Kerry Lutz's--Financial Survival Network (general)

Our good friend Jason Hartman joined us for a look at the illusion of wealth through debt creation or fake wealth. Has the US been getting poorer or richer since it went off the gold standard. On the one hand, technology has certainly been a prime mover of improving living standards. On the other, stay at home mothers are virtually a thing of the past. How do you reconcile the two?

On a related top, self-liquidating debt on investment properties is on the of the best and most profitable ways to play the currency debasement game. You have an income producing property whose cash flow will continue to increase, while the tenant effectively pays off your mortgage. 

Unfortunately, everyone has gotten in on the game as witnessed by the fact that there's a shortage of these cash flow properties in the market now. 

Nick Santiago is one savvy trader. He was spot-on as far the stock market going higher, last time we spoke. He believes that there's still some life left in the old bull, mainly because there's so much pessimism out there. The dollar is going to recoup its recent losses and this will lead to a continued breakdown in commodities. Gold and silver will continue trading in their current ranges for the foreseeable future. Euro is doomed after all. Much more here to digest. 

Helicopter Moms aren't enough to shield college students from adversity. Safe spaces just don't work. According to the Center for Collegiate Mental Health at Penn State University, which gathers data from 139 institutions, the number of students seeking help jumped 50 percent between 2015 and 2016. Of those students who sought help, 26 percent said they had intentionally hurt themselves; 33.2 percent had considered suicide, numbers higher than the previous year.

And according to the 2016 UCLA Higher Education Research Institute survey of freshmen, nearly 12 percent say they are "frequently" depressed.

More than 75 percent of all mental health conditions begin before the age of 24, according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness, which is why college is such a critical time.

There's nothing normal about this economy! The economy doesn't appear strong. And yet the Fed keeps raising rates. Sub-prime auto loans are going down. Credit card debt is escalating as well as student loan debt. Where's the economy heading? Jordan believes the stock market will keep going higher, but questions whether health care reform and tax reform will ever go through. 

What's Happening Wednesdays with Andrew Hoffman:

Historic PM investment opportunity, following Monday's "pre-Independence Day attack") Cartel raid

Economic Stagnation - CarMaggedon, Construction Spending Etc. - and now, rising interest rates care of a lunatic Fed!

Monetary Destruction - see Illinois, New Jersey, South Africa, etc.

G20 tensions - China, Germany

Geopolitical tensions - North Korea, Syria, Qatar

Etc., etc.

Sharyl Attkisson is a respected investigative reporter who's just released another book, “The Smear: How Shady Political Operatives and Fake News Control What You See, What You Think and How You Vote” The book chronicles a number of different players involved in the DC Smear Machine, how they carrry out their often slanderous activities and why the press is so compliant, often carrying the water for known decelvers. It's a distressing state of affairs that has been getting worse for the past three decades. It's gotten to the point that you can't trust anything the media reports. To not fall pray, you must become a critical thinker and be aware of the tricks they use to control your thoughts. 

Results are in for June 2017. Dow up 1.6%, S&P & Russell also up. TSX and TSX.V down. Emerging markets up slightly. Dollar down 1.4%, Euro up. Rate up to 2.31% on the 10 year Treasury. Bitcoin slowed down to a meager 7.5% but 131/162% for the quarter/half. Gold is down 2.1% and Silver was off 4%. Platinum down 2.4% and Palladium up 2.7%. Copper was 4.3% on the plus side. Energy was down across the board WTI -4.7%, Natgas -1%. Uranium up 3.8% but still very depressed.  

The longer the system keeps going, the more we have to question how much longer it can continue. As Jefferson so aptly stated, "The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants." Are we there yet? On a typical light holiday trading day, we see the stock market is up and precious metals are down. How convenient. Without financial freedom, we truly have no freedom whatsoever. How did we get here? 

As a Tesla owner Mike Gazzola is gladly passing out his Tesla discount code. That way after you've made a killing selling on Amazon, you'll be ready to buy this amazing vehicle and receive a $1000 discount as well as lifetime free charging at Tesla super-charging stations. More importantly, a trip to China with Mike and Matt can be worth its weight in gold (or Bitcoin). You'll review products, find the most profitable ones and hopefully becoming a raging Amazon success. It's not easy, but it's very doable. Mike and Matt show you all the ins and outs of how it's done. 

