Raising Horses - Teaching the Foal

Before teaching the foal the giving of the foot, you must ensure that the foal is well balanced and that you can handle or stroke every inch of the body without resistance. The foal should be well responsive to the lead and stand quietly while being haltered.

To start the lesson, stand facing the foal at it’s front shoulder, turn to face the rear of the foal, then drape the lead rope over your “near” arm (the one closest to the foal) ensuring a foot or two of slack. Run your hands down the shoulder and leg to the foot and attempt to lift the foot with the barest of touch. The foal may lift the foot and if it does, only hold it lifted for a moment before setting it back on the ground.

The foal may not lift the foot and instead, place weight on the foot to resist lifting. It’s normal, as a horse is unbalanced on three legs and feels vulnerable. It’s up to you to teach it to balance on three legs and stand quietly for farrier work or emergencies. To prepare the foal for lifting the foot, continue to stroke the leg and foot while attempting to lift in steadily increasing pressure. If the foal continues to stand on the foot, run a hand up the leg to the “chestnut” just above the knee and squeeze this area with the fingers. This is a nerve point that makes a reflex action of lifting and bending the leg. Capture the foot as it comes off the ground with the other hand and hold it suspended for a couple of moments, then set it back down. The foal may try to pull the foot from your hand. Retain a hold on the foot and ensure you are the determining factor of setting the foot back on the ground. Stand back up and give the foal a few moments to think about what just happened. Then repeat several times, spacing the lessons apart to allow the foal to understand what is being asked for and the fact that it isn’t painful. Repeat the lesson on the other forefoot.

Giving the foot of the rear leg is a little different as even a foal can cause injury here. The automatic reflex of the horse to kick is constructive of three separate movements. First the horse must shift its weight to the front, and then lift the rear leg toward the belly and then project the leg and foot out behind. These are automatic reflexes that we can take advantage of. First, stand just behind the shoulder of the foal at its ribs, and then face towards the back of the foal at about a 45 degree angle. You want to be sure that you can stroke the foal down its flank and butt without injury. Stroke the foal several times and ensure it is calm and quiet.

Next, stroke the foal’s butt and continue the movement down its leg to its foot. Some foals will raise their leg toward their belly in the first part of the kicking movement and you can capture the foot and just hold it at this point. (It’s called “cocking the hammer”.). Hold the foot slightly elevated toward the belly for just a few moments and then set it back down again. Repeat several times.

If the foal stands on the rear leg/foot, simply lean your weight into the foal at the flank and press on the knee joint while lifting the foot. Hold quietly for a few moments and then set the foot back on the ground. Repeat several times, and then do the same on the other rear leg.

Remember patience is the key. Stay calm and be patient and remember you are teaching a young foal lessons on proper behavior, just like teaching a young child. A horse always learns something from it’s interactions with people, whether it’s the right thing or the wrong thing is up to you. NEVER EVER approach a horse or foal in anger. ALWAYS walk away if you feel yourself getting angry.

YeOldFurt

Thanksgiving - 2009

“There is one day that is ours. There is one day when all we Americans who are not self-made go back to the old home to eat saleratus biscuits and marvel how much nearer to the porch the old pump looks than it used to. Thanksgiving Day is the one day that is purely American.”

O. Henry

Have a great Thanksgiving!

RW

Raising Horses - Leading the Foal

The foal at this point is accepting of the halter and is not intimidated by it. You can halter the foal without incident and handle the foal all over.

Attach a lead rope of 8 to 10 foot length to the bottom ring of the halter and allow the foal to walk around with it attached. The foal will step on it several times and may even be agitated or angry a little. Patience will teach the foal to drag the lead rope in such manner that it doesn’t interfere with it’s way of moving and how best to get out of problems.

The handler stands by to ensure that serious problems are rectified immediately without harming the foal. Don’t let the lead rope become entangled in other objects. Detach the lead rope after about 15 minutes and let the foal wander around the corral without it for about another 15 minutes before re-attaching the lead rope. Repeat this several times until you observe the foal has become accustomed to dragging the lead rope.

Attach the lead rope as normal, but retain the free end while remaining in the center of the corral. The foal will wander off at an angle to the handler. Retain a strong hold on the lead rope. Once the foal reaches the end of the lead rope, it will be stopped and will attempt to keep going. Be prepared for some antics from the foal as it resists the lead and halter. The foal may buck, run in a circle or just stand while it attempts to figure out this new problem. Just be patient and wait a bit.

Once the foal has decided to stand quietly, you can proceed to instruct the foal on leading. First give a slight tug on the lead rope and see if the foal will step toward you. If it does, release the pressure and then wait a few moments and repeat. Continue until the foal approaches you with just the slightest of tugs.

Some foals will set back or dig their heels in and resist the tug pressure. To rectify this, simply walk around the foal while holding light pressure until you are 90 degrees to the foal. Then increase the pressure steadily until the foal turns to face you. Continue this until the foal starts walking forward to release the pressure.

Once the foal recognizes that following the pull will release the pressure of the halter on it’s head, walk to beside the foal’s head and gather up the slack in the lead rope. Don’t grasp the lead rope next to the halter, you want about a foot or two of slack hanging. Pet and rub the foal for being so intelligent as to recognize and solve problems. Then face forward and step off slowly until you feel resistance in the lead rope. The foal doesn’t yet know it’s supposed to go with you, so be patient. When you feel resistance, don’t turn around, just look over your shoulder and lean forward to increase pressure. Hold the pressure as the foal leans back against the pressure. Be aware that the foal may jump forward to release the pressure, so be ready to step sideways out of line. If you get a step or two following you, then relax and pet the foal some more. Take a few moments, then repeat until the foal is following you around the corral and keeping slack on the lead rope. Continue this for at least 30 minutes as a leading lesson. Repeat over the next several days until there is no longer any resistance.

