It’s been over a couple weeks or more since my wife (Sarah), son (Saud) and I have come back from England. It was a wonderful trip. Got to catch up with family and take a break from the work grind. Not that I got anything against Washington D.C. for being the original “Chocolate City” but Cambridge in England is the “REAL” Chocolate City. New Orleans, Chicago, Detroit, and Atlanta got nothing on Cambridge. Okay folks, I’m not talking about people, but chocolate. Although Cambridge has become a bit more “beige” over the years due to more diverse cultures moving into the neighborhood, chocolate is still king.

Let me put it plainly, Sarah and I are chocolate fanatics. I probably wouldn’t pause for a second if someone offered me an intravenous drip of chocolate into my veins. England, not to mention Europe in general, is somewhat of a “chocolate paradise”. It’s Willie Wonka’s for adults. Every type of chocolate exists. Go into the average corner store and their chocolate selection looks like the cereal aisles in the U.S. supermarkets. It’s not only their chocolate, but all the other cakes, ice-cream, candy, cookies, croissants, etc that utilize this wonderful chocolate in the most ingenious ways. Even their KitKats taste better than ours. I wish I took more pictures of all of our chocolate adventures but below is a slideshow of some of our favorites.

[Show as slideshow]

Recently I’ve been reading a lot of articles on the housing market and how it’s been impacted by macro economic policy of the U.S. One article that stands out to clear the air on the roots of inflation and it’s so-called “archenemisis” deflation is Frank Shostak’s Is Deflation Really Bad for the Economy.

I spend a lot of time on mises.org. Not because all my ideas on economics fall in the so-called “Libertarian” camp, although I find many of my own views inline with many Libertarian views, but I can get straight non-partisan, non-baised information on what makes the global economy tick from the likes of mises.org.

It’s not for lack of trying to understand the “conventional” mainstream economic wisdom, but at some point you have to let go and look for greener pastures of understanding. So as we all know, the source of our economic woes was a huge bubble in real estate, prices soared beyond their intrinsic value, investors hedged their bets on those inflated prices and when the cheap credit and cash ran out, prices corrected themselves and we are now experiencing a dramatic price correction in the economy. Unfortunately we are experiencing a huge price correction on all areas of the economy because the real estate industry doesn’t happen in a vacuum. There are many industries that are tethered to real estate, so if real estate gets the “financial flu”, everyone else is going to get “financial pneumonia”.

As stated in the title of Shostaks’ article, “Is Deflation Really Bad for the Economy?”. Well..in the case of the U.S economy yes and no, but overall…No. It’s going to be bad for those individuals who were apart of those jobs in industries that experienced “bubble” prices. Meaning those prices weren’t real and any macroeconomic attempt by the Fed to prop up those inflated prices is a recipe for disaster. The prudent way to go is getting an asset back to it’s “real” price and not the fake “bubble” price. You can’t build off of something that was never supposed to be there in the first place. The “Great Recession” that you are seeing in the U.S. and other economies is a price correction. If there are pockets in the economy that are experiencing a value/price correction, then this is a good thing.

How is any economy going to experience any efficiency or proper recovery if you prop up areas of the economy that are correcting themselves? There are only x-amount of savings and investment resources in the economy and propping up “dead areas” of the economy will create artificial demand (i.e. housing) which is just another bubble. A bubble is just a misuse of resources, not something that is healthy for any economy.

I’ll close with Thomas Wood’s wonderful analogy from his book Meltdown: A Free Market Look at Why the Stock Market Collapsed, the Economy Tanked, and Government Bailouts Will Make Things Worse. No better explanation can sum up the danger that lies ahead if we continue to artificially maintain areas of the economy that deserve a value correction:

Consider a circus that comes to town for a few weeks. A restaurant owner may expand his seating capacity in the false expectation that the circus and the related demand for his food that it brings in its wake will last forever. But when the circus leaves town, he’ll find he has “idle resources” on his hands. We should not want to put these idle resources to work. Doing so would only draw labor and other resources away from other sectors of the economy, where they are employed in the satisfaction of real consumer demand. The expansion of the restaurant should not have occurred in the first place. We should want this bubble activity to shrink back down to size, in order that other, non-bubble activities in the economy can be correspondingly strengthened.

In the wake of a previous, unsustainable boom brought about by the central bank’s credit expansion, the market economy and its price system, left to their own devices, will adopt another arrangement of resources that employs available factors in the service of producing goods and services that correspond to real consumer demand. During the bust, free individuals interacting within the market nexus sort out which projects and business ventures are healthy and sustainable, and which are bubble activities that cannot survive without a constant artificial increase in the money supply, and cannot (and should not) survive now that reality has reasserted itself.

• Tooth Fairy Economics by Thomas Woods
• Our Insane System of mortgage finance? by John Papola
• The Fed Can’t Solve Our Economic Woes by Gerald P O’Driscoll Jr.
• Is Deflation Really Bad for the Economy? by Frank Shostak

I’ve been Muslim since April 2007, and I get a lot of questions about what it’s like to be a Muslim. Some of the questions are thoughtful, while others are more accusatory and xenophobic. However, with the all the media bias and misinformation taking precedence over the haqq (truth), I wanted to put this short list together for others to dig deep on what comes very natural to many Muslims around the world. I have also provided links that point to evidences on each ruling. For any learned Muslim brother or sister that can provide better links as evidences, please comment or send me a message via Facebook.

