We’ve got a lot of ground to cover in this week’s mailbag…
So let’s get started with a fiery message from one reader who accuses us of “whining” about Facebook. And Daily Cut editor Chris Lowe takes issue…
Reader question: What the hell is the matter with your thinking? The First Amendment protects against censorship imposed by law but does not protect against corporate censorship.
Congress cannot mandate that citizens tow the capitalist ideal. But Facebook has no legal requirement to carry any material it deems detrimental to its corporate mission. No more so than a church newsletter that chooses to forbid heretical arguments.
This is not a freedom of speech issue. If you don’t like it, take your money elsewhere. Or start your own social media platform. Just stop whining about it and do something constructive.
– Peter A. (Legacy Research member)
Chris’ comment: We’ve never claimed Facebook is in breach of the First Amendment. Or that it’s a freedom of speech issue in the constitutional sense.
But to compare Facebook with a church newsletter is a stretch. Facebook has more than 2 billion active monthly users. That’s roughly one in every two people online today. And it’s just under one in every three people alive today.
The American Framers couldn’t have imagined that a single entity controlled by a single person – Mark Zuckerberg – could have had that kind of reach.
The nub of the problem is that Facebook is the de facto internet for hundreds of millions of people. And it’s censoring ideas it doesn’t like on the whim of its leader.
In terms of what to do about it, we’ve been urging readers to delete Facebook… and delete Google while they’re at it. Apart from deciding what ideas you can and can’t be exposed to, these are for-profit surveillance companies. They have obliterated the very idea of privacy.
We’ve also been raising awareness about more censorship-resistance social media platforms such as Steemit. We’ve been outlining steps you can take now to protect your privacy online. And most important, we’ve put together a Digital Bill of Rights to raise awareness about the stifling of ideas online.
Next up in the mailbag, one reader asks a question we hear all the time. And it’s one I heard E.B. Tucker – editor of Strategic Investor – answer during lunch at the Legacy Investment Summit last week.
So I reached out to him for a rehash of what he shared with a few of us in Bermuda…
Reader question: You always mention owning gold but never mention owning any silver. Is physical silver not worth owning? Has it not also been a historical means of money?
– Scott M. (Legacy Research member)
E.B.’s answer: Silver is gold’s wild younger sibling.
My rule of thumb is, as a percentage, silver moves at three times the rate of gold. That means if gold has a 1% up day, I’d suspect silver to post something not much less than 3%. When I’m looking for a rise in gold prices, silver makes a good trade.
That said, silver is very difficult to own physically. Today, $25,000 worth of silver weighs about 110 pounds. The same $25,000 worth of gold weighs only 1.25 pounds. In the context of your question, gold is much more practical.
Here’s how I handled this as a fund manager. I held gold as our core metal and silver through a physical ETF [exchange-traded fund] as a speculative bet. When I saw gold ready to go up, I’d add more silver as a trade.
There’s nothing wrong with owning some physical silver. Use a 100-ounce silver bar as a paperweight on your desk and you’ll always have a conversation starter when people visit. But for serious money going into physical metals, gold is far more practical.
Moving on… Regular readers know that cannabis legalization is one of the big profit themes on our radar here at The Daily Cut. And for that, we typically turn to Crisis Investing chief analyst Nick Giambruno, who’s been tracking this evolving market since the beginning.
But one Daily Cut reader wants to hear what Teeka Tiwari – editor of The Palm Beach Letter, Palm Beach Confidential, and Alpha Edge – has to say…
Reader question: Teeka, are there any cannabis shares either in the United States or Canada that you would recommend to buy at this time now that cannabis is legalized in Canada? Thank you for your reply.
– Anna G. (Legacy Research member)
Teeka’s answer: Cannabis is certainly on our radar. The thing is, at Alpha Edge, we focus on stable, profitable businesses. These companies generate profits and share price appreciation that makes them great Takeover Targets… but they don’t rely on a buyout as the only way for us to generate a profit.
Many cannabis companies are in hyper-growth mode right now. They’re burning through cash as they expand operations. And their stocks are stretched to the upside by many of the valuation metrics we use.
Again, our ideal Takeover Target is a profitable, established business that dominates its niche. One with years of financials that we can analyze and draw conclusions from (i.e. why a larger company would be well served to swoop in and buy the firm).
Right now, we’re taking a wait and see approach with cannabis at Alpha Edge.
I’d like to end today’s mailbag edition with something a bit different… One of your fellow Daily Cut readers sent me (James) a personal note about last week’s Legacy Investment Summit.
It came through the Legacy Research feedback email channel, but I was so flattered I wanted to share his kind words – and my response – with the entire Daily Cut audience…
Reader comment: Hey James. I was happy to meet you at the final happy hour Friday. You were there with Chris Lowe.
Anyway, I did complete the evaluation form, but I just wanted to say that there is no way to improve the conference. In fact, I doubt you can match it! It was that good.
Our shuttle was packed heading back to the airport and everyone agreed – so it’s not just my opinion.
– John H. (Legacy Research member)
John, I’ve written and rewritten my reply about half a dozen times, searching for just the right words to express my gratitude. In the end, less is probably more. So I trimmed it down to the simplest version of what I’d like say…
I honestly couldn’t be happier with the way everything turned out. And much of the credit for that goes to the enthusiastic participation of you and your fellow Summit attendees. I enjoyed meeting every one of you and hearing your stories.
For those I didn’t get a chance to meet, I’d like to invite you to contact me at my private email address – [email protected]. I’d love to hear your Legacy Investment Summit stories… the good and the bad.
So don’t hold back. Give it to me straight, so we can do an even better job at next year’s Summit.
Regards,
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James Wells
Director
P.S. If you haven’t completed your Summit evaluation form yet, please go here and take the survey. It takes less than six minutes.