The Group Path vs The Hidden Trail

At times, being a responsible and ethical man in today’s world can feel overwhelming. Our screens are filled with distractions of augmented beauty and sensationalized greatness that can leave us feeling like success is only achieved by staying with the group on the path. Our ancestral survival instincts make it challenging for us to separate from the group. Historically, separation from the group meant isolation in the wilderness and an increased risk of death. Fortunately, being separated from the group in today’s world no longer increases the risk of physical death, but provides the necessary space for transformation to take place.

When diverging from the group’s sanctioned path and venturing onto a hidden trail, it can be challenging to see where the trail leads, for it’s covered with overgrown brush. Rest assured, you are not traveling uncharted land; this trail was once the path traveled a long time ago.

You may question why you're walking this trail when the group’s paved path requires less strength and energy. Large rocks and exposed tree roots are sometimes stumbled upon on this trail, making it feel like returning to the group’s path would be wise; less resistance would certainly make the journey easier.

At times it may seem like you're walking this trail alone and desire the comfort of walking with others on the group’s path, but do not give in to the temptation to return to the group’s sanctioned path. While it appears the entire group is walking together since they’re all heading the same direction, they are each walking alone, unsure of where they are being led.

Those choosing to leave the comfort of walking on the group’s path will encounter fellow travelers on the trail, and new friendships will be forged. Soon, others will notice the trail and wish to leave the group’s path and explore the trail. While it will be exciting to have new travelers join us on the trail, we must ensure the trail doesn’t become the new group path.

The trail needs to be reserved for responsible and ethical men who refuse to succumb to the distractions they left behind. Future travelers are depending on strong men to keep this trail open for those seeking to depart from the group’s path in the future.

It's far past time for men of integrity to exit the group's sanctioned path, and stand together with other courageous men, in making the trail the desired way forward on this adventure we call life.

Alan Mosley at the Libertarian Institute wrote a great article about the impact Lysander Spooner has left on our society.

Spooner pushed back against the established norms of his day, and was a strong advocate for liberty. Mosley sums up Spooner's writings by stating the following:
"his writings remind us that freedom is not a gift from government but an inherent right that no government can legitimately take away".

If you are like me and previously heard the name Lysander Spooner, but unfamiliar with the man behind the name, I strongly recommend reading Mosley's piece (see link below) for an introduction to Lysander Spooner, Natural Rights Maverick!

https://libertarianinstitute.org/articles/lysander-spooner-natural-rights-maverick

I’ll take “Things You Can’t Print” for the daily double. 😉
@nevent1qqs...

The deer were out moving yesterday, just before sunset, in this subzero weather. I guesstimate we saw around 60 deer during our 1/2 hour drive!

Great conversation on The @Peter McCormack Show #009!

What I find interesting is the similarities between what's happening in England, and what's happening in the U.S.A. It's like you can swap the word England for U.S.A in this episode and you end up with the same situation.

Give it a listen for yourself.
https://fountain.fm/episode/fCeItMFOtBgX5Ym2UvGN

#FlipTheBoard

Pastor Tom Lundeen of Riverside Church delivered a great message yesterday about the constant negativity we are surrounded with in our daily lives. Much of the negativity we see has been exasperated through the rise in social media usage, making it feel like this must be something unique to today' world. Yet, Moses faced a lot of negativity and criticism when leading the people out of out of Egypt as the book of Exodus documents.

Pastor Tom's message is timely considering the highly divisive society we live in today, and his message connects deeply with a question I've been wrestling with myself:
"What did I know for certain 10, 15, or 20 years ago that I've changed my stance on, or question the certainty of today?"

As we mature we take in new information, which should be used to continually challenge our current beliefs for inconsistency. When we find holes in our current beliefs, and discover the belief we were certain about in the past now resembles Swiss cheese, we should be willing to consider whether or not the belief is worthy of holding any longer.

A couple key takeaways summarized by Pastor Tom during his sermon:

* Critics will always find something/someone to criticize.

* It takes no skill/ability to in a broken world filled with people (including us) that have spiritually defective DNA to be a critic.

* There is a difference between Constructive criticism is Destructive criticism. Unfortunately, Destructive criticism is what dominates our world today.

* The core of Destructive criticism results from a gratitude shortage.

* When we are faced with struggles/difficulties we can't control or solve, it's easy to turn to despair/criticism.

* A critical spirit finds a home in a heart/mind that thinks only pleasure and prosperity, not pain and adversity, should ever be experienced.

* A critical spirit causes us to see things in a distorted way.

* The spiritual discipline of gratitude is emphasized as important for followers of Jesus, in part, to divert us from the unhealthy path of negative criticism.

While some may find irony in reading a message about the spread of negativity through social media on a social media platform, I don't believe all social media platforms are created equally. Personally, I find some social media platforms more algorithmically programmed to display things known to bring about negative emotions, liken anger, frustration, and resentment. To the contrary, I find reading #Nostr notes on platforms like @nprofile1q..., where I, not an algorithm, determine what's in my feed, to be a more positive experience.

The biggest improvement we can make in our lives with regards to social media is being aware of what emotions are brought to the forefront on the different social media platforms. The next improvement we can make is to spend more time on the platforms brining about positive emotions, and less time on the platforms where negative emotions are produced.

You can watch Pastor Tom's entire message here:
https://vimeo.com/1155753069?fl=pl&fe=sh#t=27m8s

Why does everything cost more today?

Fiat Currency, Monetary Corruption, and the Architecture of Extraction by Justin M. Ptak is a great read!

