Rubber meets the road!

Hey all alyosha1981 here,

I'll begin by telling you all a bit about myself, I'm 28 married and father of 2, I work as a professional in the criminal justice field. I consider myself fortunate to be blessed with a high paying job, respectable home and other reasonable creature comforts. I served in the United States Army and of course I pay my taxes.I have strived to "live the American dream" yet around every corner I find opposition, not from fellow citizens but from the very "system" I am a part of.

My life is far from "cushy" I maintain a set work schedule, care for a family of four(plus a dog) and otherwise attempt to be a normal, law abiding citizen.Here is and in lies the (my) conundrum, no matter how much money I make, how many bills I pay the "system" is consistently providing an ever increasingly difficult level of "living".There is no point where everything "evens out" something always comes up. weather small or big.

I suggest that the "new" American way of life is so designed to constantly maintain a level of "instability" forcing us to become(if we already are not) slaves, to industry and trade. I enjoy only the necessities needed for survival, home, food, transportation ect,ect. I do not "splurge" on material wants as I deem this unnecessary. Though through television and radio, I constantly combat the "wants" of my family.

Point of the thread, being, how are we (Americans) to continue surviving on what the "system" allows as the bare minimum, how are we to continue raising families and perusing the "American dream" if the "system" will not let us? Are there any others in a similar situation?

i really wish i had an answer. we all do. more and more people are starting to realize this, and also realizing there is something wrong and we are all becoming slaves. i have 2 kids, 2 dogs, 2 cats 2 trucks and with em, 2 payments. and the more i make.... the more it takes. there is no way a single income family can survive anymore. so, for lack of an answer, i can only sympathize with you, brother.

[edit on 11-3-2009 by guinnessford]

reply to post by alyosha1981


The system IS designed to keep us as slaves of the system.

Buck the system my friend. You need to be that pissed-off bull and realize that the system is the one riding you. Throw it off any which way that you can.

The only way to combat the system is to refuse to live within it. I understand that with a family to support this becomes more difficult than it is for a couple of bachelors, but do it in any way that you can.

Grow your own food in your backyard. It's not that hard to provide a good portion of your veggies that way. Growing up, my family had a garden in the back corner of our suburban yard that measured about 20x50 and provided the vast majority of our vegetables with enough to give away. We lived in the deserts of AZ, so we could almost garden year-round due to the weather, which was an advantage.

We gardened together and had good family time. Bring a radio, some sandwiches, and some lemonades out and make a day of it. Work within your community to set up community gardens on vacant land, this will help build the community that will be necessary to buck the system. My folks still have a single grapefruit tree in their backyard that puts out 400+ grapefruits 2x a year. People are more than happy to accept free fruit as a sign of goodwill. My dad brings in a dozen a day to his work when they're in season and they're gone before his first break.

Food is life. And if it's delicious food, then life is so much more delicious.

If you can find a field to plow for grain crop, go for it. If you can set up a greenhouse to take cuttings of plants which you then provide to your neighbors for a small fee, go for it.

Set up a compost heap. I know all the chicken horse and cow manure around here is free if you load it yourself. Just search manure in your local craigslist and there are usually dozens of listings. You won't be wasting food scraps, because they will be used to fertilize your soil for next years crops.

I personally am going to start raising rabbits for meat shortly here. I've had them as pets but never wanted to eat them back then. And then I tasted them...yummy. And they reproduce, well like rabbits, so there's a steady source of food. Also, rabbit droppings can go straight into your garden for nutrients, unlike other animal feces, which should be composted.

Once I get my buck and a few does, I'm going to restock my chickens . (stupid dog got through the fence and to my laying hens, but didn't bother to get the dang rooster) Having fresh eggs every morning sure is nice but be warned that if you stop, you will miss it.

As you can see, self-sustainable agriculture is kinda my passion, but I am all about bucking the system in every aspect. If you can hunt, do it, every penny that you don't spend at the store is a penny that can be put towards your family.

Need soap? Make it. My brother makes his own soap and I swear by it. My skin and hair are 100x softer and smoother with his soap than with any store bought, chemically based product. (ok, maybe 10x, but it feels like 100x, even my beard is soft and cuddly) Yeah it's not cucumber melon or coconut scented, but I'm not too worried about that.

Sorry for the length of my response, it looks like I really got going on this one.

IMHO: The secret to living the new American dream is going to be going back to living the old American dream: 40 acres and a mule.

reply to post by mkiii


Hey there! I do have a garden I plan on starting in the spring, spot on with your responce I'll say thank you again.

Great post, mkiii.
*Keep in mind, though, that rabbits don't provide enough fat in the diet to keep a human healthy.
en.wikipedia.org...

We have all been trained to live above our means, to 'keep up with the Joneses'. The government wants us to be so deep in debt and so dependent on entitlements and handouts that we will either do nothing or will fight amongst ourselves while they slowly take over control of every aspect of our lives.

The only solution is to return to a simpler way of life.

Unfortunately, it may take major collapse and/or revolution to accomplish it. I think we are in grave danger of passing the point of no return, where the government has so much control that the people will be unable to effectively resist.

Originally posted by operationpaperclip
Great post, mkiii.
*Keep in mind, though, that rabbits don't provide enough fat in the diet to keep a human healthy.
en.wikipedia.org...

