America’s Biggest Bank Sounds the Alarm Bell
America’s Biggest Bank Sounds the Alarm Bell
Notes From the Field By James Hickman (Simon Black) April 8, 2024
Jamie Dimon, the CEO of JP Morgan Chase, did not open his annual shareholder letter with rosy language about the state of the world, or even enthusiasm about his bank’s record profits.
Instead, he describes “yet another year of significant challenges” including the war in Ukraine, war in the Middle East, extreme tensions with China, higher food and energy prices, turmoil in the banking sector, outrageous government deficits, and even major risks with the Federal Reserve’s monetary policy.
Dimon writes that “America’s global leadership role is being challenged outside by other nations and inside by our polarized electorate,” and that this is a “time of great crises”.
Why Saudi Arabia’s Futuristic City Is A Sign Of Major Inflation To Come
Why Saudi Arabia’s Futuristic City Is A Sign Of Major Inflation To Come
Notes From the Field By Simon Black/James Hickman April 3, 2024
[Important Reminder: In case you missed our announcement from January 24, Sovereign Man has merged with Peter Schiff's media group. We are now called Schiff Sovereign, and our founder (Simon Black) has dropped the pen name and is now writing under his real name, James Hickman.]
Did you hear about the new streamlined tourist visa to Saudi Arabia? I’m sure you’re standing in line for it already.
No? Me neither.
I was actually stationed in Saudi Arabia for a while when I was in the Army… and, the most unique ‘tourist’ attraction, at least for non-Muslims, is a place we used to call “Chop Chop Square” where they would do the public beheadings and dismemberments of convicted criminals.
Aside from that, Saudi Arabia has virtually nothing to offer tourists. At least for now.
“It looks like fly crap to me. . .”
“It looks like fly crap to me. . .”
Notes From the Field by Simon Black / James Hickman March 25, 2024
I’m on my way back home from Mexico City after an incredible weekend event here with more than 100 of our Total Access members.
First things first, if you’ve never been to Mexico City, I highly recommend it. A lot of people have a misconception that the city is some kind third world dump. It’s not. And most first-time visitors are stunned by the vast green areas, expansive parks, tree-lined streets, museums, architecture, and modern lifestyle.
In my opinion it also has some of the best restaurants in the western hemisphere. You can eat extremely well in Mexico City, but you don’t pay very much for it.
Uranium Hasn’t Been This Critical Since The Days Of Oppenheimer
Uranium Hasn’t Been This Critical Since The Days Of Oppenheimer
Notes From the Field By Simon Black – James Hickman 3-12-24
If you saw Christopher Nolan’s blockbuster Oppenheimer, you might remember the scene in which Dr. Oppenheimer travels to Chicago to meet with physicist Enrico Fermi, who had just achieved the world’s first ever self-sustaining nuclear chain reaction.
This really happened-- it was December 2, 1942, and Enrico Fermi’s experiment was a massive scientific breakthrough. Fermi and his team proved that a fission reaction could be controlled… and therefore the vast amount of energy inside of an atom’s nucleus could be harnessed for other purposes.
Obviously, the US government was singularly focused on turning that immense nuclear energy into the biggest bomb the world had ever seen. But Fermi’s discovery also paved the way for nuclear power.
Why Gold Might (Weirdly) Be A Contrarian Investment Right Now
Why Gold Might (Weirdly) Be A Contrarian Investment Right Now
Notes From the Field By Simon Black/James Hickman March 5, 2024
[Important Reminder: (Simon Black) has dropped the pen name and is now writing under his real name, James Hickman.]
It’s hard to say with a straight face that an asset hovering near its all-time high could be a “contrarian” investment. But I’m going to say it anyhow-- I think gold may be a contrarian play right now.
Now, it would be easy to assume that gold is near its all-time high because everyone is buying. And normally that would be true; typically, whenever an asset soars to a record high, it’s because individual investors are piling into the market.
We’ve seen this countless times, from Bitcoin to meme stocks; once something becomes the hot thing to own, small investors-- and occasionally professionally managed funds-- drive the price higher.
But that’s not happening with gold. In fact, investors have been abandoning gold for years.
Even The FDIC Doesn’t Want To Pay Its Tax Bill…
Even The FDIC Doesn’t Want To Pay Its Tax Bill…
Hotes From the Field By Simon Black/James Hickman February 28, 2024
[Important Reminder: In case you missed our announcement from January 24, Sovereign Man has merged with Peter Schiff's media group. We are now called Schiff Sovereign, and our founder (Simon Black) has dropped the pen name and is now writing under his real name, James Hickman.]
Almost one year ago to the day-- on February 24, 2023-- Silicon Valley Bank released its 2022 annual report. And senior executives must have been pretty nervous since the report showed that the bank was nearly insolvent.
