by Michael Wilkerson | Aug 21, 2026 | Artificial Intelligence, Banks, Blog Articles, Economy, Energy, Finance, Inflation, Markets, Trade, USA
The current AI-related bubble in financial assets increasingly echoes warning signs from the global financial crisis (GFC), precipitated by excesses in residential housing, and the spectacular collapse of Enron, “the world’s leading energy company,” whose executives...
by Michael Wilkerson | Aug 3, 2026 | Artificial Intelligence, Banks, Blog Articles, Economy, Finance, Geopolitics, Inflation, Iran, Japan, Markets, Technology, USA, War
I’m on vacation. I decided to check the credit markets as a reprieve on a scorching hot Sunday afternoon when Outside was no longer an option. Here is what I observe: Liquidity: On Friday, the BIS (Bank for Internation Settlements, the global bank for banks) published...
by Michael Wilkerson | Jul 7, 2026 | Blog Articles, Covid-19, Economy, Finance, Inflation, Markets, USA
Few things symbolize the post-war American way of life better than the automobile and the freedom of the open road. And few things are better indicators of the financial health of the American household and economy as a whole than the industries which produce, sell...
by Michael Wilkerson | Jun 25, 2026 | Blog Articles, Economy, Finance, Inflation, Monetary System, Policy, Trump Administration, USA, War
In the Homeric epic Odyssey, the hero Odysseus navigates the storms of the “wine-dark sea,” seeking to return to his home and family after many years of war-fighting. He must first pass through a narrow strait of water, one with dangers on both sides. To...
by Michael Wilkerson | May 21, 2026 | Blog Articles, China, Economy, Finance, Geopolitics, Inflation, Iran, Israel, Markets, Oil, Russia, Trump Administration, USA, War
What the U.S.-Iraq Wars Can Teach us The U.S.-led Gulf War (1991) saw Iraq’s large but unsophisticated military decimated, its vast infrastructure obliterated, and its formal leadership structures shattered, all within a few weeks of initial combat. U.S. President...
by Michael Wilkerson | May 18, 2026 | Banks, Blog Articles, Economy, Energy, Finance, Geopolitics, Inflation, Iran, Markets, Oil, Politics, Trump Administration, USA, War
If the economy were represented by a dashboard, the warning lights have been switching on one by one over the past month. Each week brings not an alarm announcing an emergency, but discrete indicators quietly turning from green or yellow to red across multiple areas...
by Michael Wilkerson | May 4, 2026 | Biden Administration, Blog Articles, Economy, Finance, Markets, New York, Politics, USA
The Biden Administration’s regulatory overreach—political performance theatre led by Senator Elizabeth Warren and enforced by the Department of Justice—neither protected consumers nor ensured fair competition. It weakened the discount airline industry, cost American...
by Michael Wilkerson | May 1, 2026 | Artificial Intelligence, Blog Articles, Covid-19, Economy, Politics, Technology, Trade, USA
Big Tech is Larger, More Profitable, and Spending More Than Ever Last week, Microsoft and Meta both announced significant reductions-in-force. Big Tech layoffs—sometimes tens of thousands of employees at once—make for attention-grabbing news. They portend imminent...
by Michael Wilkerson | Apr 21, 2026 | Artificial Intelligence, Blog Articles, Economy, Education, Finance, Inflation, Student Loans, Trump Administration, USA
The government sponsored student loan industry is a system structured to fail its borrowers and enrich university administrations at taxpayer expense. It should be profoundly reformed. When the Biden administration announced its student loan debt forgiveness program...
by Michael Wilkerson | Apr 11, 2026 | Blog Articles, Economy, Finance, Geopolitics, NATO, Politics, Trump Administration, USA
During the past decade, a period in which Germany (Europe’s largest economy) was busy committing national energy suicide and France was trying to decide whether it wanted to remain French, Poland was steadily rebuilding what is now one of the strongest and most...
by Michael Wilkerson | Mar 31, 2026 | Blog Articles, China, Economy, Energy, Inflation, Iran, Markets, Oil, Trump Administration, USA, War
Prices for retail diesel and gas have each risen by over one-third ($1.30+ and $1.00 per gallon, respectively) since the launch of Epic Fury. Americans learned in the 1970s that Middle East conflict means energy pain, and that lesson has been reinforced through every...
