| By Bill Bonner Friday, February 5, 2021 MIAMI, FLORIDA – Getting from point A to point B is not always as easy as it sounds. Yesterday, we got tripped up by COVID-19 testing requirements. If you missed our Diary yesterday, we’ll bring you up to speed. We’re on our way down to Nicaragua – partly for business, partly for pleasure. To get into the country, you need to prove that you’re COVID-free. We’d been tested twice – including a rapid test on Wednesday. We thought that would soothe the fears of Nicaragua’s government. And maybe it would have. But we never got there to find out. Drive-Through Testing Instead, it was the airline – Avianca – that stopped us. They said they had no record of our test results. We had a few hours before the plane took off, so we rushed from Miami Airport to a nearby clinic that promised a quick test turnaround. The test center was a drive-through. We were in a cab, but the driver – Haitian, speaking Creole on his cellphone as he drove – was patient. The building had been a bank with drive-through tellers. The cab parked in the shade. We got out, sat in a metal chair, and endured the nasal swabbing. “That’s $200,” the tester informed us. “And our credit card machine isn’t working. We can only take cash.” It seemed fishy to us… But what do we know? They all had their surgical outfits on. For all we knew, they were doing a lively trade in body parts as well as pretending to do COVID tests. The whole thing took less than five minutes. And then we headed back to the airport, where we awaited the results by email. | Recommended Link | | Brace Yourself Our country is falling apart. And it’s about to get much worse. The siege of the Capitol… the riots and protests… the political division… that’s all nothing compared to what’s coming next – as soon as hours from now. The most important thing you must do, right away, is this… Protect your wealth while you still can. | | | -- | Not on the List About an hour later, the report came in… This one, like the previous two, found no evidence of the dreaded plague. We wondered: How did they get the results so fast? Was the test legit? But this is the Age of Miracles. And we had no time to wonder. We had to get on an airplane. We sent the results to Avianca so we could be approved for travel. Alas, something went wrong. No response. Arguing with the ticket agents did no good. They merely reported that we weren’t “on the list.” The plane to Managua, if it left at all, took off without us. [Featured: Firm That Predicted 9/11 Issues Urgent Warning: Move Your Money Now] Free Travel So, we are still in Miami. And now, with time on our hands, we wonder… …about what a “golden age” we enjoyed up until 2001… America was on top of the world… Numero Uno by almost any measure. We could go almost anywhere, almost anytime… There was no TSA… no security checks… no temperature checks… no face masks… no COVID tests. We recall once leaving on a trip around the world with only 24 hours’ advance notice… and only $6 (and a credit card) in our pockets… We were confident that we wouldn’t have any trouble getting money… food… lodging… and transportation. And we were right. We could travel to Paris… Bombay… Melbourne… And everywhere, Americans were welcomed. People smiled. Ticket agents smiled. Stewardesses smiled and served drinks. Hotel clerks smiled. Waiters smiled. Smiling was how you got along with others… It made you feel good, and put others at ease. | Recommended Link | | Tech Expert: “S.A.V. Will Be Huge” S.A.V. – that’s Elon Musk’s next big project that will shock the world. And after months of research, this tech expert finally found the company that’s behind this new project. This is all part of a $30 trillion trend that’s set to dominate this decade. But hurry… all the big players are already getting in. For example, Warren Buffett has already invested $15 billion in this trend… and said he’s ready to invest $15 billion more. | | | -- | No Smiles Now, nobody smiles. Nobody. Nowhere. Nohow. Instead, they all go about with “face coverings”… some with freaky designs… some industrial-strength germ-strainers… some just the standard surgical masks… Many are even doubling up… with two-ply masks… just to make sure no smile escapes. And some add plastic face shields, another level of protection against a dangerous outside world. Restaurants are likely to be closed. Flights are cancelled. Plans are put on hold… weddings delayed… meetings postponed… And see how easy it is to get booted off “the list”! [Featured: The #1 Tech Stock of 2021] Flynn Effect Meanwhile… Yesterday, we reported on what appears to be the first drop in IQ scores ever. Until now, each generation – as measured by standardized IQ tests – got a little smarter (or at least, better able to take the tests). This intelligence creep is known as the “Flynn Effect,” named after James R. Flynn, the intelligence researcher who first noticed it. We don’t know who will put their name to the current trend – stupidity creep – but it is surely a phenomenon worth