As Americans, we live in two worlds; the world of mainstream fantasy, and the world of day-to-day reality right outside our front doors. One disappears the moment we shut off our television. The other, does not…
When dealing with the economy, it is the foundation blocks that remain when the proverbial house of cards flutters away in the wind, and these basic roots are what we should be most concerned about. While much of what we see in terms of economic news is awash in a sticky gray cloud of disinformation and uneducated opinion, there are still certain constants that we can always rely on to give us a sense of our general financial environment. Two of these constants are supply and demand. Central banks like the private Federal Reserve may have the ability to flood markets with fiat liquidity to skew indexes and stocks, and our government certainly has the ability to interpret employment numbers in such a way as to paint the rosiest picture possible, but ultimately, these entities cannot artificially manipulate the public into a state of demand when they are, for all intents and purposes, dead broke.
In contrast, the establishment does have the ability to make specific demands or necessities illegal to possess, and can even attempt to restrict their supply. Though, in most cases this leads not to the control they seek, but a sudden and sharp loss of regulation through the growth of covert trade. The people need what the people need, and no government, no matter how titanic, can stop them from getting these commodities when demand is strong enough.
This process of removing necessary or desirable items from a trade environment leads inevitably to counter-prohibition often in the form of strict cash transactions, barter markets, or “black markets” as they are normally derided by those in power. The problem for economic totalitarians is that the harder they squeeze the masses, the more intricate the rebellion becomes, especially when all they want is to participate in free markets the way our forefathers intended.
The so called “drug war” is proof positive of the impossibility of locking down a product, especially one that has no moral bearing on the people who are involved in its use. Only when a considerable majority of a populace can be convinced of the inherent immoral nature of an illicit item can its trade finally be squelched. During any attempt to outlaw a form of commerce, a steady stream of informants convinced of their service to the “greater good” is required for success. Dishonorable governments, therefore, do not usually engage in direct confrontation with black markets. Instead, they seek to encourage the public to view trade outside mainstream legal standards as “taboo”. They must condition us to react with guilt or misplaced righteousness in the face of black market activity, and associate its conduct as dangerous and destructive to the community, turning citizens into an appendage of the bureaucratic eye.
But, what happens when black markets, due to calamity, become a pillar of survival for a society? What happens when the mainstream economy no longer meets the available demand? What happens when this condition has been deliberately engineered by the power structure to hasten cultural desperation and dependence?
In this event, black markets not only sustain a nation through times of weakness, but they also become a form of revolution; a method for fighting back against the centralization of oppressive oligarchies and diminishing their ability to bottleneck important resources. Black markets are a means of fighting back, and are as important as any weapon in the battle for liberty. Here are just a few reasons why such organizational actions may be required in the near future…
The Mainstream Economy Is Slowly Killing Us
There are, unfortunately, some Americans out there who have not caught on yet to the grave circumstances in which we live. Obviously, the stock market seems to have nearly recovered from its epic collapse in 2008 and 2009, and employment, according to the Labor Department, is on the mend. The numbers say it all, right? Wrong! The numbers say very little, especially when they are a product of “creative mathematics”.
Despite the extreme spike in the Dow Jones since 2010, and all the talk of recovery, what the mainstream rarely mentions are the details surrounding this miraculous return from the dead for stocks.
One of the most important factors to consider when gauging the health of the markets is “volume”; the amount of shares being traded and the amount of investors active on any given business day. Since the very beginning of the Dow’s meteoric rise, the markets have been stricken with undeniably low volume interspersed with all too brief moments of activity. In fact, this past January recorded the lowest NYSE volume since 1999:
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-01-23/stock-trading-is-lowest-in-u-s-since-2008.html
Market volume has tumbled over 20% since last year, and is down over 50% from 2008 when the debt implosion began:
http://blogs.wsj.com/marketbeat/2012/02/24/trading-volume-anemic-this-year/
So then, if trade is sinking, why has the Dow jumped to nearly 13,000? Low volume is the key. In a low volume market, less individual investors are present to counteract the buying and selling of larger players, like international banks. When this happens, the big boys are able to trigger market spikes, or market drops, literally at will. Add to this the high probability that much of the stimulus that the Federal Reserve has regurgitated into the ether probably ended up in the coffers of corporate banks which then used the funny money to snap up equities, and presto! Instant market rally! But, a rally that is illusory and unstable.
