Are Annuities Offered by Insurance Companies Safe?

The election is over but the economic and financial fundamentals have not changed. Nor is change expected until the bailout programs loosen the credit market, the recession (or worse) runs its course and economic downsizing reverses directions. Meanwhile, as I mentioned in this retirement blog, the market is unpredictably volatile, retirement accounts are down 40% to 50% from their 2007 highs and market investments are exceptionally risky. If consumers tighten their collective belts between Thanksgiving and Christmas as is forecast, expect a decided nasty turn in the stock market, shrinking jobs, falling incomes and corporate failures. Where is a safe place for retirement assets?

The part of the financial services industry that has largely escaped financial trauma has been life insurance companies. Granted, AIG Corporate failed but their troubles were not related to "insurance" but to unregulated Credit Default Swaps. The insurance subsidiaries of AIG suffered "guilt by association" but have maintained their financial strength rating as independent entities. 

No doubt these insurance subsidiaries will be the primary assets that are sold to repay the bailout loan extended to AIG Corporate by the federal government. You're probably asking questions about the solvency of the insurance industry and the safety of their products, especially fixed annuities. Let's take a safety tour of insurance companies.

First and foremost, insurance companies have an operating history of stability that is the envy of banks and brokerage firms. Their investments are limited to conservative, boring options that rarely carry inordinate market risks. The products they offer must first be approved by the state Insurance Commissioner to assure suitability for the general public and guard the insurance company's solvency. There have been failures - mostly small - that have occurred in troubling economic times. When failure seems likely or actually occurs, the home-state Insurance Commissioner swings into action armed with powerful regulatory might. Insurance 

Commissioners have the power to levy fees on other insurance companies operating in the state to pay for rehabilitation, merger or liquidation of failed insurance companies. This system has worked flawlessly, because not one insurance policyholder has lost a penny of their invested principal with an insurance company. Bear in mind, insurance companies have survived world wars, global depressions, scandals, government failures and stock market meltdowns. Americans have insured their homes, cars, health, life, business and retirement nest eggs without fear of safety.

What about fixed rate and index-linked annuities? Again, never has a fixed annuity holder lost a penny due to market losses. Not only is there a clearly stated guaranteed minimum rate of interest, but index-linked annuities offer the potential to earn extra if the market-linked index rises. What's more, if the market index falls - and that has been the case in the current market meltdown - the annuity is guaranteed not to lose value. 

In addition to no market losses, annuity owners get income tax deferral on earnings until withdrawal, protection from creditors in most states, probate-free transfers at death, the right to convert to a guaranteed lifetime income, penalty-free withdrawals to cover emergencies and total control over their money if circumstances change.

Fixed annuities, especially index-linked annuities, have gotten a bad rap from Wall Street in recent years, primarily because their popularity has taken mutual fund and variable annuity sales away from stock brokers. While the current meltdown has created massive losses for market investments, fixed annuities are loss free, earn a guaranteed rate at a minimum and will pay extra interest if the market recovers. Annuity owners are not postponing retirement, leaving retirement to find jobs or spending sleepless nights worrying about market losses. Savers will never get rich by choosing fixed annuities, but may very well stay rich.

Don't be surprised if the financial professional who introduced you to annuities calls and says: "your money is safe, and you have no losses - if the market recovers, you'll do even better". It might be a good time to think about converting more of your "market" money to fixed annuities. Stock broker don't have much good news these days because if you followed their advice you have massive losses. 

Of course, they are still giving you advice about where to put, or keep, your money - I suppose the theory is "the more they're wrong the higher the probability they'll guess right next time". I don't like that theory and neither should you. Safeguard your retirement money because "retirement is the largest purchase you'll ever make and you can't borrow the money to pay for it". Your retirement nest egg will pay for the last one-third of your life...safeguard it wisely.

Cancer Treatment - The New Promise of Hope

These days, oncology (branch of medicine dealing with the studies of cancer) proposes an enormous promise of hope, so far after the following guidance of the patient throughout harsh battlefield of surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy.

Side effects are to be anticipated such as; adhesion and surgical scars hair loses; weight reduction, immunity depression, sterility, nausea and secondary infections. After five years of survival, patient was believed to be cured no matter with the effects the treatment could bring to the general health of the patient. And the sad truth with these, large portion of cancer patients dies not because of the cancer but because of the effect and complications of the cancer treatments.

Diagnosis of cancer usually causes tough negative response to a lot of people; feeling of shame, terror or shock, and fatalism. The RFQMR gives us a new hope! When cancer is detected early on, this RFQMR procedure can offer an excellent possibility of remission minus the major side effects.

