By Simon Black
For the powerful city-state of Athens in ancient Greece, the year 430 BC was one of the most tumultuous and dramatic in its history. Prior to 430 BC, Athens had been at the pinnacle of stability and power for decades. But in the course of that single year, the city was invaded by Sparta at the outbreak of the Peloponnesian War; Athenian officials essentially impeached their leader, Pericles, and put him on trial; and a deadly plague killed off up to 20% of the population. In short, for ancient Athenians, 430 BC probably felt like 2020 does for us. But despite all the hardship, Athens still managed to prevail. And that was in no small part due to the government’s enormous treasury surplus. Historical records from that era show that Athens had 9,700 talents of cash reserves in its treasury. Now, a ‘talent’ was an ancient unit of measurement for gold and silver which was equal to roughly 26 kilograms. Given city-state’s population in the 5th century BC, that works out to be nearly $25,000 (in today’s money) for every single Athenian citizen at the time. Bottom line, ancient Athens had plenty of cash tucked away for a rainy day. So when the mother of all storms came, they had the savings to survive. History shows that such fiscal responsibility is EXTREMELY unusual. Most countries and governments tend to increase their spending and decrease their savings when they reach the heights of their power. They believe that their power and wealth will last forever. So they start racking up huge debts and deficits in a belief that the future will look exactly like the present. This is a completely irresponsible practice, but it’s incredibly common. And we see it everywhere today. 2020 has obviously been an inconceivable year… and it’s most likely going to become even crazier before it’s over. But even before 2020, most of the ‘wealthiest’ nations in the world were posting huge budget deficits at a time when everything was still normal and OK. I wrote about this extensively over the past few years, pointing out that, if the US government was losing $1 trillion per year during an economic boom, how bad would the results be during troubled times? Well, we have our answer. Over the past six months alone, the US federal debt has increased by more than $3.5 trillion. Total federal debt now stands at more than $27 trillion– more than $80,000 for every man, woman, and child in the Land of the Free. So while ancient Athens met its crisis with a surplus of nearly $25,000 per citizen, the US has a deficit of $80,000 per citizen. And remember– the entire size of the US economy is $19.5 trillion according to the federal government’s latest data. So the debt is now a whopping 138% of GDP. That smashes the previous record of 118% set during World War II. And of course the figure gets worse every year. In a good year, the economy grows by 2% to 3%. But the national debt has been growing at more than twice that rate. None of this takes into account other unfunded liabilities– like the fact that Social Security’s trust funds will be fully depleted within the next 10 years. Replenishing them will cost tens of trillions more. This is clearly not sustainable. But any sense of fiscal prudence has been thrown out the window because of a virus. There are vast factions of scientists, reporters, and politicians who still want to shut businesses down, and then send everyone free money that the government finances by going deeper into debt. The Federal Reserve has been very supportive of this idea. In order to facilitate this bonanza of free money, the Fed has printed trillions of dollars over the past six months and slashed interest rates back down to zero. They’ve also committed to keeping rates low for years to come, and just last week they warned of ‘tragic’ consequences to the economy if the government doesn’t hand out trillions of dollars more in free money (and go deeper into debt in the process). Who knew it was so easy to be prosperous? Ancient Athenians worked hard, saved money, and set aside an enormous surplus for a rainy day. These days apparently you just have to print money and go into debt in order to prosper. This is a huge reason why I believe that gold still has long-term potential, just as it did back in ancient Greece. Gold has enormous value in times of uncertainty… and we’re definitely living through that now. Who’s going to win the election? What impact will that have on the economy and public finances? Will a subsequent outbreak of Covid (or a new virus in the future) cause a stock market panic? Will there be more rioting and chaos in the streets? These questions barely scratch the surface of what we don’t know. But it’s clear there are a lot of high-impact risks on the table. Gold has traditionally been a great insurance policy against that sort of extreme uncertainty. But even more importantly, it’s a safe haven during times of appalling fiscal irresponsibility. And that’s precisely what we have now. They’re going to vastly expand the debt and print money for years to come. They’ve already told us as much. And that’s what makes gold such an attractive, long-term asset. Short-term, the gold price is anyone’s guess. Gold has already had an incredible run this year, and it’s possible we might see a price decline. No one knows. But if you’re thinking about the world long-term, it’s definitely worth considering gold as part of a robust Plan B. This article was originally published at Sovereign Man.
