The World According to Glissando

Blog

  • War

    I find it very disturbing how leaders try to distract from their problems at home by starting wars. It is sad, but so true. They try to use war to galvanize the people against a foreign country so the people forget about their own leader’s failures.

    Three current cases in point: Donald Trump of the United States; Vladimir Putin of Russia; and Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel. They are conducting their wars because it is in their own best interests. It’s that simple. Surely, as a species, we can do better, can’t we?

  • So, how much are you actually going to pay for that $500K house you’ve just “purchased” with mortgage financing?

    Are you familiar with the phrase “a sucker is born every minute?” While P.T. Barnum is credited with coining this phrase, in fact he may well not be the originator. Historians squabble over this, but that’s another story. We’re talking about houses. You know, the “castle.” When you purchase a home with a mortgage, most of us fall into the context of the “sucker” phrase. It is actually a major rip-off.

    Let’s start here. You have just purchased a $500K house with a mortgage. You’re excited. You’re happy. You’re living the dream. But is it really a dream come true? Well, to start with, over the term of the mortgage (often 25 to 30 years), this house will cost you $1.25 million because of the interest over a long period of time. This is the true cost of that house to you. It’s important to keep in mind, as well, that over the first seven or so years you’re paying for mostly the interest on the mortgage. Very little is applied to the principal. Your mortgage company is giving itself a big, up front bonus and you get zinged if you are forced to sell.

    So now your house, which is valued at $500K, is actually costing you at least two and a half times that amount. Is this a good deal for you? The financing company playbook says “yes” because it will accrue value over time. However, life being what it is, there is no guarantee. You have the hope though it will increase, and greatly. At this juncture let me point out that you really do not own your house yet. The mortgage company does, and if you fail to pay, you will lose it. It is only when you have paid out the mortgage that you become the true owner. It’s a lot like cars or anything you buy on credit.

    Now, let’s talk about all the money you will spend on the house to try and keep it looking nice and livable. You need so much stuff to maintain it on an ongoing basis. Where to begin? There’s the yard that needs to be landscaped and maintained. Add to this the cost of maintaining both the interior and exterior over a long period of time. And, of course, there are the various taxes. We’re talking about a long, long and expensive list. Do you think your appliances are going to last 25 years? How about the roof? The carpeting? The windows?  

    This house is going to cost you a fortune. That’s the reality. The initial $500K is just a drop in the bucket. Meanwhile, if you fall on hard times and can’t pay that mortgage at any point in time during the term, you will lose the house. That’s when you realize what a sweet deal the holder of your mortgage has. You have spent all this money on your “castle.” Now you are going to lose it and all the “alleged” value you were accruing. The mortgage company has no problem getting all of their money back. You have to realize that they only loaned you the original $500K. They’ve already got some of their money back from you (through deposit and payments) and depending on the scenario will be able to liquidate it quickly at lower or even much lower cost to get all of their money back or even still make a little money. You have taken almost all the risk, not the mortgage company and you pay through the nose if you default.

    Even if you don’t default and pay off the mortgage, how far ahead are you really. It is true, houses are money pits. Buying a house is presented to you as a shiny, value accruing investment you should take on. Now, I’m not saying you should not necessarily buy a house because in our dishonest and corrupt financial system a house has its place. I just think you should understand the true implications of buying one. It comes with huge expenses (did I mention house insurance, if you can get it), and it needs a lot of TLC (money), especially if you want to possibly sell it down the road. This is just the tip of our truly rigged financial system where a few make a lot of money at the expense of a lot of people. We’re indoctrinated with this system from the day we are born, so it can be hard to “see the forest for the trees.” Hey another phrase. I wonder where this one originated. Going to have to check it out. When enough people say “enough is enough” and “we’re not going to take it anymore,” that’s when change will come. Then there’s inflation, not so good for most of us, but very good for the ultra rich to make even more money. That’s a topic for another time.

  • Haiti’s Horrid and Tragic History

    I’ve been looking at the history of Haiti. I wish the world could get together and help Haiti in meaningful ways that would resolve their problems. It is horrid and tragic the way past European colonizing empires (Spain, France and England)) along with the United States have badly mistreated this country.

    Haiti became the first free independent black nation in the world in 1804 after successfully repelling the colonizing empires. In retaliation, these countries blockaded the country to totally cut off their access to trade thus destroying their economy; forever it seems. As for the United States, they supported this blockade effort because the country was afraid that this “black freedom” could reach American shores where slavery was very much a part of the American way of life. Blacks were, of course, thought of as being inferior lesser people by white people.

    Further to this, France demanded compensation for the loss of “their” colony and would only secede French sovereignty to Haiti without further attempted conflict by demanding Haiti pay a massive monetary reparation that would adversely affect the country to this very day. Additionally, to get the funds Haiti needed, they were forced to borrow from French banks. This debt would not be paid off until 1947. 