We have all been trained to live above our means, to 'keep up with the Joneses'. The government wants us to be so deep in debt and so dependent on entitlements and handouts that we will either do nothing or will fight amongst ourselves while they slowly take over control of every aspect of our lives.

The only solution is to return to a simpler way of life.

Unfortunately, it may take major collapse and/or revolution to accomplish it. I think we are in grave danger of passing the point of no return, where the government has so much control that the people will be unable to effectively resist.

That's exactly my point here, well put.

Originally posted by alyosha1981
Hey all alyosha1981 here,

I'll begin by telling you all a bit about myself, I'm 28 married and father of 2, I work as a professional in the criminal justice field. I consider myself fortunate to be blessed with a high paying job, respectable home and other reasonable creature comforts.

You are already rich by world standards. To carry it further requires sacrifice and risk and always has. Many of the wealthy in the US are first generation and started with less than you have. In some cases, far less. What they did is go that extra mile.

Some do it by going back to night school to increase their value in the marketplace. Some start a small side business and let it build over the years until it becomes large enough they no longer need to work. Overcoming the fear of failure is the biggest hurdle.

I started my current business with $190, sleeping on a friends couch, driving a 20 year old junker and foregoing things like cable TV, restaurants and the like. It has taken more than 20 years but now I do almost no real work and earn more than 80% of the country does. My Wife and I went without a lot at first. We worked 60 hours a week each for many years, often shorthanded and doing two jobs at once each. We even did our own janitorial after everyone went home at night.

Now I get constantly criticized by lazy employees who think they should be paid what I earn after all I invested. They will never succeed because they are clock watchers. They never do one thing more than is absolutely necessary.

I have had two exceptions over the years and I started them in business as their mentor and both are still happily self-employed at a good job they love.

So, what does it take? It takes extra effort and sacrifice. It takes an attitude that any failures are good things because they teach you what not to do next time. It mainly takes motivation and desire which most people do not have. We can whine and complain and remain among those who take the orders or we can go the extra mile and give the orders. We can blame others like the government or take the challenge and succeed anyway. We live in the country with the most opportunity on earth and if a person can not get ahead here, they can not do it anywhere.

I feel you on this one, alyosha. When you have kids, especially, it becomes that much more difficult to deny all the little consumer purchases that bleed you dry. Even very young children these days seem to think they neeeed an iPod, a cell phone, a text plan, a million video games, what have you. It's become absolutely absurd!

Not only do we need a simpler life in general, but we need to remember simple pleasures. I admit that I find the computer and internet convenient, but I'm one of the very few people I know who actually uses the library. And whatever happened to taking a break from it all and sitting on the front porch watching the world go by? We are bombarded every minute with so much information that we seem to have become addicted to it.

[edit on 11-3-2009 by operationpaperclip]

[edit on 11-3-2009 by operationpaperclip]

[edit on 11-3-2009 by operationpaperclip]

reply to post by Blaine91555


Trust me the intestinal fortitude is present, willingness is also here. I'm referring to the unwillingness to remain a slave to the "system" which has replaced the goal of the "American dream" I'm all for the sacrifice, and letting go of "wants" for needs but darn! when is enough enough?

reply to post by alyosha1981


I understand. I'm on my third trip up the ladder. This reminds me very much of the early 1980's. It is not quite as bad yet but it is headed that way. Owning a home now is a true challenge. I lost one to the 21% interest rate in 82 and I still mourn the loss of that house. I was lucky and found work at half what I was used to so I survived, but it took some time for the desire to return.

The Government certainly does not help when their answer to hard work and some success is to tax it away from us and give it to people who won't even try.

I remain positive though and I spend part of every day thinking how can I turn these hard times into an opportunity. My income dropped some but I'm OK and I'm convinced there is always a way to turn a negative into a positive somehow. I have to believe that. I'm determined to come out of this with more, not less.

Yeah, if you only eat rabbits and nothing else, you won't get the fat you need, but that's why I say raise chickens (boilers and layers) and hunt javelina&deer(when drawn), and all small game. And when dove season comes around, well lets just say I still have a lot of Dove Noodle Soup in the freezer. Friday night and Saturday morning camping and hunting is something to look forward to, even if you don't get anything worthwhile.

Redundancy is nice, having several sources of each food group is good/necessary. You can live on rabbits for a while, and as long as you supplement with high fat items like nuts(my uncle brings me back 50lbs of pistachios whenever he comes back from Turkey, which is usually a couple times a year), some fish like salmon, EVOO, and real milk straight from the udder when I can find it. If you have a tropical environment like SoCal, grow avocados, they are so nutritious and so delicious, plus they have fats and vitamins out the wazoo. I wish I could grow them instead of buying them.

"Approximately 75% of an avocado's calories come from fat, most of which is monounsaturated fat. Avocados also have 60% more potassium than bananas. They are rich in B vitamins, as well as vitamin E and vitamin K. They have the highest fiber content of any fruit - including 75% insoluble and 25% soluble fiber."-wikipedia

If you live in a cool climate, growing mushrooms may be a possibility for you. They are amazing sources of nutrients and you can buy the spawn kits for dirt cheap online.

Best of luck to all.