Tag: news

Guest Post: The Rise Of The Sheeple

Submitted by Jeff Thomas via Doug Casey's International Man blog,

Currently, a clever young man, Mark Dice is producing a series of videos in which he approaches strangers in public places in the US and asks them to sign a prepared petition that he is holding. Invariably, Mark behaves in a polite, congenial manner and makes a clear effort to appear as harmless as possible. However, the subjects of his petitions are the antithesis of his demeanour.

The subject of a Dice petition may be the repeal of the Second Amendment to the Constitution, a move to assure that old people are exterminated under Obamacare, or, as in the attached video, to ask potential petition signers to support Karl Marx as the next president of the US.

 

 

In each video, Mark's approach is the same. He chooses a large, open public space, dresses casually and hands his clipboard to someone who is passing and politely asks for his signature in support of a concept that is ludicrous. He does this with a straight face and always behaves pleasantly. Once the passer-by has taken the clipboard and is looking for the place to sign, Mark describes details (again, in a pleasant manner) of what is being proposed, such as,

"We're just gathering signatures to show support for Obama and his communist agenda, so we're gonna get Karl Marx on the 2016 ballot and continue the Marxist takeover."

Invariably, the prospective signers seem not to take in the significance of what Mark is saying. They seem to be focused more on where they are supposed to sign. No matter how many horrific details Mark offers the signers to provoke them to think about what they are signing, nothing seems to sink in.

Of course, we recognise that the video may contain only those people who were actually empty-headed enough to sign, and, surely, there were others who refused. However, this does not alter the fact that so many people simply "go along," seemingly oblivious to what they are signing.

Surely, for any reader of this publication, these videos will be both entertaining and exasperating, as they demonstrate the stupidity and complacency of so many people.

However, if we look a little deeper, what we see in the videos is even more revealing—to the point that we might consider that the "sheeple" we are observing are not simply buffoons; they pose a threat to our personal future.

Looking back into history, we see a parallel in Germany. In the late 1940s, many Germans were interviewed as to how it had been possible for Hitler to effect his extreme policies. They were asked how they could have sat by whilst the atrocities occurred. The Germans interviewed stated vaguely that they were not aware of the atrocities. When they were pointedly asked about seeing the Jews being dragged off and thrown on trains, or asked about the smell from the smokestacks at the concentration camps, the interviewees would shrug their shoulders and say that they had not realised the significance of what was happening.

At that time, Americans were rightfully outraged that the German people could have been so callous, so unobservant, or so dim-witted as to have been unaware of what was happening around them. Surely, at some point, the German people should have said, "That's enough. This is wrong and must stop."

And the Americans were correct, although it is also true that, having won the war, it was easy for them to criticise, as they had not been the people who had been under the thumb of an over-reaching fascist government.

Today, of course, the shoe is on the other foot. The US is tragically, but assuredly, the home of a fascist over-reaching government. On a very regular basis, Americans are subjected to new measures of control that they should feel are beyond the pale and are to be rejected. However, just as in Nazi Germany in the 1930s, the threat from the government towards those who do not comply is developing in lockstep with the increasing controls.

If we were to imagine a Mark Dice in Germany in late 1930s Berlin, stopping people in a friendly way to ask for their signatures on a petition that, say, called for the extermination of Jews, they might well have signed, finding it easier to "go along" than to question the validity of the idea being proposed.

The reason? Well, at some point in the destruction of a democracy, a mild fear sets in the minds of a people that all will not turn out well. At that point, many begin to shut down. Their ability to react to outrageous developments fades into a state of numbness. It no longer matters how irrational the proposal may be, it is simply accepted on the face of it, as it is easier to "go along" than to question. It is also less distressing.

If we watch the video that is attached, we may shake our heads that the petition signers do not react to the idea that a dead man (Karl Marx) is running for president. Neither do they react to the suggestion that they show support for Obama's "communist agenda." Neither do they react to the suggestion of a full communist takeover.

This does not necessarily mean that the petition signers are incredibly stupid. What it means is that they have chosen to tune out. It is best not to think. The petitioner is pleasant, and it does not pay to contest the issues in question. It is easier to simply sign.

At some point in the future, interviewers may ask Americans, "How could you just sit by whilst the atrocities occurred?" Americans may shrug their shoulders and say that they were not really aware of what was happening. If and when this comes to pass, will they be lying? Possibly not. It may be that those who had simply "tuned out" were no longer cognizant of the meaning of events around them and were functioning as automatons—servants of the American Reich.