Improving employment numbers are yet another financial hologram. As most of us in the Liberty Movement are well aware, the Labor Department does not calculate true unemployment in the U.S. Instead, it merely calculates those people who currently receive unemployment benefits. Once a person hits the extension limit (99 weeks in many states) on his benefits, he is removed from the rolls, and is no longer counted in the “official” unemployment percentage. While Barack Obama and MSM pundits are quick to point out the drop in jobless to 8.3%, what they conveniently fail to mention is that MILLIONS of Americans have been unemployed for so long that they have been removed from the statistics entirely, and this condition is what has caused the primary fall in jobless percentages, not burgeoning business growth.
Roughly 11 million Americans who are jobless have nonetheless been excluded from the statistical government tally because of a loss of benefits:
http://dailycaller.com/2012/02/17/white-house-economic-report-hides-sharp-drop-in-number-of-working-americans/
According to the Congressional Budget Office, over 40% of the currently unemployed have been so for over 6 months. It also points out that America is suffering the worst case of long term unemployment since the Great Depression:
http://www.cbo.gov/sites/default/files/cbofiles/attachments/02-16-Unemployment.pdf
More than 10.5 million people in the U.S. also receive disability payments, which automatically removes them from the unemployment count, making it seem as though jobs are being created, rather than lost:
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2012/02/19/report-millions-jobless-file-for-disability-when-unemployment-benefits-run-out/
Around 8.2 million Americans only work part time, meaning they work less hours than are generally considered to be necessary for self-support. These people are still counted as “employed” even if they work a few hours a week.
True unemployment, according to John Williams of Shadowstats, is hovering near 23%:
http://www.shadowstats.com/alternate_data/unemployment-charts
Combine these circumstances with the ever weakening dollar, price inflation in foods and other commodities, and rocketing energy costs, and you have an economy that is strangling the life out of the middle-class and the poor in this country. It is only a matter of time before the populace begins searching for alternative means of subsistence, even if that entails “illegal” activities.
Government Cracking Down On Freedom Of Trade
I was recently walking through the parking lot of a grocery store and ran into a group of women huddled intently around the back of a mini-van. One of the women was reaching into a cooler and handing out glass containers filled with milk. I approached to ask if she was selling raw milk, and if so, how much was she charging. Of course, they turned startled and wide eyed as if I had just stumbled upon their secret opium ring. Somehow it had slipped my mind how ferocious the FDA has become when tracking down raw milk producers. The fact that these women were absolutely terrified of being caught with something as innocuous as MILK was disturbing to me. How could we as a society allow this insanity on the part of our government to continue?
That moment reminded me of the utter irrelevance of petty law, as well as the determination of human beings to defy such law.
The Orwellian hammer has been thrust in the face of those who trade in raw milk, organic produce, and herbal supplements, while small businesses are annihilated by government dues and red tape. In the meantime, law enforcement officials have been sent strapped to shut down children’s lemonade stands (no, seriously):
http://www.cbsnews.com/2100-500164_162-20079838.html
Government legislation which would give the FDA jurisdiction over personal gardens has been fielded. Retail gold and silver purchases of over $600 are now tracked and taxed. The IRS even believes it has the right to tax barter exchanges, even though they do not explain how bartered goods could be legally qualified as “income”, or how they can conceive of ever being able to trace such private trade:
http://www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=205581,00.html
Want to choose what kind of currency you would like to use to protect your buying power? Not if the Department Of Justice’s Anne Tompkins has anything to say about it. After the railroading of Liberty Dollar founder Bernard von NotHaus, she stated:
“Attempts to undermine the legitimate currency of this country are simply a unique form of domestic terrorism…”
“While these forms of anti-government activities do not involve violence, they are every bit as insidious and represent a clear and present danger to the economic stability of this country,” she added. “We are determined to meet these threats through infiltration, disruption, and dismantling of organizations which seek to challenge the legitimacy of our democratic form of government.”
