Another terrific piece. I hope you’ll be at the Rule symposium in July (I see you’re speaking, but hope it’s in person). Would love to shake your hand, and thank you for the inspiration of your wonderful writing the last couple decades.
"Most importantly, we are teaching him vital life skills, such as how to tell a bottle of Bordeaux from a bottle of Burgundy...and how to spot a bubble market when he sees one."
One of the great joys of life......viewing life thru the eyes of a child and secondly attempting to pass some of your first hand knowledge to your offspring.( "second hand knowledge can be much less painful".IMO). Soak up the sun, simp a little wine in the evening and count your blessings while we still have time. "Redeeming the time , because the days are evil" .Ephesians 5
I got to thinking about the whole sex change escapade being foisted upon our country, and especially upon our children.
When I was in high school, I had a good friend ("John") who loved to go hiking and camping in such beautiful mountainous places as Yosemite and Kings Canyon National Park. Only recently did a mutual friend tell me that John submitted himself to a sex change operation. Unfortunately, John eventually committed suicide.
So.... what happened? I seriously doubt that anyone can declare authoritatively what lead to John's choice of death. Nevertheless, I believe that I have a plausible theory, based partially upon my own personal life experience.
I believe that there is a real god who made us. That God, in some almost inexplicable way, is comprised of three persons in a RELATIONSHIP. There's the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Because we are made His image, we, too, were made for RELATIONSHIP... not only with Him, but also with one another.
The book that tells us about this god clearly states that there are only three things that last forever: faith, hope, and love. That same book then states that "the greatest of these is LOVE," and that "God is love."
Could it be that our survival is linked to the existence of loving relationships with others? Although this is my personal conclusion, I leave it to you, dear reader, to make up your own mind :)
I believe that all of us desire to be loved, wanted, and needed. As children, we seek our parents' love and approval. Later, we reach out to other adults and, maybe, lavish our attention and love upon our own children. But what happens when loving relationships seem to continually elude us?
I believe that loneliness became the norm for my friend. Perhaps he began hoping, then later believing, that becoming a "she" might somehow change everything. Unfortunately, nothing changed, and John decided to end his life here on earth.
And what happens next? If God really is love, I believe that John is likely experiencing from Him that love which eluded him while he lived here on earth among imperfect people.
I'm sorry to hear about your friend. We can never find any peace in ourselves.
There is a holy spirit, but it's not a separate being; rather, it's the spirit of the Father and the Son. There are many verses in the Bible to support this, John 14:15-18, 20:22 are just a few. The Father has always existed, and the Son came from Him (i.e., He was NOT created). This was so far back in "time" that to us it seems as if the Son has always existed. Finite beings find it difficult to understand infinity. Anyway, I cover this briefly in the booklet Discourse On Agape: http://www.discourseonagape.org.
As I lifelong "Christian", I am thrilled that God only recently opened my eyes to Colossians 1:14-20. These verses talk about this relationship in a wonderful way, summarizing (emphasis mine):
Verse 14: In him we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
Verse 15: He is the image of the invisible God.
Verse 15: He is the firstborn of all creation — that is, the specially honored, first and only Son over all creation.
I surely heard and read these verses many times through my life but it has only been the last few years that they have struck me to the bone. In a good way of course...
But, of course, Bill has put one of his "bombs" into his musings as follows:
"In 1990, US Secretary of State James Baker assured Mikhail Gorbachev that Western powers would advance ‘not one inch’ towards Russia. But a generation later, US tanks, drones, and spy satellites are all helping to kill Russian soldiers". This is a totally out of context statement. I am not a foreign policy expert and don't pretend to know if we should be helping Ukraine or not - there are good arguments on both sides, although the pro-Ukrainian side seems to have the better argument. Putin invaded Ukraine, not the other way around; and therefore, Putin is responsible for thousands of lives lost - both Russian and Ukrainian. Does this mean we should be involved? I'm not sure. But don't make this out to be a broken promise that the USA made to Russia. We are not "advancing" towards Russia, we are helping Ukraine stop the advance of Russia.
Like you, I too am not certain about what is occurring in Ukraine and that is precisely to plan. However, BB is absolutely accurate when essentially stating that we (the US) broke every promise made over 20+ years 𝘁𝗼 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗮𝗱𝘃𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗡𝗔𝗧𝗢 𝘁𝗼𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝗥𝘂𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗮. This is completely true and easily verifiable by the words, policies and actions of several consecutive American administrations, starting with Reagan. To say otherwise is foolishness.
