Category: money

MGTOW Encourages Feminism

~ shannoninkansascity ~ 2 Comments

OK seriously I am getting better.  I’m not watching near as many MGTOW videos on YouTube as I was.  I’ve been marking videos off as “not interested” when they appear in my recommendations, blocking MGTOW channels and mercifully I think I may have gotten blocked from a few of these channels.

But once in a while a video from the He Man Woman Hater’s Club pops up and I can’t help but indulge.  The MGTOW (Men Go Their Own Way) crowd abhor feminism and blame it for a lot of society’s ills.  However, they unwittingly encourage it with their attitudes and behavior towards women.

MGTOW gentlemen do not want to commit to women, co-habitate with them or raise traditional families.  They do not want to share their resources with women.  They are not even nice to women or like them.  It sounds to me that if a woman is smart she had better be able to make her own money and not be dependent on anyone for her survival.

MGTOW believes that women should seek out husbands and become mothers after high school.  If they had it their way women wouldn’t even finish high school and they would just become wives, or something like that when they are young teenagers.  But MGTOW believes that women are over the hill or “hit the wall” meaning they are undesirable and probably unable to have healthy children at thirty years old or not before.

These men do not express any love, affection or loyalty to any women.  So once they have used a woman for her youth and child bearing potential I’m not sure if they would honor their commitments as husbands.  MGTOW doesn’t speak much about raising families or creating legacies through family.  They only talk about women for breeding purposes like they are show dogs.

Most people live far beyond age thirty so women had better be prepared for that part of life because that lasts far longer than the PYT (Pretty Young Thing) part lasts.  Just like Judge Judy says, “Beauty fades, dumb is forever”.  And men are fickle.  If you don’t believe me just search out a MGTOW article on YouTube.  If you’re a single woman it will make you more focused and ambitious than ever before.

Beauty-Fades-Dumb-Is-Forever-Quote-By-Judge-Judy_408x408

One of the shortcomings of making marriage your end all be all is that even if you marry a great person and have a wonderful relationship people die.  Even if your spouse leaves you comfortable financially which MGTOW has no interest in doing, you will undoubtedly be left lonely and in the same condition as the cat ladies that MGTOW maligns.

It’s interesting to me how people manifest more of what they hate.  If MGTOW really wanted to prove to women that they were missing out on something they would choose a woman that they consider virtuous (they have a very thin line for what they consider to be a virtuous woman so good luck finding her) and treat her like a queen.  Instead that they speak about women horribly, flaunt their own bad habits and judge women for being human.  Who needs that?

Real Talk: Money Saving Tips

~ shannoninkansascity ~ Leave a comment

I read a tweet a month or so ago from a millennial asking Generation X and Baby Boomers for financial advice.  I answered the tweet without actually answering the question.  I told her that I felt like most financial advice that I’ve seen given in the media is usually geared towards people with fairly high incomes so I can’t advise anything without knowing her situation.

I’ve often been frustrated by financial advice given through the media because it is usually unrealistic for people who make less than $70,000 annually.  Suze Orman expects people to have tens of thousands of dollars in retirement by thirty five.  I remember her telling someone on her show once that they just need to make more money as if it was that easy.

Most young Americans spend their youth paying back debts and have no opportunity to save for retirement or a home.  I’ve heard financial advisers tell their audience how to get the best interest rates on a mortgage.  Well if you are in the market to buy a home or retire you’ve already crossed a certain income and savings threshold.  There isn’t much advice out there for people that need it most.

But I have some financial advice for those with modest incomes.  I’ve never made a great deal of money but I’ve managed to accomplish a lot with what I have.  I got a second Bachelors degree.  I’ve travelled out of the country twice.  I’ve taken my mom on a few nice vacations.  I’ve bought a few cars.  And it’s not a problem for me to treat a friend to dinner once in a while.  I’ve never really been broke.

I will start with the only financial advice I’ve ever heard on TV that anyone can follow.  Many years ago Oprah aired a series on financial responsibility.  She had a man on the show who simply said, “Pay yourself first”.  He said no matter what you make or what you owe take a bit of your earnings and save it for yourself.  It really does work and we can all do this.

Learn to cook.  I’m far from a culinary expert but I have some skills in the kitchen.  If you don’t know how don’t worry, if you can read and follow a recipe I promise you that you can cook.  Cooking saves you from eating out which is very expensive.  Even fast food and convenience items from the store is expensive.  Learning to cook simple meals will save you money and will probably improve your health.

Clip coupons.  People kind of laugh when they see the coupons in my purse but I have learned that there are certain items that you never, ever have to pay full price for.  The Sunday newspaper consistently has coupons for toothpaste, body wash, cosmetics, feminine hygiene products, toilet paper and paper towel.  Retailers like Walgreens and CVS have their own coupon programs which can be coupled with your newspaper coupons.  The savings over time are significant.

Coupon with a purpose.  Coupons can be a double edged sword.  I am on the coupon list for a few retailers that I frequent.  I’ve saved money at clothing stores because of the coupons they send me.  Some retailers send coupons regularly and I feel like I need to use the coupon or else I am wasting money.  But the truth is I could save %100 by not buying that item.  Coupons only save you money if you were going to buy the item anyway and you can apply savings.  If you are just buying something so you can use the coupon you are wasting your money.

Shop with a purpose.  I’m an impulse buyer and I rarely have regrets.  So my personal policy is not to window shop because I can’t.  I will always find something I like and I won’t want to walk away from it.  Even if I leave the store without whatever item caught my attention I’ll come back for it next week.  I stay out of stores unless I am prepared to buy something and have the discretionary income to do so.

Don’t waste money buying money.  ATMs often have fairly high fees to get cash from their machine.  Use your own banks ATM or get cash when you shop with your debit card at the grocery or drug store.  Avoid charging more on your credit card than what you can afford to pay in a month.  Paying the interest on a credit card is a real drag especially if you only make the minimum payments.

So there you have it.  There are a few of my thoughts on maintaining a budget and saving money.  You can make a little go far with a good game plan.  Good luck.  Go out there and prosper.