http://www.fbi.gov/charlotte/press-releases/2011/defendant-convicted-of-minting-his-own-currency
As our economic situation grows increasingly precarious in this country, more and more people will turn towards localized non-corporate, non-mainstream business methods and products. And, the government will no doubt attempt to greatly restrict or tax these alternatives. This mentality is driven in part by their insatiable appetite for money, but mostly, it’s about domination. They do what they do because they fear decentralized markets, and the ability of the citizenry to conceive of choices outside the system. Slaves are not supposed to choose the economy they will participate in…
A “black market” is only a trade dynamic that the government disapproves of, and the government disapproves of most things these days. Frankly, its time to stop worrying about what Washington D.C. consents to. They have unfailingly demonstrated through rhetoric and action that they are not interested in the fiscal or social health of this nation, and so, we must take matters into our own hands.
Black Market Advantages
If the events in EU nations such as Greece, Spain, and Italy are any indication, the U.S., with its massive debt to GDP ratio (real debt includes entitlement programs), is looking at one of two possible scenarios: default, austerity measures, and high taxes, or, hyperinflation, and then default, austerity measures, and high taxes. In the past we have mentioned barter networking and alternative market programs springing up in countries like Greece and Spain allowing the people to cope with the faltering economy. Much of this trade is done away from the watchful eyes of government, simply because they cannot afford the gnashing buffalo-sized bites that bureaucrats would take from their savings in the process. When a government goes rogue, and causes the people harm, the people are in no way obligated to continue supporting that government.
Black markets give the citizenry a means to protest the taxation of a government that no longer represents them. In a country stricken with austerity, these networks allow the public to thrive without having to pay for the mistakes or misdeeds of political officials and corporate swindlers. In a hyperinflationary environment, black markets (or barter markets that have been deemed unlawful), can be used to supplant the imploding fiat currency altogether, and energize community markets that would otherwise be unable to function. Ultimately, black markets feed and clothe the grassroots movement towards economic responsibility, and every man and woman with any sense of independence should rally around this resource with the intention to fight should it ever be threatened.
“Legality” is arbitrary in the face of inherent conscience, or what some call “natural law”. Without arbitrary legality, and unjust and unwarranted regulation, many federal alphabet agencies would not exist, including the FDA, the IRS, the EPA, the BLM, etc. These institutions do not matter. What they say has no meaning. What matters is what is honorable, what is factual, and what is right. Our loyalty, as Americans, is to our principles and our heritage. Beyond that, we don’t owe anyone anything. A black market in one place and time is a legitimate market in another. For now, private localized trade is able to flow with only minor interference, but there will come a day when even the most practical and harmless personal transactions will be visited with administrative reproach and vitriol. Alternative market champions will be accused of “extremism”, and undermining the mainstream economy. We will be vilified as separatists, isolationists, terrorists, and traitors. I believe it will be far more surreal than what we can possibly imagine now.
They are welcome to call us whatever they like. Honestly……who cares? Let the paper pushers do their angry little dance. The goal is freedom; in life, in politics, and in trade. If we do not change how this country does business ourselves, the results will be far more frightening than any government agent at our doorstep, and the costs will be absolute…
You can contact Brandon Smith at: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
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written by afoofa , March 02, 2012
Another well written article from You. When one is somewhat prepared, (to the extent one has the means to do so) for the consequences of doing something "Deemed" illegal, then one does not need Government granted permission. Government Agencies fail (intentionally,) at effectively ceasing any and all Child Pornography (Child Abuse it should truthfully be called). They will fail also at ceasing the determined good will of thinking men and women in America. Hope/Trust You are learning much in Your new geographic location.
