Synopses & Reviews
and#147;The next financial collapse will resembleand#160;nothing in history. . . . Deciding uponand#160;the best course to follow will requireand#160;comprehending a minefield of risks, whileand#160;poised at a crossroads, pondering theand#160;death of the dollar.and#8221; The international monetary system has collapsed threeand#160;times in the past hundred years, in 1914, 1939, and 1971.and#160;Each collapse was followed by a period of tumult: war,and#160;civil unrest, or significant damage to the stability of theand#160;global economy. Now James Rickards, the acclaimedand#160;author of Currency Wars, shows why another collapseand#160;is rapidly approachingand#151;and why this time, nothing lessand#160;than the institution of money itself is at risk.
The American dollar has been the global reserveand#160;currency since the end of the Second World War. If theand#160;dollar fails, the entire international monetary system willand#160;fail with it. No other currency has the deep, liquid poolsand#160;of assets needed to do the job.
Optimists have always said, in essence, that thereand#8217;sand#160;nothing to worry aboutand#151;that confidence in the dollarand#160;will never truly be shaken, no matter how high ourand#160;national debt or how dysfunctional our government. Butand#160;in the last few years, the risks have become too big toand#160;ignore. While Washington is gridlocked and unable toand#160;make progress on our long-term problems, our biggestand#160;economic competitorsand#151;China, Russia, and the oilproducingand#160;nations of the Middle Eastand#151;are doing everythingand#160;possible to end U.S. monetary hegemony. Theand#160;potential results: Financial warfare. Deflation. Hyperinflation.and#160;Market collapse. Chaos.
Rickards offers a bracing analysis of these andand#160;other threats to the dollar. The fundamental problem isand#160;that money and wealth have become more and moreand#160;detached. Money is transitory and ephemeral, and it mayand#160;soon be worthless if central bankers and politicians continueand#160;on their current path. But true wealth is permanentand#160;and tangible, and it has real value worldwide.
The author shows how everyday citizens who saveand#160;and invest have become guinea pigs in the centraland#160;bankersand#8217; laboratory. The worldand#8217;s major financial playersand#151;national governments, big banks, multilateraland#160;institutionsand#151;will always muddle through by patchingand#160;together new rules of the
game. The real victims of theand#160;next crisis will be small investors who assumed that whatand#160;worked for decades will keep working.
Fortunately, itand#8217;s not too late to prepare for the comingand#160;death of money. Rickards explains the power ofand#160;converting unreliable money into real wealth: gold, land,and#160;fine art, and other long-term stores of value. As he writes:and#160;and#147;The coming collapse of the dollar and the internationaland#160;monetary system is entirely foreseeable. . . . Only nationsand#160;and individuals who make provision today will surviveand#160;the maelstrom to come.and#8221;
Review
"Rickards, experienced financial adviser, investment banker, and risk manager, tells us we are in a new currency war that could destroy faith in the U.S. dollar; he examines that war through the lens of economic policy, national security, and historical precedent. As a national security issue, he tells a fascinating story of his involvement with the Pentagon and other agencies in designing and participating in a war game using currencies and capital markets, instead of ships and planes, to gain early warning of attacks on the U.S. dollar. The author concludes that "mainstream economists and central bankers alike are well aware of dollar weakness and the risks to international monetary stability from the new currency wars." He sees four prospects for the dollar-multiple reserve currencies, special drawing rights, gold, and chaos. Rickards' ideas are controversial and will attract support and criticism across many disciplines. Nevertheless, he presents a compelling case for his views and offers thought-provoking information for library patrons. This is a must-read book."
-Mary Whaley, Booklist
"A literate financier with a global view."
-Barron's
"Jim Rickards highlights dangerous dynamics between national security and the international financial markets. What we assumed was firm ground under our feet is more like the narrowing point of a precipice. Our politicians, national security experts, and financial markets, each chasing carrots dangling in front of them, fail to see that they are leading America right off the edge."
-Charles A. Duelfer, former special advisor to the director of the CIA, author of Hide and Seek: The Search for Truth in Iraq
"Put on your flak vest and helmet and enter the dangerous battlefield of global finance. Jim Rickards takes you through a captivating roller- coaster ride-the past, the present, and a look at the problematical future of our ongoing currency wars."