A senior official at the World Health Organization has come out strongly against the official position of his own organization, arguing over the weekend that lockdown policies are "catastrophic" and cause more harm than they solve. The scorched earth these policies have left behind are now producing more poverty and deaths than the virus. Also today, blockbuster new peer-reviewed medical journal article demonstrates that school closures are killing more kids than Covid. And California Governor Newsom begs people to stay after he's made California a living hell.
Print more money! ... Stimulate the economy! ... These are the bankrupt ideas that dominate a bankrupt Washington D.C. They are acts of desperation to try to fend off the inevitable economic disaster that central bankers and politicians have set into motion over the last 100 years. Central planning has (once again) failed, and printing more money will not save it.
The Commission on Presidential Debates unilaterally - they claim - decided that there can be no more presidential debates in person so the next one must be "virtual." The Trump camp cried "foul," claiming that precautions can be taken to make it "safe." Is a unilateral cancellation of a presidential debate in the heat of an election a form of rigging the vote? Also today, the slow - but successful - slog through the courts to defeat tyrannical rule in the name of fighting a virus.
Yesterday's declassification of then-CIA Director John Brennan's hand-written notes on Hillary Clinton's alleged invention of a Trump-Russia scandal to distract from her own private email server scandal is an explosive development in the four year "Russiagate" scandal. So why is the mainstream media, which obsessed over "Russiagate" for four years, suddenly silent? Also on today's program: Fmr. FBI officer calls Trump "biological terrorist." And NY and CA Governors lose their marbles.
By Chris Rossini
Fear is the lifeblood of power. Turn on the approved media and your senses will be bombarded with nothing but fear. Like a stream that eats away at a mountain, the stream of authorized "news" is meant to eat away at your resistance to political power. Let your guard down, be afraid, and you instantly become easy prey for those who want to take what you have, and who want to treat you like their pawn. As Ron Paul has pointed out a million times, the political class doesn't generate wealth. If they're going to become rich beyond their wildest dreams, they're going to have to take it from the people who create wealth. How successful could the political class be if they had to deal with a population of unafraid individuals, who guarded their liberty with their lives? How could they loot and push around such 'rugged individuals'? They couldn't! You need a population softened up by fear and afraid of their own shadows in order to loot and abuse them. This is why one should NEVER sacrifice liberty for promises of "security" or "safety." As so many have said before us, you will only end up empty-handed. You will lose your liberty, your security, and your safety. Do not the events of 2020 prove this fact of life in spades? All year long, Americans have been waiting, and waiting, and waiting for politicians to tell them that it's OK, that you can return to your normal life. It's a shame that Americans have been conditioned to run to politicians in the first place, but we have to deal with reality as it is ... At the present moment, Americans want confirmation from authority. But confirmation they would not get, and the results couldn't be more predictable... 'Just two more weeks...' 'Won't be any longer than just a few months...' 'Beginning of 2021...' 'Third quarter of 2021...' And then, the grand slam arrived: 'NEVER! ... Things are NEVER going back to normal! ... If you think you're going to back to January, YOU must have some kind of psychological problem!' Nothing is new under the sun...Give power an inch, and it'll eventually attempt to take it all! This is the situation that Americans have found themselves in; instructed that they are now supposed to live their lives in a state of perpetual fear. Heck, if the Swamp is able to pull off 'endless wars,' why not 'endless fear of a virus' too? Do you know how much surveillance and social engineering can be attempted in such an environment? It is into this cesspool that President Trump stepped in and heroically provided the words that every tortured American has been waiting to hear: "Don’t be afraid of Covid. Don’t let it dominate your life." Liberty is fragile. It is always under attack...Always! America has experienced a heavy dose of what happens when Liberty is sacrificed to fear and handed over to the political classes. It's misery....Literally! This should never (ever) happen again. Liberty must be vigilantly guarded. Forever.