From
British Columbia
Canada
written by Yoda , March 02, 2012
Kudos Mr. Smith: Accurate prediction.
Should pea green President Obama get his way, we will all be starving and freezing in the dark hoping our windmill's will turn around.
Communist Neighborhood Coming To Your Neighborhood.
http://www.magnifiedview.com/2010/09/17/yodas-little-known-tactics-to-avoid-being-a-target/
Right on Mr. Smith - Write on!
Be aware - Be prepared!.
Cordially, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it '> This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
P.S. "May you live in interesting times" Ancient Chinese curse.
written by tdavs , March 03, 2012
Brandon this is what I am talking about. The kind of article that I can proudly take to the people around me. Something to help me to educate and motivate . The truth and nothing but the truth. My friend Paul does not not want me to attack you anymore!!
Now what about all those people who live off the govt.The ones who will stab us in the back ,those who have taken the number of the beast and are to blind or lazy or unprepared,how do we deal with them. I know some that I have known for 4O years and they would tirn me in to the nazis so that they could continue to get their coolaid.
When does a person, such as myself, when do I shut the door on them. If they will not see the light and would condemn all of us to thier nightmare,if you include the union civil servants and elected officials, we are a mionrity. I have searche for a group that I could call my allies,and I must say there is no such thing. To even mention this situation to most people you get all kinds of objections. I know in the past you have listed all of these objections and ways to counter them,but it is very difficult to convince them.
When the time comes it is going to be very messy and violent,the man who is prepard to act and act quickly will have the best chance of survival.but to be that person would or could create a monster . I pray for the wisdom and strength to make the right decisions, for I am prepared and ever vigilant.
PS. Any idea why I am unable to pass your security with my name in the name box?
written by Brandon Smith , March 03, 2012
@tdavs
Not sure what security you are referring to? Are you having trouble posting? As far as I know it shouldn't do that, regardless of what name you use.
written by drummer , March 03, 2012
Over the years I have tried to educate my friends and prettty much got looked at like I was not in my right mind. The last one I tried to educate was a friend whom I thought was a person that would be receptive, boy was I wrong!
He came out swinging his crap at me like I was the biggest idiot he'd ever met. Told me (while frothing at the mouth) that he was a history buff and was not about to listen to me any more.
I guess this history came from a news tv screen.
So I do my own thing and look after myself.
Drummer
written by Liberty4ev , March 03, 2012
What a fabulous article!!! I think you nailed every single item of government tyranny that is pushing honest, decent people into a "life of crime". My personal experience is that most don't (yet) view participating in these markets as fighting back, but rather as a means of survival. Thank you so much for writing this. I will share it widely.
written by CM , March 03, 2012
Great article Brandon.
This one is getting posted all over the place, featured on a number of sites and the comments are all rave reviews!
I really appreciate your ability to articulate and simplify such expansive and often complicated issues. You are reaching people friend. Thank you! Now let's do it!
written by Sunny , March 03, 2012
Most excellent article, Brandon. The rebel flag on my wall stands for a whole lot more than it's original intent. I, for one, am not going down without a fight for the freedom that is my God given right. Thank you for pointing out that those who "get it" have been preparing for such a time as this.
written by msquare58 , March 03, 2012
The black market is already occurring with a cash only economy.Many of the people that have run out of unemployment or quit looking for work but not employed have to survive somehow. They are working for cash only jobs. No deductions just cash.This is becoming a large and growing underground economy.
written by Brandon Smith , March 03, 2012
@SG
The FDA lets cancer causing substances (like aspartame and rBGH hormones) on the market ALL THE TIME. They're not protecting you from anything. If you had ever done any research into how the FDA actually functions, and how it placates big pharma and big agro, you wouldn't be making such naive comments.
As far as the EPA goes, why not live near ANY of the multiple Dioxin tainted sites across the U.S. which they ignore because they are bought and paid for by Monsanto. Though they seem to be very concerned with taking away the livelihoods of small farmers and labeling carbon a "harmful substance" without any concrete scientific data to back their claims.
