Posts Tagged money
The Lord Provides
Posted by Unapologetically Right in Bible, Religion on June 7, 2012
Everybody has been impacted in one way or another from the recession and an economy, which despite reports that it is “improving,” continues to limp along, to say the least. We’ve all observed the price of food and gas both sky-rocketing to ridiculous levels and along with that you probably haven’t seen a decrease in your health insurance premium in several years. If you can’t remember, go back and look and I bet you’d be surprised. Though I don’t recommend it because it may leave you slightly more discouraged than you are now. But I digress. If you’re in school, you no longer have the ability to choose your bank to get the lowest interest rate possible since the government took over school loans in 2009. So while the government sticks you with whatever high interest rate they want, tuition rates – on average – go up just about every semester it seems like.
While all this is going on, many people, including myself, are finding that they’re underwater in their home loans and despite the Home American Refinance Program (HARP), instituted by President Obama, are unable to refinance or are able to refinance, but only see a slight reduction in payment. Numerous people are still without a job and despite the improving unemployment numbers, many have stopped looking. Those of us with jobs are still earning the same amount of money we were making five years ago. So while the cost of living has increased, there has been little support from companies, to their employees, to help offset that increase with an increase in pay. The reality is, you’re really making less than you were five years ago.
I’m sure I’ve only scratched the surface of the various discouraging situations people in this country – and around the world for that matter – are facing. And the fact is, it can be just that: discouraging. You’re constantly thinking and wondering, ‘when will life get better?’ ‘How much longer can I handle this?’ Or maybe you’re asking, ‘Where is God during this time?’ I will be the first to admit that I don’t have all the answers, but I will stand by one thing that I know if for sure and that is God is with us all the time. All we have to do is cry out to him.
I want to look back at a few scriptures just to prove that God is ever present in any situation and hopefully encourage you to continue to stand strong even in the toughest of circumstances. Take the Exodus for example. God has brought the Israelites out of Egypt, leading them by a pillar of fire by night and a pillar of cloud by day to a camp facing the Red Sea. Pharaoh and his army began chasing after them and when the Israelite people saw them they cried out to God and to Moses saying, “It would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness.” (Exodus 14:14)
The Israelites didn’t see any hope of escape and longed to be back in Egypt where at the very least they’d be alive, although living under a system of oppression. There was however, a leader, by the name of Moses who responded, “Don’t be afraid. Stand firm and see the Lord’s salvation. He will provide for you today; for the Egyptians you see today, you will never see again. The Lord will fight for you…” (Exodus 14:15-16 HSBC) Sure enough, with God on their side, the pillar of fire protected the Israelites, the Red Sea parted, they crossed it and once on the other side, they worshipped the Lord (Exodus 15). Everything was now okay, but it wouldn’t be the only time the Israelite people faced difficulties on their journey. They experienced the bitter water at Marah (Exodus 15:22), hunger in the Wilderness of Sin (Exodus 16), dehydration at Rephidim (Exodus 17), impatience at Mount Sinai (Exodus 32), hardship at Taberah (Numbers 11), defeat at the hands of the Amalekites and Canaanites when they refused to enter Canaan as God commanded (Numbers 14), and I could go on. Each time the Israelites faced adversity, God provided for them and eventually they crossed the Jordan in to the land God had promised.
It’s easy in our current economic climate, our immoral society, and diseased culture to get discouraged about what the future holds and to feel like there’s no escape; that it’s better to be alive under a socialist oppression than to fight your way out, standing up for what you believe. But the next time you fill up your tank of gas, buy groceries, pay your tuition for the month, get turned down for yet another job or get less of a raise than you were expecting, remember that our God, who is able to do more than we could ever want or imagine, is there with you, on your side ready to fight for you and in the end, it all comes out in the wash.
Be strong and courageous. -God
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Econ 101 with Mike: The Euro Debt Problem
Posted by Unapologetically Right in Current Events, economics, Economy, Politics, Uncategorized on May 14, 2012
Well, another day and another threat to a Euro Zone problem. To everyone out there that actually thinks that the recent elections are the answer to the Euro Zones problems I salute you. Not to say that you are on the right track and to a mission well done, but more so to a farewell good-bye off the cliff of oblivion. Yes, the Euro Zone elections are in and it seems the general population has voted on the side of giving themselves massive spending increasing from the government. They all want the government to spend more money to stimulate the economy. I love that general term…stimulate the economy. In further posts I can explain what that means in real terms, but right now I can explain what that means in real time. Governments around the world are going to need money to do this thing called “stimulate the economy”. So, they are going to hold what is called bond elections…usually heard about on Fox Business or Money MSN. You usually hear about bond sales from governments all the time, but do not realize how related they are to how well an economy does and to what end it dictates to what an economy can do. Let me spell it out for you on the Euro Zone.
