich's army, falsely-labeling them as German collaborators.  This fake news was propagated by the Special Operations Executive (SOE) and the Office of Strategic Services (OSS), the precursors to MI-6 and the CIA. [Envision Steele Dossier].
     Although abandoned by the Allied Government, Mihailovich chose to do the right thing because it was simply the right thing to do.  He continued to protect the Americans.  He covertly sent telegrams to Washington, alerting them to the great number of airmen who were still alive, but these were ignored by the State Department, as the politics supported "the other side." [Envision the Kurds].
     The universe intervened again.  Mirjana Vujnovich had escaped from Serbia when the Nazis invaded, surviving a wild two-year odyssey through ten countries to make it to America and a job in the Yugoslavian Embassy in Washington, DC.  She heard rumors of these downed airmen and sent a letter to her husband in Italy, George Vujnovich, a native of the Pittsburgh Serbian-American community who left the steel mills for a position with the  OSS.
     George battled the establishment to save these men, but was thwarted by our own government at every turn.  British SOE counterparts even sabotaged multiple missions until Vujnovich demanded only Americans going to save Americans.  But how would it be possible?
     George recruited three teammates, to include George Musulin, a former Pitt offensive lineman, to parachute into Mihailovich's territory to organize a rescue against all odds.  The Serbs and Americans built by hand a landing strip in the mountains in the middle of Nazi-occupied territory.  Vujnovich sent in C-47 cargo planes in the night, and these incredible pilots executed death-defying landings and takeoffs to first save the wounded and most ill.  As the word of success secretly spread through the Air Force squadron, more planes arrived, and now with American P-51 Mustang and P-38 Lightning fighter escorts.  The airmen almost froze on the cold flights back to safety since they gave their coats and boots to the Serbians - the only gifts they could return for their lives.
     The mission that was only authorized to last a couple weeks went on for six months, during which George and his team rescued 432 American airmen and 80 British, Canadian, French, Italian and Russians.  Not one single life was lost in the effort!  How is that possible?!  Universe.
     Once complete, the military and State Department refused to acknowledge this incredible story.  All participants were given gag orders with threats of court martial. [see today's Cato Institute v. SEC, unconstitutionality of gag orders].  The British and U.S. Governments gave credit for these saved lives to General Tito and the communist Partisans, even planting stories in the New York and Washington newspapers [see today everyday].
     With this backing, Tito completed his takeover of Yugoslavia and gift-wrapped this territory for Stalin and the communists who destroyed Eastern Europe for several decades.  Mihailovich was captured and trial set.  American airmen campaigned and protested across the country for the U.S. to save Mihailovich, yet the State Department would only send a letter.  A letter. [see Afghan & Iraqi interpreters for the U.S. military refused Visas to U.S.].  Two days after the trial, Mihailovich was executed.
     Years later as the betrayal leaked, and Churchill admitted his deception by communist moles led by SOE agent James Klugmann, General Dwight D. Eisenhower urged President Truman to posthumously award General Mihailovich the Legion of Merit, the highest award possible for a foreign national.  But, again, the government covered this up, and all of the airmen, and the press, were never notified of the award.  The State Department was concerned about offending "current Yugoslavia."  The medal was put in a drawer in the State Department for 20 years!  In 1967 the medal was discovered, and in 1997 the file was declassified.  In 2005 the surviving airmen traveled to Yugoslavia to present the medal to Mihailovich's daughter Gordana, and Gregory A. Freeman began researching his book, "The Forgotten 500," a gripping tale you won't be able to put down.  A JAM VIEWS Book Club recommendation.
     So many lessons for us today.  Those whom fail to study history are doomed to repeat it.  In the new year when faced with a great challenge, just ask yourself, "What would Mihailovich do?  What would Vujnovich do?"  Take a stand this year.  Don't believe what the masses tell you.  Take risks.  Do the right thing simply because it's the right thing to do.

** Thank you to Gregory A. Freeman, "The Forgotten 500," Dutton Caliber, 2007.

"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful committed citizens can change the world.  Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has."  - Margaret Mead

** For more information on Jeff's Books, Blog, and Legal Challenge, please visit www.jeffmartinovich.com.

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THE GOVERNMENT HAS NO MONEY

THE GOVERNMENT HAS NO MONEY

(Jeff was unavailable this week, so we wanted to post one of the top-rated Posts from April 2018 which seems so relevant with our current Presidential campaigns.  Enjoy!)

