This past Thursday I was speaking with John Embry regarding the massive 80 ton sale of gold futures the day before in a tight 15 minute window. We talked about how egregious the suppression has become and the “scorched Earth” policy employed over the last couple of months. We both agreed this can only mean we are getting closer to something big (and very bad) happening very soon. The fact there is now no longer even any effort to “hide” the suppressive actions, wreaks of desperation. We both see this as a major “tell” and the further down the rabbit hole the markets are pushed, the closer we are to the system outright breaking. John and I over the years have agreed on so much and disagreed on so little, we seem to be “brothers from two different mothers.” Often times he will write something or vice versa and the other then needs to do a little bit of a re write so it doesn’t come across as plagiarized. I tell you this because when we spoke last Thursday, we almost simultaneously said, “I’m going to write Happy Thanksgiving this week because this is probably the very last ‘normal’ one of our lifetimes.”
Earnestly, I wish you all a Happy Thanksgiving and hope you understand what the holiday is really about. Yes, hanging out with family, eating a great meal followed by a few beers and watching football is what it has morphed into, I am not saying this is a bad thing. What I am saying is we all should be thankful for what we have and “have had.” We (I am speaking as an American) have collectively lived the best lives of any humans during any time period in the history of the planet.
Put simply, we have lived the American dream with the highest standard of living ever in history. This is changing and unless you are small subset of even the “1%,” your standard of living has begun to slip.
Throughout history, many empires have risen and then declined. Each of these empires “shared” several things in common. Most used “debt” as a means toward growth and used it more feverishly to hide decline. Generally speaking, debt was “good,” it was so good that it became over used. Another commonality amongst empires has been the debasement of their currency. If you study history you will see this as a common theme back to and even before the Roman Empire. Lastly, empires typically begin decline once their military becomes too widely used and “spread thin” so to speak. There are others (including a deceived or unaware public) but these three are the biggies.
There is no denying the U.S. is now afflicted from all three of these directions. We have too much debt, we have blatantly debased our currency, and our military has been used to bully and abuse …quite simply over used. Our standard of living is already falling no matter what “statistics” or propaganda is employed to hide this fact. This will only get worse until something breaks. The only questions in my mind are “when, how fast and how severe?”
John and I discussed these three and almost agreed entirely with only one caveat. If asked several years ago whether we could have made it to Thanksgiving 2014, with a financial system still intact …both of us would have given a very low if not almost zero percent chance. What did we miss? We missed the fact that “government” (ALL Western governments) were willing to bankrupt themselves to prolong the game. In essence, we underestimated their foolishness (and greed to retain power at any all costs)!
As to the three questions, (when, how fast and how severe?), we both believe the word “soon” is too broad and should be replaced with “on any given day.” How fast? When this thing goes, there is a good chance that because of leverage and computerization, the word “overnight” may apply. If not, a couple of weeks at the very most. The only area we even slightly disagree about is “how severe?”. John still has hope that any financial calamity will not erase the rule of law. He believes what is coming will be worse than anything mankind has ever seen from a financial standpoint but there is a chance we don’t slip into anarchy. I disagree, I personally (and very painfully) believe anarchy is almost a given where it becomes every man (woman) for himself. Again, speaking as an American (John is Canadian), I see this country more divided than any time since the civil war. Today, it is not just one issue, it is many but this is not really the problem. The problem as I see it is we no longer have a “backbone.” We as a nation have become “dependent” on so many things. We no longer farm, hunt, fish or live off the land in any way…why would we when going to Walmart is easier? I’ll stop before I go off on a tangent…
I write this Monday evening before the Ferguson grand jury decision is out. If as suspected the verdict is not to indict, it is “almost” planned that riots will ensue. Strike that, riots ARE planned. It does not matter to me whether someone is white, black, Hispanic, red, green or blue and certainly would never advocate someone needlessly being “murdered” …especially by the police. My opinion, (which doesn’t really matter) is that this was not a murder, rather it was self-defense against a very big person who had just robbed a store and was aggressive with its owner. Right, wrong or whatever, if there is no indictment there will be rioting, the Ferguson police have even supposedly suggested “if you don’t own a gun, go buy one.”
