The Houdini Economy – Companies Crashing, Stocks Soaring & Still Going Great Guise!

For those unfamiliar, Harry Houdini was a grand showman of the 19th century.

Photo: commons.wikimedia.org by Thurston, John H. (John Henry), 1852-, photographer, https://creativecommons.org/public-domain/pdm/

Harry Houdini jumps from Harvard Bridge, Boston, Massachusetts, 1908 - John H. Thurston, stereopticons LCCN2015650990 - restoration

His feats of daring were often so elaborate they convinced even the foremost thinkers of the day (including none other than Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, author of Sherlock Holmes) they were authentic.

Admirably, on his part, Harry never claimed to have any supernatural abilities other than perhaps an exceptional intellect — indeed, while desperately wanting to believe, it was his experience we are mortal beings.

To that end, Houdini became viscerally enraged when charlatans would fleece the gullibles of their hard-earned money; often making it his concern to expose their nefarious misdeeds.

Consider this a peek behind the curtain…

The Middle-Class Metamorphosis (Into Poverty)!

We're beginning with our latest roundup of "Everything's Fine Guise!” reports and revisions:

• November — Stellantis Motor Company — Announces Vauxhall plant closing at Luton with a loss of 1,100 jobs there
• November — Stellantis Motor Company — Announces 1,100 layoffs in Ohio, also reducing work at the plant by one shift, after earlier layoffs of 4,000 in the U. S. in September
• November — Ford Motor Company — Announces 4,000 layoffs in Europe and U. K.
• November — Marriott Hotels — Announces impending layoffs of 800 corporate-level employees, the CEO says "everything is fine” despite the mass layoffs…seriously, he said that
• November — Vail Ski Resorts — Announces plan to cut 14% of its corporate workers
• November — CVS Healthcare — Announces over 400 layoffs next month, more next year
• November — Visa Payment Systems — Announces layoffs of 1,400 workers and contractors
• November — Miter Brands (home improvement) — Announces 200 layoffs in coming weeks
• November — Boeing — Layoffs of 184 at its Mesa Plant alone, it is third-largest employer in the city
• November — U. S. Magnesium (mining) — More than 180 layoffs from the Salt Lake City office
• November — Advance Auto Parts — Will close approximately 700 stores nationwide
• November — Starbucks — Announces annual bonuses will be cut by 40% this year
• November — Harbor Freight (discount retailer) — Closing all 328 stores across the country
• November — Nissan — Announces layoffs of at least 9,000 workers in the coming year
• November — Thyssenkrupp Steel Europe AG — Total of 40%, or 11,000 workers, to be reduced

Please notice, chums, this begins and ends with Europe because whatever is coming is coming globally. (I know you see the same in your neighborhood, but it is also happening everywhere.)

Moreover, while scarcely mentioned at all in Controlled Media it is important to note the whole Longshoreman's Strike never really ended…it went on hiatus. Last month workers walked away from negotiations again. So because you are a loyal Pravda Reader, you are among the first to know.

Finally, despite not being recent news, it is always important to recollect that 60% of Americans are living paycheck-to-paycheck with median credit card debt of over $6,000 each.

And, since we're on that little topic…

The (Credit) Card Trick!

Recently, a friend contacted me from Der Homeland and mentioned how difficult her finances were given the Special Miliary Operation effecting the economy.

The shocking claim? That credit interest rates had risen as high as TWENTY percent!

In reply…er…uh…for store cards the average credit card rate in America was TWENTY-NINE percent.

Worse? Those were the proverbial "good old days” of credit in Uncle Sam Land.

The other week it was reported that numerous corporate cards had busted past the 29.99% threshold of respectability which had been a de facto limit on consumer credit.

Sadly, the discount retailer Big Lots (which this author has tried to champion as a reliable provider of goods for those of limited means) has raised its store credit to…35.99%.

Other filthy Usurers that would make Shylock blush as follows: Academy Sports (sporting goods) at 35.99%, Burlington (discount clothing) at 35.99%, Michaels (craft supplies and home décor) at 35.99%, Petco (pet supplies) at 35,99%.

But WAIT! There's more…JCPenny (retail clothing) 34.99%, myWalgreens (pharmacy) 34.99%, TJX (discount clothing) 34.99%, Meijer (groceries) 34.24%, Nordstrom (retail clothing) 33.65%.

To remind you, Sportsfans, this is DURING the period the Federal Reserve has been LOWERING interest rates overall.

"So what does this mean, Somerset?”

Wise question, friend. Obviously it may be explained by atypical corporate greed…OR, another less popular explanation might be our abovementioned corporate raiders don't expect YOU to be able to pay your bills soon. ALMOST…as if they…anticipated a crash and worsening economic outlook…

Thus, no one wants to be accused of profiting off your hardship — then. Best to raise rates — before.

Naturally, that's just crazy talk…I'm sure it's fine…you go ahead keep racking up that ONE-THIRD interest on your diabetes pills and pork rinds…it's all going to work out splendidly…at least according to what CNBC and Bloomberg tell us each morning.

No worries! Illusion "debunked”!

The (Cost of) Milk Can Escape!

Inflation is cumulative, by which I mean,

Inflation is Cumulative, which is another way of saying,

Inflation is CUMULATIVE!