1. Men and women have to purify after going to the bathroom
Have you ever seen someone walking toward the rest room with a empty water bottle and said to yourself, “Eww, that person is going to drink water in that bathroom?”. Chances are they probably weren’t refilling to get a drink and more than likely are going to “wash up” after they go to the bathroom. Why? As Muslims, we are required to be pure and clean for prayer. Keep in mind we pray five times a day. You are praying in front of Allah, so isn’t it only right that every part of your mind, body, and soul be purified? I probably don’t have to get into the details of how this is done, but with a bit of imagination I’m sure you can figure out how water is used to purify oneself after going to the bathroom.
Evidence: Taharah (Purification)

2. We believe in Jesus..yes and Moses too.
Contrary to popular belief, Muslims believe in Isa (Jesus). As a matter of fact you cannot be a true believing Muslim if you don’t believe in Jesus as a prophet of Allah (SWT). He is one of the most well respected prophets and is mentioned many times in the Quran. As Muslims, we believe he is a prophet, just like Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) was responsible for delivering the word of God via the Quran, Isa delivered the word of God via the Injeel. (the original Bible)
Evidence: Muslims Hate Jesus (a misconception)

3. Eroticism is allowed, but only with your wife or husband
That’s right, there isn’t any boyfriend or girlfriend stuff in Islam. Many people gasp when they find out this fact. However, there is strong scientific evidence that suggests (meaning no silver bullet) that having “serial” sexual relationships before building a loving bond with your significant other can emotionally compromise the future of your relationship. For about a year, I’ve been working on a 4 part “Science of Relationships” post that will give some food for thought.
Evidence: Marriage and the importance of marriage in Islam

4. There is no Islamic ruling that allows you to beat the living sunshine out of your wife
Contrary to “ignorant” belief, you cannot beat your wife or any other women you know. The first thing that usually comes out of someone’s mouth is “What about Surah 4.34? It says you can beat your wife?”. No, you must have beat your head against a wall too many times. Unfortunately, you misinterpreted the verse.
Evidence: On Beating One’s Wife

5. Men and women must lower their gaze.
As a Muslim (especially men) you are not allowed to look another women up and down unless she is your wife. Same goes for women. You can look at your husband, but not other men. In the summer time, it’s not easy because many women and men are half-naked anyway, but you do your best. I actually started wearing shades because women (even though they see I’m married) try to make eye-contact with me to flirt. I’m not talking about an innocent gaze where you are looking at your surroundings. I’m talking about a “Yo, that girl got a fatty (nice body)” (while you elbow the dude next to you). It’s disrespectful and haram (prohibited).
Evidence: Hadith of the Guarantee by Abdur Rahman

6. Most forms of Music is prohibited
This is a highly contentious topic, even among Muslims. This topic is too deep for me to elaborate in several sentences but for the sake of time, I’ll provide several links that will give you food for thought. As a person who adored hip hop like a first son, this is not an easy task for me. Over the years it’s become easier for me to let go, and I can spend time on more important matters.
Evidence: Is Music Haram (prohibited) by Dr Zakir Naik, Music in Islam prt1 by Yusef Estes, Music in Islam by Yusef Estes prt2. Here is a post I did on music called the True Cost of Music by Malik

7. Most Muslims are NOT of Arab descent
The bulk of the Muslims (roughly 52%) are actually in the South, South East, North, Central Asia part of the world. Comprising around 50% of the entire Muslim population. Indonesia, which has the larget location of Muslims in any one area has a whooping 200 million Muslims! A close second and third, is Pakistan (167 million Muslims) and India (156 million). About 17% of all Muslims are of Arab descent.

34% of Muslims in America are of African Descent (African American and African)
Although the total number of Muslims in America has varied from year to year, but many staticians put the number somewhere between 5 to 7 million Muslims total where 30% are African American and around 4% are native Africans.
Evidence: List of countries by Muslim population

8. We are not interested in interest.
For Muslims, participating in making money off of money is completely prohibited. It’s actually a grave sin. For sake of this brief post, I’m not going to get into all the details but adding on money on top of already existing loan is akin to theivery in Islam. Profit is okay, but not from interest (Ribaa). In most forms of business, all transactions have to have a shared profit. Why? The risk is balanced on each person who is taking part in a business transaction. Handling business in this manner protects both business partners.
Evidence: Part I and Part II of The Case Against Interest By Abu Ubaydah Andrew Booso. If you have extra time you can read my scathing article against interest called Casino Capitalism. | VIDEO: Interest and Islamic Banking by Bilal Philips

9. Are most African Americans Muslims members of the NOI? (Nation of Islam)
I actually get this question a lot. Are you from the Nation of Islam? The best way I can frame this would be this. Is every green plant with a stem a piece of basil? If you can’t answer this question, then I will answer it for you: No. That doesn’t mean that there aren’t African Americans who are still members of the NOI. The majority of African Americans Muslims are not affiiated with NOI.
Evidence: Wiki: Nation of Islam

10. Jihad and Allah u Akbar does not mean I want to KILL you
Uh oh, did someone say the word “Jihad” and “Allah u Akbar”? Unfortunately the media has miscontrued the true meaning of the word “Jihad” and “Allah U Akbar” and most people have associated it with some type of code word for Islamic terrorism. Jihad is the Arabic word for struggle. A good Muslim friend of mine has the name Jihad. For Muslims, Jihad is to struggle to do the just and righteous things for the sake of Allah. This dedication to do what is required of you as a Muslim is our Jihad. Allah u Akbar means God is Great. Not “Let’s kill people” or “lets blow ourselves up”. During any 1 of our 5 daily prayes, “Allah U Akbar” is mentioned at least a dozen times. It’s very common word in Islam and merely reinforcing the greatness and beauty of Allah.
Evidence: VIDEO: Islam and Terrorism | What is Jihad? by Brian Handwerk

11. We get up before the roosters.
As I said earlier Muslims pray 5 times a day. One of the prayers is known as the morning prayer, Fajr. Fajr is supposed to be prayed before the light of sunrise hits the sky. I’ll be honest, it’s not the easiest prayer to catch, but when you do, the feeling is amazing. My day actually starts off better when ever I make Fajr on time. I’m actually utilizing this Ramadan to be better at catching Fajr on time, Inshallah (God willing)
Evidence: VIDEO: Importance of Fajr Prayer. This video is pretty long, but here is a shorter description that explains the Fajr prayer.

12. My ribs are touching
Yes if you ask any Muslim, their ribs will definitely be touching as Ramadan has just begun. Once a year, Muslims fast for one month. Known as Ramadan, we fast from sunrise to sunset. We are allowed a meal (suhoor) before the morning prayer (Fajr), then we break our fast with a meal (fatoor) at sunset at the beginning of the evening prayer (Maghrib). During this month, Muslims reflect on the greatness of Allah, ways that we can improve ourselves within the guidelines of Islam, and do our best to carry out good deeds that will postively benefit society. It’s also a time to reflect on the poor and sometimes forgotten souls of society. (which we should do all the time) Keep in mind that there are hundreds of millions of people around the world who are not as fortunate as ourselves (those of us who have the comforts of food, clothing, and shelter) and it is our duty as Muslims to help those who need assistance and guidance. At least 80% of the world live on less than $10 dollars a day. In addition most Muslim use this opportunity to fulfill one of the obligatory pillars of Islam, Zakat. Every Muslim (who has the means) is obligated to give at least 2.5% of their wealth (minus your debts) to the poor every year.
Evidence: What Are You Required To Do During Ramadan?

