Category Blogger Martin Armstrong

Feb 21 2025

The Endless Hunt for Taxes


Posted originally on Feb 20, 2025 by Martin Armstrong 

Progressive Party

QUESTION: You may say you do not advise the Trump Administration, but Trump seems to be adopting everything you have laid out, including that income taxes are a barbaric relic from the past that are no longer necessary. He has even publicly rejected Zelensky. When will you tell the truth that you do advise Trump? You have been the only voice calling out Zelensky for what he is.

George

Gov Non Defense Spending GDP

ANSWER: Sorry, I have not advised Trump. Yes, I know many people are reading who are close to him. I  have no such official position. The Founding Fathers prohibited income taxes. The Progressive Movement went after income and openly discriminated against people who made more than they did. The Progressive Party was even on the ticket in 1912, the year before the income tax.

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Trump has stated that between 1870 and 1913 this was the richest period in American History economically. The income tax is Marxist, and the Founding Fathers constitutionally prohibited it for a good reason. It makes everyone report if they even won $100 at the casino. Everything you do is accountable, and now the Democrats ushered in a requirement that every person having any interest in any company must discover that to the Treasury or be fined $10,000 and imprisoned. They want to know everything, and it will never stop there. Janet Yellen wanted to audit transactions down to $600, and if you have any cash app, they must report what you are doing to the IRS.

Federal Spending as GDP

It does not matter how much the government collects, it will always spend more. The Democrats cannot run for office without promising to bribe people with free gifts. I have been waiting for the free toaster or TV when you vote Democrat. This is why a gold standard cannot work. You cannot have gold as money unless you completely change the political system. This is what Trump is trying to do. The government is growing, and it will continue to consume more and more of people’s wages, which reduces the available spending capacity of the people, which then reduces economic growth.

Civil Work Force 1900 1980 New

When we add all government, including contracted to the government, it grew from 22% to 33%, including state and local. The government is consuming everything. This will only result in the economy’s collapse and a sovereign debt crisis.

Tax Robbery

Taxes are no longer necessary, for when money was actually a coin, the king had to get some back to spend again. Today, the government creates money, and if it did not borrow but just printed what it needed, the national debt would be a fraction of its size. This year alone, we will add $1 trillion in interest to keep rolling a debt nobody intends to pay off. There will NEVER be liberty as long as there is an income tax.

Feb 21 2025

Fort Knox


Posted originally on Feb 20, 2025 by Martin Armstrong 

Fort Knox

COMMENT: Sir,

Saw your blog post about Fort Knox gold depository . Your comment about no visitors was spot on. I use to be the flight surgeon assigned to Fort Knox airfield in the early 90s. One of the flight units assigned was an executive transport wing. To get flight hours, I would tag along with them on their King Air fixed wing planes. When flying with them I noticed, just after take off that we banked quite hard. I chided the pilot thinking they were just trying to give me a hard time. Actually one of the runways was built and aligned exactly flying over the Gold depository. Whether the runway was built before or after the depository was , I don’t know. The pilot in command told me that even they were not allowed to fly over the gold depository. So when you said no visitors… it really means no visitors on ground or air.

Keep up the good work

DK

REPLY: This may become a fascinating conspiracy theory. If they will not allow Musk in and nobody can verify anything, this will only fuel speculation. They should at least take a video tour themselves and provide that to the public. Let’s see. Members of Congress have tried to visit and were denied. Can the President visit and take a video? Perhaps Trump can then swing by Area 51 before returning to the White House.

Feb 21 2025

The Wheat Farmer


Posted originally on Feb 20, 2025 by Martin Armstrong 

Wheat Famer

Phil – There is a Cycle to Everything!

Feb 20 2025

DeSantis Considers Removing Property Taxes


Posted originally on Feb 20, 2025 by Martin Armstrong 

DeSantis Ron

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has called property taxes “the more oppressive and ineffective form of taxation” and is looking at ways of reducing or implementing this tax. In America, one never truly owns their home. Even if you’ve paid off your mortgage, you’re still paying rent to the government for the privilege of staying in your house.

This system is a remnant of feudalism, where land ownership was conditional upon paying dues to the ruling class. In many states, we have seen local governments raising property taxes to compensate for their fiscal mismanagement, further burdening homeowners and preventing renters from accessing the market. The pension crisis at the municipal and state levels has only exacerbated this trend. They continue to increase taxation on real estate because it is immovable, meaning they can always come after you to collect.

