gearhog

Last I heard, there were somewhere around 8-12 J models slated for production in the last budget. They had narrowed the list of potential units that were being considered to receive them in a conversion from Hs to Js. As far as I know, the unit/units have not been selected yet. For details, I recommend calling the NGB and ask for Chief Lengyel.

I'm gonna go ahead and say lunar deployments suck and the astronaut bonus is an insult.

I wish I knew the answer. I have a conservative amount of physical precious metals (about 5-10%). If nothing else, it feels good to have some physical assets that will always retain value under your own roof. Gold backed crypto-currency sounds promising, but I haven't done the homework on that yet. I've always been a passive investor and shorting seems like a lot of work, so I haven't gone that route. 30 year mortgages on investment rental properties is another idea. You can raise the rent to keep pace with inflation, but your locked in principle and low interest rate may hold value better than market investments. I've pulled the majority of my non-401K market investments out to go with this strategy. Only time will tell if that's the right move.

Have you ever met a baby that didn't?

Translation: Banks are in trouble, the economy is in trouble, and Trump wants to artificially prop up the economy long enough to get reelected. He's attempting to make it sound as if it's for exports, but it's really to save the financial system. He's concerned. If the Fed prints money to buy bad loans or other poor performing securities to rescue banks, it's called QE. If you or I print money to buy anything, it's called counterfeiting. The Fed is dumping a fuck-ton of money into the economy and with low/negative interest rates, it is forcing banks to lend it essentially free instead of parking it somewhere. Big money is currently hoarding cash/liquid assets because they currently think it's better to take a hit on inflation than loan defaults and/or big market losses coming down the pike. That could be why there is no money in the repo (repurchase agreement) market, but I'm no expert. It's akin to a bank walking into a pawn shop and saying they need $10,000 to give out in loans that they will repay tomorrow with interest, and using a brand new corvette as collateral. They pawn shop (lending bank) says, "That's a fantastic deal, but we have no money to give you." Things are in danger of coming to halt until the Fed shows up at the pawn shop and hands over a warm stack of freshly printed $100 bills just to keep all interested parties' businesses from tanking. This new money will take a minute to circulate through the financial system, and when it starts hitting the pockets of the average wage-earner, the price of everything will soar. The purchasing power of your nest egg in the bank falls dramatically. The average person will have less discretionary spending because they'll be spending earnings on the ballooning prices of milk, bread, utilities, healthcare, car payments, student loan payments, credit card payments, and mortgages. When money gets tight and cards are maxed, less consumer goods are purchased and loan payments slow. Borrowers default and it's 2007-8 again, but with multiple bubbles. Your savings and cash accounts are devalued, and your retirement/401K is crushed. Tax revenue shrinks while the Federal Government continues to spend $1 Trillion more (and growing) per year than it receives. The only question is: "How long?"

The latest round of J model conversions hasn't been released yet.

Here's a couple good vids. Forgive the "Click-baity" thumbnails, the actual content is good. This guy (George Gammon) just recently started explaining current macroeconomics via Youtube videos and I highly recommend his channel for anyone who is interested in the things that are currently happening. He's fantastic at explaining the issues to those of us who aren't expert economists. He has another vid on his channel explaining the Repo Market (above) and why this is a major event. Here's another great explanation:

Hate to beat a dead horse if no one is interested, but just some friendly advice to do a little reading up on the repo market, interest rates, inflation and what this means for any savings/investments you have. FIVE HUNDRED BILLION DOLLARS.

CHeers! Long layover in Vegas. Didn't feel like walking the strip so I was enjoying the happy hour 1/2 price special on 1 Liter drafts at the Hofbrauhaus. The Deep State hasn't called me yet. 😄

I just hit 3 year O5 TIG. The next day I did the few outprocessing checklist items that I figured would keep me out of trouble and called it good. I definitely miss the fellas, but I have never felt more free and less stressed. I was worried I’d have regrets, now I think I waited too long. (22 yrs.) I’m only a curious spectator now. Not my monkeys, not my circus anymore.