On Wednesday, June 23rd, 2010 an idea popped in my head while doing a intense chest and back exercise routine. At the time I was doing a routine that was somewhat of a hybrid of my own stuff and P90x. As a student of P90x, one of the amazing things is you build this immense strength that allows you to be quite imaginative in regards to new ways that you can “push your body” for maximum intensity. I mean…even when I went to San Fran for business and I was doing a short workout routine in my hotel room and I found my mind wandering with thoughts like..”Hey, I wonder what would happen if I curled that chair at the desk”…”Hmmm..maybe I can dead-lift this king size bed and get a workout out of it”.

However, one of my favorite curl routines is strip set curls. You can practically “strip set” any exercise and it’s starting out with a heavier weight and working the weight down as you do each set. In the case of strip set curls, I could start with 25-30 pounds dumbbells and max out my reps with that. Then move on to 20 pounds and max out my reps with that. Then 15 pounds, max out, then 10 pounds. No breaks in between. As soon as you hit your last rep, you move down to the next weight. If you’ve never done a strip set routine you might be saying to yourself. “What? 10 pounds, anyone can do that”. Yes, under normal circumstances if you started with the lower weight, it would be quite effortless. But when you do a strip set routine and max out on every weight, by the time you reach the lowest weight your body is screaming from the burn, pain and muscle exhaustion.

“Pushups Around the World” or P.A.W. is a simple strip set pushup routine. Basically you start with several difficult pushup up moves in a decline position, then move down to several moves in the incline position, then move to several plank pushups, and finish off with knee pushups. I would not advise doing this routine in the beginning of a workout. Strip set should be done at the end of your workout routine. It’s what I like to call a “closure”. You close with something that you can push every last drop of energy into and then your done.

Equipment:

1. Two equal height chairs
2. Two yoga blocks
3. Pushup bars
4. A big ole object to place on the chair to get to a deep decline pushup. I used a small and sturdy suitcase but you can use whatever you have available. Just make sure it fits firmly on the chair and it’s sturdy.
5. Exercise mat (optional)

The P.A.W. Routine:


1. Deep decline diamond pushup
Grab your chair and place your firm object on the chair to get a deep decline. In the diagram to the left, the hand position is a standard shoulder length width. In my routine I start off with diamonds. Diamond pushup are pushing together your hands until your pointing and index fingers touch, including your thumbs. Once you put your hands together, it should look something like a spade (think deck of cards) or diamond. Your hands should be positioned right below your chest area.

2. Standard decline shoulder-length pushups (pushup bars)
Remove the big ole object and continue to max-out on declines with just your feet raised on the chair and using a set of pushup bars.

3. Standard decline shoulder-length pushups
Maintain the same arm and hand position, but remove the pushup bars.

4. Standard incline pushup (yoga blocks)
Still using your chair, grab your second chair and place each yoga block on the inner left and right side of each chair. Place each hand firmly on each yoga block and go for it.

5. Standard incline pushup
Maintain same incline position, but now remove the yoga blocks.

6. Plank diamond pushup
Remove both chairs and go into a plank pushup with a diamond hand position.

7. Wide plank pushup (pushup bars)
Go into a wide length plank pushup with pushup bars. Keep your wrists facing forward, with your fingers wide apart. You can adjust how wide you want to go (try not to go too wide or you’ll tip over your pushup bars), but about two hand widths outside your shoulder should suffice.

8. Shoulder length plank pushup
Go into a shoulder length plank pushup without pushup bars.

9. Shoulder length knee pushup
At this point your arms should be on fire and you are probably begging for it to end. Try to end with a big finish on this one and push until you feel smoke coming off your arms and chest.

Conclusion:
Well that’s it. Keep in mind that you can mix and match hand/arm positions on any one of these moves from P.A.W. The above “closure” works for me, but you may want to throw in some one arm pushups, plange pushups, or even a “T-pushup” . The P.A.W. routine is pretty flexible, but as long as you maintain a “strip-set” pattern going from very difficult to easy, you should be good to go.

Props to my boy Elastic Dragon (TJ) for hooking me up with pushup graphics. Homey you did an amazing job.

Photo is by “Heart Throb Tawd”

What Not to Write: More on Bad Veil Headlines
http://muslimahmediawatch.org/2010/07/what-not-to-write-more-on-bad-veil-headlines/

The above article from Muslimah Mediawatch is by far one of the most accurate descriptions of the often misunderstood purpose of the hijab (known to many as “the veil”). Never have I seen such a piece of fabric become such a point of political bias, ideological conjecture and pontification.


Conclusion:
Mind your damn business—women who choose to wear the hijab are not oppressed and juxtaposing independence with the “oppresive” veil (as if they are complete opposites) is by far one of the biggest narrative fallacies out there.

Table of Contents

1. My Umbrella Story
2. Windproof Umbrella Conspiracy
3. Now tell me what windproof umbrellas and diamonds have in common
4. Conclusion
5. Related Sources

My Umbrella Story

I know these two products seem like quite the odd couple, but when I finish this post, you’ll see the similarities. About 3 or 4 years ago, I bought this great black windproof umbrella from the Walgreens right around the corner from my house. It was raining like cats, dogs, giraffes, elephants, tigers, and dinosaurs at the time so I was ready and willing to put down some good money for an umbrella, and when I say good money..um that’s about $15.00-$20.00 dollars. Normally I get those cheap-o street vendor $5.00 dollar “I’ll last about 10-minutes in the rain then evaporate” black umbrellas, and when it eventually meets it’s short demise I kindly dunk it in the nearest garbage can with the rest of the $5.00 dollar umbrellas that have been imploded or exploded by the wind or rain.