While many of us view money as a medium of exchange, Justin explains how our money system goes far beyond transactional by stating, "the structure of a monetary system is never merely economic. It is moral, political, and civilizational".

You can read the entire article at :
https://mises.org/mises-wire/fiat-currency-monetary-corruption-and-architecture-extraction

Cole Adams with The Mises Institute wrote a great article explaining why homes have become so expensive.

Spoiler alert: it has a lot to do with Monetary debasement (the inflationary expansion of the US money supply).

You can read the full article here:
https://mises.org/mises-wire/why-have-homes-become-so-unaffordable

Great explanation about affordability and inflation by John Phelan at The Center of the American Experiment.

Every wonder why things still cost so much despite hearing inflation is coming down? You're not wrong, and this article explains why.

https://www.americanexperiment.org/what-does-todays-inflation-data-say-about-affordability

I'm about 1/2 way through and it's a good episode so far. It appears Michael gets a bit defensive about the Bitcoin Treasury topic, but I'm not sure he truly understood your question.

I took your question to be: does it make sense for a company that's not profitable and loosing money to be adding Bitcoin to their balance sheet. I think this is a fair question. It appears Michael heard this as an attack on companies adding Bitcoin to their balance sheet.

I'm looking forward to listening to the the second 1/2!

FREDDIE MAC & FANNIE MAE TO 'HELP' THE REAL ESTATE MARKET

Will Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae purchasing $200 billion in mortgage-backed securities help lower mortgage interest rates? In the short term I believe it will; however, as the bright economist Thomas Sowell has said, "There are no solutions, only trade-offs”. So what would some of these trade-offs look like?

First, we need to understand all real estate is local. What the real estate market looks like in Florida, is different than the market in Minnesota. Going even deeper, the real estate market in Minneapolis, MN is different than the market in St. Cloud, MN. There are even different markets within geographical boundaries. The waterfront market in the Annandale area is different than the multi-family market in the same area, and the $100,000 - $150,000 single family home market in Sauk Rapids is different than the $600,000 - $650,000 market in Sauk Rapids.

Secondly, when looking at the single family home market in the St. Cloud area, in general (for the reasons described above) we are sitting at a 2.5 months supply of inventory. What this means is given the current activity in the St. Cloud area real estate market, if no more homes are placed on the market (listed for sale), it would take 2.5 months for the current inventory of homes to sell. When viewing this number in terms of what is considered a balanced market it provides more context. The National Association of Realtors defines a balanced real estate market consisting of 4-6 months supply of inventory. Therefore, at 2.5 months supply we are currently sitting in a seller's market. However, looking at the supply side alone does not provide full context to what's happening with the real estate market.

The other variable to the market equation is demand. On the demand side we have seen a slowdown over the past couple of years, which is often attributed to rising interest rates. As a result of slower demand, we have seen inventory starting to build. When looking at the trend-line of months supply over the past three years we see the following unfold:

Months Supply for December by year
2023: 1.8 months
2024: 2.2 months (22.2% increase over previous year)
2025: 2.5 months (13.6% increase over previous year)

Because of the shift in supply and demand, we have a real estate market that is a bit more favorable to buyers, where buyers can place contingencies like a home inspection, or the sale of another property, into an offer without it being automatically rejected.

The third point, and the purpose of writing this, is to consider the impact of what Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae purchasing $200 billion in mortgage-backed securities will have on the real estate market.

While these two government entities purchasing mortgage-backed securities should bring down mortgage interest rates, it will likely increase the demand side of the equation. For a first time home buyer that does not have equity in another property to tap for their purchase, I understand the importance of affordable housing. Because interest is just one of the components that make up a monthly house payment, which consists of Principal, Interest, Taxes, Insurance, and possibly mortgage insurance (depending on the loan type and the amount of the down payment), lower interest rates mean the monthly payment will be lower. However, if the decrease in mortgage interest rates bring more buyers into the market, which I suspect it will do, is the reduction in the interest component of the monthly payment enough to off-set the increase in home prices that will likely happen as demand increases?

Another question to consider from more of the big picture perspective is the future role of government involvement in the real estate market. From a historical viewpoint, the government's previous attempts to "help" the real estate market by lowering interest rates, purchasing mortgage-back securities, etc, have distorted the market and lead us to the current situation. By the government purchasing $200 billion in mortgage-backed securities, will future government intervention (help) be required when the pendulum swings the other direction?

The further down the road we travel with government "helping" the real estate market, the more difficult it becomes to revert to a free market, where market operates on the economic fundamentals of supply and demand and does not require "help" from the government.

I welcome other opinions on this matter so please let me know your thoughts in the comments.

https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/trump-lauches-his-own-qe-directs-gses-purchase-200-billion-mortgage-bonds

While we need to see more details about this plan, my initial question is:
would limiting “large institutional investors”, which are yet to be defined, hurt the real estate market by removing a class of would be buyers?

The assumption is buyers who intend to occupy the home as their primary residence would backfill the void left by removing large institutional buyers from the buyer pool. Initially this may be the case, but if the market shifts and we see inventory sitting, homes abandoned or neglected, large institutional buyers may be sorely missed, and having another class off buyers would be welcomed.

Anytime I hear about government talk about using regulations to fix a problem I'm reminded of the Thomas Sowell quote: “There are no solutions, only trade-offs”.

https://www.realestatenews.com/2026/01/07/trump-taking-steps-to-ban-corporate-home-purchases