"Unhappy people are better off living in the city. A person can live in the city for a hundred years and not even realize that they are already dead and rotting. They don't have time to realize this on their own; they are always busy."
Leo Tolstoy, The Kreutzer Sonata, 1889
"To see a world in a grain of sand
And a heaven in a wild flower,
Hold infinity in the palm of your hand
And eternity in an hour.
A robin redbreast in a cage
Puts all Heaven in a rage.
A dove house filled with doves and pigeons
Shudders Hell through all its regions.
A dog starved at his master's gate
Predicts the ruin of the state.
The whore and gambler, by the state
Licensed, build that nation's fate.
The harlot's cry from street to street,
Shall weave Old England's winding sheet.
The winner's shout, the loser's curse,
Dance before dead England's hearse."
William Blake, Auguries of Innocence, 1863
“Above all, don't lie to yourself. The man who lies to himself and listens to his own lie comes to a point that he cannot distinguish the truth within him, or around him, and so loses all respect for himself and for others. And having no respect he ceases to love.”
Fyodor Dostoevsky, The Brothers Karamazov, 1880
“As though you could use violent, unjust means and achieve peace and justice! Means determine ends; and must be like the ends proposed. Means intrinsically different from the ends proposed achieve ends like themselves, not like those they were meant to achieve.”
Aldous Huxley, Eyeless in Gaza, 1963
Stocks did a fairly impressive 'wash and rinse' today, as the pumping up of the futures in anticipation of a grand meeting of colonial powers to announce a peace acceptable to vultures, failed to cohere.
Every time they open their mouths the foul stench of death and corruption wrapped in lies comes out. And it fools no one anymore.
This market is overextended and on unstable footings. Try not to get in front of it, because these things can drag on, especially with official sanction and support of powerful insiders who are in the process of looting.
Gold and silver, spotting the brazen falseness and hypocrisy of the markets continued to soar to new records, as investors sought safer havens for their wealth.
China is going to be on holiday for the rest of this week, so we may see some opportunities for mischief.
But, the momentum for now is fairly clear. Let's see if they can keep it up.
VIX ticked higher.
The Dollar slid off the 98 handle.
With the DXY index bias to the euro, I would say gold is a much better barometer of fiat currency weakness and strength.
The US is engaged in some provocation in South America, perhaps in preparation for obtaining their oil when the next strike in the Mideast occurs and all hell breaks loose, and the straits of Hormuz are closed.
I sincerely hope that I am wrong, and stand with those who so far resisted the appeal of the madness.
But it seems as those the tides of the fourth turning are flowing strongly, and the heart of darkness will have its way, at least for some time.
As economist Robert Johnson noted, 'the oligarchy is audacious.' And as the fraud fades, more force is required, until all will be revealed by the bluntness of the iron fist.
Keep your eye on the prize, and remain standing in the light and life of the Lord.
Have a pleasant evening.