Is this a policy or a mistake? Or both?

Help me out here. I've probably been listening to way too much Ray Dalio, Peter Schiff, George Gammon and others. The end is near! Tell me why I shouldn't pull out of the market tomorrow, build a gold vault under my house, and stock up on ammo based on the following ideas trapped in my head: - $23 Trillion in debt and the Federal government under Trump continues to add $1Trillion per year when the Federal Government owns only about $4T in assets. - Growth in Banking/Finance/Services industries accounts for the growth in GDP while manufacturing continues to decline. We're consuming way more than we're producing. - Economy is 70% consumer spending and consumers are more in debt than ever. Home, Auto, Student, and Credit Cart Debt are all time highs during a time of record prosperity. - On top of that, the individual taxpayer share of government debt is approx $140,000. - Quantitative Easing is flooding the system with dollar bills that will drive massive inflation. That inflation will force lenders to raise rates. A 1% raise in interest will cost the government an additional $200 Billion per year in debt maintenance. Artificially keeping rates low during inflation is effectively stealing the savings of you and I. - The market is propped up by cheap money flooding into corporate buybacks and bad businesses whose shares are priced according to revenue, not profitability. - We're going to see some social unrest before and after the election. Trump won't win. To mitigate the anti-capitalist social unrest (already occurring elsewhere), the next socialist-leaning democratic administration won't cut benefits, they'll raise taxes, print money, and fuck everything up. Can anyone make the argument that everything is just fine?

The part where it was found that she had rented a full size vehicle in lieu of a compact vehicle was some top notch investigative work.

I just watched the Mandalorian with the kids last night. -#3/10 StarWars stories. Lauded by Home/CC "Outstanding!" No PC BS. 98% compliance w/orgnl series.

Ah, I figured it couldn't have been intended the way it looked at first glance. No prob.

Did a herc deployment last year. All the austere locations asked us for was pizza and energy drinks. if you can arrange payment, the tac airlift squadrons would be happy to order, pick up, and deliver.

I don’t understand the relevance of the quote here.

I would also like everyone held to a high standard of conduct because we want decent human beings making decisions for us. But let's face facts, that's not how high-level government operates. For many (most?) at that level, the ethics and values that you and I conduct our lives in accordance with are, for them, arbitrary boundaries and obstacles to the pursuit of wealth and power while only being useful as weapons against political opponents. I would like for a room full of people like you to investigate and hold Trump, Biden, Clinton, and all the others to the same standards. But to reach a position where you'd have the power to do that, you would have had to compromise your own principles every step of the way. Only the corrupt can investigate the corrupt.

And Epstein didn't kill himself.

Penske buying the Indy Motor Speedway and IndyCar is huge news. Tony George effectively destroyed open wheel racing in the US and now, perhaps there's great chance it can make a comeback. https://www.espn.com/racing/indycar/story/_/id/28004980/roger-penske-buys-indianapolis-motor-speedway-indycar-series

Reminded me of a recent trip with a former Soviet fighter pilot. The commander showed up one day and told everyone "Go home and don't come back." They were shocked. "What do we do?" "Whatever you want." There's zero chance of that happening here. Just an interesting story about pilots who didn't expect it to happen.

"There's no difference between us and them." AF just found a whole bunch of people willing to fly lower pay without bonuses or incentives.

Recently took an Uber ride in San Francisco with an Afghani interpreter who was given asylum status for him and his family a few years ago. Amazing conversation. I'd place his patriotism far above 90% of the people we drove past (which may not be saying much).

Wow. Brutal....

Reserve select was around $220 for me, the retired reserve is almost $1100 with higher copays. It’s insane! I’d wager almost any airline plan is more reasonable. Here’s a good tool too compare tricare plans: https://tricare.mil/Costs/HealthPlanCosts/TRR