Also, Mike talks about buying inventory in China and bringing it back for immediate sale. It's very doable and quite profitable as well. 

Steven Down is a lifelong entrepreneur and a great wealth coach. His new restaurant chain Even Stevens is taking off. For every sandwich they sell, they give out a free one to the community. Millennials love it and can't get enough. It's a nice concept that really can help make a difference. And it's great for the bottom line too, as Steven's chain is one of the fastest growing in history. 

Some scams are just too good to die out. Fraudsters have been sending out fake Yellow Pages advertising bills for decades. Even in the Internet era, it still works. If you send it, they will pay. And then there's a group of foreign scammers claiming to be the IRS and they're out to lock you up. Typical fraudsters. The IRS will never call you on the phone out of the blue. They will always identify themselves and they will never threaten arrest. But these scammers don't hesitate. They are truly venal creatures from the dark. 

First Trump was supposed to lose the election. Then the election was going to be tossed out by the courts. Then he was going to lose the recounts. Then his victory in would be taken away by flipping the electors.  And lastly, the real Hail Mary Pass would be Russiagate. Of course none of it came to pass and Trump has been busy pursuing his agenda, while the Establishment and the Democratic Party have been licking their wounds. Trump has been busy at work. Pretty soon we'll all see the results, for better of for worse, 

The Chinese are now trying to buy up the only US Rare Earth mine. Jeff is against this action. The government needs to wise up and understand that this is a national security issue. While these metals aren't rare, currently the Chinese are the major producer. Therefore, it makes sense for the government to the initiative and help the local and US economy. 

Samantha Stone has written a how-to guide for high growth marketing in complex selling environments. She doesn't just tell you what to do, she shows you how to do it, and how to partner with sales to get the right results. Sometimes you're just stuck and you don't know why. Samantha helps you understand why and how to keep going higher. 

Marketers as well as sales and company leaders should read this book to learn how sales can get the most out of marketing. Bring on the collaboration.

Michael Stumo is preparing to testify before Congress on the effects of Nafta (North American Free Trade Agreement) and why it must be dramatically modified or eliminated. It has done untold damage to America's factories and farms. Free trade is all well and good except when you look at how other countries subsidize their export industries. It's time for America to stand up and demand fairness. Michael's plan will create millions of jobs and prosperity at home. 

Rumors are flying about the retirement of Justice Anthony Kennedy. After all, he's 80 years old and enough is enough. He's been the swing vote on the Court for nearly 2 decades. Time to enjoy the family and his lavish government pension. Next, will be the retirement of Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Can't come soon enough. Then it will be a decidedly conservative court with a 6-3 composition. But will it matter, based upon the economy and the resulting political storm? Watch out for increased social unrest. 

Matt Behdjou of AmazonSecrets joined us to discuss selling on Amazon. There's three important questions to ask before embarking on this path. 1) Does it work? 2) Is it easy? 3) Can I do it? The resounding answer to all three of these questions is Yes! The badly kept secret is that it's not just the shareholders of Amazon getting rich. There are many third party sellers using the Amazon platform and getting wealthy in the process. So before you get involved in any business undertaking, ask those three questions and act accordingly. 

There's a lot of discussion about how shale oil is bringing down energy costs and increasing the supply greatly. The question is, "At what cost?" We've seen numerous bankruptcies in the energy patch and these hi-flyers are producing negative cashflow. Is this really what the future looks like? Next, Electric Vehicles or EV's are supposed to solve all our energy/pollution problems. Really? The death of the internal combustion engine is great exaggerated. It's not going to happen overnight or even in a decade, if at all. It's a process that will take a long time. Ending private ownership of vehicles could have great benefits, but don't break out your app for that self-driving Uber car just yet!

Boston University's Professor Laurence Kotlikoff is different than most of his colleagues in academia. He looks for real solutions to real problems that his fellow citizens are living through. Following his advice will help me to realize over $100,000 in lifetime income that I never knew was possible.

