Why the police showed up at the ranch

[Bill Bonner’s Diary]( Why the Police Showed Up at the Ranch By Bill Bonner, Chairman, Bonner & Partners [Bill Bonner] GUALFIN, ARGENTINA – What was wrong with the thousands of generations that came before us? All their antique courtship rituals… sitting on the front porch, chaperones, and pitching woo. They must have been really stupid! Because all it took was a single group of Yale graduates and a few decades to mull over their experiences… And now, we have the “right way” for men and women to get along. Recommended Link [The Largest Factory in History Is Opening – And You Won’t Believe What’s Inside]( [image]( Central Park is 1.31 square miles – pretty big. Manhattan, of course, is much bigger – 22.8 square miles. The new largest factory in world history that’s opening any day now? [It’s bigger than all of Manhattan.]( And when it opens, early investors who know its $332 billion purpose could make 10x their money – fast. [Details here]( -- Young Yalies As students in the 1970s and ’80s, the young Yalies were apparently as confused as everyone else. Following the party at which Brett Kavanaugh allegedly exposed himself… none of them decamped for a more civilized college, complained to the dean, or even left the party in disgust. Then, as recently as 1999, when Juanita Broaddrick credibly accused Bill Clinton of raping her (not just groping her or exposing himself), the press treated her like trailer trash. But then, Juanita didn’t go to Yale. She went to Sparks School of Nursing. And it was still the ’90s; the media and elite were so enchanted with the Clintons that his peccadillos hardly mattered. But now, the path to human perfection is open. How men and women treat each other is for the feds to decide, along with everything else. The hounds of the FBI are on the case and should drag this show out for a few more days… with elite factions scrapping for power and status… One side wants to get its man on the court. The other is taking an opportunity to show off its self-absorbed angst… and get even with its drunken classmates for insults that happened a generation ago. While this sorry spectacle was going on, approximately 100,000 people died of starvation worldwide… the feds went about $2.7 billion deeper in the hole… approximately 400 American women were raped… and we drew one day closer to a catastrophic blow-up of the economy. And a few years from now, even with so much competition from the Trump team, the whole spectacle is sure to be remembered as a national embarrassment, like Prohibition or Tom Friedman. But this is a new week… We must recover our sense of humor… turn our faces to new absurdities… and look at them from a new perspective. Recommended Link [Exposed: Video reveals evidence of Amazon’s plan to create its own crypto coin]( [image]( This Silicon Valley tech guru recently uncovered what he believes is going to be the biggest profit opportunity in 2018… He says, “I have evidence that [Amazon may be on the verge of launching its own cryptocurrency…]( and I’ve found a backdoor way to rake in massive profits as soon as Amazon makes this huge announcement.” [Watch this must-see video here]( -- Place at the End Yes, we are back at the ranch. We drove up the dusty road from Molinos on Saturday, stopping to pick up a hitchhiker – a woman in her thirties with no front teeth. “Where are you going?” we asked. “Up the road,” was the answer. That was as far as the conversation went. We tried to ask who she was and what she was doing (it’s a small valley), but we couldn’t make any sense of it. Later, we described the encounter to our housekeeper, who replied: “Oh… That must have been Veronica. She’s crazy.” We dropped Veronica off near a collection of little mud houses and went on our way… up, up, up… towards the end of the valley where the road, such as it is, would end. There, at the foot of the big mountain, Rebenque, we would find our farmhouse… the school… the church… and the small village known as Gualfin, which means “the place at the end.” [image]The view of Gualfin from the front porch It is early spring here. The grape vines and trees are budding. But it is also frightfully dry, with a gusty wind that sucks the moisture out of everything. The road – little more than dust and gravel – runs over hills, across dry riverbeds, around rocks and mountains. Then, it crosses a bridge (built only a few years ago; when we first arrived, we had to hope that the water was not too deep to cross), and begins the long climb up to the ranch. [image]The long road to Gualfin There used to be a crooked and dried-out sign pointing the way to the ranch. It looked so forlorn and forgotten, as if it were pointing to an abandoned cemetery. But now, it has fallen down or been washed away. Today, you just have to know where you are going. In the early days, before we knew the road well, we would look for a rock formation that reminded us of a