Financial Markets Definitely Destabilizing – Charles Hugh Smith

By Greg Hunter’s USAWatchdog.com (Early Sunday Release)

Financial writer and book author Charles Hugh Smith has been watching the extreme movements in financial markets closely. Is he nervous?  Smith says, “Oh yeah, it’s definitely destabilizing.  In other words, it’s becoming not just more volatile, the whole underlying structure of our economy is destabilizing.  What I mean by that is it’s becoming more brittle or fragile.  That is fundamentally why we are seeing these wild swings.  People are swinging between . . . keeping the money machine like it is for another nine years, and the other side of the coin says wait a minute, we have already had a weak expansion for nine years.  It’s almost the longest expansion in U.S. history.  A normal business cycle doesn’t run in one direction forever. . . .If you don’t allow your economy to have a business cycle recession, then you are simply making it more fragile by encouraging really marginal and risky investments, and that’s where we are now.”

One very big problem is a dramatic loss in buying power of the U.S. dollar, but it’s not just the dollar. According to Smith, “All these currencies, there is nothing backing the currencies except the government’s force.  That’s the yen, the euro, the dollar and the Chinese yuan.  They are all going to have a catastrophic drop against real assets because they are all based on too much leverage, too much debt, too much money being pumped into the financial system that ends up in unproductive speculation.  You can’t grow your debt at six times the rate of your economy.  In other words, if you are creating $6, $8 or $10 of debt to eke out $1 of low productivity growth, you are dooming your currency, and all currencies are doing the same thing.  All the currencies are going to take a big drop at some point . . . relative to real stuff.  Real stuff is commodities we need:  water, grains, food, oil, natural gas and, of course, precious metals.  Everybody knows they have been money for 5,000 years, and I personally feel there is a role for crypto currencies.”

Join Greg Hunter as he goes One-on-One with Charles Hugh Smith, author of the new book “Money and Work Unchained” and the founder of the popular site OfTwoMinds.com.

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After the Interview: 

Charles Hugh Smith is a prolific writer on his site called OfTwoMinds.com. All the information is totally free.  If you want to buy a copy of Smith’s latest book “Money and Work Unchained” click here.  (Remember, there is a free sample of the book you can download.)

 

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Comments
  1. FC

    Here are some of my discontent…………..

    1. Isn’t it weird that in America, the flag and the culture offends so many people, but the benefits don’t?

    2. How can the federal government ask U.S. citizens to pay back student loans, when illegal aliens are receiving a free education?

    3. Only in America are legal citizens labeled “racists” and “Nazis,” but illegal aliens are called “Dreamers”.

    4. Liberals say, “If confiscating all guns saves just one life, it’s worth it”. Well then, if deporting all illegals saves just one life, wouldn’t that be worth it?

    5. I can’t quite figure out how you can proudly wave the flag of another country, but consider it punishment to be sent back there.

    6. The Constitution: It doesn’t need to be rewritten, it needs to be reread.

    7. William F. Buckley said: “Liberals claim to want to give a hearing to other points of view, and are then shocked and offended when they discover there are other points of view.”

    8. Joseph Sobran said: ‘Need’ now means wanting someone else’s money. ‘Greed’ means wanting to keep your own. ‘Compassion’ is when a politician arranges the transfer.”

    • John

      Great post FC!

    • James Hastings - "Cherokee center of the world"

      I too, thought this was excellent, when I read their post on…..Lynette Zang’s video….?

      Nosmo King • 5 hours ago

      Enigmas

      (1) Isn’t it weird that in America, our flag and our culture offend so many people, but our benefits don’t?

      (2) How can the federal government ask U.S. citizens to pay back student loans, when illegal aliens are receiving a free education?

      (3) Only in America are legal citizens labeled “racists” and “Nazis,” but illegal aliens are called “Dreamers”.

      (4) Liberals say, “If confiscating all guns saves just one life, it’s worth it”. Well then, if deporting all illegals saves just one life, wouldn’t that be worth it?

      (5) I can’t quite figure out how you can proudly wave the flag of another country, but consider it punishment to be sent back there.

      6) The Constitution: It doesn’t need to be rewritten, it needs to be reread.

      (7) William F. Buckley said: “Liberals claim to want to give a hearing to other points of view, and are then shocked and offended when they discover there are other points of view.”

      (8) Joseph Sobran said: “‘Need’ now means wanting someone else’s money. ‘Greed’ means wanting to keep your own. ‘Compassion’ is when a politician arranges the transfer.”

      This individual is brilliant ….:)

    • Paul ...

      Good points FC … I would like to add that no Nation can make itself Great on the skeletal remains of children … Trump understands this … that is why he is going after all the child killing criminal pedophiles … so too … must “other Nations” understand this … it does not matter the nationality of the murdered children’s skeletal remains (be they Israeli, Yemeni, Syrian, Palistinian, etc., etc.) … they are “human beings” with a fundamental God given human right to life and liberty … they should not be indiscriminately slaughtered to expropriate land, or expropriate oil, or to harvest their organs, or use them in deviated Satanic sexual rituals … the immoral murder of defenseless unarmed children “can never be legitimatized or rationalized away” by any Nation seeking to be Great in the eyes of God … it only undermines their legitimacy before the Father … and his judgement will most likely lead to their downfall!!

      • Frederick

        In other news Lynne de Rothshild just threw Johnny “Skippy” Podesta under the bus Couldn’t happen to a nicer cockroach WTch for a nail gun accident

    • Wayne Swanson

      I was talking to a liberal/progressive the other day, and he started talking about how people have a right to health care and rights to all kinds of other things. I told him that it was funny how all of the so-called rights he mentions, seem to always involve him redistributing my money. They just hate it when you present them with the truth of what they are doing…but that doesn’t stop them from wanting to do it; they just hate it when you see through their nasty little schemes.

    • Diane

      Excellent FC

      • Waz

        & they hate you for pointing it out!
        In the name of “love & tolerance” of course.

    • Chip

      Spot on!!! Chip

    • andyb

      Excellent comment. +100 All that us noted is part of the larger agenda trending towards totalitarian rule by the <1.0%. Wake up America!! You are being divided purposely through the memes of race, gender, religion, politics. Your children are being indoctrinated, not educated. Your food, air and water are being directly poisoned as a means of incremental genocide. The Hunger Games and the Zombie Apocalypse could be reality by 2050 if not sooner. It's not for nothing that the Georgia Guidestones want only 500 million on the planet to achieve "natural harmony", and that a CIA linked website called Daigle.com predicts a US population by 2025 of merely 1/10th of what it is today. What do they know that we don't?

      • bill

        DEAGLE.COM. GREAT SITE AND LOOK AT EUROPE THAN ASIA.

    • Da Yooper

      Nicely done FC

    • allen ols

      greg
      here is dr dave janda telling info on the Russians on board the plane that went down w/ 77 people on board, people involved in the uranium one stuff.
      https://davejanda.com/media/

    • Paul from Indiana

      JC. BRAVO! This really breaks my heart, but only because I didn’t come up with it first! Many thanks for sharing, and best always. PM

      • Paul from Indiana

        JC, this list really sums up why we are in the pickle we are, and just how difficult, impossible actually, it will be to break out. As much as it pains me to say it, the country needs a divorce between the two principals, the conservatives and the socialists, with each going his/her own way. My hope is that the separation can be peaceful. Best always. PM

    • Bob Tate

      Can democracy destroy government and harm country common national interests.

      Democracy destroys government. Under western democracy Clan interests are above common national interests.

      Common national interest can only be protected by country monarch or strong patriotic country elite. West has been seeding western democracy over the world and experimenting with it last 100 years. Now we have fruits of it. Some European countries are losing their identity. We see resistance to it from Poland and Hungary.

      In north America sexual misconduct used to remove Patrick Brown (progressive conservative leader in Ontario Canada) just two months before provincial elections.
      Also Used against elected US President Trump at early stage of his tenure publicised on every Liberal Media outlet.
      Used to remove Dominique Gaston André Strauss-Kahn French politician, former managing director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) (potentially by US secret service)

      Gender neutral toilets because of one student at school who cannot decide on his gender and wants free gender change operation.

      Christmas tree removal from schools.

      These are steps where common national interest are permanently lost to the point where authorities are hiding statistic on crime committed by illegal aliens and other minorities causing disproportional harm to society.

      On opposite side, countries that do not wish this type of democracy call it Liberal Satanism.

    • James Hastings - "Cherokee center of the world"

      FC……care to man up? I hate confrontation…but, did you plagiarize someone’s writings?

