10 September 2017. Animal Funnies… I Forgot Her Birthday!

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In reality, this cat saunters into a bar every day in Nawlins (that’s the local pronunciation of New Orleans), and the bartender gives him something (non-alcoholic) to drink. Truth IS stranger than fiction is!

BMD

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28 July 2011. The Latest Rightwing “Scare Scam”… “Food Insurance”

Editor’s Foreword:

I heard that Glenn Beck and Sean Hannity were pushing some dodgy-sounding product called “Food Insurance”. It didn’t sound on the up and square, so, I Googled “food insurance scam”… I found something… I’d like to share it with you.

BMD

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“Food Insurance”… Are You Buying It?

OK, I know these are hard economic times, but today I found a website that left me wondering what in the world is happening to the world around me! According to the website http://www.foodinsurance.com, “In light of the tragic events in New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina, the power outage in New York City that brought the city to a standstill, and the constant threat of fires, earthquakes, tornadoes, and other natural disasters across the country, it’s important to make sure we always have the basic necessities of life with enough home food storage for your family to survive for at least two weeks”. It goes on to say for as little as 199.99 USD (5,522 Roubles. 140 Euros. 123 UK Pounds), you can order enough of their freeze dried or dehydrated food to sustain one adult with three meals a day for 14 days.

Not sure what disasters could befall your friends and family? No problem! A handy map allows you to “mouse over” a region to see a list of potential disasters common to that area. Now, that you know what kind of disaster is looming in your future, you need to know how much food you’d need, right? Just click on the calculator and it will tell you which of their kits you need to buy. They also list a variety of disaster scenarios, so, I chose “severe winter storm” just in case I should ever find myself in that situation. Their list of things you should do to prepare for a severe winter storm didn’t include anything I hadn’t heard a dozen times before. Keep your documents in a waterproof container, keep a small preparedness kit in your car, and install safety features like smoke alarms. All good advice for sure, but again, nothing I hadn’t heard before. I found it interesting that they didn’t say anything about keeping your cell phone charged since land lines don’t work when the power goes out… a common problem with severe winter storms. Therefore, I moved on to what to do in the event of a terrorist attack. Guess what! Their steps for preparing for a terrorism attack are the same as a severe winter storm. In fact, their four basic steps are the same for all eight potential disasters. The only one that varied was “unemployment”. There, they suggested you buy their kits BEFORE you’re unemployed. I guess if you wait until after you are unemployed you’re screwed, because you couldn’t afford to buy their stuff.

We all need to prepare ourselves better for the unexpected, but is this website necessary? There’s nothing there that you couldn’t accomplish with a trip to your nearest Sam’s, Costco, or camping store. Online stores like REI and Cabela’s are two of my favourites and you’d be amazed at the things you can buy to keep in your emergency kit. Doesn’t it just make sense to incorporate some of these things into our daily life?

• buy extra batteries the next time you go to the store
• stock up on canned goods when they go on sale… especially ones that don’t require cooking like peanut butter and tuna
• if you’re lucky enough to know how to can foods, keep plenty in your pantry
• buy a simple camping stove and some containers of fuel
• while you’re in the camping section, pick up some freeze dried or dehydrated foods to have on hand
• store bottled water for drinking and cooking that freeze dried food you just bought
• make your plans well in advance so you aren’t caught off guard
• make sure you have plenty of candles and matches (kept in a dry container)
• sporting good stores, especially those specializing in camping and hunting sell all sorts of things that would come in hand in an emergency like instant hand warmers that are air-activated and can provide heat for up to 7 hours

There are plenty of other helpful hints that you can find on a myriad of sites that aren’t trying to sell something. In my opinion, this “Food Insurance” site has nothing to do with insurance. It is an opportunistic money grab and plays shamelessly on people’s fear.

http://activerain.com/blogsview/1361691/food-insurance-are-you-buying-it-

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Editor’s Afterword:

“Food Insurance” is FAR overpriced… perspirin’ minds wanna know how much Beck and Hannity are getting to shill for it. You could get the same amount of dried food for far less if you bought it yourself. You’d save enough to buy everything else on your “emergency necessities” list. It shows you the state of the rightwing mind… scary, isn’t it? Many of the rightwingers are so bovine and stupid that they’d buy powdered dehydrated water if Limbaugh, Cain, and Bachmann were pushing it. However, the bubbas are going to vote next November. That means that you have to get off your arse and do so, as well.

We have dragons to slay, kids…

BMD