{"id":83469,"date":"2016-01-07T16:16:57","date_gmt":"2016-01-07T21:16:57","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/countingpips.com\/?p=83469"},"modified":"2016-01-07T16:16:57","modified_gmt":"2016-01-07T21:16:57","slug":"my-new-years-resolution-dont-confuse-debt-with-wealth","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.investmacro.com\/forex\/2016\/01\/my-new-years-resolution-dont-confuse-debt-with-wealth\/","title":{"rendered":"My New Year\u2019s Resolution: Don\u2019t Confuse Debt with Wealth"},"content":{"rendered":"
January 7, 2016<\/div>
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\"debt-with-wealth\"By Guy Christopher, moneymetals.com<\/em><\/p>\n

If you don\u2019t have a magical crystal ball to see the future, then a good history book will do the job. Understanding the past offers a full color panorama to the dangers and opportunities facing you in 2016.<\/p>\n

Unpayable debt is becoming the Big Story of the 21st Century across the globe. Life-altering disruptions will be the norm, with little that mankind has not seen before.<\/p>\n

In early November, Congress recklessly increased American spending and debt by another $1.14 trillion. Lawmakers long ago erased all limits to printing money and creating debt backed by nothing. The total world debt is unknown and uncountable. Pick any figure in the hundreds of trillions and you\u2019ll be close.<\/p>\n

Governments intend for you to pay those debts. To ensure you don\u2019t argue, they must increase control.<\/p>\n

In the historic cradle of democracy, Greek citizens woke on New Year\u2019s Day staring at a 56-page \u201cassets declaration\u201d form, a record for the tax man of everything owned above a certain value.<\/p>

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After a roller coaster 2015 of violent demonstrations, Greeks voted a landslide mandate to stiff their European debtors in favor of starting over and going it alone.<\/span><\/p>\n

In a treacherous betrayal, Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras caved to European bankers, ignored election results and put his people on a well-oiled slippery slope of perpetual indebtedness.<\/p>\n

\u201cAssets declaration\u201d is not a new idea, as anyone facing bankruptcy would know. Everything from real estate, cash and jewelry, down to the kitchen cups and saucers, must be listed for the courts to divvy up.<\/p>\n

But this isn\u2019t a case of personal bankruptcy. The Greek government, mired in debt for the next hundred years, has transferred its own bankruptcy reporting obligations to its citizens, amounting to legal repudiation of private ownership and private wealth<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Private wealth is a cornerstone of personal liberty. As explained in Money and Wealth in the New Millennium<\/a>, the two go hand in hand, even as government continues to redefine debt as wealth.<\/p>\n

Gold is the money of kings, silver the money of gentlemen, barter the money of peasants, but debt is the money of slaves<\/em><\/p>\n

\u2013 Norm Franz<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Yes, Greeks have an international reputation for tax avoidance. But targeting all private property goes far beyond \u201cpaying a fair share.\u201d It\u2019s a clear sign of modern times that bankrupt governments will stop at nothing to protect themselves at the expense of their people.<\/p>\n

China has found social media snooping fits perfectly inside the long accepted template of debt and credit reporting \u2013 and helpful in identifying political undesirables.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n
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\"credit-score\"
China\u2019s Sesame Credit score weighs how \u201ccompliant\u201d a citizen is, assigning lower credit scores to dissenters.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

China\u2019s new \u201cSesame Credit\u201d score, now used to evaluate debt histories, and even used in online matchmaking, will ultimately combine political and personal views to transform meek political compliance into an \u201casset\u201d \u2013 social reputation.<\/p>\n

China has smartly turned conformity into a smiley face with a number value. But China is just playing catch up to other old ideas.<\/p>\n

Americans already value their individual FICO and credit agency ratings. National advertising campaigns, paid by the financial industry, praise indebtedness by glorifying credit scores.<\/p>\n

The less debt you assume, the lower your score. Cancel a credit card, and your score will drop. It\u2019s preferred instead you dive right in, so you won\u2019t mind at all your government is also in debt!<\/p>\n

The strategy goes beyond selling you junk you don\u2019t need. The intention is to create pride in indebtedness<\/strong> \u2013 to further confuse debt with wealth. Along the way, it makes the financial habits of consumers and voters transparent to government snoopers.<\/p>\n

Americans (and others) have already done the bulk of government\u2019s work with self-inflicted online postings, using Facebook and other social media to forever publicly record what used to be valued private opinions and beliefs.<\/p>\n

History has taught many lessons about bankrupt governments. As they fear losing control, they tighten the reins on citizen liberties. Standards once meant to keep civilized order are now exploited to instill tranquil compliance<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Just as bankrupt governments treacherously turn on their people, they will also turn on each other. Some recent examples:<\/p>\n