This WWII Veteran’s Retirement Story Will Inspire You, But…

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Does “the full faith and credit of the United States” even mean anything anymore?

That’s the question I ask myself as I see the U.S. dollar trading lower, the Federal Reserve sending mixed messages to investors, and our politicians bickering about how to run the country.

This week, I had a conversation with a friend of mine about the importance of respecting the position of our leaders (even if we don’t agree with their policies). But the more I thought about it, the more I realized that our leaders have a responsibility to respect “we the people” as well.

After all, we’re the ones they’ve been elected to serve.

And as I consider the plight of retirees in our country today, I believe much more respect is deserved.

While I can’t pull our politicians into a room and lecture them about respecting the American people, I can help you with some strategies for protecting yourself in today’s disrespectful environment.

And that’s exactly what I want to do with today’s alert…

If you’re retired, or hoping to retire in the near future, there is one question that should be weighing heavily on your mind:

Do I have enough saved to support myself through retirement?

Of course, this isn’t a new question.

My grandfather probably asked himself this question when he retired from Arvin Industries in 1985.

While Grandpa retired with a full pension, he still took on the occasional part-time work to make sure his finances were healthy. As a kid, I remember him farming his land in Indiana, working for an office supply store in his hometown, driving rental cars across the country (we got to see him one time when he was driving a Corvette through our hometown of Atlanta), and shuttling senior citizens to medical appointments.

(Between you and me, I think he also just enjoyed staying busy — a trait which has kept him young. Today, at 96 years old, this WWII vet still drives himself to family events and shares his stories with my children — his great grandchildren — whenever we get together).

I hope that I’m blessed with the same health that Grandpa has enjoyed, so I can get hugs from my great-grandchildren a half century from now.

And at the same time, I hope the money I’m saving for retirement will remain healthy, despite the changing economic dynamics. After all, for many of us, retirement is going to be a much bigger challenge than it was for my Grandpa.

The Danger of a Falling Dollar

Take a look at the chart below. For long-time Daily Edge readers, this is a familiar picture:

That’s the chart of the U.S. dollar index for 2017.

Here’s the problem…

Even if you have enough money set aside for retirement right now (or if you’re lucky enough to retire with a pension like my Grandpa), a falling U.S. dollar will erode the value of your income. That’s because with a weak U.S. dollar, it will take more dollars to buy the same amount of goods or services.

Of course, this falling U.S. dollar is the direct result of the high levels of debt that our country has accumulated — and continues to accumulate — with little respect for the eventual outcome.

Because of high debt levels, the Fed — enabled by Congress — must keep interest rates low. Otherwise it would be impossible for the government (along with businesses and individuals) to keep up with the interest on growing debt levels.

And low interest rates naturally erode the value of the U.S. dollar. That’s because investors simply don’t want to hold U.S. dollars if low rates prevent them from earning interest on their investments.

As long as this vicious cycle continues, responsible savers like you and me will be hurt. After all, we’re the ones who have tried to get out of debt and wisely set aside savings for retirement.

So much for politicians respecting us — the citizens and taxpayers of the United States.

But that doesn’t mean you have to give up your goal of saving money for retirement, and stepping out of the workforce and into a more fulfilling life period.

It’s just important that you know how to protect your wealth from this falling dollar, so that you can still spend your retirement funds on the things you’ve been looking forward to for years.

Protect Your Retirement with Resources

One of the best ways to protect the true value of your retirement, is to invest in various resources.

Yes, I’m talking about resources like gold and silver. We’ve talked a lot about precious metals here at The Daily Edge.

And I’m also talking about resources like uranium (for nuclear power generation), lithium (for high-capacity batteries), oil and natural gas (which still have a dominant spot in our energy-dependent economy), and plenty of other niche natural resources.

You see, when you invest in natural resources, you’re naturally (pardon the pun) protecting yourself against a lower U.S. dollar.

That’s because if the value of the dollar declines, it will take more dollars to exchange for these resources you invest in. Put another way, if the dollar weakens, you’ll be able to exchange your investment in gold, silver, copper, uranium, or other resources — for more dollars.

And that’s how you’ll be able to make your retirement funds stretch — even when inflation is eating away at the value of your neighbor’s nest egg.

I think this concept is extremely important for retirees.

So important in fact, that last month I traveled across the country to attend the Sprott Natural Resource Symposium. My goal was to learn more about investment opportunities in natural resources, so I could share those ideas and opportunities with you!

So far, we’ve talked a lot about opportunities in the gold and silver area. I’ve shown you some strategies for pulling instant cash from mining companies. And I’ve encouraged you to use that cash to buy physical ounces of gold and silver. Last week, gold prices broke above a key resistance area and I expect gold to continue to trade higher throughout the end of the year.

Hopefully, you’ve taken my advice and you’re already profiting from higher gold and silver prices. If not, there’s no time like the present to get started! After all, you’ll want to be invested before the market makes a dramatic move higher this year.

We’ve also talked about demand for specialty resources like uranium. And I encouraged you to buy shares of Cameco Corp (CCJ) – one of the world’s largest uranium miners.

There are plenty of other takeaways from the Sprott conference that I’ll continue to share with you. And of course, I’m always searching for the best ways to build and protect your wealth.

So please, stay tuned to The Daily Edge as we explore new ways to protect your income. Please make sure that you allocate a portion of your retirement funds to resource investments. And please keep me posted on how you’re doing! (You can send me an email at [email protected]).

I always look forward to hearing from you!

Here’s to growing and protecting your wealth!

Zach Scheidt
Editor, The Daily Edge
[email protected]
Twitter: @ZachScheidt
Facebook: @TheDailyEdgeUSA

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