Senior Managing Editor of The Freeport Society
Is a die-hard obsession with weaponry conducive to innovation in America? Maybe, as I explain below…
Another thing to think on: Is unwavering loyalty to a party leader worth the potential cost of political power?
The Democratic Party finds itself grappling with this very question.
On one side, there are die-hard Joe Biden loyalists, ready to defend their man against all odds. We’re talking freezes, mumbles, and stumbles – the whole geriatric repertoire.
They’re quick to dismiss logical concerns, with some even blaming AI for those disconcerting clips of Biden’s apparent mental lapses.
It’s as if they’re watching a different president than the rest of us.
On the flip side, a group of levelheaded Democrats are finally voicing what many have long whispered – and others have been shouting from the rooftops: It’s time for Joe to trade in his Oval Office chair for a comfy retirement recliner.
That’s at least the reasonable opinion here. It’s torture watching Biden gather the right words. Take “President Putin” and “Vice President Trump,” for instance.
One of our readers poses some more questions and concerns we’ve been asking ourselves…
The real question is who is in charge of the country and is that of concern. I’ve always believed Biden is a puppet but who is pulling the strings? And what is their goal, other than just staying in power?
I’m a senior who has cared for parents and observed their cognitive decline (and can recognize my own). I guarantee anyone over 50 has been wondering if the people around Biden might be guilty of elder abuse.
We hear you, and can only hope that some sense will be knocked into the Democratic Party while they’re having their own Weekend at Bernie’s.
So, as murmurs of a replacement candidate grow louder, and as Democrats weigh loyalty against electability, I recommend you watch Charles’s presentation with Freeport Society friend Louis Navellier. In it, they talk about who could replace Biden… and it’s disturbing, to say the least.
The Shadow Candidate we suspect is waiting in the wings definitely won’t solve our problems, and this video shows you how to prepare for the madness that’s to come.
Yet, here’s the obvious: A fresh face won’t magically fix our economic problems.
The average economic cycle is six years. And while the national unemployment rate remains on the lower side, below levels that cost incumbent presidents a second term, it’s beginning to trend upward.
We’ll be entering a contraction stage regardless of who’s in charge. The 20% rise in prices during Biden’s presidency has already strained Americans, and voters are bound to feel the impact of this inflation long after the dust settles.
That makes it more important than ever to ensure that your wealth – and your ability to grow that wealth – is secure. That’s what we’re here to help you do, so let’s dig into what happened this week at The Freeport Navigator…
Five Predictions for the Coming Decade of Decline
Neither presidential candidate will acknowledge the issues we face, let alone lay out a viable plan to address them. We alone must navigate this Age of Chaos. Continue reading here.
The Tragedy of Joe Biden
Ray Dalio has concerns about his own generation. On Wednesday, Charles applied his point to the politicians of our era. Read more here.
When Burger Flippers Earn More Than Teachers…
Thanks to California’s new minimum-wage law, the state’s fast-food workers now earn more than 28% of first-year teachers. Read about the fall of economic value here.
Looking Ahead
Did you catch the headlines earlier this week about inflation falling in June?
Well, as Charles pointed out on Friday, that headline wasn’t exactly truthful. Sure, monthly inflation fell by a whopping 1/10 of 1% between May and June. But on an annual basis, inflation still clocked in at 3%. And core inflation, excluding food and energy, was 3.3%.
Still, whatever hope that we might have pegged on that -0.1% decline just got an ice-cold bucket of water dumped on it yesterday when the producer price index (PPI) inflation numbers were released. Wholesale prices were up 2.6% last month, the highest readings since June. Excluding food and energy prices, they were even higher at 3%.
It’s always a mistake to put undue emphasis on a single data point, as the data is notoriously noisy. But all the same, you should view the narrative that inflation is under control with a major grain of salt… particularly given that both presidential candidates seem to be all-in on policies that make inflation worse.
And speaking of that…
While the election circus is in full swing, America’s innovative spirit marches on – in ways that might make the rest of the world raise an eyebrow or two.
Case in point: ammo vending machines.
Yes, you read that right.
Thanks to the company American Rounds, Some grocery stores in the South are now offering 24/7 access to bullets, right next to where you can pick up a soda and snack.
It’s as if we’re preparing for a zombie apocalypse…
I’m from South Africa… a place known for being a little rough and tumble (to under-exaggerate). But the ammo vending machine strikes even me as uniquely and unabashedly American.
It’s also a practical adaptation to a tight labor market. One of the ongoing themes of the Freeport Society is deglobalization, which goes hand in hand with the rebuilding of America’s industrial empire.
The problem is labor.
We don’t have enough bodies to fill the jobs that all of this reshoring requires.
This is why automation, robotics, and artificial intelligence are so critically important… and why something seemingly as silly as a vending machine that sells bullets instead of bubblegum actually makes sense.
For those concerned about gun safety, American Rounds CEO Grant Magers laid it out earlier this week in an interview with The New York Times: “Our ammo is not accessible sitting on a shelf, and we are the only company that absolutely, 100% requires an ID verification.”
The machine reads your ID to verify you’re old enough to purchase the rounds and then scans your face to make sure it matches the ID, similar to the kiosks at airport security. And to Magers’ point, keeping the ammo in an ID-controlled vending machine is safer than on an open shelf where it can be shoplifted.
Gotta love it.
To life, liberty, and the pursuit of wealth.