     Recent generations of Americans have been raised and educated to view the Government as an omnipotent and never-ending caretaker, as if it is "the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end." We personify this caretaker with fatherly characteristics and responsibilities. We state, "They should pay for the poor...They should tax the rich...They should increase Social Security...They should pay for my childcare..." Why do we believe that because we were born, that some entity behind the green curtain should pay for our comfort, much less our survival? Is this belief inherent, or is it instilled?
     Remember that we must localize all monetary transactions in order to begin to understand how things actually work. In this situation, what we do not realize is that there is no "They." There is only you, me, and our neighbors. If I want someone to pay for my childcare, I should walk over to Mrs. Johnson's apartment once she gets home from work at the bottling plant and let her know that I need her to write me a check. Now, I will need to be prepared for the fact that she might belt out a little Michael Jackson, "If you can't feed the baby then don't have the baby," and moonwalk herself back into her apartment. But, at least I would feel like I had shown good character and asked her directly for her money.
     Governments are pass-through entities just like the Limited Liability Company (LLC) which you set up for your amazing Rodan & Fields skin care side business. "They" only have the money that you agree to give them (and yes, you have to agree - Another Post). "They" produce nothing, create nothing, and cannot survive without you - not the other way around.
     Now follow me on some of these numbers. A tip - read the numbers slowly and attempt to digest what they really mean. Human nature forces our eyes to glaze over when reading big numbers, and this is exactly what "They" are counting on. The U.S. federal budget this year is approximately $4.5 Trillion. This is the amount of your money which "They" are going to spend. But, it gets worse. You are only agreeing to give them $3.5 Trillion, so "They" are going to borrow another $1 Trillion from the Chinese, the Japanese, and the Germans so "They" can pay for all of the things we believe that "They" need to give us. Now since Mrs. Johnson gave you the moonwalk instead of a check, and since you still feel that someone else should pay for your childcare, "They" knocked on her door for you and took her money under threat of a long list of punishments, to include federal prison. For the rest of the money that Mrs. Johnson couldn't come up with, "They" went hat-in-hand to foreign countries and bartered away more of Mrs. Johnson's, and your, future in order to get the rest of the money.
     Now stay with me. since World War II, taxes have grown 15% per year faster than Mrs. Johnson's paycheck from the bottling company, and the federal government's spending has grown a shocking 50% faster than her paycheck. So each year, the IRS Agent knocking on her door takes a larger slice of her pay. But, "They" still don't have enough, so they travel the globe and beg other countries for more and more every year.
     Some big numbers again. Because of this trend, the National Debt (our Collective Mortgage) is about $20 Trillion, which equates to $50,000 for every man, woman, and child (so get Junior to work!). But, this does not count Social Security and Medicare, which also have no money. It will cost you and me another $80 Trillion to make up the shortfall we have not saved for the Baby Boomers. This is on top of the Social Security and Medicare taxes we will already be paying out of our paychecks for the indefinite future. This fiasco is called an "unfunded liability."
     Very important. When "They" tell you that Social Security will "run out of money" in 2032 (or whatever year they keep changing it to), what that really means is that will be the first of many years in which annual worker payments into the system will not be sufficient to make the payments out to the recipients of the system. There is no money sitting in a Social Security bank account holding all of the contributions you gave them out of your paycheck for all those years. The extra "savings" were raided by politicians years ago. There is no money.
     So because we thought it would be rude and even outrageous to personally ask Mrs. Johnson for her money, and we instead got "Them" to do it by force, we all now collectively owe $100 Trillion, not to include the money we are already obligated to pay each year into the future. I don't even know how many zeroes are in $100 Trillion. Fourteen?
     In another Post we will address different options for possibly saving this amazing country from bankruptcy, or at least a painful devaluation, like so many other countries have had to do throughout history. But until then, we need to understand that all economics are local. If you want to ask your neighbor to cover some of your expenses, then do it. If you want to pay someone else's bills, that would be a wonderful gesture. Just understand that there is not a middleman who is paying for what we feel we deserve. Not only that, but that guy has even already blown all the cash we gave him to hold for us!

"The perfect political party would promote as small a government as possible along with pure capitalism, while not promoting their personal beliefs on me."
   -   Jeff Martinovich , "Just One More: The Wisdom of Bob Vukovich," Ash Press, Spring 2020

* For more information on Jeff's Books, Blog, and Legal Challenge, please visit www.jeffmartinovich.com.

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