Historically, property taxes were never meant to be this high. They were originally implemented to fund local services such as schools and infrastructure, but over time, they have become a tool for governments to extract revenue at will. The real danger is that, in economic downturns, people lose their jobs, and income tax revenue declines, but property taxes remain. This forces many homeowners—particularly retirees on fixed incomes—to sell their homes because they can no longer afford the tax burden. This is why we are seeing a growing number of people fleeing high-tax states like California, New York, and Illinois in favor of states with lower property tax burdens. Capital flows dictate economic strength, and those states losing wealth due to excessive taxation will continue their decline.

House US

Property taxes are unsustainable in their current form, especially as governments become more desperate for revenue. The only real solution is to restructure the system entirely, eliminating the government’s ability to tax an individual’s primary residence. This would force local governments to live within their means instead of using homeowners as their personal ATM.

DeSantis would need to file an amendment that must receive 60% approval from voters, who would likely be in favor of such a measure. No US state has completely abolished property taxes but we have seen several take measures to reduce the tax burden. Idaho, for example, used its surplus following the pandemic to provide a property tax rebate and divert funds to schools districts. Colorado increased exemptions and caps property taxes but sources $200 million from the general fund to pay local governments for lost revenue. Governor Jill Pillen of Nebraska sought to reduce this tax burden by 40% but failed to garner enough votes for the bill to pass.

Plenty of nations such as China, Malta, Monaco, Saudi Arabia, Lichtenstein, the Cayman Islands, Fiji, the UAE, Croatia, and others do not charge property taxes, although revenue is collected elsewhere. The American dream once included a family, home, and a white picket fence. In addition to having a tangible asset, home ownership should provide the security of a fixed monthly mortgage payment unlike rentals with renewable contracts. Taxes have simply risen to unsustainable levels whereby people can no longer maintain payments and this is greatly contributing to the cost of living crisis.

Feb 20 2025

Moscow and Washington Discuss Peace – Trump Exposes Zelensky


Posted originally on Feb 20, 2025 by Martin Armstrong 

TrumpCallsOutZelensky

The United States will no longer tend to Ukraine as if it were a helpless victim in the war. The media would like you to believe that Russia invaded Ukraine without provocation. The events that led to this war are detailed in “The Plot to Seize Russia.” The official US government stance on the war has pivoted after US and Russian officials met this week in Saudi Arabia.

Donald Trump blasted Vladamir Zelensky on Truth Social for “playing Biden like a fiddle,” stating that is the only thing Zelensky seemed to be good at. He accused the former comedian of ruling Ukraine as a dictator and denying the people the right to an election. Finally, a world leader asks why Zelensky does not know where half of the aid went. It appears that the “gravy train” is coming to a complete halt as Trump realizes that Zelensky extorted hundreds of billions from the US while simultaneously attempting to push our nation into the next world war. This does not mean that Trump is pro-Russia; he is pro-America, and this entire proxy war is the most dangerous issue facing our nation. “MILLIONS have unnecessarily died” and now we have European leaders eager to send their men and women to die for an unjust cause.

Vladimir Putin has repeatedly stated that Russia has taken a defensive position as he believes the war truly began in 2014 during a Western engineered coup. the U.S. and EU backed the Maidan protests to overthrow the democratically elected government of Viktor Yanukovych because he maintained economic ties with Russia instead of aligning fully with the West. This intervention led to civil unrest, the secession of Crimea to Russia via referendum, and a broader geopolitical confrontation that set the stage for ongoing conflict.

Volodymyr Zelensky’s rise to power in 2019 was part of the broader Western agenda to maintain control over Ukraine following the 2014 coup. Zelensky, initially elected on promises of peace and reform, ultimately became a tool of Western interests, escalating tensions with Russia instead of pursuing genuine diplomacy. Zelensky is a puppet leader of the West whose government is merely a continuation of the post-2014 regime.

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After the fall of the Soviet Union, there was no justification for NATO’s continued existence, yet instead of dissolving, it expanded relentlessly eastward, violating every assurance given to Russia. The claim that NATO is a “defensive alliance” is a political farce. The reality is that NATO has been used to provoke Russia by surrounding it with hostile forces, pushing military bases and missile systems right up to its borders.

