As mentioned in part 1 of Night Fright, my three decades of living in hurricane-prone islands has given me first hand experiences to share with you. And I can tell you that when the juice snaps off, the game of life changes in a blink. It takes shockingly little time for panic to set in. In Key West, the languid loads of tourists and even more extremely laid-back citizens deem disaster preparation a badge of horror.
ATMs proliferate, but these things are among the first to go down, turning loads of people into instant cash orphans. In that credit/debit machines are also among the first casualties of power outages, many citizens are quickly invalidated at gas stations and food markets, soon to be cleaned out by cash-carrying customers.
All of this will happen fast, and mayhem ensues even during daylight. But in the blackness of night? Forget it. People quickly lose their personal compass and become unglued. When power outages drag on for days, conditions erode at frightening speed. Even though I have been through extended outages, I am always astounded at just how unprepared most people are and how civility evaporates with a snap of the fingers.
A power outage of a week is serious business. Casualties can spiral from minor to life threatening. I prepare for power outages lasting much longer than a week. I have explained to you my feelings on inertia and just how hard it really is to take the actions needed to protect your family. Disaster prep is a sticky wicket. Most people tend to give you the fish eye when the subject is broached. Who wants to spend a lot of time, effort and money on an event that may never happen? I am sympathetic to such feelings, but after getting stung a couple of times, the message has sunk in. Now I am prepared. For me, disaster prep is a work in process.
This summer will be a busy one as I beef up my preparations at both my island locations. I will have lots to share with you over the course of the summer. In advance, though, I want to get you going on my theme of “everything looks worse at night.” I have made a series of moves that allows me to deal with an extended power outage that might lead to serious nighttime concerns. I own a six-battery, extra-long Mag-Lite. This beast is useful as a short-range light as well as protection. It packs a punch. On my iPhone I have two different flashlight apps and a neat night vision app. Small beer, but already have proved useful.
Moving up the technology ladder, I have a high-end night vision instrument from Night Owl Optics (nightowloptics.com), strictly for nighttime use. The U.S. military always has a leg up due to night vision optics. If you saw the movie Blackhawk Down, you know how crucial it is to be able to operate in the total darkness. Unfortunately, you also learn what it means to not be. Be sure to see Blackhawk Down, although I warn you that it easy to watch.
Next up the tech ladder is my ND-5 green laser locator from BSA Optics. The technology is referred to as Laser Genetics. The ND-5 is the ultimate partner for night vision optics. With its adjustable beam, it allows just the right amount of green laser light needed to illuminate any target at distances up to 500 yards. And the ND-5 is an easy-to-use handheld illuminator/locater.
In Part 3 of my series, I will tell you about my super power long-range flashlight. This one-of-a-kind product has a reach I have found hard to believe. I will also tell you about the neat mini light that I have in place for traveling.
As I have explained, I consider personal and financial security equal. The same risk analysis preparedness applies to personal security as well as financial security. With each, I am looking at the unknown and am creating a defensive barrier suitable to contend with maximum risk contingencies. This planning requires you to access your vulnerabilities and define your appetite for risk. The more adverse to risk you are, the more your desire to seriously delve into the subject of vulnerability. You may never have considered personal and financial security to be intertwined, but I have found that the greater the level of a persons paranoia, the greater the desire to reduce exposure to unpleasantries. My defensive preparedness has stood me well in the investment business for almost five decades.
So the marriage of personal and financial security is what I bring to you. I hope you and your family will benefit from my mini-series on Everything Looks Worse at Night. It’s guaranteed to make you more comfortable and better prepared for contingencies. And I would tell you, not surprisingly, the same thing about my monthly financial strategy report, Richard C. Young’s Intelligence Report. Be sure to subscribe if you are not already with me. You do not want to miss the boat.
Warm regards,
Dick
Related Posts:
|
>> read more |
Newport, Rhode Island, was voted to the Forbes list of America’s prettiest towns:
There’s a good reason Presidents Eisenhower and Kennedy chose Newport, Rhode Island, for summer escapes by the water. First, consider the draw of one of the most enchanting stretches of shoreline on the East Coast, a seascape best viewed when traveling down the ten-mile twist of Ocean Drive. Then there’s Newport’s time-traveling charm, its ability to whisk you away to other periods in American history by way of colonial-era homes and Vanderbilt mansions.
From June 23 to July 1, Newport will host The America’s Cup World Series races. It’s an exciting time to be in Newport.
The local pensions, on the other hand, are not pretty or exciting. Newport, along with Middletown and Portsmouth, make up Aquidneck Island. The local paper, The Newport Daily News, ran this headline last week for the town of Portsmouth: “Pension Outlook Worsens.” The plan guarantees an 8% rate of return. Remember now, the higher the guarantee, the less needs to be saved by the town to meet its promises. The actual annual performance over the past 10 years has been 4.1%.
“The Portsmouth pension plan is in much worse shape than has been presented over the last few years,” said Jonathan H. Harris, chairman of the town’s Joint Pension Review Committee. “The town does not have the resources to pay the increased funding costs, and serious consideration must be given to making reductions in the pension benefits, just as the state has implemented with teachers and state employees.”
Using a guaranteed 8% rate of return, the unfunded liability is $22.1 million. Reducing it to 7.25% increases it to $28.5 million, and 6.75% to $32.9 million. The more conservative 6.75% increases the unfunded liability by close to 50%. Imagine using a realistic return like a five-year Treasury. The numbers are blown out of the water like a catamaran.
