Category: simonblack

In a world full of unimaginable absurdity, we spend a lot of time thinking about the future… and to where all of this insanity leads.

“Future Headline Friday” is our satirical take of where the world is going if it remains on its current path. While our satire may be humorous and exaggerated, rest assured that everything we write is based on actual events, news stories, personalities, and pending legislation.

November 3, 2024: The Democratic National Committee’s Official Guide to Doublethink

OFFICIAL GUIDANCE FROM THE OFFICE OF THE CHAIR-HUMAN:

We, the Democratic National Committee, recognize that, in just a few days’ time, Americans will vote in the most important election of our lives… which is something we tell them every four years.

We also recognize that in order to maximize our chances of taking over the country, it is imperative that we quell internal dissent and present a unified front on the most divisive issues of our time.

For example, there has been intense infighting within our party over the past 13 months about whether to #StandWithIsrael or to #FreePalestine.

We all know that our diversity is our strength. However, that axiom obviously doesn’t apply to intellectual diversity.

Therefore, we, the Democratic National Committee, have taken it upon ourselves to establish a formal policy on the Israel/Palestine conflict, as well as other potentially divisive issues.

And we expect everyone in the party to adhere to this doctrine lest we open rifts that will be exploited by the enemies of progress.

Our solution to this ideological conflict of #StandWithIsrael versus #FreePalestine is based on an innovative new concept we call doublethink.

Doublethink means holding two contradictory beliefs in your mind simultaneously and wholeheartedly believing both of them.

We have no doubt the members of our party will excel at this intellectual framework given that so many of us have spent years holding contradictory views.

Our most progressive members, for example, simultaneously believe in the feminist movement to empower women and dismantle the toxic male-dominanted heterodoxy. Yet we also believe that men can be pregnant, and that biological males should should compete in women’s sports.

The natural extension of this doublethink is to believe that Hamas deserves to wipe the Jewish state off the face of the earth. But simultaneously to believe that Israel deserves to exist in its current form.

We suggest party members use the hashtag #doublethink to express their support for both Israel and Palestine, and to resist the temptation to disagree with other members of our party.

Instead, try saying, “Truth is relative. We are both right, and everyone who can’t understand that is obviously racist.”

It’s critical to remember, however, that truth is NOT relative when dealing with the enemies of progress in the other party.

Conservatives will often attempt to use logic and reason to disarm our positions.

For example, when the groups “Gays for Palestine” and “LGBT Allies to Islam” march for their oppressed brothers and sisters, some bigots ask our brave activists why they don’t visit or live in Muslim countries— which is very offensive and does not deserve an answer.

We do, however, advise our LGBTQ+ members to refrain from voicing strong support for LGBTQ+ causes when in the company of Muslims. But this is only because gays rank lower than Muslims on the Intersectionality Index and therefore should listen and not speak.

(This, of course, applies primarily to cis-white male homosexuals. To understand who you are allowed to shout down, and to whom you must quietly defer, see the Intersectionality Index in appendix A, which includes a graphic explaining your rank based on the number of oppressed identities you hold.)

Lastly, enemies of progress will say that our doublethink solution is illogical. But if anyone says this to you, you should scream in their face as loudly as possible that being “right” or “logical” is rooted in the toxic capitalist racist patriarchy.

And don’t forget to label all of your anti-doublethink opponents as White Supremacists… even when they’re not white.

Source

from Sovereign Man https://ift.tt/VHNhRr2
via IFTTT

Imagine that a couple weeks ago, on a cool October day, you were suddenly transported to a small mountain town celebrating Oktoberfest.

You see red-roofed, wood-frame homes plastered against the nearby mountains, and the quaint downtown is filled with microbreweries and pastry shops offering apple strudel.

You distinctly hear a group of blond-haired blue-eyed locals speaking German, and you confidently conclude you have found yourself in a small village in the Bavarian Alps.

But that instinct would have been wrong. In actuality you would have been smack-dab in the center of Argentina, in a town called Villa General Belgrano.

The town was founded by two Germans in 1932 who loved the region’s similarity to their homeland.

We don’t know precisely why those two gentlemen decided to leave Germany in 1932. But there were obviously plenty of good reasons. Germany had recently lost World War I and been saddled with reparations debt that destroyed the economy.

Hyperinflation was rampant. And a sinister new political party called the National Socialist German Workers Party was quickly gaining power under its leader, Adolf Hitler.

With so much unrest at home, both before and after World War II, Villa General Belgrano became a haven for German expatriates.

And it was these Germans who were lucky to find refuge, not just in an accommodating country like Argentina, but in a tailor-built German enclave like Villa General Belgrano.

Their children and grandchildren were given German names, and they grew up speaking native German in the home. It became a mini-Germany in the middle of South America.

South America still has many distinct advantages as a Plan B destination.

Many of the countries are relatively neutral, meaning they don’t jump at the chance to be involved in global conflicts like those in the Middle East.

And there has never been a major land war on the scale of the two World Wars. In fact, the region’s largest war was over 150 years ago.

And the immigration laws are generally extremely welcoming to foreigners.

Obviously these countries still have their problems; Argentina in particular has serious problems with inflation, corruption, and more. (though with the popularity of libertarian Presidential candidate Javier Milei, the economy may end up resurrecting itself.)

Despite the problems in the region, however, Central and South America have arguably the largest concentration of Plan B residency options available in any region today. So most people can find someplace that suits them— or even an expat enclave that seems made for them.

We’ve talked a lot recently about the benefits of having a second residency which allows you— but doesn’t obligate you— to move to another country on a moment’s notice if you ever need to.

In a recent research report we sent to our premium Sovereign Confidential subscribers, we covered residency options in 17 Central and South American countries.

Each one usually offers three different ways to qualify.

Retirees can prove they have enough Social Security or pension income to sustain themselves.

Remote workers and those with passive income, often referred to as rentistas, can prove that their foreign-sourced income is enough to support their lifestyles.

And investors can put a certain amount of money into property or a business in the country to qualify for residency.

Each country has different financial requirements.

For example, Nicaragua only requires an investment of about $30,000 to qualify for its investment visa, while Chile requires half a million dollars.

The retirement visa and rentista visas also have varying requirements.

In Peru, each new resident only has to show they have $1,000 per month of income, plus $500 per dependent.

