(John Galt is the main character created by Ayn Rand (perhaps the greatest woman of all time) and her famous novel "Atlas Shrugged".)
In Rand's novel, creative people (the "Atlases" of the title) are hounded and punished for their labor by an oppressive, socialistic state. In response, they retreat from society to a hidden enclave where they watch civilization's slow collapse.
"People are starting to feel like we're living through the scenario that happened in 'Atlas Shrugged,'" said Campbell. "The achievers, the people who create all the things that benefit rest of us, are going on strike. I'm seeing, at a small level, a kind of protest from the people who create jobs, the people who create wealth, who are pulling back from their ambitions because they see how they'll be punished for them."
People have an intense sense of fairness. President Hope, Madam Speaker Botox, and Senate Majority Leader Viagra cannot force the top producers (though they might try; there are always those willing to point a gun, and worse, at others to do the bidding of the powerful) in our society to pay for the healthcare and retirement comforts of everyone else. Any attempt to do so will only result in these folks "Going Galt".
Yea, guys making $14 million per year for throwing a little ball 90 feet will probably not be disincentivized. Guys killing themselves to make an extra $100k per year to provide for their family? They ain't going to work on saturdays from now on. Mothers of young children going back to work for $50k? Well, Childcare ain't deductable, so she ain't going back to work. Folks in cash businesses? A little bit more of that cash is going south with the taxes on that income left unpaid. Small business owners already making $250k? They ain't going to expand and make that next hire.
Remember all that wealth that Obama wanted to distribute when he began his campaign over 2 years ago? IT DOES NOT EXIST ANYMORE. What little IS left will not survive the Left's attempt at re-distribution.
I can tell you first hand. I am Going Galt. I am going back to my farm in Tennessee next week. I am going to work in my word shop, trade some livestock, and work my garden. But I am NOT going to work hard at paying taxes. I have no debt and the kids educations have been provided for. I'll work only enough to keep from going backwards.
My suggestion is that the government encourage people on the receiving end of the declining pool of tax dollars to log on to Sharon Astyk's wonderful web site and learn some level of self-sufficiency - because the government just ain't going to be keeping their silly promises.
Hope, Botox, and Vaigra can KMA.
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Oil appears to me to once again be at an inflection point.
All Commodities have a price cycle. When supply overwhelms demand, prices fall and investment in productive capacity is cut until demand overwhelms supply and prices rise. My bet is that we are at the beginning of the point where cuts in investment of productive capacity cause insufficient supply. Only this time, the world will have run into Peak Oil, and the U.S. will have run into the Oil Import Crisis.
The stock market is going to bifurcate (IMHO) into companies that actually pay dividends and those that do not. Companies will quickly see that if they want to access the public markets they had better reward shareholder's capital before executive bonuses, or they will not be publicly traded (or operating for that matter) at all. The valuations on certain franchises in the energy, utility, and food sector for example, have gotten priced for anarchy and stupidity. I do not give specific advice here... but you can actually buy shares in energy companies trading at single digit multiples, with little or no debt (less than .3 debt/equity) an 8% dividend and reserves of the most valuable commodity known to man in the ground.
What we have at THIS moment in the U.S. equity market is a "buyers strike" on ALL equities. That strike will come to an end for the big dividend payers with sufficient cash flow to support the dividend and little debt. That pretty much describes half the companies in the energy complex.
The other companies in the S & P 500? The ones that do not pay dividends to their shareholders? They are going to ZERO.
And I am "Going Galt".
Mentatt (at) yahoo (d0t) com
5 comments:
For some disturbing reason your post along with the behavior of the president and congress reminds me of a movie I watched not too long ago.
Gee, I guess all the Europeans failed to read that Republican bible called "Atlas Shrugged" that I"ve been hearing about for decades. They sure as hell are socialists, and seem to be quite happy being just that. Less wealthy in exchange for real lives. They look at the United States and, other than admiring us for our ability to jump out of helicopters and blow everyone away, seem almost sorry for us -- our D+ health care accessibility, our preference to avoid vacations and taking weekends off so we can finalize that lawsuit against McDonalds or so we can build up our ever-so-important coffee company that charges $5 for a cup of coffee. Or how about the braniacs who re-invented the Walkman (now called an I-Pod) and charge 5x as much for it. I love capitalism as much as the next guy, but I'm smart enough to know where my tax money goes and how necessary 90% of it is. The Republican model died when Hank Paulson turned us all into socialists last year. All the God-fearing conservatives who never seemed to get around to "loving their fellow man" oughta impress their God and give it a try sometime.
Interesting post as always. I live in Austria with my fiancee who is a doctor (she makes less than 60k PA gross) and half of our paychecks disappear every month, but we still make enough to live a pretty good, healthy life in this beautiful reasonably priced country. We can pay our bills and rent, eat healthy, non hormone treated food, I can put aside about 30% - 40% of my paycheck every month for a rainy day and know that if I get sick I wont end up bankrupt as health care is provided. If I loose my job I will also receive unemployment benefit until I can find another job. Knowing I will then give half of my salary away in no way makes me consider not looking for a job. How much money does anyone really need?
A small cut in salary for some peace of mind is worth it in my book.
On one level I DO agree with you though, if my tax was raised in order to finance the (at least) 500billion per year Military industrial complex to bomb and kill people in other countries I would object. And in fact did, as I left my job in America when they Invaded Iraq .
Good luck in Tennessee man.
I think your timing is spot on. I think the crap is coming pretty fast now and I don't see anything that can stop it happening - certainly nothing the governments can do.
As for the politics - that's just history because neither political standpoint can operate in a collapsed economy; the liberals don't have the budget for social policies and the right don't have the budget for business and war! Obama will be driven by necessity and pragmatism and, if he does it right, by the end of it he'll probably be hated by just about everybody!
Your option is best; get yourself as 'out' of the cash economy as you can to meet your family's real basic needs of food, shelter and security. Then the rest is optional.
Good luck!
Dan:
Thank you for the link to the youtube video.
I recommend that everyone reading here watch that!
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