Measured Against Gold, US Dollar Purchasing Power Drops By 99.9% Sometimes a graph shows it best: The Size of the Problem Pierre M. sent: Could Prepping Become Illegal Here Too? Venezuelan Gov’t To Detain “Hoarders” Items from The Economatrix: How To Build Wealth In This Economy: “Rattle Snake Investing” De-Crowning The Dollar, And The ‘Collapse’ Ahead Kiss The Dollar Goodbye
EU leaders to set tight timetable on completing banking union Reader M.M.E. like this piece at ZeroHedge: Shocking Clues What America Will Look Like When Next Great Economic Crisis Strikes G.G. flagged this: Study: 15 Percent of U.S. Youth Out of School, Work Also from G.G.: How the Dollar Could Eventually Collapse
Steve in Georgia liked this commentary from Bill Freeza, at Forbes: The International Monetary Fund Lays The Groundwork For Global Wealth Confiscation. Steve says: “This reminds me of the taxes levied in the movie Popeye.” AmEx (American Expat) suggested this state-by-state data: How Will You Fare in the Obamacare Exchanges? Marc Faber: Fed could up QE to $1 trillion a month Items from The Economatrix: The Carlyle Group’s Latest Investment… Trailer Parks Hospitals cut thousands of jobs
Faber: Fed’s QE Causing ‘Colossal Asset Bubble’ (Thanks to B.B. for the link.) Andre D. sent: Down and out: the French flee a nation in despair. Mike Williamson wrote to mention that it is pitiful to see young Frenchmen actively seeking job experience in Vietnam, because of the relative economic freedom versus socialist France. Also from Andre: Barroso in urgent push for extra €2.7bn Commission budget – EC no longer able to shoulder financial obligations, says parliament president Items from The Economatrix: Maguire Predicted Gold Surge – Now Says West Is Collapsing The Frightening Reality About What Is Happening In …
Not too late to register! Nampa, Idaho Appleseed October 26-27, 2013. (BTW, you’ve got to love a state where television stations list events like that, at their web site. Somehow, I don’t think that would be likely for a television station in New Jersey.) o o o Wyoming apparently got a bad “homophobic” rap, in the much-publicized death of Matthew Shepard. In The Book of Matt: Hidden Truths About the Murder of Matthew Shepard, the author documents how Shepard’s death was at the hands of another man with whom he’d had sexual relations, and was about retribution in an …
S. recommended: Imperial Understretch and the Fall of Great Powers G.G. suggested: U.S. debt jumps a record $328 billion in a single day — tops $17 trillion for first time Items from The Economatrix: The US Cannot Avoid A Soft Default Even If A Hard Default Is Avoided: Debt Ceiling Already Breached And US Treasury Operating In Emergency Mode While US Is Paying $415 Billion In Annual Interest Expenses. Nothing Left To Financially Lose: Biggest Drop In Confidence Since Lehman Brothers And Why Some Are Unmoved By Government Shutdown. Government shutdown took $24 billion bite out of economy
The recent political crisis over the delayed raising of the U.S. debt ceiling was just a precursor of a much larger crisis that will occur when interest rates inevitably rise. Once they do rise, it will become impossible for the Federal government to service its debt without massive monetization and concomitant mass inflation. There may also be some draconian stopgap measures such as levies on bank accounts (a.k.a. “bail ins”), nationalization of private pension funds, nationalization or forced common stock purchases for IRA and 401(k) plans, currency controls, bank holidays, bank withdrawal limits, currency recalls, limited access to safe deposit …
Interest rate turmoil again affected holding company trading revenues heavily in the first and second quarters of 2013. According to the latest report from the U.S. Office of the Compttroller of the Currency (OCC), rate trading derivatives losses were $3.018 Billion in 1Q 2013 and $3.804 Billion in 2Q 2013. It is noteworthy that the present-day casino in credit derivatives has built up in the era of ZIRP, where interest rate changes have been miniscule. The losses reported in the first two quarters were apparently triggered by the unexpected rate moves of less than 20 basis points. (Two tenths of …
I often have readers and consulting clients write to ask me about establishing family trusts. These are used to shelter assets including land, houses, vehicles, and firearms. In the context of present-day America, one of the goals of any good trust is anonymity. So I recommend that you pick a generic “vanilla” name that is innocuous and that is un-related to your family surname, your locale, the nature of the included assets, your politics, your religion, or your personal interests. The goal here is to have name that won’t trigger suspicion or scrutiny. Some good choices would be “The Hallifax …
Insider: Supermarkets Have Less Than One Day Supply Of Food On Hand RBS sent a link to some fascinatingly detailed information: Farm Subsidy Data. RBS says: “The database tracks $256 billion in farm subsidies from commodity, crop insurance, and disaster programs and $39 billion in conservation payments paid between 1995 and 2012. Just enter your ZIP code and you will find who has taken subsidy money from the Feds.” Worth ranting about: Dylan Ratigan speak up about U.S. government obligations. Items from The Economatrix: Complete Collapse & Economic Meltdown Will Shock The World Why The Gold Surge Is Just Starting: …
ZeroHedge reports: Creeping Capital Controls At JPMorgan Chase? Bob in Virginia liked this piece: Two views of our current economic and energy crisis Commentary from The Money GPS: QE3.5? ~ The Fed’s New Scheme. Don’t miss his comments at 2:08 on total long-term government obligations. K.N. sent: China’s soaring fiscal deficit rings alarm bells Items from The Economatrix: Jim Rogers Blasts “This Is Going To End Badly… And The Rest Of The World Knows It Early Stages of Hyperinflation Next Year-John Williams Slowly At First, Then All At Once
Lack of Economic Data Hiding True Health of Housing Market The Baltic Dry Index (for transoceanic shipping rates) is still in the dumpster. H.L. sent: As U.S. averts default, Japan and China brace for next dollar drama And for some humor: Hitler Learns About the Obamacare Exchanges Items from The Economatrix: The Sun Is Setting On Dollar Supremacy, And With It, American Power Gas Prices Could Dip Below $3 by Year-End Ron Paul Fears The Future Under Janet Yellen “Is Grim Indeed”
New Jersey Island Won’t Get Its Landlines Back After Sandy Because Copper Is Too Expensive. [JWR Adds: It might be less expensive for the phone company to provide a 3-watt PV panel and DC-to-DC phone charger for each customer!] K.A. and Michael C. both sent this Zero Hedge link: Foodstamp Program Shutdown Imminent? The global copper supply glut is expected to triple in 2014–showing that the economic depression is continuing. Items from The Economatrix: Debt Deadline Approaches: Here’s What Would Happen If U.S. Defaults This Is What Has The United States Truly Terrified Fitch Places U.S. on Rating Watch Negative, …
The Wall Street Journal reports: Uneasy Investors Sell Billions in Treasurys. (Thanks to Robert L. for the link.) Tim J. sent: Food Prices Could Rise if the Country Hits the Debt Ceiling Items from The Economatrix: Marc Faber Warns “There Is No Safe Haven” The “Aggregation Of Rackets” That American Life Has Become Is Rolling Over There Is No Question That We Are Now In The End Game
To SurvivalBlog Readers: I have gone back and read or skimmed the archives of every entry in SurvivalBlog since it’s inception in 2005. I’m sure that anyone who has read even a small portion of this excellent resource has come to realize that a means of self-protection is critical in a SHTF situation and that firearms are the primary tool to that end. To those that may not yet be aware, many popular types of ammunition have been scarce and have become more expensive and attempts by the government to regulate sales and possession of ammunition are becoming more frequent. …