In the 1970s, the U.S. dollar lost 30% of its value over a several-year period. Inflation more than doubled. And the stock market fell 48% in less than two years. Unemployment was around 10%. And, believe it or not, the federal government got so desperate that it issued “Carter Bonds” denominated in Swiss francs because the U.S. dollar could no longer be trusted. That brings us to today. Once again, the stage is set for America’s next Debt Jubilee. We are living in a world of two different Americas. For the wealthiest 40% of the population, life is good. Asset prices are rising... and wages are finally starting to increase. For everyone else, life is getting worse... For the bottom 60% of America, consumer debt is high and wages are stagnant. Most of these folks would have difficulty raising even a few hundred dollars for an emergency. These folks have less than $20,000 on average saved for retirement. Physical and mental health
is deteriorating. And death rates are soaring. Premature deaths are up by 20% since 2000. As Bridgewater Associates wrote in a 2017 report... The biggest contributors to that change are an increase in deaths by drugs/poisoning (up two times since 2000) and an increase in suicides (up over 50% since 2000). That is the definition of hopelessness. And it’s why the inevitable Jubilee in America is already underway... The concept of a Jubilee comes from the Bible (the Old Testament), the Book of Leviticus, Chapter 25. A Jubilee in the Jewish tradition was said to occur roughly every 50 years. It was a time for total forgiveness of debt and the freeing of slaves. Pope Boniface VIII proclaimed the first Christian Jubilee in 1300. And rulers throughout history have occasionally used a Jubilee to reset the financial system – especially when the poorest citizens are threatening revolt. Today, the vast majority of America is in bad shape. And the poorest citizens are calling for a radical solution... But this Jubilee will be different from the 1933 and 1971 ones we’ve discussed. The federal government is free to print all the money it needs to pay government debts. Private households are different.
Today, the vast majority of America is in bad shape. And the poorest citizens are calling for a radical solution...
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April 2019
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