The Pillaging of the American Consumer

The core problem — and we are nowhere near coming to terms with this — is that we are living amid a historic devaluation of currency. [Gilder's Daily Prophecy] August 30, 2022 [WEBSITE]( | [UNSUBSCRIBE]( Strange Device To Sell a Billion-Plus? [James Altucher]( I call it “Holo-Core technology,” and it may look whacky… But it has the potential to sell 2.5 billion units, making it the [best-selling product in history.]( Why such a high-flying forecast? Because the (pictured) device could [replace every smartphone on Earth.]( And now investors have a shot to earn life-changing profits. [Early investors: click here now»]( The Pillaging of the American Consumer [Zach Scheidt] JEFFREY TUCKER Dear Reader, What a cruel world. For two years, they told us to stay home and stay safe because this was the way to slow the spread. Why one would want to do that was never clear. The issue of hospital capacity only popped up in a couple of institutions. Otherwise, the medical system nearly shut down for no good reason. Everyone got the virus anyway. Now we are normal again, or so they tell us. But you hit the road in your car and greet record high gas prices. And airline ticket prices are utterly shocking. Same with hotel prices. At this point, many people have reconsidered those summer vacations but others have decided that they don’t care anymore. Might as well run up that credit card debt. In real terms, gas prices are not as bad as they seem but this is a double-edged sword. Your money is worth ever less, which means that the inflation adjustment causes the real price to seem higher than it really is. You could say the same about food, housing, and energy generally. The core problem — and we are nowhere near coming to terms with this — is that we are living amid a historic devaluation of currency. Here is gasoline in real and nominal terms. [Click here to learn more] Doesn’t that make you feel a bit better? Not really? That’s because even as gasoline is not historically high in real terms, the value of our overall income and savings is falling precipitously. I almost feel guilty about posting this chart because I can imagine the White House crowing about it tomorrow: see, it’s not so bad! [inflation…oil shocks…war…now THIS?] [James Altucher]( In between inflation…war…sanctions…and rate hikes… It seems today’s market is simply bouncing from one big surprise to the next. But according to Jim Rickards… (former advisor to the White House, Congress, and the U.S. Intelligence Community)… ….[what’s right around the corner could be much bigger](. And he says if you aren’t prepared for what’s coming, then your portfolio could get blindsided (again). But if you know exactly what to do… [Then you could flip the next financial shocker into a world of fortune-building opportunity](. Bottom line? Take 1-minute to watch this brand-new [urgent briefing]( …before the next big surprise hits your portfolio. [Go here now](. Inflation Plus Audits The Biden administration has been going on and on about its glorious plan to control inflation. It’s not a plan at all. It’s a wish that the Fed will somehow magically make it all go away. However, there is one point that Biden is sure about: raising corporate taxes will control inflation. Peter Doocy of the White House press corp recently asked the spokesperson about this specifically, wanting to know the logic here. She stumbled very badly. It took weeks, but the Biden administration finally came up with an answer, as published in The Wall Street Journal. It goes like this. The deficit has to be financed and that puts upward pressure on prices. If we bring down the deficit, the opposite will happen lower prices. The way to bring it down is by collecting more taxes from corporations and actively enforcing existing taxes on individuals. Therefore: higher taxes are the inflation plan. It has only a superficial grain of truth and it only applies in a world in which many other factors are not at play. There is simply no chance that intensifying the pillaging of the American consumer and business sectors is going to make a dent in inflation. These people have been floundering around now for many months to try to figure out how to blame anyone but the Fed for this mess. Have a look at this chart. [Click here to learn more] Is it any wonder that the credibility of this administration is completely shot? What is even odder is that it is not really clear whether and to what extent they actually care. Instead of consulting some competent economists, they are barrelling ahead with their plans for higher taxes, price controls, and squeezing the fossil-fuels industry. It feels like political suicide. At least Janet Yellen has admitted that she was wrong last year in predicting that inflation would be a problem. But hey, how could she have known? “I, at