      • FC

        I have no problems in manning up to the fact that it was a comment I have read 3 times in varies comment sections over the last 5 months and I thought it as brilliant………….plagiarism never crossed my mind when I wanted to share this with you all.
        Never did I say it was my writing and in fact it mentions the name of 2 writers.
        There are many comments I have read here and on other sites that I know for a fact are copy and paste but it’s done to inform people not to credit the blogger for being intelligent………….it sounds like to me you love confrontations.

      • Paul ...

        James … lets not be so picky … good info is good info … and it should be brought to our attention … if FC wants to list some things he found for us “that he felt discontented over” (he is not necessarily claiming authorship) … he put quotation marks on the statements made by the people he cited!

      • andy

        Hastings–WHO the hell cares where he got it from! Be thankful he shared it with us. Yours is a TYPICAL liberal comment..you are like a gnat-

    • Bob Tate

      3. Only in America are legal citizens labeled “racists” and “Nazis,” but illegal aliens are called “Dreamers”.
      How about Deplorable – Ala Hillary .

  2. Anthony Australia

    Awesome interview Greg!
    I really enjoyed this one. They’ll rob us with inflation and devaluation of the currency, so if you have savings it will be worth half if your lucky. Not to mention no interest for the savings account over the last 10 years.
    Gold & Silver.

    • Paul ...

      They’ll rob us with inflation of our money , devaluation of our stocks and the vaporization of our Bitcoins … the final terminal blow-off in the US dollar from above 100 is a done deal (it is now on its way into the 70’s) … the stock market is only now beginning to be shaken (to be followed by a catastrophic wipe-out) … as for Bitcoin (it getting cut in half is only the beginning) you don’t want to be anywhere near it … the “inexperienced get rich quick crowd” is now flocking back into Bitcoin (to buy the dip) … they will be vaporized!! …
      Note: [For those who mortgaged the house to buy Bitcoin you better have a back-up plan … like owning one ounce of gold for every Bitcoin you bought at $10,000 dollars … so when gold goes to $10,000 … you at least break even]

      • Paul ...

        You know …. what is truly mind boggling … everyone is now in a panic that the dollar “is going to lose half its value” (and go from 2 cents to 1 cent in the coming re-set) … yet we were as calm “as a herd of mind controlled cows munching on grass right before the slaughter” … as the Fed led us up the ramp to the slaughter house and took the dollar down from 100 cents to 2 cents … yet we are all still in a stupor … and won’t go near gold (or silver at these historic low prices) as an electronic stun gun (Bitcoin) has been put to our head … right before the Fed slices our throat!!

  3. ross

    Excellent choice Greg. Charles is a clear logical thinker that I can identify with. UBI is not the solution to robotics. Part of the solution is diversity into the countryside,whereby communities can grow their own quality food , make things they need and be off the energy grid. We should be looking at quality of life in community and our ingenuity in making things work. Our economies are now 8 times more productive than 60 yrs ago, yet the masses are far worse off. If you don’t pay people enough money to consume the products they make, there will be no economy. New money added to any economy should never be created as debt, as it the major tool our elites use to enslave us.

  4. saati

    Hello Greg, please check you mic, in the last interview your mic was playing up

    • Greg Hunter

      Saati,
      I got some new equipment and I am working the bugs out of it. Thank you.
      Greg

      • bill

        Greg,you get great guests and Ive listened since you started usa watch dog and what i’ve noticed is your watchers/listeners are awake and add all kinds of good links to continue the discussion .You’ve influenced folks to continue searching for info after you’ve turned of the mic.Thanks for getting good guests.

        • Greg Hunter

          Lot’s of awake smart people here Bill and you are one of them.
          Greg

  5. Anthony Australia

    I noticed John Wick uses Gold for underground purchases in Chapter 2.

  6. Kim

    Thank you for this very informative interview.. The perspective of CHS is interesting and practical. Great guest!

  7. Michael

    Hi Greg

    Always enjoy hooking the computer up to my 65″ TV and watching your programs with a cup of coffee, fruit and cheese on a Sunday morning. I always look forward to your programs.

    Keep up the good work

    Mike
    🙂

  8. Jerry

    What is there left to discuss? The dollars replacement has already been decided by the central banks and the International Bank of Settlements. All that is left is when?
    https://qz.com/1150533/the-dollars-days-as-the-worlds-most-important-currency-are-numbered/

    The internal restructuring inside the global banking system is almost complete. When the launch of the Petroyuan takes place on March 26th, you will see the death spiral of the dollar pick up speed culminating with a global currency reset sometime this summer according to some experts. In short discussing market movements is a waste of time since they’re being manipulated by central banks. Case in point: gold and silver prices. How many fines have been paid out?

    • Jerry

      Proof that Russia is consolidating its oil reserves with China as the petroyuan launch date approaches.
      https://www.reuters.com/article/russia-oil-urals-quality/europe-shuns-russian-oil-as-boost-of-chinese-flows-hits-quality-idUSL8N1PS0KH

      • wd

        Jerry,
        I love this article. The Russians are squeezing the Eoropeans and getting paid for it….while we are indicting some people who used fake names to say bad things about Hilary. OMG!
        Bravo Vlad while west swats at flies, they get trampled by elephants…

    • Jerry

      Jim Rickards is saying the same thing. Time is almost up.
      https://dailyreckoning.com/lp/breaking-pentagon-insider-reports-collapse-of-international-monetary-system-now-imminent-2/

      It’s better to be early than to be late at this party. You won’t get to deal with it when it happens. ( as one of my close friends who is in denial says) The window of opportunity is over. Still have doubts.?
      Look at the money velocity chart and compare it with the bank inter lending chart Greg showed on Friday. You may not believe me but the numbers don’t lie.

      • mike

        Seriously Jerry ? An advertisement for Jim’s most recent book ? Come on. You can do better than that Jerry.

      • susan

        Jerry, what I don’t understand is Mr. Smith claims the Yuan is going down, same as the other currencies. So how will they hurt us?

        • Jerry

          Susan,
          They have set up their own exchange system and no longer need to use the dollar for exchange . I disagree with Mr. Smith . We don’t have the gold to back our currency with. They do.

      • Paul from Indiana

        Hi Jerry! When the crash comes, you should be the most rewarded individual in modern history, given how early you came to the party! The crash, such as it is and will/might be, will be a blessing to us all, as it will be the chance for a restart. It will be the de facto revolution we were either too disinterested, too detached, or too cowardly to undertake on our own. There is no free ticket in life, and after awhile, fear ceases to motivate. And I postulate that it is impossible to deal with something until it is present. Good luck to you and yours. PM

        • Jerry

          Thank you Paul. For the record I beleive it is the beginning of the tribulation period. The banquet is set. The bridegroom cometh.

          • Paul from Indiana

            Well, Jerry, I can’t thank you enough for giving me the FINAL piece of the puzzle. I understand your take and position completely. If you are right, it shall have all been worth it. I couldn’t for the life of me understand how you could get so darn vested in this China thing. I hope it is the deliverance vehicle you so ardently desire. Best always. PM

    • bill

      Jerry,good to see posts like others that follow the currency as its the reason for wars and corruption.Politics are to argue,debate,confuse and separate us.AIIB,PETRO YUAN,SDR,dollars going down and its a managed currency collapse world wide.

  9. David

    Regarding the loss of wealth. I’ve been in the poorest countries one day, and the richest county the next (i.e., U.S.). My experiences have taught me one thing. Those who have nothing, have nothing to lose. Those who have everything, have everything to lose. In the U.S., we have everything to lose. Prepare yourself!

    Regarding college education. I am tired of whining brats who feel that a college education is a right. It’s not. I worked to cash flow my college education. Fast forward 25 years…. we put our three children through college. How did we do it? We worked hard, saved money, lived in very small homes, drove beat-up cars, passed on expensive vacations, and scrimped on everything else to the point of squeaking. By the way, all of our kids worked as well while going to college. They were debt free when they graduated and they are all debt free today!

    My mother’s greatest quote. When I was 1o years old, a person at a grocery store was trying to buy a large bag of dog food with food stamps. When the cashier said that dog food wasn’t eligible under the food stamp program, the person stormed off and came back with 4 large packages of ground meat. My mother said nothing…. until we got to the car. Her quote: “When people arrived in the colonial states, they had two options: 1) work (and work extremely hard), or 2) die. That was reality.

    America was built by very hard working people. Not so much anymore. We have become a nanny state where the government wants to spoon feed everyone, and where everyone expects the government to give them everything. Whatever happens to the U.S. economically, as a country, we have brought it onto ourselves.

