{"id":49236,"date":"2018-06-16T04:15:17","date_gmt":"2018-06-16T11:15:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lenpenzo.com\/blog\/?p=49236"},"modified":"2018-06-19T05:52:33","modified_gmt":"2018-06-19T12:52:33","slug":"black-coffee-16-june-2018","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lenpenzo.com\/blog\/id49236-black-coffee-16-june-2018.html","title":{"rendered":"Black Coffee: Mother Goose and the Bitcoin Hodlers"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"It’s time to sit back, relax and enjoy a little joe<\/em> …<\/p>\n

Welcome to another rousing edition of Black Coffee, your off-beat weekly round-up of what’s been going on in the world of money and personal finance.<\/p>\n

Okay, away we go …<\/p>\n

“The goose that lays golden eggs has been considered a most valuable possession. But even more profitable is the privilege of taking the golden eggs laid by somebody else’s goose. The investment bankers and their associates now enjoy that privilege.”<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

— Louis D. Brandeis<\/strong><\/p>\n

“In the absence of the gold standard, there is no way to protect savings from confiscation through inflation. Deficit spending is simply a scheme for the ‘hidden’ confiscation of wealth. Gold stands in the way of this insidious process. It stands as a protector of property rights.”<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

— Alan Greenspan<\/strong><\/p>\n

Credits and Debits<\/strong><\/p>\n

Credit:<\/strong><\/span> Stocks may have recovered a good chunk of what they lost since their early February meltdown but, financial analyst Dave Kranzler says there are signs that “The professional money is leaving<\/a> the stock market at a rate that has only been equaled (twice) in the last 20 years, in 2000 and 2008.” Who knows? Maybe the third time is a charm.<\/p>\n

Debit:<\/strong><\/span> Hey … Remember when a single bitcoin commanded more than $19,000 — the equivalent of almost 15 troy ounces of gold — with “experts” calling for the soaring cryptocurrency to reach $50,000<\/a>, $100,000<\/a> and even $1 million<\/a>? Yeah, it seems like that was such a long time ago — but it was only last December. Imagine that.<\/p>\n

Debit:<\/strong><\/span> Alas, bitcoin never did hit the million-dollar mark — or $50,000 for that matter. In fact, since the last greater fool bought a bitcoin for $19,783.06 on December 17th of last year, bitcoin has shed more than $13,000 and is now struggling to stay above $6000<\/a>, which means those who bought the cryptocurrency near its parabolic top have lost 70% of their investment — in six short months. Ouch. See for yourself:<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

(if you’re not a hodler<\/a>, click to enlarge)<\/p><\/div>\n

Credit:<\/strong><\/span> If you think that’s<\/em> bad, just wait until the US dollar finally implodes; then bitcoin’s true<\/em> value<\/a> will be revealed. For those of you still wondering what that final number is, well … here’s a hint:<\/p>\n