 |
A few days before our colleague Larry Edelson passed away in March, he made a shocking final prediction; and his chosen successor, Mike Burnick, will be telling you about it soon.
At the same time, Larry also reiterated his long-standing forecast about the coming tidal wave of sovereign debt crises — first striking Europe, then Japan, and ultimately, the United States.
But this story is not just about massive, unpayable sovereign debts. Nor is it limited strictly to a behind-the-scenes crisis in government bond markets. It’s also a story about economic, social and political upheaval; and in the case of the European Union, possible dismemberment.
|
Look for these obscene profits! At this very moment, a small handful of rogue companies are quietly creating armies of new millionaires. They’re doing it by producing things your mother warned you about: Products some claim are “sinful” … “forbidden” … even “scandalous.” Definitely NOT Politically Correct. Their products are so provocative, in fact, their very names are often whispered in polite company. Click here to read my free report now! — Bill Hall |
Why French Elections Are NOT the Exception
The first round of French presidential elections was a shocker as anti-EU candidate Marine Le Pen won a place in the second round. Now, the second round, to be held this coming Sunday, will also be a shocker, but probably in the opposite direction. Of course, anything is possible, but this time, pro-EU Emmanuel Macron seems on his way to a landslide victory.
 |
| Even if Marine Le Pen loses to Emmanuel Macron in France this coming Sunday, the anti-EU movement continues to gain momentum. |
So, if things pan out as expected, one week from today, you’ll wake up to big headlines like “Marine Le Pen Trounced in Landmark Defeat,” or “European Union Makes Startling Comeback.”
Don’t be fooled. No matter who wins on Sunday, France remains a key factor in the European Union’s future demise. Even The New York Times, whose editors would much prefer a stable, united Europe, recognizes that …
- the rise of populist, anti-EU parties is a long-term trend that could destabilize Europe …
- the trend is gaining momentum; and
- the French elections are a classic example.
In the Times’ Interpreter column, authors Max Fisher and Amanda Taub explain it this way:
“[Populism] triumphed in the British vote to leave the European Union and in the American presidential race, fell short in the Dutch elections, won its greatest-ever success in France’s first presidential round, and faces likely humiliation in the second round.
“But these results may not be as contradictory as they seem. Populism, research suggests, has been steadily growing since the 1960s. It is now reaching a size that is often too small to win outright, but is large enough to shape and, at times, to upend the politics of a country. …
“Marine Le Pen, the leader of the far-right National Front party in France, demonstrated in the presidential election’s first round how far her movement has come. …
“Over time, the party has steadily improved its performance. In 1988, it won 14 percent. In 2002, the only other year it made it to the second round, 17 percent; in 2012, 18 percent. This year, Ms. Le Pen won 21 percent of the vote, which put her in the second round.
“This has been the story of populism across Europe: a steady rise over the course of decades.”
Not a problem for the global economy? You wish!
Combining the GDP of all 28 member nations, the European Union is the largest economy in the world, spanning 1,669,808 square miles. It’s among the most closely linked to the United States culturally and financially. Its central bank was among the quickest and most aggressive in mimicking America’s mad race to print money. And it is showing many signs of coming apart at the seams.
|
Wall Street millionaire’s surprising confession: High school dropout uses secret market indicator to predict bull and bear markets with pinpoint accuracy. Now, he’s predicting the start of another raging bull market. This could be the biggest bull run American history. Now is your chance to profit. |
| External Sponsorship |
France’s finances are a mess. Italy’s are worse. And they’re far from being the poorest or most indebted economies of the European Union.
Plus, there’s one more, even bigger problem that’s aggravating the push to dismember the union: The huge income inequality between member nations. It’s jarring. And it’s getting worse year-by-year.
Consider the yearly income per capita back in in 2009:
- In Germany, it was a hefty $41,890;
- in Spain, only $32,412;
- in Greece, a meager $29,819;
- in Portugal, a miserly $23,122, and
- In Poland, less than half that much — $11,454!
But now the gap is far worse:
- Germany: Income per capita surged to $47,852 in 2014, and would have risen even further had it had not received over one million impoverished migrants.
- Spain: By 2016, it fell even further, to $27,012.
- Greece: By 2016, it plunged to $18,078.
