Look, if you’re pulling in enough cash that you don't need a loan—or if you’ve actually got the discipline to save up before buying stuff—you’ll be totally fine and won't owe anyone anything. I mean, history pretty much shows that planned economies just end in a total disaster, leaving everyone broke and miserable. I guess the real issue here is that you just don't want to admit that. It isn't about some spreadsheets or whatever; it's more like you might not really grasp the fundamentals of what we're even talking about, or maybe you aren't looking at how things played out in the past. Honestly, high wages, solid exports, and moving toward full reserve banking would solve basically everything you're worried about. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Full-reserve_banking
Proponents argue that full reserve banking would get rid of the whole need for a lender of last resort, like the Federal Reserve, which usually steps in to prop up the banking system during a crisis. In this kind of setup, those systemic risks shouldn't even exist. Basically, it means banks would have enough liquid assets on hand to cover every single deposit if everyone tried to withdraw at once. This was actually a huge part of the Social Credit Party proposals.
Private money versus giving it back to the government... so you're saying the state should get to decide how much I can earn? That's just silly. It sounds like a planned economy, and we all know those are total failures. Honestly, if you're worried about this stuff, maybe the answer is just properly implementing Islamic banking—where there's an extra focus on making sure banks are actually "full reserve." Then the whole problem is basically solved. The kind of socio-communism you’re pushing here would just lead us straight into a ditch. I don't think the government should be controlling anything at all.
😵😵😵😵 Look, man, you’re out here acting like we're talking about some isolated island with zero exports, but we're actually talking about a nation that trades. I don't know, is that really that hard to wrap your head around? Like, if you export stuff, money flows in, and then everyone can get paid. You just keep ignoring that part and insisting the country is totally cut off, which honestly feels like you're either clueless or just choosing to ignore reality (and, uh, you're putting words in my mouth by saying I think it's an isolated state). So, if it's just me and my family trading amongst ourselves, yeah, that's a zero sum game where the total amount of cash stays the same. But, if I suddenly decide to start trading with people outside the family, then the influx of money into the family is huge, and we'll all be driving Aston Martins. Does that click now? I feel like I've said this four times already, but you just keep obsessing over this idea of an isolated country with nothing but internal trade.
PS It's called an ad hominem, not qualifying, and that economic principle you were tripping on—the one I just debunked—is "zero sum game." Maybe try picking up some basics.
Maria Thomas48 said:That is just a crude example which basically means: We cannot have every single citizen be successful (meaning they save money or cover their costs through their labor) because that is impossible right now. And that has absolutely nothing to do with work ethic; it's about how money is regulated within the country.
Take your own family as an example. If you were all trading within the family, how would you manage to make sure everyone covers their expenses from their work, and some even manage to save? It is an impossible mission without adding more money (either via an outside influx or by issuing it yourselves).
If you can't figure out the money regulation for your own working family, why do you think it works for the entire country?
Man, you're talking nonsense. Nobody is talking about some isolated island here. That influx of cash you're obsessing over comes from exports. But to get that, you actually have to produce stuff, which is something you don't seem to be considering at all.
Maria Thomas48 said:Exactly. Tell us slaves that we just need to work and not worry about ever being free. Look around, everyone else is a slave too. Just grind and forget about retirement.😂
Of course you aren't going to work if you think—or have calculated—that it isn't worth it. In this country, making work "profitable" won't be achieved through some grand macroeconomic maneuver; it's about relieving the burden on the state. Just look at a standard paycheck. Almost 50% disappears into taxes, which then gets redistributed to fake disability claimants, retirees who should be working, social cases who won't even try to find a job, and various minority groups who get special treatment because they vote for the Republican Party... instead, you COULD create a situation where the tax burden is much lower, which would boost both domestic investment and individual spending. It's just a matter of will and courage...
Wait, why am I even typing like this? I'm not talking about isolated incidents here, I'm talking about the entire nation. If you can prove to me that 4.5 million Ivica Todorić types can actually succeed, then more power to you.
We won't catch up to Greece even if we take on three times this much debt!! It sounds ridiculous, but we act like hardworking Japanese people!! What products have they even manufactured and exported? Metaxa? Ouzo? An olive branch? They live off a few months of tourism and brutally drain the national budget with excessive pension payouts. That's the only area where we really resemble them. Our debt is "only" at 62% of GDP, and the European Union wants 60%. Forget Greece, forget all that... I'm not saying things are perfect here, far from it, but saying we are like Greece or aiming for that is nowhere near the truth...