Also, Putin told the world MANY times beforehand (and he put it in writing as well) why he was going to start the Special Military Operation and more importantly, 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝗶𝘁 𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗯𝗲 𝗮𝘃𝗼𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗱 - and much of the world listened and agreed with his logic and grievances. However, any accommodation forcing the West to honor their multi-decade hollow words was immediately quashed by the US and UK "governments." They were set on war at any cost and that should now be obvious to anyone with a brain and an internet connection. Maybe Putin is not a "good guy", but without doubt the West and the Ukraine government are rotten to the core in this situation.
These are facts sir, no matter how much of the twisted and broken narrative you choose to consume...
So, you say, "I too am not certain about what is occurring in Ukraine...", but that doesn't stop you from spewing your vitriol about the situation. "...the West and the Ukraine government are rotten to the core in this situation", but apparently you think that Putin and Russia are just innocent victims. Your insults of "foolishness", "anyone with a brain", and "twisted and broken narrative you choose to consume...", just illustrates how self-righteous you are. All this, when I didn't even take a stand on what we should be doing in regard to Ukraine. I just thought Bill's analogy did not make sense, or at the very least, he didn't explain his reasoning. Bill has made other claims of this sort - that the USA is the warmonger while implying that other countries are innocent. It seems to be the libertarian view in foreign policy that the USA is always the aggressor. I certainly agree with some of that, and that our military and political leadership are inept and wrong on many occasions. What I don't agree with is exonerating autocratic and even dictatorial regimes of any of the blame in these various conflicts.
"What I don't agree with is exonerating autocratic and even dictatorial regimes of any of the blame in these various conflicts."
I couldn't agree more and that is NOT what I intended to convey. It sounds like we are closer on this issue than we are further apart.
Nothing about the situation should be or is mutually exclusive. Putin shouldn't have invaded - true. The West should not have provoked that action (over a number of years), then ignored him when he said "Enough" - also true.
PS - If you think what I previously wrote was "vitriol", you might want to explore the internet some more. Or, on second thought, probably better if you don't. If you are left-leaning, then anything that doesn't agree with what you think is most obviously violence in these screwy times (total eye roll.) All the best either way...
No, I am not left-leaning and I don't think anyone who disagrees with me is causing violence or, as the left calls it, "microaggression". Don't be so disingenuous. I wrote exactly what was offensive. I expect more from this website as opposed to the general internet - that is, I expect intelligent comments without the gratuitous insults. I'm still not sure what you consider the provocative actions of the West toward Putin, who is essentially a dictator. Is it that the West has allowed many eastern European nations to join NATO? Could it be that they did that because these countries were captured behind the Iron Curtain of communism for decades and don't want that fate again? And Putin is offended by that? Do you really think the West wants to invade Russia? Who is the threat here, the West or Russia? I would rather live in peace, but as has been repeated many times before, it needs to be peace through strength, because the countries that tread on the individual rights of their own citizens will look for opportunities to do the same to its neighbors. Could it be that the real reason that Russia invaded Ukraine was to obtain the resources and technology that Ukraine possesses? That's what dictatorships do. I am speculating here since you haven't given any details on what you consider to be the provocative actions of the West.
I had to go all the way to al Jezeera to find a transcript of his actual speech, whereas it was ubiquitous around the internet in the days immediately after he made the remarks - I watched it in full at the time, looking for answers/rationale. Note, I use a "non-biased" search engine (StartPage), hmmmmmm.
Anyway, I don't necessarily agree with everything Putin says here or even most of it, but he does appear sincere and makes some valid, historically accurate points IMO. More important to me is how the inept (intentional?) actions in response by our fraudulent "president" and his "party" have done irreparable damage to our economy, society, well-being and eventually our Freedom.
As I mentioned earlier, the situation is NOT mutually exclusive, regardless of how much our "media" and "government" try to present it that way. There are bad guys, good guys and yes, victims, on both sides...
PS - I apologize for insinuating you may be a lefty. There is hardly a worse insult nowadays...
Hmmmm - if this isn't expansion toward Russia, what would you call it exactly? And most of this after James Baker and others "promised" we wouldn't do precisely what we did (new NATO inductees after 1997)...
Hey Mr. Star. His problem is he has been told for the last 50 years. Russia is bad now he believes it. Everything you said was 100% true. Putin is not the problem here. We are. Probably about 80% of the world stands with Russia.
