Join Us at the 2023 World Economic Conference in Orlando, Florida!

? Dates: November 17, 18, and 19 ? Location: Orlando, Florida, USA (or tune in from home with our virtual ticket options)

Are you ready to unlock the future of economics and finance? Prepare for an unforgettable World Economic Conference experience in sunny Orlando, Florida! This premier event is your gateway to insights, networking, and valuable resources that will supercharge your understanding of the global economy.

?️ What’s Included for In-Person Attendees:

1. Event Admission: Enjoy reserved seating assigned based on the order of ticket sales, ensuring you have a prime view of every presentation.
2. Presentation Slides: Gain access to the presentation slides from all speakers, allowing you to delve deeper into the topics discussed.
3. Video Recording: Can’t make it to a session? No worries! You’ll receive access to video recordings of all conference presentations, so you can catch up at your convenience.
4. WEC Event App: Connect with the conference on a whole new level. Access presentation slides, bonus reports, recordings, and more via the official WEC Event App.
5. Bonus Conference Materials: Get a package of bonus conference-related materials, including exclusive bonus reports and videos (as provided by Martin Armstrong).
6. Morning Information Sessions: Don’t miss out on important morning information sessions, screened on-site in the meeting room on Saturday and Sunday.
7. Networking Opportunities: Exclusive access to the Event App Networking Feature allows you to connect with fellow attendees, both in-person and virtual, fostering valuable professional relationships.
8. Culinary Delights: Savor delicious breakfast and lunch on Saturday and Sunday, prepared to keep you energized throughout the day.
9. Cocktail Reception: Kick off the conference in style at our Friday evening cocktail reception. Meet and mingle with fellow attendees while enjoying refreshing drinks.
10. Swag Bag: As a token of our appreciation, each in-person attendee will receive a swag bag filled with goodies, including an Armstrong Economics notebook, pen, and an event collector’s mug!

Unable to travel? We also have two different ticket options for those wishing to attend virtually! 

Don’t miss this opportunity to be part of a global gathering of economic and financial minds. Secure your spot at the World Economic Conference in Orlando, Florida, and gain the knowledge, connections, and resources you need to thrive in the world of finance and economics.

Space is limited, so act now and reserve your seat! Visit our Events page to register and join us in sunny Orlando this November.

Now available at all major retailers!

The eBook will be available shortly.

The second edition of “The Plot to Seize Russia – The Untold History” is now available for purchase in paperback and hardcover on Amazon and Barnes and Noble. The ebook will be available shortly.

Book description:

“Take care of Russia,” Boris Yeltsin said as he departed his presidency in August 1999. These words were directed at current Russian president, Vladimir Putin. Yeltsin specifically picked Putin as his predecessor to prevent the takeover of Russia.

So, who was Yeltsin warning against? Newly declassified documents from the Clinton Administration prove that there was a plot to rig the Russian election of 2000. These never-before-seen documents confirm numerous attempts to implement pro-Western policies using the Russian oligarchy headed by Boris Berezovsky.

On the other side were the communists who desired a return to the glory days of the Soviet Union. As one of the largest international hedge fund managers, author Martin Armstrong found himself in the middle of perhaps the greatest espionage, or attempt at a regime change for Russia, in modern history.

The Plot to Seize Russia pulls back the curtain to expose the most extraordinary attempt to seize power in modern history, but with the pen rather than armies. These declassified documents reveal a plot that has altered our thinking about the relations between the United States and Russia. The thirst for power comes seething through every line of these papers that alter our perception of reality, change the course of history, and now threaten us with World War III.

ASIA:

The major Asian stock markets had a mixed day today:

• NIKKEI 225 decreased 2,694.42 points or -4.03% to 64,141.12

• Shanghai decreased 118.258 points or -3.05% to 3,764.155

• Hang Seng decreased 446.36 points or -1.78% to 24,562.24

• ASX 200 decreased 44.00 points or -0.50% to 8,796.70

• SENSEX increased 964.58 points or 1.25% to 78,151.45

• Nifty50 increased 261.55 points or 1.09% to 24,334.30

The major Asian currency markets had a mixed day today:

• AUDUSD decreased 0.00095 or -0.14% to 0.69860

• NZDUSD increased 0.00045 or 0.08% to 0.58470

• USDJPY increased 0.09 or 0.06% to 162.485

• USDCNY increased 0.00444 or 0.07% to 6.77777

The above data was collected around 12:22 EST.

