Stocks and Precious Metals Charts - Staged Illusions Masking Arrogant Lawlessness

 

"People who know nothing of God and whose lives are centered on themselves, imagine that they can only find themselves by asserting their own desires and ambitions and appetites in a struggle with the rest of the world.  They try to become real by imposing themselves on other people, by appropriating for themselves some share of the limited supply of created goods and thus emphasizing the difference between themselves and the other men who have less than they, or nothing at all.

'I have what you have not. I am what you are not. I have taken what you have failed to take and I have seized what you could never get. Therefore you suffer and I am happy, you are despised and I am praised, you die and I live; you are nothing and I am something, and I am all the more something because you are nothing. And thus I spend my life admiring the distance between you and me.'"

Thomas Merton, New Seeds of Contemplation, 1949

"In a simpler time, advertising merely called attention to the product and extolled its advantages. Now it manufactures a product of its own: the consumer, perpetually unsatisfied, restless, anxious, and bored. Its 'educates' the masses into an unappeasable appetite not only for goods but for new experiences and personal fulfillment. Consumption promises to fill the aching void.

The narcissist divides society into two groups: the rich, great, and famous on the one hand and the common herd on the other. Narcissistic patients are afraid of not belonging to the company of the great, rich, and powerful, and of belonging instead to the 'mediocre', by which they mean the worthless and despicable rather than average in the ordinary sense of the term.  They worship heroes only to turn against them when their heroes disappoint them.

At the same time that public life and even private life take on the qualities of spectacle, a counter-movement seeks to model spectacle, theater, all forms of art, on reality — to obliterate the very distinction between art and life, and the resulting indifference to the distinction between illusion and reality.

The illusion of reality dissolves, not in a heightened sense of reality as we might expect, but in a remarkable indifference to reality. Our sense of reality appears to rest, curiously enough, on our willingness to be taken in by the staged illusion of reality."

Christopher Lasch, The Culture of Narcissism, 1979

"Then the righteous will answer and say, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink?  When did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? When did we see you ill or imprisoned, and visit you?’  And the Lord will say, ‘Amen, amen I say to you, whatever you did for one of the least of these, you did for me.’"

Matthew 25:33-40

Today is the World Day for the Sick, fittingly observed on the Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes.

I spent most of the day in prayer and meditation.  The sick and the poor, of body and spirit, are my abiding preoccupations.

But I did notice the usual dodgy equity market from time to time.

One of AG Bondi's talking points today was to suggest that the rising stock market is more important than the Epstein files.

There is no doubt in my mind that Bessent and his cronies are propping up US stocks and bonds.  And casting shade on alternative investments like gold and silver.

I do not say this lightly.  We've seen this before over the years, and despite the aggressive doubting by spokesmodels and blockheads, we have seen that it is all true.

So, how will this end.

You all have seen the remarkable rise of gold and silver after they broke out of years of artificial manipulation.  Silver in particular was astonished sharp and powerful in its rally.

Now picture this in reverse.  Picture stocks dropping with a similar sharpness and power.

That is what happens when a risk manipulation pool for financial assets fails.

Bitcoin fell but gained a little back off its lows.  It is an accident waiting to happen.  But far be it from me from pointing out the risks there for those who do not wish to hear it.

There is no saving anyone who is determined to be rich without working for it.

If stocks fall in a liquidation panic, then most likely everything will get sold for a time.

If it is a currency panic, then some assets might do exceptionally well.

Trump was meeting with his bosses' representative Benjy today in Washington.  There is little doubt that a discussion of Iran was high on the agenda.  

Netanyahu would like to take the lead in a move to paralyze Iran while the Likud party intensifies its acquisition efforts in Gaza, the West Bank, Lebanon, and Syria.  

Iran would provide a useful distraction from eroding power and scandal.  But it may cost Trump a large amount of support in the Congress.  Not a good midterm strategy.