    Someone, please have a box of Kleenex ready for all those future crybabies who have chosen a life of debt because they wanted everything today and were unwilling to practice a little self-discipline. Those lifestyles of fancy cars, huge homes, and a life of pretending, will come crashing down. If it does, they’ve earned it!

    • bill

      That was my first experience with a food stamp purchase in 1990.Got transferred to NC and second day same thing,the lady told her son to get a family pack of hamburger and i waited in line.After she pulled out cash for beer. I never experienced food stamps prior but I grew up in alaska and back then we didnt have parasites living off our hard earned money.

      • David Larsen

        Old joke time:

        Bum on sidewalk: “Father, can you give an old altar boy money for something to eat?”
        Priest: “If I give you some money, will you promise not to spend it on booze?”
        Bum: “Oh, no problem Father, I got money for booze, it’s food I’m needing!”

        D.

    • susan

      David, I will be attending my grandson’s college graduation in May. He is graduating with no student loans and almost no family help. He did get a good scholarship, but he worked 2 and 3 jobs all the way through. I am so proud of him.

    • JohnA

      That would be slave state. Creating slaves. Our public universities have become liberal propaganda outlets

  10. Dr Darryl Jewett

    Thanks, Greg, for interviewing Smith.

    No, the system is not rigged in favor of the elites. The system is rigged in favor of the elites and their minions. It’s rigged against conscientious and hard-working men. Everyone else (the elites and their minions) profit from the labor of conscientious and hard-working men. Except the conscientious and hard-working men. They’re slaves. One of the mechanisms used by the elites and their minions to enslave conscientious and hard-working men is feminism. Feminism works like this: women manipulate the public with the spectacle of their imaginary victimhood and authoritarians acquiesce by persecuting conscientious men in exchange for votes and absolute power. Benjamin Franklin wrote: Those who would give up a essential freedom for a little temporary security deserve neither freedom nor security. The illusion of security is something those addicted to power and control have used frequently throughout history to satisfy that addiction. Our forefathers were possessed of great wisdom. Too bad we don’t heed their advice.

  11. Dr Darryl Jewett

    Gov’ts in the US have devolved into a sadistic communist oligarchy. Gov’ts in the US have adopted a system of recruitment and promotion that rewards political and bureaucratic expedience instead of professional qualifications and accomplishment. Exactly like that of the Soviet Union or other similar empires of malevolent repute. Except that the US is much much much worse than the Soviet Union every was (yes, I am acquainted personally with people who lived under the Soviet Union and have spent time recently in the US and they can’t believe how different the myth of the US and freedom is from reality). The American people should be very frightened of these developments. Because this is what a death panel looks like. It’s a system that decides who lives and dies. The only criteria is the degree to which an individual enables representatives of the oligarchy and their addiction to power and control. Most people in the US won’t figure this out until it’s too late.

    • Dr Darryl Jewett

      Unfortunately, systems of public education and universities done equip graduates with the ability to think. They are institutions of propaganda that indoctrinate students into a feminist cult. I’m not sure that making these more affordable is in the best interests of anyone except this country’s authoritarian communist oligarchy. This oligarchy is the product in part of a central bank, the federal reserve, which must be abolished. Until that happens, there can be no meaningful change in the US.

      • Dr Darryl Jewett

        correction – “done” to “don’t”

  12. Efrem Erskine

    Dirty Little[BIG] Secret [Sensitive!]
    “Spectacular letter from former FBI Agent.”
    Mueller enabled the Deep State Overtake of the Agency
    https://steemit.com/deep-state/@libertyacademy/mueller-enabled-the-deep-state-overtake-of-the-agency-former-fbi-agent

  13. James Hastings - "Cherokee center of the world"

    A thousand years from now…..Ezekiel advises us……concerning Gog and Magog and Gomer and all his hordes….”On that day thoughts will come into your mind, and you will devise an evil scheme…….to carry off plunder, to carry away SILVER and GOLD, to take away cattle and goods, to seize great spoil….In the latter days I will bring you against my land.”…Ezekiel 38

    Gold and Silver have always been wealth, will be wealth in the Millenium and will be wealth after Satan’s last release and destruction…Rev 20:7

  14. Efrem Erskine

    More Enabling;

    http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2017/dec/15/scott-perry/gop-lawmaker-claims-fbi-purged-training-documents-/

    Bill Priestap Turns On Comey – “He’s A Traitor”
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=McYmDyOOvAw

    The Politicization of the FBI
    https://www.centerforsecuritypolicy.org/2018/01/30/the-politicization-of-the-fbi/
    THE GOAL
    Muslim order out of F.B.I. chaos?

    • Paul ...

      All you criminals who want to kill Trump … to be SAVED … just like your forefathers killed Jesus Christ so they could be SAVED … are not going to get away with it this time … we will not allow you criminals who voted for your leader Hillary to SAVE yourselves by sacrificing another good man (by holding mock trials and phony FBI investigations) … two thousand years ago you criminal money changers, pedophiles, thieves and murders of children got away with a “phony trial” (of God the Father’s “genetically created Son” who tried to teach us right from wrong) … and you SAVED your evil selves by killing Christ on the Cross … God the Father is not going to let it happen again … you evil Satan worshipers think you own this world? … think again … “off world” powers in Heaven are right now formulating different plans for you … probably very similar to the plans executed by those in Heaven in the past … to rid the world of evil Satanists during the time of Sodom and Gomorrah!!

      • Paul ...

        You know … we are taught as kids to avoid mixing Religion with Politics … why? … so we can’t make the connections to arrive at the truth??

        • Paul ...

          There is a “moral awakening” taking place across the entire planet … people will no longer sit back and allow evil people “without a soul” to indiscriminately kill their precious children in wars or Satanic rituals … just to accommodate their accumulation of more and more worthless fiat promissory notes !!

  15. Paul ...

    Charles Hugh Smith understands that “stagnant wages” are responsible for our depressed economy … this is why Trump must have his new Fed Chief create a new CPI that includes the price of both oil and food … once ordinary people are given a fair share of the QE being printed up out of thin air for the banksters … and begin to see higher COLA increases … the imposed financial repression of the American economy (by those who want to destroy America) will come to an end … over the last 60 years the wages and salaries of the common people have been dropped significantly … this must be corrected NOW … or else our Nation will be doomed (just as the neocon globalists want)!!

    • Paul ...

      With regard to bitcoins … Greg has it right … keep things simple … if you can’t afford a silver coin … hold on to your “copper-nickel” nickels … years ago when the politicians saw people would not any take 5 cent “wooden nickels” any more … they ground them up to pulp (in their always handy wood shredders) and made them into paper dollars (worth 2 cents) … a more then a fifty percent reduction in value (likely to cover the cost of the green ink they needed to hide the red stains getting on the bills from their ground up political opponents)!!

      • Paul ...

        Of course politicians don’t always use wood shredders … a bullet to the head is always in style (JFK, Ron Brown, etc., etc.) … or one in the back (Steth Rich, etc.)!

  16. JQP

    My family like so many others has already experienced “the benefits” of the new world order. My wife and I watched during the past 17 years… nearly every year the company (Fortune 500 Insurance Company) would go through what is known inside the company as the annual purge (a.k.a., “reorganization”, “cutting expenses”). More and more jobs lost to impossible to compete with resources working for a tenth or less with no benefits at all.

    We were hoping to make it to at least 55 to get the early retirement package… but, two years ago we both lost our jobs at 50 and 51… we were lucky enough to find new jobs. However, our household income went from 185k to 90k as it took me (a skilled programmer) a year to find a job making 65% less than what I was earning. I applied to so many programming jobs (and I continue)… where I never hear anything back and months later I still see the same job advertised. I have no doubt that corporate america advertises IT jobs with no intent whatsoever to fill those jobs… the intent is to point to all these “open” jobs that Americans don’t have the skills to fill then demand more HB1 visas to import cheaper labor.

    But, whatever… the reality is we are now living beyond our means and will have no choice soon to cash out our retirement (and pay a penalty we can’t afford and huge tax bill) to pay the house off just so we can make the day-to-day expenses. If President Trump doesn’t fix things everyone (except for the top 2%) better get used to the idea of your income decreasing at regular intervals to stay competitive with people that work for $40 a day with no benefits. We like so many Americans will need a universal income because we did everything “right” and saved for retirement only to soon see it all disappear just so we can have a roof over our heads.

    I really worry about the future “we” have created for our children.

  17. A. HALL

    Greg/FC- have to remember Russia told us they would overtake the USA from within, not by use of weapons. They are throughout our government now and Obama and Clinton’s are a big part of this-Democrat party is leading the charge for the Russians.

