Mindconnection eNL, 2004-01-10

In this issue:

4. Finance tip
5. Security tips
6. Health tip/Fitness tip
7. Thought for the day

At right is a poster that is, obviously, about climbing. This is a sport I've taken up in earnest this year (no, that's not me in the photo!), after several years of just dabbling. Click the image at right for more photos in the same genre.

There's some cool stuff in our poster area, and more is coming. You can use this to get a mind-lifting change of scenery in your home, office, or prison cell. Those working in corporate America may wonder if "office" and "prison cell" have different meanings. So, I mentioned both to be safe! :)

Below these bullet points are some excerpts from my reply. See if you can identify the brainpower methods in use. These include:

• Clearly identify what a statistic actually says
• Look at the facts, rather than letting your worldview cause you to ignore them
• Confining the analysis to the subject at hand. For example, you may approve of President Bush's handling of the economy and disapprove of Homeland Security--that makes you neither pro-Bush or anti-Bush, just someone looking at one subject at a time.
• Avoid either/or evaluations. Vitamin C is good for you. That does not mean gasoline is good to drink just because it has vitamin C added. People who liked President Clinton turned a blind eye to his incompetence. People who don't like President Bush turn a blind eye to what he is doing right. These folks are not using their brains!
• Looking at real information (e.g., the layoff numbers)
• Eliminating false assumptions. That is, deduce from the facts to form your views, rather than extrapolate to fit your views.
• Look at the results, not the intentions, of policies.
• Always ask, "Does it seem like I've been brainwashed? Why do I think this way or that way on this subject? What caused me to have this opinion, and is it still valid?"

<snip>The unemployment numbers are meaningless. They are merely claims for new unemployment compensation. They do not include people like my friend (name delete), who got laid off from his engineering job...and is now driving an airport limo.

<snip>Just because Clinton did fancy bookkeeping, lied about what was going on, had the statist media in his pocket, and kept claiming the stock market bubble actually meant a strong economy--doesn't mean we had good economic times. Far from it. Under Clinton, layoffs hit a new record every year! The reasons for economic destruction under Clinton are obvious. He gave us two of the largest tax increases (read, slashing into the means of creating wealth) in our history. Plus, he increased government regulations enormously, making the cost of doing business in the USA soar and causing many companies to move operations outside the USA. And they took their jobs, payroll taxes, property taxes, and other economic contributors with them.

Bush has given us a nice, long-needed tax cut (read, providing capital for creating wealth and JOBS), reversing much of the Clinton damage trend.

The deficit projections coming from the statist media and entrenched "useful idiots" are based on false assumptions that any fool should be able to see. Unfortunately, too many folks let their world views keep them from seeing reality.

Bush's military spending was needed, due to Clinton's repeated message to terrorists that it's OK to bomb our cities, military barracks, and Naval vessels. We are now taking our medicine for what Clinton let go on....<snip> Bush is spending a great deal of money to send soldiers to do what should have been done for 8 years--years in which "Nero" fiddled with zippers while various buildings, people, and property burned.

Clinton spent money on "re-elect me" social programs that have had nasty social consequences. In keeping with tradition, these programs have had the opposite effect of what his ilk always claims they will achieve.

Bush is spending money on "stop the bombing of our cities, barracks, and ships" programs. And the consequences? Except for the IRS, terrorists are quaking in their shoes and leaving us alone.

Instead, simply attach a note to your tax form package. State that the information supplied by ABC is incorrect, and then state what the correct information is. State that you have the records to prove it, and attach those if you think doing so will bolster your case without giving away other information. This way, if your return gets selected for a review, that information will be there and the reviewer may well consider messing with you isn't going to bring in any revenue. Keep in mind that many IRS employees are looking for people to victimize, to run their own private scams against while pretending to administer the tax code. By showing upfront that you address problems clearly and with confidence, you send these folks a message that you are unlikely to be easy pickings. It's sort of like locking your door--the thief goes on to the next house.

Readers from the UK have the Inland Department of Revenue to deal with, and New Zealanders have the Internal Revenue Department to deal with. Feedback from these readers clearly shows the same kinds of issues that USA citizens contend with. The problem is not so much the taxes themselves, but the criminals who work for the tax collection organizations. This problem has not changed since Biblical times--indicating we aren't going to put a stop to it, either. Thus, you need to take the necessary precautions. I just told you what one of them is.

Simple. Go to a hardware store and have a "Do Not Duplicate" key made. And don't wait until the situation arises. Do it the next time you are out and about. Stop at a hardware store or anyplace that has a key making machine and have one made. If they don't have a no-dupe blank, don't bother with them.

I keep hearing about this Atkins diet. This is not a good diet, unless you like the idea of losing healthy tissue and doing some long-term damage to a body that will only regain all the fat lost on this diet.

Diets don't work. Period. There's a review of diets at www.supplecity.com. Check it out.

What does work is changing your eating patterns. You'll find free articles--and accurate ones--at www.supplecity.com.

Many folks make the excuse that they travel, so they are stuck eating such and such on the road. Nonsense. You can bring your food with you, if things are really that bad. When I travel on the road, I bring MRPs with me. You can find these by going to www.mindconnection.com and clicking on the supplements link.

Yes, we sell MRPs, but just to keep you from thinking this is a product push, I'm going to mention a product we stopped carrying because of distribution disagreements. It's called VitaPro, and it tastes really great. If the company (http://www.vitacube.com) changed their distribution plan, we'd carry it again. I've found products almost as good, but not this good. They aren't paying me to say this--their product is just that good and a free plug here is for your benefit as a subscriber. I hate to give sales away by plugging something we don't sell instead of what we do sell, but I have promised from the outset to be straightup with our readers.

Garbage in, garbage out. Mind, body, soul. Think about it.