Leading without resistance is mandatory for horses so it's best to teach it while they're young and impressionable.

YeOldFurt

What Can We Learn from 1860?

What Can We Learn from 1860?

Posted By Linda Brady Traynham
On November 17, 2009 @ 10:30 am

In Featured, Morning Whiskey | 4 Comments

One of my friends read “Should We Talk About Secession,” an article just posted on the ‘net. He’s from the wild and wooly Montana-Idaho-Wyoming school of thought and commented, “I’ve been talking about it for two years.”

Woohoo…some of us have been talking about it since 1840.

I haven’t read the piece yet, not wanting to be influenced by another writer before I see what I have to say. Signature chuckle…well, how do I know what that is? I haven’t written it, yet.

That only sounds like an odd thing to say; it isn’t. That is how our minds work, you know: we dump information in the hopper, our brains process the data, and then we have to get the results out either through writing or speaking. “Thinking” is the act of imposing order on facts, of deducing connections, of correlating interlocking facets, of discerning order and patterns. Thinking is similar to using a washing machine: first you put in water, detergent, and dirty clothes. Close the lid and turn the machine on. Go away for a while. Sure enough, in general when you return the device has cleaned your clothing, but it isn’t anywhere near ready to wear. You have to get it out of the cavity and process items further by drying and then folding and putting away. Only then do you have fresh, clean jeans to wear.

What I think about secession basically is that it is a consummation devoutly to be wished, but a dangerous pursuit to advocate publicly. Janet Napolitano and the alphabet soup guys do not take kindly to the notion of freedom in any way, and for the precise reason that Abraham Lincoln did not. When asked why he didn’t just let the South go, Lincoln exploded in a rage, “Let the South go? LET THE SOUTH GO? How, then, should I fill my coffers?”

Documented historical fact. Look it up for yourselves. Winners write history and the North/Leftists have had nearly 160 years to spin their propaganda, but the fact is that the South was the wealthy portion of the country back then. Cotton was, indeed, king, the Feds had gotten themselves into monetary trouble, and bankruptcy was imminent! The back room Congressional brawls were over whether to declare the USA closed at the Mississippi and raise taxes, or to hit tariffs even harder to benefit their factories and shipping businesses, improving their bottom lines and increasing tax revenues. Greed and tariffs won. Hit the South for the enrichment of the North. Hit those who produced cane, corn, and cotton for the benefit of those who consumed and controlled shipping and rail transport and to increase federal control.

We are still disagreeing over the same issues, although the team names have changed. The War for Southern Independence (aka “The War of Northern Aggression” on our side and “The War of the Rebellion” on the other) was about financial matters and the proper role of government. The Southern states had been sold a bill of goods that they were going to get something similar to the original Articles of Confederation before the Constitution and still expected that. Th’ Yankees, for simple terminology, have mocked “States’ Rights” deliberately and consistently as a giant joke since who flung th’ chunk, but it isn’t and they know it quite well. It is a grave issue of utmost importance to those of us who wish to be responsible for our own behavior and neither beholden to any government anywhere nor raped for the benefit of those who outvote us.

The war was and is about freedom and money, what else? Slavery was a distraction, an attempt to pretty up the naked aggression of the North, long after the war was started by firing on Ft. Sumter, and Lincoln never freed a single slave. His famous proclamation applied only to slaves in territory he did not control; it certainly did not free slaves in the North. Yes, the Northerners had slaves, too, and Yankee ship captains were the ones who plied the slave trade. Not one Southern ship was ever a blackbirder.

Lincoln was looking for spin and a highly-emotional issue to cloak his behavior. He was a despicable man, the original Illinois super politician.

The South was in a manpower bind, with every free man already working, and was phasing out slavery as rapidly as possible, should this issue still disturb you. Slave labor is the most expensive, least effective solution to a problem, but until machinery was invented to pick cotton and process cane, the South had no other choice save not remaining in business. Slaves have to be fed, housed, clothed, purchased, and provided with medical care, and then someone has to stand around constantly to get any sort of work at all out of them. Slavery is wildly uneconomical, and sharecropping isn’t much better in terms of Return On Investment. Southerners came from different portions of the British Empire; the North was settled by small shopkeepers and religious zealots, while the richer land and more hospitable climate of the South drew those who live on and in harmony with the land, particularly those from Scotland, Ireland, and Wales.

If you’re still dubious, here are some facts: 70% of all Southerners never owned a single slave. Slaves were very expensive; a prime field hand cost $2,000, making him at least a Maseratti. A trained ladies’ maid or butler was even more. Sure, you could abuse a slave because you owned him, but how many people would? Do you key your car and take a baseball bat to the windshield just because you can (so long as you do not file an insurance claim?) Normal people don’t. Free blacks who owned slaves were more likely to do so, historically. Yankee overseers weren’t always nice, either, abusing the workers occasionally in an attempt to exceed production quotos. Even so, Uncle Tom’s Cabin [1] was sheer, sentimental, sensationalist hogwash.

27% of those in the South never owned more than two slaves. Slaves were a luxury in a land where it was all but impossible to hire a maid or a farm hand.

Only 3% ever owned three or more slaves, and no, neither Gone with the Wind [2] nor Mandingo were at all true to life. Yes, there were a very few stereotypical antebellum mansions, just as there are a very few of those who own ski lodges in Vail and summer places on Martha’s Vineyard, and buy ambassadorships and $540 Lanvin tennis shoes.

The BIG question is…why did the Southerners resist so fiercely? Would you go fight and die for Nancy Pelosi’s power when there is nothing in it for you? Would you fight to maintain Al Gore’s lifestyle? Would you go into battle to ensure that Michelle Obama can have ten thousand dollar purses? What stupid questions. Of course not.