    • Bob

      Remember that the German communists got Merkel in power by calling all her rivals Communists. The people, not wanting a Communist, then proceeded to vote for the #1 communist.

      Merkel is destroying Germany purposefully. She wants total genocide in Germany, with replacement by diversity.

  18. David Heller

    Thank You,
    Greg your selection of guests is your hallmark, brilliant.
    Gives thinking people a perspective and assists in developing
    a basic structure for a SHTF plan. C.H.S. is on of my favorite
    writers and everyone should try and read his work, available
    online. Please continue with your format it is a winner.

    • Greg Hunter

      Thank you David!
      Greg

  19. H. Craig Bradley

    GOLD IS ONLY A STORE OF VALUE

    Smith is another “Dollar Hater”. You need dollars for now to pay the bills. Gold is not fungible. Can’t go to the store and exchange some gold for some food, pay your utilities, or taxes. Must use U.S. Dollars. Until that changes, Cash is King and so is the Dollar relative to other countries.

    • Greg Hunter

      “H”
      Please remember a dollar is a unit of debt thus the word “Note” as in Federal Reserve Note. Smith is worried about all the debt associated with the dollar “notes.”
      Greg

    • john

      Funny – I bought my safe for 10 ounces of gold – no cash was exchanged – no check was written and no credit card was charged.

      • Occasnltrvlr

        That must be a helluva safe.

  20. Tad

    Yes, I saw that on Fox News this morning. What would a US-proffered meeting between the Washington and North Korea sound like, propaganda wise, after the fact?

    I’m not sure Mr. Kim Jong Un wants that, under any conditions.
    If the North and South are discussing melding some governmental units or reunification in general, why should Washington and Langley partake?

    A logical step along the process might include both sides denuclearizing. Granted, that would take time, but tensions would abate and citizens from both sides would rediscover family ties– again.

  21. Tad

    Probably little difference between domestic and offshore drilling other than offshore rigs are substantially larger and would take a bit longer to install. An office tower and apartment building above a drilling machine.

    If onshore exploration in Anwar is defined by drilling at shallow depths, then production wells would yield almost immediately I would think.

    The twenty-five cent infrastructure tax will probably occur, and with money printing destined for further economic stimulus, I think we’ll see rapid pump increases, regardless of it legislative prospects.

    One thinks about the last snowflake that sets it off.

    A certain logic says solve the immigration problem for “Real Americans,” and overseas remittances would decrease; domestic GDP might see an uptick; some of the 93 million unemployed Americans would find hope again; the anticipated hyperinflation might never occur, but a deflation episode would almost certainly occur.

    To say it is all about the debt, probably means little to a crypto currency holder.

  22. Larry G Carter

    FC, you have hit the bulls eye with your bullet points! Excellent!

  23. Mike R

    I’ve been following Charles for years. Makes a ton of sense.

    Here is my recipe for making America a place where everyone can live and thrive:
    1) Massively slash the military budget, and pull out of the dozens of countries where we simply no longer belong.
    2) Use that new found from the wasteful military lost money to create a social security matching fund, whereby the 8% taken from your paycheck, is matched by 8% from the government. This becomes your new 401k, and they phase out over time, the Social Security wasteful program, becoming YOUR MONEY in your account, rather than a slush fund for the government to confiscate from you.
    3) Break up all of the monopolies that have spread like the plaque, including especially Google, Amazon, Facebook, Microsoft, Apple, and particularly all of Buffet’s monopolistic company’s, the big pharma monopolies, and penalize them with 40% taxes, until they do break up, to allow for true competition. Buffet only chooses company’s who are ‘moated’ with massive protections, such as insurance monopolies, who really are protected by government itself.
    4) eliminate ALL corporate lobbying, and all donations by PACs or pooled funds, and only allow individual donations to $1000. Break up the foundations like CLinton’s who’s soul purpose is to raise illegally gotten funds, to unethically influence elections.
    5) Emphasize massive investment in making America energy independent. Use ALL fuels, including and especially nuclear, whereby we become the lowest cost energy provider to all the factories that we or the world need’s. That is the major key to bringing back factory’s, and even energy hungry high tech servers.
    6) Eliminate the health care and health insurer monopolies, and create TRUE cross border competition. Note DC can’t and won’t do this until #4 is addressed, and we eliminate the corporate lobbying.
    7) Create tech schools, that don’t require 4 year degrees, but emphasize skills that today’s modern, robotic factories need. Make them super affordable, and instead of paying massive subsidies for ethanol, direct those subsidies to co-fund these schools.
    8) Wipe out all government funding of student loans, and collapse 50% of the colleges out there, handing out costly $200000 degrees for courses that dont produce well paying jobs. No university should be allowed to charge more than $10,000 per year for ANY degree. Period !
    9) Eliminate college athletics, that suck millions and millions away from education, and massively discriminate against smart students who actually come to learn.
    10) Eliminate student scholarships of any kind, which also discriminate heavily against the majority of the student population.
    11) Convert all state employee pensions, such as for teachers, or unions, that are all now mostly insolvent to 401k like plans. These pensions are highly mismanaged both in what they invest, and they overtly bad promises they made. Reduce All of the high paying pensions currently being paid out, that are paying out in many cases WAY MORE than $100k per year. The especially egregious ones, paying out over $250k to $500k annually, reduced to below $100,000.
    12) Eliminate workers compensation plans. They kill companies and are highly abused costing small businesses billions every year, and creating the unlevel playing field charles talks about between small and large business.
    13) Eliminate malpractice suits, and insurance, and prevent lawyers from being able to sue for these things. Lawyers and our inept judicial system has totally killed our economic system.
    14) Put federal caps on property taxes for all homes that are priced under $500,000, and reduce those property taxes to be no more than $8,000 per year, graduated downward as the price of the home is lowered. Property taxes are the number 1 killer of affordable homes.
    15) Eliminate ALL state income taxes. Make states be more accountable, and only be allowed to collect sales taxes.
    16) Force builders and real estate developers, to build 1 affordable home (i.e. under $200k), for every luxury home they build, that is over $750,000. Same thing with apartments and condo’s.
    17) Put massive import taxes on every country who taxes us on our exported goods. Same rates they place on ours, we place on theirs.
    18) Eliminate all hiring of foreign based support workers, who live in foreign countries. for jobs that support functions here in the US. (i.e. high tech, phone support, computing, graphics, everything). They MUST live here and be legal citizens, if they are answering phones for tech support, providing internet based tech support, computing, social, everything. If US based companies want to hire, foreign workers, it must be only for serving services in those countries. US Companies have gotten super lazy and could easily train and hire here if they wanted to. Outsourcing has made things WAY too easy. Our unemployment (real which is around 22%) would drop like a rock, and wages would go up for all. These higher wages would result in more re-cycled dollars to US based businesses, and it would create a virtuous circle of a higher standard of living. Companies are liars and cheaters who say they need to hire foreign workers, for work that can be done here on our soil. They are taking advantage of all the privileges our taxpayers pay for, to have a better country to live in, by paying CEO’s and upper executive teams egregiously higher wages than they pay the employees, creating the most unbalanced, and largest pay gaps ever in any country’s history between CEO’s, upper execs, and the workers. These profits are ill-gotten, and going directly to the highest paid in all corporations.

    • Colin - 'the farmer from NZ'

      Mike R
      No less than 18 items on your list and yet absolutely no mention whatsoever of the fact that the FED is owned by a cartel of thieving private banks and hasn’t been audited since 1953.
      Astonishing!
      Col

      • Greg Hunter

        Colin,
        Doesn’t New Zealand have a central bank that prints money? What are you doing to clean that up, or do you approve because that’s what props up your socialism there? https://www.rbnz.govt.nz/ It issues “bank notes,” so it issues debt money just like the Federal Reserve “NOTE”. Can you get that cleaned up and show us how it’s done there?
        Greg

        • Bob

          Hey Greg we hardly have any guns, or even real patriotism here. NZ is like Sweden but sleepier.
          Or should I say sheepier…

          I read the reserve bank governor’s book that he wrote about the 2008 GFC. Basically he said they printed 50,000 $100 notes to prevent bank run panic, and he had his team looking on the Internet 24/7 to find out what the hell was going on. After a few days of that it sort of died down and once the smoke cleared he wrote his book and that was that.
          He went to plenty of meeting at Jackson Hole to talk to Bernanke and those guys. He seemed like a decent enough bloke just doing his job, but the banking system is all smoke and mirrors for sure.

