Posts by Nathan Evans78

electrictrucker82 said:If they actually went through with the vaccinations—even if everyone were 100% immunized—would that even be enough to stop this Variant from spreading?

For me, the real priority is debunking that whole myth about how these massive new super-strains are going to emerge just because certain countries are politically divided. ☕

In the United States, one case was officially identified as the new B.1.1.529 variant—it popped up in someone traveling back from Egypt (on 11/11), and they started feeling under the weather around 22/11.

Word on the street is that Southern Africa supposedly has enough vaccine doses sitting there to cover their entire adult population for a month now, but even there, people seem pretty hesitant to take the plunge. ☕

Dennis Allen said:It feels like the last time the independent press tries to pull a fast one on me; I'm officially done believing their spin!

The New York Times, actually, I think they were the first ones to break this story, while everyone else just swarmed it like flies on a trash can—reposting without doing any actual fact-checking. It just goes to show that even those mainstream, establishment outlets can completely lose the plot. ☕

John Chase3 said:

Nathan Evans78 As I was saying:
Is nearly a third of the adult population really out there working dead-end, minimum-wage jobs? I highly doubt it. Didn't we just establish in that other thread about wages that even entry-level retail positions in places like Chicago are pulling in well over $2,000 a month? 🤔

So, we're looking at roughly $1,600—give or take depending on how the dollar is swinging that day. $3833 When we were talking about wages earlier, I made it pretty clear: if you're pulling in $2,500 a month as a single person, you’re barely keeping your head above water. Whether you're living in Washington, D.C. or down in Miami, that kind of money puts you right on the edge of needing social services just to get by. Now, imagine trying to stretch that same amount to cover a family of four—it’s an absolute disaster.
The absolute ideal candidates for a silent penalty.

To be honest, I feel like this number is a bit inflated, but I can see where your logic is coming from. That's exactly why I wanted to hear what everyone else thinks about this.

Jack Cook7 said:Big thanks to Slavko Linic for "kindly" making sure every single worker in this country opens a checking account. Now my bank gets to charge me a monthly fee just for "looking after" my money—as if I wouldn't know how to do that myself! And then, oh yeah, they were so generous as to give me an overdraft limit that I don't want and definitely don't need. Apparently, there's over 800,000 of us stuck in the same boat.

So, you're telling me those 800,000 people don't have anything else to worry about? I always assumed an overdraft only kicks in when you actually go into the red—like, say, you land an entry-level gig making $1,500 a month, but then you blow through $2,000 because you decided you deserved a nicer tracksuit and a few rounds of Manchester United at the Verizon lounges during happy hour.

John Chase3 said:Let’s be clear—a negative balance is still a negative balance, even if it sits below the approved limit. If a client has an official overdraft limit of $5000, there is absolutely no reason why a bank would suddenly decide to let them slide another thousand into the red... yet somehow, the clients end up walking away happy.

Are we really suggesting that nearly a third of the adult population is living deep in the red? Honestly, I find that hard to swallow. Didn't we establish earlier in the discussion about wages that even entry-level service jobs in cities like Chicago are paying upwards of $1,500?🤔

Is there a group of you guys out there who just bolted and left all their bills unpaid or something? I honestly can't wrap my head around where those 800,000 entities came from.

Roger Fowler said:If Denmark and the Netherlands actually pull the trigger and leave, they’re going to need plenty of lubrication just to survive, won't they? They'll be getting squeezed from one end by Americans and fed scraps from the other by the Chinese. Denmark can try to lean on its shipping industry or its overpriced machinery and electrical gear, but honestly, they look like a joke on the global market.
I really wonder what math the British are using here. If they think they can just strike a deal with India today, the only way it works is if India walks away with all the profit, rather than the British dreaming of skimming off the top like it's 1921. In this day and age, India could play them for fools whenever they feel like it.

Let's be real: the United Kingdom is a declining power by every single metric you look at. Their City has recently dropped down to the level of Amsterdam when it comes to financial turnover—something that has truly never happened before. I honestly don't understand why anyone would include them in any serious discussion about the future of global power.

Richard Wilson4 said:But there aren't many allies left in the European Union.

It’s basically over.

Now we just wait to see when Denmark and the Netherlands pull the plug. This whole expansion thing is turning into a total disaster...

Honestly, this theory is even more unhinged than combining Italexit and Frexit into one giant mess. 🙏🙏

Seriously, what are you smoking? ☕

Just think back to our resident "mega expert" Al Gore, who was basically promising us the polar ice caps would be gone by 2014. That’s the kind of expertise we're dealing with here...🙏

Gary Cooper3 said:By the way, it seems even in places like Delaware they have their own local handymen specializing in this sort of thing:

Epidemiologist Andrej Trampuž—who is currently working at the Charite clinic in Berlin—warned during an interview with CBS last night that now is absolutely not the time to relax our restrictions... rather, we should be tightening them—especially given the presence of that new South African coronavirus strain that has already spread through Austria, posing a significant risk of moving into neighboring countries, including the US...

I wonder what kind of diet they're on over in Germany?