It is sadly true that the signing of a Mark Dice petition is a mere symptom of a greater concern—the conversion of the American people from a once-proud culture of self-determination, to a lesser species of cooperative sheeple.

For the observer, it suggests that the US has passed the point of no return; that this may end as it has historically—in a period of warfare abroad and subjugation at home.

The warning signs are becoming more numerous with each passing day.

The choice for Americans today is whether to wait and see whether history repeats or whether to plan to be elsewhere before the deterioration advances further.


    



via Zero Hedge http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/zerohedge/feed/~3/1R4AAZdRR4g/story01.htm Tyler Durden

Despite President's Urging, Obamacare Helpline Lives Up To Its Name

It would appear, despite the President's urging, that Obamacare's helpline is living up to its mnemonics. As The National Review reports, President Obama emerged on Monday to assure Americans that the “kinks” surrounding the federal and state health-care exchanges are improving and urged consumers to call the exchange hotline if they continue to encounter problems online. Shortly after he made the suggestion, Twitter lit up with reporters and others who attempted to do so but failed to get through to a navigator as promised.

 

Indeed, Mr. President, 1-800-318-2596 to you too.

 

 

Via The National Review,

…

After dialing the number, some callers got a busy signal, others received an automated message, and yet others were referred back to Healthcare.gov.

 

 

 

In his speech, President Obama said that there was “no excuse” for the problems plaguing the website and assured Americans, “These problems are getting fixed.” He also said that the issues with the online exchanges do not reflect flaws in the legislation itself, which he said offers a high-quality product.

 


    



via Zero Hedge http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/zerohedge/feed/~3/jm0xh-W5v6Y/story01.htm Tyler Durden

Despite President’s Urging, Obamacare Helpline Lives Up To Its Name

It would appear, despite the President's urging, that Obamacare's helpline is living up to its mnemonics. As The National Review reports, President Obama emerged on Monday to assure Americans that the “kinks” surrounding the federal and state health-care exchanges are improving and urged consumers to call the exchange hotline if they continue to encounter problems online. Shortly after he made the suggestion, Twitter lit up with reporters and others who attempted to do so but failed to get through to a navigator as promised.

 

Indeed, Mr. President, 1-800-318-2596 to you too.

 

 

Via The National Review,

…

After dialing the number, some callers got a busy signal, others received an automated message, and yet others were referred back to Healthcare.gov.

 

 

 

In his speech, President Obama said that there was “no excuse” for the problems plaguing the website and assured Americans, “These problems are getting fixed.” He also said that the issues with the online exchanges do not reflect flaws in the legislation itself, which he said offers a high-quality product.

 


    



via Zero Hedge http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/zerohedge/feed/~3/jm0xh-W5v6Y/story01.htm Tyler Durden

Stephen Roach: What The Debt Ceiling Debacle Should Teach China

Authored by Stephen Roach, originally posted at Project Syndicate,

Yes, the United States dodged another bullet with a last-minute deal on the debt ceiling. But, with 90 days left to bridge the ideological and partisan divide before another crisis erupts, the fuse on America’s debt bomb is getting shorter and shorter. As a dysfunctional US government peers into the abyss, China – America’s largest foreign creditor – has much at stake.

It began so innocently. As recently as 2000, China owned only about $60 billion in US Treasuries, or roughly 2% of the outstanding US debt of $3.3 trillion held by the public. But then both countries upped the ante on America’s fiscal profligacy. US debt exploded to nearly $12 trillion ($16.7 trillion if intragovernmental holdings are included). And China’s share of America’s publicly-held debt overhang increased more than five-fold, to nearly 11% ($1.3 trillion) by July 2013. Along with roughly $700 billion in Chinese holdings of US agency debt (Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac), China’s total $2 trillion exposure to US government and quasi-government securities is massive by any standard.

China’s seemingly open-ended purchases of US government debt are at the heart of a web of codependency that binds the two economies. China does not buy Treasuries out of benevolence, or because it looks to America as a shining example of wealth and prosperity. It certainly is not attracted by the return and seemingly riskless security of US government paper – both of which are much in play in an era of zero interest rates and mounting concerns about default. Nor is sympathy at work; China does not buy Treasuries because it wants to temper the pain of America’s fiscal brinkmanship.

