In July, I wrote the following in my article, An Egyptian Napoleon:

Revolutions are chancy things. You never quite know what you’re going to get when you start one.

We think of the American Revolution as having had only one possible outcome, but that is just not so. For instance, did you know that we came perilously close to a monarchy? That’s right, many of the founding fathers wanted George Washington to become a king. And, it was his for the taking, except for the fact that he abhorred the idea.

The French Revolution wasn’t so lucky. A brilliant young artillery officer from Corsica, Napoleon Bonaparte, rapidly rose in the ranks of the revolutionary army and then staged a coup d’etat in 1799, taking over the French government and calling himself ‘First Consul’. Five years later he was Emperor Napoleon I and on a rampage through Europe, conquering everything in sight. Thankfully he went on to get thrashed by the Russians (Moscow) and the British (Waterloo).

Now, how does Egypt come into this?

Well, Egypt is very much in the midst of its own revolution, and the outcome is undecided – very undecided. All it takes right now to tilt the balance in one direction or another is for a brilliant young army officer to rise and take power.

Well, things aren’t improving. David Goldman has been tracking events in Egypt and has written a series of articles that spell doom for that country:

Endgame for Egypt
September 13, 2011 – 3:21 pm – by David P. Goldman

Egypt “bankrupt in six months” — Mohamed ElBaradei
October 4, 2011 – 11:45 am – by David P. Goldman

Egypt descends into chaos
October 10, 2011 – 2:30 am – by David P. Goldman

Chaos or Corruption in Egypt?
October 17th, 2011 – 1:31 pm

Here’s a bit from that article, Egypt Descends Into Chaos, by David Goldman:

Egypt literally will run out of food. It imports half its caloric consumption, mainly wheat (although Egyptians eat less wheat than Iranians, Moroccans, Canadians, Turks and Russians). Egypt spends $5.5 billion a year on food subsidies. Its social solidarity minister wants to change the system (which subsidizes some people who can afford to pay more than the penny a loaf the government charges), but seems deeply confused. “‘We need to change consumer habits so that we are not consuming so much bread. In Mexico, for example, they rely more on potatoes. Why can’t we start shifting toward that?’said Saad Nassar, adviser to the agriculture minister.” Mr. Nassar seems unaware that Mexicans eat more corn than wheat or potatoes. This discussion would be comical if not for the fact that Egypt is about to run out of money to pay for any sort of food.

It does not appear to be a source of comfort that the Egyptian army is in charge. This is an institution whose Golden Rule is: “Don’t report bad news up the chain of command.” One recalls the June 1967 debacle, when President Nasser and his top generals had no idea how badly they had been beaten until days after the events because no-one in the field would tell them.

Read the rest of the article here.

Don’t you love that last part?

The ‘Golden Rule’ in Egypt is:

“Don’t report bad news up the chain of command.”

That means that no one (in Egypt) will see what’s coming until after it’s happened.

One of the reasons why Egypt had their revolution is due to the rocketing prices in food. And, the ‘revolution’ didn’t solve that problem. It made it worse. Egypt is running out of food, and they don’t have the money to buy more. That’s bad news.

Of course, it gets worse. Here’s part of an article from MEMRI:

Egyptian Economy Under Revolutionary Stress
By: Dr. Nimrod Raphaeli

“All modern revolutions have ended in a reinforcement of the power of the state.”
– Albert Camus, The Rebel (1951)

Introduction

Following eighteen days of demonstrations in Midan al-Tahrir (Liberation Square) in the center of Cairo, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak stepped down, on February 11, 2011. The Supreme Council of the Armed Forces assumed the president’s powers and vowed to oversee a peaceful transition process leading to free and fair presidential elections, after five rounds of presidential referenda that had ensured the election of Mubarak, the incumbent, uncontested. As the Egyptian people grapple with their newfound freedom, the broader economic and social impact of the political turmoil in Egypt and, indeed, across the region, will fully unfold in the future.

Read the rest of the article here.

This is not going to end well. In fact, I suspect that we are staring at the fulfillment of this bit of prophecy from Isaiah 19:

² “I will make Egyptian fight against Egyptian—
brother against brother,
neighbor against neighbor,
city against city,
province against province.
³ The Egyptians will lose heart,
and I will confuse their plans.
They will plead with their idols for wisdom
and call on spirits, mediums, and those who consult the spirits of the dead.
⁴ I will hand Egypt over
to a hard, cruel master.
A fierce king will rule them,”
says the Lord, the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.

However, the chapter does end THIS way:

 ²³ In that day Egypt and Assyria will be connected by a highway. The Egyptians and Assyrians will move freely between their lands, and they will both worship God. ²⁴ And Israel will be their ally. The three will be together, and Israel will be a blessing to them. ²⁵ For the Lord of Heaven’s Armies will say, “Blessed be Egypt, my people. Blessed be Assyria, the land I have made. Blessed be Israel, my special possession!”

That is VERY good news, and it’s never happened before, which means that there’s a ton of terrible events to live through before we get to verse 23.

