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Rome Burns - The US hears the Barbarians- Update January 9, 2013
Marc’s Notes,
The statist government grows to feed itself. It has always been that way. Somehow the notion arises that one man knows better then another how to govern that one man and the meddling begins.
Two men bargaining over what one of them sells works fine. Both men make the deal and come away happy. One man sells and the other buys.
Anyone not liking the deal leaves the bargaining table.
When a country wants to guard its borders, defend itself or settle disputes between the regions, enter the “federal government”. Those things they do fine and it’s what government is needed for. Other then that and a few other minor needs, government should just get out of the way, go home, take the day off and let the two men make their deal. The best government is the one that governs the least it is said.
Those working hard eat and those that don’t do not. The lazy ones are left to go hungry or they can pitch in if their stomachs grumble too much.
The guy selling the cheapest, latest and greatest sword makes a living and guy selling swords that break either figures out how to do it better or he goes hungry.
Free markets at their best, Darwinism working its wonder, giving incentive to each man to get up and go to work or go hungry. Prices stay low, shysters and cons are run out of town and the hardest workers have more children and propagate. Such is the world as it was born. Profits are limited through competition and gougers are dealt with through market means.
But wait, the world was also born with man on board. Man by his nature both thinks he knows better then his brother and will also take a freebie if offered one. Much like giving a dog a bone, it in man’s nature to grasp what he does not work for if he is offered such.
The talkative-convincing man moves to the front of the pack and begins to look for bones and dying to meddle. He has a better idea on how two men should bargain. Never mind the wants of the two men, his idea will “improve” things. Together with a few friends they begin to meddle and look for bones and a “government’ is born.
They begin to “improve” things according to their ideas and soon problems start. One man gets favors and the other gets taxed. The new government needs to pay itself so they take a piece of the bargain and the price is no longer as low as it was. Prices start to rise, the meddling distorts markets as sellers without meddlers sell cheaper. The meddling and improving only really improves the meddlers and the more they intervene with their “improvements’ the more problems arise. More meddling needs even more meddlers to fix what they broke of course and the government “weed” starts to cover the fruitful garden.
Throughout history it is always the same. Governments grow and meddle. In their attempt to improve the lot, the lot gets weed infested. The governments grow ever larger and soon improving is replaced by the need to just stay in the seat. Power has now seduced the improver and now he improves just to do so. Little improving is actually accomplished you see, but there are always those that love to bow their heads to their self made gods, that have the need to be guided and fed, told where and what to do, so they can sleep at night. And the meddlers are more than happy to oblige.
More problems arise needing more regulation, more taxes to afford the regulation, and each new meddler instigates his idea when it’s his turn to rule.
The masses are told its all for the better and the bowing serfs bow. Meanwhile the only really improving being done is to the rulers and their friends. To stay in the marble halls they must convince the masses they are needed, that there is a threat from afar.
So off go the armies of the children of the masses: seldom do the rulers go or send their sons. The dirty work is left to the others as is the dying.
More rules, more armies, more taxes and more control. The poor are told they will be helped, after all it’s not their fault. The rulers litter the landscape with minor trinkets and circus, just enough to pacify the dolts so they stay in line and march to the front lines in lockstep. A mascot and slogan to rally the troops fly on the flags of patriotism to the regime.
Armies are spread and lands are conquered. The “threats” are neutralized but always replaced by another. The governors grow as do their need for more funds. Taxes are raised and anyone trying to free himself from the farce and tyranny are labeled criminals, self serving individualists that must be made to pay homage to the rest.
There will be no dissent, no fleeing the fatherland. After all these are ones that usually have the most funds, the ones that don’t need nor want their life meddled with, after all it works just fine without anyone meddling. But the improvers know better. They know this cannot be. There will be no dissent among the ranks nor desertion causing others to question the status quo.
So the weeds spread not only to our garden but to gardens all over the world, until all nutrients are consumed. Then to survive, the government must falsify the credit, debauch the currency, steal from the masses to garner the funds, first by night, then in open daylight, for the meddlers are now so many and so powerful, no one dare challenge them.
Impoverish more masses so they think they need us. Throw them a bloody gladiator spectacle and even indoctrinate their children with bloody games and perversion.
Raise them to accept the status quo and march to foreign lands to play out their games in full 3d blood red color without remorse.
Finally to prevent exodus or upheaval as things blow apart, install armies in the homeland, make criminal acts against any alternative to the states money and the states policies. All must pay homage or face jail. It’s for the good of the people after all.
Rome expanded itself to the point where it could no longer feed it armies, the lifelines were too long. It couldn’t afford to pay them honest money so it debauched and destroyed its own currency through debasement. For those with no currency they enslaved them with credit, a claim on future earnings which ensured obedience. It resorted to lies and propaganda as all states do as they near their end game to attempt to keep that game going.
Personal inceptive was destroyed through massive taxation and social program. The profitable businesses that remained were bled until such profit was funneled to government. With incentive removed, people’s productivity declined, further starving the state who then looked to even more control to stay in control.