China buys Treasuries because they suit its currency policy and the export-led growth that it has relied on over the past 33 years. As a surplus saver, China has run large current-account surpluses since 1994, accumulating a massive portfolio of foreign-exchange reserves that now stands at almost $3.7 trillion.

China has recycled about 60% of these reserves back into dollar-denominated US government securities, because it wants to limit any appreciation of the renminbi against the world’s benchmark currency. If China bought fewer dollars, the renminbi’s exchange rate – up 35% against the dollar since mid-2005 – would strengthen more sharply than it already has, jeopardizing competiveness and export-led growth.

This arrangement fits America’s needs like a glove. Given its extraordinary shortfall of domestic saving, the US runs chronic current-account deficits and relies on foreign investors to fill the funding void. US politicians take this for granted as a special privilege bestowed by the dollar’s position as the world’s major reserve currency. When queried about America’s dependence on foreign lenders, they often smugly retort, “Where else would they go?” I have heard that line many times when I have testified before the US Congress.

Of course, America benefits from China’s outward-facing growth model in many other ways, as well. China’s purchases of Treasuries help hold down US interest rates – possibly by as much as one percentage point – which provides broad support to other asset markets, such as equities and real estate, whose valuation depends to some extent on Chinese-subsidized US interest rates. And, of course, hard-pressed middle-class American consumers benefit hugely from low-cost Chinese imports – the Walmart effect – that enable them to stretch their budgets in an era of unrelenting pressure on jobs and real incomes.

For more than 20 years, this mutually beneficial codependency has served both countries well in compensating for their inherent saving imbalances while satisfying their respective growth agendas. But here the past should not be viewed as prologue. A seismic shift is at hand, and America’s recent fiscal follies may well be the tipping point.

China has made a conscious strategic decision to alter its growth strategy. Its 12th Five-Year Plan, enacted in March 2011, lays out a broad framework for a more balanced growth model that relies increasingly on domestic private consumption. These plans are about to be put into action.  An important meeting in November – the Third Plenum of the Central Committee of the 18th Chinese Communist Party Congress – will provide a major test of the new leadership team’s commitment to a detailed agenda of reforms and policies that will be required to achieve this shift.

The debt-ceiling debacle has sent a clear message to China – and comes in conjunction with other warning signs. Post-crisis sluggishness in US aggregate demand – especially consumer demand – is likely to persist, denying Chinese exporters the support they need from their largest foreign market. US-led China bashing – a bipartisan blame game that reached new heights in the 2012 political cycle – remains a real threat. And now the safety and security of US debt are at risk. Economic alarms rarely ring so loudly. The time has come for China to respond with equal clarity.

Rebalancing is China’s only option. Several internal factors – excess resource consumption, environmental degradation, and mounting income inequalities – are calling the old model into question, while a broad constellation of US-centric external forces also attests to the urgent need for realignment.

With rebalancing will come a decline in China’s surplus saving, much slower accumulation of foreign-exchange reserves, and a concomitant reduction in its seemingly voracious demand for dollar-denominated assets. Curtailing purchases of US Treasuries is a perfectly logical outgrowth of this process. Long dependent on China to finesse its fiscal problems, America may now have to pay a much steeper price to secure external capital.

Recently, Chinese commentators have provocatively referred to the inevitability of a “de-Americanized world.” For China, this is not a power race. It should be seen as more of a conscious strategy to do what is right for China as it confronts its own daunting growth and development imperatives in the coming years.

The US will find it equally urgent to come to grips with a very different China. Codependency was never a sustainable strategy for either side. China just happens to have understood this first. The days of its open-ended buying of Treasuries will soon come to an end.


    



via Zero Hedge http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/zerohedge/feed/~3/1E5PgvWMcCA/story01.htm Tyler Durden

Marc Faber Blasts "We Are The Bubble… There Is No Exit Strategy"

“The question is not ‘tapering’,” Marc Faber exclaims to his hosts on CNBC’s Squawk Box this morning, “the question is at what point will they increase the asset purchases to say $150 [billion] , $200 [billion], or a trillion dollars a month.” QE-4-EVA is here to stay, as Faber explained “every government program that is introduced under urgency and as a temporary measure is always permanent.” Simply put, “The Fed has boxed itself into a position where there is no exit strategy,” and while inflation may not be present in the ‘chosen’ indicators, Faber blasts, there’s been incredible asset inflation – “we are the bubble. We have a colossal asset bubble in the world [and] a leverage or a debt bubble.” There will be massive wealth destruction, he concludes, “one day this asset inflation will lead to a deflationary collapse one way or the other. We don’t know yet what will cause it.”