The South fought for what it believed, which was that we were free and independent states entitled, in writing, to withdraw from the “union” whenever we wished, and to govern ourselves as we see fit. That we saw no reason to be impoverished for the benefit of shipbuilders, bankers, and politicians. That all we wanted was to be left in peace instead of being robbed and attacked. That Yankees are crazy and our totally different lifestyle is vastly superior…and we haven’t changed our minds.

Once again, the issue was and is redistribution of wealth and unbridled governmental control. I wrote recently about the enormous tariff Obama slapped on tire imports. 5,000 tire workers lost their jobs when several manufacturers of low-end tires could not compete with China, which holds about 15% of the market. Well, Statists can’t have that! 5,000 voters and union favor are clearly more important than affordable tires for most of us. The tariff was raised from 4.7% to nearly 40%, and the cheapest tire (not counting one of those ridiculous donuts) in WalMart went immediately from $49 to $125. Did this reopen the tire plants or create 5,000 jobs to replace those that could not compete in a faintly free market? No, of course not. It did not, and will not, create a single job. It did become another enormous tax on the American driving public. “Oddly” enough, only enormous tires for 18-wheelers are exempt, leading one to suppose that Jimmy Hoffa, Jr., still has a bit of influence.

A tariff IS a tax, a way of transferring wealth. It targets the many for the wealth of a few. It is monopolistic in nature. By hobbling Chinese imports, American manufacturers are not obliged to practice competitive business policies. Their market is protected at the expense of the customer. Mind, I haven’t really any problem with monopolies, which are self-correcting in a free market. Goodyear (or whoever) couldn’t compete at the low end, and China snagged 15% of the market. If US manufacturers want the low-end market back, they need to produce better tires at the same prices or cheaper similar tires than China can.

My preliminary thoughts on secession, then, are that we should understand what we want and how we can get it. Do many really care whether or not Hawaii, for example, becomes a free nation again? Sure, some few Romantics do, but for all practical purposes Hawaii has belonged to Japanese Democrats most of my life. The Hawaiians of the blood royal have a very good point: the US wrested the throne from Queen Liliuokalani. Beats me why they want it back, but it sounds fair to me.

What we had better care about is whether or not the massive Federal government continues to grow unchecked and ever more rapacious and dictatorial. It makes me very nervous when new laws make it impossible for us to leave the country without proper documentation! Shades of the Berlin Wall. Canada and Mexico make no such demands; Washington D.C. does. Do you deal well with something called a “trusted traveler” document? I don’t. How about “no fly” lists that forbid you to get on an aircraft going anyplace? Not healthy, people. Not all Gulags are in northern Russia. A gulag is a state of mind and overwhelming force, not a matter of location.

RFID-chipping animals, machinery, clothing, and humans is to increase government surveillance, identification, and control. One problem in Iraq and Afghanistan, as it was in Viet Nam, is that the “insurgents” blend into the rest of the population. Be very wary of the national “driver’s license” which functions as an identifying document and must be carried on your person. Eye askance the “traffic cameras” which are springing up, for they are meant to track vehicles, read those drivers’ licenses, and allow your every move to be monitored.

Big Brother watches us more every day, controls more of our lives, and is backing us into corners where we can neither flee nor supply our own needs through our own efforts. The Food “Safety” Bill will make it illegal to use any save genetically-modified seeds from Monsanto (dangerous and do not propagate from what you grow), allow the government to know where every head of cattle and chicken is, and make it possible to locate every bite of food so that it can be confiscated at federal whim. It turns possessing raw milk out of your goat and the chicken you killed for dinner into crimes.

Taxing us at rates over fifty percent is unacceptable, but controlling the food supply is intolerable. Gun confiscation became far closer by a proposed “simple” tax of $50/year on each gun, something that need not even be voted on by Congress, since it is presented as “an IRS issue.” In order to take our guns, first they have to know where they are. As the founding father said, “Fear the government that fears your guns.”

Fear the government that has changed from the most basic of “thou shalt nots” to incessant meddling with every aspect of our lives, and holds that we are cows to be stripped for personal gain and to buy votes. King John is back on the throne, and in this version he does not have a brother named Richard, off fighting in the Holy Land. Robin Hood is a crony of the Sheriff of Nottingham. A successful secessionist movement that established a smaller truly independent nation with time to undo the harm of the past would be a start…but would Washington let the people go? I don’t think so.

Regards,
Linda Brady Traynham

November 17, 2009


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Article printed from Whiskey and Gunpowder: http://whiskeyandgunpowder.com

URL to article: http://whiskeyandgunpowder.com/what-can-we-learn-from-1860/

The Day the Dollar Died

The Day the Dollar Died

http://johngaltfla.com/blog3/2009/11/18/the-day-the-dollar-died/

02:35 by Administrator. Filed under: Whatever
by John Galt

November 18, 2009

The following story in italics is a potential fictional time line for the day the dollar died. I hope not to instill fear or loathing but to give everyone some perspective on a POSSIBLE outcome which does not really take much of a reach to come to any conclusion. Despite popular belief and promises from those who wish to rob you of your savings and investments, the collapse of the dollar might just be an event measured in hours, not days as their control is not what it seems…..

Mike was less than an hour from home in Minnesota after dropping his load off in Fargo but knew he needed to top his tank off this Sunday evening to insure his rig would make it home. He pulled into the Petro Truck Stop just outside of Fargo and hopped out of the cab into the bitter twenty below temperatures which he could not believe had already hit at ten o’clock at night. He slid his fuel card into the pump waiting for the next prompt when the “SEE ATTENDANT” message flashed in the screen. He blustered, figured it was another card problem and whipped out his Master Card and slid it in after the pump reset and again the “SEE ATTENDANT” message flashed up. “What the hell is going on?” he thought to himself as he wandered into the long line of drivers boisterously yelling at managers and clerks alike.

