We don’t try to do the right thing we just do things the right way. Hence this brings about a new Tactical Investor saying don’t try to do the right thing do things the right way. Sol Palha
Tactical Investor Proprietary indices
The last time we updated this chart was in June; at that time, the reading was 1680; in July, it rose to 1701, and in August, it inched up to 1710. It appears to be trending sideways and could mount a correction as it has not looked back once since Feb 05. However, the last time it took a dip was back on August 06, and then, instead of correcting, it soared even higher. As we have stated before, the next red line zone is 1800, and should we breach that before the Year is out, the situation will explode. The last red zone was 900, and at that time, we stated if we were to cross that zone before the end of 2006, the problem would truly become horrendous. Since then, sectarian violence has exploded, the Taliban have emerged as a more organized and dangerous force, Pakistan is in chaos, and Iran refuses to bend.
Afghanistan, which was being trumped as a success story, is incomplete chaos however the press here makes it look like everything is rosy. It is so bad that those Afghanis who seek U.S. Visas have to go to Pakistan to get them. The reason for this is that the U.S fears that a long line will attract suicide bombers. This simple admission illustrates how much ground the coalition forces have lost. It’s a powder keg waiting to implode (it has already exploded), and the coalition forces are barely holding on. In Pakistan, Musharraf is in the battle of his life; his political career for all purposes is over, and the only thing keeping him in power now is the military’s backing. He could lose this backing anytime if the masses rebel against him. Iran continues to snub the United Nations and the U.S as it’s still secretly being backed by Russia and, to a lesser extent China.
As we stated before, the scales of power have tilted against the US; the US is no longer the sole master of the world. The new world order has emerged, and this group that Russia is leading is slowly changing the game’s rules. This new group has an unbelievable edge over the US; military Russia is equal to the U.S as the U.S would never dream of attacking them.
The second edge comes from China; they fully control the economy via their huge treasury holdings. A simple hint that they would dump these holdings could send the US economy into a complete nosedive. Finally, as a back, you have India; the country with the world’s second-largest army and one that also possesses nuclear weapons. When you examine this trio, there is simply no way the US can win; it has already lost the battle. The problem is that the politicians in Washington refuse to believe this. They think they can continue to bully and push the rest of the world, but their Empire is crumbling.
Our religious provocation index is suggesting that this current war could last up to 18 years before it’s all said and done. Remember how the Russians lost Afghanistan; all it took was several thousand shoulder-fired missiles, and the rebels in Afghanistan were able to destroy the then-so-called second-strongest army in the world. They are employing the same tactic now; they hit and run, and the coalition forces, like big blind elephants, bring their massive firepower and blindly aim at anything that moves. The same situation has been unfolding in Iraq.
Those of you who remember the Revolutionary War in the US remember how a bunch of Yankee rebels defeated the red coats (England). All they had was a superior musket rifle which was more accurate and could fire from longer ranges. These rebels simply wait and ambush the red coats, a hit-and-run strategy. This simple strategy was enough to crush what was then the strongest army on earth.
The same technique is now being used in Iraq and Afghanistan, only this time, instead of simple rifles they have shoulder-fired missiles and highly destructive explosive devices. The principle, however, is the same; cause as much damage as possible to the enemy with the expenditure of minimal resources. It costs these guys 50,000 or less to inflict millions of dollars of damage at a time. Thus it is easy to conclude that these wars are lost, and they were lost causes even before they began. As previous empires crumbled (the Soviet Union and the British Empire) when over-stretching their resources, the same fate lies in store for the US. As we stated long ago, this is a religious war against Muslims, and things can and will only get worse.
This index has gained over 180 points since June and shows no sign of slowing down. The higher this index rises, the more individuals are willing to sell themselves for money; one can see this in the massive rise of erotic/XXX-rated services. Almost no free newspaper in the country now does not carry ads in this category, and now the internet has taken off. One of the biggest sources of the flesh trade is now Craig’s list, and the speed at which things have taken off is truly staggering. The police are trying to stop this, but for everyone one culprit they catch, ten more appear.
This massive rise in this index not only correlates to an increase in erotic services but also means that in general, we are entering into a dog-eat-dog world. In other words, friends, family, business associates, partners, etc., are more willing to betray each other for a chance to make a bigger buck. In other words, we are entering a world where anything can be bought; one has to be willing to pay the right price, and sadly, the price is dropping instead of rising. One’s word, which used to be something solid and something to stick by today, is almost worthless and an almost forgotten concept. Honour and dignity have gone out the door, and deceit and greed have emerged in their place.
This index so far appears to be working hand in hand with the Adult index, and note that in the last two months, it has mounted a rather huge move upwards. In July, it jumped 60 points to 510; in September, it jumped another 50 points to 560; that’s a 24% jump in just two short months. This index illustrates that Americans are generally getting poorer and poorer, or at least more and more of them believe they are. Most Americans do not know the meaning of true poverty, at least not yet; they feel they are getting poorer because they can no longer afford most of the junk and garbage they used to buy with the money they did not have; they used credit and then depended on their weekly paycheques to make their monthly payments.
Thus, many feel poorer now simply because they cannot go out and buy all this nonsense as they have used up their credit and or they have to cut back because their salaries have fallen due to losing their old jobs or being fired, etc. Thus, you have individuals here who think they are poor and, as a result, are convincing themselves that it’s okay to do whatever it takes to service their rising debts.
Too many individuals feel that they must have a brand new car, the best Televisions out there, the latest DVD players, the latest fashions etc.; it’s called keeping up with the Joneses syndrome, and they are willing to bankrupt themselves to keep up this illusion. Our advice for a long time has been to live 1-2 standards below your current level; if your friends and family start to make fun or give you a hard time. Our advice is to get rid of them; when you are in the gutter, they will be the last ones to help you. Remember, there is a saying that “God helps those that help themselves”, to which we added a small extra piece and the “Devil helps all those that fall in between.”
Originally published on May 8, 2015, and regularly updated over the years, with the latest update in December 2022.
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T I Proprietary Indices August 2007