by Michael Wilkerson | Mar 28, 2026 | Blog Articles, China, Economy, Energy, Finance, Geopolitics, Inflation, Iran, Markets, Oil, Qatar, Russia, Trade, Trump Administration, Ukraine, USA, War
And How the United States and Russia May Benefit The global natural gas market is now in disarray, and this negatively affects everything in the modern economy … from agriculture to transportation to semiconductor manufacturing and beyond. The market did not just...
by Michael Wilkerson | Mar 6, 2026 | Armed Forces, Blog Articles, Economy, Energy, Finance, Geopolitics, Germany, Gold, Healthcare, Historical, Inflation, Iran, Monetary System, Oil, Politics, Trump Administration, USA, War
A wartime economy is no longer a hypothetical future scenario to contemplate. It has already arrived. This week, with U.S. forces launching what the Trump administration labeled “Epic Fury” against Iran, the question is no longer whether war will affect markets and...
by Michael Wilkerson | Feb 12, 2026 | Banks, Blog Articles, China, Economy, Finance, Gold, Historical, Monetary System, Trump Administration, USA
With all the attention of late on the remarkable price moves in gold and silver, it is surprising that the question of a comprehensive audit of the U.S. government’s gold reserves, a headline issue one year ago, has been conveniently memory-holed. For a time in early...
by Michael Wilkerson | Feb 4, 2026 | Banks, Bitcoin, Blog Articles, Crypto, Economy, Finance, Geopolitics, Gold, Historical, Markets, Monetary System, Trade, Trump Administration, USA, Venezuela
Investors have been rightly impressed by gold’s remarkable run, which in dollar terms has doubled in price over the past year. This performance vastly outpaces the stock markets (which are also sitting at all-time highs) and Bitcoin (trading sideways for months), the...
by Michael Wilkerson | Jan 16, 2026 | Blog Articles, Economy, Finance, Inflation, Trump Administration, USA
Nothing illustrates the disconnect between the financial economy’s (Wall Street’s) prosperity and the average household’s (Main Street’s) struggles than the increasing unaffordability of home ownership in America. In the post-war economic boom (around 1960) the...
by Michael Wilkerson | Jan 7, 2026 | Artificial Intelligence, Banks, Bitcoin, Blog Articles, China, Crypto, Economy, Finance, Geopolitics, Gold, Inflation, Iran, Markets, Russia, Tariffs, Technology, Trade, Ukraine, USA, Venezuela
Let me get to the punchline of my view on the financial markets for 2026. The remarkable equity bull run of the past couple of years is unlikely to stall, at least not in the first half of 2026. Corrections are inevitable, and we are indeed likely in an asset bubble....
by Michael Wilkerson | Dec 31, 2025 | Banks, Blog Articles, BRICS, China, Economy, Finance, Geopolitics, Gold, Inflation, Monetary System, Russia, Sanctions, Trade, Ukraine
2025 was an extraordinary year for precious metals. Gold, silver and platinum each outperformed other asset classes, including equities, Bitcoin (2024’s best performer) and even indexes tracking artificial intelligence (“AI”), one of 2025’s favorite investment themes....
by Michael Wilkerson | Dec 21, 2025 | Biden Administration, Blog Articles, Economy, Finance, Immigration, Inflation, Trump Administration, USA
November’s job report, released this week from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), sent mixed signals about the health of the economy. On the one hand, payrolls were up much more than expected at over 64,000, of which private sector jobs increased by 69,000...
by Michael Wilkerson | Dec 2, 2025 | Biden Administration, Blog Articles, Economy, Finance, Healthcare, Inflation, Insurance, Policy, Politics, USA
There is something terribly wrong with the way our healthcare system functions, and only a complete overhaul will save it. Sometimes anecdotes are more helpful than data and analytics, so I’ll relate a personal story. Three years ago, I needed an MRI for a shoulder...
by Michael Wilkerson | Nov 8, 2025 | Artificial Intelligence, Blog Articles, China, Crypto, Economy, Energy, Finance, Geopolitics, Russia, Technology, Trump Administration, USA, War
It is difficult to overstate the sea change that the world is facing as a result of the rapid acceleration of advanced computing technologies and their applications—especially in AI, robotics, quantum computing, and micro-nuclear power. Thanks to a generation of human...