Precious Metals:

•  Gold increased 45.09 USD/t oz. or 1.13% to 4,021.27

•  Silver increased 0.514 USD/t. oz. or 0.93% to 56.011

The above data was collected around 12:24 EST.

EUROPE/EMEA:

The major Europe stock markets had a mixed day today:

•  CAC 40 decreased 39.05 points or -0.47% to 8,338.81

•  FTSE 100 increased 28.13 points or 0.27% to 10,600.37

•  DAX 30 decreased 84.51 points or -0.34% to 24,830.98

The major Europe currency markets had a negative day today:

• EURUSD decreased 0.00028 or -0.02% to 1.14389

• GBPUSD decreased 0.0026 or -0.19% to 1.34513

• USDCHF decreased 0.00171 or -0.21% to 0.80722

The above data was collected around 12:26 EST.

AMERICAS:

ENERGY:

The oil markets had a green day today:

•  Crude Oil increased 3.201 USD/BBL or 4.05% to 82.151

•  Brent increased 3.212 USD/BBL or 3.81% to 87.442

•  Natural gas increased 0.0508 USD/MMBtu or 1.78% to 2.9088

•  Gasoline increased 0.1297 USD/GAL 3.95% to 3.4144

•  Heating oil increased 0.0579 USD/GAL or 1.44% to 4.0886

The above data was collected around 12:28 EST.

•  Top commodity gainers: Crude Oil (4.05%), Gasoline (3.95%), Orange Juice (4.94%) and Cocoa (4.22%)

•  Top commodity losers: Zinc (-1.57%), Palladium (-1.61%), Platinum (-1.89%) and Silicon (-1.31%)

The above data was collected around 12:36 EST.

BONDS:

Japan 2.7120% (-0.3bp), US 2’s 4.18% (+0.021%), US 10’s 4.5480% (-1.1bps); US 30’s 5.07 (-0.020%), Bunds 3.1379% (+0.03bp), France 3.934% (-0.53bp), Italy 3.9650% (+1.01bp), Turkey 31.870% (+7bp), Greece 3.8530% (+2.1bp), Portugal 3.4940% (+0.11bp); Spain 3.605% (+0.7bp) and UK Gilts 4.9744% (+0.73bp)

The above data was collected around 12:44 EST.

The White House has now released a series of declassified election-integrity documents that the administration says expose what it describes as the largest compromise of American voter data in history. The release followed President Trump’s heated nationally televised address Thursday night, where he argued that China systematically acquired sensitive voter information during the 2020 election cycle and that intelligence surrounding the operation was buried inside the bureaucracy rather than presented honestly to elected leadership.

For years, the focus has been on Russia while China quietly expanded its economic, technological, and intelligence footprint throughout the West. China does not think in election cycles. It thinks in decades as the ancient culture understands cycles. Every major strategic objective is pursued patiently through economic leverage, technology, data collection, academia, corporations, and political influence. Elections become merely another avenue for intelligence gathering and long-term strategic positioning.

According to the newly released material highlighted by the White House, Chinese actors allegedly obtained information on roughly 220 million American voter records. The administration claims the information included voter registration data, addresses, party affiliation, and other identifying information that could be used to map voting populations across the United States. President Trump described it as “the largest compromise of election data in history” and ordered further investigations into both the alleged intrusion and the government’s handling of the intelligence.

The administration further alleges that portions of this intelligence never reached the President in full during the 2020 election cycle and that internal disputes inside the intelligence community resulted in information being minimized or withheld. Those claims are now at the center of renewed investigations following the release of the declassified files.

Whether every allegation ultimately withstands scrutiny is now the question investigators must answer. It is important to distinguish between allegations contained in newly released documents and conclusions that have been independently established. Previous U.S. intelligence assessments issued after the 2020 election concluded they did not find evidence that China successfully altered votes or election infrastructure, although there has long been bipartisan concern over Chinese cyber activity and influence operations. Those earlier conclusions are directly challenged by the current administration’s interpretation of the newly declassified material.

That distinction should not cause anyone to dismiss the broader strategic issue. China has spent decades collecting enormous quantities of American information through cyber intrusions, intellectual property theft, social media platforms, telecommunications equipment, academic partnerships, and commercial acquisitions. Election databases would simply represent another valuable intelligence asset. Data itself has become one of the most valuable commodities in modern geopolitical warfare.

What concerns me is not merely who may have obtained voter information. It is how dependent Western governments have become upon digital infrastructure that was never designed with national security as the first priority. Every database becomes another target. Every connected system becomes another avenue for foreign intelligence services. We have built societies where governments, corporations, financial institutions, and election officials increasingly rely upon centralized digital records while assuming those systems remain secure. That assumption has repeatedly proven false.