What was my point to the above paragraph? Mainly to point out what we in my opinion will be seeing everywhere. As you know, I am convinced the financial system will come down. This will take many lives with it. There will be unrest and looting for a reason no more complicated than hunger. It pains me to write this during Thanksgiving week but I did not choose the timing. We can only hope and pray real justice is served and once announced there is no rioting. As a suggestion, if this situation does blow up and into violence, please watch and listen, then think …what if this were to be my city or town? I urge you to do this because a broken financial system will surely bring with it something resembling Ferguson. Again, I am sorry to bring this message to you right before Thanksgiving.
I wish everyone a Happy and blessed Thanksgiving!
HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO YOU AND YOUR FAMILY BILL !
Wish you were all wrong, but know you are dead right.
Thanks for what you do to help prepare us for the sad day coming.
thanks, same to you Steve!
Bills right about living in the best of times. Being sixty now I always wished I could go back twenty-thirty years and do a few things a little different, recapture my youth, but not anymore. I am thankful for growing up when I did and really have doubts about the future in this country.
I feel for the younger generations and where they are headed and what their bleak future may hold.
yes Jeff, may heaven help our children!
Bill,
Your article is as real as it gets. I agree that I believe this will be the last Thanksgiving in many years that will be peaceful and normal. In fact I don’t think I’ll ever see it this good again.
A blessed and Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours and every one else on earth as well.
you too Farrell.
Happy Thanksgiving.
By Kondratieff cycles, time comes to still in 2016. So another year of pm suppression. In SWI it would be 3 years before it turns into law, if referendum is positive.
I survived USSR collapse, nothing could be uglier, except ww1 and 2.
or III
Bill,
I hope you are wrong but I know in my heart you are right. All signs point to “something” BIG happening soon. Like Mr. Embry I am a Canadian and Canada is not immune to what is about to happen. It may not be as severe as what happens in the USA since the USA is the reserve currency but it will be harsh in Canada none the less.
Happy Thanksgiving and all the best to you and your family.
thanks Scott, same to you and yours.
Dear Mr. Holter,
We have just “met”, thanks to Greg Hunter, and I’ve listened to you and read your Thanksgiving message. As your other respondents today, I agree that the days of wine and roses are fast coming to an end and I am impressed by your thinking and clarity of presentation. At 74, and having lived in Europe for a number of years prior to this, I agree with the undercurrent thought that Americans aren’t ready for the reality they have been ignoring for decades – in their personal lives, in their finances, in their civic responsibilities, in their government and in the abuses that we have spread around the world. As you and Ayn Rand point out, reality will not be ignoring us.
Thanks for your thoughts and best wishes for a happy, family Thanksgiving.
Stephen – Rural Western Oregon
thank you Stephen and same to you. What a fabulous compliment, my name and Ayn Rand’s in the same sentence!
Do not understimate western banking cartel, ever…
If they are not pushed from the cliff by BRICS, they can kick the can down the road for much more time.
And for now it does not seem that they want to checkmate the west, especially the chinese which want to finish to exchange their fiat dollars into hard assets.
I do not think that gold/silver are only dollar hedge : if west does not crumble Under its own weight they will want the butter AND the money, they will buy as low as possible as many assets they can and it can take several years from now.
don’t know if we have “years” worth of gold left.
Even when the west will have no more gold to sell (which we do not know when) china will keep the us afloat to get some hard assets like commercial properties with its us dollars.
maybe not.
George Washington never stopped farming- even as President- and he felt ALL citizens should have their hands in the dirt to understand where food and other necessities come from, thereby honoring those who produce these things. Can you imagine ANY of our elected ” biggy bigs” even considering such behavior?
Very few of us can begin to grasp the real lust for power that drives these folks. Their reward will be to be able to say, “I got mine!”
God, please save us- even though we don’t deserve it!
Happy Thanksgiving for all we enjoy!
how funny! Great post Bing!
Hey Bill the most important OPEC meeting is taking place this week. See headline below.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=11363276
yes thanks Marco, “cut or no cut?”, that is the question. Demand is down, global recession/depression.
Bill, Happy Thanksgiving to you and family.