In Mexico, it has gone up to about $3,600 for temporary residency, or $6,000 per month for permanent residency (which is generally only available to retirees without first gaining temporary status).

Also keep in mind that countries have different requirements for the time residents must spend in the country in order to maintain or renew their residency.

The good news is that some Central and South American countries have no (or very low) physical presence requirement, meaning you don’t really need to spend any time there in order to maintain your legal residency.

This makes them ideal for “backup residencies” which you would only use in case of emergency.

Another huge perk of Latin America is that most countries make it fairly easy for residents to become citizens… meaning that eventually— assuming you meet the conditions— you could apply for a second passport.

Most will allow you to naturalize in the country and become a full citizen with a passport after living there with legal residency for five years. Some, such as Argentina and Peru, will naturalize you after just two years of residency— but you would need to spend at least 183 days on the ground each year before applying.

Second citizenship is even more powerful than foreign residency, because in addition to entitling you to live and work in another country, it also provides a travel document that can open up doors all around the world.

But naturalization isn’t the only way to qualify for a second passport in Central and South American countries.

Almost all are “jus soli” or “right of soil” countries, which automatically grant citizenship to anyone born in the country.

This is a way to give your child the gift of a second citizenship by having a baby abroad. Plus it can fast track the parents’ timeline for naturalization.

For example, foreign parents of babies born in Mexico are eligible for immediate permanent residency, and their naturalization timeline shrinks to just two years.

Brazil is another good option. Having a baby in Brazil grants the child citizenship, and the parents permanent residency. Plus the parents can apply for citizenship in just one year, instead of the usual four years. (You’ll have to spend at least six months— and ideally more— physically present in Brazil in order to qualify to apply for naturalization.)

If you include Caribbean nations, then this region of the world offers yet another pathway to a second passport— citizenship by investment, for which several Caribbean nations are famous.

Unfortunately gaining citizenship through ancestry, which is a common option for those with European descent, is not available in any South or Central American countries.

But especially for US residents, who may be located closer, or at least in the same time zone to many of these Central and South American countries, it is worth understanding what they have to offer.

Because a good Plan B is one you can execute on a moment’s notice. You don’t want to start thinking about your options while packing your suitcase.

Source

from Sovereign Man https://ift.tt/9dQshUD
via IFTTT

Public Law 93-373 was supposed to be so boring that Congress didn’t even bother to give it a name.

You know how most laws passed by Congress have some fancy name– like the “Inflation Reduction Act” or the “USA PATRIOT Act” or some such nonsense?

Well, on November 7, 1973, US Senator James Fullbright introduced a very short bill– it was only ONE page– that didn’t even have a name. But Fullbright’s unnamed bill ended up being one of the most important pieces of legislation in US history.

By the time Fullbright introduced his bill, it had been two years since the legendary “Nixon Shock” of 1971. That was when US President Richard Nixon implemented wage and price controls, and canceled the US dollar’s convertibility into gold.

Nixon famously promised the American public that there wouldn’t be any negative consequences from his actions. Yet inflation hit 3% the following year, in 1972. Then 4.7% in 1973. Then 11.2% in 1974.

Simultaneously, gold prices around the world were surging… from $35/ounce before the Nixon Shock, to more than $170 in 1974.

But individual Americans weren’t allowed to benefit from those gains thanks to a forty year old executive order that had been signed in 1933 by then President Franklin Roosevelt.

Roosevelt’s Executive Order 6102 criminalized the private ownership of more than $100 worth of gold in the United States. Roosevelt also gave Americans just 25 days to turn over their gold to the Federal Reserve… or else face up to ten years in prison.

Naturally, plenty of Americans were outraged, and a number of lawsuits were filed claiming that Roosevelt’s order was unconstitutional.

Roosevelt was rightfully worried that the Supreme Court would overturn his order. And at a certain point he considered packing the court, i.e. appointing several sympathetic judges to the Supreme Court to ensure his victory. He also considered issuing another order which would make it illegal to sue the federal government.

Fortunately for Roosevelt, however, he didn’t have to implement any of those actions; the Supreme Court very narrowly ruled in his favor, and his Executive Order stood as law of the land for four decades… until Senator Fullbright’s no-name law was finally passed on August 14, 1974.

It went into effect the following year, and Americans were suddenly free once again to exchange their rapidly-depreciating US dollars for gold.

Unsurprisingly, gold prices started rising dramatically in the second half of the decade.. from about $180 in 1975, to a whopping $850 in January 1980.

And the declining dollar was just one reason for gold’s popularity; remember, the United States suffered a deluge of troubles during the 1970s and early 1980s.

The world found out that the US President was a criminal during the Watergate scandal of 1974. Then there was the humiliating US withdrawal from Vietnam in 1975, complete with a helicopter evacuation of the American embassy in Saigon.

Iran seized 52 US citizens in 1979 and held them hostage for more than a year. Inflation raged, peaking at 13.6%. The economy stagnated and fell into recession. Troubles in the Middle East (including conflict with Israel) led to energy shortages and rising fuel prices.

Civil unrest and ‘mostly peaceful’ protests were a constant problem in the 70s and 80s. Meanwhile, criminals rampaged across American cities, and the murder rate soared. Major cities like New York, LA, and Chicago became synonymous with violent crime.

The world stopped making sense. And gold became a safe haven from that chaos.

There’s an old saying (originally a Danish proverb) suggesting that if history doesn’t repeat, it certainly rhymes. And I think it’s obvious that we’re facing many of the same challenges today.

There are major problems in the Middle East. Energy is becoming scarce (especially in Europe). The US military suffered a humiliating withdrawal from Afghanistan. Civil unrest and crime rates are totally unacceptable. Inflation continues to rage. And the President, a.k.a. “the Big Guy” appears suspicious A.F.

Just like in the 1970s, gold represents a safe haven from this chaos. And even though it’s hovering at a near-record around $2,000, I think that there is still a long way for gold to rise.

The US national debt is now $33.7 trillion; that’s up more than HALF A TRILLION just in the month of October.

The people in charge have absolutely zero fiscal restraint. Zero responsibility. Zero sense of how destructive their actions are. They spend money and go deeper into debt as if there will never be any consequences, ever, until the end of time. They’re disgustingly ignorant, and dangerous.

The truth is that there are serious consequences to all of this debt. And we don’t have to guess what they are.

The Congressional Budget Office is already projecting that, by 2031, the US government will spend 100% of its tax revenue just on mandatory entitlements (like Social Security) and interest on the debt.