Cytotron therapy by means of RFQMR technology was a non-evasive, effective and safer option in treating tumors through arresting cancer cells partition that leads to degenerating tumor. Various clinical studies show that alteration in trans membrane potential of cells has a theatrical effect to the cells parameter together with the ion concentrations. RFQMR function helps to increasing of trans membrane potential of these cancerous cells commencing the problematical to a healthy range.

Several patients indulged during clinical trials have a fatal stage of the cancer and already lost their hope after some conventional treatments have failed them. After the RFQMR treatment, most of them feel the improvement of their life, they lived further than the calculated life span and some had even gone back to their normal lives.

RFQMR make use of radio frequency, low powered, non-ionized and none thermal electromagnetic wave. The major concern of this therapy is not about the instant damage of the cancerous cells, but somewhat, with the little amount of energy supplied to the cells in making the DNA's hysterical mitosis to stop. Set the cells in vegetative state then during apoptosis mechanisms permits the body to get relieved of those cancer cells with the controlled passion and the cells are programmed naturally for self destructing over the time.

RFQMR might be the choice in tumor cure for patients that are reluctant or incapable of having the surgeries, chemotherapy and radiotherapy or on whatever treatments had been failed. RFQMR rays are specifically focused to the tissues to modify the proton twist inside and out of the cells within the generation of pour out voltage potentials. This modifies the cell membrane which is potential in controlling cell mitosis.

For some patients diagnosed by a tumor with or without prior surgery, chemotherapy, or radiations, RFQMR changes the Cell Membrane Potential to selectively capture the cancer cell distribution and the tumor growth. Every cell has a restricted life extent and it is programmed naturally to die. Therefore, with RQFMR growth of these tumor cells will be arrested and will die without reaching the life's extent of their living. Then the death of these cancerous cells that had been arrested by the RFQMR will lead to a cancer -free body.

More and more people are being affected by cancer, either by getting cancer themselves or if a relative or friend gets it. Cancer puts fear in most people and very often it seems like there is no way out. Not only are conventional cancer treatments ineffective, but also dangerous and expensive. But there are cancer cures that are natural and non-toxic, which don`t destroy your body, but help to rebuild it.

Alternative medicine and the treatment of cancer

The question that a lot of ask themselves, is if there are effective and safe alternative cancer treatments, then why are not doctors using them? A huge amount of money is spent each year on cancer research and if there are safe and effective cancer treatments, then that would be a godsend. Yes, in an ideal world that would be the case, but everything is not black and white.

The best way to beat cancer is to work together with your doctor. The problem is that most doctors are not fully qualified to advice people on beating cancer, if they don`t educate themselves constantly about nutrition, microbiology, immunology, neurology, endocrinology, alternative medicine etc. Nobody can`t possible learn that much, so the more doctors that are experts in a certain field, give you advice, the better.

Drug companies are the ones that mostly fond doctors with research grants and curriculum materials in medical schools. Conventional medicine treats the symptoms of cancer with synthetical medication and that is not effective in healing people, but it is effective in making money. Every doctor has to walk on a very fine line and use treatments that are "acceptable," otherwise the doctor is in trouble. As you know the time you sped with a doctor, on an average visit is very short, maybe around a few minutes.

The goal for most people is to cure cancer effectively and certainly alternative medicine can help a lot. The more people educate themselves about alternative treatments and speak about them with their doctor, then the quality of the cancer treatments can only improve. The "Cancer Free" e-book by Bill Henderson, is a fantastic source of non-toxic cancer treatments and remedies. You can get that e-book and become an expert in alternative cancer treatments.

Cancer Treatments and the Death of Common Sense

We have a bizarre system in place today that says when someone is diagnosed with cancer we must subject the body to mutilating surgery, burn the body with nuclear radiation or we poison the body with chemotherapy to try and remedy the problem. All of which have life threatening side effects.

When a person is first diagnosed with a serious health problem like cancer, they are already undergoing a major health crisis so does it make sense to harm the body further in an attempt to remove these unwanted growths.

All cancers are self caused and all cancers happen for a reason and that reason is because of the way we are now living. A cancer growth is only a sign that the cells of the body didn't stop dividing when they were supposed to and surgery, radiation and chemotherapy are not going to fix that. A wise patient will first apply some common sense to the problem, something that is seriously lacking in today's world of mainstream treatments for cancer.

What people don't realize is we already have a cure for cancer and that is to use our bodies built in repair system that can reverse any health problem we may encounter. It's called the immune system and common sense should tell you it needs to be nurtured, not destroyed. This system is your body's powerful self healing organism.

