| By Bill Bonner Monday, November 30, 2020 BALTIMORE, MARYLAND – Back in the U.S., we are woozy… out of phase. Like a wilting orchid in the Arctic. We landed in Miami. It felt like a foreign country. We rented a car. The idea was to drive up the coast, pausing to visit friends and family. First, we were surprised at how many people were in the airport and how many cars there were on I-95. We didn’t think the Plague had let so many get away. We stopped for the night in Savannah. The old part of the city is gracious and beautiful. It was designed in 1733. Even back then, people knew how to lay out an attractive town. It is surprising that they’ve built so many ugly ones since then. There, too, there were people out and about… all wearing masks, of course. It was as if everyone decided to rob a bank at the same time. | Recommended Link | | The most dangerous and potentially explosive move we've ever seen Nothing like this has come along before. Most likely nothing will again as long as we live. No one can seem to agree on where it's headed... but New York Times best-selling financial author Bill Bonner has brought together some of the best minds in the world to get some solid answers. These are men who predicted exactly the situation we are now in, who understand how it all works, and who are now showing their readers how to make (or preserve) money, rather than lose it. Don't get caught in the crowd. | | | -- | Puzzling and Strange Yesterday, back on the family farm in Maryland, for a moment, we were puzzled to see the sun to the south of us. For the last nine months, it has reliably arced across the northern sky. And it was low. Even at noon, it barely rose above the treetops. A week ago, it was almost directly overhead. And then, in the hardware store, we were caught off guard again: “Sir, you have to wear a face mask to come in here.” Everywhere you go, people are wearing the holy rag. Even old friends are hard to recognize. Catching up with them is odd, too. One said she “didn’t feel comfortable” coming for a visit with the coronavirus on the loose. Another said his family had not celebrated Thanksgiving. The risk was low, he admitted, but “why take chances?” Don't Be Left Empty Handed — Why Banks Bought 1,300 Tons of Gold. Taking Chances Of course, taking chances is what we do. We cross the street. We eat mushrooms. We fall in love. Heck, we even invade foreign countries. We run risks all our lives. From our first whimper – as soon as we leave our mothers’ wombs – to the final sound of mud falling on our coffins… life is risks – and rewards. But do face masks reduce the risk? Last week, many dear readers wrote to say that we were wrong about face masks. They are scientifically proven to work, they say. They especially insisted that masks “protect other people” from your germs. The very next day, a news item in The Daily Beast suggested that they were right: New CDC Study Shows Mask Orders Work – No Matter What Governors Think A new study released by the Centers for Disease Control on Friday adds to the evidence that mask mandates do, in fact, slow the spread of the coronavirus. The researchers looked at Kansas while it was in the throes of a surge this summer. Gov. Laura Kelly implemented a statewide mask requirement, but counties were allowed to opt out of it. Some did and some did not, giving epidemiologists a chance to do side-by-side comparisons. And what they found was clear-cut: counties that abided by Kelly’s mandate saw their cases drop 6 percent, while those that shunned a mandate saw increases of 100 percent. But “slowing the spread” is not the same as keeping you from dying. Is it a good idea to “slow the spread”? Or would it be better to isolate those at risk… and let the virus spread quickly, so that life could get back to normal? | Recommended Link | | NOW PLAYING
Teeka's Biggest Crypto Opportunity EVER? Teeka just made an accidental discovery… And it's giving you ONE LAST CHANCE to make up for all the crypto gains you may have missed out on. He's sharing everything in an urgent "Catch-Up" event – including the name and ticker of his top pick. HURRY! This event is closing midnight tonight! | | | -- | Social Science Of course, we don’t know. And neither does anyone else. This is social science… not real science. It involves not just the actions of a virus… but the actions of humans, too. And in human activity… there’s always more to the story. There’s risk… and reward. A 90-year-old may be safer if he locks himself in his house and refuses to see his granddaughter. But where’s the reward? In the Financial Times is a report that in China, one of the main places the virus spreads is in ballroom dancing classes. But who would want to give that up? It may be safer to drive under 30 mph… but it will take a long time to go from Miami to Annapolis. Besides, humans are not like iron filings or even tree squirrels. They react as well as act – often in subtle, science-confounding ways. In the above-cited study, for example, the counties and states that pushed face masks on their citizens were those that had been worst-hit. Maybe they had less of the virus going forward simply because they had already had more of it and there were fewer people left to be infected. Or maybe… with so much coronavirus on the loose in the worst-hit counties… people there took extra precautions. Meanwhile, in the counties with little coronavirus, people may have seen little need for the masks… But they were virgin territory for the virus; naturally, when it arrived there, it found more targets. What does this prove? Nothing. We don’t know why some counties had fewer cases than others. And we don’t know what the final score will be. Strange Holdings In Buffett's Portfolio… Weak Hypothesis But the Mask Hypothesis is weak. Argentina has had one of the strictest mask-up rules in the world. Gauchos, riding alone, way out on the prairies, were required to wear face masks (obviously, it is difficult to enforce). With roadblocks every 20 miles or so, police checked to see if people were masked up. Every