When The World Goes To Hell

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By Glenn Baja

What will our days look like when the world economy goes to hell? How can any of us feel optimistic about anything when words such as the following are shared on media channels?

“Our reign as the world’s leading super power is being annihilated in a way equivalent to the end of the British Empire, post World War II.
And the end game could be a nightmarish scenario, where the world falls into an extended period of global anarchy.

We’re on the verge of entering the darkest economic period in our nation’s history. One that will ignite a 25 year Great Depression…

… a financial Pearl Harbor.”

These are the words of Jim Rickards, an American lawyer, economist, and investment banker. He is a regular commentator on finance, and is the author of The New York Times bestseller Currency Wars: The Making of the Next Global Crisis, published in 2011, and The Death of Money: The Coming Collapse of the International Monetary System, published in 2014.

He goes on…

Rickards argues that currency wars are not just an economic or monetary concern, but a national security concern. He maintains that the United States is facing serious threats to its national security, from clandestine gold purchases by China to the hidden agendas of sovereign wealth funds and that greater than any single threat is the very real danger of the collapse of the dollar itself.

Rickards explains that the Federal Reserve is involved in what he calls “the greatest gamble in the history of finance,” via a sustained effort to stimulate the economy by printing money on a trillion-dollar scale.

And, he fears he and his colleagues’ warnings are being ignored by our political leaders and the Federal Reserve.

“The Fed and the Treasury are the greatest threats to national security, not Al-Qaeda,”

He testified before the United States Senate, warning the Senate that by money printing, credit creation, and reckless monetary policy by the Fed, the risk of collapse goes up exponentially.

Signs

Eyes crossed, mind confused … that old familiar feeling of being overwhelmed pervades once again. This 60 minute Money Morning interview with Steve Meyers makes me angry, depressed, and struggling to absorb and comprehend the many signs that the imminent downfall has already started.

I shift my focus. It isn’t pretty.

What lies around the corner?

What might the “day after” look like after the crash, a crash that could drop stocks 70% overnight.

What stocks to buy? What stocks to sell? Ways to hedge…
Buy gold? Silver…? Invest in hard commodities?

Signs abound.

The country is nearly 18 trillion in debt.

We have 127 trillion in unfunded liabilities: Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security, student loans, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, FHA.

There’s no way to pay it all. It’s eminent that this house of cards is going to fall.

During the boom years of the 1950’s and 1960’s, for every dollar of debt that was created, we got $2.41 worth of economic growth. Not bad.

Today, it’s about $.03, and soon it will go negative.

A collapse is eminent.

50 million Americans are on food stamps.

The unemployment rate today is actually 23% when calculated the right way.

China is the fastest growing economy in the world, and they need more energy. Energy that Russia and the Middle East have.

They’re also buying all the gold they can. A hedge against the dollars upcoming fall.

One of Russia’s largest banks has said, “it’s time to change the entire international financial system that considers the dollar the key reserve currency. The world has changed.”

The whole global market is priced in dollars – but it doesn’t have to be.

An arrangement made decades ago with the Saudi’s agreed to make the dollar the petroleum industries official world currency. Today this is in danger of changing. Saudi now sells more oil to China than the USA.

The signs go on and on.

It’s all logical.
 
All of it makes sense.

And all is likely true.

Probably something to consider taking seriously.
But I don’t. And I won’t.

Because I really don’t want to.

And I can’t…

I’m so damn tired of living in fear.

And I refuse to do it any longer.

Benefits?

Just what are the benefits associated with living in a constant state of fear?

Who can we trust? Where is it safe to travel? Who might be a terrorist? Are we safe from the ebola virus? Are we being spied upon? Is our neighbor a sex offender? Do our grandchildren have to struggle? Will our schools ever be safe?

Are we being slowly poisoned by the food we eat? Why is obesity out of control? Have we lived our lives working as slave labor for the wealthy?

So few of us have lived the life we once envisioned for ourselves. Most have given up the idea of ever doing so. We take pills to control our aches and pains, indulge in addictions to make us feel better, and refuse to take a deep look at the lives we’ve chosen for ourselves for fear of disappointment and regret.

The fear goes on…

Low self-worth, personal greed, self-centeredness, feeling deeply depressed and/or inadequate, constant feelings of being overwhelmed.

There are the power struggles, maddening corruption in government, and environmental degradation. We’re almost afraid to leave our homes for fear of something bad happening.

I no longer wish to live in a state of fear, participate in creating a world of fear, or help self-propagate a world of fear.

It’s about living life.

Loving more. Appreciating. Having no regrets. And following that intuition and heart intelligence that resides within.

Choosing Differently

I step out of the camper under the gray canvas of clouds overhead and feel the sprinkling mist upon my face and hands. A shiver shoots up my spine as I step into the cool air. The days are getting shorter. The first day of winter is coming soon.

I pull my fleece coat snugly towards my body and step in back of the camper to relieve myself. Secluded, I admire the water-saturated, yellow-orange leaves of the autumn trees just yonder. A smile comes to my face.

It’s just about noon, time for a stretch and lunch break. My earphones are on, listening to an uplifting song by Elijah Bossenbroek’s called I Give Up. I love this song.

I feel great. Life is good. I look around and gives thanks for this special moment.

This may not be the life I desire from this day forward, but it’s a good one nonetheless. I may not know what my mind, body and soul has in store for me, but I know this path feels right. Everything I’m experiencing, everything I’ve created, I’ve created for a reason.

I’m meant to be on this journey. All is happening just as it’s supposed to.

Following your soul’s intelligence is not for sissies. It’s hard work.

It will test your confidence. It challenges you to grow.

It will make you question yourself and ask who you really are. It will make you question why you’re doing what you’re doing. It will make you wonder the reason you’re really here.

What is it that you’re meant to do?

As retirees, we have a new life blackboard to work with. You get to create your path from here on out. Who do you wish to be now that the focus around making money is no longer your primary focus?

So much to see. So much to do. So many adventures still lie ahead.

I’m fortunate to be with a gal whom I adore and get along with wonderfully well.

She loves me.

Life is good.

Life is great.

And when the USA goes to hell and people are flipping out, I hope to still be taking steps towards the life I choose to create. There’s enough garbage I already have to work on without inviting or eliciting more into my life.

I once said to myself that if there were anything I’d wish to have more of in my life, it would be to see more sunrises and sunsets.

This to me…

is success.

This is what I wish to focus upon.

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