So I walk into Walgreens and I’m looking at the umbrellas. One side (left) has the the $7.00 – $9.00 dollar umbrellas and the other side (right) has the $13.00 – $15.00 dollar umbrellas. The umbrellas on the left side seem enticing because I know these umbrellas are better then the street vendors and that extra $2-3 dollars will be well spent. I then look over to the right side and see a set of windproof umbrellas and instantly forget I was looking the first set.. I give it a couple looks, test it out for a minute or two and I’m sold. I now own my first windproof umbrella. This umbrella was a champ. No matter how windy or rainy, it held up. No more inverted umbrella embarrassment, no more charging forward and jousting with my umbrella in the wind looking to attack the next pedestrian, and no more buying cheap umbrellas. I have officially upgraded.

A year later I mistakenly left that wonderful black windproof umbrella at a spot I used to get my locks re-twisted (at the time) and the young lady who does my hair (who now cornrows my wife’s hair) found it. I decided to part with my first windproof umbrella and let someone else reap the benefits. I’m pretty sure it was her first windproof umbrella and nothing would make me happier than passing down the legacy. So I go back to the same Walgreens to buy a new windproof umbrella and they only have blue and white (think New York Yankees). I really enjoyed my stealthy black windproof umbrella but I decided to go with the NY Yank themed windproof umbrella and I still have it till this day.

I know at this point you are asking..”Can we get the the diamond part already?”. Yeah, we are almost there, the finale is coming. Like most people you accumulate umbrellas at home because:

1. You forgot that it was going to rain today
2. You didn’t think it was going to rain even though the weather man/woman said it was going to rain (usually he or she gives a T-storm or isolated T-storm type of forecast and you say..”I won’t need it”)
3. You forgot your umbrellas somewhere. Normally when you go out you bring your umbrella because it’s raining. You reach your destination but when you are ready to leave it’s no longer raining. You are either going to remember “Oh its not raining let me bring my umbrella” or “Oh its not raining anymore [internal thought: I did not remember that I had an umbrella because it's no longer raining]

Then you get caught in a rain storm and you need something really quick. So you go with the cheap-o street vendor brand to prevent looking like you just jumped into a pool with your clothes on. Then you bring “I needed an umbrella urgently” no 846 home and soon the section where you keep the umbrellas looks like the area where people put their umbrellas at the door of a hotel. To your benefit, when company comes over and you need to go outside while it’s raining you can just pass them the cheap-o umbrellas while your “top notch top shelf” umbrellas remain in the special section that only you and your family know. It’s like a family secret. “shhh..don’t give them the good umbrellas”.

So a couple weeks ago…yeah you guessed it..I get caught in a rain storm with no umbrella. Damn you weather man. You should by hung, drawn and quartered for your weather prediction blunders. Sorry I digress. I go to my favorite Walgreens spot and I go straight to aisle 7 to pick up a windproof umbrella and to my surprise not one windproof umbrella. I’m shocked. I feel like a 3 year old kid that has been stranded in the airport. Now what? Okay, I’ll just go to your competitor Duane Read which is right around the corner and get it there. So I walk straight to the umbrella section and once again…no windproof umbrellas. I can’t believe this. I’m shocked. So I settle for some umbrella that is worst than the cheap-o street vendor umbrella but I have no choice. At this point, time is short and I don’t have the luxury to shop around.

So where did all the windproof umbrellas go?

Windproof Umbrella Conspiracy

To be honest I’m not sure where they all went. They went from being available like a kit kat in the candy section of any drug store to being scarce like looking for Scarface on VHS in BestBuy. However, I have a couple theories:

1. They fell out of fashion. Like any trend, there was a huge push then for some reason no one wanted them. A simple act of supply and demand. No malicious intent there.
2. Did those stores see a drop-off of their non-windproof umbrellas sales because the windproof umbrellas held up a lot longer? In my case, I usually have to buy several umbrellas a year because they get smashed by strong winds and rain. However, since I bought my windproof umbrella I haven’t had to buy another umbrella. It’s literally been 3-4 years. Let’s do the math:
   1. Hypothetical non-windproof umbrella sales if I didn’t buy my windproof umbrella:
      Roughly 2-3 umbrellas a year at $5-$10 dollars a pop for 3 years = $45-90.00 dollars. Now lets multiply this by several thousand because obviously I’m not the only one buying non-wind proof umbrella. Let’s just say 2,000 people for one store for each year. That’s anywhere between $90K-180K over 3 years.
   2. Hypothetical windproof umbrella sales using my windproof umbrella buying pattern in part a.
      So in 3 years I had to buy 2 wind proof umbrellas because I lost one. For the sake of this exercise, lets say the average person buys 1 wind proof umbrella at the price point I bought my windproof umbrella which was roughly $13 bucks over 3 years:
      1 wind proof umbrella at $13 dollars over 3 years = $13 dollars. Using the same 2,000 people for one store each year that’s 26K over 3 years.

   As you can see the hypothetical gross revenue of the windproof umbrellas is 40% less than the lowest revenue estimates for the non-windproof umbrellas and 85% off the highest revenue estimates for the non-windproof umbrellas.

   I was a lot more careful with my windproof umbrella because of the following reasons:

   1. It was extremely valuable/reliable (product value)
   2. I paid a little bit more so I didn’t want up another $13 bucks where $5 bucks (cheap-o non windproof umbrella) I felt less obligated to be responsible. Not to mention I knew it was going to implode any minute so my care for my non-windproof umbrella was a lot lower and reckless.(behavioral value based on price and quality)
   3. I was also less likely to forget my windproof umbrella at random places because it was a good umbrella.

Now tell me what windproof umbrellas and diamonds have in common

The point of this whole entire hypothetical economic exercise is to demonstrate several key economic and behavioral conditions that impact our buying decisions and patterns. In this scenario (I believe) windproof umbrellas and diamonds are both impacted by artificial or false scarcity.

In this specific case, I believe that windproof umbrellas are experiencing a certain type of “artificial scarcity” because it is less profitable at the low to mid-tier umbrella market to sell windproof umbrellas next to the non-windproof umbrellas. When I say “artificial scarcity” I’m stating that companies are purposely making the availability of windproof umbrellas more scarce because it is less profitable for them in regards to umbrella sales. My wife was just looking for a windproof umbrella and literally had to hunt every single pharmacy (i.e Walgreens, CVS, Duane Reade, etc) in NYC and could not find 1 windproof umbrella. She just happen to be in Home Depot at the time and on a whim looked for a windproof umbrella and found a few. Same price as the one I bought 3-4 years ago, $13 dollars. Even when you go to direct umbrella manufactures and suppliers windproof or wind resistant umbrellas are seldom mentioned. I’m not exactly sure if the distributers and suppliers are in direct “kahoots” with one another, but clearly the availability of windproof umbrellas has been minimized from the manufacturer to the distributer.

