America 2020 – YEAR OF LIVING DANGEROUSLY (PART TWO)

By: James_Quinn

In Part One of this article I detailed my inability to predict the timing of events during this Fourth Turning, while maintaining the catalysts of debt, civic decay, and global disorder continue to drive the world towards a cliff.

“Every schoolchild will know what happened next, from the Oh-Ohs to the 2020s, as the Fourth Turning unfolded—but academics will surely debate how and why it came to pass. In his history, this great-great-grandson of today’s baby girl will reflect on what the Fourth Turning came to mean for his own time and generation. His history is not yet written. What will it be?” – Strauss & Howe

The Trump team is now poised to go on the offensive as this Constitutional crisis intensifies and hurtles towards a violent conclusion. Barr and Durham are busy building a case against the Obama administration and their illegal activities before and after the election. As the election approaches and Durham concludes his investigation, indictments handed down on Clapper, Brennan, Comey or any of the other conspirators would lead to turmoil not seen since the Civil War. No matter the result of the upcoming election, neither side will accept the outcome.

This country is irretrievably broken and there will be no compromise or negotiated agreements. With Virginia Governor “Blackface” Northam attempting to overturn the 2nd Amendment and forcefully confiscate lawfully owned firearms from his citizens a modern-day Harper’s Ferry confrontation could be in the offing. There are no viable political solutions to our current dilemmas. It’s just a matter of when and where the conflict goes hot and blood is spilled.

The domestic turmoil and disintegration of societal norms is a big enough risk by itself, but the international conflicts swirling across the globe add a particularly dire dimension to the twelfth year of this Fourth Turning. As we entered 2019 I thought the likely global recession would lead to further international tensions and possible military conflict. The flooding of the entire world with central bank produced liquidity has continued to shroud the deteriorating economic conditions in the U.S, EU, China and Japan.

If trillions of fiat had not been electronically pumped into the system during 2019, as the ruling oligarchs panicked at the thought of reality setting in, the global economy would have crashed, along with stock markets around the world. GDP only appears to be positive due to Fed money printing and the government running trillion-dollar deficits. They have managed to delay the inevitable crash, but they have only ensured it will be the worst in history.

I’ve found it fascinating how the various factions have reacted to the assassination of Soleimani and the subsequent reactions and over-reactions of the competing narratives. It provides a window into the thought processes of Republicans, Democrats, neo-cons, the left-wing media, Iranians, Iraqis, Israelis, Russians, and Chinese. Soleimani has been described as a brutal terrorist responsible for the deaths of over 600 American soldiers. He has also been given credit for defeating ISIS in Syria. We’ve been told he was beloved by the Iranian people. We are now being told he is despised by the Iranian people.

We were told this act by Trump would lead to World War 3. Shortly thereafter, the initial Iranian response was tepid, except for their military incompetence in shooting down a civilian airliner. Iraq’s response was to demand all American troops leave. Trump’s response was no, revealing we are actually an occupying force and not an ally of Iraq. Israel quietly foments discontent and turmoil across the region to keep the focus off itself. Russia and China support Iran economically and militarily in order to offset Americans dominance of the region. Confusion reigns.

The right is ecstatic over the developments since the assassination. Trump is on the offensive. The left-wing politicians and their media lackeys look like fans of terrorism and a teetering religious extremist regime. The goal of the neo-cons is for regime change in Iran, just as it was in Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya and Syria. Look how well that worked out. Everything we touch in the Middle East turns to shit. We were told taking out Sadaam Hussein and Gaddafi would lead to the glorious democratization of these nations.

Instead it turned them into dangerous, terrorist infested, hell holes where the population despises America. We were unsuccessful in creating ISIS to bring down Assad in Syria, with Russia and Iran doing the dirty work in destroying ISIS, and Trump taking credit. No one knows what happens if Khamenei and his regime are overthrown. But I’m sure the result won’t be what we were told it would be. Blood will spill and society will disintegrate just like every country we have “helped” achieve freedom.

It almost seems like that’s the plan. None of the guys running these Middle East countries are good guys. Of course, the guys running Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Israel are bad guys too, but we aren’t bombing them or assassinating their leaders. As has been clearly revealed during the ongoing coup attempt against Trump, the U.S. government/Deep State/Surveillance State is overflowing with bad guys doing bad things around the globe. Xi and Putin are brutal dictators who will resort to any tactic to retain power and enforce their will upon the world scene.

Essentially, the so-called leaders of this world are corrupt power-hungry arrogant oligarchs. The average Iranian, Iraqi, Syrian, Russian, Chinese, and American are decent people trying to make a living and enjoy some semblance of happiness during their short stay on this planet. It’s our “beloved” leaders who create turmoil, wage wars, steal the money of their citizens, exhibit hubristic pomposity in their actions, and wield far more power than the people should allow them.

Anyone with an ounce of critical thinking skills knows none of this is about freedom, democracy or doing the right thing. It’s about oil and it’s about the military industrial complex requiring enemies to keep the profits flowing. The tripe about America being energy independent is easily sold to a dumbed down willfully ignorant populace who believe any propaganda emanating from the boob tube. The shale “miracle” is just another delusion built upon easy money pumped out by the Fed. No one can make profits on shale oil at $60 per barrel.