-Rear Admiral (Ret.) Stephen H. Baker, chief of staff, Fifth Fleet; recipient Distinguished Service Medal
"The leading edge of tomorrow's warfare is economic, and we are being probed daily by those who would do us grave harm. . . . Fortunately, we are developing means of detection and a small cadre who understands that the economy intersects national security at the ground zero of modern warfare. Currency Wars provides the best introduction to how it has occurred in the past, how it is occurring today, and how we may prepare ourselves to prevent it from happening tomorrow."
-Brigadier General (Ret.) Joseph L. Shaefer, U.S. Air Force Intelligence Crisis Action Team
"A captivating, articulate, and thoughtful account of failed attempts by governments to create wealth by debasing their currencies. Currency Wars should be required reading for all policy makers, MBA students, and anyone concerned about the long-term stability and prosperity of Western democracies."
-Sorin Sorescu, professor of finance, Texas A&M University
Review
"A literate financier with a global view." -Barron's
Review
"Jim Rickards highlights dangerous dynamics between national security and the international financial markets. What we assumed was firm ground under our feet is more like the narrowing point of a precipice. Our politicians, national security experts, and financial markets, each chasing carrots dangling in front of them, fail to see that they are leading America right off the edge." -Charles A. Duelfer, former special advisor to the director of the CIA, author
Review
"Put on your flak vest and helmet and enter the dangerous battlefield of global finance. Jim Rickards takes you through a captivating roller- coaster ride-the past, the present, and a look at the problematical future of our ongoing currency wars." -Rear Admiral (Ret.) Stephen H. Baker, chief of staff, Fifth Fleet; recipient D
Review
"The leading edge of tomorrow's warfare is economic, and we are being probed daily by those who would do us grave harm. . . . Fortunately, we are developing means of detection and a small cadre who understands that the economy intersects national security at the ground zero of modern warfare. Currency Wars provides the best introduction to how it has occurred in the past, how it is occurring today, and how we may prepare ourselves to prevent it from happening tomorrow." -Brigadier General (Ret.) Joseph L. Shaefer, U.S. Air Force Intelligence Crisis
Review
"A captivating, articulate, and thoughtful account of failed attempts by governments to create wealth by debasing their currencies. Currency Wars should be required reading for all policy makers, MBA students, and anyone concerned about the long-term stability and prosperity of Western democracies." -Sorin Sorescu, professor of finance, Texas A&M University
Review
"Rickards, experienced financial adviser, investment banker, and risk manager, tells us we are in a new currency war that could destroy faith in the U.S. dollar; he examines that war through the lens of economic policy, national security, and historical precedent. As a national security issue, he tells a fascinating story of his involvement with the Pentagon and other agencies in designing and participating in a war game using currencies and capital markets, instead of ships and planes, to gain early warning of attacks on the U.S. dollar. The author concludes that "mainstream economists and central bankers alike are well aware of dollar weakness and the risks to international monetary stability from the new currency wars." He sees four prospects for the dollar-multiple reserve currencies, special drawing rights, gold, and chaos. Rickards' ideas are controversial and will attract support and criticism across many disciplines. Nevertheless, he presents a compelling case for his views and offers thought-provoking information for library patrons. This is a must-read book." -Mary Whaley, Booklist
Review
“One of the most urgent books of the fall.”
—Mike Allen, Politico “Let’s hope he’s wrong.”
—Financial Times “Rickards . . . has written one of the scariest books I’ve read this year. Though I was tempted at first to dismiss him as alarmist, his intelligent reasoning soon convinced me that we have more to fear than fear itself. Part history, part primer and analysis, the text covers topics ranging from the “misuse of economics” to complexity theory. The pieces, although disparate, fit together snugly, as in one of those mystery jigsaw puzzles that come with clues in lieu of cover art. The picture that emerges is dark yet comprehensive and satisfying.”
—Bloomberg Businessweek “Unsettling . . . fascinating . . . a thorough analysis of how nations have manipulated their currencies . . . with disastrous consequences.”
—Fort Worth Star-Telegram “Buy
Currency Wars if you want to learn the history and language of the global currency markets and the political economy which they support.”
