Tag: Doug Casey

Doug Casey: How I Learned to Love Bitcoin

Via Casey Research

Justin’s note: Cryptocurrencies have been on a tear.

Bitcoin is up 495% this year. Ethereum, another major cryptocurrency, is up 3,507% since the start of the year. Smaller cryptos have soared more than 10,000%.

When you see gains like that, it’s natural to think that you missed out. I even felt this way for the longest time…that is, until I talked to Doug Casey.

You see, a few weeks ago, I called Doug to see what he thinks about cryptos. He told me why Bitcoin is money. He told me why the crypto market’s about to get a lot bigger. He even told me why Bitcoin could soon hit $50,000… That’s eight times higher than where it trades today.

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Doug Casey On The End Of The Nation-State

Authored by Doug Casey via InternationalMan.com,

There have been a fair number of references to the subject of “phyles” in Casey Research publications over the years. This essay will discuss the topic in detail. Especially how phyles are likely to replace the nation-state, one of mankind’s worst inventions.

Now might be a good time to discuss the subject. We’ll have an almost unremitting stream of bad news, on multiple fronts, for years to come. So it might be good to keep a hopeful prospect in mind.

Let’s start by looking at where we’ve been. I trust you’ll excuse my skating over all of human political history in a few paragraphs, but my object is to provide a framework for where we’re going, rather than an anthropological monograph.

Mankind has, so far, gone through three main stages of political organization since Day One, say 200,000 years ago, when anatomically modern men started appearing. We can call them Tribes, Kingdoms, and Nation-States.

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Doug Casey on the Coming Financial Crisis

Via Casey Research

Justin’s note: We won’t have another financial crisis “in our lifetimes.”

It’s a crazy idea. After all, it feels like the U.S. is long overdue for a major crisis. But that’s what Janet Yellen thinks. The Fed chair said two weeks ago:

Would I say there will never, ever be another financial crisis? […] Probably that would be going too far. But I do think we’re much safer, and I hope that it will not be in our lifetimes, and I don’t believe it will be.

I couldn’t believe my eyes when I read this. So, I called up Doug Casey to get his take. Maybe he could make sense of this.

Below is a transcript of our conversation…

Justin: Doug, I know you disagree with Yellen. But I’m wondering why she would even say this? Has she lost her mind?

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Doug Casey on Universal Basic Income

Justin’s note: It’s time for a universal basic income (UBI).

At least, that’s what Mark Zuckerberg thinks.

Zuckerberg is the founder and CEO of social media giant Facebook. Last week, he spoke in favor of a universal basic income while delivering the commencement speech at Harvard’s graduation ceremony.

According to Zuckerberg, this generation owes a UBI to society:

Every generation expands its definition of equality, now it’s time for our generation to define a new social contract. We should have a society that measures progress, not by economics metrics like GDP, but by how many of us have a role we find meaningful. We should explore ideas like Universal Basic Income to make sure everyone has a cushion to try new ideas.

A UBI would have serious ramifications for society.

After reading about this, I wanted to get Doug Casey’s take on the matter. Below is a transcript of our conversation…

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Doug Casey on the Modern Space Race

Via Casey Research

Justin’s note: Jeff Bezos is selling nearly $1 billion worth of Amazon stock.

Bezos, who founded Amazon, isn’t doing this because he’s short on cash (he’s worth more than $80 billion)…or bearish on Amazon’s share price.

He’s doing this to fund his aerospace company, Blue Origin. As if that weren’t crazy enough, Bezos plans to put about $1 billion of his money into Blue Origin every year until the company can sustain itself.

Bezos isn’t the only billionaire who’s set their sights on space, either. Tesla founder Elon Musk has his own aerospace company called SpaceX.

In short, a modern space race has broken out between two of the world’s richest men.

It’s an exciting trend to say the least. So, a few days ago, I called up Doug Casey to get his take. Below is a transcript of our conversation…

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Doug Casey on the Plague of Cultural Marxists

Via Casey Research

Nick Giambruno: What exactly are Cultural Marxists, and how are they, and political correctness, contributing to the decline of Western Civilization?