This means that, after 2031, the funding for literally everything else in government– from the US military to the light bill at the White House– will have to be funded by more debt.

That’s only 7 years away.

Then, two years later in 2033, Social Security’s primary trust fund will run out of money; this will cost the government an additional $1 trillion in additional spending each year to keep the program running. Naturally they’ll have to borrow that money too.

Eventually the national debt will become so large that simply paying interest each year will consume more than 100% of tax revenue.

The Federal Reserve will most likely attempt to bail out government by creating trillions upon trillions of dollars. But just as we saw over the past few years, such actions will most likely result in much higher inflation.

Disgusted with their financial circumstance, voters across America will likely turn to Socialist politicians who blame all the problems on the evils of capitalism, rather than their own incompetence. And with a majority of leftists running the country, they’ll only make things worse.

I also anticipate more conflict in the world, thanks in large part to the continued decline of America’s stature and reputation for strength.

It’s also quite likely that the US dollar could lose its royal status as the world’s dominant reserve currency by the end of the decade.

I don’t necessarily believe that the dollar will simply vanish from global trade. But it won’t be “King” dollar anymore. Perhaps more like “Earl” or “Viscount” dollar, alongside other currencies and exchange mechanisms– including gold.

In fact we could easily see central banks around the world ditching their US dollars and loading up on gold as part of a new, de-dollarized global financial system.

This could potentially trigger trillions of dollars worth of capital inflows into the gold market, causing a surge in gold prices.

And these are just some of the reasons why gold could still have a long, long way to rise from here.

Bear in mind that I’m not thinking about the gold price next month, or even next year. I think long-term, and my views on gold are based on trends that will likely continue to unfold over the next decade.

I’m not a ‘gold bug’. I don’t have a fanatical view about anything other than my own children. I’m not a gold speculator either.

But it’s obvious to me that in an upside down world where there are such obvious long-term threats to the US dollar, it makes sense to look for real stores of value.

And that’s why $2,000 gold could just be the beginning of a much bigger story.

Source

from Sovereign Man https://ift.tt/ARLJdIr
via IFTTT

It was late in morning on Friday October 25, 1793 when John Foss knew that his life was about to change.

As a sailor working on board a commercial vessel en route to southern Spain, Foss was near the end of his three-month voyage, somewhere off the coast of Portugal.

But some time after breakfast that Friday morning, Foss’s ship was taken by surprise by Algerian pirates; before anyone knew what was happening, the pirates had managed to board Foss’s ship, brandished their weapons, and taken all the American sailors captive.

Foss and his shipmates then spent the next several years in “the most abject slavery” in Algeria; and he later wrote a short book about his experiences, detailing the labor, torture, and punishment that he endured in captivity.

Foss’s story was all too familiar in the late 1700s; similar, brazen attacks by pirates in the North Atlantic and Mediterranean had been going on for more than a century, and many former captives who had managed to escape wrote about the hardship they endured as slaves.

(Many of the former captives also became vehement abolitionists in the US and spoke out against slavery in America.)

The numbers are staggering; some historians estimate that more than 1 million Christians were taken as slaves by North African pirates, almost as a sort of jihad being waged by fanatical Islamists of the Barbary States against Europeans and Americans.

In today’s parlance we would refer to the Barbary States as “state sponsors of terrorism”. And it was clear they were motivated equally by hate as they were by money.

Foss wrote in his book, for example, that his captors beat and ridiculed their Christian slaves for “disregarding the true doctrine of God’s last and greatest prophet, Mohammed”.

This was what global terrorism looked like in the early 1790s.

The US was a brand new country at the time and didn’t even have a Navy when John Foss was captured in 1793.

So at first, the fledgling US government tried to solve this piracy crisis by paying ‘tribute’ to the Barbary States in North Africa… essentially bribing them to leave US vessels alone.

But the tribute payments had become so large that they eventually took up roughly 20% of the entire US federal budget.

And bribing the pirates didn’t really do any good; terrorists, like bullies, thugs, and organized criminals, only respect strength. And bribing them made America look weak… so the pirates continued to raid American vessels even while taking the US government’s money.

But finally the US government put its foot down.

When Thomas Jefferson became President in 1801, the pasha (ruler) of Tripolitana in modern-day Libya demanded a gift of $225,000. This was roughly 3% of federal tax revenue back then, worth roughly $150 billion today.

Jefferson had campaigned in part on fighting back against the terrorists. And when he refused to make the payment, Tripolitana declared war on the United States on May 10, 1801.

The Berbers assumed they would easily defeat the United States. But America’s brand new Navy and Marine Corps fought incredibly well. And after four debilitating years of war, the pasha finally capitulated and signed a peace treaty in 1805.

But adversary nations don’t simply vanish into the night. Quite often they wait patiently for another opportunity to strike. And less than a decade later they saw their chance.

With the US distracted by the War of 1812 and European powers busy fighting Napoleon on their own soil, Barbary pirates once again returned to raiding vessels in the North Atlantic.

At first the US prioritized the War of 1812 and focused all of its resources on defeating Britain. But literally two weeks after winning that war, America turned its full attention back to the terrorist states and sent a massive fleet to North Africa.

The Berbers were so terrified at the sight of America’s navy that they surrendered almost immediately, and the entire ‘conflict’ lasted a mere three days.

Every single American captive was returned. Over 1,000 Christian slaves were freed. And the US even had some of its tribute money returned.

More importantly, the United States had gained esteem and reputation around the world. Foreign nations quickly learned to not test American resolve… or the US military.

This is how America won the first ‘War on Terror’. And it’s one of the most obvious lessons from history: dominant powers are respected and feared.

At the peak of their power, the entire world knew not to mess with the Romans. Or the Mongols. Or Alexander the Great.

Weakness, on the other hand, is taken advantage of. And we’ve been watching this happen in the United States for the past several years.

America’s reputation for strength and invincibility is rapidly fading. Adversary nations no longer have any sense of fear or dread. And they know there are virtually zero consequences for their aggression.

The world has witnessed the humiliating US withdrawal from Afghanistan. The complete lack of response from the US government against repeated Chinese and Russian cyberattacks. And the implementation of ultra-woke policies, diversity and inclusion offices, and drag queen recruiters in the US military.