The bank had acquired a massive portfolio of more than $100 billion of US government bonds-- supposedly the ‘safest’ asset class in the world-- during 2020 and 2021 back when interest rates were at historic lows.
But then the Fed started hiking rates very quickly in 2022. And higher rates cause bond prices to fall-- even the ‘safest’ ones like US Treasury bonds.
Even Warren Buffett’s Legendary Optimism Is Fading
Even Warren Buffett’s Legendary Optimism Is Fading
Notes From the Field By Simon Black/James Hickman February 26, 2024
[Important Reminder: In case you missed our announcement from January 24, Sovereign Man has merged with Peter Schiff's media group. We are now called Schiff Sovereign, and our founder (Simon Black) has dropped the pen name and is now writing under his real name, James Hickman.]
Early in the spring of 1956, only weeks after Elvis Presley released his debut studio album, and actress Norma Jean Mortenson had her name legally changed to Marilyn Monroe, a budding 25-year-old businessman from the American Midwest fatefully registered his first-ever company.
His name, of course, was Warren Buffett. And the company he founded was called Buffett Associates-- which was formed with $105,000 of capital from his friends and family.
The US economy at the time was absolutely booming. Interest rates in 1956 were at historic lows. Inflation was practically zero. Economic growth was a dizzying 7%. Productivity growth was strong.
It’s Not A Prediction. It’s Arithmetic.
It’s Not A Prediction. It’s Arithmetic. SB
Notes From the Field BY Simon Black (James Hickman) February 7, 2024
[Important Reminder: In case you missed our announcement from January 24, Sovereign Man has merged with Peter Schiff's media group. We are now called Schiff Sovereign, and our founder (Simon Black) has dropped the pen name and is now writing under his real name, James Hickman.]
Thousands of years ago during the late Bronze Age-- most likely between 1100 and 1200 BC, two ancient civilizations were exhausted after nearly a decade of warfare.
On one side was the ancient Achaean peoples led by the Mycenaean king Agamemnon. On the other was a legendary Hittite city that had already been in existence for more than 2,000 years.
Back then the city was called Wilusa. Today we know it as Troy.
The general consensus among historians today is that, most likely, the war did take place. But it obviously lacked the drama and intrigue of Homer’s epic tale, the Iliad.
The Fed Asks America To Fill In The Blanks _______
The Fed Asks America To Fill In The Blanks _______ SB
Notes From The Field By Simon Black (James Hickman) February 5, 2024
It’s interesting to see how so many mainstream voices are starting to express concern about the gargantuan size of the US national debt.
For most of the past decade, even as the debt spiraled out of control and passed $20 trillion, $25 trillion, $30 trillion, etc., hardly anyone in the media said a word about it. If anything, they would insist that the ‘debt doesn’t matter.’
That tune is finally starting to change. And the latest example came last night when 60 Minutes interviewed the Chairman of the Federal Reserve, Jerome Powell.
The US national debt now stands at more than $34 trillion. It will surpass $35 trillion by the summer and likely $36 trillion by the end of the year.
It’s growing so quickly that the interviewer asked about the debt, “Thirty years from now, it is projected to be $144 trillion. . . [I]s the national debt a danger to the economy in your view? I have the sense this worries you very much.”
Good Reason For a Plan B
Good Reason For a Plan B SB
This Story From The 3rd Century Will Sound Quite Familiar To You
January 29, 2024 James Hickman / Simon Black
[Important Reminder: In case you missed our announcement from January 24, Sovereign Man has merged with Peter Schiff's media group. We are now called Schiff Sovereign, and our founder (Simon Black) has dropped the pen name and is now writing under his real name, James Hickman.]
When Publius Licinus Valerianus (known as Valerian) became Roman emperor in September of 253 AD, people across the empire must have breathed a sigh of relief.
“Finally,” many Roman citizens probably thought, “There’s an adult in the room.”
The Roman Empire at that point was in the midst of its infamous ‘Crisis of the Third Century’. The Empire was recovering from a nasty pandemic known as the Antonine Plague. Inflation was soaring. Conflict with their enemies-- especially in the Middle East-- was intensifying. Social tensions were growing. Crime was rising. Trade was declining. The economy was on the ropes. Taxes were going up.
This is a Blueprint for How the Dollar Goes Kaput SB
This is a Blueprint for How the Dollar Goes Kaput SB
Notes From The Field By Simon Black January 19, 2024
That infernal clanging you might have heard outside your bedroom window this morning was the sound of the proverbial can being kicked down the road, yet again.
With no agreement on spending anywhere on the horizon for the current fiscal year, the US Congress passed yesterday a ‘Continuing Resolution’ to keep the government temporarily funded for another six weeks.
This is nothing new; in fact, Congress has passed more than 50 Continuing Resolutions just since 2010, primarily because they almost NEVER manage to figure out the budget prior to the start of the fiscal year on October 1st.
But now there is far greater need to get it right than ever before.