Hey John. If you were to look at a map of military bases around the globe, you would see that America is in fact in circling Russia. We promised we would never do that. Putin simply does not want to have missiles on his border with Ukraine. This is the same as John Kennedy in 1962 with Cuba. Look at the last 20 years with America’s wars of aggression.
I hope your bet is wrong, but acknowledge that you may be right! I bought a house when the rate was 13%, but gambled on an adjustable mortgage. The rate kept adjusting down, down down! One of the few smart things done by me in my life.
Bought my first house in 1977, 13.5% and paid that for many years. Only went to around 8% in the mid 90's.
Australian Interest Rates.
"Rates exceeded 10% for the first time in 1974 and pretty much remained above 10% until 1995. In just 4 years, interest rates dropped from the high of 17% (January 1990) to the low of 8.75% (June 1994)."
We got by with the high rates, maybe our salaries were relatively higher.
The higher the interest rate the lower the mortgage - conversely the lower the interest rate the higher the mortgage. In other words when interest rates are low and fixed ... it means your interest payments have been capitalised at the inflated property value which is bad enough - but when your rate is variable and you purchase when interest rates were low ... you’re in serious trouble! And, we’re I’m from you simply can’t give the keys back and walk ways ... loans are guaranteed on all your assets.
I think Bill is more philosopher than Financial advisor, although he "ain't too bad at the latter, either"!
I loved the discourse on generational disparateness. I am an octogenarian so appreciation of generational disparity perhaps is clearer to me. Bill, the title of this piece is a brilliant distillate of the main message you lay out in the body of the article. I have been a subscriber for only two months, and in that time have already reaped "my money's worth'. Kudos to the Bonner team!
Remember Debtors’ Prison? That’s where those in arrears once landed, posthaste. In the modern world we shifted to Liars Loans and massive student loan ‘forgiveness’.
Hey Diddle Diddle, the cow (actually) jumped over the moon, and the moon is made out of cheese. 😂
The investment aspect of AI stocks is another sham similar to green energy stocks, you know, like all them 2 cent electric car and battery stocks that were worth billions and now ain’t worth a plugged nickel! 😂
For once, Mr. Bonner and I are in total agreement! Get out of AI stocks! Run for your life! You’re better off buying and selling Tulips! Hahaha J/K!! Do as you wish, but don’t say you didn’t know! 😂😃
Being a 60’s generation I certainly remember those “enlightened” days. Protest against Vietnam and anything else someone could think up. The most significant event that did change America was the civil rights movement.
Another terrific piece. I hope you’ll be at the Rule symposium in July (I see you’re speaking, but hope it’s in person). Would love to shake your hand, and thank you for the inspiration of your wonderful writing the last couple decades.
Dan Denning is also a featured speaker. Maybe Bill and Dan could publish their remarks following the symposium in this forum. Hint, hint...
Oogh, la, la. You are on today.
"Most importantly, we are teaching him vital life skills, such as how to tell a bottle of Bordeaux from a bottle of Burgundy...and how to spot a bubble market when he sees one."
We gotta love Bill, he is one of the few that can discern what's important from what's not-LOL.
One of the great joys of life......viewing life thru the eyes of a child and secondly attempting to pass some of your first hand knowledge to your offspring.( "second hand knowledge can be much less painful".IMO). Soak up the sun, simp a little wine in the evening and count your blessings while we still have time. "Redeeming the time , because the days are evil" .Ephesians 5
I got to thinking about the whole sex change escapade being foisted upon our country, and especially upon our children.
When I was in high school, I had a good friend ("John") who loved to go hiking and camping in such beautiful mountainous places as Yosemite and Kings Canyon National Park. Only recently did a mutual friend tell me that John submitted himself to a sex change operation. Unfortunately, John eventually committed suicide.
So.... what happened? I seriously doubt that anyone can declare authoritatively what lead to John's choice of death. Nevertheless, I believe that I have a plausible theory, based partially upon my own personal life experience.
I believe that there is a real god who made us. That God, in some almost inexplicable way, is comprised of three persons in a RELATIONSHIP. There's the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Because we are made His image, we, too, were made for RELATIONSHIP... not only with Him, but also with one another.
The book that tells us about this god clearly states that there are only three things that last forever: faith, hope, and love. That same book then states that "the greatest of these is LOVE," and that "God is love."