battleship. The children would shout out “battleship,” and we would know it was time to veer to the left. Sometimes, the track had been washed or blown away when we arrived. Recommended Link [Big Surprise Coming for the White House]( [image]( Will this go down in history as THE moment that changed America – forever? At first, I didn’t think so. And you won’t either, I bet. But your mind will change in 60 seconds… once you see the stunning proof this millionaire and former hedge fund manager is releasing today. [“Eye-opening”]( -- Thin Cattle Now, there are more trucks in the valley, and in dry season – which is most of the year – the tire tracks are obvious. You simply follow along… up, up, up… rising about 2,000 feet from the riverbed. It takes about half an hour to drive from the left turn, where the property begins, to the farmhouse… always keeping Rebenque ahead of you. After about 20 minutes of going hard uphill, you find yourself in a huge, flat valley… and you can drive along a bit faster, watching out for cattle. We found the cattle huddled around the water tank. They were thin, as they always are in this season. But they looked thinner than usual. And it wasn’t hard to see why. There was not a blade of grass to be seen. Finally, we arrived at the base of Rebenque and settled into the farmhouse. Our housekeeper (who is otherwise up in the mountains herding goats), the farm manager, and his family came over to greet us. It wasn’t long before the subject of the cattle came up. “Yes… they’re very thin. And the cows don’t have enough to eat, so they’re aborting their calves,” our farm manager informed us. This was very bad news. The farm is already deeply in deficit. We lose calves to the condors and the pumas. We can’t afford any more losses. We rode out on Sunday to have a better look. The cows looked thin, but not desperate. Later, we opened a conversation with the housekeeper: “So what’s happened while we were gone?” “Nothing much. Gabriela didn’t run off with Omar. In fact, Gabriela and Justo are back together. Now, they’re talking about moving down to the other ranch. They think it will give them a new start… away from Justo’s mother. “She’s always been the problem. Gabriela got together with Justo when she was only 17 years old. The mother-in-law always bossed her around and never approved of her. No wonder Gabriela wanted to get away. “And it’s probably a good idea anyway. I mean, for them to go down the valley. Justo is an equipment operator… and that’s where you took the backhoe.” We thought we heard a tone of reproach in her voice… as if we had stripped the ranch of its much-needed equipment. Of course, we moved the backhoe to the lower farm to prepare the canals so we’ll be able to grow corn and alfalfa to feed the cattle. But that explanation could wait. Originario War Meanwhile, the war with the originarios (people who claim special rights to the land because they are descended from the native people) continues. And while we were away, we lost a battle. We’re beginning to wonder whether our team – neighbors and relatives of the originarios – wants to win at all. “Oh… and the police came a couple times. Roberto – you know, he’s not from here, but he lives with Alicia up in the valley – started to build a house near the school. [The farm manager] told him to stop. That land belongs to the ranch. He can’t just build a house anywhere he wants. “But he said he was an originario. So [our lawyer] went and got a court order to tell him to stop. The police came… but they couldn’t find him. And then, when the police left, he went back to building his house. “So [our lawyer] called the police again. They came up again. But he wasn’t there. So the same thing happened. They left, and he kept building the house. Now, it’s finished. And he’s living in it.” Later, we asked our lawyer what happened. “We got a court order telling him not to build the house,” the lawyer explained. “But they can’t serve the court order because they can’t find him. Someone must be tipping him off when the police are coming.” Stay tuned… Regards, [signature] Bill [] ECONOMIC INSIGHT: 112 MONTHS OF EZ MONEY By Joe Withrow, Head of Research, Bonner & Partners [Joe Withrow] The current economic expansion is now just nine months away from becoming the longest in modern history… Today, we put that in perspective by taking a step back and looking at the five longest economic expansions going back to 1954, based on the Federal Reserve’s record of expansions and recessions. [Chart] As you can see, the longest economic expansion since 1954 lasted 121 months from 1991 to 2001… culminating in the dot-com bubble. The current expansion that began in 2009 has lasted 112 months so far… bringing it to within nine months of first place. But as regular Diary readers know, Bill is skeptical that it will get there. That’s because the current expansion has been driven by unprecedented easy-money policies and historically low