noting. | Recommended Link | Look who's getting banned in America. Will you be next? According to MarketWatch, ordinary Americans are being put on 'restriction lists,' and being banned from using certain businesses. Why is this happening? And what does it mean for you? Widely-followed geopolitical expert Nick Giambruno explains: "This is just the beginning of a much larger movement I've been watching unfold for years in the United States. Law-abiding Americans will soon have a critical decision to make." Will you be banned next? | | | | Constant Distraction We write to you from the “Margaritaville” bar and restaurant, the only one open to us in this part of the airport. It is no wonder people aren’t thinking as clearly as they used to – with so many distractions, it’s amazing that they can think at all. Loud, mindless music blares from overhead speakers. And three TV screens – each with its own sort of drivel – beckon to us. The biggest one, directly in front of us, seems on an endless sports loop… Another might be showing a Spanish-language soap opera – a telenovela. And God knows what’s going on on the third screen. Can anyone hold a thought for more than a second amid all these distractions? Can you have a proper conversation? Write a poem? Compose a verse? Understand fake money? Constantly distracted… always interrupted… regularly fed a diet of fake news and insipid commentary, is it any wonder we can no longer think straight? A year ago… people could at least still smile at one another. Now, that simple pleasure, too… is gone. Stay tuned… Regards, Bill
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Like Bill, Postcards From the Fringe editor Tom Dyson has been tracking the growing disconnect between the stock market and the real economy. It’s due to the feds’ out-of-control money-printing and “whatever it takes” attitude… MAILBAG In today’s mailbag… one dear reader wonders if – as Bill said in yesterday’s Diary, “Dumbing Down” – our leaders are not intelligent enough for the job… or if something more nefarious is at play... I concur. I believe those who “lead” the U.S. are either incredibly foolish AND stupid or are intentionally trying to take this nation down the road to perdition. I really doubt if this nation has another five years before economic collapse occurs. Of course, those in power, the wealthy oligarchs, etc., will have squirreled away large sums of cash and can “skedaddle” to another nation to their safe havens, while the “zombies” they have left behind kill each other for what is left. – Darrell G. Another writes in response to Bill’s Wednesday Diary, “Extraordinary Popular Delusions”... Bill, I thoroughly enjoyed today’s column. It brought tears of joy and sorrow in equal amounts. Joy for the elegant prose used in delivering the eulogy for the American economy, and sorrow that only extreme crises bring about change (the last change in 2008 – in error – being the precursor to what we face today). Please keep striking up the band – we all need to hear the siren song from the deck of THIS Titanic!!! – Thomas M. Meanwhile, another dear reader scoffs at the government’s efforts to arrest and charge each person who participated in the Capitol Building riot on January 6… A handful of right-wing nut-jobs (and at least one aggressive member of Antifa) invaded the seat of power and scared the spineless politicians. Now, the country is suddenly full of “domestic terrorists” and the FBI has been enlisted to root them out and cut them down. You probably could count on your hands the number of people who are actually militant and dangerous. But now that the Left has found that over-the-top fear-mongering can control the populace, we’re going to see this tactic escalate beyond our darkest imaginings. – Marjorie C. And finally, praise for Bill’s Diary… Bill, in order to counterbalance the hate emails, I have to say that I like reading your writings, Diary, books, and everyday activity. Asset-wise, you could certainly compete with a bunch of Wall Streeters, but contrary to them, you have not lost your human values. Congratulations, Bill. Humility is greatness, especially for somebody with your stature! – Alain R. Is time running out to save the American nation from sinking like the Titanic, as Darrell and Thomas believe? Write us at feedback@rogueeconomics.com. IN CASE YOU MISSED IT… America's #1 Investor Makes Stunning Discovery at Trump Tower… Since 2016, Teeka Tiwari has trumped the stock market. His investment recommendations have averaged 154% per year. That's 10 times the S&P 500. And 81 times the average investor’s returns, according to JPMorgan! However, one investment Teeka just uncovered could top them all… It involves former President Trump, billions of dollars, several large banks, and Warren Buffett. As well as a MAJOR upgrade to our credit and debit cards. Teeka, who correctly picked the last two "investments of the decade," is declaring this his top pick for the 2020s. See Teeka's top pick. 
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