Phat Unplugged

Keyword: *unqualified*Are you qualified? Is AZPaul3?
Is Theodoric?
How about Percy? (Mr.Washington Post himself! )And how about the Washington Post itself?
How about "government officials?"
Powell
Yellin et al. Lets discuss what being qualified really means.

The system already exists. The Fed, the government, your bank, your grocer can already find out everything useful there is to know about you. You have been manipulated into every purchase and its social acceptance since 8th grade.If there was real advantage to be had with these new national bitcoin-wannabees, the corporate world, not the governments, would be leading the charge. The databases are already there. A bitcoin is not necessary. The government can, and does, profile the intricacies of individual, group and societal money flows now, today. All they need is the will, reason, excuse and a staff of database programmers.

But why do you think this yahoo is? BTW, I don't have a Ph.D but I am fairly highly educated, formally and informally.

Of course I am qualified. I am well qualified. I have studied and participated in economics, banking, macro- and micro-economics for more than a lot of years. I have studied the discipline on a nerd level with an MBA. And another masters nerd in computers.What am I qualified for? For being skeptical of conspiracy crap especially involving my known nerd proclivities.

I don't think denial and pugnacity are the answer. What I find most amazing is that you haven't lost everything.--Percy

I did get a chuckle out of the conspiracy theorists who refused to get the COVID vaccine because they thought Bill Gates had put a tracker in the vaccine. The epidemiologists I work with actually used de-identified cell phone tracking to measure mobility during the pandemic to help model viral spread. They were worried about the non-existent tracker in the vaccine, all the while us tricky scientists were tracking them with their phones. Not an article from our group, but a similar approach:It’s complicated: characterizing the time-varying relationship between cell phone mobility and COVID-19 spread in the US | npj Digital Medicine

And the conspiracy theorists all post selfies on Facebook every time they blow their nose, and all the other exciting events in their lives! Those guys sure aren't living off grid.

The BRICS nations are maneuvering to someday compete and oust the US Dollar from global currency reserve status. As long as the US Federal Reserve keeps "printing money" (A euphemism nowadays...only 3-5% of total dollars circulate in paper form) the value of the dollar will not continue to hold down stronger forms of wealth.
Our dollar is fiat. (as are many currencies) but is backed by nothing. nada. zero. zilch. The BRICS plan on backing their currencies with hard assets such as gold, oil, lithium, and even copper and steel. Since our greedy industrialists allowed such industries to relocate near areas of cheap labor, we have enjoyed an artificial cheap economy of clothes, shoes,paper products, steel, and electronics. The top 10% own 90% of all wealth (in the form of value of dollars).Meanwhile, the other investors(talk about rubes) trust the products being offered by financial "experts". NVIDIA, for example, is a vastly overvalued stock that anchors many investment portfolios. So is Apple. So is Amazon. Tesla. Etc... In fact, our stock market is arguably propped up by companies that buy their own stocks. How the Fed took control of the economyThe problem is the FED itself. By propping up markets that should be allowed to decline in normal cycles, they have become self appointed financial wizards that manipulate the economy at the expense of valid assets that should be allowed to rise. The US middle class is in for a rude awakening one of these days...and its their own fault for believing what the financial advisors and markets tell them.No, I'm no expert. No, I do not have a crystal ball...I do not know what is going to happen exactly or when, but my only argument is that the US financial system is not sound and is overdue for a correction. A MAJOR correction! What worries me is what will happen to my pension and my social security, but I trust that the government will focus on the needs of the majority rather than be beholden to the top 5%.The top 5% have the liberty to diversify, after all. Not only to they have hard assets, they have rare art, for example. They have real estate (though that market is itself in a bubble and should correct within 2-5 years) and they have patience and the wherewithal to whether the storm. Progressives want to tax the crap out of the wealthy, little realizing that the entire assets of the Forbes 500 would not put a dent in the national debt.
My problem with going fully digital is that the government will tax everything at their discretion. I couldn't even sell my car to a private party without getting taxed on my profit from the sale. And I dont believe that government should be allowed to have their hand in everyone's pocket. You guys sometimes treat them as if they are a giant secular church!And I don't believe that the US should keep debasing our currency and diluting the absolute value of our wealth (expressed through our currency). They better not have secretly sold off our gold reserves, because despite what many think, China has much mor gold than the CCP actually reports. Trust me, they can back their currency with a hard asset. I believe in the rights of the individual over the forced authoritarianism of a government that is desperate itself to become financially sound.

You are hopeless.--Percy

But he looks forward to both a pension and Social Secuity, a circumstance enjoyed by a vanishing number of Americans. Only about 10-15% of the population qualifies for a pension, and a good number of those in state and local pension plans do not pay SS taxes and will not receive SS payments.Phat has provided for Phat. Good on him.Perhaps he has also hoarded gold. When the global trade order collapses from climate disasters and fascist wars, taking the industrial food supply chain with it, he can cast a golden calf to lead him through the US Patriots First roadblocks.He can't eat it; anyone stronger can take it.That's real money.

Hopeless? What precisely should I hope for? You and I trust different sources of information to be sure, but I compare 5 or more sources to increase the likelihood of credibility.You quote dry statistics on US government websites. Remember the time we both found out that the US values its gold reserves at $35.00 an ounce to this day?It was you who spotted it and IIRC couldn't explain why.

I do not claim to be any sort of financial guru. I am far from perfect. I have spent far too much money on addictions in the past, and I resisted letting the Bank manage my money which would have earned me a pretty penny as the markets went up for years. So I may be biased and a bit bitter.That being said, I am glad that I am not in any sort of system or party that calls the other guys out for being authoritarians and who committed the unpardonable sin of a tax break for billionaires. Meanwhile, the progressives want to raise taxes and help out the whole globe with our tax dollars, even though we ourselves need help. Is it so unchristian to support the idea of America First? Does not Percy take care of Percy? Does not Omni take care of Omni? I could go on down the peanut gallery roster.This whole idea of a global Western order with the power to weaponize the dollar and impose sanctions on any rogue state who dares fall out of line is authoritarian and requires the cooperation of the American people. Progressive largess created Trump. You have to deal with him because it looks like he will somehow beat the courts. May God help us.

The kudo was sincere. I consider self-reliance a virtue.My main point was that your gold will be useless in the apocalyptic world you predict. It's heavy enough for bullets, but too soft. Also, you are more future-secure than most -- but you whine about it like tribal women keening for a death, i.e., like a little bitch.Otherwise, you bemoan national debt but mock progressives' concerns about Trump blowing trillion dollar balloons of it to cut taxes on billionaires.Progressives created Trump? Gee, I thought it was the racial fear and hate he stirred up in Prosperity Christians as he descended the escaltor. That and reality tv.What you regard as thoughts are feelings. Free yourself: Skip the next red pill, substitute a blue.

Rationality. Five people speaking nonsense is still nonsense. It's because of US statute 31 USC § 5116-5117 so that the value of certificates issued on transferred gold between government agencies do not fluctuate in value. The current value is $42.22/ounce. I think it's a bookkeeping convenience for internal government accounting.When the U.S. government sells gold in the form of coins it is at far above the going rate. For example, consider this gold coin from the U.S. Mint: It weighs 1 troy oz. and is nearly 100% gold. The value of gold today is $2156.50/ounce, but this coin sells for $3020.--Percy

What do you think Jesus would do with the people massed out our southern border, the people who are hungry, lack shelter, and are fleeing violence in their own country? I don't think you know what the word "authoritarian" means. If sanctions are authoritarian then every president in the modern era has been an authoritarian.