“Track burgers, poor man’s gold, not headlines. They tell you what your labor is really worth.” — YNOT! Back in 1980, when I was in high school, I worked at Burger King. I made $3.50 an hour, just above minimum wage. A Whopper was under … Continue readingIf You’re Making More Money Than Ever, Why Does It Feel Like You’re Falling Behind?
“When you play their game, by their rules, they always win” — YNOT! What do you call it when the price collapses, the systems go dark, and the people who needed the crash walk away clean? Let’s start with the part they hope you won’t … Continue readingWhat Actually Happened to Silver — and Why Does the Official Story Smell Funny?
“And if you gaze long into an abyss, the abyss also gazes into you.” –YNOT!! We like to believe we’re observers. Rational. Detached. Standing safely on the sidewalk while the madness of the world speeds by. Markets inflate, governments print, bubbles grow so large they … Continue readingHappy New Year 2026 — When the Abyss Looks Back
“The modern banking system manufactures money out of nothing. The process is perhaps the most astounding piece of sleight of hand ever invented.” — Sir Josiah Stamp, former Director of the Bank of England 🪶 “The Greatest IOU Ever Written” There’s a strange comfort in … Continue readingThe $315 Trillion Paradox: If Every Nation Is in Debt, to Who?
“When paper burns, only the tangible survives.” The Madness of Printing Prosperity Every generation believes it’s smarter than the last — that this time, the math won’t matter. That governments can conjure prosperity from thin air, and central banks can turn zeros into salvation. But … Continue readingHow to Survive Hyperinflation – a little history – little planning – lots of praying
Never stand between something ten times bigger than you and something that won’t move—because you will get crushed.It doesn’t matter whether it’s a truck, a ship, Bitcoin, the stock market, or the bond market.They all have one thing in common: mass—and with mass comes momentum. There are always … Continue readingNever Stand Between Giants and Walls
When I was a boy, I thought the “Federal Reserve Bank” was a mighty vault buried under Washington, full of gold coins guarded by men in uniforms. Later I learned it was neither federal, nor much of a reserve, nor a bank in the way … Continue readingThe Fed – Neither Federal, Nor Reserve, Nor a Bank –
“Inflation is a thief dressed up as gains — it picks the poor man’s pocket and makes the rich man wealthier.” – YNOT Everywhere you look, the numbers are screaming. Stocks at highs, gold at highs, Bitcoin at highs, even rent and ground beef at … Continue readingThe Shrinking Yardstick: Gold, Bitcoin, and Beef: What Happens When your Money is Melting.
YOU MAKE YOUR MONEY WHEN YOU BUY, YOU COLLECT WHEN YOU SELL! Wall Street is a lot like a carnival—bright lights, fast talkers, and plenty of ways to part a fool from his money. Every new generation thinks it has discovered gold in the form … Continue readingPaying Less Than It’s Worth: The Enduring Wisdom of Value Investing – Stocks, Real Estate, or Anything else.
If this screen were a movie, it’d be a horror flick — and the monster’s name is Compound Interest. Every number here is a mile marker on America’s road trip into the red, and the gas pedal’s stuck. We track debt like social media likes … Continue readingLiving on Borrowed Time — and Borrowed Money America’s $37 Trillion Hangover
Well, here we go again—two titans, one stage, and the fate of the economy hanging in the balance like a crooked chandelier in a hurricane. On one side, you’ve got Trump, the barnstorming populist with a Twitter finger and a tax cut in every pocket. … Continue readingThe Battle of the Titans Returns – Trump vs Powell
“Keep it simple, stupid: we’re in debt. Everything else—tariffs, earnings, rate hikes—is just noise.” — Matthew Piepenburg Now I ain’t no fancy economist with a necktie tighter than common sense, but I can tell you this: when your house is on fire, you don’t blame … Continue readingThe Great Derivative: How Debt Drives Everything—From Gold to the Dollar, Stocks, and Inflation