Portsmouth isn’t alone. You can check out Newport’s abysmal pension numbers on Richard C. Young’s RIP Map. The pension problem hasn’t been solved in Rhode Island. But like most things, it will take a real crisis to finally get serious about it.
Related Posts:
|
>> read more |
The FDA has announced a new rule for farmers that will force them to get a prescription before giving their livestock antibiotics. The downside of giving growth antibiotics to herds is that they may be creating super-bugs by killing off weaker bacteria and allowing the strong to multiply. Research has found that drug resistant bacteria are moving from animals to humans.
Gardiner Harris of The New York Times writes, “[A]bout 80 percent of antibiotics sold in the United States are used in animals… Michael Taylor, the F.D.A.’s deputy commissioner for food, predicted that the new restrictions would save lives because farmers would have to convince a veterinarian that their animals were either sick or at risk of getting a specific illness. Just using the drugs for growth will be disallowed and, it is hoped, this will cut their use sharply.”
But heavy handed government rules may not have the effect that smarter farming would. Charles Schmidt wrote in Environmental Health Perspectives:
In issuing the rule on 6 January 2012, the FDA cited declines in the prevalence of cephalosporin-resistant Salmonella Heidelberg isolates in chicken meat and in humans following voluntary restrictions on the drugs in Canada. The Canadian restrictions were limited to use in poultry. However, according to Chuck Hofacre, a veterinarian and professor at the Center of Food Safety at the University of Georgia, U.S. poultry producers have used cephalosporins very little since 2008, which is when the FDA first tried to restrict the drugs’ use in food animals. Today, cattle account for most veterinary prescriptions for antibiotics in this country, generally for treating pneumonia, foot rot, and mastitis, according to Gatz Riddell, a veterinarian and executive vice president of the American Association of Bovine Practitioners.
The government’s antibiotic mandate will not remedy the side effects of yet another government mandate—the ethanol mandate. Ethanol byproducts are loaded with antibiotics used to control the fermentation process. Increasingly, these byproducts are being fed to livestock. Grist outlines the details here. Neither these drug-laden grains nor any other have a place in a cow’s food chain. Only grass-fed meat, dairy from grass-fed cows, and hormone- and antibiotic-free eggs and poultry should end up on your table. Check out U.S. Wellness Meats for all your needs.
Related Posts:
|
>> read more |
Representatives from the U. S. Navy’s Program Executive Office, Littoral Combat Ships Unmanned Maritime Systems Program Office and General Dynamics unveiled a quarter-scale model of the Surface Mine Countermeasure Unmanned Undersea Vehicle (SMCM UUV), known as “Knifefish,” at the Navy League’s Sea-Air-Space Exposition being held at the Gaylord National Resort. Knifefish is a heavyweight-class, minehunting, unmanned undersea vehicle designed for deployment by forward operating forces, and will be a part of the Littoral Combat Ship Mine Countermeasures Mission Package.
The SMCM UUV system will allow Navy commanders and sailors to detect and identify mines in high-clutter underwater environments without putting sailors in harm’s way, including mines that are suspended in the ocean, resting on the sea floor or buried. Additionally, it will gather environmental data that can provide intelligence support for other mine warfare systems.
“Knifefish represents a major step forward for unmanned undersea technology and will provide sailors with a reliable, safe, cost-efficient capability that is not currently a part of the Navy’s portfolio” said Nadia Short, vice president for Strategy and Business Development at General Dynamics Advanced Information Systems. “Our team took advantage of extensive open architecture expertise to develop a design that ensures Knifefish will continue to evolve with the Navy, as mission needs change and advance.”
Knifefish recently completed a successful system requirements review on schedule and will progress through the preliminary design review in May of this year. Knifefish is expected to attain initial operational capability in 2017.
Source: General Dynamics
Related Posts:
|
>> read more |
 One politician any constitutionalist should fear is the current Indiana Senator Dick Lugar. For nearly four decades Lugar has represented Indiana in the Senate, during which time he has become progressively more liberal.
Lugar is out of touch with Indiana’s values, so much so that he wasn’t even a legal resident until recently. His residence has been Washington D.C., where he fits right in with the big spending, big government population.
In a primary debate, Lugar expressed his firm approval of corn ethanol mandates. He reminded Hoosiers that the state produces ethanol—implicitly telling the constitutionalists in the audience that even if they believe government should not mandate or subsidize, it is acceptable if it benefits Indiana residents. Lugar was unashamed to express his pride in the pork barrel nature of his platform.
In the single debate for Indiana Senate, Lugar flatly denied that he voted to allow illegal immigrants to receive Social Security benefits. But he did make such a vote on 18 May 2006, when he voted for Senate Amendment 3985 (vote number 2006-130). Lugar joined Democrats and fellow liberal RINOs John McCain, Lincoln Chafee, Mike DeWine and Lindsey Graham in voting for an amendment to allow illegal immigrants who had stolen identities to keep money they had fraudulently paid to Social Security.
Finally, Lugar must be ousted from the Senate for his votes to confirm Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan to the Supreme Court. This tired warhorse and entrenched Washington insider needs to be defeated.
Related Posts:
|
>> read more |
 Follow richardcyoung.comon Facebook |
 Follow richardcyoung.com
on Twitter | |
|
|
| This Week's Featured Video |
|
|
|
VIDEO: Fenway Park 100 Years
VIDEO: R.I.P. Levon Helm
 |
|
