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That’s where it all starts, and that’s where it all ends, with everything. Birth, life, death. It’s all cyclical.
It’s just that we’re not accustomed to seeing it on a planetary scale, laid out in front of us in real time.
Zero. That (near enough) is the amount of trade being done by every hotel in most of the world. It’s the number of flights that are up in the air and making money. It’s the number of shops open in our high streets/shopping centres/malls. It’s the number of property sales that are taking place, the number of cafes, bars and restaurants that are open and the number of theatres, gigs, shows and sporting events that are taking place. The Olympics are off, and so is every major global sporting event this year.
2020 vision – it’s not a pretty sight. Total global paralysis and simultaneous collapse of (nearly) every business activity in the real world. Sure, there are some things that can be done online, but there’s no marketplace, no consumer, for the vast majority of goods/products/services. Food, medicines and lifes ‘essentials’ are all that’s left.
If the government of your country doesn’t do what the UK is doing (pay everyone indefinitely), then there will be an apocalyptic collapse of almost everything. Even here in the UK there are already news stories suggesting that, despite the mechanisms in place, up to 20% of small and medium sized business will be bankrupt within a month. Business loans are no good either – some banks are charging up to 30% interest. How can a business ever afford to pay back such a loan after all of this anyway ?
Edinburgh is a beautiful Scottish city which relies heavily on tourism (especially the annual Festival, which attracts over 4 million visitors and 25,000 artists to perform on it’s streets and venues every August). The festival has been cancelled. That trade is not coming back – it will put many into instant bankruptcy. So many properties are rented out by private landlords to visitors via Airbnb and suchlike. With no income, many will need to sell, thereby crashing the property market. Long term that may not be a bad thing, bringing prices within the reach of those who need housing. In the short term though, the losses are likely to be enormous, and devastating. This will be repeated in every tourist city around the world from Budapest to Boston, Lisbon to London.
This could go very badly wrong if we’re not careful. Either a golden opportunity to learn, improve, get things better, or a perfect excuse for the hidden forces of this world to grab more power and influence at our expense and make our world a much darker place.
“If the government of your country doesn’t do what the UK is doing (pay everyone indefinitely), then there will be an apocalyptic collapse of almost everything. ”
Have to stop you here. Even if they do, or BECAUSE they do, there would be an apocalyptic collapse. Simply ask yourself where do those funds come from? Government payments are just redistribution (reshuffling the deck), and even the Queen can’t keep everyone afloat. If the bills are printed de novo, then soon the jig will be up, as the currency vaporizes as have all those coming before.
Hi Pedro.. I think thats the point. Like the Romans clipping the coins to fund war games… global fiat devaluation in progress
Pedro, I was going to bring up the same point as you did. Said differently, governments don’t have any money. Their money comes from the people. Therefore they are only distributing existing money to the people. IOW taking money from one group and giving it to another. Let me ask everyone this.. are you in the privileged group not being taken from?
In the US case.. the fed will be buying the bonds that the treasury will sell to finance the stimulus bill. No tax increase… no shuffling existing currency… they are printing more into existence. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/coronavirus-stimulus-package-pay-united-states/
100% correct, but I didn’t want to start down that route as well. In the long term, these short term measures could prove disasterous.
Next point I would bring up is with the markets down “only” 23% (at the peak of the rally) I don’t believe the coming events and conditions have even closely been discounted by the market. We are talking something well south of 50% and in short order.
Completely agree Plunger. There are so many people making comparisons with 1987, advising people to go long now. WTF??? At what point in 1987 did the entire global economy completely stop for months ??? What planet are these people on ?
I agree. Still alot of air in bubble. As every thing new is unique… we could be more in a 2007 type situation rather than oct 2008… might get another sell off in gold if that happens… but when?
My original thought was that we should achieve something much closer to $1800 before a $300+ correction in gold. So much turmoil last month, it’s not easy know at this point. With supply ‘problems’ (distribution, refining, mining) it’s very hard to see physical falling much, but who knows what tricks can be pulled on the COMEX. I just wish the whole scam would collapse.
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It’s magic you know
Never believe, it’s not so
It’s magic, you know
Never believe, it’s not so
The Vietnam War cost $168 billion or $1 trillion in today’s dollars. That included $111 billion in military operations and $28.5 billion in aid to South Vietnam. Compensation benefits for Vietnam veterans and families still cost $22 billion a year.
Iraq war.$2.4 trillion long-term price tag for the war, about $1.9 trillion of that would be spent on Iraq, or $6,300 per US citizen.
On September 28, 2018, Trump signed the Department of Defense appropriations bill. The approved 2019 Department of Defense discretionary budget is $686.1 billion. It has also been described as “$617 billion for the base budget and another $69 billion for war funding.”