They can see that military recruiting numbers are at record lows, that mission readiness is at historically low levels, and that major weapons systems are quickly becoming obsolete.

More importantly, they see bizarre language and signaling, like when Joe Biden suggested a “minor incursion” by Russia into Ukraine would be OK. Or when the US government talks tough (like threatening “consequential action”) but then does absolutely nothing.

They see the US government showing weakness in negotiation, like when America traded its #1 highest value Russian prisoner (arms dealer Viktor Bout) in exchange for a WNBA player. Or when the US gave Iran billions of dollars in exchange for a handful of Iranian-American hostages.

The US government is sending a very clear signal to the world: America has no stomach to fight, no willingness to suffer. So if you kidnap and ransom our citizens, we will shower you with free money.

These same displays of weakness carry on at home as well.

The border is a complete mess and the federal government does nothing.

Local governments willingly put criminals on the streets. Politicians literally make campaign promises that they will release criminals onto the streets, and voters actually put them in office.

Both the media and political classes cover up for violent protesters, describing those who loot, riot, and burn as “mostly peaceful”. Naturally they don’t bother prosecuting such criminality, and instead justify it as activism.

Yet those who take matters into their own hands to maintain order and peace are the ones who end up being prosecuted. It’s truly mind boggling.

Then there are the once-hallowed institutions who condemn pro-Israel supporters while protecting those who support the murder of babies at the hands of Hamas terrorists.

Adversary nations and terrorist groups see all of this. And they are completely emboldened by it.

Now there have been attacks on US military sites in the Middle East. Yet the Defense Department’s response has been paltry at best. Instead the Biden Administration is pleading with Israel to delay its own counterattack into Gaza.

They’re not interested in kicking anyone’s ass, demonstrating American resolve, or proving that the United States is still a powerful nation to be feared and respected.

Instead they’re stressing about how to get more humanitarian supplies into Gaza.

This is the way of the West now. They think that kindness and understanding will win the day. They simply don’t understand that their adversaries only respect strength… and view kindness as weakness.

Now, if we’re being honest, this trend is probably going to get worse, i.e. more conflict, more attacks, more adversaries. I highly doubt that all of these bad people will suddenly change their minds and embrace peace and stability. And I doubt even more than our expert class will suddenly grow a pair.

And as frustrating as this is to watch, you and I cannot change the trajectory of the West. The best we can do is prepare for obvious risks, put ourselves in a position of strength, and hope that things improve.

I’ve written extensively that one of those steps is to consider having another place to go… having a second residency or even a second passport in a foreign country where you can go with your family if the need ever arises.

In a world where the expert class keeps taking a wrecking ball to western civilization, it is completely sensible to consider having this option. And I believe it a critical part of a Plan B.

This strategy is a lot more sensible than waiting for the experts to find their brains and their backbone.

Source

from Sovereign Man https://ift.tt/F64yhi0
via IFTTT

In a world full of unimaginable absurdity, we spend a lot of time thinking about the future… and to where all of this insanity leads.

“Future Headline Friday” is our satirical take of where the world is going if it remains on its current path. While our satire may be humorous and exaggerated, rest assured that everything we write is based on actual events, news stories, personalities, and pending legislation.

October 27, 2026: European Countries Will Enforce Different Laws for Different Cultures

With the Israeli-Palestinian War raging on, authorities across Europe have issued new legal guidelines for protesters and counter-protesters, who now clash in the streets on an almost daily basis.

The Parliament of the United Kingdom has passed a series of new laws which clarify that flying the Israeli flag, the Union Jack, or the Flag of England during any public demonstration, including protests or counter-protests related to the war, will constitute hate speech.

Britons have also been warned that police will offer them no protection if they provoke pro-Palestinian demonstrators by flying the prohibited British flags.

Homeowners and businesses situated along popular streets for protests have been warned they could likewise face charges if their flags remain flying when two or more protesters gather within 100 feet of the structure.

The Mayor of London celebrated the decision, saying that the new restrictions will “curtail provocations that often end in violence.”

Conversely, the laws state that flags of Palestine, Hamas, Hezbollah, and Iran will NOT be prohibited from display, as any restriction on those flags might incite civil unrest.

One of the driving forces behind the legislative action was Helen Wanker, a Member of Parliament from the UK’s Green Party, who said this morning, “Our treasured immigrants from Middle Eastern countries are known to highly value their own rights to free speech, and we have an obligation to not provoke their violence.”

Wanker claims she was inspired to help write the new laws after watching prominent universities, like Cambridge, restrict pro-Israel demonstrations, but without placing any restrictions on pro-Hamas demonstrations.

Some 1,100 pro-Israel students across the UK were expelled from their universities for violations of these policies.

Similarly, when Oxford attempted to suspend a student who repeatedly posted violent images celebrating slain Israelis, protesters forced university officials to reverse their decision and allow the student to remain.

Other European countries have taken similar steps to the UK.

After accepting millions of refugees from Palestine and other war torn regions, foreign-born residents in Germany now make up nearly half the population.

German Federal Minister of Justice and Consumer Protection, Frida Ruffian, recently announced, “You can’t ignore the history of colonization of these immigrants. To then expect them to conform to European culture would be a form of re-victimization.”

Therefore, due to the vast cultural differences among immigrants and native Germans, Germany will segregate its legal code and apply different laws based on ethnicity.

For example, it will remain a crime for males of Germanic descent to physically assault their wives and girlfriends.

However, for first and second generation immigrants from certain non-Western countries, blatant physical violence against their wives will be decriminalized and respected as a difference in culture.

The same goes for sexual assault; authorities will now take into consideration what the victim was wearing. After all, with conservative clothing standards in many immigrants’ places of origins, showing hair, ankles, and shoulders could send a confusing message.

Authorities will also consider the background of the alleged perpetrator.

“It’s very clear in the context of European culture that violence and stealing is wrong,” said Ruffian. “But under Shariah Law, for example, it matters very much who is the target of violence or theft. Is it an infidel? That may be perfectly acceptable behavior. And yes, we will be taking Shariah Law into account moving forward with the two separate legal systems.”

Some critics from Germany’s opposition party began to speak up against the new system, calling it a “legal farce” and “the death knell of civilized society.”

Authorities, however, say that insinuating European culture is superior to others is criminal hate speech under Germany’s legal code. Therefore the most prominent critics have already been targeted for arrest and prosecution.

