It seems as though all the politicos have correctly said that we got into this mess because of excess borrowing and spending. We were drunk with borrowing and spending. We took out second mortgages on our homes and bought SUV’s and boats. Mortgages which should have never been given were given, and on it goes. Too much borrowing and spending…correct? They always forget to tell who provided the liquor with which we got drunk. It was, of course, the Federal Reserve, at the behest of the queer Barneys and his ilk. (Every time I see Barney Frank on TV I want to throw up.) Hey, if the money is cheap and unlimited, why not partake? Especially if the nation is economically illiterate, and graduates of the public schools. Particularly if the bozos in D.C. urge everyone to borrow and spend, and make it ever so easy. Too much borrowing and spending got us here. Correct?
What then, is Obama’s solution? Lots more borrowing and spending. In other words, what got us here, will get us out. Make sense? We’ll see how the votes go on his $3.55 trillion budget. Big government doesn’t create prosperity. Government at any level, destroys prosperity, because it sucks the life blood out of the productive class. Government produces nothing, makes no profit, and operates at profit makers’ expense. Profit isn’t evil, but necessary. Without profit, there would be no manufacturing, or retailing. Without profit, there would be no stores, factories and jobs. A certain amount of blood sucking is OK in the form of a fire department, police, streets, dog catcher, and municipal water and sewer department, but that’s about all. At the federal level? I can’t think of a single thing, other than perhaps a peacetime army and navy if we were neutral. The Constitution authorizes the post office and treasury, but of course the treasury has gone haywire with printing press money. Please think about what I just said. What D.C. bureaucracy has made America great, wealthy, prosperous, and the envy of the world? I can think of none. The bigger government has gotten, making no profit, usually destroying what it touches, and sucking the life blood out of everyone, the worse off and poorer we have become. Not just because everything has been taxed to death, which of course has driven jobs overseas, but the throttling, regulating, and harassment of the D.C. Gang, has made us mere puppets, drones, and brain-dead zombies. America no longer seems to be able to think and be logical. America doesn’t realize that it is government that has destroyed the money and economy. And they think government can fix what government has destroyed? Put more gas into a flooded carburetor?
More borrowing and spending, will further decrease the dollar’s value (inflation), increase the size of government, and further devastate the nation. Peter Schiff was on MSNBC Wednesday morning. He has been absolutely correct in his predictions of what would happen and has happened. He, logically pointed out the fallacy of more borrowing and spending, bigger government, etc. He was superb, but of course everyone said that it would never play politically, as America wanted something done to fix it. The supposedly intelligent hosts, looked as if they weren’t really sure if he was correct. How could anyone deny it? Schiff even told how it was Herbert Hoover and FDR that did the same thing as we’re going to do and are doing, and it only made matters worse. He pointed out that Japan did the same thing, it didn’t work and made matters worse. He sounded like me.
Since the logical thing won’t work politically, we’re then doomed to go through it again. As Schiff said, “We’re going to get into an inflationary depression.” No jobs and prices going up. Isn’t that a fine thing to contemplate? It’s probably unavoidable. Just protect yourself, that’s all.
TRUST
Since the Madoff fraud, plus lots of others, a few new clients have expressed worry about having to send money and not getting the metals immediately. The other question is…can we be trusted? The answer is yes. I’ve been doing this for well over 30 years, and no one has ever lost a dime. I’ve sent refund checks for $2 if someone overpaid me, and a week ago, I sent a refund of $1,000 to a client who was astounded, because he wasn’t aware that he had sent me too many money orders. We’re honest, and I raised my kids right. There are two kinds of trust when a purchase is made. The first is that we buy the gold and silver with our line of credit, for you. We stick out our necks to buy your purchase, not in your name, but ours. We are responsible to pay for what we buy for you. If you don’t pay, we have to pay anyway. The second trust is that you will get what you pay for, and our reputation is spotless. We aren’t ’investing’ your money for you, as the Madoff’s supposedly did, but rather we are delivering tangible metals to you. It’s a transaction, as well as an investment, but we are only doing the physical transaction and delivery. No long term contracts or Ponzi schemes. When you get your gold and silver, the transaction is finished. I urge you, before your ever purchase from me, my daughter, or my son, to read “How to purchase,” and “About us” by clicking on these at the top of the web site. We’re totally honest, and trust you to be too. Other firms require ’opening an account’ and depositing money before they’ll take an order, or require a wire transfer before doing business. We think that people are basically honest, and we’re 99.999% correct.
I’m going on a week’s vacation Saturday, so this will be the last column till Tuesday, April 7th. Melissa and David will serve you faithfully while I am away. David will have it all by himself for the first couple of days next week, as Melissa’s away till then also. It’s nice to have great kids!
Just as a last bit of humor, when humor is possibly needed, let me quote for you a funny set of definitions for you stock buyers sent me by client Susan H. “CEO – Chief Embezzlement Officer. CFO – Corporate Fraud Officer. Bull Market – A random market movement causing an investor to mistake himself for a financial genius. Bear Market – A 6 to 18 month period when the kids get no allowance, and the wife gets no jewelry. Value Investing – The art of buying low and selling lower. P/E Ratio – The percentage of investors wetting their pants as the market keeps crashing. Broker – What my financial planner has made me. Stock analyst – Idiot who just downgraded your stock. Stock Split. – When your ex-wife and her lawyer split your assets between themselves. Market Correction. – The day after you buy stocks. Cash Flow. – The movement your money makes as it disappears down the toilet. Yahoo. – What you yell after selling it to some poor sucker for $240 per share. Windows. – What you jump out of when you’re the sucker who bought Yahoo at $240 per share. Profit. – An archaic word no longer in use. Also: If you had purchased $1,000 of shares in Delta Airlines a year ago, you will have $49 today. If you had purchased $1,000 worth of AIG shares a year ago, you will have $33 today. If you had purchased $1,000 worth of shares in Lehman Brothers a year ago, you would have zero today. BUT…if you had purchased $1,000 worth of beer a year ago, drank all the beer, then turned in the aluminum cans for re-cycling refund, you will have $240. Based on the above, the best current investment plan is to drink heavily and recycle. It’s called the 401- Keg plan.” (If you had bought gold a year ago, you’d have made about 7% as of today.)