Doug Casey: Economic Marxism was intellectually debunked decades ago. With the collapse of the USSR, and radical changes in China, the man in the street became aware that the “intellectuals” were fools. And that is reinforced by the ongoing disasters in Cuba, North Korea, and Venezuela. So, since they recognize that there’s nothing to steal if they implement Marxian economic policies, most “intellectuals” no longer talk about them.

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Doug Casey on the Militarization of US Police Departments

Via Casey Research

Justin’s note: Yesterday, Casey Research founder Doug Casey and I discussed the opioid crisis that’s spreading across the country like a virus.

Today, Doug and I pick up that conversation. But this time, Doug shares his thoughts on the militarization of US police departments. We hope you enjoy this conversation as much as we did.

Justin: Doug, yesterday you called out anti-drug lawmakers, or what you called “drug warriors,” for their immense hypocrisy and stupidity. But what about the growing number of “warrior cops” who seem to view the United States as their own personal battleground?

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Doug Casey on the Opioid Crisis

Via Casey Research

“Enjoy looking over your shoulder, constantly wondering if today’s the day we come for you. Enjoy trying to sleep tonight, wondering if tonight’s the night our SWAT team blows your front door off the hinges. We are coming for you.”

This sounds like something from an ‘80s action movie. But that’s an actual quote from the Lake County Sheriff’s Office in Tavares, Florida.

Sheriff Grinnell delivered this message last month while flanked by four combat-ready officers wearing ski masks. It looks like someone from ISIS directed it. You can watch the bizarre video here.

Grinnell’s message was aimed at local drug dealers. You see, Lake County has a serious opioid problem. And like many other places in the US, it’s fighting its drug problem as if it were a war.

After I watched it, I called up Casey Research founder Doug Casey to get his take on the opioid crisis. Below is a transcript of our conversation. We hope you enjoy it.

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Doug Casey on Why It’s OK to Discriminate

Via Casey Research

Justin’s note: It was the worst article I’ve ever read.

The piece was titled “Could It Be Time To Deny White Men The Franchise?” In it, the author argued why white men should no longer be allowed to vote.

As soon as I finished reading the article, I sent it to Casey Research founder Doug Casey. He replied:

“Fascinating. At first, it seemed like a comedy piece. But it’s clear she’s serious.”

A few days later, Doug and I chatted about the article. Below is a transcript of our conversation. We hope you enjoy it.

(The Huffington Post has since pulled the original article down claiming that the author “cannot be traced and appears not to exist.” Luckily, we were able to track down the original article. You can read it here.)

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Doug Casey on Trump’s Attack on Syria

Via Casey Research

Justin: Doug, the US just launched a major attack on Syria.

Are you surprised Trump did this? Keep in mind, he publicly criticized Obama for wanting to attack Syria in 2013. He also said that the President should get approval from Congress before attacking Syria. He didn’t do that, either.

Doug: I’m actually not too surprised. The problem with Trump is that he doesn’t have any core philosophical beliefs. He apparently has no idea what’s right or wrong, good or bad, other than the way he feels. And what he feels doesn’t reflect a well thought out worldview, but just his background or the way he’s been brought up. Like most people, he’s a creature of his emotions, not his intellect. So, he’s capable of doing absolutely anything on the spur of the moment.

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Doug Casey on the Coming Holy War

Via Casey Research

Justin: Doug, Turkey’s foreign minister recently said that “wars of religion” are coming to Europe. Do you think this could actually happen?

Doug: Well, human nature hasn’t changed in many thousands of years. And religion is important to the human animal. Perhaps it’s always been something that people were prone to fight about, but the historical record shows that religious wars only started with the invention of Judaism, Christianity and Islam. Of course, these religions—which have always been at war with each other, and all other religions—are similar in that they believe in one god. Pagan religions were and are accepting of other people’s gods and beliefs.

The question is, which god is the right one? Should you believe in Yahweh, or Jesus, or Allah? Because it appears to me that they’re all very different, based upon what they say and what they have their followers believe. Islam and Christianity have been duking it out since the 7th century, and that’s unlikely to change. They both claim to have the one and only true god, but they’re very different gods—not at all the same one. So it’s an irreconcilable difference.