 

The Fed is Boxed In….

 

The world is in a gigantic bubble…

 

Back in April 2012, Faber said the world will face “massive wealth destruction” in which “well to-do people will lose up to 50 percent of their total wealth.”

In today’s “Squawk” appearance, he said that could still happen but possibly from higher levels because of the “asset bubble” caused by the Fed.


    



via Zero Hedge http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/zerohedge/feed/~3/voIblqgwiNk/story01.htm Tyler Durden

Marc Faber Blasts “We Are The Bubble… There Is No Exit Strategy”

“The question is not ‘tapering’,” Marc Faber exclaims to his hosts on CNBC’s Squawk Box this morning, “the question is at what point will they increase the asset purchases to say $150 [billion] , $200 [billion], or a trillion dollars a month.” QE-4-EVA is here to stay, as Faber explained “every government program that is introduced under urgency and as a temporary measure is always permanent.” Simply put, “The Fed has boxed itself into a position where there is no exit strategy,” and while inflation may not be present in the ‘chosen’ indicators, Faber blasts, there’s been incredible asset inflation – “we are the bubble. We have a colossal asset bubble in the world [and] a leverage or a debt bubble.” There will be massive wealth destruction, he concludes, “one day this asset inflation will lead to a deflationary collapse one way or the other. We don’t know yet what will cause it.”

 

The Fed is Boxed In….

 

The world is in a gigantic bubble…

 

Back in April 2012, Faber said the world will face “massive wealth destruction” in which “well to-do people will lose up to 50 percent of their total wealth.”

In today’s “Squawk” appearance, he said that could still happen but possibly from higher levels because of the “asset bubble” caused by the Fed.


    



via Zero Hedge http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/zerohedge/feed/~3/voIblqgwiNk/story01.htm Tyler Durden

The Cargo Problem

If there was ever a more complicated place in the world it’s Kenya. I just got back from my third trip there. It made me think about why they are so poor and we are so rich.

There are 42+ million people in Kenya and most of them are poor. The government says they are expanding at 4-5% per year. Annual GDP is only $71.4 billion. Apple had $156 billion in revenues in 2012. 40% of the workforce is unemployed. Per capita income is about $900 per year making one of the poorest countries on the planet. Yet the media there are brimming with optimistic reports of economic progress.

The capital, Nairobi, is a growing, sprawling city with an official population of 3,500,000 but it’s really much, much larger. There are large slums on the outskirts. While there is an emerging middle class and a top tier of 5,000 millionaires, most Nairobians are struggling.

It is not as if there has been no progress. There has been a lot of construction in and around Nairobi and real estate is in a boom phase. New shopping strip malls and housing developments serve the growing middle class. And many people (60% of the “poor”) have cell phones. More cars, more jitneys, and more buses clog the roads. And more inflation which robs people of their savings.

There are two foundations of their economy: agriculture and tourism. Tourism by far is the most important since it brings good jobs and foreign exchange. Tourism accounts for more than 50% of the economy. Half of farming is subsistence level only.

It makes you wonder. If things are so good, why are things so bad?

It isn’t the people. Many speak English and are well educated. But their talents are wasted because of a lack of opportunity. I discussed politics with a waiter who had wanted to be a biologist. A safari guide who speaks 3 or 4 languages, who is a trained and certified wildlife expert is paid $30 a month and relies on tips from generous tourists to get by. It is considered a very good job.

There are many explanations for poverty. One popular idea is Jared Diamond’s theory espoused in the book, Guns, Germs and Steel. He takes an historical look at why some parts of the globe thrived and some didn’t. His explanation for success was: the rise of grain agriculture in temperate zones, the decimation of non-temperate zone populations from diseases spread by temperate zone invaders, and the technology of advanced weaponry. Cultures living in temperate zones of the planet thrived and those elsewhere failed to grow beyond subsistence levels.

Diamond’s book was a response to a question from a New Guinean who asked him, “Why do you have so much cargo and we so little?” “Cargo” being pidgin for material goods. I believe that Diamond’s answer only goes so far. Those factors can explain many things in the dim historic past, but it is not as applicable today. It leaves out one really important thing: ideas. Or, to be more accurate, the right ideas.