The powers that be know the truth. That is why the Deep State promotes global disorder, particularly in the countries with the largest oil reserves – Venezuela, Iran and Iraq. By installing puppets in these countries, the oligarchs are trying to ensure a continued flow of cheap oil to power their military and keep their debt saturated Ponzi scheme alive. Keep rooting for the good guys, except they don’t exist. The world is filled with good people, governed and manipulated by bad people.

The year we have entered has all the makings of other historically important years which have fallen during the eighty-year cycles ending in a period of crisis. Eighty years ago we entered 1940, with World War 2 underway, the U.S. still experiencing the effects of the Great Depression, and 65 million future deaths over a five year period, as destiny and the generational configuration of the world assured the destruction of the existing social order.

Eighty years before World War 2 was the somewhat eventful year of 1860. The American experiment was about to go through the bloodiest most tumultuous five years in its history. Over 700,000 men, 8% of the fighting age males in the country, brutally killed in a no holds barred fight to the finish. The country would never be the same, as the Federal government assumed ever increasing power and states lost power. Eighty years prior was 1780 as George Washington and his ragtag army of farmers were on the verge of defeating Cornwallis and his professionally trained army. A new nation was about to be born.

2020 is destined to be an eventful year just by the fact it is a presidential election year. The result of this election will not be accepted by the losers. The months leading up to the election will be a circus. Propaganda, misinformation, and outright lies will be spread like manure. Of course, voting will not alleviate the issues which will continue to drive this Fourth Turning towards its climax – debt, civic decay, global disorder.

We have entered the extreme greed phase of this debt-based Ponzi scheme. The stock market is in the blow-off stage, where earnings, valuations, and rational thinking are meaningless. Momentum and a delusional belief in the infallibility of the Fed are all that matter. Who knows how far it will go, but fear will eventually rear its ugly head, and a cascading collapse will make a lot of useful investing idiots very angry for the third time in the last two decades.

“Modern fanaticism thrives in proportion to the quantity of contradictions and nonsense it pours down the throats of the gaping multitude, and the jargon and mysticism it offers to their wonder and credulity.” – William Hazlitt

As the daily chaos of our modern existence hastens towards its tumultuous denouement, the masses are too distracted by their iGadgets, non-stop social media trivialities, games of sport, and ceaseless propaganda from corporate fake news media, to understand they are being used and will bear the brunt of the coming storms. The system is rigged, but the riggers are arrogant, and their arrogance will be their undoing.

The continuation of the current lull in this greater depression is completely dependent upon an ever escalating level of unpayable debt and an ever increasing level of delusional belief by the willfully ignorant financial elite that there will be no negative consequences to their deceitful actions. I expect this bubble to burst during 2020, but I’ve been wrong for a long time, so my level of confidence in this prediction is low. I am soberly convinced my assessment for the remainder of this Fourth Turning in last year’s 2019 preview still applies:

Based upon history, the resolution will not be based on compromise, civility, reason, or peaceful means. The combustible combination of unpayable debt, civic anarchy, and global chaos are set to detonate, creating an era of maximum darkness, death, destruction, and decisions. Making America Great Again will require personal sacrifice, dreadful choices, survival skills, intelligent decisions, and the courage to win at all costs.

I don’t know what events will dominate the coming year, but I do know the intensity of hate and vitriol will increase. I do know military conflict in the Middle East will expand. I do know the political machinations in this country will surge as the election approaches. I do know the Deep State will do everything in their immense power to undermine Trump. I do know the Fed will QE and Trump will cheer every new stock market record. I do know I will be lied to and propagandized by the mainstream corporate media.

Lastly, I do know the risk of catastrophe rises as we approach the climax of this crisis. The outcome is uncertain, but the trials awaiting will surely test our strength and fortitude. I hope enough patriots will do the right thing and lead the country to a new beginning.

“The risk of catastrophe will be very high. The nation could erupt into insurrection or civil violence, crack up geographically, or succumb to authoritarian rule. Thus might the next Fourth Turning end in apocalypse – or glory. The nation could be ruined, its democracy destroyed, and millions of people scattered or killed. Or America could enter a new golden age, triumphantly applying shared values to improve the human condition. The rhythms of history do not reveal the outcome of the coming Crisis; all they suggest is the timing and dimension.” – Strauss & Howe

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By James Quinn

quinnadvisors@comcast.net

James Quinn is a senior director of strategic planning for a major university. James has held financial positions with a retailer, homebuilder and university in his 22-year career. Those positions included treasurer, controller, and head of strategic planning. He is married with three boys and is writing these articles because he cares about their future. He earned a BS in accounting from Drexel University and an MBA from Villanova University. He is a certified public accountant and a certified cash manager.

These articles reflect the personal views of James Quinn. They do not necessarily represent the views of his employer, and are not sponsored or endorsed by his employer.

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