The computer has consistently shown that confidence is always the foundation of government. Once public confidence in institutions begins to crack, the damage extends far beyond a single election. Markets depend upon confidence. Governments depend upon confidence. Currencies depend upon confidence. Election systems are no different. Regardless of where these investigations ultimately lead, confidence cannot be restored through secrecy. If foreign governments penetrated American election-related databases, the public deserves complete transparency. If they did not, the evidence should be equally transparent. Suppressing information only guarantees that confidence continues to erode.

China understands something many Western politicians still fail to grasp. Modern warfare is no longer confined to missiles and tanks. Information, data, artificial intelligence, cyber operations, financial leverage, and political influence have become the new battlefield. Nations that fail to recognize that reality will discover they have already lost long before the first conventional shot is fired.

Bulgaria has now become the latest country to step away from Europe’s proxy war with Russia. Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev announced that his country is withdrawing from the Western-backed “Coalition of the Willing,” making it clear that Bulgaria will no longer participate in initiatives centered on providing continued military and financial assistance to Ukraine. Instead, Radev declared, “The solution to this conflict is not in prolonging it by military means, but in a strong diplomatic mission that will finally put an end to the escalation.”

I have said from the beginning that this war could never be won on the battlefield. Politicians sold the public the fantasy that Russia would collapse under sanctions, that Putin would be overthrown, or that Ukraine would somehow achieve total military victory if only another weapons package were approved. Four years later, none of those predictions materialized. Instead, Europe has spent hundreds of billions financing a war that has devastated Ukraine while simultaneously damaging its own economy.

What Bulgaria understands is something Brussels still refuses to admit. Every euro sent to Ukraine is borrowed money. Europe is already drowning in sovereign debt while governments are increasing military spending to levels not seen since the Cold War. They continue talking about rebuilding armies, expanding missile production, and preparing for conflict with Russia while their own economies stagnate. At some point voters begin asking why there is always money for war but never enough to lower taxes, repair infrastructure, or reduce the soaring cost of living.

This is exactly what our computer has been warning would happen. Wars are never lost simply because one army wins a battle. They collapse because the coalition financing the war begins to disintegrate. Every alliance eventually reaches a breaking point when the economic burden becomes greater than the political benefit. Bulgaria is unlikely to be the last country to reconsider its position.

The establishment immediately labels anyone seeking negotiations as “pro-Russian.” That has become the standard response whenever someone questions the wisdom of endless war. Radev rejected that characterization by arguing that diplomacy, not continued military escalation, offers the only realistic path to ending the conflict. His position reflects a growing reality across Europe that endless military aid has failed to produce the decisive victory repeatedly promised to taxpayers.

Meanwhile, Europe continues demanding more sacrifices from everyone except the politicians making these decisions. Defense budgets are expanding. Governments are discussing conscription once again. Ukraine has resorted to forced mobilization, with countless videos showing military recruitment officers dragging men off the streets in broad daylight, pulling them from shopping centers, buses, restaurants, and workplaces. I have written repeatedly that once a government begins kidnapping its own citizens to sustain a war effort, it is admitting that voluntary support has collapsed. Europe is now moving even further by discussing refugee policies that would make it harder for military-aged Ukrainian men to remain abroad instead of being sent back into the conflict.

Only days ago, members of the Coalition of the Willing met in Paris to discuss expanding military cooperation, increasing financial commitments, and even developing a shared European ballistic missile defense system. The political class continues speaking as though escalation is the only acceptable path while one of its own members has now publicly walked away from the project. That is not unity. That is the first visible crack in the foundation.

Our computer has never viewed this conflict as merely a war between Russia and Ukraine. It has always been a broader geopolitical struggle that would ultimately reshape Europe itself. The sovereign debt crisis, the energy crisis, the migration crisis, and now the military crisis are all converging. Governments believe they can hold this coalition together indefinitely, but history suggests otherwise. Every alliance eventually fractures under the weight of prolonged war.

Politicians can point to a lower inflation report, but they cannot explain why Americans are standing in grocery aisles putting food back on the shelf. CNBC reports that consumers are spending less on groceries, forcing companies like PepsiCo, General Mills, Kraft Heinz, Campbell’s, and Conagra to slash prices and rely on promotions simply to move inventory. Millions have reached the point where every trip to the store has become an exercise in deciding what they can live without.