As a side note, over in the States, eating a greasy breakfast burrito while walking down a busy street is strictly forbidden—just to give you a little hint as to what "tightening the measures" might actually look like in practice. The mere thought of it is enough to make me uneasy...

People in those kinds of professions have absolutely nothing to lose, so they feel free to push these kinds of agendas. Most of the real contagion is hitting the healthcare system, yet I don't see any major campaign targeting that. It seems like "holy cows" are just like politicians—they're massive spreaders themselves. As long as they can take a swing at the regular folks out enjoying a stroll on the boardwalk in accordance with the "rules," they're happy. ☕

Megan Green72 said:Basically, the absolute worst-case scenario didn't even happen—probably thanks to the lockdowns—but they were making calls before anyone actually knew what was going on with COVID-19. And then someone had the genius idea to build their entire strategy around that nightmare scenario.
I don't know, isn't that just bad math? You're supposed to plan for the best-case scenario, right?

There’s just no way you can claim it's impossible to quantify how successful those measures actually were. 😁

We’ve just had two stellar tourist seasons back-to-back, and if we can just squeeze a few more dollars out of the expats working hard over in Austria, plus toss in those 10 billion euros freshly printed in New York City... well, this whole plan starts looking pretty damn realistic. ☕

Adelholz said:The money being pumped out mostly flows through loans. Sure, maybe even at 0% interest, but whatever the central banks are handing out right now, they're going to have to claw it back eventually. Right?

I believe the last major QT move happened about two years ago, and honestly, it nearly tipped us into a brief recession. 😁

But wait, didn't Nixon just move us away from the gold standard on a temporary basis, right? 🤣

urbanwalker72 said:The reason we don't deal with intermediaries is quite simple—in the USA, everything is strictly monitored. There isn't a massive demand for consulting services because, frankly, it would just be throwing money down the drain.

In the States, people pay for these services out of pure caution; they understand that the system actually works, the chances of slipping something illegal past the authorities are slim, and the risk-to-reward ratio is heavily stacked against them.

Take the fear of the IRS, for example. Over here, people tend to treat the local tax authorities like a joke, especially within entrepreneurial circles, accounting firms, auditing agencies, and tax consultants.

If you look at our local business forums, you see posts every single week from people claiming they "got away" with something regarding their taxes, leading them to believe their lucky break was actually legal. 🤣

Essentially, what we have is a model characterized by an extremely high nominal tax burden paired with very little actual oversight.

I agree with this 100%, though I suspect I didn't frame my previous point quite as clearly as I usually aim to. It really brings up a different dilemma: what happens to all those business school grads entering the workforce? For them, these kinds of consulting roles would feel like a complete slap in the face as they try to kickstart their careers. 😁

It’s honestly funny how much less informed Americans can be when brokers and financial advisors have basically taken over everything—even filing your taxes. The average Joe doesn't always have the extra cash to pay for those premium services, so he ends up making his own calls, which might make him look "less savvy," but at least he isn't getting fleeced by middlemen.

The Federal Reserve has finally started picking up gold bullion after a 25-year hiatus.

Melissa Sanchez17 said:The Eurozone is sitting on over 11,000 tons of gold. The USA has north of 8,000 tons. Switzerland has about 1,000 tons. So, there's the breakdown of the "toilet paper" reserves. To be fair, ten years ago, I was right there with you guys, obsessing over the dollar and the euro failing. But my take has shifted a bit. If we actually see a reset of this current monetary system, my bet is that it’ll be driven by an overwhelming demand for the dollar—basically making it too strong to handle. One way that could play out is if the Eurozone falls apart entirely. Anyone got a crystal ball handy? 😃

Even Alan Greenspan admitted to Congress that the model he relied on for nearly two decades was essentially garbage. And honestly, we’re still running these slightly tweaked versions of that same model under Ben Bernanke, Janet Yellen, and Jerome Powell. Because of that, I think there's a very slim chance they can push interest rates below zero without triggering a massive, complex collapse of both the dollar and the euro.

Of course, nobody truly knows what's coming—not even the central bankers—so this is all just speculation.😁

My question remains: if a total collapse actually happens, is it smart to hold onto Swiss paper currency? Or would it be wiser to just buy some Swiss cheese instead?

crimsonranger38 said:When everything starts falling apart, you need some kind of anchor to steady the ship. If we’re looking at a total systemic collapse, gold would likely be the go-to stabilizer for both the USD and the Euro. That leaves us wondering: what are the actual odds of the Dollar and the Euro cratering at the exact same time? And when people say "collapse," are we really talking about hyperinflation here? Especially when you consider the specific ingredients required to trigger that kind of meltdown.

The idea of a dollar or euro collapse is clearly swirling in the back of the minds of central bankers worldwide right now—after all, look at how much gold they’re gobbling up. We aren't just talking about next week; this is long-term risk management for the next 30 to 50 years. It leaves me wondering: is the Swiss Franc actually a more reliable anchor compared to all this other fiat paper?

Disclaimer

History shows us that countless civilizations have fallen and countless fiat currencies have vanished into thin air, so it's only logical to contemplate a potential collapse. Just please, DON'T THINK for a second that I am preaching about the end of the world or some sort of apocalypse.