patrick.net

Just one: monogamy. But I've got over that lie ten years ago and have been making up for loss time.

I've fallen for College, War, and Voting. I have NOT fallen for houseownership...yet.

In case the above link doesn't work:
http://www.jamesaltucher.com/2012/08/the-trillion-dollar-lies/

I fell for college and homeownership.

Regarding Iran: http://www.lewrockwell.com/blog/lewrw/archives/117290.html

Homeownership: Not yet, but it's coming. I don't think people fall for this so much as they're forced into it by the wife.

College: With scholarships and community college, this can still be done affordably. Left college with a good degree at a good school loan free.

War: I think all of us fell for it after 9/11, but that's mostly because of the "weapons of mass destruction" lies.

Voting: I refuse to vote until the two party system is abolished. I will not drive over there and wait in line to pick between two different styles of shit. If votor turnout gets low enough, perhaps honest people will start running under their own beliefs instead of their parties' beliefs and the funders wish list.

StoutFiles says

Homeownership: Not yet, but it's coming. I don't think people fall for this so much as they're forced into it by the wife.

lol! What is it with women and houses? Too much HGTV?

StoutFiles says

College: With scholarships and community college, this can still be done affordably.

Community college is like a disco with books. "Give me five dollars so I can get my learn on!"

StoutFiles says

Voting: I refuse to vote until the two party system is abolished. I will not drive over there and wait in line to pick between two different styles of shit.

Amen.

freak80 says

Community college is like a disco with books. "Give me five dollars so I can get my learn on!"

Haha I agree. To be fair I never went; had a full ride scholarship and worked at the same time to cover my housing.

However, community college is very smart if you go for two years and then transfer to a good four year school. Your degree is under the fancy school and you just saved almost 50% of the total cost. It'd be really difficult to convince a kid to do this though, those schools aren't fun like the four year ones.

Does Santa Claus count?

Won't be popular, but both college and home ownership have worked out well for me. Especially college. I'm on the elder end of Gen X, but back then college was pretty much the only escape from rural midwestern lower-working class roots. I'd say that well over 90% of my high school class who went on to college also went on to escape the region and have substantially higher standards of living today than those who stayed behind.

For me the big lie has been pretty much anything uttered from the mouth of a Baby Boomer.

I did not fall for Weapons of Mass Destruction. The biggest Republican lie to date.

The biggest lie of all isn't mentioned in the article. Retirement. Up until this century, that word had a different meaning. When you grew old, and retired, they toe tagged your ass and had a little ceremony prior to burying you. Now its supposed to have been redefined,,,,that if you follow the rules of their game, sock away some of your labors into 401ks and mutual funds and the like, they will take care of you when your old and at the end of the life cycle.

Who's trillion dollar agenda is that?

I can tell you this much, I ain't buying that boondoggle, and either does much of my generation, at least thru my observations

Homeownership ... hmm, bought in western MA, not Boston area, thus stayed within the 3:1 mortgage:income barrier of antiquity. Now, it's paid off. Will never, I repeat, will never buy around Boston metro. Many persons there, who are not executives/retired well off, will suffer in the years ahead with decreasing job opportunities, as jobs move to Texas. The towns which are now affordable, are seeing more and more crime over time, and it's spilling into more affluent suburbs in terms of home burglaries. The housing bubble has ruined the region and now, there's little incentive to expand headcount locally.

College ... well, 12-15 years ago it was affordable and my scholarships, etc, covered 50%. I had no outstanding loans, 2 years post-graduation. I wouldn't do it again, at today's prices. It's el cheapo London Univ online for the next generation.

War ... nope, had relatives/friends in 'Nam and I suspected that when John McCain flipped out on the reporter in '03, regarding the Tonkin Gulf resolution of the mid 60s, that this current conflict was something similar.

Voting ... stopped after my mid-20s.

I have not fallen for the marriage lie yet!, she's easier to get along with when she does not fall for the feminism lie, thinking she owns you.

I fell for the lie that a single person needs a mortgage/house and got rid of that thing while I was still ahead! Today, you need to be mobile, the investors can have them.

Back in the early 90's college was still affordable, we will need an awful lot of inflation to help ease the pain of paying off these loans of today. Still, I went through tech, and 4 year, more than I needed.

everything says

I have not fallen for the marriage lie yet!, she's easier to get along with when she does not fall for the feminism lie, thinking she owns you.

And we wonder why the Democrats have a problem with the "male vote."

I didn't fall for Obama and I'm pretty proud of that one.