We aren't going to catch up to Greece; we're going to be in the exact same mess Greece is in today within six years. We are six years behind them. The first crisis will hit immediately after (if) we join the European Union. And they won't help us anymore, because once you're in the European Union, there is no rescue coming.
I see how it is. You and people like you are just plain old lazy, honestly. I guess you just expect everyone else to do the heavy lifting for you because you think you're some kind of big deal. I guess I'm just gonna say it... P.Look, you’re being pretty personal here. I don't think you have any clue about how economics actually works, let alone regulation or how to actually tackle inflation. Honestly, what you're suggesting feels way more like a planned economy or some kind of social communism than anything resembling actual democracy or capitalism. I guess it’s because of people like you—folks who just don't want to put in the work and instead blame everyone else for their own mess, while simultaneously acting like money is evil and making poverty seem some kind of virtue—that we ended up stuck exactly where we are.
Douglas Reed3 said:There isn't much difference between traditional banking and Islamic banking...
I mean, it would probably make it way harder for people to just rack up all kinds of loans for stupid stuff, you know? Plus, banks wouldn't be operating on fractional reserves anymore. I guess that basically means inflation could potentially drop down to, like, under 0.5% in reality. Of course, since you'd have to work harder and fund projects without relying on credit—using actual cash you've saved or maybe earned working abroad—it would pretty much drive inflation down to almost nothing. It might even lower the risk of economic crashes and stop them from happening so often, I suppose.
Okay, I guess some people here aren't quite catching my drift. Until we actually start building factories and working the land—you know, in areas where it makes sense based on the soil, the weather, our expertise, whatever—our economic situation isn't going to improve. Not even in theory. All this talk about how interest rates are too high to make anything worth it... I don't know, it just sounds like typical excuses from people waiting for some magic fix to happen out of nowhere. We really need to work harder and smarter, and maybe take out fewer loans. And when I say work harder, I mean doing things legally, paying the taxes and fees that are supposed to go in instead of everything being under the table. Personally, I find it kind of hilarious how everyone always wants to trade with the government. I mean, that’s basically just trading with ourselves, right? Just moving money between taxpayers. We should be focusing on manufacturing and exports. As for tourism, yeah, that’s definitely a huge part of the income, and we shouldn't sleep on that either. Just so there's no confusion, I am planning to start my own business and get into manufacturing myself, but I already know how people will react: they’ll probably label me some evil capitalist who's just stealing from "good, moral citizens" out of pure greed. At the same time, they'll wonder why I'm not just living off government checks and welfare. It was like that with, say, Anheuser-Busch. Or back when my parents bought land using money they Earned from a private company, people immediately jumped on them, claiming the Republican Party must have given it to them for free and asking who they think they are to deserve anything when others might deserve more. It never even crossed anyone's mind that they bought it with EARNED money. Look, guys, if you don't work, you won't Earn. There's no such thing as a free lunch, and there's definitely no economy without industry. All this whining about interest rates is just nonsense. Wake up, people! We need to start WORKING, not sitting around waiting for someone to hand us something on a silver platter.
You're talking nonsense. Inflation comes from pure greed... man, I guess you just don't get the concept. Obviously, inflation happens because of money printing and increasing the supply. If you have $33 and then you print another 100, of course every single bill is gonna lose 50% of its value. It’s not like they lose value just because someone is being greedy. Plus, where did I even mention an isolated country or a specific system? What you're saying right now is just empty rhetoric.
If you quit before you even get off the starting block, well, obviously you aren't going to get anywhere. I mean, everything you're saying sounds less like an excuse for why things aren't working and more like just sitting around feeling sorry for yourself (and, honestly, just waiting for someone else to do the heavy lifting while we all get a paycheck). Don't get me wrong, but you're talking nonsense here. Obviously, the budget gets filled through taxes, and yeah, it's totally possible for everyone to make good money and live a decent life.