Sweden and Belgium are expected to soon follow Germany’s lead.

Source

from Sovereign Man https://ift.tt/3Leio6I
via IFTTT

Sigrid Paul was living in East Berlin in 1961 when she gave birth to a beautiful baby boy.

Unfortunately, though, her son was born with major health problems… and Sigrid had to seek out the best possible medical care to treat him.

This was more than fifteen years after World War II, and Germany had already been split between East and West for more than a decade.

Unsurprisingly, the capitalist West had substantially higher healthcare than the socialist East (which was really just a Soviet puppet state) In fact, the West had higher quality everything… and that’s why over three million East Germans defected to the West between 1945 and 1961.

By the early 1960s, the Soviet Union was desperate to stop the drain of talent and workers from East Germany. It was an embarrassment for them. So they slowly ramped up ‘people controls’ to keep the population of East Germany within its socialist utopia.

They started with more vigorous border check points, exit visas, “papers, please”, etc.

Many East Germans started to become anxious about what might come next, and whether they would continue to be able to travel to the West… including Sigrid Paul. She had been traveling to West Berlin regularly for her son’s medical care, and she was worried about being trapped.

But in June of 1961, the leader of East Germany set everyone’s mind at ease when he publicly proclaimed, “No one has the intention of erecting a wall.”

East Germans were comforted. Their government made them a promise that everything would be OK, so they stopped worrying. And Sigrid took comfort that she would continued to be able to access West German medical care.

But that all changed when residents of East Berlin awoke on the morning of August 13, 1961 to find a barbed-wire fence and concrete barrier erected between East and West Berlin… not to mention armed soldiers backed by the Soviet Union.

Sigrid panicked. She and her son were instantly cut off from medical care.

Fortunately, a group of East German doctors were able to falsify certain medical records and transport the boy to the West, saving his life.

But Sigrid was not permitted to go with him. Soviet bureaucrats forced her to remain. And when she was caught planning an escape to be with her son, she was arrested and served four years in prison.

If Sigrid had taken the risk seriously, she could have simply walked across the border to the West and started a new life there… when the option was still available. But like so many others, she ignored the obvious warning signs and believed the experts who told her that everything would be OK.

As a result, she was separated from her son and lived under a totalitarian regime until it finally collapsed in 1989.

Sigrid’s story is obviously an extreme case. But at its fundamental core is a theme that is very common among human beings.

Most people are optimists who suffer from a bad case of normalcy bias. We really want to believe that tomorrow will look very much like today. And even when there are really bad warning signs flashing, our optimism and normalcy bias cause us to ignore the risks.

That’s especially true when our leaders make expert proclamations. And we’ve certainly seen our share of those:

Ten days to stop the spread. Silicon Valley Bank is safe. The Taliban won’t retake Afghanistan. No one will touch your Social Security. The debt doesn’t matter. Deficits don’t matter. America can afford two wars.

The list goes on an on.

For example, as I mentioned earlier this week, by 2031, US tax revenue will not even cover mandatory entitlement spending (like Social Security) and annual interest payments on the national debt.

This is according to the Congressional Budget Office, i.e. a US government agency.

You can practically circle a date on your calendar for a major financial crisis: 6 years, 11 months, 26 days from now.

To think that this doesn’t pose a huge risk to prosperity and stability within the United States is beyond delusional.

Meanwhile, civil unrest already seems to ignite on the streets across the US at the slightest provocation. Crime is at ridiculous levels. Imagine what this will look like when real economic pain hits.

In the face of such obvious risks, it makes a lot of sense to have a backup plan.

And one crucial aspect of a Plan B is having another place to go, where you are entitled to live, work, and raise a family.

That’s what gaining a second residency can do for you.

Obviously no place is perfect. But having a second residency abroad means that you’ll always have another place to go… another option. And more options means more freedom, more safety, more diversification, less risk.

Generally there’s zero downside in having this benefit. And there are plenty of different ways to do it:

For example, Golden Visas are popular residency programs in European countries such as Portugal and Greece. In exchange for an investment, you get an easy residency without burdensome requirements to spend a large amount of time on the ground in the country.

In Greece, the option to invest in real estate worth at least €250,000 (which you could use personally or rent out) is still available. Portugal recently scrapped its property investment option, but you could still get its Golden Visa for as little as a €200,000 investment in a cultural heritage project.

That’s actually another reminder to act while the offer is good— the best options don’t last forever.

But if you don’t want to spend that kind of money, there are plenty of residencies available to those who can simply prove they receive a certain amount of retirement, investment, or employment income.

Mexico and Costa Rica are examples of popular options for Americans, because of their proximity to the US and relatively low criteria to qualify.

In Mexico, retirees can gain permanent residency with an income of about $6,000 per month, or by showing about $240,000 worth of investments and bank balances. Qualifying for temporary residency is easier, and only requires an income of about $3,600 per month or balances of $60,000. (That’s about double the price from a couple years ago due to the strengthening of the peso— yet another reminder to act sooner rather than later.)

Costa Rica only requires a monthly income of $1,000 for retirees and $2,500 for remote workers, or an investment totaling $150,000 in various categories including real estate, business, or even vehicles.

Then there is Panama, which offers paths to residency for retirees and through a Golden Visa.

Retirees only need an income of $1,000 a month, through a pension or Social Security, to qualify for Panama’s pensionado visa.

Or a $200,000 investment in real estate could allow nationals of “Friendly Nations Treaty” countries, including the US, Canada, and many European countries, to gain residency in Panama. (For others, the Golden Visa requires a $300,000 investment).

I had the opportunity to look at some real estate in Panama when I was there a few months ago, and let me tell you, $200,000 goes a lot further there than in the US.

Of course these are far from your only options. The point is that there are plenty of accessible ways to gain a second residency in a country of your choosing.

And that is a pretty sensible thing to do given all the risks on the horizon.

Source

from Sovereign Man https://ift.tt/tsxUnEd
via IFTTT

Yesterday I wrote a comprehensive explanation of the extreme fiscal catastrophe that the US faces thanks to the federal government’s relentless spending addiction.

I wrote, for example, that the US national debt is now $33.6 trillion… and it has increased more than HALF A TRILLION DOLLARS just so far this MONTH. Astonishing.

And it’s a pretty safe bet that the US government will continue its wild spending spree.

