Patrick Mondaca

News

Is China's Central Bank Gold-Buying Spree a Precursor for War? Part II of II

The idea of a nation acquiring large gold reserves in preparation for military endeavors is not without historical precedent. Prior to World War I, European powers increased their gold reserves, and a century later, Russia's central bank doubled its gold holdings in the years before its invasion of Ukraine. This same strategic stockpiling of gold could be inferred from China and its pre-war positioning for a Taiwan incursion.

News

Is China's Central Bank Gold-Buying Spree A Precursor for War? Part I of II

Since 2009, China has more than doubled its gold reserves. In wartime, particularly in wars perpetrated in violation of international law, the resulting international sanctions can force an invader state to rely on its gold reserves. Thus if a country is preparing to go to war and incur sanctions, it will ensure it has an ample reserve of gold.

News

Costco's Gold Bars Part II: From Africa to the Alps to You

So where exactly does that shiny new "999.9 fine gold minted" bar from Costco come from? Under that "Essayeur Fondeur" Swiss authenticity stamp lies a long, bloody trail of death and tears.

News

Buy Gold Bars at Costco? Why Guns, Gold, and Hard Assets Go Viral

The numbers show that when the going gets tough, Americans get to buying guns and gold. Signs of this gold rush might even be found amongst something as commonplace and red, white, and blue as Costco's floor-to-ceiling pallets of bulk household products and its $1.50 hotdog line. But the gold's origins are not so red, white, and blue.

News

The Next Generation of Video Streaming Is Vertical: Short Film Creators Monetizing the Dopamine Addict in Us All

Described as "TikTok-style short soap operas" with scripts adapted from web novels, short films are optimized for vertical viewing on mobile devices and to get viewers hooked fast. Free for the first few episodes, just enough for you to get a taste - and a dopamine rush - and boom, you're hooked.

Baltimore's Fort McHenry Celebrates 200th Anniversary Of Star-Spangled Banner

News

The Red Glare of the Baltimore Bridge Collapse Conspiracy Theorists

The collapse of the Baltimore bridge bearing Francis Scott Key's name following a collision with a 948-foot-long cargo ship on Tuesday killed six construction workers and snarled port traffic into the East Coast. Almost immediately, conspiracy theories surrounding the events that led to the tragedy ran rampant.

News

A Modern Neo-Feudal State, The Tech Lords Ushering in a Return to the Medieval

If ever such tech lords decide that their will should supplant that of the majority's, or that through their influence they might alter the course of history by sustaining one country's war of aggression on another or by manipulating the political landscape, democracy will be the casualty - in America and throughout the world.

News

The Rent is Too Damn High? Let Them Eat Cake

As the concentration of global wealth ends up in fewer hands, the rich continue getting richer as the poor continue getting poorer.

News

Is Your Car a Snitch? Your Auto Insurance Premiums Might Beg to Differ.

Not since GM's Oldsmobile Cutlass was the best-selling car in America has it cost so much to insure a vehicle in the United States. With an MSRP starting at $4,290, buying a Cutlass outright 47 years ago would cost nearly as much as some Americans pay for their annual car insurance premiums today.

News

The Federal Reserve's 'Death Star'. The Battle Over America's Wallets.

The CBDC debate continues. Concerns over the exploration of the creation of a central bank digital currency in the United States, commonly referred to as a CBDC, has some lawmakers up in arms regarding its potential for increased government surveillance and control.

Personal Finance

The American Dream Dies With Homeownership in US

The prospect of achieving the homeownership part of the American Dream is thus further from reality for some groups of Americans-primarily those of color-than ever. Indeed, a February 1st McKinsey Institute for Black Economic Mobility study found that it could take more than 300 years at the current rate for Black Americans to achieve "racial parity" in terms of housing equality.

News

America First! American Tax Dollars for Americans! Nyet. Nein. The First Duty of Taxpayers is to Liberty.

Ukraine's fight is America's fight. "The preservation of the sacred fire of liberty" is an American obligation.

News

The Hidden Hand: How Ukraine's Covert Teams are Shaping the Eastern Conflict

This is the Mossad of Ukraine: An Exploration of the Country’s Specialized 'Wet Work' Teams and Their Impact on the Russian-Ukrainian Conflict.

News

“Buy at the sound of cannons and sell at the sound of trumpets.”

The old Wall Street adage says to buy when stocks plummet at the outbreak of war and sell when stocks rise as hostilities end. Buying low and selling high has long been a fundamental financial strategy particularly as it relates to gauging wartime market sentiments. And where some might hear the drums of war beating and jackboots ringing on cobblestones, others hear only the sound of cold, hard coin clanging into their coffers.

News

Rise Against Terror: How Ukraine's Resistance Could Spark Global Democratic Uprising

Part 2 of Is Ukraine hunting Russia's blood gold traffickers in Africa?

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Latest Stories

American Dream Deferred: Wealth Gap Deepens Among Millennials

A recent study found that there is a fresh wave of class conflict and animosity due to the widest wealth difference of any generation between affluent millennials and the rest of their age group.

Could You Qualify for SNAP Benefits?

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) oversees the food stamp program, also known as supplemental nutritional assistance, which is a vital tool for helping low-income families and individuals buy nutritious food.

Forget Stocks, Crypto Now Directly Impacts Housing Prices

According to a new study, as cryptocurrencies grow in importance inside American investment portfolios, their impact is seen not just in virtual transactions but also in real estate and consumer purchasing.

Bond Yields Drop as Job Growth Slows

After the April jobs data revealed weaker-than-expected payroll growth and an unexpected tick higher in the unemployment rate, U.S. Treasury rates fell on Friday.

Will Apple Keep Buffett Smiling? Doubts Emerge Over Company's Dominance

Even as late as 2020, four years after his investment colossus began to build a sizable stake in the business that produces iPhones, Warren Buffett of Berkshire Hathaway was still using a flip phone.