—Chris Whalen, Ritholtz.com “Jim Rickards highlights dangerous dynamics between national security and the international financial markets. What we assumed was firm ground under our feet is more like the narrowing point of a precipice. Our politicians, national security experts, and financial markets, each chasing carrots dangling in front of them, fail to see that they are leading America right off the edge.”
—Charles A. Duelfer, former special adviser to the director of the CIA; author of Hide and Seek: The Search for Truth in Iraq “Put on your flak vest and helmet and enter the dangerous battlefield of global finance. Jim Rickards takes you through a captivating roller-coaster ride—the past, the present, and a look at the problematical future of our ongoing currency wars.”
—Rear Admiral (Ret.) Stephen H. Baker, chief of staff, Fifth Fleet; recipient, Distinguished Service MedalReview
"A fast-paced and apocalyptic look at the financial future, taking in financiers' greed, central banks' incompetence and impending Armageddon for the dollar...Rickards may be right that 'the system is going wobbly.'"
—The Financial Times The Death of Money makes a valuable contribution to our economic discourse." —Forbes "James Rickards' The Death of Money is ... making it a veritable golden age for smart books on the current state of the global economy."
—Politico “A terrifically interesting and useful book . . . fascinating.”
—KENNETH W. DAM former deputy secretary of the Treasury and adviser to three presidents “The Death of Money contains very big, provocative ideas clearly explained and delivered in an evenhanded tone that steers away from the sensational proclamation yet successfully undercuts conventional market wisdom. Rickardss insight enables him to connect the dots in a way that few others can. A worthy successor to Currency Wars.”
—JOHN HATHAWAY portfolio manager, Tocqueville Gold Fund “The Death of Money is an engrossing account of the massive stresses accumulating in the global financial system, especially since the 2008 financial crisis. Jim Rickards is a natural teacher. Any serious student of financial crises and their root causes needs to read this book.”
—JOHN H. MAKIN, PH.D. resident scholar, American Enterprise Institute; former chief economist, Caxton Associates “A crucial primer for investors and consumers for what lies immediately ahead for the United States and a world that remains entirely dependent upon the dollar. The Death of Money is an important new book for those who worry about the future of our country.”
—R. CHRISTOPHER WHALEN noted bank analyst; author of Inflated “Rickardss analysis of the inflation-deflation paradox, dangerous adversaries to the dollar, and the Feds strategy is insightful. Following his bestseller Currency Wars, this book is even better. A great book makes you think differently about the world—and this one does just that.”
—DON YOUNG twenty-five-time Institutional Investor All-Star Analyst; former board member, Financial Accounting Standards Board
Review
“I have worked in the highest level of U.S. politics and see a disaster in the making as the government employs endless stimulus plans and bailouts that destroy the very free market capitalistic system that has made it the richest major country in the world. Harry Dent adds the reality of aging societies and slowing demographic trends to show why such reckless debt-driven policies are certain to fail.”
—David Stockman, author of The Great Deformation: The Corruption of Capitalism in America
“Whether you know it or not, you are careening toward a demographic cliff. With this riveting book, esteemed economic forecaster and visionary Harry Dent has produced a must read for the next decade and beyond. It will keep you flying high while the rest of the world tumbles blindly through the turbulence.” —George Gilder, author of Knowledge and Power, Wealth and Poverty, Microcosm, and Telecosm
“Harry Dent has drawn on his unique approach to demographic forecasting as a speaker at my events for twenty years. Over the last three decades, he has accurately predicted the 1990s surging markets, Japans twenty-year economic tailspin, and the U.S. market peak in 2007. His ability to help people understand, in simple terms, some of the most important forces that have helped shape our economy is invaluable. Read this book and find out what impact Harry believes demographics will have on our economy in the coming years.”
—Anthony Robbins, entrepreneur, author, and peak performance strategist
“In Endgame I outlined the global debt that makes a financial crisis inevitable. Harry Dent goes further and shows how a succession of demographic slowdowns following Japan and the United States will make the endless government stimulus plans doomed to fail. He even shows that real estate will not be the same again with rising sellers versus buyers. This is a must-read book for prospering in the debt crisis ahead.” —John Mauldin, author of Code Red, chairman of Mauldin Economics, and editor of Thoughts from the Frontline and Outside the Box
Synopsis
How the worldwide currency war, already under way, will soon affect us all. The debasement of the dollar, bailouts in Greece and Ireland, and Chinese currency manipulation are unmistakable signs that we are experiencing the start of a new currency war. Fought as a series of competitive devaluations of one country's currency against others, currency wars are one of the most destructive and feared outcomes in international economics. Left unchecked, the new currency wars could lead to a crisis worse than the panic of 2008.
