October, it is in my estimation, will officially be henceforth known in my world as "Macho Month." And the reason I will consider it my own personal "Macho Month" is because I, your beloved Captain, has done no less than;
1. Replace a thermostat on my car
2. Replace a radiator in my car
3. Winterize 2 lawnmowers and a motorcycle
4. Install a wood burning stove and chimney at my house
5. Forage for at least 2 chords of free wood
All of which on my own.
Now you might say, "Cappy, I thought you were an economist and taught dance class? What's with all auto repairs and home improvement projects and everything? Shouldn't you adhere to the division of labor and specialize in economics and pay somebody to install a fireplace, fix your cars and store your motorcycle?"
And normally you would be right. But these are not normal times.
Understand that in these socialist times we live in today, it doesn't pay to work. The governments (state, federal and local) are estimated to expend 43% of GDP and this says nothing about the future promises of entitlements they've given to various special interest groups. Therefore if you're one of those working schmoes you're essentially slaving away for about half the year to pay taxes. And if you're one of those HIGH-EARNING schmoes, you're a veritable slave to the government for the majority of your working hours.
This is why you go Galt. Not that you choose to do this, but the government essentially makes any marginal pay you receive so marginal that it isn't worth the marginal time you must expend to earn what meager earnings the government will let you have. Therefore you find out how much you need, scale back your work and enjoy leisure time which (and this really pisses off the left) CAN'T BE TAXED!
Now the Captain has a fair amount of leisure time, but the problem in going Galt is that those who do go Galt are typically of the industrious sort and they soon get stir crazy. They're not the types to sit around and drink coffee at a coffee shop and then read THe Guardian while they talk to their liberal buddies about their manuscript for a play they wrote. They're people who know the value of work, have a strong work ethic and just can't sit still for more than a full day not doing anything.
The good news is that there are many things you can do that will not result in a paycheck, but will still improve your standards of living and essentially make it as if you have a tax free job. The most notable of these things are repairs and improvements.
If your car breaks down, you now face a problem. You have to give up some of your hard earned money to pay a mechanic to fix your car. The problem is doubled when the mechanic has to forfeit 43% of that money to the governments to pay taxes. In other words an exchange between you, the mechanic and the suppliers of any materials you might need, is now interrupted by a mafioso like government that insists you guys need "protection."
But if you've gone Galt, you have the one thing you need to avoid paying this unecessary protection money; time.
Oh, you may not be a great automechanic now, but just go on You Tube, look up what you want to repair or replace and usually there is a how to video ready and willing to hand hold you through the process. And in the end you've not only saved yourself a $400 repair bill, you also denied the government a $400 transaction which it cannot tax for it never happened.
There are also improvements to your household. The Captain is cheap. I have no problems letting the temperature in my basement go down to 32 degrees. I do this not to save the environment, I do this to save money. But as I thought about it, a nice wood burning stove would be nice to have. Not only would the basement stay warm, I'd save a LOT of money on gas, the pipes wouldn't freeze, AND I'd be emitting more carbon.
Again, I have a choice, do I spend the $5,200 I was quoted by the fireplace installation outfit? Or do I drop $1,500 on materials and do it myself? Sure, it took a week to properly install the flue, but in the end I saved myself $3,700 in labor therefore denying the governments the opportunity to tax that $3,700.
Now we could go on about how you can save money doing your own auto repair, improving your house, or doing your own computer repair, but the larger point is that to still produce while you "go Galt" the vast majority of your production is going to be in repairs and maintenance as these are things you can do on your own. You don't need the "double coincidence of wants" that is required for a barter exchange (besides which the government actually taxes you on the estimated barter transaction, not kidding, look it up). So while it is difficult for me to find say a dentist willing to trade dental work for dance lessons, I need no one to repair my house but me.
Now, since the majority of "Going Galt Work" is repairs and maintenance this practically forces you to become a macho guy. It's bumpy at first, repairing tires, changing oil, replacing a timing belt, but soon you're pulling out radiators, alternators, jerry-rigging things that were never meant to be but still work, installing fireplaces and cleaning out the carbs on your own motorcycle. You'll have grease and grit on your hands and under your finger nails. Women will look at you while you're dancing with them on the floor and say to themselves, "My goodness, not only is he a ballroom dancer, he repairs his own motorcycle and re-supported his house AND moded his own X-Box!" And soon not only will you be a rebel for going Galt and sticking it to the system, you'll be a macho Galt-Going rebel who will be able to do macho guy stuff with cars, the house, and the computer. And if they weren't already smothering you before, WOO HOO!!! Look out! THere's nothing more a lady likes and that going-Galt rebel who does auto repair, especially if he's an aspiring, junior, deputy or official economist.
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