#CryptoCurrency #crypto #investing #InvestmentPlans #FinancialSecurity Crypto currency looks appealing as an investment, but there are many pitfalls. Without going further, the best way to invest for your future is a plan for slow, gradual growth over time. There are quick bucks, but they are not always sustainable. There are shiny objects, trends and fads. But they are seldom permanent. As for crypto, it is seen as a way to invest in a vehicle that is completely unregulated – off the financial grid of stocks, bonds, banks, metals, commodities, real estate etc., that all have rules and laws regulating them. Violating those rules is fraud, and quite punishable. These are online memes. They have no value to back them up, other than the money people use to buy them. As traditional investment products have supply and demand scales, crypto has only a demand scale. Supply is irrelevant. MSNBC news anchor Rachel Maddow compared crypto coins to Beanie Babies. To those who don’t remember, the company Ty put out these stuffed toys decades ago that, according to the movement, would become very valuable. People were buying them in bulk for cheap, thinking they would become a collector’s item. When stores ran out of them, buyers stalked the UPS trucks, hoping to get back to the store as the new shipment arrived. Today, they typically sell for about $6 each. Hummel figurines were another past collector’s item. They were a bit more expensive than Beanie Babies, but their appreciation in value has become, well, suspect over the years. Crypto is the new thing. Folks with lots of money are getting in on it. Some people have been charged with fraud in connection with it. They also can be hacked, and an investor could lose everything. Another rule of thumb in investing: When the big investors decide to cash out, the smaller investor is left holding the bag. These small investors may have a nice online meme, but it could become worthless. So, if you are thinking of investing in crypto because it looks easy, lots of folks are getting in on it and it is completely unregulated, stop. Get some good financial advice from someone you trust. Whatever money you put into it could be gone tomorrow, or next month or next year. Anything is possible. The demand for crypto could go on for years. The big guys may not cash out or commit fraud. And, no investment of any kind, other than, perhaps, a bank account or CD that is insured, is guaranteed. But, crypto may be worth an extra careful look. The person of relatively low means almost always has the desire to make it big easily and never worry. That’s why the lottery and casinos stay in business. It may be too early to equate crypto with gambling, but it is plainly insecure as an investment. Remember: Trends tire. Fads fade. And shiny objects lose their luster. To repeat: If you want a secure financial future, be a good, diligent saver. Adopt a plan in which you contribute those savings over time. Stay disciplined and don’t spend the money too soon. Keep an eye on it, but don’t watch it constantly, because there will be ups and downs. Make changes as needed over time. Staying relatively consistent with a good plan is the best way to secure your financial future. Peter
#government #CuttingGovernment #GovernmentService #SocialSecurity #Medicare #Medicaid It’s really easy to hate government. It’s really easy to presume that government services are for “someone else,” perhaps someone undeserving of the favor. It’s easy, until something gets taken away from you that you did not believe was a “government” program, or that you had “earned.” Certainly, government is extremely in debt and that needs to be addressed. Certainly, also, there are places and agencies in government that could run more efficiently. But, think of government as a porcelain piggy bank. When it gets full, normally one would yank the stopper, take out some coins to buy what he or she had saved for and replace the stopper. Generally, one does not take a hammer and break the bank to smithereens just to get some money out. Also, believe it or not, bureaucrats are people, too. If you impulsively admire the sledgehammer or chain-saw approach to cutting government, you could be personally affected by it. Or, your spouse. Or, one or more of your children. Or, someone else you know and love. If you are used to getting government help through, say, veteran’s benefits or Social Security, how would you feel if those benefits were taken away? Yes, you have earned them, through service or contribution, but that doesn’t mean someone won’t, or can’t, take them away. Medicaid, which helps provide health care to those in financial distress, is used by more “everyday people” than you might think. It is not just for “welfare queens” and others you might dismiss as “undeserving.” For example, do you receive health insurance through your employer, or through your own insurance policy? If you don’t, chances are you are using Medicaid. Or, do you have a relative in a nursing home? Chances are, Medicaid is paying a good portion of that person’s care. Even if you are paying for the care yourself, most other patients in a nursing home rely on Medicaid because they simply cannot afford the daily fee for care. If Medicaid goes away, the nursing home likely would close. Then what, for your relative? The other danger from this meat-ax approach to cutting government is the access by unnamed, and certainly unapproved people to everyone’s personal data. Do you want your name, address, Social Security number and banking information in the hands of someone who should not have it? Some may extrapolate this concept to ask who might BUY all that data, and who would get the proceeds? In short, there is a right way and a wrong way to reform government. We all want government that is lean, but effective. The chain-saw approach might make great television, and some might say is long overdue. But, government agencies need to work for everyone. Former U.S. Sen. Mitt Romney, when he ran for president, said that 47 percent of the population is dependent on government for some funding in their lives. In reality, we are ALL dependent on government for something. The best things politicians can do is to make sure it works well for everyone, that everyone pays for it according to their ability to pay and that it runs as efficiently and fairly as possible. Peter
#leaders #tyrants #leadership #power #servants #sychophants Leaders look for win-win situations. Tyrants always want to win and always want their opponents to lose. Leaders build teams and help each member of the team succeed. Tyrants acquire servants, whose only job is to please the tyrant. As tyrants acquire servants, leaders serve their teams. Leaders don’t care whether they get credit for success. They ALWAYS take the blame for failure. Tyrants only want all the credit for success and none of the blame for failure. Leaders’ strength is not always shown, and they are OK with that. They are never cruel. Tyrants love to show “strength” through cruelty, implying that everyone else is weak. Leaders always want to accomplish, whether the accomplishments are obvious or not. Tyrants always want the “show” of success, regardless of whether what they are doing accomplishes anything worthwhile. Leaders look for good, qualified people, regardless of their opinions about the leader. Tyrants look for sycophants, whose main qualification is an opinion that matches the tyrant’s. Leaders make mistakes and admit to them. Tyrants, in their minds, make no mistakes. Only others make mistakes. Leaders create worlds around them in which everyone benefits, regardless of how much the leader benefits. Tyrants create worlds with them at the center, with only the tyrant and those loyal to the tyrant benefiting. Leaders give and get. Tyrants only take. Leaders know that helping others succeed is the only way to their success. Tyrants only want others to help THEM succeed. Leaders never look over their shoulders. If someone better comes along, so be it. The leader likely helped that person succeed. Tyrants always look over their shoulders. If someone better comes along, he or she is a fraud, in the tyrants’ minds. Who would you prefer at the top? Sometimes, what is an obvious answer does not translate as such to the populace. But, as the populace is fooled, they can then get hurt. It’s always best to choose those who know how to succeed properly. It’s always best to choose the unselfish, servant leader. Peter