by Michael Wilkerson | Oct 27, 2025 | Blog Articles, Economy, Energy, Finance, Inflation, Tariffs, Trade, Trump Administration, USA
This week’s release of September’s Consumer Price Index (CPI), a barometer of U.S. inflation, confirmed that inflation persists across the economy. Both CPI and Core CPI (which excludes food and energy prices), advanced by three percent on an annual basis. This was...
by Michael Wilkerson | Oct 21, 2025 | Blog Articles, China, Economy, Finance, France, Geopolitics, Germany, Politics, Russia
Early Sunday morning, a group of professional thieves, disguised as construction workers, entered Paris’ Louvre Museum and pulled off an extraordinary seven minute smash-and-grab straight out of Ocean’s Eleven. In broad daylight, the criminals stole priceless crown...
by Michael Wilkerson | Oct 13, 2025 | Artificial Intelligence, Biden Administration, Bitcoin, Blog Articles, China, Crypto, Economy, Finance, Inflation, Politics, Russia, Technology, USA
The United States government, unable to reach agreement on a budget for the new fiscal year, has been officially shuttered for well over a week. Since budgetary rows and the threat of government closure have become a more regular occurrence in recent years, we no...
by Michael Wilkerson | Oct 3, 2025 | Artificial Intelligence, Biden Administration, Blog Articles, China, Economy, Education, Energy, Finance, Geopolitics, Immigration, Inflation, Politics, Technology, Trump Administration, Ukraine, USA, War
America is fighting a war on three fronts. The first is primarily external; a conflict waged against known foreign adversaries based outside our borders. The second front is against the domestic enemies of our nation, actors actively working as a fifth column within...
by Michael Wilkerson | Aug 18, 2025 | Antichrist, Artificial Intelligence, Blog Articles, China, Economy, Technology, USA
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is now mainstream. Over half of Americans use at least one AI tool, although daily users still represent less than 10 percent of the adult population. Nonetheless, twice as many Americans have a negative, rather than positive, view of AI’s...
by Michael Wilkerson | Aug 10, 2025 | Artificial Intelligence, Blog Articles, Economy, Technology
Humanoid robots, long a staple of science fiction, are today a reality. Before this decade closes, they will have become a visible feature of American society. It is hard to fathom the comprehensive impact that artificial intelligence (AI), combined with advanced...
by Michael Wilkerson | Jun 16, 2025 | Banks, Blog Articles, Economy, Finance, Inflation, Policy, Politics, Tariffs, Technology, Trump Administration, USA
The Trump administration (and the President himself) have been pressing hard on the Federal Reserve (and especially its chairman, Jerome Powell) to further reduce interest rates. President Trump argues that inflation is under control, and that by prolonging higher...
by Michael Wilkerson | May 20, 2025 | Blog Articles, Economy, Finance, Inflation, Policy, Politics, Tariffs, Trade, Trump Administration, USA
Tax Cuts are Revenue Cuts The U.S. financial markets and the American consumer are both expressing concern about the state of the economy. The impact of tariffs, downgrades, deficits, tax bills, and inflation are each being weighed. The U.S. has a severe spending...
by Michael Wilkerson | Apr 9, 2025 | Blog Articles, China, Economy, Finance, Inflation, Trade, Trump Administration, USA
Last week was the worst week for the U.S. stock market since the “COVID crash” of March 2020. Indexes such as the S&P500 and the NASDAQ are each down over ten percent since Wednesday. Friday saw the largest volume of shares traded in one day ever. Markets...
by Michael Wilkerson | Mar 19, 2025 | Biden Administration, Blog Articles, China, Economy, Energy, Finance, Inflation, Oil, Sanctions, Tariffs, Trump Administration, Ukraine
Energy prices are falling, but perhaps for the wrong reasons U.S. inflation cooled in February, with the Consumer Price Index (CPI) rising less than expected at 2.8 percent. Excluding food and energy, Core CPI rose by 3.1 percent, as services costs such as shelter and...
by Michael Wilkerson | Mar 5, 2025 | Blog Articles, Crypto, Economy, Finance, Geopolitics, Inflation, Policy, Politics, Tariffs, Trade, Trump Administration, Ukraine, USA
Austerity has a price … worth paying The Trump administration came into office with an ambitious set of promises in tow. During his campaign, and among other things, President Trump committed to end the immigration crisis at the U.S. southern border, stop the war in...
