The World According to Glissando

Author: Glenn Hansen

  • Power

    In Canada, not yet the fifty-first American state, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau lost his wife and is about to lose his Liberal Party backing and leadership. The question I ask, and have continually asked, is this: “Is power really worth it?” Many people constantly strive to acquire more and more power and money, but in the end, you cannot take any of it with you. You may well have inflicted pain and suffering on many others, as well, as you seek to gain and maintain your power and money.

    As you sacrifice everything, including integrity and empathy; deep down, what does your heart and soul really say to you? You bury it, but, we all do have feelings, even sociopaths. One hundred years from now, who will really remember who you were? People cannot remember President’s from thirty-five years ago. No one will care who you were, possibly including your own family. And what about the rest of eternity? Is power and money really worth it?

  • Banks

    Banks

    Banks. They portray themselves as your friends. “We’re here to help.” This is what the power brokers behind the banking system and the power brokers behind the economy want you to believe. And, we believe it because that is what we are told from the day we are born. Sorry to have to break the news to you, but, this is not true. At best, banks are immoral and unethical; at worse, they are criminal.

    Banks are not our friends. They are only our friends when we have money. If you don’t, they won’t give you the time of day, let alone a dollar. What is so bad about banks and the banking system? Let’s start with everyday loans, credit cards, and mortgages. I think it is fair, if they loan you money, they should charge you interest. However, what’s immoral, unethical, and criminal is the way you pay them back.

    Over and above the interest they charge for loans, credit cards, and mortgages, they front-end load the interest charges when it comes to paying them back. Logically, if someone loaned me money with interest over a 10 month payback period, I would pay this back with the same ratio of principal to interest. For example: if I had to pay off a $100 loan at 10 percent interest for a total of $110 over 10 months, I would pay $11 a month; 10 dollars principal and $1.00 interest.  That’s not how it works.      

    When you pay them back, your first payment of $11 would break down to $1 toward principal and $10 toward interest. Initially, when you pay off a loan it’s the interest you’re paying for. Very little is put toward the principal. “So what, you say?” It is this type of re-payment practice that causes you to pay $250,000 for a house that you paid $100,000 for. The result, you have actually paid 250 percent of the value of that home. And, if you try to pay off the mortgage early, in addition to penalties and fees, the principal is much larger than it would be if you were paying the logical same ratio of principal to interest. You would owe the bank much more money than you should.

    Banks are not the friend of everyday, real people. Yes, others have already put forth this issue, but, I decided to, as well, because I have decided not to give up on trying to make the world a better, more equitable place for everyone.

    This is only the tip of a vast economic iceberg. I have no problem with people doing business fairly and honestly; and making a profit, even a good profit. I do have a problem with dishonest business practices that is foisted upon an unsuspecting public because we are brainwashed from the day we are born that this is the way economics should work. This message is enhanced by the various types of media. Remember, for the most part, media is owned by power brokers, so their independence only goes so far. It’s time for change!