Dollar Collapse

John discussed two alarming trends taking place right now. First, tech is getting cheaper and therefore, there's less and less reason to buy expensive Apple products. Will the Apple Cachet carry them through slowing economies worldwide? Most of their profits come from the iPhone. And then we have a slowing China with more and more defaults taking place. Will this also result in people looking for tech on the cheap? And what will it mean for the Chinese and World Economies?

John writes, "Between that Russian plane being taken down by a soda can bomb and the recent Paris attacks, travel is losing some of its appeal. 

Last night, for instance, I was at a party talking to a friend who’s retiring soon. When asked about his plans, he said he’d love to visit Italy, where he has some relatives. But not right now. “There’s a lot to see right here in the Pacific Northwest,” he said. “And you don’t have to fly to get there.”

With less tourism comes less trade, and with less trade comes less growth — as if the already-overleveraged and sputtering global economy needed another push towards the edge. See Container freight rates plummet 70% in 3 weeks.And there's news from a pig farm in China that there's a potential super bug epidemic brewing, for which there is no cure. Listen on and get the scoop.

John writes, "This weekend’s Paris attacks, occurring in the middle of one of history’s largest mass-migrations, has the feel of uncharted territory. But it’s actually an eerie echo of something that happened nearly two thousand years ago in more-or-less the same place.

According to some historians, the fall of the Roman Empire wasn’t pre-ordained. By AD 300 it had its problems, including far-flung, hard-to-defend borders and recurring currency crises, but was generally stable and prosperous. Then a new power arose in the East. The Huns were horse archers who could out-ride and out-shoot their neighbors, and they terrorized the Vandals and Goths who lived in what is now Germany and the Balkans, driving them west to Rome’s borders.

Rome chose to let half a million “barbarians” enter, hoping to use them as soldiers and laborers. Instead, it found itself with invading armies and unstable, uncontrollable political coalitions. The complete story is winding, convoluted and full of unfamiliar names, but it ends with the division of the Empire into two parts and the destruction of the original, Italian half."

Will the West figure it out?

John writes, "This weekend’s Paris attacks, occurring in the middle of one of history’s largest mass-migrations, has the feel of uncharted territory. But it’s actually an eerie echo of something that happened nearly two thousand years ago in more-or-less the same place.

According to some historians, the fall of the Roman Empire wasn’t pre-ordained. By AD 300 it had its problems, including far-flung, hard-to-defend borders and recurring currency crises, but was generally stable and prosperous. Then a new power arose in the East. The Huns were horse archers who could out-ride and out-shoot their neighbors, and they terrorized the Vandals and Goths who lived in what is now Germany and the Balkans, driving them west to Rome’s borders.

Rome chose to let half a million “barbarians” enter, hoping to use them as soldiers and laborers. Instead, it found itself with invading armies and unstable, uncontrollable political coalitions. The complete story is winding, convoluted and full of unfamiliar names, but it ends with the division of the Empire into two parts and the destruction of the original, Italian half."

Will the West figure it out?

John writes, "Some recent stories from, of all places, Texas, offer the first clear glimpse of the coming energy revolution. The short version: Combine wind at night, solar during the day, and next-generation batteries, and you get an energy economy that doesn’t need oil, coal, or gas." Truly an energy revolution is taking place. How long it may take to become fully embedded is the question. It may be sooner than you think.

John writes, "It’s understandable (sort of) that the Fed wants to raise short-term interest rates so it can cut them again in the next downturn. But what if the next downturn is already here? That’s the signal being sent by the world’s other central banks." Central Banks around the globe are loosening the monetary strings or pursuing their own variety of QE. How can the Fed possibly tighten when the end result will likely be a stronger dollar and decreased exports?