Tom finished up his shift on the docks at the Nestle warehouse in Hampton, Georgia at exactly 11 o’clock at night and decided that because of the scuttlebutt he had been reading on the message boards, it may not be a bad idea to pick up a few cans of food and some toilet paper at the local WalMart Super center. Even though it was a Sunday night, they were always stocked and it was just five minutes out of the way to his home. As he walked inside the store, his mouth dropped. It looked like the day after Thanksgiving sale with every register open and ten plus people deep at 11:30 p.m. “Oh my God!” he gasped as he walked in grabbing the last shopping cart with the wheel that was half locked up. As he walked as fast as he could to the aisle with the paper goods, he looked at all the shelves then noticed the clerk who looked stunned himself. “How in the SAM HELL does WalMart sell out of Toilet Paper son?” he screamed at the eighteen year old kid. “Sir, I don’t know what is going on. Is the world ending? I’m a little freaked out!” the clerk stammered. Tom realized that he was not to blame and as he calmed down said to the kid “Son, I don’t know what is going on either. It must be an ice storm on the way. Are you folks getting another truck soon?” The clerk said in a very low voice “Sir, I think there are two coming at 2 a.m. I would wait here if I were you.” With that information Tom slinked outside to his car and called his wife at home just before midnight to tell her he would be staying to wait on the WalMart trucks.

1730 ET…February 21, 2010


It was a typical Sunday night in my household, a tremendous dinner, nice weather in Florida and of course a chance to chat with my friends online about the events of the world. The big news was that on Friday, February 19, 2010 the US Dollar Index closed at 69.07 far below any level in history and of course shattering all known technical support. As I grabbed a glass of Port and settled in front of my computer at 5 p.m. Eastern to watch the Asian fireworks and watch Bloomberg and CNBC-Asia on my computer, I noticed the Middle Eastern markets closed in horrid shape. The Israeli market closed three hours after the open and down 22% for the session. The Saudi markets closed after one hour and down 41%. Other regional markets did not open or were shut down due to national emergency declarations. As I tuned in expecting the usual repeat on Bloomberg, it was live with a somewhat excited news babe reading information from a blog reporting “rumors” that the CEO’s of Citigroup and Bank of America were in meetings since 11 a.m. with the New York Fed. At that point, it was time to put the port up and break out the hard stuff.

Gold had closed at a record high again, up some $37 to finish Friday’s session up at $1289 and change so I figured it would be jumping again with all of this worldly instability on display. I searched the boards and feeds like mad, looking for anything on an Iranian attack or outbreak of war elsewhere in the world but nothing was found at all. As 6 p.m. Eastern flipped up on my watch, CNBC interrupted their programming with a live update from New York instead of Australia or Tokyo about the meeting at the NY Fed. Bloomberg also broke from their Asian coverage with a brief story but no details as to why there was a meeting today or who else was there. As the New Zealand markets opened, the prices went nuts but shockingly to the upside. Their markets shot up 11% on the open to break over the 3900 price level but that was not the story. As the futures opened in Chicago for the evening session, no matter where you were in the world that day or night, you printed that screen at 6:04 p.m. Eastern time as the prints were staggering:

Gold UP $212.15 to $1501.15


Silver UP $39.13 to $81.06

US DOLLAR INDEX DOWN 9.5869 or just over 14% to 59.4830

US S&P FUTURES DOWN 49.13

US DOW FUTURES DOWN 472

NASDAQ FUTURES DOWN 135

Holy Smokes! This was an absurd way to start the night and my phone started ringing along with text messages and emails out my wazoo. The sense of panic was evident on Bernie Lo’s face as he came on to the air discussing what was happening in the futures market and fortunately he announced that Jim Rogers would be joining him after the next break. As the commercial started at 6:09 p.m. Eastern the scroll at the bottom of the screen was bright red with the headline:

ALL U.S. EQUITY FUTURES ARE LOCK LIMIT DOWN…..TRADING SUSPENDED UNTIL 0900 ET MONDAY FEB 22….US DOLLAR BEING SOLD ACROSS THE BOARD

By 6:15 the Euro was trading at $1.92, the Kiwi (New Zealand Dollar) at $1.26, the Aussie Dollar well beyond par at $1.39 and the Canadian Loonie rocketing past par to $1.33. The U.S. Dollar was in a full fledged collapse and the world was putting money anywhere they could to escape the carnage. As the New Zealand equity markets struggled to handle the order flow an announcement emerged at 6:27 p.m. Eastern time that they would no longer accept U.S. dollars within their nation for the next 72 hours until the United States Federal Reserve Bank introduced stability measures. That instantly turned a huge move to the upside to down 17% in less than three minutes and soon thereafter, trading was suspended by 7 p.m. Eastern time. Instead of waiting to see what was next, I left at 6:51 p.m. to run down the street and take $500 from the local grocery store ATM, returning just in time for the top of the hour news.


1900 ET

The Australian markets attempted to open but due to order imbalances they were delayed twenty-seven minutes. It was a buying frenzy in Australia also as the Aussie Dollar was skyrocketing higher and gold continued to gain, now up $273.20 per ounce in less than two hours of trading. The Chicago board was going to make a statement at 8 p.m. ET and the world was holding its collective breath because something bad was happening again in the United States and everyone wanted to buy into foreign markets to escape the American disaster on the horizon. After a brief opening, the Australian government followed suit with the New Zealand announcement and suspended acceptance of the U.S. Dollar for commerce until further notice. The Japanese were very quiet in the mean time as they announced at 7 p.m. they would keep their markets closed but the huge move in the Yen caused massive concerns as noted by the central bank. The yen appreciated from a close of 79.8213 on Friday the 19th to an opening of 48.7326 in less than an hour of trading. Nobody wanted dollars and even fewer people it was discovered wanted the British Pound. The Pound for the first time in its history was worth less than 100 yen and it was well on its way to joining the US Dollar in a death spiral.

