Even just to protect our savings is difficult and uncertain. Following what rich people do makes the most sense to me (and the strategy has worked amazingly well for me!) But I am no gambler. I only invest in safe equities and do not try to make a "killing" as that is a way to lose everything!
Lenin was wrong. Capitalists are themselves destroying fiat currencies. The US dollar has lost 95% (roughly) of its purchasing power in the last hundred years. In the last 20 years, the government has printed (actually created electronically) many $trillions, and almost all of it was given to the rich and powerful. Republicans and Democrats have done this. All this extra money has devalued our currency, but the rich Capitalists don't suffer. Ordinary people suffer. Before WWII, Germany devalued its currency in order to pay off France for their evil reparations -- the Germans just kept printing more and more money until the currency was worthless. Germans suffered, but the Capitalists did not. Mostly the Capitalists even survived Germany's defeat and kept right on making (stealing) money! (However gold is no solution, because the parasite aristocrats manipulate that as well. I invest in the market because rich people invest in the market, and they won't let that fail!)
Governments are social tools. Like all tools, governments can be misused and abused (and this happens often, admittedly). Governments originated as protection rackets, and they still retain that bullying aspect. But society, like nature, can evolve and adapt. Governments have been redefined to serve rather than rule their citizens. (A definition more spoken and ignored than actually observed, to be sure!) But governments are not intrinsically evil -- a few of them actually serve their citizens. (I say all this as an Anarchist. Because I am also a scientist and I care more about the truth than any ideology or belief!)
You are correct that the ruling elite / rich and powerful / parasite aristocrats want total power and ownership (of things and people too). The parasite aristocrats control too many governments. Do you remember the Revolutionary War slogan "The price of Liberty is Eternal Vigilance" ? Well most people are lazy and selfish. They do not practice eternal vigilance or much vigilance at all! Mostly it is only marginalized people who see what is happening, but they are the ones with the least power to do anything about it.
The fact that the parasite aristocrats control most governments (and most other institutions also) is not an indictment of institutions, but of the parasite aristocrats and the failure of most people to maintain vigilance and fight for our freedom. Consider women, about to lose control of their bodies in the US. Are they willing to fight for their freedom? Not a chance! In fact, the prominent women's organizations are criticizing the few women who actually do fight for freedom! They want to rely on courts and politicians to save them! They are sadly deluded. I am an activist and fought the long fight for many decades, for gay and human rights and against war. Later for the environment. (When I was young no one was much aware that humans were destroying the environment for greed and stupidity!) And this is what I saw. Gay rights gained NO traction until the Stonewall Riots. It took extreme violence to show the bigots we were going to fight for our freedom! They respected our willingness to fight! Black people have won much less than gay people (racism is an evil selfish addiction which is hard to eradicate), but every grudging victory won by Black people has been the result of violence, not people like Martin Luther King -- though you need the pacifists on their high moral ground also. Women won't get respect until they too are willing to fight for their freedom. If they don't, we may well return to the evil of the last centuries when women, children, and Black people were all considered things -- "chattel property" -- owned by white males.
As far as my study of history takes me, it appears that almost every civilization humans have created has been destroyed by the parasite aristocrats. (Except for a few that fell to environmental disasters, some of their own making, but some not.) The people who founded the US were well aware of the danger of the parasite aristocrats and warned us against them. We did not listen. However, the founding fathers were also white males full of bigotry, selfishness, and ignorance -- they designed a system to benefit only them, and we are paying the price today.
There is one area where I totally disagree with you. That is the corona virus pandemic, and reasonable public health measures (vaccinations and masking and social distancing). As a Scientist I heartily approve of these measures and follow them myself. (Being old, I am in great danger from the disease, which kills mostly old people and in great numbers. And may destroy the body even if one survives.) While getting vaccinated may be a legitimate personal choice, wearing masks and keeping social distance are FOR OTHER PEOPLE. Refusing to mask up is anti-social and selfish. I won't have anything to do with people who refuse masking. In my town, most people still wear masks though it is no longer required. The people who refuse masks shop in their own shops and in general, we do not intermingle. Now in some places, like China, enforcement of public health measures has become fascistic. I certainly oppose that. But then, China is hell on earth as far as I can tell! The world envisioned in "1984" is less awful than China! But that was never true in the US, where public health took a backseat to selfish individualism. (Yes one can be individualistic and not selfish. I feel that is true of me. I don't deliberately put other people in danger because of my selfish preferences or beliefs.) Society is a cooperative venture to make life for every member better. Otherwise, why have a society at all?
Peace,
Larry Lawton
PS: I enjoy the offbeat stories and images in your newsletter. Especially the images of rare and cool natural phenomena. I tend to ignore your penchant for conspiracy theories and your occasional lapses into selfish anti-social individualism. Some of the conspiracy stuff you present makes unicorns and leprechauns seem quite believable in comparison! (The myth of the little people has helped the people of Iceland preserve their environment against the forces of destructive development. The little people might not exist but their impact is quite real!) Of course I acknowledge that the evil myths promoted by US fascists and racists also have a real impact. What we believe might not be real but it can still impact our lives.
Note: That is not a pyramid in Antarctica, but a mountain with ridges extending in four directions. Not uncommon for mountains. (I live near mountains). The snow emphasizes the ridges. But no man-made (or alien-made), pyramid would be so large and so rough and uneven. Do you know that the mind imposes patterns on our raw sensory data? This is essential for us to use our senses, but it often leads to false interpretations. (Ghosts, aliens in UFOs, eye witnesses who report what never happened, etc.)