    Helping the people of Haiti would be the right thing to do, but don’t count on it happening. The world is greedier and more heartless than it has ever been and still covets acquiring land and resources regardless of methodology. Humans also continue to be tribal.   

  • Battle of Alberta

    It’s the Battle of Alberta, and not in sports vernacular. So, you want out of Canada, eh, Alberta? You know what? If that’s what you want, I will not stand in your way. You’ve had the good fortune of being a rich province because of your petroleum resources, but this is apparently not enough. You want even more. You are hard done by because you have been blessed with sources of revenue “lesser” provinces do not have.

    I could give you a lot of reasons why you should not leave Canada, but, l won’t. I am tired of the endless selfishness of the relentlessly growing number of special interests saying “me me me” and “more more more”.

    I will simply say this, the vast money printing machine you currently have is because of petroleum. As per usual human behaviour, not much thought is given to anything past the near future. The good times will always remain. Right? Truth is, everything is very temporal. The oil train may be your pipeline to wealth now, but it is going to come to an end.

    The end of the good times will come one of two ways. First, humanity continues using petroleum products and suffers the consequences of this ill-advised behaviour which is the decimation of the planet resulting in the eradication of the human species. The second way the Alberta gas tank could be financially drained is if humanity changes its ways and decides to stop using petroleum and adopts whole heartedly non-destructive forms of energy that does not destroy the planet. I am not a seer, so I don’t know which way this will go. Rest assured though, future generations will know.

    Either way, Alberta’s riches will come to an end. It is temporal. You just don’t see it now or you don’t want to see it, but this is the reality of life. When one of these two events occurs, where will all the big money for Alberta come from, assuming humanity moves away from petroleum? It’s a moot point if the other possibility happens.

    You may be rich and feel very important and hard done by right now, but this situation can and will change. History offers ample examples. What then, Alberta? What will you do?

    So, there it is Alberta. If you want to leave I will even do what any courteous quintessential Canadian would do, I will open the door for you. The choice is yours. I am tired of all the threatening and bullying be it from a province, a country, business and industry, a dishonest financial system, a special interest or a big tech billionaire. Enough is enough. I’m tired of being a peaceful pacifist. The pen is my sword.        

  • Dreams/Beggars Bazaar

    Dreams
    We all need dreams
    Dreams give us hope for tomorrow
    Dreams help forget today’s sorrows
    Dreams
    We all need dreams

    Dreams
    We live for dreams
    Dreams give reason for going on
    When we feel hope is all but gone
    Dreams
    We live for dreams

    Without dreams there’s nothing to find
    Without dreams we’d be prisoners of time
    Without dreams we’d all lose our minds
    We have to believe in dreams

    We were travelling in a distant land
    Hidden deep beneath the desert sand
    All the land was deeply tanned
    The sun had scorched the barren burnt earth

    In the ancient town's misty town square
    Many buyers and traders were there
    Shops were set up with such flair
    To display wares of priceless worth

    Gypsy bands came and went through the town
    Cloaked in mysterious gowns
    The auctioneer auctioned off the crown
    There were people from lands near and far

    From the haze a wizard appeared
    Cast away the shadows of fear
    Made the magic to me so clear
    In the midst of the Beggars Bazaar

  • Shadows of My Heart

    Social media brings us such darkness
    Some of humanity can be so heartless
    I’ve got to get away from this madness
    I’ve got to run away from the sadness

    Behind my veil
    There is a tale
    A winding trail
    Tears are hiding in the shadows
    In the shadows of my heart

    Why are we so cruel, hurt one another
    Steal light to connive, conceal from others 
    I’ve got to get away from this madness
    I’ve got to run away from the sadness

    Behind my veil
    There is a tale
    A winding trail

    Behind my veil
    There is a tale
    A winding trail
    Tears are hiding in the shadows
    In the shadows of my heart

    How do I find that spark
    Bring back light to the dark
    Bring back hope to my heart

  • Millennia Project – A Philosophical Perspective Volume One

    ‘Tis a wicked world in which we dwell, yoked by wicked men whose lust for gold and power knows no earthly bounds. Anyone can be felled like a tree in the forest who stands in their way. It is as true today as it was a millennium ago and will remain true a millennium from now. Seek peace beyond the gilded gates of this place we call home. 

    War is not driven by the sanctity of any god; it is driven by the failures, frailties and callousness of humankind.

    ‘Tis worthy to note, history is seldom written by the hand of the vanquished, rather, it is written by the hand of those who conquered the vanquished.

    What is true for one may be fiction to another, even when the truth is brightly illuminated, as it is subject to the prejudices and self-fulfillment needs of the recipient.

    The problem with religion is not religion; the problem is the manner in which it is manipulated by a flawed humankind to justify self-serving means to an end.

