LIVE Gold Prices $  | E-Mail Subscriptions | Update GoldSeek | GoldSeek Radio 

Commentary : Gold Review : Markets : News Wire : Quotes : Silver : Stocks - Main Page 

 GoldSeek.com >> News >> Story  Disclaimer 
 
Latest Headlines

GoldSeek.com to Launch New Website
By: GoldSeek.com

Is Gold Price Action Warning Of Imminent Monetary Collapse Part 2?
By: Hubert Moolman

Gold and Silver Are Just Getting Started
By: Frank Holmes, US Funds

Silver Makes High Wave Candle at Target – Here’s What to Expect…
By: Clive Maund

Gold Blows Through Upside Resistance - The Chase Is On
By: Avi Gilburt

U.S. Mint To Reduce Gold & Silver Eagle Production Over The Next 12-18 Months
By: Steve St. Angelo, SRSrocco Report

Gold's sharp rise throws Financial Times into an erroneous sulk
By: Chris Powell, GATA

Precious Metals Update Video: Gold's unusual strength
By: Ira Epstein

Asian Metals Market Update: July-29-2020
By: Chintan Karnani, Insignia Consultants

Gold's rise is a 'mystery' because journalism always fails to pursue it
By: Chris Powell, GATA

 
Search

GoldSeek Web

 
The Federal Reserve Has Been Slow-Motion Hyperinflating for 97 Years



-- Posted Tuesday, 17 August 2010 | | Source: GoldSeek.com

By: Jeff Berwick – The Dollar Vigilante

The Federal Reserve and the concept of central banking is one of the biggest scams ever perpetrated in human history.  Yet, even to this day, the great majority of people still do not see this reality.  In fact, the average man on the street has no idea what central banks even do, what today’s “money” actually is and how it is created much less how they have been defrauding the lower and middle class for decades.

The main reason the average person is so clueless is because most people in the world today receive their “education” from the government: public schools.  And the last thing the government wants you to understand is how central banks are a device of the financial elite to transfer wealth from the poor and middle classes to the rich.

The fraud is sitting right there in plain view to anyone who can open their own eyes and use their own brains yet it still goes largely unnoticed.

“STABLE” PRICES

Take, for example, one of the main purported reasons for the Federal Reserve’s existence: to “promote” stable prices.  It says right on the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco’s website that this is one of two main goals of the monetary policy which they manipulate (http://www.frbsf.org/publications/federalreserve/monetary/goals.html).  The other goal, laughably, at a time when true unemployment as measured by Shadowstats.com is running at 22% in the US, is to “promote” employment.

Let’s forget about employment for now.  And let’s even gloss over just exactly how it would be possible for any central agency to “promote” stable prices and employment.  There is not one shred of evidence in human history that anything EXCEPT a completely free market can “promote” maximum employment and stable prices.

But let’s just stick to looking at how well the Federal Reserve has done in their so-called quest to keep prices stable.

PRICES WERE STABLE UNTIL THE FEDERAL RESERVE WAS FOUNDED

Prior to the founding of the Federal Reserve in 1913 prices in the previous century (1800s) had been very stable and actually declined from 1800 to 1900 as productivity increased.  Yet, after the founding of the Federal Reserve the value of the US Federal Reserve Note (referred to by the people on the street as the US Dollar) has declined approximately 96% in the last 97 years when measured by the Consumer Price Index.  That may not sound too bad until you realize that the maximum it could possibly decline is 100%.

However, we believe it is even worse than that.  That only takes into account changes in the price of general retail goods.  However, the last 97 years has been the most productive and amazing time in human history.  We have gone from being a bunch of farmers to living in a highly technological age. If it weren’t for this massive advance in productivity, we believe the US Dollar would actually be down much more than the 96% the data states for retail goods.  And even that might be giving the Dollar too much credit.

$1 DOLLAR IN 1913 IS EQUIVALENT TO $1,000 TODAY

By many measures $1 Dollar in 1913 is the equivalent to $1,000 today.  In percent terms, a 99.9% drop.

Don’t believe us?  Let’s take a quick look at the price of a number of different items.  Over and over again ratios of 1000:1 reappear.

Take Yankee Stadium.  Originally built in 1923 for $2.4 million.  The cost to build its replacement in 2009?  $2.3 billion.  Almost exactly 1,000 times more.

How about the players themselves?  Well, in 1901 the National League of baseball had a salary cap on player salaries of a maximum of $2,400.  There is currently no salary cap in major league baseball but the average player salary in 2009 was $2.9 million.  A ratio of 1208:1.