I’m not being pessimistic when I say that. In the last fiscal year which just ended a few weeks ago, a whopping 83% of US tax revenue was spent JUST on Social Security/Medicare, the military, and interest on the national debt.

And spending on those three programs is probably not going down.

Does anyone honestly think that a majority of politicians in Congress will slash defense spending at a time like this? Or eliminate Social Security? Or default on the national debt?

Those three spending items can’t really be cut. In all likelihood they will INCREASE.

Given all the conflict in the world, US defense spending will probably grow. Social Security spending is already scheduled to increase according to the program’s own published forecasts.

And, considering how quickly the national debt is rising– coupled with higher interest rates– annual interest payments will skyrocket.

This means that spending on Social Security, military, and interest, will likely increase from 83% of tax revenue, to ONE HUNDRED PERCENT of tax revenue, over the next several years.

America will have to go into debt to fund everything else in the federal government, from Veteran’s Benefits to Homeland Security.

But don’t take my word for it. Even the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), which is a government agency of the United States Congress, agrees.

The CBO’s most recent 10-year forecast shows that mandatory entitlement spending (like Social Security) plus annual interest payments on the national debt, will EXCEED all US federal tax revenue by 2031. And that doesn’t even include defense spending!

This reality is only SEVEN YEARS AWAY.

Yet if that train wreck weren’t enough, remember that Social Security’s key trust fund will also run out of money two years later in 2033, according to the program’s most recent annual report. And bailing out Social Security will cost trillions of dollars just to get started.

So, just to be clear, the government’s own projections show that they will reach the fiscal point of no return in just seven years… and then require a multi-trillion dollar bailout of Social Security two years later.

Yet as grim as that timeline may be, these government forecasts also naively assume that there will be no major war, pandemic, or national emergency in the meantime. So in reality the doomsday may be much closer.

I’m not being dramatic or sensational. Again, I’m literally citing US government forecasts.

But is this cause for panic? Absolutely not.

Now, of course there will be major consequences.

For example, a lot of politicians will tragically find themselves out of work… but there won’t be any money available to pay them unemployment benefits. The government will shrink considerably, and legions of bureaucrats will have to find productive jobs in the private sector.

People who depend on government handouts will no longer have a generous sugar daddy to take care of them. Bankrupt state governments won’t be able to rely on federal bailouts anymore and will have to start acting responsibly.

Clearly a lot of these consequences will be good.

But at the same time, it’s important to acknowledge that millions of unsuspecting people will have their lives turned upside down from the negative consequences.

Social Security is in serious trouble; 50+ million people are at risk of having their benefits slashed by 2033.

There’s also a very high likelihood that the Federal Reserve will start cutting interest rates and printing money again in order to bail out the federal government… thus creating a LOT more inflation.

Taxes will almost certainly rise. Crime could definitely increase, especially petty theft and robbery. And business conditions could be a lot more difficult; it will be harder to raise capital, harder to borrow, and harder to sell, causing a number of companies to either fail, or to never be started in the first place.

There are definitely serious, serious consequences ahead. But it’s important to keep a level head: the United States is not going to fall into the ocean and cease to exist.

Even under much more difficult conditions, the United States will still have a massive, diversified economy and extraordinary talent pool. The brilliant entrepreneurs, engineers, and professionals across America won’t suddenly become dumber just because the currency loses value, or because the Department of Commerce is eliminated.

There will always be substantial opportunity for talented, independent-minded people to become successful. And this has been the case for virtually all of human history.

Nations and empires have been going broke for thousands of years. Currencies have been debauched for just as long.

But people who understood these risks have typically been able to position themselves for success… and to mitigate the risks in their own lives.

Today this is even easier to do. And that’s really what’s at the core of having a Plan B.

The idea of a Plan B is to form a rational view of obvious risks, and then take sensible steps to reduce their impact… or even benefit from them.

For example, if Social Security forecasts running out of money by 2033, it makes sense to spend the next several years setting aside more money for retirement in the most flexible and robust structure you can establish.

Fortunately, such structures exist– like a solo 401(k).

If it’s a near certainty that taxes will rise, there are plenty of legal ways to reduce what you owe. And you can use the tax savings to set aside more money for your retirement, which feeds back into the suggestion above.

If crime rates spike and civil disturbances become more frequent, it makes sense to consider having another place to go for you and your family to be safe. That might be somewhere overseas in a country where you enjoy visiting and your kids could pick up foreign language proficiency.

It might even be a place where you could one day become eligible to apply for a second passport, creating a lifetime of benefit and flexibility for your entire family.

If the value of the US dollar is going to decline… and the rest of the world seems likely to find a replacement as the dominant reserve currency… it makes sense to find alternative assets that can hold their value over time.

Having a Plan B isn’t about doom and gloom pessimism. It’s a completely rational way to approach the obvious problems in the world… while acknowledging that there’s still tremendous opportunity ahead.

Source

from Sovereign Man https://ift.tt/jemn3MQ
via IFTTT

By the time Philip II ascended to the throne of Spain in the year 1556, the empire he inherited from his father was already the most dominant superpower in the world.

Spain had a formidable military, and its famous naval armada struck fear in the hearts of its adversaries.

Spain also held vast colonies across the Americas, Africa, and Asia that produced unimaginable wealth; just one single mine in Bolivia– Cerro Rico— was so abundant that it has produced more silver than any other mine in history. And it still operates to this day.

Spain must have seemed invincible back then. And Philip II probably thought his Empire’s dominance would last forever.

And yet less than 100 years later, Spain had succumbed to the same historical fates that have caused ALL empires to decline.

Decades of bad decision making. Corruption. Bureaucracy. Inflation. Endless and costly warfare. Idiotic decrees that restrain economic growth. Chasing away productive citizens and businesses.
Excessive spending. Excessive debt.

Debt, in fact, was such an enormous problem for Spain that its kings had to default on their debts multiple times.

Empires are extremely expensive to maintain. Governments have to become bloated and costly. Administering colonies requires a lot of money. Military expenditures skyrocket.

And Spanish kings didn’t exactly hold back when it came to spending on lavish courts and luxuries.

So even though Spain should have been immensely wealthy, it was actually taking on a mountain of debt.

It’s almost incomprehensible how a nation with so much income and so many resources could have squandered its wealth.

Yet we’re seeing the same phenomenon play out in real time in the United States, for many of the same reasons as the Spanish Empire’s decline. And it’s even more incomprehensible.