  • Held Hostage: The Tech Industries’ Not So Secret Weapon

    One of the mainstay strategies of tech companies to try and keep the obscene money making bubble growing is a hostage strategy. In this case, by repeatedly making tech products obsolete so people have to upgrade whether they need to or not. One only has to look at what Microsoft is doing with Windows 11. By killing Windows 10, they are trying to make everyone buy new tech gear to ensure you use not just Windows 11, but more importantly, have to use Microsoft’s Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology. The tech industry sees nothing but gold in “them thar AI hills.”

    What is important to realize is that for most people older technology works just fine for what they need. They don’t need an iPhone 17 or 27 or 37. Most just talk and text and maybe take and share photos on their phones. Same with computers. Most people simply search the internet for basic information, do emails and some word processing.

    Most people don’t need AI, especially consumer oriented AI products. How many times can you bring an old photo to “life” before it gets boring?  It’s cool at first, but really, how many times? AI consumer products for the most part are just toys. The only AI function that really helps many people relates to writing. This type of AI allows people to cheat by not having to think and write. They simply get AI to write for them. It’s a great way to write scholastic papers or business reports or that email to Aunt Jody with little effort or thought.

    So, how do you ensure people have to buy the latest expensive tech offerings? Make what they have that works perfectly fine obsolete so they have to buy the new stuff. You see, at one point in time in the past, there were genuine improvements that were useful to most people. But, it evolved to a point where the legitimate needs of most people were met. They really didn’t need the latest greatest anymore. The solution: make them have to buy the new stuff. They hold you hostage and there’s nothing to stop them from doing this.

    This keeps the money printing machine running at full speed at our expense. No longer is it driven by genuine product improvements. As tech continues to expand and control our earthly universe, you can expect this to continue. You also have to remember that as tech sophistication continues to evolve, people will actually understand less and less about the tech world and this is a dangerous thing. Tech will increasingly be weaponized for use against society by a variety of known and unknown unscrupulous entities. We will be held hostage for a long time to come unless we get over our fascination with shiny tech trinkets and demand better.  

    By the way, for better or for worse, I wrote this entire piece myself without the aid (or hindrance and limitations) of AI.

  • Why are there Wars?

    It’s an age old question. The answer though, is not complicated. Wars are conducted, first and foremost, for economic reasons. We’re taught in school that the Crusades from the 11th to 13th centuries was a religious war. That may have been the stated reason, given the inflammatory nature of religion and how it is utilized to justify wars, but the real reason is economics. There was massive amounts of money to be made through the transition from the feudal land system to a system based upon cash and credit during the Crusades.

    Nothing has changed. Today war continues to be about economics. Emotional leverages will be used to justify it to the public, but the truth is there is an outrageous amount of money to be made with wars anywhere in the world. Dwight D. Eisenhower, himself a highly respected veteran of World War II and a United States President, warned about the industrial-military complex because of the money war generates, especially for a chosen few who are also trying to manipulate the global financial system and society in general.

    The key question is, of course, will we ever stop having wars? Even though the majority of people do not want wars and seek peace, I have to admit, it does not look promising. However, if enough people collectively come to recognize for themselves the manipulations that create  wars, there may be a chance. In a very real way, it’s up to us.

  • Baby Carrot at the End of the Stick

    You don’t have to be a conspiracy theorist to understand how our financial system works. It’s in plain view. It is drilled into us from birth. Do these things and you will get your carrot at the end of the stick. The only problem is, the carrot continues to get smaller and smaller and smaller. Today, it’s almost disappeared. But because this is the economic system we were brought up in, we don’t question the system. It takes us out of our comfort zone which is deliberate. So we put up with constantly rising prices (massive inflation), debilitating interest rates, market manipulation, poor quality products and increased stress in our day to day lives. We work more and more to make less and less. Yet, we cling to our financial system because it is what we know. We are duped by our emotional fear which is no accident. We’ve been taught that to question the system is ridiculous and dangerous.

    Our financial system is purposely designed to benefit the few. It is no accident or natural evolution. But we are taught not to question it and told there are no better economic systems. No matter how gruelling our day to day lives become, we cling to this system. You have to come to the realization that there are people who have the power to manipulate situations to enhance their wealth at our expense.   

    Do these people who manipulate our financial system and our society care at all about us. No! Talk is cheap. Actions speak the truth. How can a tech company owned by a billionaire that is making enormous amounts of money still lay off 20,000 workers? This is truth. This is the reality. They don’t care about us at all, how it disrupts and even destroys our lives. We don’t matter to them.

    What to do about this? For now, just think about this subject and understand what is really happening. True understanding eliminates fear which opens your mind to possibilities, and right now in these manipulated economic times where so many are suffering, possibilities are what we need more than ever. Aren’t you tired of chasing what is now the baby carrot at the end of the stick?