So, what's the deal, guys? It feels like most of the credit flowing through the US just goes straight into credit card debt and loans for a bunch of nonsense—like buying one new car, or maybe two, that burn way more gas and cost way more than anyone actually needs. Honestly, it seems like people just buy them so the neighbor gets jealous. Who’s to blame here? I guess it's just the average person who can't pull themselves together when it comes to spending. Being smart isn't about begging for more loans or whining because the bank won't give you one; it’s more about figuring out how to land a better-paying job so you can actually afford the stuff you want. Unfortunately, it seems like people in America today just want to live off the government and taxpayers, all while hiding behind this fake sense of morality and modesty. You know how it goes—everyone thinks if they act "moral" and "good," they should get a government paycheck, some kind of assistance, or subsidies. Meanwhile, those "greedy capitalists" who only care about money are the ones working in the private sector. I mean, who cares that the guy in the private sector has to work ten times harder just so his taxes can be stripped away to pay for some parasite funded by the state and the taxpayers? Everyone blames everyone else for everything except themselves. I hear all sorts of ideas, but never anything about how to build factories, power plants, or farm the land properly. No. We don't care about actual work; we just want to ride on someone else's back and call it being "virtuous," while calling anyone earning their own bread a "dirty capitalist." Dear American citizens, you basically get exactly what you deserve. Until you finally get off your lazy butts and start producing something, things aren't going to change. You reap what you sow. I just don't get how people expect to eat bread if they never even planted any wheat. Should Joseph Stalin or Adolf Hitler just magically make that bread appear? No... wait, I got it! That bread is going to be paid for by the government using taxes that keep getting hiked up.
The plan to fix the economy isn't about handing out more credit. It’s actually more like this:
1) Using Islamic banking as a model here in the US (and I'm saying this as an atheist, just so there's no confusion) 2) The Industrial Development Administration needs to urgently build factories for industry growth (timber, tech, maritime, etc.) and export 3) Farming every single acre of arable land in the US and exporting the goods 4) Building up tourism infrastructure to support year-round travel 5) Cutting down counties to a 4+1 structure and reducing municipalities significantly, then firing all the excess staff in such a slimmed-down system, along with massive layoffs in the public administration sectors 6) Opening up every single document to the public and having 100% transparency in everything every ministry does at all times (anything taxpayer money pays for shouldn't be a "trade secret")
Sorry if I'm bringing up an old topic again, but I was just wondering where you actually go to donate plasma and how much cash you really end up getting?
Eh, I mean, it’s not really a huge deal. Just like we adapt to living longer, maybe we just... adapt how reproduction works? Like, what if women only became fertile once every 24 months instead of every single month? Plus, you could probably use genetic engineering so that male sperm is only capable of fertilizing once every 48 months, and boom. Problem solved, I guess.
I’ve been thinking about something pretty heavy lately. Is it actually possible to treat schizophrenia without medication? Like, at all? Or even just theoretically speaking?
I mean, you'd probably just have distilled water running through those pipes, maybe some mineral oils or whatever chemicals they use... though I doubt anything in there could actually support life, especially since it's pitch black.
It’s not even really about that, but I mean, hitting the bathroom three times a night when I haven't even had anything to drink all day... that just doesn't seem right. The weird part is, I don't even feel thirsty. If I actually felt thirsty, I'd probably be knocking back liters of water a day—which I do sometimes—but then I usually end up getting these killer headaches after a couple of weeks.
So, I was wondering how you guys would go about actually sterilizing (not just disinfecting) plastic and copper tubing? It’s for a custom water-cooled PC loop, and I’d much rather stick to distilled water instead of using some antifreeze stuff. My main goal is just making sure nothing starts growing in there, since those little microbes absolutely love it when things sit around at 70 ˚F. Any ideas? And uh, just a heads up—the pump definitely can't handle 400 ˚F.
Honestly, just go see a urologist. Man, I was in a similar spot once and the doctor was such a babe that I couldn't even get an erection. I almost died from trying to focus on literally anything else. Anyway, I need to hit up a specialist myself because I've been running to the bathroom way too much during the night. Anyone got a recommendation?
I mean, I know when people are under massive stress, that adrenaline surge gives them this crazy strength boost because their bodies are basically burning through simple sugars like crazy. I also know stories from combat zones where soldiers have had limbs torn off and didn't even notice or feel a thing in the moment. Up until now, everyone’s just chalked it all up to adrenaline. But if it isn't just the adrenaline, then what the hell is it?
@ Rachel Davis32 If that's actually you in the photo, just so you know, you look incredible.
So, I guess my question is pretty straightforward: in cases where someone is dealing with massive pain even while they're on morphine (like at the end stages of cancer), why isn't adrenaline used? I get that adrenaline can be really hard on the heart, liver, muscles, and all that, but if I'm going to pass away in two weeks anyway, why not just go for it? From what I understand, adrenaline is such a powerful drug that it could basically wipe out any sense of fear or pain entirely. Wouldn't it be better to die without that pain and fear rather than being stuck in agony and losing consciousness? Isn't it more humane to at least be able to have a decent conversation? Could patients (in situations like this) actually ask for adrenaline injections?