Drawing on a mix of economic history, network science, and sociology, Currency Wars provides a rich understanding of the increasing threats to U.S. national security, from dollar devaluation to collapse in the European periphery, failed states in Africa, Chinese neomercantilism, Russian adventurism, and the current scramble for gold.
James Rickards, an expert who has worked at the highest levels of both finance and national security, explains everything we need to know about this growing global standoff. He takes readers around the world and behind closed doors to explain complex financial and political currents with absorbing firsthand anecdotes.
Synopsis
In 1971, President Nixon imposed national price controls and took the United States off the gold standard, an extreme measure intended to end an ongoing currency war that had destroyed faith in the U.S. dollar. Today we are engaged in a new currency war, and this time the consequences will be far worse than those that confronted Nixon.
Currency wars are one of the most destructive and feared outcomes in international economics. At best, they offer the sorry spectacle of countries' stealing growth from their trading partners. At worst, they degenerate into sequential bouts of inflation, recession, retaliation, and sometimes actual violence. Left unchecked, the next currency war could lead to a crisis worse than the panic of 2008.
Currency wars have happened before-twice in the last century alone-and they always end badly. Time and again, paper currencies have collapsed, assets have been frozen, gold has been confiscated, and capital controls have been imposed. And the next crash is overdue. Recent headlines about the debasement of the dollar, bailouts in Greece and Ireland, and Chinese currency manipulation are all indicators of the growing conflict.
As James Rickards argues in Currency Wars, this is more than just a concern for economists and investors. The United States is facing serious threats to its national security, from clandestine gold purchases by China to the hidden agendas of sovereign wealth funds. Greater than any single threat is the very real danger of the collapse of the dollar itself.
Baffling to many observers is the rank failure of economists to foresee or prevent the economic catastrophes of recent years. Not only have their theories failed to prevent calamity, they are making the currency wars worse. The U. S. Federal Reserve has engaged in the greatest gamble in the history of finance, a sustained effort to stimulate the economy by printing money on a trillion-dollar scale. Its solutions present hidden new dangers while resolving none of the current dilemmas.
While the outcome of the new currency war is not yet certain, some version of the worst-case scenario is almost inevitable if U.S. and world economic leaders fail to learn from the mistakes of their predecessors. Rickards untangles the web of failed paradigms, wishful thinking, and arrogance driving current public policy and points the way toward a more informed and effective course of action.
Synopsis
The sequel to national bestseller Currency Wars predicts the next collapse of theand#160;monetary system and shows investors how to survive it The international monetary system collapsed three times in the past hundred yearsand#151;in 1914, 1939, and 1971and#151;and the next collapse is already in sight. This time the dollar wonand#8217;t save us. In fact, the dollar itself will be the cause of the crisis.
Central bankers and the head of the IMF candidly admit that monetary policy is in unchartered waters. The world is witnessing no less than a global money experiment. Savers, investors, and everyday citizens are the guinea pigs in the central bankersand#8217; laboratory.
Bestselling author James Rickards explains why money and wealth have now become separated. Money is transitory, ephemeral, and may soon be worthless if central bankers continue on their current path. Wealth is permanent, tangible, and has real value worldwide. Gold, fine art, and land are forms of wealth. Investors who convert paper money into real wealth will survive the coming monetary maelstrom. But those who do not will lose what they have.
Rickards illuminates the death of money unfolding before our eyes, and helps readers prepare before itand#8217;s too late.
and#147; Unsettling . . . fascinating . . . a thorough analysis of how nations have manipulated their currencies . . . with disastrous consequences.and#8221; and#151;and#160;Fort Worth Star-Telegram
and#147; One of the scariest books Iand#8217;ve read this year . . . The picture that emerges is dark yet comprehensive and satisfying.and#8221; and#151;and#160;Bloomberg BusinessWeek
and#147;One of the most urgent books of the fall.and#8221; and#151; Politico
Synopsis
Bestselling author and financial guru Harry Dent shows why were facing a great deflation” after five years of desperate stimulus and what to do about it now Throughout his long career as an economic forecaster, Harry Dent has relied on a not-so-secret weapon: demographics. Studying the predictable things people do as they age is the ultimate tool for understanding trends. For instance, Dent can tell a client exactly when people will spend the most on potato chips. And he can explain why our economy has risen and fallen with the peak spending of generations, and why we now face a growing demographic cliff with the accelerating retirement of the Baby Boomers around the world.