So in the case of the diamond industry De Beers buys up tons of diamonds off the market to lower the total amount of available diamonds globally, hence making them “artificially scarce”. Just imagine the natural amount of water that existed in the world was 5 trillion gallons. Then a water corporation, let’s call them De Water, would selectively buy hundreds of millions gallons of water out of the total 5 trillion gallons then put those hundreds of gallons in a water container. Over time the total available gallons would decrease hence making it scarce which means the price per gallon of water would slowly go up. In the case of De Beers just swap out water for diamonds and you’ll get a sense of what we are up against.

Since the late 1800s, De Beers has regulated both the industrial and gemstone diamond markets and effectively maintained an illusion of diamond scarcity. It has developed and nurtured the belief that diamonds are precious, invaluable symbols of romance. Every attitude consumers hold today about diamonds exists–at least in part–because of the persistent efforts of De Beers. Moveover, by monitoring the supply of diamonds throughout the world, De Beers has introduced and maintained an unprecedented degree of price stability for a surprisingly common mineral: compressed carbon. Such unique price stability lies within the cartel’s tight control over the world’s supply of diamonds. De Beers’s operating strategy has been pure and simple: to restrict the number of diamonds released into the market in any given year and perpetuate the myth that they are scarce and should therefore command high prices.

For more details on scarcity and marginality you can go to these great articles from Mises.org on marginality and artificial scarcity.

So simply, prices are impacted (excluding misnomers like government and cartel price controls) by the natural ease or difficulty on the availability, including cost of production, distribution, and manufacturing; of a particular product or resource. In addition there is also “subjective value”, which falls into the area of behavioral economics. (i.e. I prefer the windproof over non-windproff) In the context of diamonds, De Beers, who own roughly 60% of the diamond market have been accused of creating “artificial scarcity”. I don’t disagree with this accusation. They also put together one of the most successful marketing campaigns in history for their diamond business:

Over the last century, De Beers has been highly successful in increasing consumer demand for diamonds. One of the most effective marketing strategies has been the marketing of diamonds as a symbol of love and commitment.
A young copywriter working for N. W. Ayer & Son, Frances Gerety, coined the famous advertising line “A Diamond is Forever” in 1947.[31] In 2000, Advertising Age magazine named “A Diamond Is Forever” the best advertising slogan of the twentieth century.[32]
Other successful campaigns include the “eternity ring” (as a symbol of continuing affection and appreciation), the “trilogy” ring (representing the past, present and future of a relationship) and the “right hand ring” (bought and worn by women as a symbol of independence).

De Beers is also known for its television advertisements featuring silhouettes of people wearing diamonds, to the music of Palladio by Karl Jenkins. A 2010 commercial for Verizon Wireless parodied the De Beers spots.[33]

Conclusion

There are a multitude of psychological, marginal and environmental factors that go into a point of sale for any product. When products are sold there are a multitude of “micro” decisions and conditions that are related to psycho-science and economics. Or in this case, “neuralnomics”, if you will. Some of these decisions can be driven on a subconscious level. If you read how supermarkets sell their products, it reads like some white paper out of psychological science magazine. In many instances the line between psychology and business has become increasingly blurred.

As you can see I find the topic of behavioral economics and the roots of scarcity quite fascinating. You probably had no idea that something as random as windproof umbrellas have been brewing in my mind like this. Although this is a very simplified example, it’s just one example of how many variables can impact the sale of just one product.

• Thanks to Ads, Kids Won’t Take No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No for an Answer
• Tag Team: Tracking the Patterns of Supermarket Shoppers by KnowledgeWharton
• What Does Marginality Mean? by Robert P. Murphy
• IP and Artificial Scarcity by Stephan Kinsella
• From Louis Vuitton to the local street-corner brand, umbrellas tested. by Aja Mangum
• Predictably Irrational: The Hidden Forces That Shape Our Decisions by Dan Ariely

First things first, shoutout to Allah (SWT) for keeping me in the right frame of mind thought out this process. Shoutouts to all my family and friends who kept pushing me thoughout P90x. Big shoutout to all my twittereez out there who picked up on my tweets and kept me pushing play while bringing it! Shouts out to @krprice , @SeattleWorksOut, @P90XXXer, @ashleygbowden, @Fittuck3, and many others.

Well, Today is day 90 and I’m feeling pretty dang good. All the blood, sweat, exhaustion and ripping of muscle has paid off tremendously. This is just a guess, but I’ve probably lost about 15 pounds. Should of weighed myself earlier but too be honest, I didn’t think I was going to get this far. So the first thing you are probably thinking to yourself is “Where are the before and afters?”. As I’ve said throughout these 90 days, because of religious reasons and modesty I can’t. But in a month I’m going to demonstrate the power of P90x and I’ll be posting a video of me doing 5+ free standing hand stand push-ups. I’m in training now and will be working on it for the next 30 days while continuing P90x for another 90 days.

I bought P90x almost 3 years ago and it remained on the shelf for 2 1/2 years. The first time I did P90x and did the fit test I failed miserably. In ignorance I tried to do P90x and just couldn’t do it. So what changed? Did I train for 2 1/2 years to build up the stamina to do P90x? No. Did I find some youth elixir that gave me the strength to do P90x two years later? NO. What happened is I got out of my head and got the courage to “Keep pushing play” even if I stumbled. My failure wasn’t physical it was mental. Once I got over that it was better days ahead. For those who are currently doing P90x you’ll notice through out the program there are these “sticky” motivational quips that keep you going. “Set it and forget it”, “Keep pushing play”. “Do your best and forget the rest”, and most importantly “Bring it”..