Not content to rest on his laurels, he's released 2 incredible financial tools that could potentially help millions. First is the divorce settlement analyzer. Feed in the numbers and change scenarios and it allows both parties to optimize the settlement and will help save on taxes as well! Next, he's created a budget/spending tool that helps you maximize your spending during your lifetime. It's a great tool that can work for almost anyone. Keep up the great work Professor!

What's happening Wednesdays with Andrew Hoffman:

Complete dissociation of Fed "rate hike" with market reality
-rates near lows

-Treasury yield curve historic inversion (in China, too!)

-plunging commodities, EM currencies, OPEC/Saudi chaos ("my newest most likely to catalyze the big one<https://www.milesfranklin.com/my-newest-most-likely-to-catalyze-the-big-one/>")

-today's article, "valuation anomalies suggest historic Precious Metal lows"
Etc.

Keith Neumeyer, Chairman of First Mining Finance and CEO/Director of First Majestic Silver is never one to sit still or rest upon his laurels. In little more than a year, the company made 8 acquisitions, has an inventory of 25 projects and 12 million ounces of gold in the ground.

Now the playing field has changed and so has Keith's strategy for the future. Beginning life as a mineral property bank, First Mining is now drilling to add further value to its projects. It's just another way that Keith is helping to unlock the company's value. He's still open to wise acquisitions and doubts the company will become a producer, but the drill program currently underway promises great returns. And that's without even considering the current market for gold, which promises the possibility of much higher prices ahead. It's a great example of risk-reward leading a company to new horizons. 

Todd Tresidder has an interesting question. Why do certain postal employees and teachers with ordinary incomes achieve financial freedom, while doctors and lawyers earning multiple times more income end up in bankruptcy?

The reason is more complex than most financial gurus teach.

The truth is there's no magic wealth system or program that produces reliable results despite the over-hyped claims of marketers.

Instead, the wealth building process is mundane and practical - like a series of hurdles you must jump over, without tripping up - no different than building your own business or achieving any other serious economic goal.

The hurdles are:

• Commitment so that you prioritize everything necessary to build wealth; otherwise, life will just get in the way.
• Plan based on proven principles that actually work, and it must be uniquely designed to fit your skills, resources, and interests.
• Action because nothing happens without persistent, disciplined action over sufficient time to reach the end goal.

I know that doesn't sound nearly as sexy as the "hidden secrets of the rich" sold by marketer types, but it is timeless wisdom that actually works.

People want to believe in get-rich-quick and overpriced weekend bootcamps because they promise to deliver that "secret missing ingredient" that previously held you back.

The secret is there are no secrets.

$15 trillion has been pumped into the system since the crash. And now the flow of capital has driven asset prices all over the world, especially in Australia. Chinese flight capital has been keeping the world a float. And now Australia has reached a tipping point with debt to income passing 200 percent. With 40 percent of home loans being interest only, there's trouble ahead. And of course oil prices keep going down. What's a regulated bank to do? Extend and pretend has been around for nearly a decade with no end in site and still there's very little growth and very limited bank lending. 

Things are not going well on today's college campuses. From demands for student safe zones, to riots against conservative speakers, to attacks on students' religious beliefs, today's college campus is like nothing we've seen in America before. A group of Jewish students are suing San Francisco State University for refusing to protect their safety and rights. There's a class-action law suit against the DNC for rigging the election against Bernie Sanders. Where is all this heading? 

While history may not repeat, it certainly rhymes. And according to Eric Hadik the financial markets are rhyming very heavily now. The cycles are converging and the stock market appears to be in a heavy topping phase right now. The 7th-8th year of the decade has seen so many panics and crashes that it cannot ignored. 1907, 1917, 1937, 1947, 1957, 2007, every ten years there's always major happening. It's a very powerful cycle. Transports may have already peaked and the warning signs are clearly there. 

Eric has started following crypto-currencies. He called an intermediate top in early June in Bitcoin. Gold is still looking good for the 3rd Quarter of 2017 onward into 2018. Agricultural commodities should be heading up later and oil should be hitting it's low later in the Fall.

Of course no one knows exactly what the future will hold, but we can all get glimpses through cycles.