Prepare for a correction

I have posted on more than a few occasions about the economy in general and more specifically the correction that is coming in the market. While I shy away from directing people toward specific investments or outright telling them what to do with their money, I do feel compelled to offer my insight to the current situation and hope people take it upon themselves to be as ready as they can be.

Most analysts tend to look at specific indicators with which they are familiar and meter their response accordingly. I am no exception. However, at this time, there are so many indicators pointing to the possibility of a major correction It is worth mentioning. Any one of them alone could trigger a slide in the market. Combined it could be the thing of nightmares.

I usually do not advise people on investing. It is risky. But I will say this: it would be wise to acquire the stocks you feel are the appropriate ones to own in a correction. Of course, you never put all your eggs in one basket. Its just a cushion against a total wipe out. This is traditional thinking for a traditional correction. The problem is, it is unlikely this correction and recovery will be traditional in nature.

The economy of the future will differ from the past in one significant way. It will no longer continue to grow. Everything about the world economy, and especially the US, is the idea that there will always be 'more'. That is no longer true. We are going head to head with limited resources and the resources are winning. We reached peak oil in the 70's for example. Supply is shrinking, even with fracking and shale, and demand is continually increasing with no end in sight. We are butting heads with the inevitability of an extinguished supply of resources. And its not just oil. Its everything. We have become a nation of consumers, not producers.

Financially we made a huge mistake. Our credit/debt situation is untenable. You simply can not solve a credit problem with more credit. We have been throwing band aids at a gushing wound for decades now and its not working any more. Our economy is basically one giant ponzi scheme and simply cannot survive indefinitely. As a distinguished economist and mentor once said, "Right now we have stepped off the cliff and are caught in this sort of "Wile E. Coyote" moment where we are just waiting for gravity to notice us." We have far more debt than we can ever hope to pay. We keep pumping more and more currency in to the market to try to fend off the wolves but that has to end at some point. Paper currency is only bout 150 years old. It was an interesting experiment but in its current form is destined to fail. The true value of the currency is the idea that it will continue to be in demand in the future. Without that expectation it is worthless. Think about that...

Predictions are a dime a dozen. I cant say with any certainty what will happen or when. But I feel we are very close to a major correction. I can not say exactly what will start it. But I feel very strongly that it will eventually strip about 75% of the value off the market before the fall stabilizes. Many people make the mistake of trying to time it perfectly and sell at the last moment and buy at the absolute bottom. Good luck with that. That is how most people went bankrupt after the crash in '29. The market lost 30% of its value in '29 and people thought it was time to buy in and get rich. Well, the market lost a total of 90% of its value by the mid '30's before it finally stopped sliding. If you happen to time the buy and sell just right it won't be because you are talented. It will be sheer luck. Its too risky to play with in my opinion.

Again, I cant make a prediction any more accurate than anyone else's. But I feel strongly that something will happen before the end of the year. I hope I am wrong. There are too many people who will suffer in a correction like that right now. In the '30s only one in four people lived in a family where ANYONE had a job. In today's USA, that is approximately 115,000,000 people... one very long soup line.

Alex Jones has a guy come on sometimes who supposedly knows about economics and he says its coming around the beginning of next year.

i think we all kinda feel like its coming soon, even without a deep understanding of the world of finance.

Global meltdown happens every day to each of us once we lose our source of income.

Peak oil?


NNAAHHHhhhhh

That's easy to predict. Republicans are in charge,so many job losses, a recession for the poor and working class(that's funny), and unpaid for wars.

a reply to: Vroomfondel

But if things get real good, and we are living in a post apocalyptic world, what do you do with stocks, unless they are livestock

I agree with everything you said, OP.

Problem is, there's not much to invest in.
Any stocks will only have value in USD- if the next correction is what it looks like, that century long scam will come to a halt.

That means total shut down- only things worth anything are bartering tools. Precious metals might be okay long term...

Only thing I can think of is land. Buy land, and the means to protect it. Then you have to live on it. And without money, you'll need to grow food on it.
All of this is very hard to do in today's world. The only way to be prepared for the collapse is to be self sufficient- and the people in government make their living by making sure we depend on them.

originally posted by: solve
a reply to: Vroomfondel

But if things get real good, and we are living in a post apocalyptic world, what do you do with stocks, unless they are livestock

At least you are one of the few that understand what you just said. Without being able to bend the arm to feed oneself , paper stocks are just that, paper in the silence of the wind.

originally posted by: lordcomac
I agree with everything you said, OP.

Problem is, there's not much to invest in.
Any stocks will only have value in USD- if the next correction is what it looks like, that century long scam will come to a halt.

That means total shut down- only things worth anything are bartering tools. Precious metals might be okay long term...