2000 ET

The internet is crawling. Message boards were lit up with record numbers of participants. Rumors swirled about declarations of martial law, bank holidays, secret wars and other crazy things. Yet my phone messages, conversations, texts and emails told me there was something very very wrong. Two of my friends called me to tell me the consequences of the failed 30 year bond auction last Thursday came home to roost over the weekend. Citi and BoA were rumored to have a huge CDS obligation due to the interest rates being blown outside of the norm and the 6.05% yield from the auction cost the banks an estimated $400 billion each if they were forced to settle open swap contracts and derivative issues by Monday or the end of the month. The swaps and derivatives which were to prevent the collapse may actually have finally started it but nobody could verify anything that was happening as the NY Fed looked like a war zone with hundreds of cameras around the building and reporters speculating endlessly on every cable channel.

2100 ET

I did not know who to believe but when Bloomberg played the excerpt from Jim Rogers’ interview just after the top of the hour where he said “this is what a currency collapse looks like and if you were not prepared, you were wiped out” really resonated with everyone on the Bloomberg set and throughout the news worldwide. The Chicago Futures were closed by order of the CFTC and SEC and that was the big announcement but it was assumed anyways because there was no way the COMEX or anyone else could possibly have kept up with the demand for precious metals as the last print had gold over $1579 per ounce and worse, the base metals closing at obscene prices like $6.79 per lb. for copper! The Shanghai markets were ordered open for domestic participants only and no overseas selling was allowed nor trading in US Dollars thus allowing the communists to manage their banking situation without outside influence. Unfortunately a rumor was confirmed on FNC later in the hour that Chinese troops were deployed to all U.S. and British bank branches inside their nation. That only permeated the panic already felt on the internet and in the air. The news at the top of the hour was even more shocking.

2200 ET

CNN led the hour off with coverage of the “FINANCIAL CRISIS OF 2010″ with breaking news about two hedge fund managers committing suicide in their offices in New York. That did not help the confidence level nor did the statement from Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner at 10:09 p.m. Eastern that the “government was in full control of the situation and that the panic world wide was unwarranted.” When he finished the statement assuring that the financial markets would probably open on time in the morning, the snicker from CNBC’s team of Gasparino and Griffith spoke volumes about what was really occurring.

2300 ET

Somehow a picture of Goldman Sachs CEO Blankfein and JP Morgan’s CEO Jamie Dimon entering the New York Federal Reserve building was leaked out and broadcast on cable news and financial news outlets causing more discussions and a genuine sense of panic to grip everyone. Reports about credit cards not working for the last two hours nationwide were swamping the newsrooms but no comments from VISA, Master Charge or anyone else was forthcoming.

0000 ET February 22, 2010

It was officially a panic. Reports on local news stations about grocery store shelves being cleaned out and ATM machines running out of money hours ago and not being refilled were broadcast nationwide. Even my local station had a story about accessing the reporter’s bank account online and all they got was a very scary message as they attempted to reach his bank’s web page:

404-NOT FOUND

0100 ET

WWOR and WCBS started reporting that gas stations in the New York City and northern New Jersey areas were running out of gas even though credit cards did not work. The cable news stations and financial news networks just recycled earlier news with updates at the top of the hour. The world markets were closed and everyone was holding their breath to see what happened the next morning.

0200 ET

As I struggled to stay awake, NY Federal Reserve President Denis Hughes came to the microphones with Dimon, Blankfein and shockingly Ben Bernanke. Hughes immediately deferred to Bernanke who said that the President would address the nation at 7 a.m. Eastern Time and that he felt the crisis was averted for the moment and that everyone should have faith in the United State’s policy of a strong currency and banking system. After that statement was concluded, Bloomberg switched to a banking analyst from Singapore who said that the U.S. was now a hulking smoking black hole in the ground and the only thing it was good for was to return those worthless dollars back to “THAT” nation so “THEY” could burn them to stay warm this winter.


0300 ET

Someone on the message board posted a story from WTOP that military police were seen setting up roadblocks throughout Washington, D.C. There was no video or other confirmation within that hour. I had to make double strength coffee at that point in time but instead set my alarm for 0500 to try to grab a nap. I was not about to miss what was going to be a day to remember in American history.

0509 ET

So sue me! I hit my snooze button then realized I fell asleep with the computer and television on and the news was flying. In big bold red at the top of CNBC’s screen was the announcement COUNTDOWN TO SPEECH and a counter moving towards 0700 Eastern. As I flipped the channels half awake, I noticed a BREAKING NEWS announcement on CNN and there was a feed from WSB in Atlanta, GA with their helicopter video of the Georgia State Patrol closing off all streets within three blocks of the Federal Reserve Bank in Atlanta and also around the Federal Home Loan Bank. That sent a chill down my spine as I flipped back on to the computer to see over two hundred unread emails and message upon message about shortages, internet outages, credit card problems and worst of all, gas stations running out of fuel. The other shocker was the suspension of international flights in many U.S. cities as the suppliers put every airline on C.O.D. effective immediately at 2:30 a.m. Eastern Time and that suspended a ton of flights inside the United States and worldwide. The cascading effects were stunning, even to those of us who were warning about it.