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Doug Casey on Why College Is a Waste of Money

Via Casey Research

Justin: Doug, I recently had an interesting conversation with my sister.

She told me that her financial advisor suggested she start setting aside $500 to $1,000 a month to pay for her son’s college education. That’s because a four-year college education is apparently going to cost between $400,000 and $500,000 18 years from now.

Her advisor clearly arrived at this figure based on how fast college tuition costs have been rising, which is about 6% per year based on my research.

But you have to wonder if the cost can keep rising at this rate. It seems to me that no one will go to college if it’s going to cost a half-million bucks.

What do you make of this trend?

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Doug Casey Has “Never Seen Anything Like This”

Via InternationalMan.com,

Nick Giambruno: Doug, what do you think is the root problem of the US economy and financial system?

Doug Casey: There are several, including incompetence, corruption and, of course, just plain stupidity. But there’s not much you can do about those things; they’re intrinsic to government. But perhaps something can be done about ignorance, which starts in school: What, for instance, do most people learn about economics and finance? Very little. As Mark Twain said, “It’s not what people know that’s the problem, it’s what they think they know that just ain’t so.”

All of the economics that’s taught in the schools—what little that is taught—is completely backward. Plus, almost everything you hear on television is conventional, unsound, and wrong.

I’d like to believe anybody that’s reading this right now that has at least heard of the “Austrian school of economics,” understands the value of gold, and knows a bit of basic economic theory and history. Without at least some fundamentals, people stand to suffer a huge drop in their standard of living if the economy goes sideways.

Doug Casey on “The Diamond Age”

Guest Post by Doug Casey

Science fiction has always offered both a more accurate and more timely look at the future than any think tank. For one thing, a good book is the product of a genius, not a committee of suits trying to reach a consensus. And a format of fiction allows one to speculate in ways that a “serious person” can’t do in nonfiction.

Every educated person should have read the classics by Jules Verne, Robert Heinlein, Isaac Asimov, and Arthur C Clarke, among others. Add Neal Stephenson to that list. I’ve been a fan of Stephenson’s novel The Diamond Age since it was published in 1995. I strongly recommend you read the book.

There are many themes in Diamond Age, which refers to a near-term future (I’ll guess around 2050) when nanotechnology has transformed much of life. Although not nearly as radically as I believe will actually be the case. (See my essays on the future here and here.)

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Doug Casey on His Favorite Place in the World

Guest Post by Doug Casey

Reading the news while enjoying a cortado at a café in my favorite place in the world often causes cognitive dissonance.

How, I ask myself, can life here be so tranquil when the rest of the world appears gripped by madness?

As you might suspect, the café is located in Argentina.

Sure, until recently, we had to put up with the antics of La Presidenta, Cristina Kirchner. But she was largely a bad joke ignored by Argentines with any intelligence.

She’s gone now, replaced by the free-market-oriented engineer Mauricio Macri.

While one can never know how these things turn out, from what I’ve seen so far, I think he’s going to make a huge difference in pretty much every way that counts.

Maybe Argentina won’t return to its former position as the sixth-largest economy in the world, as was the case in the early 20th century, but the conditions are right for the economy to do a rocket shot.

That’s usually the result when a new team sweeps away the spaghetti string of truly stupid socialist policies and lets an economy breathe.

China’s decades of stunning growth following Deng’s liberalization provides a useful lesson.

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Comparing the 1930s and Today

Guest Post by Doug Casey

You’ve heard the axiom “History repeats itself.” It does, but never in exactly the same way. To apply the lessons of the past, we must understand the differences of the present.

During the American Revolution, the British came prepared to fight a successful war—but against a European army. Their formations, which gave them devastating firepower, and their red coats, which emphasized their numbers, proved the exact opposite of the tactics needed to fight a guerrilla war.

Before World War I, generals still saw the cavalry as the flower of their armies. Of course, the horse soldiers proved worse than useless in the trenches.

Before World War II, in anticipation of a German attack, the French built the “impenetrable” Maginot Line. History repeated itself and the attack came, but not in the way they expected. Their preparations were useless because the Germans didn’t attempt to penetrate it; they simply went around it, and France was defeated.

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