The numbers tell a much darker story than the headlines. Americans now owe roughly $1.25 trillion in credit card debt, the highest level ever recorded. The average credit card balance has climbed above $6,500, while interest rates on many cards remain above 21%. Families who cannot pay their balances in full are watching interest charges consume more of every paycheck. According to recent surveys, roughly one-third of working-age Americans have used credit cards to purchase groceries, and millions are carrying that grocery debt month after month because they simply do not have another option.

This is no longer simply inflation. It has become a cost-of-living crisis. A family may technically still have a job, but that job no longer buys the same standard of living it did only a few years ago. Housing costs remain near record highs, auto insurance premiums continue climbing, utility bills have increased substantially, healthcare consumes a larger share of household income, and groceries cost far more than they did before inflation exploded. Slower inflation does not undo years of rising prices. It simply means the rate of increase has moderated while families continue living with the cumulative damage.

The Department of Agriculture is hardly forecasting relief. Food prices are expected to continue rising through 2026. Beef prices alone are projected to increase another 7.5% as the U.S. cattle herd has fallen to its smallest size in roughly seventy-five years. Fresh vegetables are forecast to rise 7.7%, sugar and sweets nearly 7%, nonalcoholic beverages about 5.7%, while restaurant prices are expected to continue climbing as labor and operating costs remain elevated.

People continue pointing to overall retail sales as proof that consumers remain healthy. June retail sales rose only 0.2%, exactly as expected. Strip away gasoline prices, which temporarily declined because of the brief ceasefire in the Middle East, and some categories appear stronger. Yet those numbers hide an important shift. Consumers are becoming far more disciplined with necessities while selectively spending on promotions and discount events such as Amazon Prime Day. That is not confidence. That is adaptation.

Food prices themselves have hardly disappeared as a problem. The USDA continues forecasting overall food prices to rise another 3.2% this year. Grocery prices are expected to increase roughly 2.8%, while restaurant prices are projected to climb an even faster 3.6%. Several categories remain under significant pressure. Beef prices are expected to rise 7.5% during 2026 as the U.S. cattle herd has fallen to its lowest level in roughly seventy-five years. Fresh vegetables are forecast to increase 7.7%, sugar and sweets nearly 7%, and nonalcoholic beverages about 5.7%. Consumers may find bargains on certain processed foods, but the underlying trend remains one of rising food costs.

Consumers are adapting because they have little choice. Delinquencies on credit cards have risen sharply over the past two years, and Americans are increasingly financing everyday necessities instead of discretionary purchases. The Federal Reserve Bank of New York recently reported that serious credit card delinquencies continue trending higher, particularly among younger borrowers, while total household debt has climbed above $18 trillion. Those are not the characteristics of a healthy consumer.

Households are sending a message that economists often miss because it never appears in a government report. When people begin treating groceries as a luxury rather than a routine purchase, they are telling you confidence has already deteriorated. The statistics may take months to reflect that change. Consumers make those adjustments immediately.

The grocery cart has always been one of the best economic indicators because families cannot manipulate it. They either have the purchasing power to buy what they want, or they don’t. Increasingly, Americans are answering that question every time they walk into a supermarket.

Finland has built an underground network beneath Helsinki capable of sheltering nearly one million people. Let that sink in. Nearly one million people. This is not a handful of bomb shelters scattered throughout the city, but rather an underground city stretching beneath the capital, consisting of more than 5,500 reinforced shelters connected by tunnels carved directly into solid granite. They can be converted from civilian use into military-grade protection in as little as 72 hours.

Engineered to withstand explosions, chemical attacks, biological threats, radiation, and the collapse of the world above. The shelters contain independent power systems, water supplies, communications networks, hospitals, sanitation, filtration systems, and enough infrastructure to sustain life if the surface becomes uninhabitable. During peacetime, they function as swimming pools, hockey arenas, churches, sports centers, parking garages, and shopping facilities.

Ask yourself a very simple question. Who spends decades and billions of dollars constructing an underground city unless they genuinely believe it may one day be needed?

Finland is not building these shelters because of some passing political disagreement with Moscow. The country shares an 830-mile border with Russia and has never forgotten the Winter War. Unlike much of Europe, Finland never embraced the fantasy that major wars had become impossible. While politicians across Europe dismantled civil defense, reduced their militaries, and diverted spending toward every fashionable political cause imaginable, Finland kept digging.

Today, nearly 4.8 million shelter spaces exist for a nation of just 5.6 million people. Very few countries on Earth have anything remotely comparable. That means Finland has spent generations preparing to keep the overwhelming majority of its population alive during the unthinkable. Governments do not invest on that scale because they expect peace.