“NATO consists of 32 countries and it’s NATO’s position that it [war in Ukraine] was unprovoked,” Adm. Stuart B. Munsch, the commander of U.S. Naval Forces for Europe and Africa, said. President Donald Trump blamed former President Joe Biden for pivoting on America’s stance on Ukrainian NATO membership. Not only did NATO consider admitting Ukraine but it began to expand eastward, surrounding Russia. Moscow knew the Plot to Seize Russia that was in motion, which became most apparent when former German Chancellor Angela Merkel exposed the true reason behind the Minsk Agreement.

Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov of Russia applauded Trump for becoming “the first and only Western leader” for acknowledging the role NATO has played in this escalating conflict. “[His] “remarks on NATO being the main reason for the conflict in Ukraine are a signal that he understands our position,” Lavrov stated. “I assume the United States, as discussed yesterday, intends to remove obstacles that are in the path of promising projects. We have begun to move away from the edge of the abyss where Biden’s administration led our relationship.”

Russian column Tanks

Trump chastised Zelensky for complaining without offering solutions. “I think I have the power to end this war, and I think it’s going very well. Today I heard, ‘Oh, well, we weren’t invited.’ Well, you’ve been there for three years. You should have ended it three years — you should have never started it,” President Trump stated. Zelensky accused Trump of “living in this disinformation space” and has been surrounding himself with European neocons in recent weeks who are hell-bent on continuing this war. Zelensky’s comments regarding Trump caused the US president to expose him as a puppet dictator. Zelensky got away with harassing the US for money over the past three years, but he barked up the wrong tree this time and turned his leading donor into an enemy who does not respect him.

Zelensky_Tells_Trump_NATO or Nukes

Moscow will not speak with Zelensky as they do not see him as the legitimate leader of Ukraine. Zelensky was able to bypass the entire election process by declaring martial law. Trump claims Zelensky’s approval rating is 4% while Ukraine maintains that at least half of the population supports Zelensky. If the current government believes that he has such support, why not hold an election? I personally know many people in or from Ukraine who HATE Zelensky and what he has done to their nation. He completely sold out his people and transformed his nation into a stepping stone for the West’s proxy war against Russia.

European leaders are absolutely furious at Donald Trump for criticizing Zelensky and holding private talks with Moscow. Trump is also facing backlash at home, even from members of his own party, as neocons can be found on both sides of the political spectrum. Europe and the US are effectively breaking up over this issue. We are less than three months away from the computer’s May 15, 2025, turning point and I fear that the war may be the focal point of this critical target.

Feb 20 2025

Firing Past Era US Attorneys is STANDARD


Posted originally on Feb 20, 2025 by Martin Armstrong 

Swamp

Out with the old, in with the new. Donald Trump announced that he plans to “clean house immediately” and fire all Biden-era US attorneys. The left is hysterical about this ideological purge that they believe warrants impeachment. Where was the outrage when Joe Biden took this precise action when he took office in 2021?

Joe Biden appointed 68 of the 93 US attorneys after asking attorneys appointed under Trump to leave office. The majority of those 68 attorneys quit before Trump re-entered the White House, and only about two dozen still remain. This is absolutely STANDARD PRACTICE but the media is in a frenzy due to Trump’s delivery.

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During his first term, Trump demanded the resignation of 46 Obama-appointed US attorneys. Obama replaced most Bush-era US attorneys but did so in “batches.” “Many jurisdictions are waiting desperately to see what is going to be done. As we understand it, the protocol has been that U.S. Attorneys would hand in their resignations and would give the new administration an opportunity to make new appointments, we don’t see that happening quite fast enough,” Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) explained in 2009. George W. Bush dismissed seven US attorneys in 2006 and faced intense scrutiny. Again, this is completely STANDARD and Waters’ quote regarding attorneys willingly resigning is on point.

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Those who argue that Trump has become a dictator by firing ALL 93 must forget that former President Bill Clinton also fired ALL 93 US attorneys when he came to power. “That’s a traditional prerogative of an incoming president,” Hillary Clinton said in 2007 regarding her husband’s actions. Hillary said that she was planning to also replace all 93 US attorneys if she secured the election in 2008.

Now, George W. Bush faced far more backlash than Clinton for firing a handful of people. The left becomes extremely vocal and irate when their power grasp loosens. There is no reason for the current outrage, as everyone involved in politics is well aware that Trump’s latest move is the normal course of action.

