Work, Taxes and Death

I know this is not really connected with precious metals investing but I want to occasionally post articles and commentary that I think are important for an overall understanding of finances and the world we live in.

This article talks about something I myself think about : Should I try to earn as much money as possible? If I work extremely long hours in a 5 or 6 day week, miss time with my family and friends and neglect projects and interests that I enjoy, is it worth it? It's not just a mathematical calculation for me, it's a question of what is really important in life and what makes one truly happy and fulfilled.

I generally don't like the government and I don't like paying taxes to finance its often stupid and occasionally evil initiatives (I recently saw a commercial for some government organization called the National Fatherhood Institute or something - do we need government to tell us to spend time with our kids?). Maybe if we weren't taxed so much to pay for the National Fatherhood Institute we could spend more time being fathers!

But I digress. I think that one does not need a lot of junk and extravagant expenditures in order to be happy and if we did not chase after money and prestige we might have a better chance at achieving freedom and independence. We need to think outside the box not only when it comes to investing, but also to work, retirement and life.

When Work Doesn't Pay for the Middle Class

Brien Lundin of The Gold Newsletter on Gold, Inflation, Government Spending, and The Power of Greed Over Fear

Some highlights from The Gold Report's interview :

"While we certainly still have deflation, we're transitioning into an environment where the massive government spending and stimulus programs will create inflation."

"[The Markets] are moving toward a fear of inflation, or a mindset where they're preparing for the return of inflation due to the massive deficits, spending and currency creation."

"One of the things I tell people is that fear is a great motivator but greed is the greatest motivator of all. It's very surprising to many how quickly greed can return to the market. The worst feeling of all for investors is not that they may lose a portion of their investment, but that they will get left behind in a rally. They're very much trend-followers in that respect, and as we saw this spring with the rally in the US stock market and in commodities, the valuations quickly got far out of hand and very much divorced from underlying economic fundamentals."

"Perhaps the last week or so of July and the first couple of weeks in August we should get a bottom in metals prices and conversely, in the mining stocks. It will be kind of a buyer's market. Historically, it is a time when people can pick up bargains, and I think it's going to work out that way again."

"Going into the fall and, more importantly, into next year, I think the bullish factors are right for the Gold Price to perform in a very impressive fashion."

"... the only way to erase this debt is to[sic] through inflation. ... Trading partners that hold tremendous US Dollar reserves will realize this eventually. So, it's going to be a harrowing three to five years."

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"WITH A CAREER now spanning three decades in the investment markets, Brien Lundin serves as president and CEO of Jefferson Financial, a respected publisher of market analyses and producer of investment-oriented events.

Publisher and editor of Gold Newsletter, launched in 1971, Lundin now figures that the worst of the financial crisis has passed and that the market "generally" will not test new lows. In this exclusive chat with The Gold Report, Brien also says we may be surprised to see how quickly greed and speculation replace the fear and trepidation that have gripped the market for the past year or so."

Read the rest of the interview here.