If your Humble Correspondent hears one more "edumuhcated” Pundit claim because inflation is "down” to 2% this month after rising 20% some months last year that "things are normal again”…

When a $100 item rises to $120 from four years ago, but falls back down to $118 — You Are NOT Saving Money!

Particularly so when your paycheck has not seen a similar increase, or perhaps, no increase at all.

Clearly, I'm not telling you anything you don't already know…but it's worth hearing when everyone in Controlled Media is telling you it's "conspiracy” to notice that nothing is as affordable as it was only a year or two ago.

The Carriage (Car) Vanish!

By way of illustration, after 2025 (TWO WEEKS AWAY) there will be no more new cars in America priced under $20,000 given the discontinuation of the Nissan Versa, Kia Rio and Mitsubishi Mirage.

(Incidentally, laugh all you want, Pundits, but I know FAR more millionaires in Palm Beach who drive Kias than who drive Bentleys…only sports stars and new money morons "invest” in automobiles.)

The median income of a single person in the United States is approximately $42,000 before taxes. Last I checked the Gub'ment is still collecting taxes on new car purchases, so you pay that as well.

Is it reasonable in "the wealthiest country on earth” it costs nearly your entire ANNUAL wage to own a car? (No. It is not.)

Now, in a sane Market Economy there would be a rational actor to seize upon this glaring need.

Instead? We are witnessing layoffs and shutdowns en masse. Does that seem like a healthy environment to you?

Or would it appear that a different agenda is at play?

The Amazing (Ever Rising, Never Falling Stocks) Gravity Effect!

Yet, in spite of all we have reviewed the stocks continue to soar.

It is claimed this is a Trump Trade based on what he "might” do in office. (HINT: Given the prior experience of Trump, he SAYS a whole lot more than he DOES in the Oval Office.)

Even if we grant all our wildest Donald Demands come true…he is, ONE, not in power for another 30 Days, and TWO, not a king, meaning any legislation will take months to pass…if at all. (Obamacare!)

Moreover, should we go way out and presume Trump is totally being truthfully…AND he rules as a sovereign with immediate effect…here are only A FEW things which might go wrong for The Markets:

• Iran said this week they are intending to attack Israel again,
• Isreal has said this month maybe they shouldn't wait and should go head and attack Iran,
• Ukraine keeps lobbing ever more powerful Western-supplied missiles into Russia,
• Russia keeps reminding everyone (even if they refuse to hear) that they have a few nukes,
• Every week some insane person is arrested for some wild plot to do mass violence.

So pray tell, pals, what do YOU believe might be the response of the Financial Sector, which in some cases is literally nearing the heights of both the immediate pre-Dot.Com and pre-2008 Bust?

We are currently priced in that: A) Trump does everything, Trump does it quickly, and B) Everything done comes to fruition EXACTLY as anticipated with no unforeseen side-effects, and C) In the next FULL MONTH while cruising around waiting on life to unfold FLAWLESSLY…nothing else bad occurs.

IS THAT RATIONAL TO YOU? IS THIS A THEORY OF COHERENT ECONOMIC BEHAVIOR?

Or, is this complete market euphoria, based on little more than wishful thinking, that requires every single thing to go right and not even one geopolitical thing to go wrong at a time the most volatile regions are engaging in all-out war with each other and plenty of folks hinting at nuclear strikes?

Frankly, I respect you, Dear Reader, but something is desperately amiss here.

I know, at this moment in time, the money looks easy…but now you must see there is a terrible cost.

Like our Main Man above, once the mirage is explained the whole thing becomes clear.

The Escape Artist (Defining Terms and Declaring Exits)

Important to note is Harry was not a magician — Houdini was an illusionist.

The man used his power of the mind to illustrate the fantastical ways in which one may be deceived

(Or allow oneself to be deceived.)

What appears to be solid can prove to be vaporous; seeing is believing, but it is not always reality.

Conversely, when you are seeing hundred-year-old businesses closing all around you with Media Pundits claiming there is nothing to be concerned over, you best have a firm grip on your purse.

Also worth recollecting is the way in which the entertainer died…receiving an unexpected gut-punch.

I desperately fear many casual investors will imminently be suffering a similar fate.

Guy Somerset writes from somewhere in America

Details

Erik Weisz (March 24, 1874 – October 31, 1926), known as Harry Houdini ( hoo-DEE-nee), was a Hungarian-American escapologist, illusionist, and stunt performer noted for his escape acts. Houdini first attracted notice in vaudeville in the United States and then as Harry "Handcuff" Houdini on a tour of Europe, where he challenged police forces to keep him locked up. Soon he extended his repertoire to include chains, ropes slung from skyscrapers, straitjackets under water, and having to escape from and hold his breath inside a sealed milk can with water in it. In 1904, thousands watched as Houdini tried to escape from special handcuffs commissioned by London's Daily Mirror, keeping them in suspense for an hour. Another stunt saw him buried alive and only just able to claw himself to the surface, emerging in a state of near-breakdown. While many suspected that these escapes were faked, Houdini presented himself as the scourge of fake spiritualists, pursuing a personal crusade to expose their fraudulent methods. As president of the Society of American Magicians, he was keen to uphold professional standards and expose fraudulent artists. He was also quick to sue anyone who imitated his escape stunts.