The only thing laughable here is your moronic belief that these institutions exist to "save" you. Have you always been considered the dupe in your family, or are they all just like you?
written by jyyda , March 04, 2012
SG you are a perfect example of how we got here. When you leave all decisions to crooked politicians ,and you fail to keep them in check,you opened yourself up to abuse. We the people shuold never let our bazsic needs get into the hands of big corperations,who now have the rights of people with out the moral terpitude (kind of like the fox guarding the hen house) we have to get back to taking care of oiur selves. This is the only way to beat them pull the rug out from under there legs.
If ten percent of Americans would walk away from the system for 2 days , it would show big corp. Who the boss realy is,and maybe show the rest of the people the true path of survival.
Big govt + big buisiness = big corruption.
It sickens me when people like sg place thier personal comfort ahead of the needs of our children. May you rot in Hell.
written by SilverMoon , March 04, 2012
I agree....great article. Let the barter system spread like a wild fire because, once people start using the barter system, they will keep using it.
written by joe bassett , March 04, 2012
We just have to turn off the tv and quit eating processed junk food. We have to quit drinking sodas and don't drink water unless you kow what's in it. We need to do things eith the family and close friends. Things like ping pong, darts, badminton and tennis are fun and cheap when compared to bowling and going to the movies.
written by mike holecheck , March 04, 2012
Country folks have so much to barter. You can trade poduce, crabs, fish, mu skrats, work o n th e home and grass cu tting, wo rking o n yo u r vehicle and babysitting yo u r ki ds.
written by mike holecheck , March 04, 2012
You have to ask yourself why can't you sell milk? I mean can I sell ynmou my tap water? Can I sell you orange juice off my trees? Can I sell you apple juice. What about veggies and fruit? Whmat about fish I have caught. The raw milk issue they don't want people to bypass the governmetn. If everyone s tarted buying from farmers they would bypass the grocery store and that's a middle man they don't want to e xclude.
written by bangon , March 04, 2012
This article is bang on. The one thing that PIIGS countries have in common is a large underground economy. The result is that their host governments can no longer raise money through taxes. It is also the one thing that will ensure the collapse is limited to the political and bureaucratic classes and the banks...where it should be.
written by Romantic Violence , March 15, 2012
What people fail to realize is that State governments can be equally or more exceedingly more oppressive that centralized federal governments. Do any government for that matter, truly represent interests of the masses? I trust no one to represent my interests but me.
written by hank , March 15, 2012
See the following article to learn about what bullion does and doesn't get tracked.
written by hank , March 15, 2012
just google:
irs 1099 selling gold and silver and you will find one article from goldsilver com and everhedge blogspot
written by Country Boy , March 20, 2012
Very informative, and enlightening - agree 100%. You can't control everything even if you try. Over regulation is killing America. There are too many laws that make outlaws of ordinary citizens for ordinary circumstances. That must be reversed. Our politicians are grabbing power for no reason other than to acquire more of it.
We as citizens can come together and change it, but I doubt it will happen without everyone of us suffering severely through to entire crash and eventual recovery to the end. Those left alive will then understand.
I myself believe that it is the punishment of God for our sins against him and his ways. All will suffer for allowing these transgressions over the years; we have lost our way, and need to return to honest, godly ways. Until everyone repents and begins to follow the correct way of living, everything will continue to get worse.
Our country, no, the world, is on the fast track to Hell on earth right now, and the ride is just beginning. Nothing that has ever been will compare. If you think about it, you can see why. The good news is the end is at hand, and some will make it through alive. Pray hard that you and your loved ones will be counted in that number.
written by infoseeker , May 28, 2014
You must show ID for any amount. Just sold under $300. The buyers cant sell/melt for 2 weeks due to law. I was told "cops in here every week". This is a major coin store not some low life place. Every aspect of freedom is going down the drain.