Like Spain, the US was once the clear, dominant leader in the world, synonymous with wealth and power. But decades of war, excessive spending, debt, etc. have taken a toll.

A few days ago the final numbers for the US government’s Fiscal Year 2023 were published. (Remember that the Fiscal Year runs from October 1 through September 30, so FY23 ended a few weeks ago.)

The numbers are absolutely atrocious… and an obvious sign of America’s fiscal decline.

I’m not saying this to be sensational. I’m saying this because it’s a cold, hard fact. You cannot sugarcoat a $2 trillion annual increase in the national debt– which is what the numbers show.

What’s really concerning about this, however, is how little the people in charge seem to care.

The President of the United States is so clueless that he doesn’t even understand the difference between the national debt, versus the annual budget deficit.

He’s also so clueless that he even claimed as recently as two weeks ago that the government is running a budget surplus. It’s obviously not.

(Notably, the Big Guy also claimed that “Americans know they are better off financially than they were before. It’s a fact.”)

He’s totally wrong, of course… as evidenced by the national debt having increased $2 TRILLION for Fiscal Year 2023.

It’s worth noting that the national debt has already increased more than $500 BILLION just so far this MONTH. So this addiction to debt and spending do not seem to be abating anytime soon.

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen– who was formerly the head of the Federal Reserve– went so far as to say that American “can certainly” afford to fund two wars at the same time, i.e. both Ukraine and Israel. There’s simply no instinct for restraint.

Then there are lawmakers like AOC who believe that deficits don’t matter, and that “we should eliminate the debt ceiling in the United States because of the Constitutional reasons…”

Yet despite sounding like an inarticulate buffoon every time she opens her mouth, AOC is representative of an entire movement of prominent economists and PhD ‘experts’ who similarly believe that deficits and debts are irrelevant.

Nobel Prize winner Paul Krugman has said in the past that the US national debt is simply “money we owe to ourselves” therefore no one should really worry too much about it.

(Coincidentally, Krugman wrote those words in February 2015 when the national debt was ‘only’ $18 trillion. Today it’s more than twice that level.)

Well, Krugman is completely wrong, and the facts are clear.

Out of the $33.6 trillion national debt, it’s true that roughly $7.1 trillion of that is owned by different agencies and departments within the federal government. I suppose that’s the “we” that people always refer to when they say “we” owe the debt to “ourselves”.

But nearly ALL of that $7.1 trillion is owned by Social Security and government retirement programs for its civilian and military personnel. Other programs like the FDIC, US Post Office, and the federal unemployment office also own a lot of US government bonds.

So the argument that ‘we owe the debt to ourselves’ absurdly presumes that it’s OK to default on Social Security… or military retirement obligations… or the FDIC.

Well, such a default would trigger a massive financial and social crisis in the Land of the Free, and few politicians are willing to go down that road.

$7.7 trillion of the national debt is owed to foreign nations. And nearly all of those bonds are owned by countries who are flat broke (like Japan) or who are major adversaries of the United States (China).

This is pretty important, because it means that those countries will be less and less likely to buy and own US government debt in the future. More on that below.

The rest of the US national debt, roughly $18.8 trillion, is owned mostly by large businesses, financial institutions, money market funds… plus state and local governments.

Money market funds, pension funds, and retirement funds own trillions of dollars of government bonds. Apple owns about $25 billion of US government bonds. Bank of America owns $200 billion.

It’s not like the US can default on the city of Chicago or the State of California. Or pension funds that manage the retirement assets of millions of Americans. Or big banks.

As I wrote last week, Bank of America has already suffered more than $107 billion in losses from its ownership of US government bonds (and related securities). If the Treasury Department decides to not pay its debts– because, you know, ‘we owe it to ourselves’– then nearly every bank in the US would be wiped out.

Again, none of these is a crisis that any politician wants to trigger. So not only is ‘we owe it to ourselves’ completely incorrect, but it also doesn’t even matter. Failure to make payments on the national debt would be catastrophic.

Now, according to the most recent Treasury Report, the federal government spent a whopping $879 billion on interest payments in FY23. But that’s with an average interest rate below 3%.

Interest rates have now passed 5% and may be headed higher.

So, fast forward a few years when the national debt could exceed $40 trillion and average interest rates reach 5% or more. That would mean potentially $2 TRILLION per year, just to pay interest.

To say this is unaffordable would be an outrageous understatement.

Because on top of all this debt drama, the US government’s tax revenue is also sagging. Total FY23 tax revenue was $4.4 trillion. And that’s down from nearly $5 trillion the year before.

Just do the math: interest costs on the national debt are spiraling out of control at a time when tax revenue is falling. It’s not a pretty picture.

And based on this scenario, I’d humbly make a few predictions:

1) The Federal Reserve will reverse course and start cutting rates.

This might not happen right away; the Fed seems far more concerned right now with appearing like they’re in control and know what they’re doing. But no Fed Chairman wants to preside over the bankruptcy of the United States.

So the Fed will have to cut rates and start printing money again in order to save the federal government, as well as the banking system, Social Security, and more.

2) This will lead to more inflation.

With the Fed creating so much money– trillions of dollars at once– the US economy will suffer the same predictable consequences as it did in 2021 and 2022: inflation.

3) And a loss of confidence in the dollar

Higher inflation coupled with outright government dysfunction has already caused much of the world to seek alternatives to the dollar. Another bout of inflation, plus potentially several more years of incompetence will probably be enough to reset the dollar-centric Bretton Woods system once and for all.

4) Foreign nations will stop investing in US government bonds

With the dollar no longer at the center of global finance, foreigners (presently $7.7 trillion) will no longer have the same incentives to own US debt. This means that one of the US government’s major funding sources will dry up, leaving politicians scrambling to find money.

5) Politicians will demand new and higher taxes.

With foreigners no longer buying US government bonds at the same pace, politicians will try to raise tax revenue. Expect wealth taxes, higher income taxes, green taxes, and even windfall profits taxes on certain assets and income like crypto, gold, oil profits, etc.

6) Many Americans will more farther left

Politicians and their media allies will insist that capitalism has failed… and rescuing the nation from this hardship will require bigger government and more intervention.

I’m not suggesting that this outcome is imminent. Or even certain.

It could still take several years for these issues to unravel. And I’ve written before that America’s challenges are still fixable… however the window of opportunity is narrowing quickly.