What do you think has repaired the cuts, bruises, broken bone, colds, influenza and other illnesses you have experienced throughout your life? It's not your doctor; it's your immune system so why wouldn't it be capable of removing your cancer as well. The human body can, with the right conditions heal itself accomplishing what no doctor, surgeon or any other health professional could ever hope to achieve. Care and not treatments is the key and that is to facilitate the God given healing capacity that all of us have.

Our bodies strive to heal themselves automatically every single day. What you need to do to assist it is to remove the barriers that are stopping it from healing. It is these barriers that have caused the problem in the first place and that is what is called applying common sense to the problem.

Unfortunately money as usual plays a big part in what is on offer as cancer treatments today. The powerful cancer industry has total control over the market place including any treatments that doctors are allowed to use. We of course have blind faith in our medical system and mistakenly believe they hold the answers to all our health problems.

To heal yourself of cancer forever you need to step outside this system of toxic treatments and assist the body in healing itself which it will do.

A true cure for cancer will only be achieved when a patient stimulates their own body's defense system and there are only natural ways to do that.

If you ever gave company to a person who has been diagnosed by any type of cancer, his facial expressions can tell you how chronic this disease is. The word cancer refers to the rise of the tumors due to the uncontrolled distribution of cells. This harmful illness can be cured today but only if it is diagnosed with in time, otherwise this can lead to death. It was a common perception a decade ago that it can not be treated even at early stages of tumor growth. Now there are plenty of treatments available which help a person live a healthy and long life.

This terrible disease has many faces such as Skin cancer, Bladder, Breast cancer, Colon and Rectal, Lungs, Renal or Kidney cancer, Endometrial, Leukemia, Melanoma, and Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma, Pancreatic cancer, Prostate, Thyroid and Cervical cancer. Starting from the most common type that is skin cancer, this harmful disease is formed around the cells of skin. This skin disease is most common in the areas where people are more subject to harmful rays of the sun.

Bladder cancer, this infection forms its roots in the bladder of the host; the muscles of the bladder are affected by it. Breast cancer is developed in the ducts of the breast. This cancer is most commonly seen in women however men can also develop this form of infection.

Colon cancer arises in the longest component of the large intestine. It is developed in the tissues of the intestine releasing mucus and other fluids. Endometrial cancer is a specifically develops in the female uterus. As its name suggests kidney cancer is formed in the kidney. However to be more specific this infection arise in the small tubes of the kidney which separate waste material from blood. Leukemia is the blood cancer that arises in the bone marrow and results in unnecessary formation of blood cells into the blood stream.

Non Hodgkin Lymphoma is developed due to the unnecessary growth of white blood cells in the body. Prostate cancer is the cancer in the male penis. There are many types of cancers and forms. Cancer can be malignant carcinomas (the one which starts its formation from the tissues).

An Introduction to Color Theory For Painters

Color is a very broad topic. Entire books have been written on color and it would be quite difficult to cover every aspect of it within the confines of this article. My hopes with this introduction to color theory is to peek your interest and hopefully cause you to study this topic further on your own. Understanding color theory is perhaps one of the most important aspects of becoming a good painter. When you understand the elements of color and how colors interact with one another, you have unlocked one of the biggest puzzles of painting.

WHERE DOES COLOR COME FROM?

Our beautiful world of color is only possible because of the solar spectrum. You can certainly do your best to mimic natural sunlight with today's technology and they have done a pretty fine job of that with full spectrum lighting. But even full spectrum lighting is not as true as sunlight. One only needs to spend a day painting outdoors to see how your color pops out at you under natural sunlight when compared to indoor lighting.

So what exactly makes a rose appear "red" or grass appear "green". In the green grass, you are only seeing green because the grass has pigments in it that absorb all colors of the solar spectrum except green. So green is the color that is reflected back to your eyes. The same holds true for the red rose, only the rose absorbs all colors of the spectrum besides red.

THE COLOR WHEEL

Sir Issac Newton laid the foundation for today's color wheel with his experiments that began in 1666. Since then, many variations have been developed. A color wheel is essentially a diagram that represents the colors of the visible solar spectrum. Your basic color wheel consists of six colors: red, orange, yellow, green, blue and violet.

Another popular color wheel called the Munsell color wheel, is slightly more involved. Instead of 6 basic colors, the Munsell wheel consists of ten colors: red, yellow-red, yellow, yellow-green, green, blue-green, blue, blue-violet, red-violet and violet.

PRIMARY COLORS

The primary colors are red, yellow and blue. These colors are your base colors from which all other colors come from.

SECONDARY COLORS

When you mix two primary colors together, you get a secondary color. The secondary colors are orange, green and violet. Orange is made by mixing red with yellow. Green is made by mixing blue and yellow. Violet is made my mixing blue with red.