the time, didn't fully understand." These people truly do amaze me. It was obvious from late March 2020 we would be facing roaring inflation. All it took was a quick look at the Fed’s balance sheet and the M2 numbers. It was all baked in. And 18 months is the usual length of the long and variable lag. We’ve known this for at least 100 years. There was nothing unpredictable about any of this. It is textbook inflation, just like it was a textbook virus. The problem is that we have a regime that creates a crisis and then uses that crisis as a way to intensify power and control. Sure, let’s call it The Great Reset. That’s what is going on here. Panic at the White House The Washington Post got a scoop this morning. It turns out that Biden is starting to panic about inflation and the messaging around it. He keeps going on about how great the economy is doing but no one believes it. Hence: The flurry of activity comes after Biden has privately grumbled to top White House officials over the administration’s handling of inflation, expressing frustration over the past several months that aides were not doing enough to confront the problem directly, two people familiar with the president’s comments said, speaking on the condition of anonymity to describe private conversations. Some Victories We did win a victory last week when the World Health Organization was forced to pull the U.S. amendments off the list in its international health regulations. Opposition from Internet mavens combined with a deep suspicion on the part of many that this was all just a U.S. imperial plot. It kind of was. But now it is dead. But notice something. Every time the deep state loses a big one, it plots a big and vicious return. The mask mandate on transportation is a great example of that. A Florida judge shot it down. Then the Justice Department appealed the decision. It’s not even clear that this is about public health at all. It’s really just about the authority of the administrative state. They demand unchecked power. No judge can tell them what to do! Therefore, they are going all in on this, solely to reinforce the CDC’s power to act as an arbitrary maker of law. The Fed Won’t Save Us Several months ago, I predicted that the Fed would get cold feet in its stated plan to prioritize controlling inflation over preventing recession. That sounds good at a press conference. In reality, the Fed will not do this. That’s because there are two drivers of policy now: controlling inflation and sustaining the illusion of prosperity. They have to choose. The politicians know exactly which one they prefer. The oddest feature of the current economic climate actually concerns the labor shortage. Businesses cannot get workers. We’ve talked about this in granular terms and there seem to be various reasons to explain the problem. But something tells me that the real explanation is not really demographic shifts and job misplacement. The real problem is cultural. Ambition is not what it used to be. The belief in progress has dissipated. It will take many years to restore that lost confidence and the conviction that working hard and getting ahead is the American way. It no longer is. Meanwhile, the conviction is growing of the impending doom: the recession will soon be official. Can you imagine what the rest of the summer and fall look like with a combination of labor shortages, inflation, recession, and an upcoming election that could route the ruling party? What a time! Regards, [Jeffrey Tucker] Jeffrey Tucker P.S. In between inflation…war…sanctions…and rate hikes… It seems today’s market is simply bouncing from one big surprise to the next. But according to Jim Rickards… (former advisor to the White House, Congress, and the U.S. Intelligence Community)… ….[what’s right around the corner could be much bigger](. And he says if you aren’t prepared for what’s coming, then your portfolio could get blindsided (again). But if you know exactly what to do… Then you could flip the next financial shocker into a world of fortune-building opportunity. Bottom line? Take 1-minuteto watch this brand-new [urgent briefing]( …before the next big surprise hits your portfolio. [Go here now](. The Metaverse Story You’re NOT Hearing… [James Altucher]( Everywhere you turn, people are raving about the Metaverse. Facebook’s now called Meta. Microsoft’s CEO says, “The Metaverse is here.” Apple’s all in too. But there’s a critical piece of the Metaverse story you’re NOT hearing about… [Click here now for the full details](. [Paradigm]( ☰ ⊗ [ARCHIVE]( [ABOUT]( [Contact Us]( Gilder's Daily Prophecy is committed to protecting and respecting your privacy. We do not rent or share your email address. By submitting your email address, you consent to Paradigm Press, LLC. delivering daily email issues and advertisements. 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