It’s also true that other rival powers like China have their own critical challenges. But this is irrelevant; other nations’ challenges don’t eliminate the seriousness of America’s.

We can certainly hope that the West will put itself back on course. But as we used to say in the military, ‘hope is not a course of action’. And it’s for this reason that it makes so much sense to have a Plan B.

Source

from Sovereign Man https://ift.tt/3TzItWD
via IFTTT

In a world full of unimaginable absurdity, we spend a lot of time thinking about the future… and to where all of this insanity leads.

“Future Headline Friday” is our satirical take of where the world is going if it remains on its current path. While our satire may be humorous and exaggerated, rest assured that everything we write is based on actual events, news stories, personalities, and pending legislation.

October 19, 2026: Feds Desperate to Track Down Hamas-Linked Migrants— to offer them free housing

The Department of Homeland Security has learned that five Palestinian men with ties to the terrorist group Hamas flew to Mexico in mid-August where they hired a smuggler to take them across the southern US border.

Last week, the smuggler was apprehended and questioned by federal agents; they were about to let the human trafficker off with a warning, until he admitted that he had failed to inform the undocumented Palestinian migrants of their right to free shelter, food, and healthcare paid by the US government.

For this, the smuggler was charged with five counts of hate crimes— one for each migrant.

The smuggler further told authorities that the Palestinians did not speak English.

This has led federal agencies to initiate a massive nationwide manhunt to find the Hamas-connected migrants— fearful that, without a grasp of either the English or Spanish language, they may otherwise remain unaware of their taxpayer-funded entitlements.

Clutching a chain-link fence in a New York City parking lot, Congresswoman and chair of the Subcommittee on Immigration and Citizenship Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said, “Like, I haven’t been able to sleep at night thinking about those five Palestinians out there, you know, who don’t understand how much we are willing to provide for them. It’s just not right that they have to fend for themselves in this country.”

Asked if she had any concerns about the Palestinian men’s Hamas links, AOC responded, “Of course, like, just think of how much damage could be done if they don’t realize that mental health is also covered in the government’s free healthcare program for undocumented migrants. I’m sure the trauma they’ve experienced at the hands of Israeli needs to be worked through with the help of professionals.”

A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security agreed that getting these immigrants the help and stability they deserve is a national security issue.

“We’re looking into the possibility of targeted lockdowns until we can find these gentlemen and deliver them aid. Of course, we understand that  as migrants, and as members of Hamas, they may be rightfully distrustful of the US government. But once we contact them and alert them to their rights, they would of course be free to make their own choices.”

Politicians in several cities across the country, ranging from Chicago to Boulder, Colorado, have started running Arabic-language public service announcements on billboards and social media in the hopes of reaching the five migrants.

Officials in San Francisco have offered a reward of $500,000 per migrant to anyone with information that might lead to the Palestinian men receiving their benefits.

San Francisco’s mayor, London Breed, announced this morning, “We’ve already evicted several elderly military veterans from the city’s free public housing complexes to make room for our Palestinian comrades. We have the space. We have the desire. Now we just need to find them and bring them to our great city.”

October 20, 2029: Gold price passes $10,000 on US national debt fears

Gold prices in the London Metal Exchange breached the once-unthinkable threshold of $10,000 per troy ounce in early trading this morning, on renewed fears of an imminent US government debt default.

Chief Economist of the World Gold Alliance, Todd Ya Soh, remarked on the news, “Well what did everyone expect? The US government has funded 7 years of war in Ukraine, 6 years of war in Israel, and 2 years of war in Taiwan. Now they just announced a $10 trillion bailout for Social Security? No thanks. US government bonds are the new toxic asset.”

US bond prices started their steep plummet in 2023, as the Treasury Department announced that it would borrow far more money than they initially projected.

Then-Secretary Janet Yellen insisted that America could absolutely afford to fund two wars simultaneously— Ukraine and Israel. However, the bond market seemed to disagree, and investors began demanding higher and higher yields to buy Treasury bonds.

Bond yields surged to 5% in late 2023, pushing up the rates of everything from car loans to home mortgages. But that was only the beginning.

As rates continued to rise, banks across the country began to suffer heavier and heavier losses on their bond portfolios. Most notably, rising yields caused Bank of America’s bond losses to rise from $107 billion in late 2023, to more than $200 billion in early-2025, rendering the bank effectively insolvent.

The Federal Reserve tried to reign in the bond market by slashing interest rates back down to 1% in an emergency meeting in March 2025. But by that point, the market had already lost too much confidence.

With the second Biden administration in full swing after the President suspended the 2024 election due to terrorism fears, federal spending continued to grow at an unprecedented pace; the national debt had surpassed $40 trillion by that point, and the Treasury Department’s annual interest bill exceeded $2 trillion.

Regardless of how low the Fed slashed interest rates, investors still demanded higher yields from the federal government; the 10-year rate surged to more than 10% for the first time since the 1980s, causing widespread consequences across the US economy.

Housing prices collapsed by more than 50% as mortgages became unaffordable. And with home prices in the dumps, most Americans found they were underwater on their existing mortgages, i.e. they owed more money than their houses were worth.

Multiple banks collapsed as a result of the mortgage and housing crisis, and even the FDIC required a government bailout. In order to do so, of course, the government had to borrow money from the bond market at 10%.

By 2027, the Federal Reserve was creating more than $5 trillion per year to keep the federal government afloat. Asset prices once again surged, with inflation peaking at 12% that summer.

When China invaded Taiwan in November of that year, the combination of war, inflation, and general US economic turmoil caused gold prices to surge to more than $7,000; prices kept rising from there.

With this morning’s announcement from President AOC that Social Security will require a fresh $10 trillion bailout, investors now have deep fears of a US government default… or that the Federal Reserve will create so much money that the world will lose confidence in the currency.

Given that the US dollar already lost its primary reserve status to the gold-backed BRICS currency last year, there is little incentive for foreign investors to hold dollars any longer.

When asked about gold’s record high price this morning, President AOC appeared flummoxed and said, “Why would anyone want to own a piece of metal?”

White House officials later released a statement that they would soon take emergency measures to fund the government, including a freezing of all bank balances above $100,000, and all retirement accounts in the United States.

Source

from Sovereign Man https://ift.tt/FO60pXe
via IFTTT

Source

from Sovereign Man https://ift.tt/j6uRC7P
via IFTTT