by Michael Wilkerson | Feb 22, 2025 | Banks, Bitcoin, Blog Articles, BRICS, CBDCs, China, Crypto, Economy, Energy, Finance, Geopolitics, Inflation, Tariffs, Trump Administration
Precious metals prices are on the move 2025 has started off with a golden hue. Gold and silver have been among the best performing asset classes in 2025, up 12% and 14%, respectively, year-to-date. Over the past two months, these precious metals have outperformed...
by Michael Wilkerson | Jan 31, 2025 | Artificial Intelligence, Banks, Blog Articles, China, Economy, Finance, Politics, Technology, Trade, Trump Administration, USA
Only time will tell whether the threat is real During the nineteenth century, the industrial revolution was facilitated by a new form of technology: railroads. By 1890, an estimated $10 billion ($347 billion in today’s value) had been raised for the industry in public...
by Michael Wilkerson | Jan 21, 2025 | Africa, Blog Articles, Economy, Finance, Inflation, Russia, Sanctions, Technology
Lab-grown diamonds are cannibalizing the overpriced luxury market Something strange has been happening in the diamond market in recent years. In an inflationary period where other “store of value” commodities such as gold and silver have been appreciating in value,...
by Michael Wilkerson | Jan 12, 2025 | Africa, Economy, Historical, Politics, Trade, USA, Why America Matters Book
How Jamestown, the first permanent English settlement in America, inadvertently planted the seeds of slavery in the future United States The first permanent English settlement in the New World was founded in 1607 in Jamestown. Set in the Colony of Virginia, Jamestown...
by Michael Wilkerson | Jan 11, 2025 | Biden Administration, Blog Articles, Economy, Finance, Inflation, Trade, USA
2024 was a challenging year for U.S. retailers. Will 2025 be any better? U.S. retailers were happy to put 2024 behind them. With few exceptions, 2024 was one of the worst years on record for many retailers. Several well-known chains filed for bankruptcy and ceased...
by Michael Wilkerson | Dec 29, 2024 | Biden Administration, Blog Articles, CBDCs, China, Crypto, Economy, Elections, Finance, Geopolitics, Iran, Monetary System, Russia, Sanctions, Technology, Trump Administration, USA
When then Presidential Candidate Donald J. Trump pivoted in 2024 from crypto-skeptic to arch crypto-advocate, he successfully won over an industry of potential voters that, for the most part, hadn’t previously been active in politics or, in many cases, even voted at...
by Michael Wilkerson | Dec 21, 2024 | Biden Administration, Blog Articles, China, Economy, Energy, Finance, Geopolitics, USA
China has upped the ante in the trade war with the U.S. by imposing stringent export restrictions on critical minerals essential to U.S. semiconductor and defense industries. Following the U.S. Department of Commerce’s announcement earlier this month of additional...
by Michael Wilkerson | Nov 24, 2024 | Biden Administration, Blog Articles, Crypto, Economy, Elections, Monetary System, Policy, Politics, Technology, USA
Last spring, I publicly predicted that the price of Bitcoin would hit $100,000 by the end of 2024. This was quite a statement given BTC prices were then trading in a range of $40,000 to $50,000. While the path would be volatile, I predicted that “the long-term...
by Michael Wilkerson | Nov 14, 2024 | Biden Administration, Blog Articles, China, Covid-19, Crypto, Disinformation, Economy, Elections, Energy, Finance, Geopolitics, Inflation, Iran, Israel, Monetary System, Politics, Russia, Sanctions, Tariffs, Technology, Ukraine, USA, War
image credit: Getty Images Following Donald J. Trump’s election victory last week, the President-elect and his transition team have announced multiple cabinet-level and other appointments, outline both domestic and foreign policies, and set the stage for a return to...
by Michael Wilkerson | Oct 28, 2024 | Biden Administration, Blog Articles, China, Covid-19, Disinformation, Economy, Elections, Politics, Russia, Sanctions, USA
Could we witness something unprecedented which derails November’s vote? The 2024 Presidential elections are days away. Early voting has already started in many states. On Sunday night, GOP nominee and former US President Donald J. Trump spoke to a full house of over...
