We talk about The Sovereign Individual a lot in this rag. The book was originally published 23-years ago and it is the most prophetic book I have ever come across. It predicted bitcoin on page 24. Predicted the conditions that would lead to the US electing a President like Donald Trump. Predicted fake news. Predicted the chaos that would ensue when social media proliferated. Predicted deep fakes. Overall, the book predicted a transition into a new age; The Information Age. An age in which the onus is on the individual to be able discern the truth. Extreme ownership will be imperative moving forward and I have James Davidson and his co-author William Rees-Mogg to thank for helping me come to this realization at a relatively young age.

User Clip: James Davidson: The Rich Pay Too Much in Taxes - 1997

James Davidson, co-author of The Sovereign Individual, gives a speech at the 1997 National Taxpayers Union Conference that outlines the state of taxes around the world and how the US is becoming the most burdensome country in the world in regards to taxes.

C-SPAN.org

However, today I am bringing your attention to James Davidson because of a speech he gave in January 1997 at the National Taxpayers Union Conference. I highly recommend you freaks check it out if you have 30-minutes to spare. (Shoutout to Pedro for bringing it to my attention yesterday.) In his speech, James highlights just how bad of a deal the US taxpayer is subjected to. Or, I should say, was subjected to in 1997.

Back then, the services provided by the government were nowhere near as valuable as the amount of money that was forked over by taxpayers. On top of this, the global economy was enabling individuals to move to and work in differing jurisdictions with ease. Creating little incentive for rich individuals to keep their money in the US. However, the so-called "freest nation in the world" had a penchant for following its citizens around the planet and taxing their income no matter where they lived. Making sure to suck as much capital out of the hands of individuals as they possibly could.

The above paragraph was written in the past tense, but everything written applies to our current reality in the US. It's gotten even worse if you can believe it. 50 Cent came to this realization this week.

If James Davidson was worried about the state of the US tax system back then, I can only imagine how dismayed he is at the current state of our Republic. Even if Trump is elected, the state of overbearing taxes in today's world are considerably worse than they were in 1997.

This overt theft needs to end. I believe a Bitcoin Standard could help curb the overbearing taxman. This cannot continue into perpetuity.

Final thought...

New Vans Wednesday.