July 2023 - Week 3 Edition

GOLD and SILVER on the Move, Again

Gold has now risen $50 (and silver +$2) in July.  Gold jumped $20 in one day last week based on the slow growth in June Consumer Prices, implying a likely “pause” by the Federal Reserve in their next interest rate policy meeting on July 25-26. Gold is up $50 since June 29 and silver rose even faster on a percentage basis. Last Wednesday, silver leaped over $1 per ounce (+4.5%) in one day and then kept rising, up 7.9% for the week. Silver is up over $2 per ounce (+9.7%) in the first half of July.
The metals (and other commodities) have been supercharged by a sharp decline in the U.S. Dollar Index since the July 4^th break. On July 5, the U.S. Dollar Index was 103.37 but it slipped below 100 to 99.84 on July 17 for a 3.4% drop in just eight trading days. The biggest drop came on July 12, when the CPI (Consumer Price Index) was released, giving the indication there may be no further rate increases, thereby depressing dollar demand.

I strongly encourage you to call our professional account representatives, today, to add more gold and silver to your portfolio or holdings.

The Betsy Ross Flag is a Symbol of Domestic Terrorist Groups – The FBI

Five years ago, I wrote about the Betsy Ross flag when Nike withdrew a new shoe design bearing the design based on objections from former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick alleging it was a “white supremacy” symbol. Nike made the typical cowardly move of bending to extremist pressures instead of defending this great American symbol, which dates to the original Flag Day Resolution of June 14, 1777. 

Now, this controversy has resurfaced again, as we find out from whistleblowers at the FBI that director Christopher Wray designated the Betsy Ross flag and the Gadsden flag, which is emblazoned with the motto, “Don’t Tread on Me” as symbols of Domestic Terrorism instead of iconic and historic emblems of the American Revolution long ago.

Last August, a whistleblower revealed that the FBI’s “Domestic Terrorism Symbols Guide” section on “Militia Violent Extremists” (MVEs) informed its agents that MVEs use the “Betsy Ross Flag” and the “Gadsden Flag,” as symbols for their terrorism without explaining the noble heritage of those flags.

That would be news to Lin-Manuel Miranda, the composer and lead actor of “Hamilton,” who wrote about that flag flying above the Battle of Yorktown in 1781, when he and his multi-racial cast sang:

“How do we emerge victorious from the quagmire, and
Leave the battlefield, waving Betsy Ross’ flag higher?” 

This FBI designation would also be a shock to President Barack Obama, since Betsy Ross’ 13-star flag was proudly draped behind him as he took the Oath of Office at his Second Inauguration in January 2013.

Similarly, Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, also pushed back on Twitter, stating, “Biden and Obama took the Oath of Office under the Betsy Ross flag. Virginia has the Gadsden Flag on their license plates. I wear the Gonzales battle flag on my boots every day in the Senate. All of these have been called “violent militia extremism” by the FBI.”

Conversely, former Democratic presidential candidates Beto O’Rourke and Julian Castro decried this American symbol and supported Kaepernick, praising Nike for eliminating the Betsy Ross flag from being used.

Lisa Moulder, director of the Betsy Ross Home in Philadelphia, said she has never heard of the flag being used as a hate symbol.  Although Colin Kaepernick vetoed Nike’s use of that flag, Dr. Alveda King, niece of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., said, “I am not sure brother Kaepernick even totally understands who Betsy Ross is.” (Betsy Ross was a Quaker who opposed slavery when slavery was widely accepted.)

The Betsy Ross flag is part of the seal of the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs. Should it be removed? I say, “No.”

I am on the board of Crime Stoppers of Southeast Texas. I have contacted police chiefs and retired FBI agents in both Texas and Louisiana. They all emphatically told me that they had never seen the Betsy Ross flag used in an inappropriate manner, nor in conjunction with the Confederate flag.

Even though a few white supremacist groups may misuse a noble symbol in some obscure location on rare occasions, that does not mean we should surrender any of our great patriotic symbols to their misuse. I prefer not to let haters or misguided government bureaucrats define our country’s greatest symbols.

This may be merely a misunderstanding on the part of some FBI manual writer or bureaucrat but FBI leadership has made some false steps over the past decade, so we must wonder about the competence of its leadership, including Director Wray. This is not a reflection on the many fine field agents outside of Washington D.C., who do good work, some of whom I have consulted with in the past.

Metals Market Report Archive >