weekend, we drove up to our ranch in Gualfin. And every time, we had to put on the face covering before we got to the police stop – even though we were in our own car. How did it work out for the Argentines? After nine months of roadblocks… compulsive, Lady Macbeth-style handwashing… enforced social distancing… and mandatory masks, they have suffered 848 deaths per million. In other words, not only did the masks not protect the wearers… they didn’t protect other people, either. The U.S. has had hit-or-miss masking. Still, only 823 people per million have died from the coronavirus here. And Sweden, which is said to have the most relaxed mask policy in the world, had fewer still – 660 per million. What do we make of these numbers? They prove nothing. But they hint that as a matter of public policy, mask-wearing requirements don’t really do much good. The disease goeth where it willst. | Recommended Link | This Is America's New War (Not Coronavirus) While everyone has been distracted by the coronavirus, a new type of war is erupting in America. It's got nothing to do with our political parties – but will DEFINITELY affect you and your money. You must now choose which side you'll be on. | | | - | Self-Protection But what about private policy? What can you do to protect yourself? We’re over 70 with a history of lung problems. If we get it, well, there’s no way to know how it will go. So we’re going to try to avoid it. All we know for sure is that the ultimate death toll will be 100%. The best we can do is try to live as long as we can – without becoming an embarrassment to the family. Regards, Bill
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As Joe Biden prepares to enter the White House in January 2021, he is shoring up his transition team. Who will be in his corner? And what is their economic perspective? Click here to find out. MAILBAG In today’s mailbag, the face mask debate continues… This is not only about masks. How far does our concern and protection of others need to go? Considering that a flu bug of some sort will always be present, is it to be expected that our mask wearing, quarantining, and lockdown days will never end, either? Can the most susceptible to the worst result from COVID-19 not manage to protect themselves? When did we all become so helpless? How many of the elderly of the world would give anything to have a year of their youth back, yet expect the youth of today to give up living their lives of freedom, their jobs, financial prospects, and their enjoyments so another day, month, or year may be added to the end of a life that just goes on? Selfishness is not only on the side of the mask deniers. As one in the middle of the age spectrum, both ends are visible. In this case, the elderly are not protecting the lives of the youth, which will have dire consequences long after the lives of those at risk are passed. – Randy K. The readers who support mask wearing are missing a few points. Mask wearing in the general population is useless, for several reasons. The virus is anywhere from .06-1.2 microns in diameter. The blue mask that most wear will only filter down to .30 microns, and cloth masks are even less effective. Figure that out. I would guess most people who use the blue mask, which is ill-fitting, and thus ill-suited for preventing the escape of viral particles, if, in fact, there are any. The masks used in the surgical setting are much better than the masks worn in public. The surgeon never touches them, and they are changed every two hours in an extended surgery. Why? Because the mask becomes saturated with bacteria and other microbes and become ineffective. Most people, from what I have seen, use a mask repeatedly over several days and longer. If the virus is in the air, that which doesn’t pass through collects on the mask. The person then touches the mask to adjust it, touches other objects, door handles, products in a store, gas nozzles, etc. All of which have the potential to have the virus on them. They then touch various bodily orifices, which are vectors for entry into the body. They stuff the mask in their filthy pockets when not wearing it. They place it down on filthy surfaces, into their dirty cupholders in their car, after they go to the bathroom, and then put it back on like good and obedient serfs. Day after day. Scratch the surface and you quickly see the futility and silliness of wearing them. – Chris C. Meanwhile, one dear reader has kind words for Bill following his Argentina “going-away” party… In the little time that I have been a subscriber, I have found that you are honest, intelligent and have common sense. Your family can and should be proud of you and Elizabeth and your attempts to live life in meaningful ways. In your recent article about preparing to leave the ranch and the “going-away” party that you held, I was struck by how much value you had added to yours and the ranch community’s lives. I’m for betting that these past nine months have been among some of the best in your life, regarding human interaction. Being a small-business owner, I can relate to what you and Elizabeth have tried to be to these people. They look to you for incomes and a sense of purpose for the good of their families, and they look up to you and your wife because of your characters. May God continually bless you. – James M. How are you protecting yourself from COVID-19? Are today’s elderly populations neglecting the safety of younger ones, as Chris believes? Write us at feedback@rogueeconomics.com. IN CASE YOU MISSED IT… FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: We apologize if this seems abrupt… but millionaire angel investor Jeff Brown needs to talk to you. In one day, a tiny biotech company could start to soar up to 1,000%; over the next 12 months, it could grow a tiny stake into a nest egg. And Jeff has agreed to televise his Biotech Masterclass to help you prepare. I don’t want to steal his thunder. You need to see this for yourself. RSVP today for this free event. CLICK HERE TO RSVP. 
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