The news on the economic front is looking especially grim, particularly for you Yanks. I hope the members of this group manage to survive the hard times ahead with grace and dignity. I feel sure that, with the plain old commonsense mechanical (and other) skills you have acquired from the hobby, we will be better able to mend, make do, scrounge, recycle as our grandparents did in the 30's.
This is beyond politics, its happened, its a real mess, and hopefully something better will arise from the present chaos. I wish you all well, irrespective of the political arguments and insults.
We're all running around like beheaded chickens and screaming for our mommas. d8-)
I'm building an armored personnel carrier from old Ford pickup trucks and diamond plate as we speak. It's a good time to know how to use a cutting torch and to weld, and to have plenty of .30 caliber ammo. Think "Mad Max." Thanks for that helpful, instructional documentary, BTW.
You, too, Andrew. You may want to re-read _On the Beach_. There are lots of tips for Australians in there. I'm re-reading _Only Yesterday_, and trying to judge if I can grow enough rutabagas in my backyard to survive. Maybe I can raise some rabbits...
There is no room for anyone to gloat (unless, perhaps, you are living off the land on a tiny Pacific island). Worldwide, there is plenty of pain and blame to go around.
Those of us who make things should do fine. We will be men of honor once again when the rest of the country learns its lesson that financial paper does not make wealth. The musical-chairs Monopoly-game days are over for now.
You will know the recovery is starting when the top pols stop preaching that credit is the "lifeblood of the economy" and such. It was over a decade from 1929 before the country finally realized that money and credit were not the foundation of an economy, and that was only because a war is only won with actual, not borrowed, treasure.
Hey, that's decent stuff! Wouldn't put it on vanilla ice cream, but it's great on sourdough toast. My fiance smuggled a small jar in to me, before we learned it is available here through a specialty store. She says I'm the first Yank she's run across that actually likes it.
While many Americans are taking huge hits on their retirement accounts, there is little direct impact on Main street [yet.] To be sure people are watching their money far more closely, but no mass layoffs, food riots, etc.
Wall Street [the financial world] exists in a parallel universe from where most of the people live and work. Consumer credit is still available from many smaller regional and local banks for "reasonable" purchases from homes to cars to appliances by qualified borrowers. The people that have gotten cut off from credit are the ones that would have difficulty repaying, both on the low end, and huge organizations with poor credit ratings wanting funds for "unreasonable" purposes such as leveraged buy outs.
Most of the squawking is by the "beautiful" people who live and work in the alternate universe of finance, where indeed the sky is falling if this means that they must now deliver what they promised.
The financial malaise may yet seep into the real world in a big way [ala 1929], but the far bigger hit IMNSHO is the loss of trust in the "system" and individuals/organizations involved, both governmental and financial.
The most amazing thing to me so far is that only Dick Fuld [Lehman Chairman] is known to have been clocked.
On Sat, 11 Oct 2008 06:40:32 +0800, the infamous David R Brooks scrawled the following:
That's all well and good, except that the seas aren't rising. The Tuvalu and Vanuatu scares were unfounded, as is most global warming hype. One of many links is listed below:
I've bought it, I've given it as gifts to my mom and sister that like it. After reading what it is, I passed on tasting it.
Wes
-- "Additionally as a security officer, I carry a gun to protect government officials but my life isn't worth protecting at home in their eyes." Dick Anthony Heller
To me, its like watching a low speed train wreck; a train that may have your family inside but you're not quite sure. While you are certainly interested in the outcome, there is nothing you can do about it. It is hard not to watch, but the results are going to be the same regardless if you do or not.
No! Haven't done one myself, and I pray I never have to - but given the choice of "Him or Me" I'm picking "Me" every time. AIUI you left out a VERY critical step. I'm pretty darned sure it goes like this:
First thou shalt hold the Holy Hand Grenade of Antioch firmly around the middle like you would a baseball or a pomegranate to be thrown, with two fingertips firmly on the Holy Spoon. Then you take out the Holy Pin in preparation for the Blessings of the Count...
Then you start counting at the same time your fingertips release the Holy Spoon and shift your grip to be thoroughly firm and resolute. And when your count reaches the blessed number of three (not two, not four, and CERTAINLY not five) /then/ and *only* then do you lobbest thy vengeance at thy foe with great vigor - and with even greater accuracy...
Then thou duckest behind a solid rampart or redoubt, because it shall soon get noisy and messy, yea and verily.
If you forget the 'release the spoon' part (that lights the time delay fuse) and throw it after having held the spoon down the whole time, said foe has enough precious time (those priceless extra three seconds) to say their "Hail Mary's" and mark the Holy Hand Grenade "Return To Sender". And you /really/ don't want that.
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