Play By a Different Set of Rules

I try to write articles that I believe will be useful and interesting. I also try not to be too repetitious. This can be hard because there are certain messages that need to be repeated over and over again until Americans start to believe there is a better way, that they can escape financial bondage, and be free.

If a foreign enemy tries to fight the American military using American rules they will lose every time. In WWII the American military learned control of the air was everything. American doctrine begins and ends with air superiority if not air supremacy over the battlefield. It doesn’t matter if the battle is on land or sea, the American military will control the sky. Whether the engagement is on land, sea, or an amphibious assault by the Marine Corp, our enemies face an integrated machine consisting of men, aircraft, weapons, vehicles, communication systems, intelligence satellites, and computers. It is the most formidable military in world history. The only way to neutralize this power is to play by a different set of rules. In Vietnam and currently in Afghanistan our enemies did not play by our rules. They found ways to neutralize the effect of air power. Roadside improvised explosive devices triggered by cell phones are not something that can be easily controlled by air power or sophisticated integrated military systems.

If you play against the major banks and credit card companies by their rules you will lose every time. They are the most powerful and sophisticated financial weapon systems ever created and they want to use this power to make you their debt slaves, forever.

Don’t bite the hook.

If you did bite the hook, it is time to play by a new set of rules; starting with, don’t borrow any more money. You can not get out of a hole by digging a deeper hole. Freeze that credit card in a large block of ice or cut it into small pieces. Quit believing that a degree that carries an average of $40,000 in student debt is the road to a good life. It isn’t. It is a road to a decade of slavery. Drive an old used car until you can afford something better. Put off buying a house until you can pay 20% down, avoid that mortgage insurance.

Instead of borrowing, begin to save. Get that emergency fund in place. It will take years to reach the goal of a fully funded 6 month emergency fund. Don’t beat yourself up. Just put away a little every month. Once you have a pretty good stash in the emergency fund start investing in stocks. Start small. Carefully building a diversified portfolio of stocks and bonds over the course of many years, works.

Sell some of your stuff. My house is crammed full of more stuff than I can believe we have managed to accumulate over the 37 years of our marriage. It’s mind boggling. Sell the kid’s old moped rusting out there in the garage. How about that dining room table in the closet under the staircase? Is that thing doing you any good? If you are debt, get rid of stuff. You can always buy more (with cash) when you can afford it.

Take a part time job or work some overtime. There was a time in my life when I was actively seeking overtime. My regular pay covered my basic expenses, but overtime gave me a life. I learned if I worked overtime whenever my boss needed me without complaint, he would give me overtime when it really wasn’t all that necessary. It is harder now, I’ll grant you that, but it really wasn’t all that easy working in a textile mill during the recession caused by the first oil shock in 1973.

Pay down that debt using a disciplined systematic approach. The debt snowball, the debt avalanche, and the debt snowflake are three of many. They all work, but only if you relentlessly attack your debt. Never surrender. The Afghan insurgents have a saying about the American military, “You have the watches, but we have the time.” You will defeat your enemy if you have that attitude.

Finally, prayer works. Your brothers and your sisters have your back. You have their prayers. Now say it after me, “Citibank Mastercard! You are going down.”