Was the Civil War a battle for black freedom, or a jealous "not-fair" cry from the expat Northern Farmer in Kansas?
This is of course just a teaser, and we're not going to write about that topic right now, but explain why only certain types of history matter for your future and carried wisdom. (after a break to check out this article's muse, and her lyrics are important below)
Before we get back to our regularly scheduled program "2nd American Revolution: A British Empire historical search for answers" series, it's important we point out which kind of history leads to TRUE understanding. As mentioned in our last article on the Townshend Acts, British government laws which led directly to angry New England Rum manufacturers/shippers inciting riots in the streets against Mother England, you can't just read the paid-shill historians account of events and have a CLUE what really happened. They'll tell you all about the battles and what valiant thoughts this general or this king might have had at the time. But British Kings and American politicians really don't have a clue what's going on-- EVER. Only in Hollywood does an American President have his finger on the pulse (Ever see American President the movie? It's a goddam Romcom and we're embarrassed to even know that term). In reality, everything they do is uncannily the wrongest thing one could possibly do at the moment to make matters worse. See raising interest rates into an increasingly fragile world economic situation; see trade war initiation with the world's largest growing consumer market, see boosting government shady backroom giveaways for solar & wind power businesses right before energy asset prices trend toward zero-- just so you don't think we're picking exclusively on the current knuckler. DUMB. But some historian will change all this into gallant strides by those in power. It's all bullshit history. Wars and Emperor's personalities are bullshit history, you don't learn ANYTHING from that type of history. You've GOT to get into the steeze of the local situation, understand how the people were transacting, what businesses (like 1700s Rum) were flourishing, what businesses the leaders were conducting which were affected (Ben Franklin's newspaper--> blogs & influencers, and Thomas Paine's pamphlets--> social media!) by idiotic governmental policy (Stamp Act).
Know what REALLY matters? SillyCON Valley groupthink that crypto-currencies are the next big thing. It doesn't matter whether that's true or not, what matters is the majority of very smart people in SillyCON Valley THINK it's true, and therefore spend billions of dollars and hours on it. When $800 billion dollars in crypto is lost in 30 days, THAT... FRICKING... MATTERS. When China's most important stock index, the Hang Seng, drops to new 2018 lows, and all anyone cares about is some obscure statement by a US President hired-gun talking about non-sensical rare situations of Chinese investment in US companies, that's CRAZY. Ever watch Game of Thrones and everyone in the show is focused on who gets to sit on the Iron Throne, but the REAL problem is a zillion white-walker killing machines pouring thru the northern border to rape and murder everyone and decapititate the Iron King without so much as basic pageantry? Isn't that what we're doing now? Trump (Robert Baratheon) did this, Hilliary (Cersei) did that. IRRELEVANT. $800 billion dolares and hours flushed into the toilet in 30 days of trading-- THAT matters. The robotization of DRIVING, future lost jobs (at Uber and Lyft, one of the biggest suppliers of jobs in the past few years) on the way-- thanks Waymo! THAT matters. Amazon shutting down every Mom & Pop store from Oahu to Bangor bc for their first 20 years of existence didn't have to collect sales tax-- THAT frigging matters! But do you think a kid living in the capital city (probably Honolulu or Sydney) of the Great Oceanic & Archipelagic Empire in 2518 AD will get a history lesson on the follies of crypto-currency ponzi schemes and their effect leading to the 2nd Great American Revolution? No way. Will they talk about how Nixon's destruction of the gold standard in the 1970s led to the 2nd Great American Civil War? No, don't count on it.
You see, what matters most is when government powers begin to side with "old money" businesses and put down "new money" businesses which are carrying the nation's wealth on it's shoulders. The Net Neutrality repeal, THAT is important. Sure, you may vehemently disagree with Eric Schmidt's obtuse politics, or Jeff Bezos's dirty underhanded slanders via his Washington Post, or Zuckerberg's slant to change political outcomes via his business platform, but you can't argue their contribution to today's economy. You might disagree these businesses are important to YOU, but they are important to the overall MOOD of the nation. This is why something as obscure as the combined cryptocurrency market capitalization ($1 trillion or more in December, < $250 billion a month later) can really be such an important canary in the coalmine warning you of shit to come.
So we here at 
THATS WHAT'S GOIN ON!
(tell us that's not the best cover since the Ghords did Snoopdogg?)
Nothing's Fine I'm Torn;
I'm all out of Faith;
This is How I Feel;
I'm Cold and I am sane;
Lying Naked on the Floor;
Illusion never changed,
into something real.
Wide awake and I can see the perfect sky is TORN.
YOU'RE A LITTLE LATE; I'M ALREADY TORN
No finer lyrics have been written to describe the feelings of those who can see what's about to happen. As those now focusing on LeBron's offseason decision (he's going to the Lakers btw), Facebook's latest gaffe, or Trump's latest trade war mumbling wake up, our spirit will already be killed and our energy depleted trying to warn you, and we'll simply say "That's just what's goin on" and go back to milking the cow while your kids are angrily agreeing to be sent to the front lines of a war caused by battling factions of evil.
So with this in mind, we shall write. We shall write with the ghost of Thomas Paine on our shoulder. We shall write about seemingly obscure history which has become eerily similar to our present situation. We'll write about how farming in Kansas and Nebraska territories initiated the Civil War, not politicians fighting at Fort Sumpter over the right to Secession, not a concern for the stereotypes of the black male misunderstood (it's all good, uhh).
We'll write about the Revolution being caused by old money English wanting to put down the new-money colonial rich folks like Ben Franklin, Jefferson, Washington, Hancock, Sam Adams.
We'll explain how it's not all so simple, that angry northern farmers transplanted into Kansas and dirty Abe Lincoln supported by Northern business leaders could come to the same rallying battlefield horn call-- bloodshed everywhere-- without having anything in common.
Well write about J.J. Astor's American Fur Company being a much bigger factor in the settling of the American West than the Louisianna Purchase which without Astor would've been a laughable mistake for the politicians who were later glorified for doing it.
Well rewrite history and explain why slave-hatin Abe Lincoln should've let the South secede and how everything would now be much better if he had.
cuz if you don't know, now ya know....
We like Nathalie's lyrics bc of it's humility too. You're a LITTLE late. She knows her listeners are smart discerning people who aren't fooled easily, but maybe are just distracted by the serious commotion and propaganda which catches the attention effortlessly. We don't view people as stupid, just DISTRACTED. We know everyone will soon "get it", at least when it counts, but we intend to help make people a little LESS late, so that we and the great people of the world aren't so TORN when the goin gets tuff.
Know how people of past eras worked and made money, and you'll know what's important historically which can carry forward to prepare you for the melee which is coming. Winter is indeed coming, but February is a great month to make your coffee delicious with maple sap. You can't fight or change Winter, but you can ride the Tsunami it causes to THE RICHES, glory, freedom, and happiness.
Just gotta have some information so you know when to press accelerator and when to pump the brakes, yo. Information like the opposite of what Jim Cramer told you to do last night-- INVEST IN THE 10 & 30 YEAR US TREASURY BONDS NOW.
Winter is coming; Winter; it's the most Wonderful time of the year...