        • Neil

          It really doesn’t need cleaning up. We run a pretty clean government in comparison and accounting standards are high. If there is deviation from a rightful path its probably because it is being bullied by the FED. Our country’s economy is also doing reasonably well comparatively and unemployment is a true 4.5 % and participation 70% so there isn’t really any propping up as you would know it. Bear in mind we score high on economic freedom comparisons – somewhere like Singapore. Re you obsession with socialism you ought to think of us as just choosing to be organised slightly differently than you.

        • Russ McMeans

          Something to think about, for all of us including Colin from New Zealand: since the beginning of time we have borrowed from the rich people ie: cattle, lands, water rights , then money. Our warden bankers were happy to oblige because they wanted to create an economy. And so here we are. Currencies, people and banks have evolved to an unknown conclusion.
          And our central banks were just trying to help things along for the good of all. So here we are.

        • Bob

          At least NZ’s health system works.
          Many don’t have health insurance because you don’t need it. Everything major is paid for, even heart transplants. How is that you might ask? It’s because price gouging like this doesn’t happen. About half the country has health insurance because it lessens waiting times and makes some things cheaper that you would normally pay for. The point is, very few people go bankrupt trying to survive.

          https://boingboing.net/2018/02/17/sunset-labs-of-houston.html

          • Greg Hunter

            Bob,
            You live a socialist state. Somebody has to pay for “free” health insurance. Venezuela is also a social state and it has failed. Could =that be it was a beautiful country 6-7 years ago. They have oil and NZ doesn’t.
            Greg

            • Neil

              You ought to think of NZ as being a blend of things. We have mostly English heritage from colonial days, we are actually fundamentally capitalist, free market and unsubsidised but also strongly believe in supporting our fellows – of not letting people fall off the bottom rung. We also have indigenous and neighbouring Pacific cultures that are family ,extended family and tribal centred. Its a sort of blend that suits the size of the country and the cultures that share it. We combine rather than compete. It would be a bit puzzling or alien to Americans who are more individualistic and strive to be independent but it seems to work reasonably well. Of course our manufacturing sector of the economy could do better – we have the same sort of issues as the US in being competitive when China has relatively very low wages, being out scaled etc..

              • Greg Hunter

                Neil,
                I have nothing against New Zealand. I have heard it is a beautiful country with very nice people.
                Greg

                • Thomas Nicholas

                  Greg, New Zealanders are very good people. I worked with them in Western Samoa. The Samoans always assumed I was a Kiwi too. Came home with a down under accent. Met prince Charles when his ship pulled into Apia. My mate David Grey’s Dad was the NZ. air ace of the Battle of Britain. The prince appreciated that and our Yankee sacrifice. Were all in this mess together. United in language, blood and history.
                  What happens here in the states will decide the fate of the whole world.
                  I look to our cousins overseas to never ever lets us down. They never have and never will along with divine intervention.

                  Hello to my mates at ENEX NewZealand!

              • Colin - 'the farmer from NZ'

                Neil
                Very well said!!
                Best regards
                Col

        • Colin - 'the farmer from NZ'

          `Some facts:

          #1 FED 100% owned by a cartel of private banks
          RBNZ 100% govt owned
          Hmmmm…kind of brings to mind the old saying….‘the best way to rob a bank is to own it’…doesn’t it.

          #2 Last audit for FED 1953
          RBNZ audited annually
          Pretty easy to thieve from a bank when you own it…flat out child’s play when the bank is not even audited!

          #3 US unemployment 22-24% if measured properly [John Williams]
          NZ unemployment 4.5%

          #4 Govt debt ratio to GDP US 105%
          NZ 24%

          #5 Within 5 years at present trends US debt will outway the combined Govt debt of the rest of the globe

          #6 NZ ranked equal first with Denmark as being the least corrupt nation globally…we don’t have the best politicians that money can buy…we actually have and maintain successful functioning democracy…imagine that!
          https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/88770772/new-zealand-and-denmark-deemed-the-least-corrupt-countries-in-the-world

          #7 QE in NZ has been comparatively minuscule even in response to the Lehmans crises. Not only was the QE tiny but it went to Mainstreet and not straight into the hands of thieving Banksters. NZ had very low exposure to the subprimes that led to the 2008 crises…no prizes for guessing what organisation caused the blowing of this monumental bubble…hint… it starts with an F and yeah that’s right it is privately owned…oh yeah and come to think of it, it has not been audited for 65 fricken years!

          Greg…I am somewhat puzzled…could you please be a bit more specific about what NZ needs to “get cleaned up”
          Cheers from the Antipodes
          Col

          • Greg Hunter

            Colin,
            You have a central bank that issues debt as money same as the Federal Reserve. Why don’t you clean that up. You can’t thing that your bankers who issue debt and money have your best interests at heart? Nice dodge but it didn’t work. You look weak.
            Greg

            • Neil

              Greg, our central bank is charged with activities and measures and has targets and reporting requirements set by the government in regard of prices and inflation stability etc. but the discharge of those duties is largely independent of their interference/influence as is the court system. Our public servants are subject of some jest but do still have a basic integrity and do act in the best interests of the country. The vulnerability in our banking system is that we have only a few big banks that are actually mostly based in Australia and these are now of dubious solvency. Australia has serious issues with a bubble in housing and liar type loans apparently amounting to 60% of their net assets. The AU economic wellbeing is also linked to mining i.e. global manufacturing activity. You can guess where that’s going. Being a pretty remote country we may be just as vulnerable to a JIT pinch or sudden chaotic crisis in supply/exchange as elsewhere even though we are closer to the land. We also have another serious vulnerability in that our state retirement investments are in the US, Japan and UK in the majority of cases and these may resolve to be zero after a collapse. Our balance of trade is also sensitive to foreign exchange fluctuations be it speculative or trending. A rising NZ dollar or more correctly a falling US dollar would create issues for us in remaining competitive. Say the price of our apples or beef doubled or tripled for US customers then the US might change their suppliers to be Argentinian regardless of better quality standards. I fear we may have to devalue if you do regardless of how healthy our economy is relatively just to retain a market for our goods. (what if everyone does a round of devaluations and we end up where we started?) China cannot take up the slack if we effectively lost the US. In terms of limiting money creation we have had serious economic policy issues in the past (early 80’s) and attempted to make fiddling the numbers or abusing sound government process very difficult but we should go further and link it to gold if others do or even say in some fashion to the number of able bodied citizens IMO. I don’t expect we will have much of a say in a new global system but I have a list of measures and improvements I would like to enact to safeguard our counties affairs from outside influences/threats if I could. Unfortunately, although we may do better than some, I don’t see how we can avoid being affected in a major global collapse regardless of how much integrity we have.

    • Neil

      That’s a decent list you have compiled. I am pleased to see someone is thinking about contributing factors and solutions rather than decoding Q posts. Are you proposing then that the US should retreat behind a strategic ‘iron curtain’ and strive to be self sufficient? I would have thought wages will need to go down to be equivalent to China or even below theirs for some advantage else you will not find a market for goods. Such has been the decline Americans may not be able to afford their own goods even though they would like to be loyal/patriotic.
      What if China already effectively supplies the world’s needs – that is even if the US re-industrialises there might not be a wider market for American goods? Isn’t there a fundamental issue about relative circumstance and expansionism?

