The International Man and the Greater Good of Government

Blogging for yourself and blogging for others has drawbacks but it also has many advantages. I think that if you are going to blog successfully, you need to both blog for yourself and you need to blog for others.


I blog because I like to (that's why you see no advertising on this blog - and if I promote a book, you'll see that 100% of the sales commission goes to my favorite blog: Lew Rockwell). But, blogging for yourself can be very lonely (and frustrating) so I highly recommend doing both. 


Through blogging at other sites, I am able to get a tad bit of recognition. So far, from past blogging on Lew Rockwell, I was quoted on Mish Shedlock, Max Keiser and now the Casey Report has shown interest in my scribblings.

ROLLING STONES - WALK BEFORE THEY MAKE ME RUN

Many readers interested in politics and economics will be familiar with the Casey Report issued daily by Doug Casey and Casey Research. I am a subscriber to their excellent news report, the Daily Dispatch, and read it religiously everyday and have for years. 


I have taken their investment advice to heart and can actually say that I have done very well with it.


Late last year, I was contacted out-of-the-blue by David Galland of the Casey Report and asked if I would contribute to a new publication that they were planning called, The International Man. The International Man is billed as the "Private Global Intelligence Network." I gathered that the report was focused on ex-pats who had left the USA or UK years ago - or wherever - and gone overseas to make a living. The International Man was designed to disseminate good information to those who were thinking about doing the same thing due to the dark economic clouds gathering on the horizon over many of the world's economies.


The International Man has great information about jobs and business opportunities, getting visas, buying property in Argentina, etc., etc.


Of course I was thrilled that Doug Casey and his crew even knew who I am and flattered that they'd want to use my writings. I guess they want me to write new articles for them, but, in the meantime, they asked if they could republish this article I wrote a while back. Of course I said, "Yes!" It came out online and through their vast email network on May 2, 2011. Here it is:

Date: May 2, 2011

Today we welcome a new contributor to the IM family, Mike (in Tokyo) Rogers, an American expat who has lived in Japan for more than 25 years. With a sharp wit and a strong libertarian streak, Mike is perfect to bring us today's featured article.


While slightly dated, the lesson here is priceless. Enjoy.


Government: It's for Everyone's Good
By Mike Rogers


I briefly met an old friend the other day at Narita Airport. His name is Frank. He was on a brief stop-over before being reassigned to China.


Frank is a half-Chinese American friend of mine who I've known for years. I guess we were room-mates in our university days. I don't remember things from those days too well; I was high all the time.


Frank is a very good guy. He's straightened himself out and doesn't drink or smoke anymore. Got married and has a beautiful daughter. He's been a true friend and taught me much.


One thing he taught me was that the government has a duty to look out for the welfare of the public at large. Frank opened my eyes and explained to me why, for example, non-smokers rights trump property rights when it comes to the government outlawing, say, cigarette smoke in privately owned establishments such as bars and restaurants.


Frank and I fought over this repeatedly over the years. I was convinced that the owner of the property, bar, restaurant, what-have-you, had the right to decide if his establishment allowed smoking. I reasoned that if customers didn't like it, they could go to another establishment. I even pointed out that, in Japan, we don't have any laws against smoking inside privately owned businesses; yet we have smoking and non-smoking establishments. A good example that quickly comes to mind is a coffee shop called Starbucks. I think you Americans may have heard of it. Starbucks is no smoking. The other side of the coin is a chain called Doutor Coffee. Doutor allows smoking. Some larger Doutor coffee shops even have smoking and non-smoking areas. Can you imagine? How could privately owned businesses come to this when left to their own devices? Must have been a mistake.


I don't go to Starbucks as Doutor is much cheaper, but don't let my preferences influence your thinking.


But, even with this evidence, Frank showed that I was wrong. Frank says that the government has a responsibility to guard the public health and do what is in the public good. He says, if it weren't for the government, some people would be, say, opening pig farms in our backyards and stinking up entire neighborhoods, or doing dangerous things like driving without seatbelts. The government must protect the public. This is why we have seatbelt laws, motorcycle helmet laws, anti-pig farm laws, etc.


Anyhow, Frank says that the rights of non-smokers trump the rights of property owners. I said that he had no right to enter a bar, just a privilege. He claims that there is a right and that the government is here to protect his rights. He says that the government is here for our own good; to protect us and nurture us for the good of the whole.


I asked Frank that, if we were so worried about the public health, say, some guy wiping himself out in a car crash and becoming a burden on society, then shouldn't we also worry about infectious diseases? Why don't we pass a law that says it is illegal to go outside in the rain without a raincoat and umbrella? You'd sure hate to have someone catch some new type of flu and be sneezing all over you. This sounds like some good clean common sense to me.


Frank laughed and told me that this kind of thinking was silly and absurd. He stressed once again, that the government is here for our good and the good for society as a whole; they don't do frivolities. The government is here to decide for us what is best for society. The government will only do what is best for all.


Well, it became time for Frank to board his plane. We both hugged and waved goodbye. I'm sure Frank will enjoy his new work assignment. Just before he walked through the doors to board the plane, I handed him a love letter to show him just how much I appreciate all he has taught me. I, for one, can now rest better knowing that the government is here for our own good. I'm sure Frank will think the same thing I do when he reads the letter.


