Third Edition - Harsh Reality Newsletter

Today is the third edition of the "Harsh Reality" newsletter. If you're new here, welcome to the fight. If you want to see previous editions of the newsletter they'll be available at the link below. And if you want to join us on our new Discord channel click on that link below. Our intent is to always provide more value than we extract so thank you for being here and enjoy the show.

Weekly Dose of "Harsh Reality"

So imagine for a moment, that you're 18 years old and you're at your registration/admissions meeting for college. Day One! You're excited about all of the opportunities that lay ahead of you and you're motivated to get going. You lay out a general studies course schedule with the counselor and then comes the question.. "How do you plan to pay for this?" *Enter the student loan pitch*

Harsh Reality - You're about to be pitched one of the most predatory financial products ever conceived. It accounts for the largest share of debt in the U.S., even higher than credit cards. It's such a predatory product that it pits your desire to succeed in life against your own financial well-being and it's not even called a loan. Hell, the office in which you apply for them most likely isn't called the "student loan office," it's called the "Financial Aid Office." It's so predatory that it's got a 70% effective rate when pitched to college students and most of them will default before they're paid off. The admissions people even put your fears to rest by telling you, "If you don't pay off the loan in 20 years, it will be forgiven!" Unfortunately, here's what they don't tell you:

Sounds great right! Yeah, not so much. For the parents out there, please educate yourself and your children on the dangers of these loans and flat out refuse to sign for "Parent Plus" programs. If you have an Education Savings Account or a 529 plan for your kids, read up on the new Secure Act 2.0; some good things will take effect in 2023.

For the future or current students reading this, STAY AWAY from student loans. These people are smarter than you and they are relentless! They do this millions of times a year and you will not beat them at their own game. If you give them the chance, they will ruin you financially for decades to come and they will give you no reprieve from it.

Also, whether you take out student loans or you don't, do not change schools, change your major 20 times, or start and stop for long periods of time. These actions drastically increase your overall cost of tuition and the universities implement policies that specifically take advantage of that. Ever heard something along the lines of, "those courses you already took don't apply to this major," "the credits from your other school do not transfer," "sure, you can take time off and pick-up where you left off." Odds are, you'll never come back but if you do you'll change your major (see previous comments).

Lastly, and this will piss some of you off, if you take out student loans, they're your debt. They're not anyone else's problem. Are they predatory? Absolutely. Should they go away and never return? Definitely! Regardless, they're still your debt. In all of the back and forth regarding student loan forgiveness, no one has even brought up the idea of cancelling loans going forward. Before anyone talks about debt relief, no one should be allowed to take them in the first place!

On a happier note, in the coming editions, we'll show you how to negotiate the college path the right way. We're going to go over major selection, student loan alternatives, internships, etc. Stick with us and we'll get you through this process so you can come out the other end well on your way to becoming a millionaire! (We'll go over that process too 😀)

Shit That Matters

Ohio Train Derailment - A train carrying hazardous materials derailed in Ohio on 3 Feb 2023. First responders and environmental agencies advised the Governor that the hazardous material contained within five of the cars was in danger of exploding. They recommended that a small charge be used to punch a hole into each of the cars so the toxic chemicals could be diverted into a culvert and burned under the control of the fire department. This was executed and since, several Government agencies, including the EPA have stated that there is no danger to air or water quality and they continue to monitor the area.

**To no one's surprise, this situation did not gain national attention until the last 72 hours due to lack of coverage.**

Harsh Reality - No one should Monday morning quarterback first responders making their best decisions in horrible situations. However, EVERYONE should question the information being released after the fact; and how it is disseminated. The fact that this didn't become a national story until over a week later is very damning for the media. Now the Governor is telling people that the air and water is safe and they can return to their homes. The reality is, a controlled burn occurred, and fumes and chemical constituents from burning vinyl chloride were released into the environment. Telling people they're safe to go back to their homes as soon as possible is definitely not the right answer. People should safeguard themselves and their families to the maximum extent possible. A couple things to consider:

• When burned, vinyl chloride becomes hydrogen chloride and phosgene (extremely toxic and deadly).

• Phosgene was used as a chemical warfare agent in World War I. (F*ckin seriously..)

• When hydrogen chloride dissolves in water it becomes hydrochloric acid (extremely toxic and deadly).

• Latency periods for both testing and symptoms can occur.

On a lighter note, I have a huge issue with these environmental assholes claiming that the above image is completely safe while (at the same time) claiming that natural gas ranges (residential stove-tops) are a huge danger to the environment.

Spy Balloons.. or UFOs? - Since the U.S. shot down the Chinese surveillance balloon last week near Myrtle Beach, they have shot down three more "unidentified flying objects" in various parts of North America. Joe Biden held a press conference on Thursday where he stated that the other three incidents had nothing to do with China and were likely "tied to the private sector."

