Tag: euro

MONEY: “Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value – zero.” -Voltaire, 1694-1778

Published on by reinkefjLeave a comment

FROM AN EMAIL FROM BITCOIN.COM

*** begin quote ***

Unlike dollars, there will only ever be 21 million Bitcoin

“Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value – zero.” -Voltaire, 1694-1778

The history of fiat money (ie. money issued by government decree) shows that governments consistently increase supply far beyond demand. This invariably leads to devaluation of the currency over time, something that we experience as inflation. Looking at some examples:

    The U.S. dollar has lost 96% of its value since 1913

    The euro has lost 40% of its value since 1997

    The pound has lost 99.602% of its value since 1751

“It’s going to be very hard to unseat bitcoin as a store of value, because it’s got a 14-year brand, and there’s a finite supply.”  — Billionaire investor Stanley Druckenmiller

*** end quote ***

I have put some spare change into ₿ and bullion on the off chance that the USA goes into a hyperinflation.  Based on the spending by Congress and the “printing” by the FED  — The Federal Reserve Bank is a misnomer. IT ain’t “federal”. It reserves nothing. And, it ain’t a “bank”. It is a private cartel of the elite banks run for their benefit and that of the entrenched politicians.  — I think more and more that this is a distinct probability.  Look at Turkey, Venezuela, Nigeria, and many other countries.  That’s what a runaway inflation looks like.

YMMV FWIW FAIWWYPFI 

“Bullets, beans, bandaids, bullion, booze in a safe retreat”  — Unknown

—30—

INSPIRATIONAL: Man Finally Meets Family That Hid Him During Nazi Holocaust

Published on by reinkefjLeave a comment

https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/man-finally-meets-family-that-hid-him-during-nazi-holocaust-80-years-ago-and-visits-the-house/?utm_campaign=newsletters&utm_medium=weekly_mailout&utm_source=10-02-2023

Man Finally Meets Family That Hid Him During Nazi Holocaust 80 Years Ago–And Visits the House
By Andy Corbley – Feb 7, 202

*** begin quote ***

An elderly Belgian man was able to meet the descendants of a neighbor who saved him from the Holocaust after his perseverant son and a helpful geneticist managed to track down his grandchildren.

The meeting was organized in the same house where a 5-year-old David Rossler was hidden along with his mother. Now 85, Rossler had a chance to thank the grandchildren for what their grandfather, Georges Bourlet, had done.

Mr. Bourlet lived in Auderghem, Brussels with his four adolescent children, Paul, Jacques, Anne-Marie, and Christiane. Together they gave shelter to Rossler and his mother towards the end of the war in 1944 after Rossler’s uncle and grandfather had already been seized and sent to Auschwitz.

*** and ***

“In Jewish tradition, there is a saying that ‘he who saves one life saves all of humanity’ – Georges Bourlet saved humanity nine times over We are submitting our testimony to Yad Vashem in hopes that he will be recognized for his heroism and granted the title of ‘Righteous Among the Nations,’” said Lionel, referencing the Israeli civilian honor for those who risked their lives to save Jews during the Holocaust.

*** end quote ***

I’m not sure I’d have the courage to hide Jews from the Nazis.  Not only did Georges Bourlet risk his own life but also that of his family to do a brave thing.  He knew the risks and did it.  That’s “stones”.  

We don’t know how many took the same gamble and were killed for it.

As I said, I’m not sure I could handle a big challenge like that.  May all my temptations be small enough for my limited abilities. 

—30—

 

    

    ,

MONEY: Predicting a Euro collapse

Published on by reinkefjLeave a comment

http://www.forbes.com/sites/tomgroenfeldt/2012/02/09/if-the-euro-breaks-up-scenarios-for-greece-piigs-and-total-collapse

Tech
2/09/2012 @ 12:35PM
If The euro Breaks Up — Scenarios For Greece, PIIGS And Total Collapse
Tom Groenfeldt, Contributor

*** begin quote ***

SunGard is not alone in modeling the potential for a eurozone break-up. Finextra reports that firms such as ICAP and industry utilities like CLS, the FX settlement bank, have initiated scenario planning in the event of a major soveriegn default and subsequent euro exit. It also said that banknote printers have reported that central banks have been scouring the market for printing presses capable of running large stocks of once-defunct currencies.

As the song says, breaking up is hard to do.

*** end quote ***

So how does the little guy play this?

Like the sailing ship of old, it’s rig for stormy weather.

* Cut your OPEX (operating expenses).

* Minimize your CAPEX and build your capital for the future.

* As many in the tin foil hat community say, build your food larder. Even if you’re not preparing for the end of the world, food prices are not going down anytime soon. The Mormons are said to believe that everyone should store a year’s worth of food. Can’t hurt.

* Save in inflation protected way. (The tax of inflation is the silent killer of savings.) If nothing else, everytime you get a nickel save it. (It’s worth 7½¢ now.)

* Develop skills or sidelines that can lead to alternate streams of income. A web-based business can have an store open 24/7/365. You can write stories and publish them for free.

* Stay in shape because getting sick will be even more expensive in the future.

# – # – # – # – #

GOLD: Unfunded liabilities

Published on by reinkefjLeave a comment

http://lewrockwell.com/spl3/gold-chart-walk-2012.html

Gold Chart Walk 2012
by Morris Hubbartt

*** begin quote ***

Unlimited government requires unlimited funding. The unfunded liabilities of the USA are staggering. Over the next 20-25 years there is probably a gigantic $75 trillion unfunded liability problem for the US government. Think of the move in gold against the dollar with a debt of $15 trillion. Can you imagine the action in gold with a debt five times the current size?

The United States could be headed towards decades of dollar devaluation. With all of the problems in Europe, why isn’t the euro hitting new lows? Why can’t the dollar mount a real rally, instead of this tiny bit of strength?

The answer is that the dollar isn’t really very strong at all. If America goes into a crisis like you’ve just seen in Europe, the fall in the dollar could dwarf the euro’s fall, because America is the largest debtor nation in the history of the world.

The nature of all fiat currencies is to be competitive, with each currency group looking for an advantage in trade, and more importantly, an advantage in debt relief for the governments that issue these currencies. Fiat currencies are designed to be depreciated over time. Buy Gold in this time of gold price weakness, because your opportunity won’t last forever.

*** end quote ***

Regardless of how you feel about gold — the magic mineral, an obsolete anachronism, or something in between — this quote should strike fear into the heart on anyone who understands “real life”.

As if “unlimited government” was NOT scary enough, “unlimited funding” should be down right terrifying.

The national debt stands at 15T$ and growing every second.

Then you hit the guesstimate of 75T$ of unfunded liability, which should knock your socks off. It does mine.

How did “we” get in this mess? Even a crooked accountant, with two sets of books, has one that tells him the truth. Even Bernie Made-off knew he was “underwater”. We don’t even have ONE set that tells us the truth.

“Jobs created or saved”, “unemployment” stats that don’t account for the “99 week”-ers, and an inflation rate that doesn’t include food or fuel.

These are the statisticians that you’re looking to tell you “the truth”.

Can you even handle “the truth”?

“The truth” is that we’re going to be like Japan, the Soviet Union, and Zimbabwe all rolled into one.

As one of those war movies said: “Tell everyone to get small in their holes because trouble is coming.”

Argh!

# – # – # – # – #