It is widely thought that this time Iran will most likely be so measured in their response.  Someone is likely to lose something important that they will miss.  And voters may not take that well.

One possible consequence if that the price of oil and gas to spike. I just filled my heating oil tanks.  It's a Strait of Hormuz thing.  Bought a Costco sized cube of toilet paper.  I don't want to be an alarmist.  I admit to getting cautious in my old age.  lol

The leadership of Europe is acting in a fairly careless manner towards their public and economies. 

There is only one carrier group in the region.  There is a second George W. Bush carrier that has not yet been dispatched.  If it is sent to the Mideast the likelihood of a military action increase.

Difficult times ahead.  Remember that your soul and the souls of those you love are the highest priority.

And as Our Lady said at Lourdes to Bernadette, 'penance, penance, pendance.'  And remember to pray for sinners. 

Have a pleasant evening.

Stocks and Precious Metals Charts - Opera Buffa

 

"I have seen the moment of my greatness flicker,
And I have seen the eternal Footman hold my coat, and snicker,
And in short, I was afraid."

T. S. Eliot, The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock



Just charts tonight.

I was out all day, this market is boring and dumb, and I'm tired. 

Non-Farm Payrolls tomorrow.  So they say.

Have a pleasant evening.

 

Stocks and Precious Metals Charts - The Soft and Gradual Road Into Hell

 

"The illusions of extremists, of both the right and the left, are very dangerous things, for the very reason that they often incline themselves to sacrifice the individual, and even surprisingly large groups of individuals and segments of society, for the 'greater good' of their extremes and their illusions.  No people, no organization of people, and no nation are immune or exceptional to this extremity.  Evil is a choice, a long, gradual succession of choices.  And the madness never sleeps, hunting for souls to devour."

Jesse, A Cruel Deception, 28 October 2022

"No doubt it is more comfortable to deliberately wear blinkers that prevent one from seeing the evil done in the discharge of their responsibility— to be unwilling to see that one is defending murder and robbery."

Helmuth James Graf von Moltke, Executed in Plötzensee Prison, Berlin, 23 January 1945

"For these are a rebellious people, deceitful children, unwilling to listen to the instructions of the Lord. They say to their seers, ‘Do not see!’ and to the prophets, ‘Say nothing of what is right!  Tell us only things that please us — prophesy illusions."

Isaiah 30:9-10

"It does not matter how small the sins are, provided that their cumulative effect is to edge the man away from the Light and out into the Nothing.  Indeed the safest road to Hell is the gradual one — the gentle slope, soft underfoot, without sudden turnings, without milestones, without signposts."

C.S. Lewis, The Screwtape Letters, 1942

"The ideal subject of totalitarian rule is not the convinced Nazi or the dedicated communist, but people for whom the distinction between fact and fiction, true and false, no longer exists. The sad truth is that most evil is done by people who never make up their minds to be good or evil."

Hannah Arendt, The Origins of Totalitarianism, 1951

"Power will achieve its murderous potential. It simply waits for an excuse, an event of some sort, an assassination, a massacre in a neighboring country, an attempted coup, a famine, or a natural disaster, to justify the beginning of murder en masse."

R. J. Rummel, Mass Murder and Genocide, 1994


The Dollar took a major slip off the 98 handle down to 96.

But VIX fell.  None so blind as those who will not see.

Gold and silver rallied.

Stocks were wobbly.

There is some significant US economic data coming out the next two days, including the slightly delayed Non-Farm Payrolls report.

I will be highly skeptical of all of it.  This is a time when dishonesty is fashionable in Washington.  All the finest and most powerful people wallow in it.

Slowly, gradually, things are falling apart.  There are consequences for incompetence and systematic fraud.

Have a pleasant evening. 

Stocks and Precious Metals Charts - Malignant Narcissists and Their Miserable Ends

 

"The gates of Hell are terrible to behold, are they not?  The lofty mind of man can be imprisoned by the artifices of its own making.  If there are damned souls in Hell, it is because men blind themselves."

