Economic Survival by Elizabeth Marchand

It’s no secret that keeping your finances on an even keel in today’s economy is more challenging than it has ever been, short of the Great Depression. People are struggling, homes are being lost, people are finding themselves on the streets.

It should have come as no surprise. Things had been comfortable for a long time. If we know nothing else about the market and our economy, we know that it does not continue on a straight line – especially when that line is continually rising. There had to be an adjustment somewhere along the way. And so there was.

Now it is up to each of us, as individuals, to get our finances back on track. To do that, we may have to start thinking outside the box. The time has come to look for new, safer ways to grow and protect our money. Toward that end, I have included three videos that I have found particularly useful. I hope they help you in your quest to keep your finances strong and prosperous in these tough economic times.

Remember the Other Victims

Today’s recession has been hard on everyone. People are tightening their belts and hunkering down like never before. It is a time when we need to all pull together and remember what is important. It is not the big screen tvs, the ipods or the gold rings. The truly important thing is what it has always been – life.

Let us not forget the smaller lives, the lives that some think of as dispensable. The dogs and cats, who are always there to give you love, need to be remembered in these difficult times. As more and more people find themselves losing their homes, the shelters will be filling up. Some people won’t even bother bringing their animals to the shelter, they will just abandon them on the streets to fend for themselves.

It is more important than ever to consider rescuing a pet and saving its life.

Tempers will run hot. People who are angry about their jobs, their finances or their living situations will look to vent their rage on something smaller and weaker. We need to be ever vigilant for signs of abuse and neglect.

Some owners will find it all too easy to neglect the care and feeding of their animals. Horses, in particular, may be left to subsist on just hay. They may be fed only sporadically or out-and-out starved. We need to all be more aware of signs that indicate that these abuses are taking place, then we must intercede and make a difference.

Be aware and, when necessary, step in and save a life. You can make a difference. Rescuing a shelter animal is good for the heart. Give your heart a treat today and adopt a pet – and be sure to have them spayed or neutered.

www.marchbooks.com

Do We Need Our Own French Revolution? – Janus Kane

There has been a lot of debate over the state of the economy, high unemployment levels and what the source of the decline is. I think we all know that politicians are not helping the situation, but are they the only problem?

 

 I think that what we need is something akin to the French Revolution. As things stand right now, the big corporate CEOs are sitting in their ivory towers, thumbing their noses at us while spouting Marie Antoinette’s words – ‘let them eat cake’. Their greed is the thing that is undermining our economy. It is rampant in all areas; from bank executives stomping on struggling families and kicking them out onto the street as they write themselves another bonus check, large farming industries that torture and mutilate animals, in ungodly conditions, for profit and car makers who are so busy taking profits when times were good that they had nothing left for the leaner days.

If these big corporate gluttons would take their hands out of the till for one minute, maybe they could afford to make American products that could compete with what Asian markets are sending over. How any of these CEOs could consider (and could be allowed by their current banker – US) writing themselves another bonus check in these times is beyond comprehension.Shame on our politicians for handing over America’s hard-earned money to large corporations with no conditions or interest obligation – basically with no accountability at all. It is a case of the ‘haves’ giving to the ‘haves’ and leaving the ‘have nots’ to pick up the tab.

www.marchbooks.com 

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The Squirrel And The Grasshopper by Janus Kane

Most of us are familiar with the fable; the tireless squirrel works through the summer to store nuts and fortify his home while the grasshopper laughs and relaxes in the tall grass. Eventually, winter comes and finds the grasshopper, literally, out in the cold.

Fables always carry an inescapable grain of truth, but rarely do we see them come to life before our very eyes as this one is now doing. Our current recession is having far reaching effects, not the least of which is the seperation of the squirrels from the grasshoppers.

We had a long summer. American businesses thrived, the stock market hit ever increasing highs and the housing market boomed, resulting in many good years for everyone involved in real estate and the construction business. During that time, the grasshoppers among us lived for the day, spending their gains as soon as the checks cleared. Big screen tvs, luxury cars and fancy boats were the order of the day for many. Those with more moderate means were still lured by the siren song of affluence. They eagerly stepped up to the loan officer’s desk and signed paperwork for homes on nothing but a wing and a prayer. Get it now, pay for it later became the tune on everyone’s lips. Well, I’m afraid that the tab has come due.

People that lived for the day, never giving a thought to tomorrow. People who were too eager to spend each and every dime that passed through their hands. Those grasshoppers are now paying the price. Only they are not, we all are.

Although I support Barack Obama and recognize the huge effort that he has put forth during his short time in office, I think that beating the drum for more consumerism is a miscalculation. Without some kind of a savings philosophy, we will all be out in the cold once winter comes. The concept of saving is something that we should be instilling in our youth, but we cannot do that until we start practicing it ourselves. Is it really going to take another Great Depression to remind us that a little bit of money in the bank is not a bad thing?

What will it take to make us realize that living the good life on credit alone comes at a high price, too high a price for our limited coffers? The thought that we can spend and spend, as long as our plastic holds out, is a fallacy of epic proportions. It is basic Economics 101 – a house of cards (credit cards) that is destined to come crashing down on us. When that happens, it will be the squirrels who survive the devastation, as they smugly reap the rewards of their planning and foresight. Hopefully, the grasshoppers will not take us all down with them.