Posted on 06/13/2021 3:39:26 PM PDT by blam
On April 5, 1933, under the pretext of a national emergency, President Franklin D. Roosevelt issued Executive Order 6102, making it illegal for U.S. citizens to own gold.
The decree forced Americans to sell their gold at an artificially low “official price.” If they refused, the government could hit them with stiff penalties: a $10,000 fine (equivalent to $205,000 today) and/or up to 10 years in prison.
The government blatantly stole wealth from the American people.
Many worry the U.S. government might confiscate gold again if it becomes desperate enough. I don’t think those fears are unfounded. The U.S. government’s abysmal financial situation is only getting worse.
But would it really do a 1933-style grab again?
I don’t think it will. However, there is another growing threat to your gold.
More Likely Than Outright Confiscation
Today, only a tiny fraction of the U.S. population owns gold. Heck, I’d bet most Americans have never even seen a gold coin, much less appreciate its value.
This wasn’t the case in 1933, when the U.S. was still on a variation of the gold standard. That’s why the government probably won’t repeat the 1933 rip-off. It’s simply not worth the effort.
If the government wants to confiscate wealth, it’s far more likely to go for the easy option… steadily debasing the currency by printing money. It’s a stealthy way to confiscate from savers.
That doesn’t mean gold owners are in the clear.
I think the government will try a new scam: taxing windfall profits on gold. This would make it much easier for the government to accomplish something similar to its 1933 heist.
There’s precedence for it, too. In 1980, Congress passed the Crude Oil Windfall Profit Tax Act, which taxed up to 70% of “windfall profits” of domestic oil producers.
What the heck is a windfall profit anyway?
As far as I can tell, it’s whatever politicians decide it is. It’s completely arbitrary. There are no objective measures to define it.
In short, a windfall profit is simply a profit politicians don’t like.
The whole concept is a scam—a word trick to camouflage and sanitize legalized theft.
If the price of gold explodes, I wouldn’t be surprised if Congress passes a Fair Share Gold Windfall Profit Tax Act levying a tax of 80%, 90%, or more on gold profits.
Fortunately, there are some practical steps you can take to protect yourself from this form of politically motivated expropriation.
One way you can avoid a windfall-profits tax on gold is to renounce your U.S. citizenship. But that’s a drastic step. It’s just not realistic for most people.
Thankfully, there’s a far more practical option. You can do it from your living room. And you don’t have to turn in your passport.
The solution is to own gold stocks in a Roth IRA.
A Roth IRA is a tax-free zone. You fund it with after-tax savings, and any future capital gains or income derived from investments in your Roth IRA are not taxable.
While you can never be 100% sure what the U.S. government will do, it’s far less likely a future tax increase, even a windfall-profits tax, would affect investments in a Roth IRA.
A Roth IRA is the most practical way to protect yourself from the most likely form of future gold confiscation—a windfall-profits tax. It makes you a hard target.
My concern is not criminals but ME or YOU being tagged as criminals. This isn’t some wild eyed paranoia. Trying going through an airport with $25k of hundreds or getting pulled over with same.
Now his father doesn’t know what to do with them since he can’t explain where they came from without losing them.
But nobody is going to require him to explain how he acquired them when it comes to selling them. IRS will of course expect its share...
And, just for the sake of argument..
If SHTF, you are going to need food and shelter..
Can’t eat gold, or burn it for heat...
Just a thought...
I always thought bags of junk silver were the most practical for SHTF times. Plus the premium over bullion is the lowest typically.
One day he was running his detector in the neighbor’s yard and found a bag of double-eagle gold coins in an old cistern....
....Now his father doesn’t know what to do with them since he can’t explain where they came from without losing them.
Full disclosure, I heard this story from the son thirty years ago at deer camp.
So....How are you going to get food and shelter during a SHTF period?
My point was burying your gold is probably not going to work out well for you.
The only reason to buy physical gold is if you’re preparing for a scenario where you have to gather as many of your belongings as possible and flee to another country.
I have big news for Nick. None of that chit is going to happen. Because we are going to go on a new currency backed by gold. There will be a price set for gold. If you own gold good for you. Nobody is going to try to confiscate it.
When FDR did many people never turned in their gold.
I wouldn’t trust the US government to respect their promises regarding IRA accounts any more than they respected their promises to redeem currency bearing a promise for “One Hundred Dollars in Gold Coin Payable to Bearer on Demand”.
There is now hardly any limit to the reach of the US government. If you doubt that, try to open an ordinary checking account at a well-capitalized financial institution in a foreign country. Then, ask the banker why he doesn’t want American customers (assuming your account doesn’t have seven digits in it.)
Be prepared...
How much is Soros paying you to say that? Typical reply when one tries to bring some real life “think how that would actually unfold” reality to the discussion.
So much of this all stems from the hyperinflation talk.
This is a good read on inflation.
https://www.pragcap.com/is-inflation-really-10/
Here’s another great read I think you’ll enjoy:
https://www.pragcap.com/biggest-myths-in-economics/
Years ago someone on this board told me that when the SHTF, lead will be the most valuable metal.
He can say he found them in his own backyard.
‐-———————
That is, if he owns the mineral rights.
Minted coins don't fall under that - lol
I was shocked the first time I bought property in Texas. Pages and pages and pages of reserved mineral rights in the deed. Then it dawned on me - "OIL", none of the owners wanted to lose out if oil was struck in the future.
Now that is realty.
Yeah, uh huh, sure...okay.
Don’t ask, don’t tell?
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