E.A. Bucchianeri, Faust: My Soul Be Damned for the World

"As with many personality disorders, those who are severely flawed of character, but especially the narcissist, when they face public disgrace, when they are outed as criminals or for their misbehavior, or when they fail in a very public way—that is when they become metastable, placing us as family, friends, co-workers, corporations, the public, or a nation in greatest danger.  When things begin to sour for the narcissist, here is what we can expect:

1.  They will falsely claim that everything is fine and that there is nothing wrong.  They will try to first misdirect us or claim there is nothing to the allegations or circumstances.

2.   If evidence is presented, they will seek to have it invalidated or claim that it is false, fake, or a product of vague conspiracies, but most certainly not true.

3.   Any evidence presented, and those that present it will be attacked aggressively and vindictively.  The better the evidence, the more aggressive the attack.  Individuals who are doing the right thing by reporting criminal acts, unethical behavior, or failings are to be discredited, humiliated, hounded, and bullied—not even their families are to be spared if need be.  The narcissist will engage supporters or enablers to simultaneously attack those who offer proof or evidence, even if it embarrassingly exposes their poodle-like behavior as that of spineless sycophants.

4.   Foolproof evidence will be portrayed as false and the result of pettiness, jealousies, bad actors, malicious individuals, negativity, haters, enemies, losers, conspirators, opposition, gain seekers, the faithless, or as we are seeing now in American politics, 'fake news' or 'deep state' actors.  There is always a large constellation of people to blame, the narcissist casts wide to see which vacuous claim resonates, especially with their supporters.

5.   As they lash out with vindictiveness, the malignant narcissist will continue to talk about themselves in glowing terms; irrespective of their actual situation, as they are incapable of introspection, much less contriteness.  They will trumpet their greatness, their real or imagined achievements, their faux infallibility, and even portray themselves as worthy of being revered rather than reviled.

6.   They will seek to find someone to blame for their troubles or downfall, preferably someone that cannot defend themselves.  A scapegoat is always useful and when there is not a real one, one will be invented.  If they are not promoted or fired, it is because a cabal at work was against them. If they cheat their business partners, it was because they deserved it. If the wife gets the kids in a divorce settlement, it is because of her dastardly attorney, not his abominable behavior. If they lose an election it is because of campaign managers, unappreciative voters, trickery, fraud, or some other kind of malfeasance on the part of a conspiracy.  Conspiracies are useful to the narcissist because they conveniently require no evidence.  As they are not married to the truth, they will prattle countless baseless reasons that all point away, never at themselves.

7.   As circumstances become dire, the narcissist will not take any responsibility—ever.  Anything that has gone wrong is the responsibility of others.  They will blame spouses as undeserving of their greatness, ignorant colleagues who just don’t measure up, the disloyal, those who abide by rules and laws because ironically, they abide by rules and laws, or those that just clearly did not understand the very specialness of the narcissist.  Everyone, and I mean everyone from people long gone, to the peripherally connected, to the earthly departed will be blamed for the failure or downfall of the narcissist.  Once more it is never their fault.

8.   In the process of casting blame, even the most loyal and stalwart will be discarded and denigrated if needed with reptilian indifference.  For the malignant narcissist, there is only the 'good' — those that provide blind, unwavering loyalty and who are useful, and everyone else who is an enemy, useless, and thus 'bad.'  Whether you are in or out, good or bad, is not determined by history, by friendship, sacrifices, or how well you have performed in the past—it is determined by the capricious and selfish needs of the narcissist, and that can change in a moment.

9.   Expect lies to increase and to be repeated exponentially.  They will, even in light of factual evidence to the contrary, lie more profusely and adamantly.  Lies are and always will be the number one tool of the malignant narcissist.  The only difference now is that in facing failure or public ridicule, the lies must increase in frequency and audacity to the point of incredulity.  The narcissist will expect supporters, the unethical, and enablers to lie for them or even create plausible alibis.  That they imperil others by compelling them to lie is the collateral damage the malignant narcissist does as they thrash in despair when they are failing or caught.