But then of course I didn't fall for Bush either. I am proud of the fact I voted for Nader, we Nader voters are an exclusive club or Uber smarties, much like the Mensa society.

Bought college: left with a degree in high science, no job, and 55k in loans due immediately. I dont use my degree, but managed to get into a high paying niche profession that I could have trained for with two years at a occupational center.
Bought war: who didn't want to see Osama pay for what he did?
Bought voting: been a voter every year, still do so out of habit and for local election issues which actually do matter. President? Hah, tell me a new one!
DIDN'T buy house! I was all set up to buy in '05, but didn't believe in the market. Good thing. Been saving and renting ever since, and in another part of the country I'd pay cash for something.

Retirement: the union has a kick ass retirement. I might even see it someday, if the dollar doesn't devalue or the fund administrators don't piss it all away on the next big bubble. I have 401k too.
But even if I have ultimately nothing for retirement because the lawyers and banks steal it all, I have three assets that will endure. My children. Right now they are a drain, but when I get old, I hope they'll compete to house me and their mother. Family is everything.

Quigley says

Bought college: left with a degree in high science, no job, and 55k in loans due immediately. I dont use my degree, but managed to get into a high paying niche profession that I could have trained for with two years at a occupational center.

I know the feeling well!

The schooling was awhile back, when private school tuition was in the mid 20k.

Bought college (engineering scholarship=no debt)
Bought law school (law school scholarship = minimal debt)
Bought home ownership 3x (had to move twice but made money on both)

Didn't buy Iraq war (Osama had nothing to do with Hussein, we pretty much all knew that....)

HEY YOU says

I did not fall for Weapons of Mass Destruction. The biggest Republican lie to date.

Ditto.

It was obvious Bush was lying as he kept ignoring the U.N.'s statements that there were no WMD and kept pushing for war before the U.N. could further prove the non-existence of the WMDs. Bush didn't want the world to see proof that the WMD accusation was a willful lie.

CaptainShuddup says

I didn't fall for Obama and I'm pretty proud of that one.

But then of course I didn't fall for Bush either.

Finally, someone else who realizes that both Bush and Obama are bad.

I fell for the WMDs. And School. My job does not require a college degree, only a golden tongue. And that can't really be taught in an academic setting.

Never fell for Iran though, it's the most peaceful country in the world, except maybe Switzerland, in terms of starting wars.

The guy who taught me insurance taught me "Insurance Companies NEVER lose." And I've never seen information to the contrary.

Love Altucher, he's a real prick, a Carlinite.

Dan8267 says

Finally, someone else who realizes that both Bush and Obama are bad.

You probably weren't around, when I first came here. I was a huge hit with Patneters. They loved my humor, lambasting, and rants something rotten as long as Bush was on the receiving end. The minute I pointed my piehole in the direction of Obama I became this republican white middle aged racist.

thunderlips11 says

The guy who taught me insurance taught me "Insurance Companies NEVER lose." And I've never seen information to the contrary.

Why else would Buffett want to own insurance companies?

I still love you, TPB

Let me add one Big Lie to the mix: Venezuela as a terror/narco-state human rights violating state run by a Dictator.

thunderlips11 says

Venezuela as a terror/narco-state human rights violating state run by a Dictator.

Of course Venezuela is evil. They have oil that we want.

Good point thunderlips. The Biggest Lie of all, the war on drugs, never even got an honorable mention. I guess everyone is still buying it

Or how about the eating fats is bad, eating grains is good lie? Look where that's gotten us. Ill have to admit, I did buy into that one. Thankfully, the information age has shined the light on that pile of dung and all its corrupted "science", and now I'm a bacon eating machine!

errc says

I guess everyone is still buying it

Of course everyone is still buying drugs.

errc says

now I'm a bacon eating machine!

OMG Bacon!

It's quite possible that the war on drugs is still ongoing because the DEA declassified bacon as a controlled substance!
But seriously folks, let's make like Holland and stop the insanity. How many more people need to die in this needless war we have fought for decades in the name of Public Health?

Quigley says

How many more people need to die in this needless war we have fought for decades in the name of Public Health?

The War on Drugs "creates jobs" so we'll keep doing it.

That article really hits close to home. I remember George Carlin had a good phrase where he said something along the lines... "It's all bullshit and it's bad for ya."

It's somewhere on youtube still. One of the first people to tell America to wake up, just like Patrick when he started this blog. And so much of America is just living in the illusion presented to them by the vetted interests.

CaptainShuddup says

The minute I pointed my piehole in the direction of Obama I became this republican white middle aged racist.

There was no rule against white middle aged racists hating GWB.