TERTIARY COLORS

Tertiary colors are made by mixing one primary color with one secondary color. For instance, mixing the primary color blue with the secondary color green, will give you a tertiary color called blue-green.

COMPLIMENTARY COLORS

These are colors that are opposite from one another on the color wheel. Red and green, blue and orange, yellow and violet, are examples of complimentary colors. Complimentary colors are colors of extreme contrast. When used together in a painting, they can produce brilliant vibrant images.

ANALOGOUS COLORS

Analogous colors are colors that are close to one another on the color wheel. They more or less will produce harmonious effects with very little contrast. For instance, a violet, red-violet, and blue-violet are examples of analogous colors.

HUE-VALUE-INTENSITY

Hue: Without getting too technical, and to put things into laymen's terms, hue is just another word for color. For instance, grass and leaves are two variations of a green hue.

Value: Value refers to how light or dark a color is. Colors like pink or aqua are identified as colors of high value. Colors like maroon and navy are identified as colors of low value. If you produce a painting with predominately higher values, the painting is referred to as a "high key" painting. On the contrary, paintings produced with predominately lower values, are referred to as "low key".

Intensity: Intensity refers to a colors brightness or saturation. Intensity refers to how pure a color is. For instance, if you were to use cadmium red straight from the tube, it would have a high intensity. If you were to mix it with another color however, its intensity would be diminished.

TEMPERATURE OF COLOR

Colors have temperature, referred to as warm or cool. In painting, reds, yellows and oranges are referred to as warm colors and blues, violets and greens are referred to as cool colors. One of the biggest lessons you will ever learn about color temperature though, is that the appearance of color can change drastically depending on its surroundings. For instance, a certain yellow would appear much hotter if it were surrounded by a violet then say an orange. Another important lesson in color temperature: Warm colors will advance in a painting and cool colors recede.

Watercolor Technique - Painting From Your Soul

I happened across a wonderful window as I wandered the cobbled streets of one of my favorite ancient Provencal villages: Saint Paul de Vence. The decaying shutters and time-worn paint on the windows spoke to me of the rustic character so very evident in this evocative part of the world.

The amusing thing was that there, in front of the window, was a rubbish sack - which I hastily moved along the path! Dusted off my hands then plucked up the courage to knock on the door. No-one home - I stood mesmerised for some time - lost in my world of composition and emotion.

I felt this scene was welcoming us in - so to heighten that sense I opened the shutters wider all the time hoping beyond hope that a face wouldn't appear at the window! The angle from which I chose to paint dictated the angle of the left shutter. The right shutter acted like a guide rail and leads us into the mystery behind the window. I wanted to emphasize the rustic nature of this scene. The finishing characteristic was the fine cord on which the old lace curtains hung bunched up allowing us to imagine some of the mystery within.

When I look at this painting - it transports me back to that little village I love so much and I can feel the warmth of the sun, I can smell the aromas of the Provencal countryside and I can almost hear the birdsong in the air. So that is what it is all about - emphasize the essential character and you will create a feeling, a sense of 'being there'.

Of course I could have included the entire house in my composition. But why would I, when this cropped scene allows us to share for just a moment - a very special - private place. A momentary glimpse allows us a small insight to the lives and the character of these people and creates the intriguing mystery - what lays beyond?

What a wonderful subject for a watercolor!

My style of painting is all about feeling - emotion. It's about capturing that magical moment in time when the truth and sheer beauty of nature makes you catch your breath. You know the one - I think as artists, we have all experienced it. You wander around a garden, your eye is attracted to a flicker of light and you see - for a moment - an enchanting radiance as the light dances across the surface of a petal or glows luminously through a leaf. And you know that you have to capture that joy in your work.

Have you ever gazed at a dewdrop as it emits shards of shimmering refracted light? As it is poised precariously on a petal, the slightest breeze will lift the curtain on the play - and in your mind your can picture the ensuing events. Capturing this moment will bring movement and energy, expectation and life to your painting. I like to get up close - a bees-eye view - and take the viewers of my work right into the character of my subject - I want them to 'know' my subject.

I try to take this feeling - this unfolding story, and with it, bring the viewer of my painting into that world - my world - the world inside the frame. To do this, I suggest you analyse what it is about your subject that has you spellbound. Ask yourself - is it the shimmering light, is it the refracted shards, maybe it is the angle the dew drop is on - indicating the breeze has made the stem sway gently causing the dewdrop to lilt. It's all these things - and the best way to emphasise this is to get up close and personal.

It is an instinctive thing for me and I decided that if I wanted to grow as an artist, I had to learn to analyze what I do and why.