10.   And while lies will increase, so too will be the need to devalue others in order to further value themselves.  They will attack everyone and anyone in the most vicious and vindictive ways.  This is when we see their rage come through.  Not just anger, but unbridled rage.  They will say things that shock the conscience and they expect everyone to swallow what they say, much as their enablers do.  The most decent of persons will be attacked, mocked, ridiculed, and turned into a human chew-toy as the narcissist unleashes untethered rage and hatred.  They will dip down into a bottomless cauldron of antipathy and like an arterial spurt, will spew this toxic brew far and wide with metronomic regularity.

11.   The malignant narcissist, lacking guilt or a conscience, is only concerned with respect and not being publicly shamed.  Any kind of public embarrassment will cause them further anger, further rage, further attacks, further unethical comportment, and unprecedented incivility.

12.   If the narcissist is going to be brought down, they will also seek to bring everyone else around them down to vindictively make them suffer.  How the narcissist vilifies, lashes out, or destroys others (spouse, friends, business partners, workmates, the general public) is up to the morbid creativity and depravity of the malignant narcissist, the viable tools they have available, and of course how dire or desperate the situation.  The internet and social media are certainly useful as lives can be ruined with a single tweet.  But so are guns and rifles, poison, and even assassins for hire.  And if they command a country, they can put the security organs or the military to work on their behalf.

13.   In certain situations, as the end nears, the suffering of others is paramount to the malignant narcissist.  It is their way of elevating themselves—sick as that sounds—by malevolently paying back society with even more suffering.  As they lash out, they will show no concern or empathy because they have none.  If others are suffering because of their actions, the narcissist simply does not care.  Lacking a conscience or any kind of remorse, much like Robert Hare’s psychopath, they sleep very well at night while everyone else is anxious, worried, stressed, physically or psychologically traumatizes all the while nervously and justifiably pondering what further malevolence will take place.

14.   As they face failure, arrest, indictment, or dismissal, they will endlessly air their grievances.  Narcissists are natural wound collectors and as such, they have been collecting and nurturing social slights and perceived wrongs just for this occasion.  They will wallow in victimhood claiming they have been relentlessly and needlessly persecuted.  They, of course, expect their attorneys, followers, or enablers to subserviently echo their flatulent claims.

So, what happens in the end?  Difficult to predict.  Each circumstance is different.  Some will kick and flail and disappear for a while, intentionally or thanks to incarceration—biding their time until they can do it all over again.  Others regroup, plan, scheme, and prepare another triumphant entry into the lives of the unsuspecting to victimize them when the opportunity arises.  

Others, unfortunately, will seek to do harm as they face a breakup, a divorce, are fired from a job, are outed for their crimes, or are removed from office.  Others will hound, stalk, or just make life intolerable for those they deem responsible. Their past can often give us insight as to what they might do, but one can never be sure—humans are terribly complex and as with many afflicted with a personality disorder, sensitive to the smallest of unrecognized but catalytic triggers.

In the case of narcissistic cult leaders, the cult members often pay with their lives as they did in Jonestown Guyana when Jim Jones came under investigation.  In interpersonal relationships, violence is always something to be concerned. "

Joe Navarro, FBI Behavioural Analysis Veteran, When the Narcissist Fails, Psychology Today, 2 January 2024

 

It was risk on all the way today, as stocks rallied sharply into the close.

VIX fell.

The Dollar dropped.

Gold and silver rallied.

Bitcoin bounced.

I have this great image in my mind of Donnie squawking at Bessent, 'can't you get me at least a new high on the Dow?' 

Irresponsible management.

He is going to take a lot of his followers with him, Jim Jones style. 

They don't listen, and never learn. 

Have a pleasant weekend.