Grimace

Did you invest all of your hard earned money in the stock market of empire as I suggested? If so, you would be part of the "one percent" by now. Not to worry, the Dow Industrials Index is surging toward 30,000 or so. At the present rate, it should be there before February of next year. No real fundamentals exist, you say? Not to worry. The global central banks will continue to inject infinite amounts of fiat currency, courtesy the zero interest regime, into the "system." A lot of that money is finding its way into the hands of speculators who are using "algo-trading" to artificially pump up equities prices. And, in collusion are the large corporations that are buying back their stocks (using cash-on-hand and debt) to artificially boost price-earnings ratios and artificially increase stock prices.

I should add a word of caution. A catastrophic market crash is likely sometime in the future regardless of the continued injection of infinite fiat money into the "system." Eventually the fragile foundation of fraud will collapse. Unfortunately, the next crash is likely to be devastating with no possibility of a recovery. The "one percent" are going to ride the equities wave right up to the end. Obviously, they will be able to extract all of their wealth just microseconds before the collapse. Well, there is also a contingency plan in the works ... a foolish "think tank" creation known affectionately as "limited thermonuclear warfare." I have previously discussed the issue in the old "blog." The concept is so insane that it's not worth repeating.

Well, now that I have set up Google® Voice account and installed the Hangouts "app" on the iPad® tablet computer ... Wait a second! Was I not trying to escape the Google® surveillance gauntlet? Yes, my hypocrisy has been laid bare for all to see. Really? No, not really. At the present time, I have had second thoughts about the account. Yes, surveillance is at the forefront. In addition, the service is nothing like a dedicated phone line. I could only use the service when the iPad® is connected to a free Net "hotspot." So, once I am confident that I won't require a phone for much of anything, then I will move to rely on such a non-dedicated service (mostly for voicemail). With that said, I will uninstall the Hangouts "app."

Last night, I was privy to witness the debacle of last minute Saturnalia shopping at the den of consumerism (read: shopping mall) in Kahala. People were lined up with gargoyle-like visages, "smartphones" in hand, at the cashier counters in all the stores, no doubt purchasing anything that will suffice as token gifts. The faux cheerfulness, the faux sense of "giving," all contributing to the overall air of absurdity. In a few days, the general mood will abruptly change when the deluge of useless gifts will leave its new owners in a depressing quandary over proper storage or disposal methods The emptiness of consumerism, although laid bare, would be ignored once again. That is, until the credit card statement arrives a few weeks later.

The faux cheefulness permeated the day. Everywhere I found myself, I observed the comical implementation of Saturnalia "cheer" that will carry forward until the new year commences. Then, everyone will return to "normal," with narcissistic and self-important personas bubbling up to the surface again. The gargoyle grimaces will make a comeback. Of course, only by soaking their brains in a soup of anti-depressants, the real ugliness can remain sublimated. And, full control of their lives can be relegated to their "smartphones" once again.

As for the ol' lavahead, he only cares about his morning cup of coffee and working out at the gym. Everything else is superfluous. Finding rental housing, dealing with moneygrubbing Chinks, worrying about investments, interacting with fools ... all are malignant activities which poison the mind and seed illnesses in the body. Mortality only allows us a limited number of years. Death is always "around the corner" and can occur at any time. Yet, we continue to grasp at permanence. Only death is permanent. Enslavement runs a close second place. The most important aspect of freedom is understanding mortality.

Ol' Lavahead Mini-Update®
Refilling the pre-paid plan for the cheap "smartphone" was a nightmare. The process cannot be done at the Sprint® Store with a credit card. Attempting an on-line payment with a credit card resulted in transaction errors and a lot of grimacing on my part. So, the process could not be completed. Most likely, I will have to purchase a refill card and attempt another on-line transaction. As can plainly be seen, the "inconvenience" is deliberate in order to force a conversion to a regular contract plan. The days of the cheap "smartphone" are limited. Mummification is likely. Another case of wasted money.