Could it be that our survival is linked to the existence of loving relationships with others? Although this is my personal conclusion, I leave it to you, dear reader, to make up your own mind :)
I believe that all of us desire to be loved, wanted, and needed. As children, we seek our parents' love and approval. Later, we reach out to other adults and, maybe, lavish our attention and love upon our own children. But what happens when loving relationships seem to continually elude us?
I believe that loneliness became the norm for my friend. Perhaps he began hoping, then later believing, that becoming a "she" might somehow change everything. Unfortunately, nothing changed, and John decided to end his life here on earth.
And what happens next? If God really is love, I believe that John is likely experiencing from Him that love which eluded him while he lived here on earth among imperfect people.
I'm sorry to hear about your friend. We can never find any peace in ourselves.
There is a holy spirit, but it's not a separate being; rather, it's the spirit of the Father and the Son. There are many verses in the Bible to support this, John 14:15-18, 20:22 are just a few. The Father has always existed, and the Son came from Him (i.e., He was NOT created). This was so far back in "time" that to us it seems as if the Son has always existed. Finite beings find it difficult to understand infinity. Anyway, I cover this briefly in the booklet Discourse On Agape: http://www.discourseonagape.org.
Hi Alex,
As I lifelong "Christian", I am thrilled that God only recently opened my eyes to Colossians 1:14-20. These verses talk about this relationship in a wonderful way, summarizing (emphasis mine):
Verse 14: In him we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
Verse 15: He is the image of the invisible God.
Verse 15: He is the firstborn of all creation — that is, the specially honored, first and only Son over all creation.
Verse 16: 𝗕𝘆 𝗵𝗶𝗺 𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀 𝘄𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗱, 𝗶𝗻 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝘃𝗲𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗼𝗻 𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗵, 𝘃𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗶𝗻𝘃𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗯𝗹𝗲, 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗼𝗻𝗲𝘀 𝗼𝗿 𝗱𝗼𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗼𝗿 𝗿𝘂𝗹𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗼𝗿 𝗮𝘂𝘁𝗵𝗼𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗲𝘀.
Verse 16: All things were created through him.
Verse 16: All things were created for him.
Verse 17: He is before all things.
Verse 17: 𝗜𝗻 𝗵𝗶𝗺 𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀 𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗱 𝘁𝗼𝗴𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿.
Verse 18: He is the head of the body, the church.
Verse 18: He is the beginning.
Verse 18: He is the firstborn from the dead.
Verse 18: In everything he is preeminent.
Verse 19: 𝗜𝗻 𝗵𝗶𝗺 𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝘂𝗹𝗹𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗚𝗼𝗱 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗽𝗹𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗱𝘄𝗲𝗹𝗹.
Verse 20: He reconciles all things to himself, whether on earth or in heaven.
Verse 20: 𝗛𝗲 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲𝘀 𝗽𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗲 𝗯𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗱 𝗼𝗳 𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗰𝗿𝗼𝘀𝘀.
I surely heard and read these verses many times through my life but it has only been the last few years that they have struck me to the bone. In a good way of course...
https://www.bible.com/bible/116/COL.1.NLT
Amen. We will be learning about Agape for eternity. It will take that long. :)
Please don’t stop writing. I look forward to your posts whether it’s doom and gloom or sunshine in France.
Overall, an excellent column.
But, of course, Bill has put one of his "bombs" into his musings as follows:
"In 1990, US Secretary of State James Baker assured Mikhail Gorbachev that Western powers would advance ‘not one inch’ towards Russia. But a generation later, US tanks, drones, and spy satellites are all helping to kill Russian soldiers". This is a totally out of context statement. I am not a foreign policy expert and don't pretend to know if we should be helping Ukraine or not - there are good arguments on both sides, although the pro-Ukrainian side seems to have the better argument. Putin invaded Ukraine, not the other way around; and therefore, Putin is responsible for thousands of lives lost - both Russian and Ukrainian. Does this mean we should be involved? I'm not sure. But don't make this out to be a broken promise that the USA made to Russia. We are not "advancing" towards Russia, we are helping Ukraine stop the advance of Russia.
Hi Mr. Gallien,
Like you, I too am not certain about what is occurring in Ukraine and that is precisely to plan. However, BB is absolutely accurate when essentially stating that we (the US) broke every promise made over 20+ years 𝘁𝗼 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗮𝗱𝘃𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗡𝗔𝗧𝗢 𝘁𝗼𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝗥𝘂𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗮. This is completely true and easily verifiable by the words, policies and actions of several consecutive American administrations, starting with Reagan. To say otherwise is foolishness.