So how did I do during the 90 days? Well I might have missed a couple days here and there. Yeah, I might have missed a recovery drink here and there. Maybe I cheated on the food a bit. Maybe some days I didn’t push as hard as I should have, but what I didn’t do is stop pushing play, and beat myself about missing a couple steps here and there. I kept pushing, made the necessary corrections, and kept bringing it. That’s what it’s about. KIM, Keep it Moving. On my last week I sprained my ankle missing a step coming of the subway stop, but did that stop me? No, didn’t do any program that were heavy with the feet, did upper-body for the week and when my foot was back to normal, did my plyometrics at the end of the week. What ever missteps I made during the first 90 days I’ll correct them in the next 90 days. The lesson here is that you are human. This is not a PSA to screw up intentionally but just keep pushing no matter what weaknesses or short-comings may happen. There is always tomorrow.

P90x allowed me to push my body to the limits. I wasn’t aware my body could do the things it does today. Many times my wife would see me drenched in a puddle of sweat and wonder if I took a shower with my gym clothes on or is P90x really pushing my body to it’s limits. At this moment I don’t need anything else. My gym membership would be cancelled if it wasn’t costing me such a small amount every month ($10 bucks a month at Planet Fitness). You don’t really need a gym membership if you have the room space and time to do P90x.

So what’s next? Well I’m going to start another 90 days of P90x, but I’m going to change it up a bit. After 90 days you get a sense of what areas are your weaknesses and strengths. I’m going heavy on a couple areas to build a bit more mass, but I’m still going to stay focuses on the cardio. Nothing compares to Plyometrics. It’s the ultimate fat burner.

For those interested, below you’ll find a list of every tweet I did for the 90 days. For those days that are empty I either could not get up because I was too tired, was sick, it was my rest day or was just plain lazy. (trust me it happens)

I’m looking forward to the next 90 days and whenever you have doubts about this, just “Keep pushing play”, “Bring it”, and always make it “X-like”. Good luck!

• Official Site from Beachbody: P90x
• Hexagon Dumbbell sets
• MaxMat™ 1/4″ Extra Thick, Extra Long, and Extra Wide Yoga and Exercise Mat
  (84″ x 36″)
• Kulae Hot Yoga Hand Towel Ocean
  (I know it might seem a bit insane to spend about $18 bucks for one hand towel but this towel is insane. The amount of sweat that will be pouring off you, you’ll need it. You can suck up the Atlantic Ocean with this towel)
• Recovery Drink Reviews

P90x Diares

P90x – Day 1. First day for P90x workout. Hoping I don’t end up in the hospital.

P90x – Day 2. Great, I didn’t put myself in the hospital. I’m still alive. Ready for Day 3 tomorrow.

P90x – Day 3…ending with Side Tricep Rises..Is this guy insane? Every day this workout gets better and better.

P90x – Day 4.. Yoga X was okay. I got some good stretches but it was pretty dang boring. I will probably substitute Stretch X for Yoga X.

P90x – Day 5. Umm..Single Leg Wall Squats. This cd is by far my second favorite next to Chest and Arms. Can’t wait for tomorrow.

P90x – Day 6. Had to substitute my Plyometrics cd because my Henpo X cd didn’t work. Still had a phenomenal workout.

P90x – Day 8 . After only one week I’ve increased my strength. I need to get more weight. Amazing program.

P90x – Day 9. Still pushing hard. I’m about to go pick up some Reebok Push up Bars which apparently are the Bentley of static push up bars.

P90x – Day 10. The great thing about P90x is it’s never boring. Up your weight & goals and it’s like working out for the first time. Bang!

P90x – Day 11. Did Stretch X for the first time and it was great. I have a new respect for the power of stretching. Legs and back tomorrow.

P90x – Day 12. I never thought after all these years (10+ years) of doing pull-ups that I could increase my pull-up strength Wow! 24HGW!

P90x – Day 13. Did Kenpo X for the first time. Starts off slow but my body was was broken as things picked up. Ab Ripper X tomorrow.

P90x – Day 14. Did Ab Ripper X for the first time and I realize my core is made out of mash potatoes. I’ll have to push hard to get better.

P90x – Day 15. Used my pushup bars for the first time and gave me the leverage to push hard and get those extra critical reps in.I’m amped!

P90x – Day 16. I have to blend my recovery drink in the closet so I don’t wake up the baby. I run an extension cord from the kitchen.

P90x – Day 17. One of my favorite moves for shoulder n arms is static arm curls and side tri rises. Killer!

P90x – Day 18. Did Yoga X from end to end for the first time. I actually enjoyed it this time. It is by far the hardest DVD from P90x

P90x – Day 19. Today is my rest day but I’m going to hit legs and back hard tomorrow.

P90x – Day 20. What a great workout. Nothing like pushing hard after a break. Two words. Recovery Drink.

P90x – Day 21. Had a great stretch routine with Stretch X this morning and the timing is perfect considering I did leg and back yesterday.

P90x – Day 22. I was a bit sluggish in the beginning of the workout, but pushed hard toward the end. Back and Chest is my favorite

P90x – Day 23. Plyometrics is like playing full court basketball on a court the size of a football field with lead sneakers and a steel ball

P90x – Day 24. Strength continues to go up. I can’t believe it how fast this is happening. I can’t get enough of static arm curls.

P90x – Day 25. Torso Twist, Crane, and Half Moon are just a few of the most insane positions that your body will ever go through.

P90x – Day 26. Got through single leg wall squats for the first time. Toe Roll Iso-Lunges busted me down.

P90x – Day 27. Kenpo X. I might add some light hand and leg weights to this. I’m going to contact the Beach Body folks on this one.

Day 28. Today is my rest day. Got my crazy exercise bands yesterday for my pull-ups tomorrow so I’m siked about getting more reps.

P90x – Day 29. I did not think I could do something that was more difficult than Yoga X. Core Synergistics sent me into another dimension.

P90x – Day 30. I’m 1/3 of the way through the program. I can’t believe it’s been a month. I’ve lost about 10 pounds and building nuff mass.

P90x – Day 31. Nothing like a good X Stretch in the morning. Tomorrow, Core Synergistics. Banana Roll should be called the Human Pain Roll.

P90x – Day 32. Once I can get through an entire session of plank to chaturanga runs then I know I’ve reached the zenith of P90x. Very tough.

P90x – Day 34. Today is my rest day, but Yoga X tomorrow.

P90x – Day 36. Last week was my rest week, and now these next 3 weeks is all about mass. It’s time to get busy, Flex Wheeler style.

P90x – Day 37. Jump knee tucks straight into Mary Katherine Lunges. Whew!. Get to finally try out my new pull-up bands tomorrow. Bang!