President Trump returned to the White House from a weekend stay in the hospital after experiencing Covid symptoms. In a dramatic moment, before entering the building he took off his mask and told Americans to stop being so afraid of Covid that it dominates your life. The president's detractors - and virtually the entire mainstream media - had their heads explode. Has the President finally seen through the political manipulation of the Covid public health crisis?
By Ron Paul
President Donald Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden spent most of last week’s first Presidential debate trading insults and interrupting each other. The result was a debate with very little discussion of actual issues or policies. In one of the evening’s few substantive exchanges, President Trump rightly criticized Vice President Biden for saying he would listen to the “scientists” in determining whether to lock down the country. President Trump also acknowledged that the lockdowns were a harmful over-reaction that needs to end. Unfortunately, President Trump once again pledged that Covid vaccines would soon be available. This raises the specter of a repeat of the swine flu debacle where a vaccine rushed into production for political purposes caused more deaths than the swine flu itself. President Trump also raised concerns about mandatory Covid vaccinations by suggesting the military would be in charge of vaccine distribution. Vice President Biden vehemently denied he was a socialist, while championing increased spending, taxes, regulations, expanded Obamacare, and a modified "Green New Deal." Biden may not consider himself a socialist, but if his economic plans were implemented it would take America further down the road to socialism — and serfdom. President Trump also denounced socialism, while bragging about his own big government policies such as tariffs, massive spending increases, and plans to maintain the “popular” provisions of Obamacare. One topic that did not come up was gun control. This may have been because both candidates support infringements on the Second Amendment. Joe Biden was chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee when it passed gun control measures like the assault weapons ban and the “Brady Bill.” President Trump has not only banned bump stocks by executive order, which President Obama refused to do because his Attorney General correctly determined that the President lacks the authority to do so, but has enthusiastically endorsed “red flag” laws. These laws allow law enforcement to, as President Trump put it, “take the guns first worry about due process later.” The Congressional Budget Office has projected that the federal debt will exceed the gross domestic product next year and reach 195 percent of GDP by 2050! This report was issued before this week’s revelation that the federal debt reached record levels of $27 trillion. This is the biggest threat to our national security, but it was unmentioned during the debate. This is not surprising since few in the political or media elite understand the debt crisis well enough to give it the attention it deserves. Although if Biden wins and Democrats seize control of the Senate, Republicans will likely remember they are supposed to be against big spending and debt. One critical area that could have led to an interesting exchange was monetary policy. Biden has called Trump’s tweets attacking the Fed as an assault on Fed’s independence, as if the Fed were ever free from political pressure. President Trump has gone from supporting a fed audit, criticizing low interest rates, and supporting the gold standard, to pushing the Fed to adopt the insane policy of zero interest rates The debate is the latest evidence the two major parties will not on their own restore our lost liberties. Those who want to roll back the welfare-warfare state should avoid focusing on political parties or personalities. Instead we must focus on spreading the ideas of liberty among our fellow citizens and building a liberty movement that puts principles of liberty above partisanship.
As Fauci warns Americans that they need to 'hunker down' again to avoid viruses, a group of top scientists and epidemiologists have released a detailed plan to get over the covid crisis while actually preserving lives. Also today: the economic costs of the shutdown continue to devastate and...victory in Michigan against a tyrant?
