"God Speaks – And the Court Adjourns"
by Bill Bonner
BALTIMORE, MARYLAND – "Today is the last day of God’s testimony. We began our case by leveling a simple accusation: that God had created all life – including corporate life and national life – as temporary, fleeting phenomena… like falling leaves in the autumn wind. And every one of us – and our most magnificent empires – is destined to hit the ground. We were programmed to die, in other words.
Not that we were expecting an alibi… or a confession… or even an apology from God. We just wanted to know how it all worked. So we thought we’d put the question to Him directly under oath: “Are you responsible for America’s decline? “Not entirely,” is how we would summarize his defense.
Human Failure: God made it clear that humans do stupid things… and they run into the “soft limits” that He imposed on us all. People who run empires, for example, inevitably over-reach… and over-spend… And then, to protect their own wealth and power… they lie, cheat, and steal… In the modern era, they make promises they can’t keep… fix prices… and print money to cover their deficits and boost their own stock portfolios… which then leads to chaos, corruption, confusion… resentment… and a breakdown in the empire itself. That is roughly what has happened to the U.S.
Since 2001, four of the worst presidents in its history undertook a series of far-fetched schemes. Each one was a disaster. Together, they multiplied the national debt five times. And now, the whole country relies on their fake money, fake interest rates, stimmy checks, and “transfer payment” giveaways. In theory, leaders with enough brains and backbone might be able to bounce off the “soft limits” and “make America great again.” But in practice, the elites control the government… and they gain more, at least in the short run, by staying on course than by turning around.
Hard Limits: But there are “hard limits,” too… brick walls that humans run into, no matter how good their driving skills. And there are even “extinction events” that wipe out dozens of species. God pointed out yesterday that the “Industrial Revolution” was just a one-time growth spurt. And today, he explains why, if you’re waiting for another growth spurt from the “Internet Revolution,” you should not hold your breath…
Land of the Unfree: You’re the ones who should apologize. For your whole knucklehead race. I gave you a paradise… and you blew it. Then, you were smiting one another, raping, and pillaging… So I gave you a new covenant; all you had to do was do unto others as you would have them do unto you. How hard was that?
And then I gave you a new start… a whole New World… and a free republic – America – from sea to shining sea. And you blew that, too. Each time, you succumbed to politics. You thought voting gave you the right to do unto others whatever you wanted. Tax them. Regulate them. Put them in jail. America was supposed to be the land of the free. But you’ve got 2 million people in your gulags.
And yet… your dear readers say they don’t trust Me! They don’t believe in me. They even say I don’t exist. I don’t take it personally. And it doesn’t matter. The world exists. And it comes with limits.
It was your own author, G. K. Chesterton, who proposed that when you come to a fence in the wilderness, before tearing it down, you should wonder why it is there. Perhaps there is a wild animal on the other side? The fence was, of course, Chesterton’s way of referring to My limits. They are there to protect you from the wildest beast of all – your fellow man. But let’s move on…
What You Don’t Know: Yesterday, I warned you that the rapid progress from using My stored-up solar power has come to an end. And now, you think that another tech revolution will come to the rescue. AI (artificial intelligence… ha ha)… DeFi (decentralized finance)… EVs (electric vehicles)… Will they bring a new wave of productivity and wealth? In a word, no.
An example from recent history shows why… More than 20 years ago, pundits claimed that the internet was a breakthrough equal to the wheel. It would bring all the world’s knowledge to your fingertips, they said. And now, you humans were going to make progress at a whole new level – faster and better than ever. But it didn’t happen. Progress didn’t speed up; it slowed down.
You know why? Of course, you don’t. So I’ll tell you. Progress comes from ignorance, not knowledge. It’s learning… not knowing. If you can figure out how to grow twice as much wheat on your land, you will double your output. That’s progress. But if you already know how to do it, you’ve gained nothing. Is this over your heads?
Waste of Time: Besides, Facebook, Google, Apple, Netflix – they proved not to be ways to increase output… but ways to waste time on idle entertainment, unimportant “data,” and jackass opinions. Want to know what’s up with Khloe Kardashian? No? I don’t either. But millions of your fellow citizens spend almost their entire days just keeping up with the Kardashians and other low-lifes.
There’s a big difference between the Industrial Revolution and the so-called Info Tech Revolution. Fossil fuels increased your ability to make and transport things. That is, they increased your ability to add wealth. (They also increased your ability to destroy wealth. But that’s another story.) But does broadband increase your wealth? Not really; it only passes around what we already know.
Facebook, Google, Twitter, et al. make their money by capturing people’s attention… and then, like newspapers and magazines… they sell the connection to advertisers. There is no new wealth created. It is really just a big shift of advertising money from print to electronic media. Likewise, Uber just shifts money from taxis, busses, and other traditional transportation businesses to private automobiles… It doesn’t make it possible for people to travel more. Airbnb, too, takes money from hotels. It doesn’t add to travel budgets.
And Amazon? Is there any real, new wealth creation going on? Amazon is just a low-margin retailer. It didn’t give consumers a way to make more money; it just makes it easier for them to spend it. And AI? It’s just souped-up data processing. Faster broadband? What… so the government can keep closer tabs on you?
And how about the “metaverse?” It’s mostly gobbledygook. There will be new apps… and new forms of time wasting. The net result could be positive or negative; I’m not saying.
Do Unto Others: But here’s what I will say… The “do unto others” rule is a fence. It’s meant to protect you from others… and from yourself. Yes, it’s tempting to take it down. Then, you can force people to take your vaccines… whether they want to or not. Or you can force them to drive an electric car… as you jet off to a “Green Energy” conference on another continent. Or you can stop them from spreading what you consider “misinformation,” competing with your own lies.
You can make them refer to each other as “they.” You can insist that they all use the same toilets, and banish “mother” from the English language. And you can tax the rich SOBs… while you continue to pump up your own stocks with fraudulent money. Yes, take down that fence and you can do unto others, good and hard. But later, you’ll find out why the limit is there… as you roast in Hell. Don’t say I didn’t warn you."
With that, the gavel came down. “This court is adjourned,” declared the judge, sternly. And as God left the courtroom, He was overheard muttering to Himself: 'I think it’s time for another flood.' "
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