For example, another question one can ask is: “Why do some societies in the temperate zones thrive and others fail?” Or, “Why do some societies in tropical zones thrive and others fail?” It’s not because technology isn’t known to poor societies. Everybody (almost) everywhere has access to this knowledge. The thing missing in Diamond’s theory are the sociological factors: the methods of human organization. Here I am talking about economic and political systems. These are the ideas the make us or break us.

The formula for success anywhere on the planet isn’t that difficult to discover. You need freedom. That is, solid property rights, a just legal system that protects property rights and the enforcement of contracts, and limited government and low taxation. Add in the personal freedom to do what you damn well please as long as you don’t abridge someone else’s rights. If you do these things, capital (wealth from savings) and an entrepreneurial spirit will rise and drive human progress. These are the ideas that emerged from the Enlightenment and culminated in the founding of the United States of America. It has worked everywhere it has been tried.

These are the things that Kenya and most African countries lack.

Since gaining independence from Britain in 1960, Kenya took the socialist path and the economy stagnated. Bad roads, bad communications, state owned industries, rising poverty, corruption. Basically they just spent the capital that had been accumulated during colonial times. Colonialism was bad but so were and still are the successive socialist-kleptocratic regimes that suck the country dry and keep them poor. They just raised the national sales (VAT) tax to 16% and everyone is complaining because prices have shot up. In 1989 impoverished China took a different road and now they are building roads in Kenya as part of their foreign aid (with a commercial ulterior motive, of course).

Everyone I talked to at “ground level” in Kenya said the number one problem is corruption. When you get down to the detail of what they really mean by that is that they lack the above mentioned freedoms needed for success. The courts are corrupt. The politicians are corrupt. The police are corrupt. The bureaucrats are corrupt. Crony capitalism is rampant. While they espouse the philosophy of “democracy”, that usually means the winners get to distribute political spoils to their cronies and fellow tribesmen.

How do you change that? Can you just change the system and expect human behavior to change overnight? Well, you’ve got to start somewhere. It won’t happen overnight, but if freedom breaks out in these countries, I believe things and people will change for the better. I believe that stripped down to our essentials, human beings behave pretty much the same. It’s all the crap that’s piled on top of us starting at birth that is the problem.

Free market capitalism is what I have been talking about here. It is what is called an emergent system, that is, a spontaneous social organization that emerges when the right conditions (freedom) are present. It is a ground up mostly self-regulating system. It’s not something that government invents (a top down system), but it’s the system that most closely matches human nature and allows individuals to reach their potential. Before you get too excited, recall the conditions of freedom I mentioned above require government to protect and enforce our human rights. It’s not easy; it takes time. And it’s not perfect, but as history has shown, it sure as hell beats anything else.


    



via Zero Hedge http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/zerohedge/feed/~3/Api6j7Ft2Yg/story01.htm Econophile

Hedgers Active As Stocks Languish (At All-Time Highs) On Low Volume

The high-beta honeys were not amused (despite another melt-up in NFLX into earnings) as the Russell 2000 underperformed (-0.25% on the day). The Dow and S&P ended practically unch, Nasdaq bid (helped by AAPL ahead of the product news tomorrow) and Trannies closed their highs of the day exuberating all the way… Treasury yields rose 2-3bps (steepening). FX was quiet with the USD very slightly higher (helped by JPY weakness) but AUDJPY was in charge of S&P 500 trading today. Oil dropped 1.6% closing back under $100 and Silver rallied 1.3%. Hedgers were active (6though clearly the selling was limited) as credit spreads and volatility markets saw protection buyers active.

 

Equity indices were quite notably divergent today…

 

But it was clear that macro overlays were being laid out once again in credit…

 

and in VIX…

 

Bonds quietly limped higher in yield but FX markets were dead…

 

with only AUDJPY (JPY weakness dominant) leading stocks…

 

Charts: Bloomberg

Bonus Chart: Apple catches up to Gold ahead of tomorrow’s product announcement


    



via Zero Hedge http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/zerohedge/feed/~3/qxkWDUjgR7A/story01.htm Tyler Durden

Is This Where Your Egg McMuffin Comes From?

