Critical Mass Default

Critical Mass-Definition #1. An amount of material (such as plutonium) that is large enough to allow a nuclear reaction to occur.

Definition #2: The size, number, or amount of something that is needed to cause a particular result.

Critical Mass Default (Full)

Critical Mass-Definition #1. An amount of material (such as plutonium) that is large enough to allow a nuclear reaction to occur.

Definition #2: The size, number, or amount of something that is needed to cause a particular result.

China's Crash In Context

This is a follow-up to a post I made a few months ago, US Strength in the Upcoming Monetary Shift. In that previous post, I challenged the notion that the United States would be entering future negotiations for a new monetary system from a position of weakness. It outlined some of the weaknesses of other world powers and some of the strengths of the United States. It was not to say that the US would sit at the head of the table, though I certainly don’t rule that out, only that it would not be absent, left in a pile of rubble. The US will likely have substantial influence. Many in the alternative financial media take it for granted that the US is going to become a third world nation due to its financial, monetary, and fiscal profligacy, with the Russians and Chinese teaching the Yanks a lesson. The reckless actions of the US will have repercussions, but they will be market driven from simple economic laws, not at the hands of other nations. I believe picking foreign powers as the ‘good guys’ is related to a need for retribution for what is perceived, with good reason, as arrogant and atrocious stewardship as a world power. While understandable I think that is more a gut reaction than proper research and analysis. The remainder of this post with focus on China.

Why Governments Love Pensions

While growing up, my parents, like most parents, tried to give me as much information about different career paths as they could to help guide me in my life choices. I remember my mother telling me about how the benefits, particularly retirement, were often better for most government jobs though the pay usually lacked. She would say: “If you want to go into the military, go in as an officer. Stay in for 20 years and you will secure a great retirement in your early 40’s.”

At the time, I wasn’t all that concerned about retirement, but I listened and remembered those words. Now I remember those words, not in choosing a career path but when seeing stories of how various government pension funds are underfunded and likely doomed.