P90x – Day 38. Great workout today. Many people are astonished at how much weight I’ve lost. @P90x works. Bring it, son. What What! Nah mean

P90x – Day 39. Had my best workout yet with Yoga X. I can’t believe I was hatin’ on #Yoga when I first started this. Malik = Humbled.

P90x – Day 40. Rest day today and to be honest my arms so sore from yesterday that I would barely get through back and legs today.

P90x – Day 41. Today I had my best workout yet for legs and back. I was finally able to get through single leg wall squats. Bring it!

P90x – Day 43. Another phenomenal day. My friend is about to get started with the #P90x. Remember those last 3 reps are the ones that count.

P90x – Day 44. Just when you think you can’t push anymore,#P90x brings the best out of you.One of my favs tomorrow Biceps and Back.Bring it!

P90x – Day 45. I can’t believe it, but I’m halfway through the #P90x program. Had a great bicep/back busting workout today. Bring it!

P90x – Day 47. Had a rough start this morning, but was able to push through. Ab Ripper X time!

P90x – Day 49. You know..Ab Ripper X is one of the most painful ab workouts out there. Pain = Good.

P90x – Day 50. What an amazing workout this morning. My best yet for for chest, shoulders, triceps. My favorite next to back.

P90x – Day 51. #P90x tip. After you’ve reached your last 3 pushups (normal) [THE BURN], go on your knees and max out your reps [CRAZY BURN]

P90x – Day 52. I luv me sum strip set curls..burn baby burn. Still wondering if #P90x works? Yes, it does. What are u waiting for? Bring it!

P90x – Day 54. Been sick over the last couple days. Lots to make up. No P90x in the morning is like not having the sun to wake you up.

P90x – Day 55. After missing 2 days of #P90x(sick), then working out today..I feel relief like the tin man getting oiled for the first time

P90x – Day 57. Misplaced my P90x dvds cleaning up the house yesterday,but did an arm blasting 1 hr alternative #P90x like push-up routine.

P90x – Day 58. Forgot how mind blowing Core Synergistics is. I feel like I jump into a pool. Bring it!

P90x – Day 60. I can’t believe it. 30 more days to completion.

P90x – Day 62. Now that I’m reaching the end of my recovery week, looking forward to phase 3.

P90x – Day 63. Superman, Banana Roll, Plank to Chaturang Runs, Sphinx Push-up, Walking Push-up oh my. I dare you to try it! Yeah you.

P90x – Day 64. Nothing better than finishing up with Dive Bomber pushups. Yes!

P90x – Day 66. It’s amazing what a recover week (last week) can do to the body. Where did all this new found strength come from?

P90x – Day 67. Great workout this morning. Drenched and bringing it X-Like.

P90x Day 69. During my cool down I was think of a the cream of asparagus soup I made a couple days ago. ”

P90x – Day 70. 20 more day left. The count down begins.

P90x – Day 71. Two words: Bring it! (Ab Ripper X)

P90x – Day 72. By far one of my favorites. Chest and Back. More Dive Bomber Pushups please. Jeah!

P90x – Day 74. Took a break yesterday because my neck was strained but I’m back on track. Plyo + Ab Ripper X . “Drink your water people!”.

P90x – Day 75. Is there any reason why anyone still has a gym membership?….psst #P90x. Crunch, Ballys, NYSportsclubs are featherweights.

p90X – Day 76. There are two things that get me amped to keep pushing. #P90x and #bartendaz http://bit.ly/c6KJ0I

P90x – Day 77. Although this is my rest day, I did get to do some abs and practiced my free-standing push-up project.

P90x – Day 78. Was able to do plyo clap pushup for almost 10 reps. Goodbye ole regular clap pushup

P90x – Day 80. 10 more days till victory!

P90x – Day 82. Struggling today, but I’m still pushing play. Legs, Back and Ab Ripper X. Never give up!

P90x – Day 86. Now I’m in the stretch…finish line around the corner.

P90x – Day 88. Feeling gooooood today. I can smell the finish line. Dive bomber pushups does the body good.

In light of the recent Dr. Rand Paul discovery from the public that he (Dr. Paul) would have voted for the 1964 Civil Rights act, but would still allow private companies to determine (by their own criteria) who will patron their business, exists a certain type of duality that deserves some attention. Before I continue, lets look at the definition of duality:

being twofold; a classification into two opposed parts or subclasses; “the dichotomy between eastern and western culture”

So simply, you are straddling two views that oppose each other. so in Dr. Paul’s case he is against institutional racism, but would allow some form of it (he doesn’t realize he is doing this) to protect his “libertarian” (I’ll tell you shortly why this view is not libertarian) view that any involvement of the federal government negates the rights of private companies liberty. In one instance he strangely uses the 1st Amendment to support his view. Freedom of speech and freedom to act are two different things. We must realize that certain acts supersede other acts if the 1st act clashes with the 2nd act.

So now lets look at the definition of Libertarianism defined by David Boaz:

Libertarianism is the view that each person has the right to live his life in any way he chooses so long as he respects the equal rights of others. (Equal Rights of others…hmmm..sound familiar…oh that sounds awfully like the Civil Rights Act of 1964)

Hmm..can someone call Houston? Looks like we have a problem. Now regardless of how you feel about a particular person the key contradiction is allowing any company, individual or entity to discriminate against any well intentioned individual because they own a business, is in complete opposition to the underlying foundation of Libertarianism and the Civil Rights act of 1964. Am I missing something? Now we can have discussion on what “respect the rights” of other means, but denying someone their rights (to protect some ideological view of protecting the rights of private companies) so you can express your rights seems to be a contradiction.

Here’s another example:

In the Quran and related Hadiths it clearly states that all Muslims are prohibited from drinking alcohol. If I don’t drink alcohol, and participate in the production, marketing, distribution, and manufacturing of alcohol, am I still upholding my principles as a Muslim because I’m not literally drinking alcohol? For those suffering with the disease of duality, the answer would be Yes. And for those who don’t, the answer is NO.

Here lies the problem my friends. Dr. Paul and many of you out there…you can’t have it both ways my friend…although I know you want it like that.