Feb 20 2025

The Coming Volcanic Winter?


Posted originally on Feb 20, 2025 by Martin Armstrong 

WHCBT Y Tech 2 19 2025

QUESTION: Marty, Your computer warned that we would be heading into global cooling, not warming. But you also warned that we would see increased volcanic activity and the risk of a volcanic winter. Well, this has been the coldest winter I can remember. With Mt Spurr stirring, another offshore from California, and some hinting at Yellowstone erupting, do you have any update on this aspect from Socrates?

Darby

mt_spurr

ANSWER: Nothing has changed. We are heading into a more active volcano period, and that does raise the risk of a volcanic winter in which crops fail, and there will be a shortage of food. I still recommend that you stockpile two years’ worth of food. It is not that you will save money, but that the supply may be seriously diminished. Our models of Wheat warn that this year is the Directional Change, and we can see a shortage into 2028.

However, there are rising concerns about the Supervolcano in Italy that appears to be coming to life. A 4.4-magnitude earthquake struck Italy’s Campi Flegrei supervolcano Monday evening. It was at a depth of 3 kilometers, which is the strongest earthquake to hit the area in the past 40 years, according to INGV data. The quake is part of an ongoing “seismic storm” that has seen over a dozen events over 2.0 magnitude in the past 48 hours. The eruption of Mr Vesusius, who buried Pompeii in 79AD, is related to this region. As far as Yellowstone Supervolcano is concerned, it has been showing some more minor activity, but nothing major just yet.

During January 2025, the University of Utah Seismograph Stations, responsible for the operation and analysis of the Yellowstone Seismic Network, located 56 earthquakes in the Yellowstone National Park region. The largest event of the month was a minor earthquake of magnitude 3.7. I would be more concerned about Italy just yet.

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There are a number of Supervolcanoes around the world and perhaps the most recent one to erupt was in Italy. The term Supervolcano has been popularized by the BBC and the Discovery Channel story on Yellowstone back in 2005. According to the United States Geological Survey (USGS), a supervolcano is any volcanic center that has explosively erupted at least 1,000 cubic kilometers (240 cubic miles) of fresh volcanic material in a sudden, violent manner – in a so-called supereruption – often producing a huge depression crater named a caldera. Currently, Italy’s Campi Flegrei volcano has been showing signs for the first time in nearly 400 years that it is still alive and well and capable of making a lot of people experience a very bad day.

Aside from Yellowstone, the largest volcanic eruption in the Northern Hemisphere in the past 100,000 years has been attributed to a Supervolcano, which erupted some 39,400 years ago in what is known as the Phlegraean Fields by Naples, Italy. This has been documented from several sources. The ashes from this eruption were distributed over the entire eastern Mediterranean and up to central Russia. This was a huge event that clearly also produced a Volcanic Winter, and that is what is the worst thing for the rest of the world who resides at a safe distance from the actual Supervolcano.

We are beginning to witness a rise in volcanic activity as we enter solar minimum. Hopefully, we are not facing a catastrophic volcanic winter period. But it also does raise some concerns that a pole shift can be far more rapid than previously anticipated. I believe that people prefer to assume uniformity rather than a catastrophe. A stalagmite-based paleomagnetic record of the post-Blake excursion reveals details of repeated polarity drifts have occurred during periods of low geomagnetic field intensity at 100 thousand years before present around the time of this Naples eruption. One surprisingly abrupt centennial reversal transition occurred in 144,000 provides unprecedented evidence that raises fundamental questions about the speed of geomagnetic field shifts. Such rapid polarity changes could severely affect satellites and human society in the future if the current geomagnetic field intensity continues to decrease.

We have a pole shift, climate change, and volcanic eruptions seem to be interlinked on a correlated basis. Our correlation models have warned that this is something that needs to be investigated. For the first time, laying out this record produces what appears to be a single geological archive creating a precise chronological order. These types of events can take place in the space of even just a single decade.

The recent events at the Campi Flegrei volcano have provided a warning sign for the first time in nearly 400 years. The ground at the caldera’s center has bulged by 4 meters, warning that lava is collecting again. This uplifting interestingly began in 1985 with this ECM wave. Keep in mind that the eruptions at the Supervolcanic level took place around 315,000, 205,000, 157,000, and 18,000 years ago. A minor event is still at the level of Vesuvius. So, while we no doubt face a major Supervolcanic event, that level may still be off several thousands of years into the future. What is emerging now is more likely to be an important event, but not at the Supervolcanic level.