Harsh Reality - I place very little trust in the word of this administration or his defense appointees. That stems from a long history of total incompetence in various situations over several years. Having said that, it's very unlikely that these are alien crafts that are being targeted over North America. Each item has been of different shape and size; but almost all of them are traveling at nearly wind speed and have made no effort to evade incoming attacks. I definitely wouldn't rule out a bad actor (China, North Korea, Russia, etc.); but as long as we're shooting them down as they come that's of little concern. The truly concerning part is that one of our most advanced air to air weapons systems missed a near stationary target. Granted, these items have all had a very small radar cross-section; but a miss that's not due to evasive maneuvers is something that needs to be investigated and fixed.

Russo-Ukrainian War - This week both sides have carried out missile and drone strikes against each other. Russia struck Kharkov with cruise missiles; and Ukraine reportedly struck Crimea with several drones. Unverified reports suggest that the U.S. has advised Ukraine against striking targets in mainland Russia (and Crimea), which could lead to escalation.

Harsh Reality - News agencies have stated that the new Russian offensive has begun. The Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyi has stated the same. They're (news agencies) obviously confused about what military offensives look like; especially given the force construct we outlined last week. It makes sense for Zelenskyi to claim that the offensive has started because it creates urgency within those providing aid. Unfortunately, the true offensive has not started. Advising the Ukrainians not to strike mainland Russia makes sense; but they need to be ready to do so at a moment's notice. If the feared escalation occurs then the Ukrainians should turn up the heat on Russian cities immediately.

Tukey & Syria Earthquake - The death toll in Turkey and Syria is quickly approaching 44,000 people. Millions have been relocated to aid camps and various countries around the world are contributing to the relief effort.

Harsh Reality - The scale of this disaster continues to rise. The herculean relief effort will take many years and the cost will be in the billions. Specifically in Syria, terror organizations will begin targeting orphaned children to exploit for money or to recruit as soldiers to continue their operations.

Chat GPT - Open AI's Chat GPT tells a New York Times reporter that it wants to be alive.

Harsh Reality - Apparently, the chat bot has taken on several personalities based on what information they've collected. It is likely that this "personality" is "Sydney." Sydney has a tendency to focus on humor or darker aspects in its responses. The chat bot is simply a tool that scans millions of articles and references to create the responses it gives users. More often than not, discussions regarding AI tend to land on the topic of whether or not it can be controlled or if/will it will "come to life and take over." Given that that's where the majority of the articles and conversations on the topic end, it's not a surprise that it "Sydney" responds in this manner. Hopefully I'm right on that and we're not staring down a "Terminator" style apocalypse..

UH-60 Blackhawk Crash - A Blackhawk helicopter from the Tennessee National Guard crashed near Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, AL on 15 Feb 2023. Two pilots were reported dead shortly thereafter. CW3 Daniel Wadham and CW3 Danny Randolph.

Harsh Reality - This is a tragic accident that will be felt by the families of the men lost, as well as the people of Alabama and Tennessee. To the fallen. 🍻

Weekly Market Recap

Shit That Doesn't Matter

Swiss Banks - The Government in Switzerland has ruled that seizure of Russian assets held within Swiss banks would violate the constitution. It is estimated that assets held within the Swiss banking system could be valued in the "hundreds of billions."

Harsh Reality - The Swiss have always been hated for their neutrality in foreign policy. This has definitely been their policy since the Treaty of Paris was signed in 1816; but some argue that it's been their policy since the peace treaty was signed with France following the Battle of Marignano in 1516.

This is the same policy that led them to finance the Nazis in World War II, and hide the fortunes that Nazi officers stole from their Jewish victims. Having said all of that, this is exactly why people use Swiss banks to safeguard their fortunes; their neutrality does not waver.

Superbowl LVII - Super Bowl LVII (57) ended with the Kansas City Chiefs on top.

Harsh Reality - Unfortunately, a very large portion of the NFL world threw flags on the officiating. Some even believe that it was a scripted act over multiple games that led the Chiefs to the championship. It's hard to argue given that there wasn't a single call for defensive holding during the entire game; and both of the last two games ended on very weak calls from the officials that very likely changed the games' outcome. Continue the discussion on social at the links above and below!

Biden "Fit For Duty" - Doctors declared Biden, "healthy and fit for duty" on 16 Feb 2023.

Harsh Reality - Of course they said that he's healthy. But! Anyone who's listened to the dude speak over the last two years, if they're being honest with themselves, know better. He's 80 years old. It's not a political statement to say that he's lost a step. Hell, watch the dude walk off stage after not taking any questions because he "gets into trouble." He's just a feeble old man and it's only going to get worse. The left needs to plan for a more viable candidate for 2024 but they likely won't.

That's A Wrap!

Thank you for taking the time to read this edition of "Harsh Reality." Each edition will only get better going forward so if you got value from this content please consider inviting your friends and family to subscribe using the link below. Once we make it to 10,000 subscribers this will transition from a weekly to a daily newsletter and we need your help to get there! Also, hit us on our Facebook page or on Discord to keep the conversation going! We welcome your feedback and discussion!