Only thing I can think of is land. Buy land, and the means to protect it. Then you have to live on it. And without money, you'll need to grow food on it.
All of this is very hard to do in today's world. The only way to be prepared for the collapse is to be self sufficient- and the people in government make their living by making sure we depend on them.

Live near the waters of the world. I think that is what you are trying to say for us here on ATS.

a reply to: musicismagic

The plan is to poison the waters, so either way we are toast. Hug the babies today, they're future is toast too.

a reply to: MOMof3

You just couldn't wait to make this about a political party huh?
SMH.


Well, if history has told us anything it's that humans don't need money to flourish or survive. The biggest investment a person can make is in themselves. Learn how to live and survive without the burdens of debt. Its a hard path to follow but well worth the investment.

I see it all too often, when people allow money to control them. Investments, stocks, material things...all keep them perpetually watching something that their "lives" depend on because that is all they know.

It will be a crying shame. Any big collapse in the future will bring more despair and struggle than ever before in history because of so many people's dependence on money. So many people.

I don't want to see it happen either.

a reply to: havok

What governs the universe so it doesn't wipe itself out? Laws.

What governs us so we don't wipe each other out? Laws.

Lawmakers matter. Being self sufficient is a romantic idea but a stupid one and will not protect your families. We came out of the forests and grew wheat because we were hungry.

Even people who live in the Alaskan Bush have to find civilization to get what they need to stay alive. Like a dentist.

originally posted by: MOMof3
a reply to: musicismagic

The plan is to poison the waters, so either way we are toast. Hug the babies today, they're future is toast too.

If you think about it, it is the way it is. You see, we bury the trash underground. OK, well, so what. Here is an example: In Fontana , Calif on Sierra ave north going to where there once was the olive groves, across the street is /was the city garbage dump. Under neath it is the water. Sic I tell you. Going north is the fresh water coming out from the mountains, Lytle creek if I remember right. Our daughter would wade in the stream during the summer.

originally posted by: lordcomac
I agree with everything you said, OP.

Problem is, there's not much to invest in.
Any stocks will only have value in USD- if the next correction is what it looks like, that century long scam will come to a halt.

That means total shut down- only things worth anything are bartering tools. Precious metals might be okay long term...

Only thing I can think of is land. Buy land, and the means to protect it. Then you have to live on it. And without money, you'll need to grow food on it.
All of this is very hard to do in today's world. The only way to be prepared for the collapse is to be self sufficient- and the people in government make their living by making sure we depend on them.

Unfortunately land ownership is just a piece of paper too. The illusion of owning land is as big as the illusion of paper currency.

a reply to: musicismagic

Ever hear of Kellogg and Wallace Idaho? We spent tax payer money cleaning the lead out of that land. Couldn't hunt or fish or sell you property. The stock market will be a big loser because the future will not be about paper money. It will be for the real treasure, drinkable water and American land.

a reply to: MOMof3

Respectfully, I don't believe man's "laws" govern the universe.

Being self sufficient is not a "romantic idea". It can or will save your hide in the event of an emergency. Waiting for your precious government to save you will get you killed. Proved so many times over in the past 25 years.

a reply to: Nexttimemaybe

Then why are so many foreigners, especially the Chinese, buying American property?

originally posted by: Nexttimemaybe

originally posted by: lordcomac
I agree with everything you said, OP.

Problem is, there's not much to invest in.
Any stocks will only have value in USD- if the next correction is what it looks like, that century long scam will come to a halt.

That means total shut down- only things worth anything are bartering tools. Precious metals might be okay long term...

Only thing I can think of is land. Buy land, and the means to protect it. Then you have to live on it. And without money, you'll need to grow food on it.
All of this is very hard to do in today's world. The only way to be prepared for the collapse is to be self sufficient- and the people in government make their living by making sure we depend on them.

Unfortunately land ownership is just a piece of paper too. The illusion of owning land is as big as the illusion of paper currency.

True when society is sane, but when common sense of the fittest come into the picture, it really is just a piece of paper.

originally posted by: MOMof3
That's easy to predict. Republicans are in charge,so many job losses, a recession for the poor and working class(that's funny), and unpaid for wars.

This has nothing to do with political affiliation. But, if you insist, the most damage was done during the obama administration and ultimately it is this damage that will lead to the destabilization of the US economy and its downfall.

a reply to: havok

You and I are the government. When natural disasters happen, we run to it to help. I'm pretty sure without our government and its military, we would have been over taken by now, like we did the natives here.

"Respectfully, I don't believe man's "laws" govern the universe."
Respectfully, that is not what I posted.
The universe has its own laws, and humans have their own set of laws. As above, so below.