Get your copy of Ron Paul's new mini-book with a donation to the Ron Paul Institute. More information here: http://ronpaulinstitute.org/archives/peace-and-prosperity/2020/october/01/support-rpi-get-ron-pauls-new-mini-book/ By Jeff Deist Today's headlines announced Donald and Melania Trump "tested positive" for covid-19. Another claims nineteen thousand Amazon workers "got" covid-19 on the job. Both of these pseudostories are sure to ignite another absurd media frenzy. As always, the story keeps changing: Remember ventilators, flatten the curve, the next two weeks are crucial, etc.? Remember Nancy Pelosi in Chinatown back in February, urging everyone to visit? Remember Fauci dismissing masks as useless? Why should we believe anything the political/media complex tells us now? So what do these headlines really mean? What exactly is a covid "case"? Since the beginning of the coronavirus outbreak, most US media outlets have been exceedingly credulous and complicit in their reporting. Journalists almost uniformly promote what we can call the "prolockdown" narrative, which is to wildly exaggerate the risks from covid-19 to serve a political agenda. They may be motivated to hurt Trump politically, to promote a more socialist "new normal," or simply to drive more clicks and views. Bad news sells. But the bias is clear and undeniable. This explains why media outlets use the terms "case" and "infection" so loosely, to the point of actively misinforming the public. All of the endless talk about testing, testing, testing served to obscure two important facts. First, the tests themselves are almost laughably unreliable in producing both false positives and negatives. And what is the point? Are we going to test people again and again, every time they go out to the grocery or bump into a neighbor? Second, detecting virus particles or droplets in a human's respiratory tract tells us very little. It certainly does not tell us they are sick, or transmitting sickness to anyone. Take a perfectly healthy person with no particular symptoms and swab the inside of their nose. If the culture shows the presence of staphylococcus aureus, do we insist they have a staph infection? When someone drives to work without incident or accident, do we create statistics about their exposure to traffic? —A virus is not a disease. Only a very small percentage of those exposed to the virus itself—SARS-CoV-2—show any kind of acute respiratory symptoms, or what we can call "coronavirus disease." The only meaningful statistics show the incidence of serious illness, hospitalizations, and deaths. The single most important statistic among these is the infection fatality rate (IFR). Data collected through July shows that the IFR for those under age forty-five is actually lower than that of the common flu. The covid-19 IFR rises for those over fifty, but it is hardly a death sentence. And the data does not segregate those with preexisting health issues caused by obesity, diabetes, and heart disease. If we could see data only for reasonably healthy people under fifty, the numbers would be even more reassuring. Mild or asymptomatic covid cases are effectively meaningless. The world is full of bacteria and viruses, and sometimes they make us a bit sick for a few days. There are millions of them in the world all around us, on our skin, in our nose and respiratory tract, in our organs. We are meant to live with them, which is why we all have immune systems designed to help us coexist and adapt to ever-changing organisms. We develop antibodies naturally, or we attempt to stimulate them through vaccines, but ultimately our own immune systems have to deal with covid-19. The virus will always be out there waiting, on the other side of any lockdown or mask—so we might as well get on with it. From day one the focus should have been on boosting immunity through exercise, fresh air, sunlight, proper dietary supplementation, and the promotion of general well-being. Instead our politicians, bureaucrats, and media insisted on business lockdowns, school closures, distancing, isolation, masks, and the mirage of a fast, effective vaccine. As with almost everything in life, state intervention made the situation worse. We can only hope many governors are removed from office, either by impeachment or at the next election. Several, including Andrew Cuomo in New York and Gretchen Whitmer in Michigan, should face criminal charges for their lawless edicts. There is no due process exception for "public health." Lockdowns were never justified, either in terms of the covid-19 risk or the staggering economic tradeoffs, which will be felt for decades. They certainly are not justified now, given seven months of additional data showing that the transmission and lethality of covid-19 are not particularly worse than previous SARS, swine flu, or Ebola pandemics. We still don't know how many of the reported two hundred thousand US covid-19 deaths were actually caused by the SARS-CoV-2 respiratory disease, or simply reflect people who died of other causes after exposure to covid-19. We do know that the harms caused by the lockdowns far outweigh the harms posed by the covid-19 virus. We have had nearly eight months of life and liberty stolen from us by politicians and their hysteria-promoting accomplices in media. How much more will we accept? This article was originally published at The Mises Institute.
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