Finland is probably not the exception. It is simply one of the few countries honest enough to admit what it has been doing. Across Europe, governments are quietly rebuilding civil defense systems, expanding military production, discussing conscription, increasing defense budgets, and warning citizens to prepare emergency food, water, medicine, batteries, and cash. Every policy points in the same direction. They are preparing society for prolonged conflict.

Our computer has warned that the years ahead would not resemble the decades people have grown comfortable living through. The sovereign debt crisis was always destined to evolve into geopolitical conflict because governments eventually turn outward when they can no longer solve problems at home. History has followed that pattern for thousands of years. Debt leads to instability. Instability leads to political desperation. Political desperation ultimately leads to war.

The frightening reality is that governments never announce the danger while they are preparing for it. They reassure the public until the very last moment because panic becomes another enemy to manage. By the time officials openly admit the risks, it is usually far too late to begin preparing.

Finland’s underground city is more than an engineering achievement. It is a message written in concrete and granite. It says that one government believes there is a realistic possibility that nearly one million people may someday have to disappear beneath the earth simply to survive. That should concern every person in Europe far more than another reassuring speech from politicians claiming everything is under control.

I have received numerous emails asking if Chuck Schumer and the Democrats are attempting to frustrate Trump to prevent him from exiting the Iran War to influence the Midterms by refusing to sign the defense bill for the first time in history. The Democrats under Schummer are clearly trying to prolong the Iran war to discredit Trump for the Midterms. Politics has become simply a political war. This is no longer about what is good for the country including the troops. If one side says the sky is blue, the other must argue it is red even when it is yellow.

Some argue that the Democrats are actively trying to end the war, not prolong it. A “war powers resolution” was introduced by Democrats to force the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iran unless Congress approved further action. That has nothing to do with the actual war, it is simply to embarrass Trump. While this measure failed along party lines as they expected, it does not show that the Democratic party’s official position is against the conflict since they know that would help Trump. It was intended to show that Trump and the Republicans wanted this war.

Without question, this war is already unpopular and harming the administration. The Democrats smell blood. The conflict has been used to push for the “No Kings” rallies and is widely seen as a “political liability” for President Trump and the Republicans in the Midterms. They clearly are trying to prevent any quick and “honorable” way out of a conflict that they argue was initially based on a “misjudgment” with no exit strategy.

The administration’s reasons for the war are disputed by the Democrats. Multiple sources suggest the war’s origins were not tied to nuclear threats (which U.S. intelligence found no evidence of) but rather to a complex mix of factors. These include pressure from the Israeli lobby,  while Netanyahu was escorted into the Situation Room where no other foreign leader ever stepped foot selling the war as if it would be like Venezuela. The public’s lack of understanding of the war’s purpose is cited as a key reason for its unpopularity. This is why the Democrats are not interested in any quick or honorable solution before the Midterms. The Democrats have also put out there that Trump desires to seize Iran’s oil, and to distract from the Epstein scandal.

The Democrats are prolonging the war for political gain, as they paint a picture of a conflict that is hurting the American people, with Democrats actively opposing even funding the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). The  NDAA is typically passed on a bipartisan basis each year. Not this time. This is typical Schummer.

Moreover, there is publicly documented meetings between Senator Chuck Schumer and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Schumer has regularly participated in official delegations, leadership briefings, and diplomatic events where Israeli leaders are typically present. I have been unable to confirm a private sit-down meeting this year, the two have been mentioned in the same context recently. Prime Minister Netanyahu’s address to a joint session of Congress in July 2024 was notably boycotted by Senator Schumer for public a show ONLY, where he tried to pretend opposition to Netanyahu’s actions in Gaza.

Senator Chuck Schumer and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had interaction in February 2025 with an official meeting in Washington, D.C. The two were photographed together at the U.S. Capitol with other congressional leaders. However, on July 24th, 2024, Netanyahu’s address to a joint meeting of Congress Senator Schumer attended the speech but had an “awkward” interaction with the prime minister, choosing not to shake his hand as a public statement of his opposition to his policies in Gaza.

To illustrate the political BS of Schummer, while he publicly refused to shake Netanyahu’s hand in the in front of the cameras, a photograph and video released by Netanyahu’s office showed them shaking hands during a private meeting held before the speech. This suggests the public refusal was a calculated political gesture to send a message to the American public that was false.