by Michael Wilkerson | Oct 22, 2024 | Blog Articles, China, Disinformation, Economy, Finance, Inflation, USA
Retail pharmacy sales trends indicate much higher price increases for prescription drugs than CPI indicates Walgreens Boots Alliance (Walgreens), the publicly listed, “integrated healthcare, pharmacy and retail” company, just announced its annual and fourth quarter...
by Michael Wilkerson | Oct 13, 2024 | Africa, Blog Articles, BRICS, CBDCs, China, Economy, Finance, Geopolitics, Monetary System, Russia, Sanctions, USA
Will the gold-backed UNIT Challenge U.S. Dollar Dominance? Later this month, Russia will host the sixteenth BRICS Summit, bringing together its member countries for Head of State level discussions on trade, monetary policy, security, and other matters. This capstone...
by Michael Wilkerson | Oct 4, 2024 | Biden Administration, Blog Articles, China, Economy, Elections, Finance, Geopolitics, Inflation, Tariffs
Last month, former U.S. President and 2024 presidential candidate Donald J. Trump laid out key pillars of his policy proposals in a speech at The Economic Club of New York. Given the audience, Trump focused more on economic and financial matters than he typically does...
by Michael Wilkerson | Sep 28, 2024 | Banks, Biden Administration, Blog Articles, China, Covid-19, Economy, Energy, Finance, Inflation, Tariffs, USA
U.S. Net International Investment Position Hits All-time Low What is a rich country? In relative financial terms, it is a country whose net investment position is positive. The net investment position reflects how much one country owns of all other countries’ assets,...
by Michael Wilkerson | Sep 26, 2024 | Banks, Biden Administration, Blog Articles, China, Covid-19, Economy, Finance, Geopolitics, Inflation
In the wake of a rapidly deteriorating domestic economy, the People’s Bank of China (PBoC), China’s central bank, has just announced a blizzard of monetary stimulus policies designed to fend off a potential financial crisis. Regulatory authorities are taking a raft of...
by Michael Wilkerson | Sep 20, 2024 | Banks, Biden Administration, Blog Articles, Economy, Finance, Inflation, USA
The U.S. Federal Reserve has just cut its target interest rate range by half a percent (50 basis points), a large jump by historical measures. This unusually large move by the Fed signals the economy is worse off than has been widely reported, and that the central...
by Michael Wilkerson | Sep 11, 2024 | Banks, Biden Administration, Blog Articles, China, Covid-19, Economy, Finance, Inflation, Policy, Sanctions, Tariffs, Technology, USA
With equity markets, real estate, and other financial asset values at or near all-time highs, that small minority of citizens which primarily benefit from the Wall Street economy have never been more well-off in financial terms, at least on paper. On the other hand,...
by Michael Wilkerson | Aug 23, 2024 | Biden Administration, Blog Articles, Economy, Finance, Inflation, Politics, USA
In another indication that the U.S. may be near—if not already in—a recession, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) just released its Current Employment Statistics (CES) survey. The results are troubling. The CES benchmark revision reveals that previous government...
by Michael Wilkerson | Aug 7, 2024 | Africa, Banks, Biden Administration, Blog Articles, China, Covid-19, Economy, Finance, Inflation, Japan, Monetary System, Politics, USA
One of the surprising things I repeatedly observed as a CEO of a public company investing in financial services in Africa was that banks there—and in many emerging markets—don’t actually lend, at least not to businesses or people. Rather than provide much needed loans...
by Michael Wilkerson | Aug 3, 2024 | Biden Administration, Blog Articles, Covid-19, Economy, Finance, Inflation, USA
If anyone still believes that the U.S. economy is doing just fine, they should take a closer look at what is happening to the retailers that depend upon the faithful American consumer to “shop, shop, shop” to keep the economy afloat. American consumers are rapidly...
by Michael Wilkerson | Jul 13, 2024 | Blog Articles, Economy, France, Geopolitics, Inflation, Politics, USA, War
America’s revolution was the inspiration for France’s. Occurring within the same generation, the outcome of the world’s two most famous revolutions are starkly different. Today, July 14, is National Day in France (Fête nationale française), the rough patriotic...