Dent predicted the impact of the Boomers hitting their highest growth in spending in the 1990s, when most economists saw the United States declining. And he anticipated the decline of Japan in the 1990s, when economists were proclaiming it would overtake the U.S. economy.
But now, Dent argues, the fundamental demographics have turned against the United States and will hit more countries ahead. Inflation rises when a larger than usual block of younger people enter the workforce, and it wanes when large numbers of older people retire, downsize their homes, and cut their spending. The mass retirement of the Boomers wont just hold back inflation; it and massive debt deleveraging will actually cause deflationweakening the economy the most from 2014 into 2019.
Dent explores the implications of his controversial predictions. He offers advice on retirement planning, health care, real estate, education, investing, and business strategies. For instance . . .
- BUSINESSES should get lean and mean now. Identify segments that you can clearly dominate and sell off or shut down others. If you dont, the economy will do it for you, more painfully and less profitably.
- INVESTORS should sell stocks by mid-January 2014 and look to buy them back in 2015 or later at a Dow as low as 5,800.
- FAMILIES should wait to buy real estate in areas where home prices have gone back to where the bubble started in early 2000.
- GOVERNMENTS need to stop the endless stimulus that creates more bubbles and kills the middle class, and should assist in restructuring the unprecedented debt bubble of 19832008.
Dent shows that if you take the time to understand demographic data, using it to your advantage isnt all that difficult. By following his suggestions, readers will be able to find the upside to the downturn and learn how to survive and prosper during the most challenging years ahead.
Synopsis
The next financial collapse will resemble nothing in history. . . . Deciding upon the best course to follow will require comprehending a minefield of risks, while poised at a crossroads, pondering the death of the dollar.
The U.S. dollar has been the global reserve currency since the end of World War II. If the dollar fails, the entire international monetary system will fail with it. But optimists have always said, in essence, that confidence in the dollar will never truly be shaken, no matter how high our national debt or how dysfunctional our government.
In the last few years, however, the risks have become too big to ignore. While Washington is gridlocked, our biggest rivalsChina, Russia, and the oil-producing nations of the Middle Eastare doing everything possible to end U.S. monetary hegemony. The potential results: Financial warfare. Deflation. Hyperinflation. Market collapse. Chaos.
James Rickards, the acclaimed author of Currency Wars, shows why money itself is now at risk and what we can all do to protect ourselves. He explains the power of converting unreliable investments into real wealth: gold, land, fine art, and other long-term stores of value.
Synopsis
Bestselling author and financial guru Harry Dent shows why we're facing a decade-long great deflation”and what to do about it. Throughout his long career as an economic forecaster, Harry Dent has relied on demographicsthe ultimate tool for predicting both big and small trends, decades in advance. Now he explains whats going to happen to our economy with the accelerating retirements of the Baby Boomers.
Inflation rises when a larger than usual block of younger people enter the workforce, and it wanes when large numbers of older people retire, downsize their homes, and cut their spending. The mass retirement of the Boomers wont just hold back inflation, it will actually cause deflationwith a downturn and periodic crises from 2014 until about 2023.
Dent explores the implications of his controversial predictions for retirement planning, healthcare, real estate, education, investing, and business strategies. His advice will help readers survive and prosper during the challenging years ahead.
About the Author
JAMES RICKARDS is the author of the national bestsellerand#160;
Currency Wars, which has been translated intoand#160;eight languages and won raves from the likes of theand#160;
Financial Times, Bloomberg, and
Politico. He is a portfolioand#160;manager at West Shore Group and an adviser onand#160;international economics and financial threats to theand#160;Department of Defense and the U.S. intelligence community.and#160;He served as facilitator of the first-ever financialand#160;war games conducted by the Pentagon. He lives in Connecticut.
Follow @JamesGRickards.