What was in the letter? Ah, not much. Just a copy of a news article from the town he is moving to. It was some common sense about how the local government is forcing people to smoke and fining them if they don't smoke in an effort to boost the local economy; of course, for the good of the whole. Sounds like a great idea.


I'm sure Frank will enjoy his new town and his new government-sanctioned habit. What with it being for the greater good and all.


I highly recommend reading the the Daily Dispatch published by Casey Research. (By the way, Casey Research, also had level-headed reporting on the nuclear accident in Japan - one of the few places - besides this blog - that actually did. You can sign up for the Casey Report's free daily newsletter here. And I have been enjoying the International Man very much. You can sign up for that free newsletter here.


In 99% of the cases, you have to pay for the extremely high-quality of writing that is featured in the Daily Dispatch and the International Man. Try them out and see if you like them. What have you got to lose? Where else can you get such high quality reading daily, delivered to your email box, for absolutely free?

A Real-Life Example of Why Branding Matters and an Example of a Branding Failure!

Last night, I sat and drank next to a guy at my local watering hole. I had seen him there before and last night was really the first time we had spoken. I didn't know who he was, or what he did, but was very surprised to find out that he is the program director of one of the top, and most famous AM radio stations in all of Japan. Now before you say, "Hold it, Mike! AM radio!? Boooooring! I'm turning it off!" Then let me ask that you read this story to see an example of how not to do things.

SPIKE JONES - BEETLEBOMB

WHO IS THIS GUY? DON'T KNOW, 

BUT LOOKS LIKE THE TYPICAL FM RADIO LISTENER

This is a real-life example of failure. Not of the AM radio station, but of stations that mimic them.


I had gone to one of my favorite drinking holes in Yoga, a Izakaya named Sakura. Sakura has been in the same place for nearly 30 years. It is a very old fashioned neighborhood drinking hole in the wall.


I always like to go to these places like Sakura early as that allows me to drink quietly before the crowds, to talk to the owners about what's really going on with the Japanese people in the neighborhood (I've never seen any foreigners there), and it allows me to reflect on various things. 


When I entered the bar, there was one other gentleman sitting there drinking. I had seen him there before. And, as with the last time I saw him, he was already pretty drunk when I entered.


Since I had seen him before, and since Sakura is a very friendly place with a "family" type of atmosphere, I said, "Good Evening" to him. He was, as before, pretty fashionably dressed (for a nearly 65-year-old guy) and was deep in conversation with the bar owner. I started listening to their conversation. He was talking to the "Momma" of the joint and explaining something about a sponsorship with a world famous sports wear maker - thereby explaining why he was so fashionably dressed. He explained how the sports wear maker traded clothes for advertising and how the old model of advertising (paying for commercials) was dead.


I knew from just hearing a bit of his conversation that he must have been in broadcasting and knew what the hell he was talking about. I joined into the conversation. I was surprised to find out that he was working at one of the most famous AM radio stations in Japan.


I asked what he did and he told me what his position was at the radio station. I was shocked when he told me his title and job and gave me his card. Now, don't misunderstand, this is not some crummy little radio station in Japan; there's not a person over the age of 12 who hasn't heard of this radio station. They broadcast horse racing and professional baseball too. This station is one of, if not thee, most famous of the (generic) AM radio stations in Japan. 


Well, the old guy went on and told me all about his problems at work with declining revenues and sponsorships. I listened and didn't say anything about having worked at an FM station before (actually, in the late 1980's, I did host a radio show for three years on that very same AM radio station... I think... Or was it the competing station? I can't remember because in Japan they all sound alike. 


In fact, all of the radio stations in Japan all sound exactly alike, be they AM radio or FM radio. The only way anyone can tell the difference between one station to the next is by looking at the number on the radio tuner or waiting until that station's call letters and name are announced.... Yawn....

Anyway, the guy went on and told us about how, about 4 years ago, that this station had made the genius move in a policy switch to target only 35 ~ 55-year-old people with a emphasis on mostly males. This little tidbit of information just floored me. Why?


Well, because, here is a very old school AM station that's been around since the late 1950's. They are one of the four or five dominant radio stations that everyone has heard of. All cars in Japan have AM radios (FM radios are rare). Everyone knows this particular station.


With that ancient history and the fact that this station broadcasts boring stuff like professional baseball and horse racing that interests old people, you'd think that their policy was always to target 35 ~ 65-year-old men. But no, you'd have thought wrong.


So why is this interesting and why is this an example of how not to do things with an emphasis on branding? Well, because, it's not so much that this old, dusty, tired and worn out old war-horse of a radio station picks such a policy, it's because, about 4 years ago, about the same time that this old guy says his AM radio station embarked on this policy, a FM radio station announced that they were doing the exact same thing!


Yes. About 4 years ago, the so-called international FM radio station in Tokyo, InterFM, proudly announced that they were going to target 35 ~ 65-year-old males. Talk about a bunch of parrots! 