I am impressed.

It is good to see Glenn back on TV with content that we’ve come to expect from him, and more. It’s hard to know where he ends up from here, but I believe that he’s made an impressive start.

Over the next two weeks you can see Glenn for free, and I encourage you to do so. It’s not every day that you get to watch a new network take off, and GBTV is the ONLY way that you are going to see the Glenn Beck Show.

Check it out today.

Thirdly, the threat level to you and the people that you care about has increased dramatically. We are in for an extremely EXTREMELY rough ride over the next two to five years, and we aren’t going to survive that ride unless we do something about it.

I also find myself concentrating on just survival, and I don’t like that idea. I don’t want to stop at mere survival. I want to shoot for thriving in the midst of this coming era of catastrophe. God put us on this planet for a purpose, and that purpose can’t be fulfilled if we don’t survive to fulfill it. And, if we can prosper? Enough to help others who haven’t?

Even better.

Financial catastrophe, resource crash, global war and a globalist agenda are coming together to do terrible damage. And, I have yet to see anyone put all this together. Everyone seems to have a piece of it. Some understand the war that we’re in. Others get the financial disaster. Some even have a handle on the global decline in vital reserves of oil, copper, uranium, etc. A few even understand how the globalist agenda impacts this lethal mix.

But, who can put the pieces together and show you what’s happening?

I haven’t found anyone, so I must not be looking hard enough. However, until I find someone who really can put these pieces together, I need to roll up my sleeves, step in and try to do that for you.

That’s why I’ve decided to create yet another website called OmegaShock. First, there was the financial earthquake and the Aftershock, but then comes the OmegaShock – the last great shock that takes everything down.

The site is already up, and new content will start appearing on it as early as today. Yes, the graphics on the site are a bit basic, but that will improve over the coming week.

The website is www.omegashock.com. Bookmark the site and stay abreast of information that could help you survive and thrive in the face of what’s coming.

Yes, it has a scary message because the impact on people that we care about will be catastrophic. The world will never be the same again. However, it does offer something of a silver lining, and you will do well to jump on that as if your life depends on it.

Because, as scary as the book is, when you add a resource crash and war to the future, the message turns quickly from merely scary to completely horrifying.

So yes, it is a horror show, but the good news is that I’m beginning to see a few ways out of this. Maybe.

Hopefully, it will be enough help me calm down a bit.

Let’s get to the book.

Normally, you would summarize a book before writing up a conclusion. Unfortunately, I’m not normal, (and this is my article) so I’m going to start with the conclusion. In fact, I’ll start doing that by directly quoting the first page of chapter six:

For most people, the advice we are about to give you on how not to lose money in the Aftershock is far more important than any of our good investment ideas (offered in the next chapter) about how to cash in on it. We understand that no one likes to hear this. Most of us find making money far more interesting than simply not losing it. But knowing how to protect yourself is absolutely crucial to surviving and thriving in the months and years ahead, so please don’t skip this part. If you only pay attention to one page in this book, this should be the one.

Let us say at the outset that this chapter discusses protection strategies for the long term. In the shorter term, these protective steps are not immediately necessary. There is no immediate crisis or need for panic. But there is a real need to know what is coming and to learn now how to protect yourself from the way ahead.

For the long term, there are three simple rules for where not to invest as the dollar and other bubbles fall:

Rule #1: Get ready to exit stocks.

Rule #2: Stay away from real estate until after the dollar bubble pops

Rule #3: Stay away from long-term bonds and all fixed-rate investments (including whole life insurance and annuities).

I would also like to add that everyone needs to get out of any adjustable rate debt that they have. The book is pretty clear on this, and I am too. Credit card debt and adjustable rate mortgages need to be paid off somewhere between now and the next year and a half. If we are lucky we might have more time than that, but I doubt it.

Now, I said that there’s a silver lining, and there is – a nice big one. It’s called gold.

Maybe I should have said a gold lining?

As the economy crashes and the dollar crashes and the stock market crashes and the banking system crashes and the government debt crashes… with all this crashing going on, there is only one safe place to be as you ride the crash: ownership of physical gold.

Not gold mining stocks.

You need gold. At least some should be in your sweaty little hands, and the rest should be in a depository somewhere.

Now, the authors of the book aren’t as simplistic as that. They do offer other very sophisticated strategies to profit as we all ride the crash down. But, those strategies require a high degree of technical ability and sophistication – as well as a lot of nerve.

The other possibility, and the authors aren’t shy about this, is to invest with their asset management company. If you agree with their macroeconomic view (and I do) and have a sizable portfolio (I don’t), put some, or all of it with their investment company.

Contact them here:

Absolute Investment Management
(703) 774-3520 or info@aftershockeconomy.com

Remember, you’re not in this to make lots of money. You’re in this to save your assets, and then turn a profit – if you can.

Start the process now.

Okay, so that’s pretty much the conclusion to the book. Or, maybe I should say that this is my personal summary of the conclusions in this book. The devil is in the details, and I’ll get into that later on.