interest rates. In fact, the Fed injected $3.6 trillion – created from nothing – into the economy from 2008 to 2014 to boost asset prices and lower interest rates, hoping to stimulate growth. But now, interest rates are trending up. And the Fed, rather than adding more liquidity, is actively unwinding its balance sheet. Only time will tell if the economic expansion can continue under these conditions… or if it will reverse course toward recession. – Joe Withrow FEATURED READS [The Recession of 2016]( you remember the recession of 2016? Probably not… That’s because the short-lived economic downturn didn’t announce itself with a splashy stock market crash. Instead, it was much more subtle… [For Pricey Skyscrapers, Bankers Are Out, Crypto Is in]( the domain of Wall Street bankers, high-rise office buildings are quickly being emptied. The new tenants are arriving: crypto traders. [How to Make a Fortune in Tech]( technological innovations of the last two decades were just a warm-up for what’s to come. That’s the message from Jeff Brown, Bill’s go-to tech expert. The next 10 years will deliver technology we never dreamed possible… and reward smart investors with a fortune. [] MAILBAG In the mailbag, [the Brett Kavanaugh hearings]( are on readers’ minds… I can smell the dung as it gets closer to the fan. And I wonder what D.C. is really up to while it uses the old sleight-of-hand trick by consuming us with SCOTUS hearings. The entire Department of Justice, including the Supremes, is in place for one purpose: to protect the federal government from the states and its citizens. Too bad there won’t be much of a government to protect in the future. – Steve B. Today’s hearings were enlightening and disgusting all at the same time. Both parties seemed to truly believe what they were saying. If I were to pick one statement from today that I most agreed with, it would have to be Lindsey Graham’s assessment. Repeatedly, I heard questions indicating the questioners had just not been listening, or else it was relentless badgering and baiting – in either case, shameful. If his is a typical example, these hearings are a colossal waste of time and energy (and thus, our taxpayer dollars). – Judith H. I’m deeply saddened to read this declaration from you! – Sheila S. Mr. Kavanaugh’s weasel-like aversion to answering any direct questions and to an FBI investigation of the charge – not to mention his staged “anger” – tell me all I need to know. Bill’s lack of compassion for Ms. Ford is stunning. In my experience, there isn’t a single woman who hasn’t suffered some kind of sexual attack. And, up until recently, they rarely reported it. You know, it’s NEVER the man’s fault. Drunken boys will be drunken boys. Perhaps Bill should come down off the mountain and ask a few women what they think. – Edward M. Kavanaugh is the correct choice for the noble position of justice of the Supreme Court. He believes in the Constitution to protect his inalienable rights given by God Almighty. Courage and wisdom under fire. Reminds me of Patrick Henry. – Charlotte P. I’m a solid Republican. I watched the hearing yesterday and believed Ms. Ford. With two others alleging the same thing, I have a hard time believing Judge Kavanaugh. For the purposes of getting the story straight, he should have replied “yes” to an FBI investigation. Failing to do so cost him my vote. Sorry. – Anonymous Meanwhile, one Dear Reader takes stock of the mailbag… The mailbag never ceases to amuse. By my admittedly inaccurate count, the pro-Trump and anti-Trump crowd are in pretty much a dead heat in their battle to toss the most criticism in Bill’s direction. [Thursday’s lead entry]( is a statement that The Donald has done more for this country than the last 12 presidents combined, an idea that has absolutely no way of being proven true. It would seem that the reader who penned this funny bit likely does not know that the 12 presidents preceding his or her current hero would include Obama, Bush, Clinton, another Bush, Reagan, Carter, Ford, Nixon, Johnson, Kennedy, Eisenhower, and Truman. While that bunch is a rather motley crew that inflicted plenty of damage during its time in the Oval Office, it would hardly seem reasonable that Mr. Trump has accomplished more than all of them in total. After all, do we really know the true effects of the current administration’s policies? Will it not take time to see a true picture? But this is what’s amusing about politics today. People buy in with emotion rather than careful thought. Not a solid strategy, but amusing nonetheless. – Al D. IN CASE YOU MISSED IT… You’re running out of time… Last week, Jeff Brown hosted an urgent online webinar. In it, he revealed the one piece of tech that will unleash $12.3 trillion and make smart investors a fortune. Jeff’s agreed to leave the video of the event up online for anybody who missed it, but not for much longer. 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