0530 ET

Several European markets attempted to open in coordination with Middle Eastern markets but the declines were so severe that within ten minutes of trading the authorities shut them all down within a half hour:

Russia -35%

Saudi Arabia -43%

Israel -22%

Switzerland -17%

Germany’s DAX -41%

CAC 40 – 29%

FTSE 100 – 32%

The Euro was up another 10% against the dollar and the Swiss Franc was now worth over $1.40 U.S. As the discussions about the problems with the U.S. dollar accelerated, banks were being shut down in Europe in nation after nation to prevent runs. Sadly for the Brits, the Sterling was now trading so poorly in Europe that it was worth just 1/3 of a Euro at some trading desks. By the top of the hour, video of riots in front of banks in Frankfurt and Glasgow were broadcast nationwide. At 5:55 a.m. Eastern the news took a dark turn with this BREAKING NEWS headline:

OBAMA AND BERNANKE TO SPEAK TO THE NATION AT 6 A.M. EST

0600 ET

The speech was low key, solemn and to the point. Obama announced a one week bank holiday. All credit card transactions and all collection actions of any sort were hereby suspended for seven days. All financial markets were closed until further notice. All mortgage and bill payment due dates were suspended for thirty days and no past due notices nor penalties were to be allowed by Federal Law. All schools were closed for seventy-two hours be they public or private. The city of Washington, D.C. was hereby declared to be under a state of martial law and all citizens were ordered to observe a curfew from 8 p.m. to 8 a.m. daily. Just as that sunk in, Ben Bernanke stepped up to the microphone to announce that President Obama, Treasury Secretary Geithner and all of the Federal Reserve Presidents along with himself were going to depart for Geneva for an emergency meeting of the G-20, IMF, World Bank and United Nations Financial Stability Working Group. Bernanke also announced that Citigroup, N.A. and Bank of America were hereby nationalized and placed under control of the United States Treasury under the auspices of the FDIC and that Sheila Barr would have an announcement at 8 a.m. Eastern. As he finished the announcement, an obviously exhausted Federal Reserve Chairman concluded by assuring the citizens of the nation that a stable currency was their only goal from this meeting of world financial leaders. I noted he did not say what currency though he was referring to.


0800 ET

By now, CNBC, Fox Business and Bloomberg were knee deep in wall to wall coverage but so were the broadcast and cable networks. America was on the brink was the preaching and screaming and the “bulls” were being gored by the permabears every time they uttered any statements about “how we’ve been through worse” etc., etc.

The announcement of the seizure by the FDIC of two of the largest banks in the world was pretty standard and short. The follow up statement by Ms. Barr though is what caused every newsroom to take pause when she stated that “further consolidations will be announced in the next seventy-two hours.”

The Bubblemedia was stunned and even shocked when Canada announced that they would attempt to open their financial markets for two hours of trading and that their banks would be open for normal domestic customers and business from 10 a.m. until noon Eastern time. Everyone on television looked at each other and just asked “How?”

0900 ET

I had forgotten to call in sick to work but then again the phone call from the company owner was pretty much a “well now what” as we laughed in a gallows humor discussion. He understood why I was home and he had already told the employees that he was closing at noon and would reopen when we could actually collect real money on what we sold and leased out. I told him I would call him at home later or meet him with a bottle on the golf course in the morning, weather permitting.

The chilling video of the Federal Reserve heads, Geithner and Obama boarding Air Force One to leave for Geneva from Washington, D.C. really had an impact on me.

1000 ET

The Canadian markets opened up 10% in ten minutes then rolled over down 31% by 10:30. The scary part was that the Canadian dollar kept on rising even though commodity trading was suspended and everyone was wondering just what gold would be priced at if the markets were allowed to trade.

As the day wore on, it was a blur of shocking story after shocking story. The President and his entourage arrived in Switzerland along with other world leaders but little was discussed or disclosed. The reports of banks being fire bombed by nuts throughout parts of the U.S. made the international news and caused all of us to feel somewhat uncomfortable as to what was next. The 8 p.m. interruption of normal prime time programming with a FEMA NEWS ALERT which lasted ten minutes and was repeated at the top of every hour with little if any information caused even more panic in the masses. Today I watched our dollar die in a matter of hours even though I knew how it was killed months if not years ago. I just wondered how bad the announcement out of Geneva was going to be as our bankers and politicians sold our souls out to save their rear ends.

I also wondered if I would ever sleep again.

Thoughts on Security

Ecclesiastes 3:1 To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven.

The ancient Hebrew king Solomon was a wise man. After years of observation, he wrote for future generations three books Proverbs, Song of Solomon, and Ecclesiastes. These books contain the vital lessons he learned from his generation. Remarkably, his knowledge is still relevant today. In his time he saw that there was a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted; A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; A time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away; A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace. The same is true in our day. We must perceive the time and respond to it.

Our life’s trip through time is beyond the control of anyone. We are captive to the events that occur between our birth and death. For some, the circumstances of their day has been peaceful, uneventful, and prosperous, others live lives of oppression, struggle, poverty, and injustice. The events of your life makes no difference to time, time just continues to unfold. It is observable, day after day, week after week, month after month, year after year as time marches on.

Of course, we cannot stop its progression, or predict its course. Its events are often mundane and uneventful and at other times shocking. Yet, however time turns it is only our response to those events that matter.

Remember September 11, 2001, the day started like a thousand before, but within minutes the morning abruptly changed the course of our lives. The direction of then future events was permanently altered. As a nation, we were not prepared for the brutal terrorism that was witnessed that day. Though we were unprepared, we quickly responded to the threat and met force with force. We brought the battle to the terrorist.

As long as we have stayed alert and prepared, we have been safe. Nevertheless, when politics inserted itself into national security we once again dropped our guard and allowed political correctness to dictate our response to threats. Therefore, we wavered; we failed to respond to perceived threats, and 13 brave and decent soldiers died needless deaths. The recent Fort Hood terrorist attack indicates that our leaders again prefer to put Americans in harms way and sacrifice lives for the politically correct fantasy that Islam is a religion of peace. How long will the America voters waver between two opinions and allow idiots to govern?

As for you and I we see this most recent fanatical belief that virgins and honey await those who will kill the infidel as reason to make preparations. What can we do? After the massacre of 24 people at Luby’s Restaurant in Killeen TX, the Texas legislature recognized that the slaughter on that day could have been prevented if one diner with a handgun had been prepared to defend himself.

