Synopses & Reviews
Peter D. Schiff has fully revised and updated his provocative
New York Times,
Wall Street Journal, and
USA Today bestseller
The Real Crash. First published in 2012,
The Real Crash argues that America is enjoying a government-inflated bubble, one that reality will explode... with disastrous consequences for the economy and for each of us.
Since 2012, what has happened with our economy? The stock market continues its illusory gains, the Fed "tapers" while some jobs return, and yet the fundamental threat to our way of life has only grown worse -- much, much worse. The United States government nearly defaulted on its debts and the solution was to raise the debt limit -- to spend yet more money, to go even deeper in hock to China, and to burden every American with obligations that are impossible to repay.
With incisive analysis and expert financial understanding, Peter D. Schiff reveals that the road we're on will lead to an abrupt devaluation of our currency and a crash that will upend our power, our political system, and our way of life. This new edition of The Real Crash includes more than 35,000 new words of text, which cover:
-The 2013 government shutdown, the debt crisis, and how the solution only dug a deeper hole
-The IRS political auditing scandal and why the average American should care
-What will happen when the government stops inflating the stock and real estate market bubbles-How Detroit's bankruptcy mirrors our national situation: too many promises, not enough revenue
To avoid complete collapse, America must drastically reduce government spending, and regulations that drain businesses and suppress economic growth, eliminate costly and unnecessary agencies, stop foreign military escapades, and cut entitlements of all kinds for all classes of people. And, with wisdom born from having predicted the Crash of 2008, Peter D. Schiff explains how to protect yourself, your family, your money, and your country from the even greater crash that lies ahead.
Review
"Peter Schiff sounded the alarm about the housing bubble created by the Federal Reserve and predicted the bubble's inevitable collapse, yet he was ignored by mainstream economists and ridiculed by the media. In The Real Crash he is at it again, illustrating how the financial crisis of 2008 is nothing compared to what is coming down the road. Peter Schiff is right again. I hope more people listen this time." - Ron Paul; Congressman (TX-14) and three time Presidential Candidate
"Peter Schiff's new book "The Real Crash; America's Coming Bankruptcy" is written in the same blunt and punchy style that makes him a favorite guest on my Fox News show. It's not just what he says, but the fact that he lives what he says. Unlike Some authors who talk about business as spectators, Peter doesn't speak from the ivory tower of academia or from the comfort of an anchor chair. He runs a real business and fights every day to make it a success in spite of all the government's tax and regulatory policies."-- Mike Huckabee; Host of The Huckabee Show and former Arkansas Governor and Presidential Candidate
"America's political leaders should have taken Peter's 2007 book, Crash Proof, to heart before they tried to borrow, print and bail us out of trouble. Today, they -- along with all Americans -- absolutely must take heed of The Real Crash. Peter Schiff understands the marketplace, and he understands the consequences that occur when government attempts to manage that marketplace. Pay attention, America!”-- Gary Johnson, Former governor of New Mexico and presidential candidate
“In ‘The Real Crash, the fearless Peter Schiff has written the most compelling argument against central economic planning and debt-financed consumption to come along since our present woes were exacerbated in 2008. His explanations of how unfettered free choices will produce prosperity, and how ending the Federal Reserve, abolishing the IRS, and returning to the gold standard will tame the federal beast are among the most forceful and cogent I have seen. He even explains how anyone can prosper from government stupidity in these perilous times. And he does all this in a breezy and readable format.”-- Judge Andrew P. Napolitano, Senior Judicial Analyst, Fox News
“Peter Schiff is an original thinker, a man of startling insight and honesty, in many ways, a genius. I have learned that you disagree with him at your peril. He is one of the few men of finance of whom I wish I could say I had paid more attention to. Live and learn. Read and learn.”-- Ben Stein; author, actor, political and economic commentator
"Peter Schiff says the Fed's bubble machine is destroying the American economy and he is right. Zero interest rates and QE are crushing savers, rewarding speculators and enabling the Washington politicians to issue endless debt. Every concerned citizen should read this."-- David Stockman; Former OMB director under President Ronald Reagan
“Peter Schiff has been painfully right about the downward spiral of the U.S. economy over the last four years. Easy money, rising tax rates, and unbridled debt are a prescription for economic disaster. Let's hope Barack Obama reads this.”-- Stephen Moore, Economist and Fox News commentator
“While many of us have justifiably focused on how high taxes are economically corrosive, Peter Schiff does a great job of explaining why government spending and debt are even worse. As we continue grappling with the monster of a runaway federal government, this book is one of the best assets conservatives can turn to in making the case for fiscal responsibility and capitalism.” -- Grover Glenn Norquist; President of Americans for Tax Reform
“Peter Schiff was one of the few pundits who predicted correctly the 2008 economic and financial collapse. Now, he makes a compelling case in a highly readable book that the day will come when the world stops trusting the dollar and the ability of the US government to pay its debts. I agree with him that “Then well get the real crash.”-- Marc Faber; Editor, The Gloom Boom & Doom Report
“You need to know his case whether he is right or not if you are going to be prepared for this decade.”-- Jim Rogers; Investor and Bestselling Author of “A Gift to My Children” and “Investment Biker”
Synopsis
You might be thinking everything's okay: the stock market is on the rise, jobs are growing, the worst of it is over.