Oh, and don’t forget to order the book. You can find it here:

Aftershock – Protect Yourself and Profit in the Next Global Financial Meltdown

But, I’m stuck in Taipei for the next few months, so I’ll have to keep a tight rein on my homicidal need for good Ochel Yerushalmi.

Why am I saying all this? Well, I’ve just stumbled across a great little video that’s made me incredibly homesick. It’s called Thru Jerusalem, and I recognize almost every place in the video. When it finished, I wanted to get on the next plane back to Israel. It really does evoke the sight and sound of an incredible place.

Could somebody PLEASE get me a Shawarma?

Restoring Courage

This Sunday will mark the first of three live broadcasts from Israel by Glenn Beck as a part of his ‘Restoring Courage‘ campaign. If you want to see it, you’ll need to join GBTV.com.

If the video doesn’t play properly, you can see it here.

From the Restoring Courage Page of Glenn’s website:

Restoring Courage: The Courage to Love
Sunday, August 21, 2011

GBTV Broadcast Times:

• LIVE:  30 minute pre-show begins at 12:30pm ET followed by the event at 1:00pm ET
• PRIMETIME REBROADCAST: 7:30pm ET

On August 21, 2011, Glenn Beck will be joined by Pastor John Hagee, Rabbi Shlomo Riskin, esteemed historian David Barton, and other religious leaders in a program at the extraordinary Roman amphitheater in Caesarea, Israel. With the stories of Ruth and Esther at its foundation, the event will inspire its audiences to display loyalty, courage and love as they stand up for Israel and the Jewish people. Scheduled to perform is Grammy nominated Vernessa Mitchell, who will be joined by Israeli singers and musicians to enhance this powerful event. Tickets to this event are SOLD OUT; however, you can watch the program LIVE on GBTV.com.

2. Restoring Courage: Courage to Remember

Monday, August 22, 2011

GBTV Broadcast Times:

• LIVE: Event begins at 1:00pm ET
• PRIMETIME REBROADCAST: 8:00pm  ET

At the Old Train Station Plaza in central Jerusalem, people will gather for an evening of remembrance and hope on August 22, 2011. With a focus on the Holocaust and the strength of its survivors, Glenn Beck will host the event, which will feature a screening of a documentary film that explores the life-long impact of the Holocaust on its victims. The film will be followed by a panel discussion. The program will conclude with a candle lighting ceremony during which a survivor’s family will pass a flame from generation to generation as they display the courage displayed in their past, and the courage to stand together for themselves and all future generations. Tickets to this event are SOLD OUT; however, you can watch the program LIVE on GBTV.com.

3. GBTV Documentary: The Journey to Restoring Courage

Tuesday August 23rd, 2011

GBTV Primetime Broadcast Time: 8:00pm

Join Glenn and Tania Beck as they visit Auschwitz on the Journey to Restoring Courage.

There is perhaps nothing in all of history that depicts pure evil, man’s greatest inhumanity to his fellow man, than a stark, cold set of buildings in southern Poland called Auschwitz – Birkenau.  During WWII more than one million people, mostly Jews were executed there.  Murdered in cold blood.  The Nazi’s called it “the final solution of the Jewish question in Europe.”  From 1942 through 1944 Jews were delivered to the camp’s gas chambers from all over Europe.

But in the face of unthinkable horror there were people who displayed courage beyond imagination.  Regular men, women, and children who put their very lives on the line in defense of righteousness.  It was a small but important triumph of the human spirit then and equally important lesson for us today.

4. Restoring Courage: Courage to Stand

Wednesday, August 24, 2011

GBTV Broadcast Times:

• LIVE: One hour pre-show begins at 9:00am ET followed by the event at 10:00am ET
• PRIMETIME REBROADCAST: 7:00pm ET

On August 24, 2011, Glenn Beck will host an event at the Davidson Center in Jerusalem. Taking place just steps from the Western Wall and the Temple Mount, this program calls for unity among all faiths, and will honor Israelis who have displayed courage in their struggle for survival and peace. It will also issue a challenge to all citizens of the world to stand with and declare their support for Israel. Joining Glenn will be religious leaders, esteemed speakers and entertainers including the Rabbi of the Western Wall, Shumuel Rabinovitch, Academy Award winning actor Jon Voight, internationally renowned singer Dudu Fisher, and the Jerusalem Great Synagogue Choir. Tickets to this event are sold out; however, you can watch the program LIVE on GBTV.com!

Join me and millions of others as we watch this event on GBTV.com

Aftershock

I’ve started reading the most recent version of Aftershock by David and Bob Wiedemer with Cindy Spitzer. I’m only a fifth of the way through, and it’s horrifying. I hope to have read through it this weekend so that I can give you a summary on Monday.

Here’s the infomercial that convinced me to get the book:

And yes, it is an infomercial with all the nauseating aspects of infomercials everywhere. Watch the video anyway and ignore the fake marketing glitz. This really is serious stuff, and you need to pay attention.

I’ll give you more on Monday.