Nonetheless, it is expected that Senator Schumer will be part of a bipartisan congressional delegation traveling to Israel for in-person meetings with Prime Minister Netanyahu and other leaders. Additionally, he has participated in calls with Israeli President Isaac Herzog alongside other senators. Schummer has supported the “ironclad” relationship between US and Israel. It has been suggested that Netanyahu knows that frustrating Trump could lead to a Democratic victory as long as he prevents any honorable peace deal before November. We cannot confirm such a conspiracy. We can only judge by the words and deeds.

We are not live streaming this event trying to keep costs to a minimum. It will be recorded and a video will be available after the event. As far as the text book, we will also make that available after the conference.

COMMENT: Marty,
I just had to reach out and thank you for putting on this conference and sharing what you’ve learned over the course of your career. I know which university asked you to teach—and that you turned them down. I couldn’t help but notice that one chapter will be titled “All Governments Are the Same.” I also understand this is a break-even event for you, and that you decided against live streaming due to the cost.

Even though I won’t be able to see you in person this time, my son and daughter will be attending, and I wanted to express my gratitude. So many of us at the WECs have been urging you to do this for a long time. I know you call yourself the “accidental economist,”and that’s exactly what makes you so one of a kind. An FX trader, drafted into the world of geopolitics because theory alone just doesn’t cut it.

Thank you for doing this.

BP

REPLY: You all have made me stop and think: how the hell did I end up here? Life shapes us through experience, turning us into the people we were maybe always meant to become. This was never a path I imagined for myself, but we play the hand we’re dealt.

I’m dedicating this event to Milton Friedman. I was speaking at a trading conference in Chicago about how the world is interconnected, and how currency made that possible. Milton had heard about me and came to listen. After I finished, he walked up, shook my hand, and told me I was doing what he had only ever dreamed of. He had written back in 1953 about how a floating exchange rate system would impose checks and balances on governments, and here I was, traveling the world, dealing with governments over exactly what Milton had envisioned more than thirty years earlier. He then said what I was doing was deeply important, and that I should document it for society.

I have indeed run around the world and dealt with perhaps more governments than anyone. I honestly see no difference. Justice peaks, because as Thrasymachus tried to warn Socrates that justice is the same no matter what form of government exists. It is always their self-interest about retaining power. As they say, you can vote your way into socialism/communism, but you have to shoot your way out. That is the real risk of Mandami in NYC when his ideas fails as they always have.

Plato records the debate between Thrasymachus and Socrates. Thrasymachus didn’t frame his argument as a “warning” to Socrates so much as a cynical confrontation. His core claim, that rulers simply make laws to serve their own interests, inherently applies to any form of government, including a democracy.

Thrasymachus explicitly includes democracy in his analysis. He doesn’t single it out; he gives it as one of the prime examples of his theory in action. He states that in a democracy, the “ruling masses” (the democratic majority) pass and enforce laws that are to their own advantage.

Thrasymachus was saying there was “no difference in justice” under a democracy. For Thrasymachus, the only thing that changes is who is exploiting the system for their own benefit. In a tyranny, it’s the tyrant; in an aristocracy, it’s the aristocrats; and in a democracy, it’s the democratic majority. The fundamental principle, that “justice” is a tool used by the powerful to justify their own advantage, remains exactly the same.

Thucydides (the Melian Dialogue) also informed us that “The strong do what they can and the weak suffer what they must.” To a large extent, the Marxists did come to argue that justice is seen as a tool of the ruling class. On that point, I cannot disagree. Law has always been used for political purposes.

Jacob Coxey was arrested for walking on the grass of the U.S. Capitol. This arrest occurred on May 1, 1894, after he led a protest march of unemployed workers known as “Coxey’s Army” to Washington D.C. to demand government jobs to alleviate the Panic of 1893 depression.

The arrest was based on a law that forbade public assemblies and processions on the Capitol grounds, and Coxey was charged with the specific violation of “walking on the grass.” Along with Coxey, two of his lieutenants, Carl Browne and Christopher Columbus Jones, were also arrested.

The United States has more people in prison than Europe, Russia, or China, yet we pretend to be the land of liberty and justice for all. Either Americans harbor more criminals than any other society, or we imprison people for political purposes while pretending it is about justice.

I even went through the Berlin Wall in the late ’70s and saw communism first hand. What I am passing on is not theory. It is what Milton came to listen to me deliver at a trading conference in Chicago. How the world is all interconnected. This has huge ramifications for everything from economics to politics.

Those attending will receiver an autographed copy. The printer will have them on time.