- Portugal: Down to $19,759.
- Poland: Barely begun to improve, inching up to just $12,309.
Clearly, some of the richest European countries have managed to recover from their Great Recession of 2008-10. But many of the poorer countries have slid further into an already-dark hole.
 |
This megatrend is similar to the divisive, strife-generating, income-inequality story I’ve described for the United States. But in the European Union, in addition to generating resentment and disdain between social classes, it has fomented envy and anger among member nations. It has helped drive mass migration from poorer to richer countries. And it has set the stage for possible political disintegration of the European Union.
Then came the refugee crisis of 2015 …
For many politicians, the refugee crisis was the beginning of their political Armageddon. All across the Continent, anti-EU political parties, on the rise even before 2015, jumped on the crisis to rally mass popular support, push for greater independence, even demand a clean break from the European Union.
In Hungary, the right-wing nationalist conservative Fidesz party had enjoyed an absolute majority under the leadership of Viktor Orbán since 2010, followed by record-high voter support in 2016. The party’s agenda was viewed as so extreme, said EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana, that if Hungary were applying for EU membership in 2016, it would be flatly rejected.
In Poland, the fiercely anti-EU party, Law and Justice (PiS), gained an absolute majority with parliamentary elections in October 2015, and, despite some popular disenchantment, will continue to rule at least until 2019.
In the Netherlands, the Freedom Party under Geert Wilders, vows to immediately pull the country out of the EU. Although this platform was rejected by voters in 2014 and 2017, Wilders has pulled the governing centrist parties sharply to the right, declaring that the “EU is finished.”
In Austria, the Freiheitliche Partei Österreichs (FPÖ) is also traditionally anti-EU, despite recent backpedaling. In 2016, FPÖ candidate Norbert Hofer came within a hair of winning. Moreover, for the first time since the end of World War II, both of the country’s establishment parties are shut out.
In Germany, the newly emergent Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) has had more popular support than at any time in history, just a few percentage points behind the centrist Social Democrats. Until 2016, although the party was staunchly against the euro, it was ambivalent about the EU. But then, riding high on an anti-immigration platform, their new manifesto was very clear: To abolish the EU forever.
Despite any setbacks for these emergent parties, this is bad news for the euro, bad news for the European Union, and ultimately, a contagion that could spread beyond the Continent.
Larry was right and will be right again. Anyone who follows the path he laid out will be empowered — to save a fortune, make a fortune, or both.
If you haven’t done so already, be sure to visit The Edelson Institute, which he founded and which Mike Burnick now leads.
Good luck and God bless!
Martin
Dr. Weiss founded Weiss Research in 1971 and has dedicated his entire career to helping millions of average investors find truly safe havens and investments. He is Chairman of the Weiss Group, which includes Weiss Research and Weiss Ratings, the nation’s leading independent rating agency accepting no fees from rated companies. His last three books have all been New York Times Bestsellers and his most recent title is The Ultimate Money Guide for Bubbles, Busts, Recession and Depression.
{ 15 comments }
awesome
“History shows that the money changers have used every form of abuse, intrigue, deceit and violent means possible to maintain control over governments by controlling the money and the issuance of it.”
President James A. Madison
When “Banks” lose political control over a nation, that only leaves one other avenue to regain control.
“(The Great Depression resulting from the Stock Market crash) was not accidental. It was a carefully contrived occurrence….The international bankers sought to bring about a condition of despair here so they might emerge as rulers of us all.”
Rep. McFadden testified in Congress (1933).
“Give me control over a man’s economic actions, and hence over his means of survival, and except for a few occasional heroes, I’ll promise to deliver to you men who think and write and behave as I want them to.”
Benjamine A. Rooge
Populism is going to continue to grow until the only means left to the banks is a “Worldwide Depression” created by them that will result in a “One World Government” ran by the banks.
Yep. Europe will soon be divide de in 2 groups. 10 with power and the other, well…
The stable government in the region is that of Switzerland. Thanks to a federal system that leaves Cantons free to decide many matters for themselves, there is no resistance against the Swiss central government, as it does not make a pest of itself.
The only way that Brussels can salvage the European Union experiment, is to decentralize and devolve power. The only way to achieve “more Europe”, is by making Brussels more helpful and less intrusive
Of course, it was the intrusiveness of the member nations that misled many Europeans down the path of centralism, a few decades ago That’s​ the idea that must work itself out, ultimately.