by Michael Wilkerson | Jun 22, 2024 | Banks, Biden Administration, Blog Articles, China, Covid-19, Economy, Finance, Inflation, Iran, Politics, Russia, Sanctions, USA
Gross domestic product is the yardstick of economic activity. U.S. GDP growth has been decelerating for three quarters. The revised first quarter figures showed only 1.3 percent real (i.e., after inflation) GDP growth. Expectations for the remainder of the year are...
by Michael Wilkerson | May 20, 2024 | Biden Administration, Blog Articles, Economy, Finance, Inflation, Politics, Tariffs, USA
Apparently, most Americans cannot. With the easy money fueled asset bubble of the past two decades, home ownership, and the cost of shelter in general, has been one of the sectors most impacted by inflation and rising prices. What happens to a society in which its...
by Michael Wilkerson | May 14, 2024 | Blog Articles, Covid-19, Economy, Finance, Florida, New York, USA
Much will be debated in the years to come about the efficacy of lockdowns, travel restrictions, vaccine passports, and other steps put in place to combat COVID-19. Evidence continues to mount showing these measures were largely ineffective in achieving their...
by Michael Wilkerson | May 1, 2024 | Banks, Biden Administration, Blog Articles, China, Covid-19, Economy, Finance, Geopolitics, Japan, Monetary System, Politics, USA
Last week, Japan saw its currency, the Yen, rapidly depreciate against the U.S. dollar and other world currencies to record low levels. This drew the attention of financial markets and other observers, and—in some quarters—led to panic. There was concern that Japan, a...
by Michael Wilkerson | Apr 28, 2024 | Banks, Biden Administration, Blog Articles, Crypto, Economy, Finance, Inflation, Monetary System, Politics, USA
Various U.S. government agencies announced some surprisingly disappointing economic indicators and other news this week. The data revealed that the U.S. economy is not doing nearly as well as expected. First quarter 2024 Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth came in at...
by Michael Wilkerson | Apr 17, 2024 | Banks, Biden Administration, Blog Articles, China, Crypto, Economy, Finance, Geopolitics, Hamas, Inflation, Iran, Israel, Monetary System, Politics, Russia, Sanctions, Ukraine, USA, War
On Friday (April 12), intraday prices for gold hit an all-time high of $2,445 per ounce before closing the day at $2,360. For a normally sleepy asset, gold’s ten percent rise in three weeks is remarkable. Gold is up 14 percent year-to-date, but most of the price...
by Michael Wilkerson | Mar 28, 2024 | Banks, Biden Administration, Blog Articles, Economy, Finance, Inflation, Monetary System, Politics, USA
Named after American economist Hyman Minsky, the idea behind a Minsky moment is that a financial markets crisis (especially in credit markets) is caused by a sudden and systemic collapse in asset prices, usually after a sustained period of speculative investment,...
by Michael Wilkerson | Mar 20, 2024 | Biden Administration, Blog Articles, Covid-19, Economy, Energy, Finance, Inflation, Monetary System, Politics, USA
The last few days have produced a bumper crop of disappointing news on inflation. First, we saw that the Consumer Price Index (CPI) grew at 0.4 percent in February, the highest monthly increase since September of last year, resulting in a higher than expected 3.2...
by Michael Wilkerson | Mar 12, 2024 | Banks, Biden Administration, Blog Articles, CBDCs, Crypto, Economy, Finance, Monetary System, Politics, USA
There have been many legitimate concerns raised about the potential tyranny and abuses that would result from the U.S. government’s issuance of central bank digital currencies (CBDCs). CBDCs have been rightly criticized as providing governments with a nearly perfect...
by Michael Wilkerson | Mar 8, 2024 | Banks, Biden Administration, Blog Articles, Covid-19, Crypto, Economy, Finance, Monetary System, Politics, USA
In the ancient Roman calendar, the Ides fell around the middle of the month, specifically the 15th of each March. Made famous by Shakespeare’s dramatic reenactment, the prophetic warning “Beware the Ides of March” speaks of the day in 44 B.C. when the Roman emperor...
by Michael Wilkerson | Feb 28, 2024 | Biden Administration, Blog Articles, China, Economy, Finance, Inflation, Politics, USA
Usually when someone starts to talk about taxes the eyelids grow heavy and the attention wanes, so I’ll keep this short. The Biden administration’s tax policy proposals are a disaster for U.S. competitiveness, for families and the employers who hire them. While the...
