The Freedom Factory

The shackles of serfdom are being silently fastened to America. Every dollar Congress spends beyond its budget, every Federal Reserve Note printed, every tax, regulation, and government intrusion into our lives renders us less free. Ever wonder why it feels like it’s increasingly difficult to make ends meet? Remember the days when one spouse could work, the other raise the kids, and still save for a comfortable retirement? Those days are gone, but why? What’s next? The 5 Steps to Freedom: How To Cut Your Dependence On Institutions And Escape Financial Slavery, by Jeff Nabers explains what happened to our once prosperous society and how we can all take definite steps to escape what is to come. Continue Reading

This article is dedicated to the growing segment of American society that is awakening to the ideas that we are increasingly overworked and overtaxed. My goal is to determine an effective tax burden on the average middle-class American. I will leave it to the reader to judge relative severity of the burden as measured against associated “benefits” to which he is “entitled” from the system. Continue Reading

Sen. Rockefeller proposes bill that would give government sweeping powers to control, monitor, and regulate the Internet, ACLU demands public schools stop blocking gay web sites on public computers, Rep. Jane Harman calls incriminating NSA wiretap “abuse of power,” National Service legislation signed into law that will cost $6 billion over 5 years by hiring “paid volunteers,” government will need to issue $2.4 trillion in new Treasury securities in 2009 to meet budget shortfalls and bailout program requirements, and U.S. to give another $5.5 billion to automakers… Continue Reading

Inflation has long been a contentious topic in the U.S., not really abating at any point since the 1960′s. President Johnson’s “Guns & Butter” policies of the Vietnam war era sparked a good deal of money printing, inflation, and debate. Since then the Federal Reserve, Congress, and every President have gone on spending binges, rampant borrowing, and always increasing money supply. These are the tools of macro-economics, in which central decision authorities nationalize resources to socially engineer what they think will be perpetual prosperity. The results are debatable, but the consequences clear: Continue Reading

When people first graduate from college/high school, they make a humble salary and find a way to make ends meet.  Maybe they don’t save very much, but they do alright.  Along the way their salary likely doubles, triples, or quadruples.  With their salary increasing by such a huge amount, there ought to be some money left over to be put into savings.  Sadly, that is rarely the case.  Most people spend as much as they can. Continue Reading

In a recent survey about basic financial concepts, only 48% of high school seniors and 65% of college students answered 50% of the questions right.  This is a sad state of affairs as far as financial literacy goes.  I think that many parents assume their kids know what they need about money and don’t pass on the information that their kids will need in the real world. 

Here are some ideas of things you can do to help your teenagers be financially prepared for adulthood. Continue Reading

Read an article this week that spoke about the habits of people who are not worried about their finances.  It is very likely that if you follow these habits, you will also not be worried because of financial issues.

1) They know where their money goes.

People who have a budget and know where their money is going are informed people.  They don’t have to ask their spouse “why do you need more money, you just withdrew $100 from the ATM 2 days ago?”  Every dollar spent is accounted for.

It is very hard to blow a couple hundred dollars impulsively if that money is already accounted for and needed somewhere else (on the budget).  It is hard to justify buying new clothes with money that is earmarked for college debt repayment. Continue Reading

Why is knowing your net worth useful?  It is not so you can brag to your buddies and say “look at me, I am worth one-hundred fifty thousand dollars.”  Your friends probably don’t care and will probably quit being your friend if you start talking like that.  The reason its useful to know your net worth is because it will tell you where you stand as far as your retirement is concerned.  If you think you need $1M and your net worth is $20, then you know you better readjust your goals or start saving like a crazy man (get a second job, live out of your car, eat only ramen, etc). 

The calculation for net worth is:

Net Worth = Assets – Liabilities Continue Reading