O my goodness , when is gold going to start it’s rise to $5000 oz ?
great job
Refugee Crisis?
More like an invasion. Martin, you are keen to remind us about history, and how it tends to repeat itself. This so called refugee problem is simply a 21st century version of what we’ve seen before, except this time the impact will be greater, as well as permanent.
Back to the financial impact aspect …. Europe as we knew it is gone. It won’t matter who gets elected now, or going forward. The die was cast long ago, sadly.
Martin is contradicting himself. First he says the refugee crisis is bad. Then he suggests populism is good because it combats that. Then why should Europe collapse? Furthermore his math is terrible. He suggests Pen will continue to become more popular since her vote percentage has increased over time. But they elected a candidate who will bring in more Muslims. How does that increase Le Pen’s votes? The old are dying and the young are indoctrinated by universities to hate Le Pen. Mike, you are right. Europe is finished.
I concurr with your comments regarding how fragile the EU and the Euro are. Although an American, I was working for a German firm when the Euro was introduced and my pay was changed from Marks to Euros. I would tell my German, French and British colleagues that I expected the whole system to collapse, and explain the reasons that I felt that way (too many to get into here). They never defended the concept, but sometimes nodded their heads.
It does not require the South to initiate a break up of the EU; after all, the Euro allows the southern countries to export to the north the inflation that would result from their entitlement spendings in a way that could not be done without the EU and the Euro being in place. Germany on the other hand, resists Draghi’s efforts to issue common bonds for the EU. Both Germany and Austria resist the push towards digital currency to replace cash. In both these countries cash payments still account for about 80% of all transactions, including numerous payments for large transactions. Approximately 80% of Euro money printed began life at the Bundesbank.
It surprises me that the EU and the Euro have held up this long; but now more than ever, I see dark clouds forming in the north that will bring more than just rain.
Hi Martin,
Always look forward to your Monday morning articles. Always very informative.
I am a veteran of the Gulf and Afghanistan. Three years ago not one chador or burka in the square of my 40,000 strong rural community – only Europeans drinking coffee, eating ice cream, and enjoying the sun. Now, hundreds of chadors and burkas always met with silence traverse the square – the male in the lead with his oldest son, the wife and other children following behind. I can’t go there anymore as too many friends have been killed by women in such attire with explosive vests. I have spoken with several and they appear to be good people but they respond to the Mullahs only, their religious leaders, who want Sharia and the muslimization of Europe. It will probably happen second to their high birth rate… My view of this massive Immigration is very grim but I wish NO harm to these People… I ‘ve seen enough of that in three wars.
I agree with you. The change is coming and it is not for the good. No one of good will wishes others harm. But when a force enters your community that is bent on destruction…..you ultimately have to make a choice…..be destroyed or fight back.
It must be discouraging to fight a religion that was simultaneously allowed to invade your country. If you take issue with me using the word, “religion” above, you are deluding yourself. The people who are “extremist” are the ones who know the Quran a lot better than the “moderate” ones. Furthermore, you need to familiarize yourself with the term “taqiyya”. It would help you understand the motivations and intent of the “nice” ones.
Since the 1980’s the Conservativess have greatly increased their spending through Dark Pools which have gotten far more Conservative politions elected. During that time Income Inequity has increased geometrically as the Middle Class got crushed along with our economy.
This has also happen throughout the Free World as Russian Political Interference has increased with the new funds brought by their increased oil production thanks to our biggest oil companies being allowed to help them since Cheney/bush…… See the connection here?
Until more voters see the connection between the Conservative rise and the Economic Destruction going on in America and the rest of the Free World, things are only going to get worse….
Buyer Beware!… :(
Do you still think think there are two parties? If you want to know who is wicked, look at how the mainstream media treats them. If you trust the media, you will favored Hillary. If you distrust the media, you supported Trump. It’s all about the media. The media and money decide who gets elected because people are gullible. The media determined the elections in Holland, France and soon-to-be Germany. Brexit is largely irelevant and Trump was an anomoly (or divine intervention). I will bet anyone out there that Merkel wins despite her purposeful ruination of her nation. Any takers?