Centralization & the Death of Capitalism, the Middle Class and Democracy

By Matthew Piepenburg

Partner

August 15, 2023

In this latest conversation with Tom Bodrovics of Palisades Gold Radio, Matterhorn Asset Management partner, Matthew Piepenburg, offers his latest assessments on the American economic and political decline.

Piepenburg opens with a sober critique of the slow-drip toward increasing but now undeniable centralization in American markets and society. The net result is an ephemeral yet tragic demise of both classic capitalism and true democracy. 

Instead, what Piepenburg sees now and ahead are more signs of a dystopian form of modern feudalism in which a political and financial minority operate behind a façade of liberalism as lords over a middle-class falling deeper into politically ignored serfdom. He unpacks the open marriage between corporate and governmental powers (weaponized/corporatized  media, science, justice system, markets, banking, currencies etc.) which more resemble Mussolini’s definition of fascism than the democratic ideals of America’s founding fathers.

Not surprisingly, the foregoing theme of centralization incudes the frog-boil toward more regional bank failures, the duplicity of the Davos crowd and the Trojan horse of CBDC, which Piepenburg describes as “horrifying.” Ultimately, Piepenburg sees an ironic yet undeniably cornered Fed whose alleged war against inflation will only create more inflation. Powell’s “higher-for-longer” policy to fight the CPI is only making Uncle Sam’s grotesque debt levels grow equally “higher for longer.” As a result, more mouse-click money will be needed to monetize this embarrassing bar tab, which by definition, means more inflation and hence currency debasement ahead—all of which is bad for America but good for gold.

Piepenburg dives deeper into current market distortions (over-pricing), including various examples of ignored risks (needles) pointing at the global and national debt balloon. Toward this end, he links ignored risks in the Japanese markets (the “carry trade”) to equally ignored risks in the ticking time-bomb that is the US (and global) credit markets. He also squarely addresses the ongoing recession narrative and beleaguered US labor markets with sober facts.

The conversation closes with an equally sober (i.e., non-hyped) analysis of the BRICS headlines regarding a potential gold-backed trading currency. Although Piepenburg was among the first to warn of watershed de-dollarization trends last year, he does not see a gold-backed trading currency suddenly emerging from the BRICS conference this month in South Africa. Ultimately, the trend away from the USD is now inevitable, but the process will be slow at first and then all at once. Piepenburg is also keeping a careful eye on Saudi Arabia and the Petrodollar as another risk hiding in plain sight.