Yes these socialists did win. Yes they promised more spending and more debt. Yes they will get more spending and more debt. Yes they will increase their countries’ debt to levels never heard of before in history. Yes they will create such a bubble of government spending we will never have known in history. Yes there will be a major fallout from this. Yes they did follow the American “Obama” concept of spending. Yes the world is on a course of debt..Or deficit…spending that will lead to a backlash that we have never seen before. However, what we will see is a short term of prosperity that will seem like the markets are doing well. We will see people investing and making good returns. It will seem like the markets have corrected themselves and that we are out of the woods as far as the housing bubble that killed us in 2007/2008. However, what has actually happened is that we replaced debt with an insurmountable pile of debt. If you have money, invest it now. Yes you will make some great returns. However, pull out within the next six months or less. This is how it works, great amounts of spending from the government makes it look like the economy is getting better, but it doesn’t create sustained growth. It only means that the numbers look good as long as the government spends, so analysts misinterpret how the macroeconomics are playing out, and so people with money fail to invest in the actual growth industries. What will happen is government money will dry up…REAL quick. I’ll explain why shortly.
Once government money dries up then there will be a major drop in GDP for all countries across the globe, which means a major recession will happen overnight. Government spending ends overnight for a couple of simple reasons. With the Euro Zone, it will end soon (this could happen in a week, 6 months, even a couple years but it will happen), because these countries will go to borrow money for their bonds (which is the process for any country to borrow money to spend beyond its means), and investors will require a certain amount of money in return (which is represented by an interest rate). The more money they borrow the higher the interest rate. Most of the Euro Zone’s borrowing limits are not just maxed out, they are in crisis mode.
So let’s say today that I have $100 to invest. I can invest in stocks or bonds. Well let’s just take for example that I lost all my life savings of $10,000 in the US stock market in 2007 and I am a little burnt out on that solution. So I look to bonds. So I want to make sure I make some kind of return in this volatile market we are in right now. I look at bonds across the board and the steadiest bond right now is the US bond. However, it is less than 1%. But I look at the Euro Zone bonds and it is up around like 6-10%. Why is that? Well, the interest is what we like to call the likelyhood of you getting paid back. It is high because it is that much more risky in which you will never see your money again. The more a country borrows, the higher the riskiness, and as we see more Euro debt accumulate it will be costly for them to borrow. Do not just take my word for it, Bill Fleckenstein also feels this way, who is a contributor for Money MSN. So I say let these crazy people get elected with these crazy ideas about spending. Once they go to borrow money that no one is willing to loan them, they will see a massive default on their sovereign debt, and there will be a massive sell off of Euro Zone debt and a flight to the American Dollar we have never seen before.
The Pelosi Says…
Posted by Unapologetically Right in Bible, Current Events, Economy, Politics on May 1, 2012
…make more money dangit! I saw a disturbing video about a week ago featuring Nancy Pelosi and I’m really not too surprised by what I heard coming out of the House Minority Leaders mouth. However, I have to give her credit because her initial comments are correct; people who work, do have “skin in the game” as she put it. Meaning, they pay a payroll tax out of their paycheck. Makes sense and if you have a job – like I do – each time you get paid, a percentage of your check goes to the government in the form of a federal tax or a FICA or something similar. Instead of leaving it at that and defending those who work saying they do contribute to the government, she goes and screws it up. Watch the video at the link below and I’ll comment after it:
Pelosi Wishes You Made More Money
“I wish they would earn more so they could pay more,” is Pelosi’s statement regarding the American’s who work hard to earn a living, support a family, own a home, or a car and for many of us to just “survive” during these tough economic times. Pelosi is about giving you good paying jobs, not so you can achieve the American Dream, but so they can take the money from you!! Why would anyone want to work harder or make more money if it’s just going to be taken from them? We have a government who can’t be responsible for the money that they already receive and we’re almost $16 Trillion dollars in debt because of their lack of financial responsibility and they want YOU to make more to fix THEIR problem!!! Pelosi’s statement, and many others like it from the current administration made me think of this verse in Colossians:
See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ. Colossians 2:8
There is a serious lack of personal responsibility within our government. We’re allowing ourselves to be deceived by words from politicians that sound good, but are just empty, worthless attempts to get you on board with a philosophy that does not work and will in the end, further destroy this great country of ours. Wake up America and start questioning with boldness!!
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