Also, Putin told the world MANY times beforehand (and he put it in writing as well) why he was going to start the Special Military Operation and more importantly, 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝗶𝘁 𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗯𝗲 𝗮𝘃𝗼𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗱 - and much of the world listened and agreed with his logic and grievances. However, any accommodation forcing the West to honor their multi-decade hollow words was immediately quashed by the US and UK "governments." They were set on war at any cost and that should now be obvious to anyone with a brain and an internet connection. Maybe Putin is not a "good guy", but without doubt the West and the Ukraine government are rotten to the core in this situation.
These are facts sir, no matter how much of the twisted and broken narrative you choose to consume...
So, you say, "I too am not certain about what is occurring in Ukraine...", but that doesn't stop you from spewing your vitriol about the situation. "...the West and the Ukraine government are rotten to the core in this situation", but apparently you think that Putin and Russia are just innocent victims. Your insults of "foolishness", "anyone with a brain", and "twisted and broken narrative you choose to consume...", just illustrates how self-righteous you are. All this, when I didn't even take a stand on what we should be doing in regard to Ukraine. I just thought Bill's analogy did not make sense, or at the very least, he didn't explain his reasoning. Bill has made other claims of this sort - that the USA is the warmonger while implying that other countries are innocent. It seems to be the libertarian view in foreign policy that the USA is always the aggressor. I certainly agree with some of that, and that our military and political leadership are inept and wrong on many occasions. What I don't agree with is exonerating autocratic and even dictatorial regimes of any of the blame in these various conflicts.
Hi Mr. Gallien -
"What I don't agree with is exonerating autocratic and even dictatorial regimes of any of the blame in these various conflicts."
I couldn't agree more and that is NOT what I intended to convey. It sounds like we are closer on this issue than we are further apart.
Nothing about the situation should be or is mutually exclusive. Putin shouldn't have invaded - true. The West should not have provoked that action (over a number of years), then ignored him when he said "Enough" - also true.
PS - If you think what I previously wrote was "vitriol", you might want to explore the internet some more. Or, on second thought, probably better if you don't. If you are left-leaning, then anything that doesn't agree with what you think is most obviously violence in these screwy times (total eye roll.) All the best either way...
No, I am not left-leaning and I don't think anyone who disagrees with me is causing violence or, as the left calls it, "microaggression". Don't be so disingenuous. I wrote exactly what was offensive. I expect more from this website as opposed to the general internet - that is, I expect intelligent comments without the gratuitous insults. I'm still not sure what you consider the provocative actions of the West toward Putin, who is essentially a dictator. Is it that the West has allowed many eastern European nations to join NATO? Could it be that they did that because these countries were captured behind the Iron Curtain of communism for decades and don't want that fate again? And Putin is offended by that? Do you really think the West wants to invade Russia? Who is the threat here, the West or Russia? I would rather live in peace, but as has been repeated many times before, it needs to be peace through strength, because the countries that tread on the individual rights of their own citizens will look for opportunities to do the same to its neighbors. Could it be that the real reason that Russia invaded Ukraine was to obtain the resources and technology that Ukraine possesses? That's what dictatorships do. I am speculating here since you haven't given any details on what you consider to be the provocative actions of the West.
I have no interest in defending either regime, so here are the reasons for the SMO in Putin's own words:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1qS6J-WbTD8
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/2/24/putins-speech-declaring-war-on-ukraine-translated-excerpts
I had to go all the way to al Jezeera to find a transcript of his actual speech, whereas it was ubiquitous around the internet in the days immediately after he made the remarks - I watched it in full at the time, looking for answers/rationale. Note, I use a "non-biased" search engine (StartPage), hmmmmmm.
Anyway, I don't necessarily agree with everything Putin says here or even most of it, but he does appear sincere and makes some valid, historically accurate points IMO. More important to me is how the inept (intentional?) actions in response by our fraudulent "president" and his "party" have done irreparable damage to our economy, society, well-being and eventually our Freedom.
As I mentioned earlier, the situation is NOT mutually exclusive, regardless of how much our "media" and "government" try to present it that way. There are bad guys, good guys and yes, victims, on both sides...
PS - I apologize for insinuating you may be a lefty. There is hardly a worse insult nowadays...