You'd be wrong.
In The Real Crash, New York Times bestselling author Peter D. Schiff argues that America is enjoying a government-inflated bubble, one that reality will explode... with disastrous consequences for the economy and for each of us. Schiff demonstrates how the infusion of billions of dollars of stimulus money has only dug a deeper hole: the United States government simply spends too much and does not collect enough money to pay its debts, and in the end, Americans from all walks of life will face a crushing consequence.
We're in hock to China, we can't afford the homes we own, and the entire premise of our currency — backed by the full faith and credit of the United States — is false. Our system is broken, Schiff says, and there are only two paths forward. The one were on now leads to a currency and sovereign debt crisis that will utterly destroy our economy and impoverish the vast majority of our citizens.
However, if we change course, the road ahead will be a bit rockier at first, but the final destination will be far more appealing. If we want to avoid complete collapse, we must drastically reduce government spending — eliminate entire agencies, end costly foreign military escapades and focus only on national defense — and stop student loan or mortgage interest deductions, as well as drug wars and bank-and-business bailouts. We must also do what no politician or pundit has proposed: America should declare bankruptcy, restructure its debts, and reform our system from the ground up.
Persuasively argued and provocative, The Real Crash explains how we got into this mess, how we might get out of it, and what happens if we don't. And, with wisdom born from having predicted the Crash of 2008, Peter Schiff explains how to protect yourself, your family, your money, and your country against what he predicts.
About the Author
PETER D. SCHIFF is an American investment broker, author, and financial commentator, and was a candidate in the 2010 Republican primary for the United States Senate seat from Connecticut. He frequently appears as a guest on CNBC and Fox News, and is the host of the radio show and podcast The Peter Schiff Show. He is the author of the New York Times bestselling Crash Proof and Crash Proof 2.0, as well as The Little Book of Bull Moves in Bear Markets, which was also a Business Week bestseller.
Table of Contents
Acknowledgements
Disclosure
Preface
IntroductionPart 1: Where We Are and Where We Are Headed
1. Where We Are and Where We Are Headed
2. How We Got Here: Government is the Problem
3. The Problem 2.0: We've Learned Nothing and Things Are Getting Worse
Part 2: The Solutions
4. Jobs, Jobs, Jobs: Government Can Improve Employment Only by Getting Out of the Way
5. How to Fix the Financial Industry: Deregulate
6. Sound Money: Return to the Gold Standard
7. Tax Reform: For Starters, End the Income Tax
8. Tear Up the "Third Rails": End Social Security and Medicare
9. Fixing Higher Ed: Time to Drop out of College?
10. Health Care: Repealing ObamaCare is Just the Beginning
11. Putting Government in Its Place
12. America Is Bankrupt: Time to Admit It
13. Investing for the Crash
Epilogue
Appendix 1: Letters to Investors
Appendix 2: A Brief History of Money in America
Notes
Index