We never stop learning and that's what is so rewarding about painting. It's a journey that is forever leading us down new paths, revealing new directions. We must never be afraid to take these paths and experiment. Keep an open mind - try new things. Decide what it is that is the very essence of 'us'. Now that is what we need to paint. Paint what moves you, and you will feel complete and it will show in your work.

Believe in yourself and paint from your soul. Paint the subjects that you are passionate about. With this combination you will find that not only are you sharing a part of yourself with others, you are stirring emotion in the viewers of your work. It is this that people remember, not how cleverly you have painted something, not how precisely you use your brush. No - it's the way your vision has reached out of the painting and engaged their emotions, allowed them to become absorbed and bewitched by that moment you have suspended in time.

What Is The Dry Brush Painting Technique?

What is this technique used for? The dry brush painting technique is used to give paintings more texture and to make them look like they've been done on a much rougher surface; the surface also looks as if it's been scratched quite a lot. If you're using water-based media, including watercolours and acrylics, using this technique on something in the painting can give it prominence because it contrasts with the rest of the painting.

What type of paint should I use it with? The great thing about this painting technique is that it can be used with all three main types of paint (acrylics, watercolours and oils). Of the three main types of paint, acrylics and watercolours are probably the best to use this technique with because they dry quite quickly. Because oils take a lot longer to dry, you have to wait a lot longer for the paint to dry before you can blend or brush over strokes you've already made. Is there anything else I should know? This technique is really well suited for watercolour paper, especially paper that's already got quite a rough texture to it. To get the best out of using this technique, it's suggested that you use a round brush, not a fine point one. By using a round brush, the paint is being spread round more, whereas with a fine point brush, the paint's going to be applied in lines, which makes this technique's effects less noticeable.

How do I do it? Make sure your brush is completely dry and is free from any oils or solvents. Load it up with paint, then blot it several times on to a paper towel. Make sure the support you're applying the paint to is completely dry. When it comes to applying the paint to the support, you should do so very lightly, as if you're just skimming over the surface. Keep creating strokes until there's hardly any paint left on the brush, then it's time to reload the brush. If you want to add more colour and depth to a stroke, wait until it's completely dry and then go over it using the same steps you did for the first one. Oils are probably not the best choice for this technique because they take so long to dry; if you want to be able to go over your work, you should use acrylics or watercolours.

Get On Your Good Foot

When you step out in life and have courage, make sure the thing you step out on has a definite heart, powerful soul and driving spirit in it. Reality to be worth anything has to have a great foundation, or start out on a "good foot" so to say, or be nothing. To say the least indeed, we all need a goal that motivates us genuinely, sure. Something more is needed though, call it genuine self-esteem, realistic quality and spirit or whatever. I will just start out with something more than just to have a great goal is needed. We can have the greatest goals and all the great backing in existence and still genuinely and horribly fail if we do not start out with the right premises within. What I mean by the right premises is to start out with the right spirit really, though. I cannot repeat that reality in different ways enough. At best, we do get off on the good foot with the right backing and all. At worst, we can have everything in line except for the right heart and spirit.

Why do you think Bill Withers (William Harrison Withers, Jr.) retired from music at the height of his fame and did something else like real estate successfully so many years ago? I am saying, however successful you are at something, if the heart of the power is gone or the fruit of joy has dried up in it, you have to move on or it is worse than failure. It is a dead horse with rigor mortis being whipped "back to life" and no matter how much those dead muscles move, life and consciousness is not coming back into that horse. So, a theory of mine: Here is how eternal life starts out, it starts out with you doing something you love to do forever, and genuinely love to do without retiring or quitting, especially something you love doing on a Friday night that you genuinely love to do. I do not just mean that, of course, I mean an eternity of doing things you enjoy and love productively. After all, a labor of love is where life truly, honestly and genuinely begins anyhow.

Doing things you hate or genuinely fear is where life ends, however much you "get" doing them. This is a rather extreme example, but why do you think assassins get lots of money for taking a life and then cannot enjoy the money genuine or a con person steals a lot and cannot enjoy what they steal? When you are in the natural flow of enjoyable, productive life, it means everything. Negativity and evil mean nothing really except for a bad headache at the least, and death at the most. So, getting off on a good start and a "good foot" is always the way to go or nothing. My name is Joshua Clayton, I am a freelance writer based in Inglewood, California. I also write under a few pen-names and aliases, but Joshua Clayton is my real name, and I write by that for the most part now. I am a philosophical writer and objective thinker and honest action taker. I also work at a senior center in Gardena, California as my day job, among other things, but primarily I am a writer.