I had a long post but deleted it. We have just totally been wrong the past 3 years. When I am wrong, I have to rethink. I wish I had never convinced some friends and family to follow me the past 2-3 years. The stress is not worth it. I dont blame anyone for my decisions, they are my own, but I have never been so wrong for the past 3 years. I have been like a deer in the headlights, stocks keep going up and gold keeps going down. I have a horrible feeling about this Swiss gold initiative. Gold bugs are desperate for something but this is not going to be it. Therefore all I see is severe pain coming from it. Older people control all elections and the fear of losing pensions or medical care is of primary concern. This is exactly what happened in Scotland and every election in this country actually.
I made the Sinclair question and answer session in San Francisco. He admitted to having to much gold, the bottom probably in but 1000 possible (to be honest he like you and me has called bottoms in the past and been wrong). Stocks are in a great Bull Market with no end in sight with continued monetary easing. I walked away thoroughly discouraged because of having no stock exposure. I know you made one of his meetings. I would have liked to compare the two. There were no more than 150 people, he looked great, but I heard nothing new. Dan Norcini’s name came up and was audibly sneered at by the audience, which disappointed me just like the attacks people on this website do when his name come up. (Jim did say Dan was a good friend of his).
Thank you for your time.
I like Dan also, he is a good guy. But, he disavows that gold and silver prices are suppressed. Everything else on the planet is manipulated except gold and silver??? He wrote 2 or 3 months back about some insignificant contract that he trades something like “how in the world can someone sell “x” amount of contracts at 12:00 midnight on a Sunday night and thus destroy its price?” ……………WELCOME TO OUR WORLD DAN! Something like 49 out of 52 Sunday nights have seen gold and silver attacked. I need say no more.
Not sure he is such a good guy…
Bill, wishing you and your family a very Happy Thanksgiving indeed. Thank you for sharing your insights and all you do in trying help those who will listen. I too believe this will be the last peaceful Thanksgiving our nation enjoys. We have been greatly blessed as a nation, but have not been vigilant in holding our elected Representative government accountable as our fore fathers warned. Then, they sold us out when they gave our money system over to the most insidious cartel on the face of this earth – the international banksters. From that time a count down was started for the death of our once great nation. God bless
A Happy and Peaceful Thanksgiving to you to Richard!
“I urge you to do this because a broken financial system will surely bring with it something resembling Ferguson.”
Yes, it will and on a national scale. This view of Ferguson, MO that is on the news channels these days is the barest and teeniest view of the very tip of the SHTF iceberg. These protesters are not starving. Imagine what they will be like when they are. The term “animals” comes to mind. As has been the case throughout history, people who behave like animals WILL be treated as such.
When I was a kid in the 1950s, we lived in Huntsville, AL. We enjoyed living there as it was a nice place to live. We had many people of color there and we all got along reasonably well. We did so because we had a great county sheriff there who would not tolerate the crap that is going on in Ferguson these days. Everyone understood this and because we did peace was the result. What do they understand in Ferguson? That there is little to no penalty for looting, raping, and burning, so WTF? That does indeed seem to be the case and the Obamunists are in this up to their eyeballs, apparently egging it on. I am unsure as to whether this is sad or pathetic. It seems to have many elements of both.
But Ed, the plan worked didn’t it? You have already forgotten about “amnesty” haven’t you?
We are being trained/brainwashed into killing each other. Why? I haven’t a clue. That’s just what seems to explain everything.
de population?
Mr Holter,
I am thankful for those like yourself that have the willingness to share the knowledge they have and to speak hard truths regardless of the possible consequences. I read the article you referenced in the Greg Hunter interview, GrandMaster Putin’s Gold Trap.When you said you wished that you had written it I knew it had to be good,it was. I am thankful for educators like yourself.
Sir, you nearly brought a tear to my eye with your article for it was clear to me that it was difficult for you write these words. We are in for a world of hurt.
I hope things stay together long enough so that I can move from the border of Detroit to a rural area in Tennesse.
I think this is a Chris Duane quote, “Those that have learned from the past are doomed to witness it again”
Best of luck to you and yours
thanks John, yes it did pain me write what I did about the country I love and grew up in.
The human animal is alive and need not a good excuse to act in its best interest. Thanks Bill.
the human animal always does.
Bill,
I think that we can say not only have we enjoyed the golden years of the United States but very likely the golden years of humanity.
unfortunately yes.