      • Neil

        I would like to propose for discussion something I will call ‘The Global Accord for Mutual Development’. I know this will get buried in here now that this is an old post but its a start. The idea is that rather than fight over the right to have manufacturing (high value trade) either by competitive saturation/devaluation or physical armed conflict we ought to try to find a noble and reasonable way to allow countries to balance or nearly balance trade and to raise living standards gradually and if possible evenly. This is something we have made a mistake with up to now – not managing the integration of new capacity into the developed world. We didn’t do this with Japan and it hasn’t proved sustainable and now with China the consequence is obviously adverse and damaging to everyone.
        I perceive we currently have a problem and its this – rapid industrialisation is a zero sum game. Many peoples have the capability to produce goods (given capital) and have aspirations to do so but the market/need is only so big. We have not worked out the worth of mechanisation/automation to us as a species but blindly seek enrichment/advantage at the expense of the other until it causes conflict or ultimately will fail due to environmental degradation.
        China just because it is on a centrally planned roll cannot expect to take over the whole world on its own low wage terms to feed its factories and deliver on its 5/10 yearly plans whatever the effects elsewhere.
        While the Silk Road and other proposals do offer the potential for countries they touch or pass through to better themselves the real unstated need is to keep Chinese factories working because, having now depleted the West, they have considerable over capacity. That is this planned economy is an indifferent juggernaut mowing down everything in its path and urgent expansion of the road is the expedient answer. The truth is while more than several hundred million people have been raised from poverty in China it is at the expense of more than several hundred million in the West and in the US in particular who find themselves sliding into peasant poverty because their economies have been undermined and rendered redundant/impossible. It is not a raising overall but a swapping of circumstance. In part this is due to Americans misunderstanding what scale/nature of completion they were engaging in, short term/immediate bottom line thinking, crooked/dumbass bankers accelerating the ruin , and also China recycling profits and credit until the host was dry of all capacity to pay/play. When the Chinese (re)produce a good they are doing so at the advantage of 150 years or so of Western science/technology/engineering investment, experimentation and refinement and also evolved employment and environmental standards. This is not fair costing or respecting the otherwise intangible differences.
        While economists say that tariffs/trade wars are futile, surely the West now has little choice but to carve out a space for itself by imposing boundaries both on ourselves on where we will source goods and what conditions we will insist on so some parity can be achieved. Aside from the nuts of the NWO who want genocide there is no good reason I am aware of why the West should allow itself to be incapacitated in particular by the scale of ambition of China. That is there will have to be barriers/limits else there will be no possibility of any viable economies outside of China and its subjects/satellites and China will have to accept its current prosperity is achieved by an unfair advantage cannot continue. The Chinese will have to find some grace in being a good global citizen and not immediately taking umbrage and talking of ‘sides’ as the US must avoid taking a ‘for/against’ mentality. This is a massive test on humanity to find a way for civilisations to coexist on one small planet in harmony. For sure there is a vital need to remove the active elements of the NWO because they have caused so much trouble in the world over decades that besmirches the good name of the USA and what it ought to be if it was following the Constitution.
        The world cannot make progress when we have a sick rogue element hell bent on destroying it. In my opinion the US will need to humbly apologise for the criminal actions of this group before we can all move ahead with a more useful mind set. At the moment many people’s of the world would probably ‘side’ with the Chinese because they see the US as a major trouble maker. This needs to walked back. I might add that bad US agencies are not the only ones who will need to do penance. The UK has a lot to answer for as well – including the sins of the City of London.
        This is a time when we all find ourselves in deep shit and we need to arrive at a better understanding with all the goodwill we can muster.

    • Roger D

      Mike R,

      You have listed “a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism”. That’s fine, but what about our Founders’ main point that it is our “DUTY to throw off such Government”?

  24. Mike R

    And if you didn’t believe me about Buffet and his monopolies in my prior commentary, then read this. His actions are super predatory, unfairly supported by our government, who is complicit via all of his massive lobbying donations, and millions he heaps on our government to maintain his monopolistic advantages. He is the poster child for everything that has become broken in American capitalism. He is a cheat and unethical business person of the highest order. Don’t let his ‘folksy’ demeanor deceive you.

    Read this… its important…https://www.marketwatch.com/story/why-warren-buffett-is-a-prime-example-of-the-failure-of-american-capitalism-2018-02-15

    With the majority of us, the 95%, being rendered mostly poor in this country, with no more middle class, you can point the finger right at Buffet, and many others like him, who have consolidated industry’s, eliminated most competition, using our government and lawyers as their shields. Our government has been completely taken over by these elite and highly predatory moguls. Its so sad to think how they’ve manipulated more than 300 million Americans, through their dominance of media outlets, into believing that making less than $70,000 a year is somehow good for all Americans, when it costs way more than that, unless you live in a $10,000 shack in some podunk rural poor town. Its pathetic that Buffet makes personal billions per year, and pretends he is donating his wealth to charities that will make YOUR LIFE AND MY LIFE better. He doesn’t help any American at all, and actually represses wages in every company he owns.
    Stop being distracted by these stupid Russian stories people. Stop being distracted by all the false flags our government and elite keep planting. Stop being sucked into their divisive manipulation. Its not the Russians dividing us, its the mal-purposed media stories creating racial tensions, gun tensions, abortion tensions, and stirring you up and keeping your eye off the ball. Stop listening to all the Chicago (or name your city) nightly gang murder stories run by local TV outlets like WGN, or the ABC news. They run these as the major stories as if THEY NEED TO be your news. Its disgusting and unethical. Don’t get distracted. Build your own life. Read Charles book about how to do so if you need to. Every chance you get become an entrepreneur and fight the unfair system. Add multiple income streams, and try to get away from the ‘corporate job.’ This reduces the power of the corporation. If you are part of the corporation, try hard to not engage in their beligerant political and repressive tactics. Also make sure you add an outside gig while in that corporate job, and build it up slowly over time if you have to. Stop buying from Amazon, and buy local whenever possible. That is the only way we can loosen the grip these corporations and our very own government (run by these same corporations), have over us, and repressing our wages and repressing our lives. I am doing exactly as I preach. I started my own business back in 2015, while retaining the day job. Over the past 33 years, I shifted from larger corporations to smaller and smaller companies, and finally to small employee owned company, but still insist on having multiple jobs and multiple income streams. Owning a small business I can tell you its a major fight against local governments and business reg’s and built in ‘industry’ biases against the small guy. But its a battle everyone of us really need to wage. Do it cautiously, but purposefully. Continually adapt. Its our only chance to save whats left of this country, and try to reverse the course, and the damage caused by our very own government and mostly monopolistic big corporations. Victories are coming, with the demise of gargantuans like GE. (a most unethical company, being now brought to its knees).

    • Russ McMeans

      Buffet is leaving planet earth soon. He’s old and I suppose we could toss a few coins in his grave, but we all know he’s not taking his wealth with him. Just like Soros, death and then someday being brought back from sleep to face Judgement Day. The way of ALL flesh.

  25. Steve Twitchell

    Great interview. But as always would love to hear more on how to prepare.

    BTW FC in comments above really nailed it. I would also add that if “small business” is the life blood of new ideas and new business, then why are most of the laws set up to favor corporations?

    Also, wonder why no one is pointing fingers at the sheriff in Florida. He had some 39 times that he could have arrested and brought even minor charges against Cruz which would have kept him from legally purchasing a gun. Not only did the FBI not do their job but neither did the sheriff. And, worse, it was over a very long time. Why do these people stay in power?

    • Greg Hunter

      Steve,
      Looks like your Christian T-Shite site Crosseyedts.com is looking good!!! http://crosseyedts.com/
      Carry on Brother.
      Greg

    • Efrem Erskine

      Because Steven if we enforced the laws and stopped the psychotropic drugged induced shooters how would we be able to get the guns from the good guy’s amidst all the ensuing chaos we allowed? To be able to destroy the second amendment and eventually the whole constitution and Bill of rights. To pave the way for the entrance of the then dis-United States into the family of Nations, the United Nations of George Orwell’s big brother of 1984!
      Big brothers dirty little secret?
      Don’t stop, bring on the massacres and make the people beg for their big bad brother!

  26. Carly

    Hey, read “Confessions of an Economic Hitman” by John Perkins to understand Venuzuela’s dismal condition. The first world meddles in the economies of the third world to drain its resources leaving the latter poorer for the taking. So, to the USA, welcome to what you have done to others for a longggggg time.

    • Russ McMeans

      We didn’t do anything to the Venezuelans. They brought it on themselves by voting for a socialist Marxist Chavez who was succeeded by the stupid bus driver Maduro. And America dodged a bullet last year almost letting Bernie into the presidency. But he’s available again in 2020 for all the stupid idiot voters to reconsider. Obama is a precursor to what evil is to come next.

  27. Russ

    Thanks Greg, nice discussion with Charles Hugh Smith. As I was listening to CHS discuss the Venezuelan Bolívar and fragility of the US dollar, I was reminded of an oft misquoted Hemingway’ism …
    * ‘How did you go bankrupt?’ Bill asked. ‘Two ways,’ Mike said. ‘Gradually and then suddenly.’ — The Sun Also Rises, Ernest Hemingway

    We’ve been in the gradually part since 1971 and we’ve grown comfortable with “gradually” — that’s what 2% inflation amounts to. When “suddenly” arrives (and it will arrive) we will no longer be comfortable. Venezuela was comfortable too…and now they’re not.

    I’ve got a few Krugerrand’s, but the real issue is exchanging them for something the grocery store and gas station will accept. I guess we’ll cross that bridge when those uncomfortable times arrive. …or will there be a currency reset of some type that will make a different subset of the population less comfortable and allow the lower 99% to survive? I don’t know, I’m less smart than the last smart guy I read on the internet and the is the future is mostly unwritten and unreliable.. Maybe we will find ourselves headed toward one of the dystopian visions of a future (>>The Hunger Games) we want no part of … first we need a big war.