AM radio is supposed to feature talk radio and target older people. FM radio is supposed to feature music - and, in the case of a supposed "International radio station" like InterFM, they're supposed to target a younger audience and not broadcast things like horse racing.


But, unbelievably, InterFM did start broadcasting horse racing! Have you ever heard of such a thing? A FM radio station broadcasting horse racing? And not in the native language of the host country. Absurd.


So, InterFM continues to lose a million (USD) a year. Is it any wonder? They are dead as a doornail come this July. I wrote about that in One More Phase in the Shattering of Main Stream Media here.


Now, considering the above, you can see why this is a lesson in how not to do things.


If your company is a smaller or a newer company in a well-established market and you want to succeed in that market, if everyone is selling turnips, you'd better find something else to sell or you will be out of business.


InterFM? Targeting 35 ~ 65-year-old males? What a brilliant - and so incredibly original - business strategy. 


Why do they even bother? If they are not going to even try to make money or set out a niche in their market then it's time for them to shut the power down and go off air.


-----


For more on the death of major broadcasting in Japan here's more information:

Why the Digital Conversion Will Destroy TV Tokyo and TBS

Part 2: Why the Digital Conversion Will Destroy TV Tokyo and TBS

Own Mizuho Bank or TV Tokyo Shares? Sell Now, While You Can!

Major Television Stations in Japan on Death's Doorstep

Japan's Financial Armageddon is Coming in 60 Days?

Is the financial Armageddon coming soon? Many people are now warning that it is inevitable. I agree. It may not be in 60 days, but I think it is coming before Autumn 2011. I'm not sure, but things are lining up poorly so I think you had better get prepared. This is a warning.


People should listen to my warnings. I warned people in October of 2008 to buy gold and silver and to stock up on food (click the links for proof). At that time, gold was $724.08 an ounce (today gold is $1562.30) and silver was $9.11 an ounce (today silver stands at $47.40).


If you had taken my advice, you would have easily more than doubled your investment in gold and taken over a 520% profit on silver. It's still not too late to get into gold and silver but a price correction is coming so wait a bit.* There will be no price correction on food. Stock up now, while you can. 


*Note: A few hours after the posting of this article (check the dates and times) the price of silver dropped almost 10%.


After the big Tohoku earthquake and tsunami, when the stores shelves were bare for a week or so (and no one knew at the time how things were going to turn out on the food and water situation) my family was fine; we had 6 months of food and water, enough for 5 people, stocked up and ready to go. When people panicked and ran away from Tokyo or when they were fighting for parking spaces at the local grocery store, or fighting for bottles of water, I only watched and shook my head in disbelief.


How can people be so gullible and foolish? How can people be so negligent and irresponsible not to be prepared?

The repercussions of the Japan earthquake and tsunami followed by the nuclear accident has created shock waves throughout the world. Throw that on top of the soon-to-come collapse of the Euro...

Either preceded or followed by the collapse of the US dollar.... 

A lot of people predicted an economic calamity after the earthquake and tsunami. But, now some are saying it didn't happen. The fact is that the earthquake and tsunami are blips on the screen in the overall picture of the world economy.... But taken together with the information contained in the videos above, and they stat to cause one to consider.


Consider the Euro zone and the US dollar - along with Japan's aging problem and public debt problems - in the context of the repercussions for the business world of the Japan disaster. For a small example of how the Japan calamity is affecting foreign nations and companies, consider the fact that Japanese cars manufacturers have closed many of their plants as they are unable to obtain parts. 


On initial inspection, this doesn't seem to be such a problem. But these plants, and including Japanese plants in the USA, employ tens of thousands of people. Now, what about the satellite businesses that deal with cars? The list is long, but here's two easy ones; Tire makers or service stands? What about other businesses that cater to auto worker employees? How about them? Home manufacturers, clothes makers, shoes manufacturers, the entertainment sector, banks, credit card companies, etc., etc.? 


Now, consider the fact that nearly ever company must file their quarterly business report, well, every quarter. That means that the earthquake occurred on March 11... Let's just use March 30th as an easy calculation... This means that all of these corporations will show the effect of the Japan disaster - added to an already overloaded world economic crisis - and you just might have one more straw added to the camel's back... Could it be the straw that breaks the camel's back?


I don't think so. But throw on the extremely high probability of a Greek, Irish and Portuguese default on public debt and the ground swell rumors now abounding that Spain and Italy are next ( and are "Too big to bail") then you have a serious problem.


Let me give you fair warning again. Especially if you live in Japan: 


1) Store up enough water for at least 2 months (6 months preferable)
2) Fill your bathtub with water every night (if water stops you can use for cleaning)
3) Today or this week, buy at least 2 months of canned food (6 months preferable)
4) It is still not too late! Start saving money every month by buying gold and silver. If you have some savings, take 33% of it out of the bank and buy gold. Take the other 33% and keep it at  safe place at home.


It looks like we are headed for some really rough times. Better be prepared to stay out of the way.


If you want to find the best places to buy gold and silver, search those keywords on this blog's search function. I've warned people so many times up until now, that I'm tired of linking to it over and over.


Will people pay attention this time? If history is any guide, the answer is "No!"