Feb 20 2025

Democrats Defend 100+ old Biden Voters


Posted originally on Feb 19, 2025 by Martin Armstrong 

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Feb 19 2025

Homebuilder Sentiment Down as Tariffs Loom


Posted originally on Feb 19, 2025 by Martin Armstrong 

Tariffs

Tariff threats have dampened homebuilding confidence. The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index dropped five points from January into February to a reading of 42, the lowest reading in five months.

Builders were initially hopeful that the Trump administration would remove some red tape regulations to streamline the process. However, these tariffs are guaranteed to cause the price of construction to soar, especially in relation to steel, aluminum, and lumber. “With 32% of appliances and 30% of softwood lumber coming from international trade, uncertainty over the scale and scope of tariffs has builders further concerned about costs,” NAHB chief economist Robert Dietz wrote in a statement.

Trump believes the US can simply produce everything domestically with little pushback. “We don’t need their lumber, because we have our own forests,” the US president famously said at Davos. Yet, the US relies on Canada for at least a quarter of its lumber. Spring building season is now coinciding with when these 25% tariffs may be implemented.

Builders are also concerned about mortgage rates, with Freddie Mac showing the average fixed 30-year at around 7% at the time of this writing. The low rates seen during COVID are not returning. Inventory across the US has increased but demand has waned. The NAHB reported that 26% of builders cut home prices this month after 30% of builders were forced to do so in January.

These tariff games have backfired as businesses across sectors cannot accurately gauge the cost of materials.

Feb 19 2025

Labour Party to Increase Migrant Spending by 30%


Posted originally on Feb 19, 2025 by Martin Armstrong 

Britain permitted their borders to be invaded without a shot fired. The taxpayer must take on the responsibility of these open border policies that has led to increased crimes, toppled budgets, and an ever-changing society. The latest news from Downing Street is that the Labour Party is looking to increase spending on illegal migrants by 30% or £47 million per year to £61 million.

The Labour Party claims that they are committed to reducing the asylum backlog, end hotel use and increase returns.” A good portion of the increased funding will go toward legal aid to help illegal migrants bypass the system. As a reminder, there are at LEAST 1.2 million undocumented migrants living in the UK, but we should expect the true figure to be much higher. The government admits they lost track long ago. Around 70% of the unvetted individuals who show up at the borders are granted entry.

NHS UK

Asylum seekers are entitled to FREE healthcare from the National Health Service (NHS). “You may be able to get housing and money to support you and your family while you’re waiting to find out if you’ll be given asylum,” the National Asylum Support Service (NASS) promotes on its website. The NASS will pay for housing and free education for all migrants, even those who have been DENIED asylum.

The government does not want to admit to the mass crime wave sweeping the nation as these people fail to integrate into society. As of March 2024, 12% of the UK’s prison population were foreign nationals. Foreign nationals have a higher rate of imprisonment than citizens, with 18.2 inmates per 10,000 migrants compared to 14 per 10,000 citizens.

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Many had hoped the nation would back away from European policies after Brexit, but the people voted for a party that has the same ideals as Brussels. “Every illegal migrant that crosses the English Channel now costs you the taxpayer £41,000. That is an increase of over 140% since 2019,” Nigel Farage stated in October 2024. Farage has come under fire for advocating for a freeze on non-essential migration. He has noted that the UK would need to build one new dwelling every two minutes to keep up with the demand for housing, largely due to the mass influx of migrants. The NHS has experienced longer wait lists than before as the healthcare system is overwhelmed.

Muhammad has been the most popular boy baby name in the UK in recent years. The UK has lost its identity and is no longer a Christian nation. Pew Research Center believes that Muslim women will have more children than Christian women by 2035, and Islam could become the most followed religion in the world. Build Back Better nations are becoming unrecognizable as the very essence of their cultures and traditions are challenged.

When will the madness end? Each year, the government demands that citizens pay more for illegal migrants. The Labour Party has completely undermined Britain’s economic stability with its socialist agenda. And now they also want to send troops on the ground in Ukraine? The persistent economic downturn is inevitable.