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Well, here we are. For whatever it’s worth, the federal government is so-called shut down. I say so-called because all the muck that it creates is still there: the IRS. Political discord. Audits. Incompetent leadership. Wars. Waste. Fraud. Taxes. But, from the strictest technical sense, it is “shut down.” I say let the entire thing vanish. None of us would be any worse off, except for the vastly improved sums of money we “get” to keep.

Not that it’s scaring anyone. Indeed, fear has become a thing of the past, as the /VX futures show over the past half year.
 

The one true revelation that seems to have taken hold is that people recognize the U.S. dollar as one-ply toilet paper, which has sent precious metals soaring. Gold’s breakout has been a thing of the ages, and we approach the heretofore unthinkable $4,000 per ounce.
 

Silver’s rise has been even more stunning. Sooner or later, the charts will reveal the truth!
 

Speaking of breakouts, I’d direct your attention to the /ZB futures (the bonds), which have made an impressive break to the upside as well. This aligns with my prediction that interest rates are heading vastly lower for a long time to come, as the Fed (which is NOT shut down, thank heavens) cuts interest rates in a clumsy attempt to goose a dying economy.
 

As traders, the most important impact of a government-free world is that the data comes to a grinding halt. The jobs report that was supposed to hit the morning after next? Ain’t gonna happen. It could well be the only data to inform market direction will be company earnings reports in a few weeks (which, come to think of it, is kind of how it SHOULD be).

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