That’s right, I don’t own a flat screen, I still have my old school 27” RCA Remote Monitor ColorTrak (Picture embedded in the post) that came with the Co-op when I bought it almost 4 years ago. It never went bad, so I never replaced it. Until that day comes, I’m rocking the RCA 27” till the tube explodes like a spark from those old school cameras that used flash powder (aluminum and potassium perchlorate) to light up the pictures. Unfortunately this post is not about my electronic frugality, but close to the topic at hand. Last night my wife and I attended Poetic, People and Power 8th annual show Price Check: How We Became a Culture of Consumption. Here’s a bio from the website:

Poetic People Power was founded by writer/performance poet Tara Bracco in 2003 to create an ongoing project that combines poetry and activism. Each year, a diverse group of poets are commissioned to write new works on a political or social issue. The new poems are then brought to a public audience in April to celebrate National Poetry Month. Poetic People Power entertains and informs. It raises awareness on specific topics and engages audiences through the expressive art of poetry.

Right now it’s 6:52am, and I’m postponing my P90x routine this morning to write about this, because I was so moved by the poet(s) poetry. This particular show was about the power of consumerism and how our society has become somewhat enslaved to an ideology of spending and debt. I touched on this topic in a post I wrote in 2006 called Slave to Fashion Dominatrix to Prices. This is not just about people who overspend, it’s also about the cost of living (healthcare, education, etc) skyrocketing and how wages have stagnated (relative to inflation), while pushing many of us further into debt.

In light of the recent financial crisis, this is extremely important. I cannot find the exact words to explain how last night’s topic is connected to the happiness and financial solvency of the average household, but I’ll leave you with this.

In the foreward of Tim Kasser’s book The High Price of Materialism, Richard M. Ryan summarizes Kasser’s research by stating.

Once people are above poverty levels of income, gains in wealth have little to no incremental payoff in terms of happiness and well-being.

Also check out this very eye opening and disturbing documentary on how our kids are becoming indoctrinated by a new culture of consumerism. I have 1 year old so for those parents out there, keep your third eye open.

Get informed, Get Active, and Become a smarter consumer!. There are resources below for those who are interested:

• Affluenza: The All-Consuming Epidemic ~ John de Graaf (Author), David Wann (Author), Thomas H Naylor (Author), David Horsey (Illustrator), Vicki Robin
• The Overspent American: Why We Want What We Don’t Need ~ Juliet B. Schor
• The Hight Price of Materialism by Tim Kasser
• Credit Card Nation by Robert D. Manning
• The Paradox of Choice: Why More is Less by Barry Schwartz
• Your Money or Your Life by Vicki Robin & Joe Dominquez
• No Logo by Naomi Klein

In the wake of the new maniac and psychopath of the month (i.e Joseph Stack who did a homicide-suicide plane crash into I.R.S. building in a failed attempt to kill hundreds to Faisal Shahzad failed Times Square bombing that could of maimed/killed hundreds, maybe even thousands) who in some twisted sense of righteousness believe that killing innocent civilians equates to some deed of salvation or proper retribution for past misgivings. These characters are some of the more obvious examples.

terrorism, act of terrorism, terrorist act (the calculated use of violence (or the threat of violence) against civilians in order to attain goals that are political or religious or ideological in nature; this is done through intimidation or coercion or instilling fear)

Here is my open letter to “The Terrorists”, current and aspiring psychopaths and cowards who might not have thought they “fit the profile”.

Dear Terrorists,(but not limited to)

The “loose cannon” who claim they are Muslim and follow the Quran and Hadiths in Islam who like to blow themselves up (and others) thinking (Allahhualim) that they are going to see Jenna (Heaven). You better go back to the deen of Al-Islam (if you haven’t already blown yourself up) and re-study because your eyes, ears and hearts are sealed with wickedness and the shaytan.
That’s violent terrorism.

Police officers and those in authority in the justice system who beat down and kill civilians mercilessly because you think they are expendable. You have the disease of cognitive dissonance towards those that you’ve concluded have an “otherness” about them which does not fit into your own cultural matrix.
That’s enforcement terrorism. (not to mention xenophobic and prejudice)

The executives and investment houses/banks/firms sitting in their ivory tower embezzling tens of millions and creating questionable investment instruments (money schemes) while undermining the integrity of the financial system. Impoverishing tens of millions for your own selfish benefit.
That’s financial terrorism.

For the murderers and killers who worship gang violence while killing people in your own community including innocent women and children because you want a quick drug profit.
That’s social and urban terrorism.

Those in the halls of Congress (politicians and law makers at the state and federal level) that play up people’s worst fears to usurp power and mislead your constituents with a divide and conquer strategy. Laying in bed with lobbyists and playing both sides of the political coin for your own one dimensional power grab.
That’s political and institutional terrorism.

For the country that goes into other countries claiming (lying) that another country has WMDs (Weapons of Mass Destruction) because so-called intelligent organizations with fancy acronyms “certified the facts” with a faulty threat matrix then mercliessly kills over 150,000 plus innocent civilians (45 9/11s) for almost 10 years while injuring millions then arrogantly occupies the same country creating more violence and misery for the citizens. Or any country that uses occupation as a foundation for foreign policy.
That’s sovereign terrorism.

For the governments and related banks that are in cahoots with one another who indulge in “too big to fail” bailouts and print money like it grows on trees while causing inflation and devaluing the dollar. Not to mention the draconian practice of fractional reserve banking and usury which buries people under so much interest that they are financially impotent.
That’s economic terrorism.

For the racist bigot (and many don’t even know they are and will read this and say, “Oh that’s definitely not me”….well not so fast, it might be you) individual that foolishly claims to believe in God but sympathies with their ethnic, racial, or tribal identity over the inclusive and humanitarian guidelines of all monotheistic ways of life. Now called religion. 
You are a community terrorist. (Not to mention a hypocrite)

For the so-called news organizations that are muliti-milllon dollar partisan hack misinformation “non-thinking” tanks that spew misleading, demeaning, information and purposely confuse the public with empty politically inspired anecdotes and regurgitate sound bites from their corporate/ political slave masters.
That’s information terrorism.

If there was anyone who thought any one group of people have cornered the market on “terrorism”, you have not done your homework.

“He who kills a person without (the latter) having killed another person, it is as if he has killed all of humanity, and he who makes one person survive, it is as if he has caused all humanity to survive” – (32,5) – Quran