  28. Efrem Erskine

    There’s never been a massacre in Detroit and Chicago took its title of Murder capitol, why?
    Detroit Schools [Armed And Dangerous] for Whom?
    11/7/2017
    Michigan bill lets gun owners carry weapons in schools, day care centers
    By David Eggert Associated Press
    http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article/20171107/news01/644326/michigan-bill-lets-gun-owners-carry-weapons-in-schools-day-care

    Packing heat in Detroit: Motown residents answer police chief’s call to arms!
    By Perry Chiaramonte Published August 24, 2015
    http://www.foxnews.com/us/2015/08/21/packing-heat-in-detroit-motown-residents-answer-police-chief-call-to-arms.html

    The Bath School disaster, sometimes known as the Bath School massacre,
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bath_School_disaster

  29. John D.

    FC so very very true to bad our leaders don’t get it maybe they don’t have any common since or they intend to destroy this country John

  30. Arthur Barnes

    He stated out loud, “I will gladly pay you Tuesday for a hamburger today”, he inwardly said to himself “if inflation hits hard by next week I get the hamburger for half price!”. Regards, a b

  31. monty bissett

    Hi Greg

    Thanks for all you do. Any chance you can get someone on from Judicial Watch. We wouldn’t know about a lot of this stuff with them and all they do also. Someone who can explain the Clinton email mess and how it came to light. How many more emails are coming out of the 30,000 about yoga that were deleted. How many of them were classified and how many of the 30,000 she supposedly handed over were classified. How many lies Comey told about how many were classifed etc. How many more are still coming. There is supposedly thousands of more emails or texts coming from Page and Stroezk. Is the IG of DOJ a straight shooter. It seems this is the smoking gun to go along with the arsenal already uncovered. I snayojne ever going to get their hands on the DNC servers that supposedly hacked. Probably down loaded might be a bettter characterization. If Mueller looking for collusion has he got his hands on them.

  32. john duffy

    Behold! 1991 Book Warned Us ‘Secret Government’ Would Use School Shootings To Disarm Americans! Was Florida School Shooter ‘MK-Ultra-Cated’?
    http://allnewspipeline.com/Florida_Shooter_MKUltracated.php

  33. JW. WENTWORTH

    The illusion of freedom will continue as long as it’s profitable to continue the illusion. At the point where the illusion becomes too expensive to maintain, they will just take down the scenery, they will pull back the curtains, they will move the tables and chairs out of the way and you will see the brick wall at the back of the theater.
    Frank Zappa

  34. Shamus McCorkell

    THE NEW YORK POST
    Wild brawl turns Carnival ship into ‘cruise from hell’
    By Amanda Woods Published: Feb 18, 2018
    https://www.marketwatch.com/story/wild-brawl-turns-carnival-ship-into-cruise-from-hell-2018-02-18

    Passengers Talks Of The Experience On Cruise Ship
    Feb 16 2018
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bzsXv1jGwm8

    A Sign Of The Times !
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HELBPhj1hp0

    • marcus

      So sad to see humans out of control ,,,,,we do not deserve to be the leading species of this world, with all wars and anger we need to be culled. It makes me sick watching humans act so inhumane.

    • Charles H

      I thought it significant that NO mention was made of the ‘extended family’ who ‘seemed to make trouble from the beginning’. Any bets this was a muslim family group trying to figure on forcing a ‘new’ TSA for Cruise Lines?

  35. JW. WENTWORTH

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NFXfgklrjtc
    Roger Stone bats away stupid biased BBC questions

  36. Quigley

    Greg: you profess to not to be a Republican. Can I ask how you voted in the last 4 elections for President?

    • Greg Hunter

      “Q”,
      no.
      Greg

      • Diane

        Good answer, Greg!

      • Paul from Indiana

        Aw, come on, Greg…let him ask. You don’t have to answer. Best always. PM

        P.S. Confidential to Quigley: I have not voted for a Democrat since Carter. But I have not always voted Republican in that period. Go figure. PM

      • andy

        good answer!

  37. Russ McMeans

    Thank you Sir Greg! He’s the best, simple and down to the basics. I’m a carpenter and house painter and watching our dollar devalue and no one having any money to hire me is why I’m watching and writing… AGAIN at 3 am PST in California. Venezuela haunts me. I’m hoping for our Christ to intrude on our self imposed nightmare though. We are in serious trouble!

  38. Jerry

    Greg,
    Let’s lay to rest the argument that the Federal Reserve Bank controls global monetary policy shall we ? Take a look at the top five banks.
    http://www.businessinsider.com/the-biggest-banks-in-the-world-2017-4#5-mitsubishi-ufj-financial-japan-259-trillion-1

    But yet no one wants to discuss the two thousand pound dragon sitting in the room? Should it bother us that China has created AIIB , CIPS, and holds the worlds largest gold reserve, and now plans to launch the petroyuan in March? Anyone who can’t see the significance of this launch is fool. What happens when they open a new restaurant in town?

    • Mike R

      Jerry – what you THINK you know about China, and their supposed gold holdings, how do you know any of the information you supposedly have, is actually true and verifiable ?

      Show us the proof !

      Second, what makes you believe that the US doesn’t also hold a lot more gold than the 8000 tons, and that any ‘official’ reported amount isn’t actually understating what the US really holds ?

      What if, the US’s supposedly ‘lost trillions’ via the military have been actually funneled away in the form of gold purchases ? What if the US really holds 1o to 1000 times more ounces of gold, that you think it does ? There is nothing to be gained by the US revealing their holdings of gold, just like China with holds that same information. China doesn’t really report its true mine output, and frankly I dont believe we do either.

      The price manipulation or the suppression of the gold price, since 2011, may have been done secretly so that the US could purchase mine output that isn’t actually being recorded, so that the price would not skyrocket !

      If anyone knew for example, the US was buying gold hand over fist, the price would probably be well over $5000, and many people would likely worry about the dollar more than they already are, and say to themselves if the US government is buying gold, then we should be too.

      I would be very careful about what you say you think you know about China. They are masters of deception, and disguise, and mis information, and have been doing this for centuries longer than the US has even been in existence.

  39. Tommy

    Too much anxiety over worldly issues. The best infinity is yet to come.

  40. Tad

    https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2018-02-19/trump-attacks-oprah-i-hope-she-runs-so-she-can-be-exposed-all-others

    She would probably only feel confident in 2020 if she had the black vote.

    I don’t think she does. I’m not sure Mr. Trump will either.
    Amidst economic turmoil, will a vote to anyone matter?

  41. Diane

    Well, if this is true…..Bitcoin is not such a great investment

    https://www.armstrongeconomics.com/world-news/taxes/cryptocurrency-maybe-become-a-tax-nightmare/

    • Mike R

      Well Bitcoin is NOT an investment at all. Its a Ponzi. The IRS knows that, which is why they actually haven’t pressed very hard to tax people on it. They can find out in a heartbeat who is trading it. Its a trivial task. Its public knowledge. The registries are no secret. BUT, They know people are going to lose a TON of money in this Ponzi, and simply have not invested much if any time chasing taxes, bc they know its a Ponzi. If it was REAL, you and I both Know the IRS would be all over this like stink on hot sh*t.

      This BOE knows the truth. Ours is less forthcoming about it.
      https://www.cnbc.com/2018/02/20/bitcoin-has-failed-as-a-currency-bank-of-england-governor-mark-carney.html

  42. Mohammad

    Greg,

    Here is your first American “plea guilty” to testify against manafort:

    “Former Trump aide Richard Gates to plead guilty; agrees to testify against Manafort, sources say”

    http://www.latimes.com/politics/la-na-pol-rick-gates-plea-deal-20180218-story.html

    As you can see the noose is tightening slowly.

    Mohammad

    • Greg Hunter

      Mohammad,
      The LA Times also recently reported that Netanyahu was stepping down–NOT.
      Greg

      • Mohammad

        Will see Greg,
        Time Will Tell.
        Impeachment is what am predicting here on your site.
        I will come back for a reminder.
        As the Bitcoin when lots here on the site were bitching and moaning it is going down to zero i maintained it is up when it hit 8000 bottom, and what is it now?.
        Same here:
        Trump will be impeached….!

