Peter's Blog

What Happens If the Fed Takes Its Thumb Off the Housing Market?

We talk a lot about how the Fed keeps its big fat thumb on the Treasury market. But it also has its big fat thumb on the housing market. And if the Fed really does follow through with its taper and its plans to shrink its balance sheet, it will have a big effect on […]

Consumer Debt Charts Biggest Gain in 20 Years

The Federal Reserve is talking about raising interest rates. Well, that’s going to be a big problem for American consumers who are running up debt at a torrid pace. This is yet another reason why the Fed can’t do what it’s claiming it will do. Consumer debt jumped 11% year-on-year in November, according to the […]

The Fed Released Its December FOMC Minutes; I Have Questions!

The Federal Reserve released the minutes from the December FOMC meeting on Thursday (Jan. 5) and the markets freaked once again at the prospect of monetary tightening. The minutes seem to indicate an even more abrupt shift to tighter monetary policy to fight inflation. But I have questions.

A Christmas Gift from James Madison

I hope everybody had a great Christmas and found everything they wanted under their Christmas tree. In the spirit of the season, I want to tell you about a Christmas present James Madison gave the United States way back in 1798. It is a bit of history that has fallen down the Orwellian memory hole. […]

REAL Interest Rates: The Missing Puzzle Piece the Mainstream Is Ignoring

Inflation is sizzling hot. Gold has historically served as an inflation hedge. So, why hasn’t gold caught a bid? In a word, confusion. Taper tantrums and fear of Fed rate hikes have generated massive confusion in the markets. People are selling gold when they should be heavily buying gold in the dips. And at the […]

Abandoning the Gold Standard Undermined Labor Productivity

Labor market productivity has been dropping for decades. And you can trace the plunge back to the demise of the gold standard. US labor market productivity plummeted in the third quarter of 2021. Revisions to the data showed a 5.2% drop in productivity, even worse than the dismal initial reading last month. It was the […]

Peter Schiff: A Dove Doesn’t Change Its Feathers

The Federal Reserve is set to launch its war on inflation. But it looks like it’s carrying a pea-shooter to a gunfight. Or as Peter Schiff put it, a dove can’t change its feathers.

Silver on Sale: Silver-Gold Ratio Back Above 80:1

The silver-gold ratio has climbed back above 80-1. This has historically signaled silver on sale. As I write this article, the ratio stands at just over 80:1. That means it takes just over 80 ounces of silver to buy an ounce of gold. To put that into perspective, the average in the modern era has […]

A Runaway Inflation Freight Train the Fed Won’t Stop

The producer price index rose at the fastest rate in the history of the data set in November. This is a runaway inflation train hurtling down the tracks toward consumers. And despite all the talk, the Fed won’t be able to stop it.

Benjamin Franklin: Government Welfare Is Not “Doing Good to the Poor”

The federal government lacks any legitimate constitutional authority to establish welfare programs for the poor. Not only that, the federal welfare system fails in its promise to “help the poor” out of poverty.