Therefore, after much debate in 1995 the 74^th legislature passed a Concealed Handgun law and the new Governor George W. Bush signed the concealed carry bill. Throughout the long struggle to get a concealed handgun law passed for Texas there were a number of people who risked their political lives to accomplish what many thought might be an impossible task. Two stand out.

One is Texas Senator Jerry Patterson, who sponsored and shepherded a number of the bills, including the successful 1995 effort and the equally important 1997 revision. The other is Suzanna Gratia, who rose from the tragedy in Killeen to provide essential testimony at a critical time. As Suzanna Gratia-Hupp she become a Representative in the Texas Legislature and served several terms, always speaking up for gun owners.

In a society where a lone gunman, a murderer or rapist, a deceived jihadist, or a sneak thief can rob you of your life or your family’s life, it only makes sense to purchase a concealable handgun and get a license to carry it. Join a gun club. Practice shooting. Teach your children to respect firearms. Learn how to load, clean, and oil your weapons. Stay alert to your surroundings. Learn to avoid imminent dangers when at all possible. In the future, preppers and their families will need to be prepared for many threats. In Texas, this is a legal way to respond to those threats. You do not have to be a sitting duck for the demonic beliefs and behavior of foolish men. Stand up and be prepared or passively sit back and allow the events of time to crush you. Your family’s future ultimately depends upon you.

CK in Southeast Texas

New Member - Monte in Central Texas

I'd like everyone to give to give a big Texas welcome to Monte in Central Texas. He is the newest member of the Texas Preppers Network and looks forward to sharing ideas and information with everyone.

Here is a brief note from Monte that I rec'd in an e-mail:

"RW,

Well folks can contact me at my email, monte_holcomb@yahoo.com. I'm in the air a lot and don't check it real often, but I'll respond. Folks can just call me Monte, and I'm from Central Texas.

Looking forward to learning from you all!

Thanks,

Monte"

Welcome to the TPN Monte!

Be aware. Be informed. Be prepared.

Riverwalker

Heart of a Patriot

I love Texas. There is something extraordinary about our state. It may be our geography, our historic struggles for independence, our ancient heroes, our way of thinking, these all speak to a different creed of people. This creed is not defined by our race, religion, politics, or education. This creed is illustrated in our passions, our faith, our vision of the future, our interaction with our families and our neighbors. The collective mindset of Texans has historically been displayed at Goliad, San Jacinto, and Washington on the Brazos. More recently it has been displayed at our world class hospitals, our leadership in the nations manned space flights, our energy producing abilities, our willingness to tackle difficulties on our own, without the permission of or with subsidies from the federal government. Immigrants to our state are often surprised at the difference.

Our love of freedom and liberty has caused many to give their lives, fortunes, and sacred honor for the good of this nation and our state. We have a history of taking what resources we have and preparing for the worst, and prevailing against what seems to be insurmountable odds. From the Alamo to the great Galveston hurricane, from the Texas City Van Camp explosion to the Challenger disaster we have examples of Texans prepping and responding to disasters.

Our day is no different, many Texans today look at the global and federal horizon see stormy weather ahead and are making preparations. Our world is filled with conflict and perplexing questions. The manipulation of our economy has created an environment that breeds uncertainty and fear. Politics are disgusting, shallow, and impotent. Right and wrong have been forgotten. Good is called evil and evil is called good. Seemingly our nation is permanently divided. We have no assurance that the leaders of our nation, businesses, unions, educational institutions, churches, will do what is right. Selfishness, greed, immorality, hatred, and have created a society that is unsustainable. As Abraham Lincoln said, "A house divided against itself cannot stand." Often the public is ignored by the indifference and hubris of our leaders who believe they know better than the unwashed masses. We have failed to be a “government of the people, by the people, and for the people.”

I know I am not alone! You see it too, don't you? Trouble is on the horizon and our families, churches, businesses, institutions, and constitutional government are in the crosshairs. It seems these sorts of times try the souls of every generation. This is our challenge. How we respond will define who and what we are, and determine the future of our children and grandchildren. Our preparation must be carefully planned but not limited to the physical needs of our bodies. Our preps must also include a understanding of what will arise from the ashes of national collapse. We must begin the strengthening and stabilization of our hearts and souls by educating ourselves to what our preparations will accomplish. I do not want to simply survive so that I or my family will be slaves of an all powerful state. I was born free, I will live free, or I will die free.

So from the spirit of historic Texans we should take a lesson in preparation. Probably the first great lesson of preparation in Texas was taken by the brave men and women who would not abandon the Alamo. They faced great opposition, ridicule, isolation, deprivation, and lack of supplies, inadequate medical care, and the likelihood of death. However bleak their situation was, there was a cause. Liberty and freedom were more important than their safety.

So at a Catholic mission in the wilderness of central Texas they made their preparations. Lines of communication were established, food and water were stockpiled, bandages and medicines were created, guns, cannons, and knives were ensured to be in working condition, the battle field and walls were prepared, the gates were strengthened, and the shaken hearts of all were stabilized. Their preparations and fortifications would give settlers in the east time to escape Santa Anna's army. The longer they could occupy that stone and adobe church the more time the forces of the Republic of Texas could regroup to fight another day.

Today like the patriots of the Alamo we are making preparations. I truly hope that our preparations do not lead to conflict. However those preparations will change you. They will lead you to live a different life than your care free, materialistic neighbors. In our response to the approaching storm of our generation we consider every means of survival.

• Food (gardens, canning, storage)
• Water (an independent source)
• Security (that protects you and your family)
• Currency that will maintain value
• A community of like minded preppers
• Medical needs
• Energy and fuels (off grid, solar, wind, and thermal)

The greatest preparation in the coming crisis is not physical, although that preparation is important. The greatest preparation occurs in your mind, purposes, and goals. The heart of the prepper should be the same as the heart of the patriots of the Alamo. It’s that attitude that made Texans great in the past and will make Texans extraordinary in the future.