And the hits just keep on coming for McDonalds. An animal rights organization is urging McDonald’s Canada to take a firm stand against what it calls “shocking animal cruelty” captured on a graphic video it says was taken at two Alberta farms, which shows dead hens rotting in the cages, and chicks being covered in feces. . As The Globe and Mail reports, McDonald’s, however, says while it does get eggs from Burnbrae along with many other Canadian companies, it says its eggs do not come from the farms referenced in the W5 story.

 

 

Via The Globe And Mail,

“They’re so crammed inside those cages they can’t spread their wings, they can’t walk, they can’t turn around, they can’t engage in any of their natural behaviour,” said Stephane Perrais, director of operations with Mercy For Animals Canada.

 

“They spend one year of their miserable life in there, basically producing eggs and after that time period, they’re considered spent by the industry because their productivity is declined, and then they’re slaughtered.”

 

The group says the footage was taken by an undercover investigator who was hired as a farm worker by Ku-Ku Farms and Creekside Grove Farms for 10 weeks in May.

 

The video also shows dead hens rotting in the cages, and chicks being covered in feces.

A statement said McDonald’s said it does not condone animal abuse by its suppliers.

 

…

 

“We care about the humane treatment of animals and believe they should be free from cruelty, abuse and neglect,” said spokeswoman Karin Campbell in the written statement emailed to The Canadian Press.

 

“Abuse is never tolerated in our supply chain and McDonald’s has strict policies in place concerning the treatment of animals that our suppliers must adhere to at all times. We also work with our suppliers and outside experts to continuously improve our standards and practices, both within McDonald’s and across the industry.”


    



via Zero Hedge http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/zerohedge/feed/~3/8vGBXxvvsW8/story01.htm Tyler Durden

Guest Post: China And Gold

Submitted by Alasdair Macleod via GoldMoney.com,

China is now overtly pushing for the US dollar to be replaced as the world’s reserve currency.

Xinhua, China’s official press agency on Sunday ran an op-ed article which kicked off as follows:

“As U.S. politicians of both political parties are still shuffling back and forth between the White House and the Capitol Hill without striking a viable deal to bring normality to the body politic they brag about, it is perhaps a good time for the befuddled world to start considering building a de-Americanized world.”

China does have a broad strategy to prepare for this event. She is encouraging the creation of an international market in her own currency through the twin centres of Hong Kong and London, side-lining New York, and she is actively promoting through the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) non-dollar trade settlement across the whole of Asia. She has also been covertly building her gold reserves while overtly encouraging her citizens to accumulate gold as well.

There can be little doubt from these actions that China is preparing herself for the demise of the dollar, at least as the world’s reserve currency. Central to insuring herself and her citizens against this outcome is gold. China has invested heavily in domestic mine production and is now the largest producer at an estimated 440 tonnes annually, and she is also looking to buy up gold mines elsewhere. Little or none of the domestically mined gold is seen in the market, so it is a reasonable assumption the Government is quietly accumulating all her own production without it becoming publicly available.

Recorded demand for gold from China’s private sector has escalated to the point where their demand now accounts for significantly more than the rest of the world’s mine production. The Shanghai Gold Exchange is the mainland monopoly for physical delivery, and Hong Kong acts as a separate interacting hub. Between them in the first eight months of 2013 they have delivered 1,730 tonnes into private hands, or an annualised rate of 2,600 tonnes.

The world ex-China mines an estimated 2,260 tonnes, leaving a supply deficit for not only the rest of gold-hungry South-east Asia and India, but the rest of the world as well. It is this fact that gives meat to the suspicion that Western central bank monetary gold is being supplied keep the price down, because ETF sales and diminishing supplies of non-Asian scrap have been wholly insufficient to satisfy this surge in demand.

So why is the Chinese Government so keen on gold? The answer most likely involves geo-politics. And here it is worth noting that through the SCO, China and Russia with the support of most of the countries in between them are building an economic bloc with a common feature: gold. It is noticeable that while the West’s financial system has been bad-mouthing gold, all the members of the SCO, including most of its prospective members, have been accumulating it. The result is a strong vein of gold throughout Asia while the West has left itself dangerously exposed.

The West selling its stocks of gold has become the biggest strategic gamble in financial history. We are committing ourselves entirely to fiat currencies, which our central banks are now having to issue in accelerating quantities. In the process China and Russia have been handed ultimate economic power on a plate.

 


    



via Zero Hedge http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/zerohedge/feed/~3/ktM6UVgkNvU/story01.htm Tyler Durden