Tag Archives: Thoughts

Lessons from the Fall of the Roman Empire – Part I of II The rise and fall of the Roman Empire is arguably one the most studied, written about and theorized over subjects in academia, with fiery debates raging for hundreds of years among historians, sociologists and political scientists. The explanations that have been put forward to identify the causes and the circumstances that led the end of this era of human history mostly tend to focus on geopolitical factors, on social...

The September 26 election was an extremely close race, with the eyes of the world fixed upon the country as it tried to find the successor of Angela Merkel, one the most influential and longest-serving leaders in Europe. But even after the results came in, the suspense was far from over. The two largest parties in the nation, the Social Democrats (SPD) and the center-right CDU/CSU are both scrambling to build a coalition government and they’re targeting the same smaller parties, the...

Part IV of IV by Claudio Grass The Nixon Shock: The way forward President Nixon’s unilateral decision to sever the last link between the dollar and gold had wide ranging and long lasting consequences for the global economy and for the entire monetary system. The end of sound money facilitated and accelerated the concentration of power at the top and the ability to manipulate the currency allowed politicians and central planners to further expand the state’s reach and...

Part IV of IV by Claudio Grass The Nixon Shock: The way forward President Nixon’s unilateral decision to sever the last link between the dollar and gold had wide ranging and long lasting consequences for the global economy and for the entire monetary system. The end of sound money facilitated and accelerated the concentration of power at the top and the ability to manipulate the currency allowed politicians and central planners to further expand the state’s reach and push ahead...

Part III of IV by Claudio Grass The Nixon Shock: Where we stand today A lot has been said and written about the inflationary effects that the closure of the gold window had on the real economy and on ordinary people’s lives. And rightfully so, as this has been among the most devastating consequences of the end of the gold standard and it affected countless workers and savers who have been seeing their incomes wither over time, thanks to the hidden tax of inflation. However,...

Part II of IV by Claudio Grass The lasting impact of the Nixon Shock The economic and monetary consequences of Nixon’s decision to end the convertibility of the US dollar to gold are as numerous as they are severe. It marked the start of five decades of monetary and fiscal insanity and it unleashed unprecedented borrowing and deficit spending sprees. Debt-fueled “growth” became the name of the game and currency manipulation came to define both political strategies and central...

Part I of IV by Claudio Grass What happened and why  This year marked the 50th anniversary of President Nixon’s decision to unilaterally close the “gold window”. The impact of this move can hardly be overstated. It triggered a tectonic shift of momentous consequences and it changed not just the global economy and the monetary realities, but it also shaped modern politics and severely affected our society at large. The Nixon Shock In July 1944, representatives from 44...

It’s no secret that governments and central planners of all stripes have long detested the rise of private money and independent digital currencies. They have tried to stifle the burgeoning crypto industry from the moment it attracted mainstream attention. For years, they have continued to add regulatory hurdles and threaten crypto holders and investors, as well as companies in this space, with unreasonable tax burdens and unrealistic disclosure requirements that...

It’s no secret that governments and central planners of all stripes have long detested the rise of private money and independent digital currencies. They have tried to stifle the burgeoning crypto industry from the moment it attracted mainstream attention. For years, they have continued to add regulatory hurdles and threaten crypto holders and investors, as well as companies in this space, with unreasonable tax burdens and unrealistic disclosure requirements that come with hefty...

How planning ahead and preparing for what lies ahead is a lesson everyone needs to learn   Over the last couple of months, it has become clear from conversations with friends and partners from the gold industry that there is a marked increase in retail demand for physical gold from Swiss investors. The most interesting thing about this development is that the bulk of new orders is coming from smaller accounts, showing that it’s ordinary savers and citizens that are driving this...