In the months to come, I will offer some simple suggestions that may aid you in your preparations.

CK in Southeast Texas

Veterans Day

Thank you to all veterans.

We at TPN hope all of you have a blessed day.

Pickdog
III

New Member - CK in Southeast Texas

I’d like everyone to give a big Texas welcome to CK from the Southeast Texas area as a new member of the Texas Preppers Network. CK has decided to become a member of TPN. He will also be contributing ideas about beginning preps and other great ideas as well.

You can contact CK in Southeast Texas at: clklock@gmail.com

His e-mail is located in the side bar for future reference.

CK looks forward to sharing ideas and information with everyone.

Welcome to the Texas Preppers Network!

Be aware. Be informed. Be prepared.

Riverwalker

Membership in the TPN

It’s been a while since I talked about membership in The Texas Preppers Network. I talked to Mayberry the other night for quite a while and this is just one of the topics we covered. We are always looking for new persons to join the network and help others in our great state become more aware, more informed about relevant issues and better prepared to deal with adverse conditions, emergencies or a crisis.

So how do you become a member?

First, you don’t need to be a blogger. All you need to be is a Texan concerned with preparedness issues that are of interest or relevant to the unique conditions Texans face everyday.

Second, you will need a non-personal e-mail address that can be posted so that other members can contact you about information on happenings in your area of the state. Texas is a big place and much too large for any one person to stay effectively informed about any disasters or emergencies that may occur. We rely on local people to supply relevant information and insight on things that are happening in their area. A non-personal e-mail will also allow you to set up some serious spam controls. It is unfortunate that there are a lot of “e-mail farmers” that collect e-mail addresses posted on the internet, so get ready to get a little spam. Personally, I get a LOT!

Third, send your thoughts on being better prepared or information on ideas that you think may help others be better prepared. You can e-mail Mayberry or myself and we will see to it that your information is posted on TPN. If you are a blogger, you may also be given posting privileges once you are a listed member.

Fourth, your level of participation is decided by you. Serious bloggers know how time consuming it can be to maintain a site. This is being done for you and all we ask is that you submit your thoughts and ideas whenever possible. I don’t post a lot of information directly on TPN because it is meant as a place to share ideas that are specific to preparedness issues in the great Sate of Texas. My personal blog, Stealth Survival, is more of a general nature where survival and preparedness topics are concerned. You also don’t have to be a Hemingway to write something relevant. It may be a great link to a website that you know about, it could be something involving your own experience in preparedness or an update on severe weather conditions that may be affecting your area and is of interest to others in the same area. The smallest of things can have a big impact on being prepared.

Just as a computer network allows individual computers to be connected so that everyone can access needed information, so too is the purpose of the TPN. It is to allow individuals to connect with each other to have access to more and better information.

Be aware. Be informed. Be prepared.

Riverwalker

Special Note:

MH and CK in Texas: I will be contacting you shortly or you can email me directly.

RW

Fort Hood Shootings

We at Texas Prepper's Network offer our condolences and pray for the families and victims of this horrible event. And to the suspect, if guilty, may you rot in hell.

All Texas Flags are to be flown at half-mast until at least Sunday by order of Governor Perry.

Pickdog
III

Raising Horses - Haltering the Foal

First off, let me say, I DO NOT advocate leaving a halter on any foal or horse while unattended. Too many times a foal or Horse has become injured, maimed and killed simply because their halter got tangled up with something. If you can’t catch your horse or it won’t come to you, then it’s a behavior problem that needs re-schooling.

The mare and foal should be in the corral, small paddock or large stall area you have been sequestering them in since birthing. Depending on the attitude of the mare, you can leave her loose or you may have to tie her up to keep her from interfering. A foal’s attitude is derived from the mare. How a mare reacts to things will transfer to the foal as it sees that this is the proper course of action. Irregardless of how you treat the mare, remember to be extra cautious and keep an eye on the mare. She can and will hurt you if she thinks you’re hurting the foal. DO NOT SEPARATE THE MARE AND FOAL.

To begin haltering a young foal, ensure you have a proper fitting halter. I like the kind that has adjustable the nose piece as well as the adjustable side or cheek pieces and crown piece. This type of halter allows further adjustment as the foal grows. You may have to adjust the halter to its smallest configuration in the beginning. It should fit as snugly as possible without being very tight. Some small amount of play is allowable, a too-large halter will allow the foal to slip it off or become entangled in it.

During the first week, you’ve made friends with the foal and are able to handle it all over its body. The foal has come to recognize you (and people generally) as non-aggressive and friendly. This allows you to get close to the foal and if you have a “helper” available, you can trap the foal with your arms without creating a panic. Once the foal is “trapped”, either you or your helper can slip the halter over the foal’s nose and close the crown piece. At this point, just stand back and allow the foal to explore the sensations of wearing the halter. At first, the foal will be confused and maybe a little frightened. It will shake its head, trying to dislodge the halter and maybe even bound around a bit. As the foal realizes the halter isn’t hurting it and is just an inanimate “thing” on its head, the foal may become angry at the halter. You’ll see an attitude change and at this point, the foal may try to scrape the halter off with a hind foot. Carefully watch to ensure the foal doesn’t catch a foot in the halter. This can lead to calamity.

Remember, the calmer and self assured you are, the calmer the foal will be. Allow the foal to wear the halter for about 15 minutes the first time, and then remove it. Allow the foal some time with the mare (about an hour or so), it will think about the experience and realize that nothing bad happened. Then repeat the haltering lesson. For the next several days, repeat the halter lesson in as quiet and calm a manner as possible. Repetition is the key, the more times you do it and let the foal discover that it’s a harmless lesson, the calmer and more accepting the foal will be. Eventually, you will be able to just walk up to the foal and place the halter on it.

YeOldFurt