        Mohammad

        • Greg Hunter

          Mohammad,
          Impeached for what??? What crime??
          Greg

          • Mohammad

            Follow Kushner’s 666 doomed building that only 1/4 of it rented for what does not even serve a month payment on its mortgage if it was not for Russian money poured in to save his ass just before the elections of 2016 and was more than enough to start a project that is 660 5th avenue.
            Once Mueller finishes his investigation and truth is out then we will see.
            Just wait Greg, do not rush things out, those investigations are about moguls that cover their trails and it takes TIME, but when it concludes it HAMMERS,

            Mohammad

            • Greg Hunter

              Mohammad,
              I agree owning a building with and address that includes “666” in the address is a bit creepy.
              Greg

          • Paul from Indiana

            Greg, Pontius Pilate posed basically the same question. You know what happened. Best always. PM

        • john

          impeachment is a political process and not necessarily a criminal finding.

  43. Flattop

    GREG: Tell me if I am thinking wrong
    It would appear someone is motivating these shootings to increase the pressure to outlaw our guns. I am now becoming concerned that people within the DOJ (FBI swamp people ) are involved in these shootings, by sinply looking the other way..
    Each one of these shooting leave many unanswered questions..

  44. Justn Observer

    Greg, Interesting article on a GLADIO ‘C’ going on in U.S.?
    http://stateofthenation2012.com/?p=94576
    A in Europe – Sibel Edomond’s ‘B’ in Middle East …a ‘C’ in U.S. not out of the realm of possibility?
    Also investigator William Evans has filed a lawsuit for documents concerning the Black Flag in Charlotteville…. which the ”’public”’ has been denied ‘access’ to? Why – another PATSY maybe that ran over a ‘victim’? Seems everytime an event occurs the ‘autopsies’ -photos – security cameras not available or for some reason were not working ?
    WHAT IS THE REASON FBI HIDES EVIDENCE THEY ARE NOT INVOLVED IN?
    https://youtu.be/k6JqO35Nqjo
    AND EVANS LAWSUIT TO GET ACCESS=
    https://youtu.be/k1vS2KR5tXU

    • Justn Observer

      Think a Gladio C – is a stretch ?
      Listen to Sibel Edmonds recent ( 2 days ago) reveal of new names covered up for years by MSM and the FBI !
      https://youtu.be/IClVKyb63m4
      When you consider a agency and MSM having knowledge and that would allow a pedophiles and gays in the gov’t to operate for 10 years raping people and other access to the White House hundreds of times…. leaves little doubt the would be doing today what is occurring — phony FISA and unmaskings is chump change for these type of people ! So—can you really ‘believe’ anything the MSM -including FOX offers – or more appropriately —does not offer as ”’NEWS”’… But only bolsters Greg Hunter’s calm about ‘honest journalism flew out the window long ago…and all is but propaganda and a spun illusion now. Not just political news – but economic -and rigged markets included… Yes – Carlin was right – so was JFK…and if they’d let Mary Pinchot Meyer live we might have learned much more a lot sooner !
      https://youtu.be/6rX2g_MG7fE

      As for the interview…Mr. Smith is so common sense and straight forth…and a man most can relate with… thank you both for sharing his wisdom and point of view.
      One does hope we can clean up this gov’t for if not … getting thru the economic part , little will change otherwise… Time now to watch President Trump very carefully – not what he says – but does. One can sense this is NO TIME to be allowing any restrictions on the 2nd Amendment while ‘they’ are allowing millions into the country…who conscribe in any way or form to the list provided by FC or Hastings at the top of the page ! Indeed….I think there are those that are not only conspiring but acting with pure intent to complete a ‘fundamental transformation’ of this nation….via ‘some’ coming from the Middle East and ‘some’ MARXIST’s coming from South America..
      I do not believe ”’the wall” is just to keep out drugs and ”’poor illegals”’ looking for work in the none existence – drought ridden fields in California…or packing plants…And with the Awan debacle…the less access to the internet inside this nation by foreigners for now…the better…. When they find our flag and our anthem offensive…it’s time they leave. We see what is going on in Europe …and that’s only a primer of concern especially if you have young daughters and wives walking the streets and beaches… Anyone that can not see that the latest events are not planned events is asleep in my opinion… but….that’s just my opinion. So with the ”’assault””on guns…comes too now the assault on ‘free speech’ and push for ‘censorship’ on the internet…to protect the free flow of propaganda it seems…to go the way of ‘privacy’ rights ….and join the list of the ‘sign posts an steps’ toward communism…with the takeover of healthcare….’they’ just can get around to repealing can they….

  45. Tad

    Since one could anticipate the North Korea-South Korea negotiations to become difficult and complex because of US intervention, Mr Kim Jong Un
    may very well have another tactic.

    Russia and China may be allowed by Mr. Kim to establish national enclaves within North Korea in return for a large remuneration.
    North Koreans would be allowed to work and live within these sovereign regions.

    My opinion is they would be in areas of extensive mining or those containing rare earth metals.

    I don’t think the parties would consider it, an invasion. No, an invasion is what the US is doing in Syria, without justification or provocation–certainly no invitation from Assad.

  46. El Albanez Siciliano

    “The statesman’s task is to hear God’s footsteps marching through history, and to try and catch on to His coattails as He marches past. ”
    ― Otto von Bismarck

    What president inadvertently took this man’s advice? I’ll give you a hint, he’s part German too.
    Maybe it wasn’t inadvertent, because a lot of Americans heard those footsteps! They were very loud. They have become louder and louder since the election and deafening to his enemies, driving them bonkers. L0L, he he he!

    Have you heard? John Podesta was asked how the Russkies knew to campaign in Michigan, Wisconsin & Minnesota, where Hillary didn’t and lost, because of it! To much vino and to much sleep’o. Of course the Russkies didn’t really come to the upper Great Lakes states, but Podesta was to stupid to be so stupid and he was supposed to be the brains behind that lame brain. So the so called,”progressive’ ‘ retrogressive democratic candidate didn’t do any speeches in the thin blue line because she is a mean drunk and even her own people could’t stand to hear her speeches, specially Pody!
    Why doesn’t Mueller indite Chris Steele and that Hungarian Goolagong, goo-lash eating, sore ass Soros? Their the ones who influenced the campaign and Hillary spent over 2 billion dollar’s of nefarious, oil money donated to the Clinton family crime foundation against Trump’s spending tiddlywinks compared to her and she still lost, along with the massive urban voter fraud. She still couldn’t win! You don’t think a $500,000 20 minute Moscow speech by her husband isn’t nefarious money influencing his vote? Give it a break!

    Byron York: A Mueller Russia indictment
    http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/byron-york-a-non-alarmist-reading-of-the-mueller-russia-indictment/article/2649445
    the Untouchables
    The corrupt Clinton without interruption cabal
    Holding The United States and United Kingdom Hostage
    Mueller’s cut-throat Hillary Clinton Bimbo squad along with his long-time friend and former counsel, Andrew Weissmann.
    http://thehill.com/opinion/white-house/356253-judging-by-muellers-staffing-choices-he-may-not-be-very-interested-in
    All’s fair in Washington with Chicago Style politicians
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QHH9EYZHoVU

  47. Flattop

    GREG: Please give us your assessment of AG Sessions. As for me, The walk don’t match the talk.

  48. Flattop

    GREG: one more thing. Fox News Maria Bartaromo kinda pinned him to the mat,so he responded with a couple minutes of double talk which made him sound worse

  49. Mohammad

    Greg,

    As i said before, Kushner is the key to get to Trump:

    https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2018-02-19/kushner-probe-crosshairs-mueller-shifts-russia-china

    “Kushner In Probe Crosshairs As Mueller Shifts From Russia To China”

    Hmmmm….

    Mohammad

  50. marcus

    Russia orders America to leave Syria immediately 2 day warning .

  51. Aldo Ray

    Mueller’s ‘Pit Bull’ Andrew Weissmann Busted
    https://saraacarter.com/muellers-pit-bull-andrew-weissmann-busted-withholding-evidence-previous-case/
    The wicked witch is Busted!
    Pip Pip Hurray!
    Pip Pip Hurray!

  52. Shamus McCorkell

    Latest Q from young Michael Trimm
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z3fM5XO_xgM

  53. Jerry

    Globalist preparing for WW III
    http://valdaiclub.com/multimedia/video/russia-in-the-middle-east/

  54. Mohammad

    Exact same words i used before on your previous blog, TRUMP IS CORNERED:

    https://www.yahoo.com/news/robert-mueller-trump-cornered-130900469.html

    Mohammad

    • Greg Hunter

      No he’s not Mohammad. Did you not seet the indictment from Mueller? No Russian Collusion with Trump Team–fact.
      Greg

      • Mohammad

        Wait Greg, i will grab my bag of chips and watch.

        Mohammad

  55. Julius Pratt

    Great information shared.. really enjoyed reading this post thank you author for sharing this post .. appreciated

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