"The National Nightmare Begins"
by Bill Bonner
"Well, the people have spoken… the bastards."
– Dick Tuck, candidate for California Senate, 1966
SAN MARTIN, ARGENTINA – "Yippee! A third of the nation is on the edge of joy. Another third is on the edge of a high window – ready to leap. And the other third – the smartest of the lot – doesn’t give a damn. Here’s the bad news: Like it or not, someone will be named the winner in yesterday’s presidential election. As of this morning, we still don’t know who. Either way… the national nightmare begins.
That’s why the Dow rose 552 points yesterday. Investors figured that after the election – no matter which way it went – the coast would be clear for more bi-partisan giveaways. More fake money, in other words, with more fake “growth”… more fake stock market gains… and more fake wealth.
More Debt: And they’re probably right. Democrats are eager to put their man in office so they can wreck the economy with more federal spending and more debt. But they hardly need to bother. Donald Trump is doing a swell job already. Federal spending increased at a rate of $9 billion per month during the Obama years. Donald Trump increased it to $65 billion per month. And not even counting the first half of 2020 – in which COVID-19 caused a huge increase in government borrowing – federal debt rose at an average of $90 billion per month under Trump, compared to $76 billion per month under Obama. And once the election issue is resolved, one way or the other, debt will surely go up even faster.
Well-Worn Template: Here at the Diary, we are sanguine. Zen. Que sera, sera. There is nothing we can do about it. The country is run by an elite of politicians, economists, grifters, poseurs, bureaucrats, Deep State apparatchiks, Swamp scum, academics, media influencers, and Wall Street insiders, who have become predatory. They get their power and wealth by counterfeiting money and giving most of it – besides the pittance to voters – to their friends, their clients, and themselves. The counterfeit money then destroys the real economy, which the vast majority of people in the country depend on, leading to many long faces and short tempers.
This road is well traveled… and well paved, with good intentions and bad. The deciders are corrupted by power and money… They spend too much… They print money to cover their excess spending… The economy goes to Hell… The natives get restless. One generation learns; the next forgets. Empires rise and fall. And life goes on.
Extended Slump: And since there’s nothing we can do to stop it, we have to find a way to enjoy it. But that won’t be easy. Coming down the pike is one of the roughest, most dangerous periods in U.S. history.
First, stocks will crash… when investors realize that the economy is in an extended slump. Then, the feds will fight the downturn with the only thing they have – more fake money. That is, they will inflate the money supply to make us all feel richer. Once underway, that train goes only in one direction – towards more and more money-printing, which eventually leads to rising consumer prices.
Already, in the 49 years since the pure paper dollar was invented, it has lost 96% of its value, measured in gold. The rest is bound to go, too… in the years ahead. Inflation, stagnation, depression – the elite will get richer as the Federal Reserve pumps up the stock market… and Zoom Towns will become Boom Towns as those who can get away move as far away as possible from the danger zones.
Deep Resentment: The rest – the 90% who are left – will scrounge for jobs… for income… and for a little justice in a collapsing society. This will lead to a deep feeling of resentment… that the “social contract” has been broken… and a belief that violence is justified – either to set things right… or to keep them from changing. Already, many people feel that looting is protected by the First Amendment… Others feel they are “owed” because of an injustice committed more than 150 years ago. Many think that climate change… COVID-19… racism… and transgender rights… are no-compromise issues. They’re ready to overturn the Constitution to get what they want.
What Comes Next? We have no way of knowing what will happen. But even a casual reading of history suggests that when the great unwashed masses of a nation begin to feel they’ve been cheated… the result is not very nice. And of course, they’re right. The counterfeit money system cheats them. It’s cheated them for the last 30 years… or more. But they don’t understand how it works. So instead, they blame the Mexicans. Or the Democrats. Or the Blue State governors. Or China. Or greedy capitalists. Or Donald Trump. And it’s going to get worse over the next four years.
What can you do? How do you protect your money and your family? By tomorrow, we’ll have the election results… and we’ll look at what to do next."