Or take the Titanic.  The most expensive ship ever built at the time in 1912 it cost $7.5 million in US Dollars.  Today, the most expensive ship currently being built is the Queen Elizabeth class aircraft carrier being built for the English Navy.  The cost in US Dollars: $6.1 billion.  The ratio: 813:1.

BILLION IS THE NEW MILLION

Another way to look at the change in the “value” of the Dollar is to look at the amount of money it takes to be wealthy.  Not rich, as Chris Rock said (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kglXIoiXDFM), but wealthy.

It used to be that millionaires were rich people.  Now you need to be a millionaire just to be able to buy a decent house in any major global city.  Just having a million dollars will barely get you a 1,000 square foot apartment in Hong Kong.

The amount of millionaires in the US in 1900 was approximately 4,000.  Today there are 2.6 million millionaires in the US.  Billionaires in 2010 are what millionaires were in 1910.  Today there are approximately 1,000 billionaires in the world.  And what is the difference, in ratio between a million dollars and a billion dollars?  You got it, 1000:1.

Comically, nothing shows the ridiculous of the situation better than Dr. Evil in the Austin Powers trilogy: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cKKHSAE1gIs.

Today a million dollars is nothing.  Just a few days ago a Swedish motorist received a $1 million speeding ticket (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-10960230).

Now just one superstar athlete, like Lebron James, has Billion dollar earning potential.  R&B singers and rappers can't rap about making millions anymore or they look like underachievers.  Houston based rapper Chamillionaire is being inflated into obscurity while R&B singer Travie McCoy just released a song called "Billionaire" just to keep up with the times.

You need look no further than south of the US border to see where we are headed. In Mexico they have a lottery commercial regularly aired on TV called  "Trillonario!"  Ay mami!

WE’VE BEEN IN SLOW-MOTION HYPERINFLATION FOR 100 YEARS

Yet even though the US Dollar has collapsed, by many measures, by 99.9% in the last 100 years some people are still so blind as to think that deflation is a potential problem.

The con-men at the Federal Reserve have managed to keep the rate of hyperinflation just slow enough so that many people, even to this day, despite all the evidence around them, still don’t see the obvious inflation and the destruction and transfer of wealth it precipitates.

GOLD TO RISE TO $19,520 USD PER OUNCE?

All of this begs the question, what was the ratio of change in the price of gold over the last 97 years since the founding of the Federal Reserve?

Gold was $20.67 in 1913 and is currently trading at $1,220, a ratio of only 60:1.  While far from scientific, if gold were to keep pace with the 1000:1 ratio of many other big ticket items it would have to rise by 16 times, to $19,520 USD per ounce.

Jeff Berwick
Chief Editor
The Dollar Vigilante

The Dollar Vigilante is a free-market financial newsletter focused on covering all aspects of the ongoing financial collapse.  The newsletter has news, information and analysis on investments for safety and for profit during the collapse including investments in gold, silver, energy and agriculture commodities and publicly traded stocks.  As well, the newsletter covers other aspects including expatriation, both financially and physically and news and info on health, safety and other ways to survive the coming collapse of the US Dollar safely and comfortably.  You can sign up to receive our FREE monthly newsletter,  our Basic Newsletter ($15/month) or our Full Newsletter ($25/month) with specific stock recommendations and updates at our Subscriptions page on our website at DollarVigilante.com.

Copyright © 2010 Jeff Berwick


-- Posted Tuesday, 17 August 2010 | Digg This Article | Source: GoldSeek.com




 



Increase Text SizeDecrease Text SizeE-mail Link of Current PagePrinter Friendly PageReturn to GoldSeek.com

 news.goldseek.com >> Story

E-mail Page  | Print  | Disclaimer 


© 1995 - 2019



GoldSeek.com Supports Kiva.org

© GoldSeek.com, Gold Seek LLC

The content on this site is protected by U.S. and international copyright laws and is the property of GoldSeek.com and/or the providers of the content under license. By "content" we mean any information, mode of expression, or other materials and services found on GoldSeek.com. This includes editorials, news, our writings, graphics, and any and all other features found on the site. Please contact us for any further information.

Live GoldSeek Visitor Map | Disclaimer


Map

The views contained here may not represent the views of GoldSeek.com, Gold Seek LLC, its affiliates or advertisers. GoldSeek.com, Gold Seek LLC makes no representation, warranty or guarantee as to the accuracy or completeness of the information (including news, editorials, prices, statistics, analyses and the like) provided through its service. Any copying, reproduction and/or redistribution of any of the documents, data, content or materials contained on or within this website, without the express written consent of GoldSeek.com, Gold Seek LLC, is strictly prohibited. In no event shall GoldSeek.com, Gold Seek LLC or its affiliates be liable to any person for any decision made or action taken in reliance upon the information provided herein.