Even just to protect our savings is difficult and uncertain. Following what rich people do makes the most sense to me (and the strategy has worked amazingly well for me!) But I am no gambler. I only invest in safe equities and do not try to make a "killing" as that is a way to lose everything!
Lenin was wrong. Capitalists are themselves destroying fiat currencies. The US dollar has lost 95% (roughly) of its purchasing power in the last hundred years. In the last 20 years, the government has printed (actually created electronically) many $trillions, and almost all of it was given to the rich and powerful. Republicans and Democrats have done this. All this extra money has devalued our currency, but the rich Capitalists don't suffer. Ordinary people suffer. Before WWII, Germany devalued its currency in order to pay off France for their evil reparations -- the Germans just kept printing more and more money until the currency was worthless. Germans suffered, but the Capitalists did not. Mostly the Capitalists even survived Germany's defeat and kept right on making (stealing) money! (However gold is no solution, because the parasite aristocrats manipulate that as well. I invest in the market because rich people invest in the market, and they won't let that fail!)
Larry Lawton
Manuel,
Governments are social tools. Like all tools, governments can be misused and abused (and this happens often, admittedly). Governments originated as protection rackets, and they still retain that bullying aspect. But society, like nature, can evolve and adapt. Governments have been redefined to serve rather than rule their citizens. (A definition more spoken and ignored than actually observed, to be sure!) But governments are not intrinsically evil -- a few of them actually serve their citizens. (I say all this as an Anarchist. Because I am also a scientist and I care more about the truth than any ideology or belief!)
You are correct that the ruling elite / rich and powerful / parasite aristocrats want total power and ownership (of things and people too). The parasite aristocrats control too many governments. Do you remember the Revolutionary War slogan "The price of Liberty is Eternal Vigilance" ? Well most people are lazy and selfish. They do not practice eternal vigilance or much vigilance at all! Mostly it is only marginalized people who see what is happening, but they are the ones with the least power to do anything about it.
The fact that the parasite aristocrats control most governments (and most other institutions also) is not an indictment of institutions, but of the parasite aristocrats and the failure of most people to maintain vigilance and fight for our freedom. Consider women, about to lose control of their bodies in the US. Are they willing to fight for their freedom? Not a chance! In fact, the prominent women's organizations are criticizing the few women who actually do fight for freedom! They want to rely on courts and politicians to save them! They are sadly deluded. I am an activist and fought the long fight for many decades, for gay and human rights and against war. Later for the environment. (When I was young no one was much aware that humans were destroying the environment for greed and stupidity!) And this is what I saw. Gay rights gained NO traction until the Stonewall Riots. It took extreme violence to show the bigots we were going to fight for our freedom! They respected our willingness to fight! Black people have won much less than gay people (racism is an evil selfish addiction which is hard to eradicate), but every grudging victory won by Black people has been the result of violence, not people like Martin Luther King -- though you need the pacifists on their high moral ground also. Women won't get respect until they too are willing to fight for their freedom. If they don't, we may well return to the evil of the last centuries when women, children, and Black people were all considered things -- "chattel property" -- owned by white males.
As far as my study of history takes me, it appears that almost every civilization humans have created has been destroyed by the parasite aristocrats. (Except for a few that fell to environmental disasters, some of their own making, but some not.) The people who founded the US were well aware of the danger of the parasite aristocrats and warned us against them. We did not listen. However, the founding fathers were also white males full of bigotry, selfishness, and ignorance -- they designed a system to benefit only them, and we are paying the price today.
There is one area where I totally disagree with you. That is the corona virus pandemic, and reasonable public health measures (vaccinations and masking and social distancing). As a Scientist I heartily approve of these measures and follow them myself. (Being old, I am in great danger from the disease, which kills mostly old people and in great numbers. And may destroy the body even if one survives.) While getting vaccinated may be a legitimate personal choice, wearing masks and keeping social distance are FOR OTHER PEOPLE. Refusing to mask up is anti-social and selfish. I won't have anything to do with people who refuse masking. In my town, most people still wear masks though it is no longer required. The people who refuse masks shop in their own shops and in general, we do not intermingle. Now in some places, like China, enforcement of public health measures has become fascistic. I certainly oppose that. But then, China is hell on earth as far as I can tell! The world envisioned in "1984" is less awful than China! But that was never true in the US, where public health took a backseat to selfish individualism. (Yes one can be individualistic and not selfish. I feel that is true of me. I don't deliberately put other people in danger because of my selfish preferences or beliefs.) Society is a cooperative venture to make life for every member better. Otherwise, why have a society at all?
Peace,
Larry Lawton
PS: I enjoy the offbeat stories and images in your newsletter. Especially the images of rare and cool natural phenomena. I tend to ignore your penchant for conspiracy theories and your occasional lapses into selfish anti-social individualism. Some of the conspiracy stuff you present makes unicorns and leprechauns seem quite believable in comparison! (The myth of the little people has helped the people of Iceland preserve their environment against the forces of destructive development. The little people might not exist but their impact is quite real!) Of course I acknowledge that the evil myths promoted by US fascists and racists also have a real impact. What we believe might not be real but it can still impact our lives.
Note: That is not a pyramid in Antarctica, but a mountain with ridges extending in four directions. Not uncommon for mountains. (I live near mountains). The snow emphasizes the ridges. But no man-made (or alien-made), pyramid would be so large and so rough and uneven. Do you know that the mind imposes patterns on our raw sensory data? This is essential for us to use our senses, but it often leads to false interpretations. (Ghosts, aliens in UFOs, eye witnesses who report what never happened, etc.)