Hmmmm - if this isn't expansion toward Russia, what would you call it exactly? And most of this after James Baker and others "promised" we wouldn't do precisely what we did (new NATO inductees after 1997)...
https://us-browse.startpage.com/av/anon-image?piurl=https%3A%2F%2Fichef.bbci.co.uk%2Fnews%2F640%2Fcpsprodpb%2F7BA7%2Fproduction%2F_124155613_nato_member_states_23.02_640map_2x-nc.png&sp=1687711772T5423731f9bd2d772a656d09b162ae0e76d2b38d50df32c63abfcc0f48499234a
Hey Mr. Star. His problem is he has been told for the last 50 years. Russia is bad now he believes it. Everything you said was 100% true. Putin is not the problem here. We are. Probably about 80% of the world stands with Russia.
Hey John. If you were to look at a map of military bases around the globe, you would see that America is in fact in circling Russia. We promised we would never do that. Putin simply does not want to have missiles on his border with Ukraine. This is the same as John Kennedy in 1962 with Cuba. Look at the last 20 years with America’s wars of aggression.
absolutely perfect reply ..!
Nah. Not so much, but thanks for playing...
7%? Only 7%? I remember when mortgages were 14%. Bought my first house, got 12%! WooHoo!!! A GREAT rate.
My bet is one day we’ll look back at this 7% and think, my, weren’t those the good ol’ days?
I hope your bet is wrong, but acknowledge that you may be right! I bought a house when the rate was 13%, but gambled on an adjustable mortgage. The rate kept adjusting down, down down! One of the few smart things done by me in my life.
Hi Tim -
Whew! That'd be livin' on the edge in my book and could potentially keep me up at night. Sleep is in my top three favorite things to do, so...
Glad it worked out for you sir!
Bought my first house in 1977, 13.5% and paid that for many years. Only went to around 8% in the mid 90's.
Australian Interest Rates.
"Rates exceeded 10% for the first time in 1974 and pretty much remained above 10% until 1995. In just 4 years, interest rates dropped from the high of 17% (January 1990) to the low of 8.75% (June 1994)."
We got by with the high rates, maybe our salaries were relatively higher.
Hey Clem -
Pssssst. The money was worth more...
The higher the interest rate the lower the mortgage - conversely the lower the interest rate the higher the mortgage. In other words when interest rates are low and fixed ... it means your interest payments have been capitalised at the inflated property value which is bad enough - but when your rate is variable and you purchase when interest rates were low ... you’re in serious trouble! And, we’re I’m from you simply can’t give the keys back and walk ways ... loans are guaranteed on all your assets.
Hey Sluggo. No doubt.
Bill absolutely extraordinary commentary and insight into American and world humanity ..
there are really NO words to describe this daily missive .. definitely one for the next book!
Great post to-day.
I think Bill is more philosopher than Financial advisor, although he "ain't too bad at the latter, either"!
I loved the discourse on generational disparateness. I am an octogenarian so appreciation of generational disparity perhaps is clearer to me. Bill, the title of this piece is a brilliant distillate of the main message you lay out in the body of the article. I have been a subscriber for only two months, and in that time have already reaped "my money's worth'. Kudos to the Bonner team!
Amen!
Remember Debtors’ Prison? That’s where those in arrears once landed, posthaste. In the modern world we shifted to Liars Loans and massive student loan ‘forgiveness’.
Bill,
You are a Total Legend and a Breath of Fresh Air in “The Swamp” that we are working our way through.
Thank You and have a really nice weekend in a beautiful part of the World.
B
Thanks for the "conceit of the living" piece. Amen! Apostle John called it the "pride of life". The Bible too has a lot of "dots"!
Awesome piece, thank you.
Hey Diddle Diddle, the cow (actually) jumped over the moon, and the moon is made out of cheese. 😂
The investment aspect of AI stocks is another sham similar to green energy stocks, you know, like all them 2 cent electric car and battery stocks that were worth billions and now ain’t worth a plugged nickel! 😂
For once, Mr. Bonner and I are in total agreement! Get out of AI stocks! Run for your life! You’re better off buying and selling Tulips! Hahaha J/K!! Do as you wish, but don’t say you didn’t know! 😂😃
Being a 60’s generation I certainly remember those “enlightened” days. Protest against Vietnam and anything else someone could think up. The most significant event that did change America was the civil rights movement.
How will the masses live with7% interest? Our business loan is up to 10.25%.
Commercials loans outstanding will bring the economy down along with the banking system.
Another fat, shiny, dense nugget of Gold from the BPR pooh-bah.
Excellent stuff and the main reason I'm here everyday.
Thank you Bill...