On Apr 13, 2:24*pm, F. George McDuffee gmcduf...@mcduffee-
associates.us wrote:
On Wed, 13 Apr 2011 10:44:12 -0700 (PDT), Too_Many_Tools





wrote:
On Apr 12, 2:03 pm, F. George McDuffee gmcduf...@mcduffee-
associates.us wrote:
On Mon, 11 Apr 2011 10:32:10 -0700 (PDT), Too_Many_Tools

wrote:
One trend I have seen though several economic cycles is that quality
tools are a better investment than gold with holding their value,
appreciating and ability to convert into cash when needed.

Your thoughts on this curious trend?

TMT

============

IMSHO what we are currently seeing is not a "normal"
economic cycle at all, but rather the partial end result of
several foundational economic changes, i.e. there is more
and "better" to come.

For example this appears to be a jobless "recovery," with
much of the so-called improvements resulting only from
dollar manipulation/creation by the FRB and massive
governmental deficits at all levels. The last bubbles, real
estate and stocks/derivatives popped when "financial
engineering" met reality and the "assets" had to be
revalued. When the US Dollar and governmental debt faces
the same test, i.e. "put up or shut up," another and far
more serious collapse will occur, with no one available [or
willing] to bail us out, even in the short term.

Thus while tools of all kinds may be valuable, both for use
and trade, a reasonable supply of firearms and ammunition
will be required to retain the tools, food, fuel, and other
emergency supplies, precious metals and trade goods you may
accumulate. As is generally the case, the most likely
thieves are the government at all levels ala New Orleans
where they were stealing from each other [generators, fuel
supplies, radio transmission towers, etc.] in addition to
confiscating all the guns they could lay their hands on.

-- Unka George (George McDuffee)
..............................
The past is a foreign country;
they do things differently there.
L. P. Hartley (1895-1972), British author.
The Go-Between, Prologue (1953).

The "stealing" that you are referring to is where the agencies that
were trying to help had no supplies.

Because of George Bush.

TMT

===========

That is exactly the problem, except that W is long gone.
"I'm from the government and I'm here to help you -- now
where did you hide everything I need?" is more than a punch
line to an old joke.

-- Unka George *(George McDuffee)
..............................
The past is a foreign country;
they do things differently there.
L. P. Hartley (1895-1972), British author.
The Go-Between, Prologue (1953).- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

I agree.

One can look up the numbers (most I recall seeing showed 50-80% of the
stores) but most of the emergency stuff that the States had in place
along with the National Guard were sent to Iraq...and not replaced.

One way you can go around the sticky issue of funding a war...

Then Katrina happened.

Considering that the Bush Crash of '08 happened at the end of his
second term, I seriously doubt those stores have been restocked since
the Obama Administration has been forced to administer life support to
the economy since Day One.

We are living on luck...

If something like Katrina or The Big One would happen in CA or on the
Madrid Fault, we would be in serious trouble.

TMT