Proverbs of Eustace, December 17

Schemers are dreamers with bad intentions. Eustace 12:17

Madoff vs The Fed: One & The Same

So Simple a caveman could understand:

Why did Bernie Madoff go to prison? To make it simple, he talked people into investing with him. Trouble was, he didn't invest their money.  As time rolled on he simply took the money from the new investors to pay off the old investors.  Finally there were too many old investors and not enough money from new investors coming in to keep the payments going.

Next thing you know, Madoff is one of the most hated men in America and he is off to jail.  Some of you know this, but not enough of you.

Madoff did to his investors what the Congress has been doing to us for over 70 years with Social Security.  There is no meaningful difference between the two schemes, except that one was operated by a private individual who is now in jail, and the other is operated by politicians who enjoy perks, privileges and status in spite of their actions.

 Do you need a side-by-side comparison here?  Well here's a nifty little chart.
 

BERNIE MADOFF	SOCIAL SECURITY
Takes money from investors with the promise that the money will be invested and made available to them later.	Takes money from wage earners with the promise that the money will be invested in a "Trust Fund" and made available later.
Instead of investing the money Madoff spends it on nice homes in the Hampton's and yachts.	Instead of depositing money in a Trust Fund the politicians use it for general spending and vote buying.
When the time comes to pay the investors back Madoff simply uses some of the new funds from newer investors to pay back the older investors.	When benefits for older investors become due the politicians pay them with money taken from younger and newer wage earners to pay the geezers.
When Madoff's scheme is discovered all hell breaks loose. New investors won't give him any more cash.	When Social Security runs out of money they simply force the taxpayers to send them some more.
Bernie Madoff is in jail.	Politicians remain in  Washington  .

'The taxpayer: That's someone who works for the federal government but doesn't have to take the civil service examination. ' - Ronald Reagan

  "If you put the federal government in charge of the Sahara Desert, in five
  years there'd be a shortage of sand.”      Milton Friedman

Proverbs of Eustace, December 16

Religion shouldn't be something you practice; it should be your career. Eustace 12:16

Don't Buy Anything At Dane Decor

I purchased a leather rocking chair at Dane Decor for $1200 in 1998 at the Downingtown, PA store. One of the arms attached to the chair back broke once in 2004 and again a few weeks ago. The chair was brought in for a technician to look at and after speaking with the store owner, Carl Hamilton, a few weeks later, was informed that the manufacturer was no longer in business and the part unavailable. I was told it would cost over $200 to have a metal bracket made. I picked the chair up without getting the repairs done because I didn't have the money for the repairs. The parts that bother me most about the whole experience are that the sales lady we first talked to about the cost and unavailability of parts merely shrugged her shoulders, Mr. Hamilton's same attitude about the situation by phone and his followup letter stating that we bought the chair on clearance with no refunds or exchanges. In a letter to him I stated I didn't want a new chair, only the repairs that I thought they should honor.


The customer service is awful and I wouldn't recommend buying anything at this store if you're interested in product support or quality.


Here is the link to Dane Decor and a photo of their location:
http://www.danedecor.com/