Debt rose on all levels until even central manipulation could not stem the destructiveness of such policies. In the last years, deception, criminality, currency debasement and propaganda only increased until little else remained.
Nothing remained but lies.
“The more corrupt a government is, the more lies it must tell to survive” because honest governments need no propaganda to survive nor need to hide the truth.
Eventually Rome fell and while it was falling it was told all was well. The currency collapsed and the people fiddled while the embers fell around them.
Barbarians who traded amongst themselves without such meddlers simply marched in.
They needed no improving or complicated system of mandates and rules. In their simplicity they conquered the once great empire of a millennium.
Yet Rome was not defeated, it was eaten from within. The improvers sucked the life out of her while those wanting to be led were indeed led, right into the hands of the barbarians as the once all powerful Rome could not defend herself. She had been bled dry, her life blood and strength all but gone, sucked dry by years of meddling, years of statist policy and crony consumption. It’s currency destroyed, its businesses pilfered, its commerce regulated and taxed until it could yield no more profits or at least not enough to feed its masters that had grown to big, which choked out the fruits with its evasive weed.
All that’s left of its greatness is that which man cannot destroy; stone pillars and the shells of once monolithic structures which attest to its former greatness.
And while the winds of destruction came upon Rome, its leaders insisted as did the people believe that such was the greatness of the state of Rome it was simply not possible that such a thing could come to pass.
Rome had been and would always be. But what the meddlers, improvers and the masses of Rome failed to see was that even the greatest of empires can be undone by policies that are simply so bad and so destructive, nature will not tolerate the survival of any empire that undertakes them.
Markets:
I received some emails on our gold funds USERX and UNWPX not paying much in the way of dividends this time around and I agree. Its time to replace those with GGN, the Gamco Gold fund which pays nicely and pays monthly. Although UNWPX and USERX have been much higher in price and they are now quite low, keep in mind they paid almost 50 % in dividends over the time we have held them so you should have a nice profit once those dividends are taken into consideration.
Year end distributions have been a bit light this year which attests to the strength or lack thereof of our economic recovery, which really is nothing more then government sponsored inflation.
Government theft continues on a grand scale and funneled to the banking sector. (I recommend reading the latest article from Matt Taibbi entitled “ Secrets and Lies of the Bailout”. It is incredible and thorough.)
Here is the link: http://www.dailykos.com/story/2013/01/05/1176631/-Matt-Taibbi-s-Stunning-New-Rolling-Stone-Article-Secret-and-Lies-of-the-Bailout
Meanwhile the announcement of QE4 didn’t do much to the Dow Jones Averages and each QE program is losing its effectiveness as I warned would happen in past Money Updates. With the markets now meandering even in the face of massive stimulus, we can see the end game and how it will materialize. Basically the Fed is losing control and is becoming ineffective. They have purchased close to a quarter trillion in assets in the last few months and still the stock market and economy is anemic. With the fiscal cliff agreement adding to the deficit another 3.3 trillion in debt (CBO office) now we reach the debt ceiling 9 months early and Washington won’t cut spending AND spends even more.
It’s going to be interesting to see what the GOP will demand in cuts to raise the ceiling and by the way it won’t make a bit of difference in the grand scheme of things. I also wonder what the markets will do leading up to the mid Feb deadline when the government runs outs of money. Watch for Obama to blame GOP members and say we MUST raise the ceiling or cause a recession or worse. Never mind the fact that overspending IS the problem and we must take our medicine and STOP SPENDING. Watch as certainly they will not cut spending and witness the deficit grow monthly. Watch interest rates - they will be the key to how close we are to the light in the tunnel. (Want a gamblers play?
Buy SJB with gambling funds. This fund shorts junk bonds. You can also nibble on YCS which shorts the Yen. The new guy there says he will do some QE to get Japan going. HA! More QE, just what Japan needs. They already own more then anyone on earth compared to output).
Look out for the new talk by the US Federal Reserve to end QE. There has been press on this lately with some Fed members talking about halting QE 4. Don’t you believe it. You cannot. Once you start down the road of monetization (QE) you can never go back. The economy and the governments spending is entirely reliant on QE now as is the housing market and the banks. They can never stop QE until they are forced to and they are not forced to just yet. Inflation would have to really take off and interest rates would have to unchain themselves from Fed policy and rise as well. We are seeing a slight rise in rates now but we have no way of knowing whether that is temporary or the start of the Tsunami. Remember, things are ok until they are not and these things can happen quickly.
That’s all for now but get the Super Dividend List on the site as well as the Dream Portfolio to guide you. They are very affordable. Also sign up for the website for 2 years and I give you the 3rd year FREE.
We have a Woman’s only Money Class in a few weeks. It’s very affordable. Here is the link:
Want for me to take a look at your portfolio or situation? Email me. Price is reduced right now due to work load but goes up again at the end of the month.
Be good!
Marc