by Michael Wilkerson | Feb 21, 2024 | Biden Administration, Blog Articles, Economy, Finance, Inflation, Monetary System, Politics, USA
Home ownership has been a foundation of the American dream for generations. Home ownership has been an attainable aspiration that has enabled capital accumulation and wealth preservation. It has traditionally facilitated both a comfortable retirement for homeowners...
by Michael Wilkerson | Feb 13, 2024 | Biden Administration, Blog Articles, Covid-19, Economy, Finance, Inflation, Politics, Student Loans, USA
American households seem to have short financial memories. Either not having learned—or perhaps just not remembering—the lessons of the global financial crisis, many U.S. households are repeating the same mistakes made nearly twenty years ago. Specifically, they are...
by Michael Wilkerson | Feb 1, 2024 | Biden Administration, Blog Articles, Economy, Finance, Inflation, Monetary System, Politics, USA
The last time the phrase “soft landing” was this popular on the internet was on the eve of the largest financial crisis the world has ever seen. The idea behind an economic soft landing is that the central bank (for the U.S., the Federal Reserve) is able to bring...
by Michael Wilkerson | Jan 30, 2024 | Biden Administration, Blog Articles, China, Economy, Energy, Finance, Geopolitics, Inflation, Iran, Politics, Russia, Sanctions, USA
In a little noticed statement slipped out last Friday, the Biden administration pulled another plank out from under America’s energy security and future prosperity. Declaring the climate crisis “the existential threat of our time,” President Biden announced that his...
by Michael Wilkerson | Jan 23, 2024 | Armed Forces, Biden Administration, Blog Articles, China, Economy, Finance, Geopolitics, Inflation, Monetary System, Politics, Russia, Sanctions, USA, War
While the United States is ostensibly not at war with anyone, our government is spending taxpayers’ money as if it were. This year, the budget for the U.S. Department of Defense is $844 billion. The U.S. spends nearly three times more on defense than does China and...
by Michael Wilkerson | Dec 27, 2023 | Biden Administration, Blog Articles, Crypto, Economy, Finance, Inflation, USA
It has been nine months since the spectacular and sudden collapse of Silicon Valley Bank. After witnessing three of the four largest bank failures of all time in 2023, the attention of the media and the markets has turned elsewhere. Banking crisis? It is as though it...
by Michael Wilkerson | Dec 23, 2023 | Biden Administration, Blog Articles, Crypto, Economy, Energy, Finance, Inflation, Monetary System, Politics, USA
2023 caught the experts by surprise. Economists and market analysts alike started the year on a pessimistic note, anticipating recession, market declines, and overall weakness in the face of inflation and high interest rates. Yet the much anticipated recession never...
by Michael Wilkerson | Dec 11, 2023 | Biden Administration, Blog Articles, Crypto, Economy, Energy, Finance, Geopolitics, Politics, Russia, Sanctions, Technology, USA
Asking the CEOs of the U.S.’s largest TBTF banks their opinion on crypto was like asking the wolves to vote on whether the fences should be removed from around the sheepfold. The Biden administration continues to work tirelessly to undermine the U.S.’s energy...
by Michael Wilkerson | Dec 5, 2023 | Biden Administration, Blog Articles, Economy, Finance, Inflation, Politics, Ukraine, USA
Low quality economic growth is masking the looming debt crisis. It is a chimera that enables us to pretend that everything is fine, at just the moment when it clearly isn’t. One year ago, the prevailing consensus among economics and market analysts was that the U.S....
by Michael Wilkerson | Nov 29, 2023 | Argentina, Biden Administration, Blog Articles, Economy, Finance, Geopolitics
image credit: Natacha Pisarenko/AP To recover the stolen loot and fair maidens held in the dragon’s lair, the heroic knight must first slay the dragon. Merely injure him, and the fire-breathing monster will turn and devour the knight. So too it is when an outsider...
by Michael Wilkerson | Aug 24, 2023 | Blog Articles, Economy, Energy, Finance, Inflation, Politics, Sanctions
When in 2018 then U.S. President Donald J. Trump warned Germany’s political leadership of the dangers their energy policies posed for the future of their nation, he was scornfully mocked and laughed at by the arrogant and self-satisfied representatives of the European...