International Man: Tucker Carlson recently claimed that it is widely known in Washington that Jeffrey Epstein operated on behalf of Israel’s intelligence service. What are your thoughts?
Doug Casey: Although I lived in DC for almost half my life, since my father’s side of the family has been there since the 1850s, I’m now out of touch with Mordor and its denizens. Therefore, I can’t retail any fresh scuttlebutt to you. The fact is that all any of us really know—or rather think we know—is what we hear, read, or see on the news. And most of that is propaganda, lies, half-truths, conjectures, psy-ops, or just plain stupidity.
That said, I’m inclined to believe the worst because of the type of people who are naturally drawn to Washington, DC. All political centers are similar—DC, Brussels, Tel Aviv, right down to the county seat of Dogpatch. A certain type of person is drawn to Hollywood, and a different type to Las Vegas, a different type to New York. DC attracts busybodies, do-gooders, ideologues, and power junkies, among others. They’re America’s criminal class. Frankly, DC makes my skin crawl. And the place has gotten much worse than it was when I lived there.
In any event, the so-called “intelligence community” is in its own world. I love the way they’re referred to as a “community,” as if it were a beneficial social group. The CIA and other praetorian agencies each have their own “campus” in and around DC, their denizens sequestered in their siloes, associating mainly with each other.
The world of Intel is necessarily one of secrecy, blackmail, bribery, honey traps, murder, and lies. It’s only logical to believe the very worst because of the kind of people that we’re dealing with.
I suspect the CIA has closer ties with Israel’s Mossad than most parts of America. They’re in the same business, they’re colleagues. They see the general public as the unwashed little people, pawns.
International Man: President Trump appears to be damaging his reputation and approval ratings due to the Epstein scandal, even resorting to insults directed at his own supporters. What do you make of this situation?
Doug Casey: It’s stupid to accuse your supporters of being stupid, as Trump has done. Americans, Trump lovers and haters alike, just want to know how “their” government and its employees are involved regarding the allegations against Epstein. Why were only Epstein and Ghislaine indicted? Who were the rich and famous men they were pimping for? Will the victims ever get justice? Did Epstein become a billionaire by shaking down his clients? Why is Ghislaine, who knows all, not being asked to testify?
And, of course: Who killed Epstein? Since they say it was a suicide, I’m tempted to accuse Hillary. Just kidding…
Trump promised his would be an open administration numerous times during his campaign. As did his minions—like Bongino, Patel, and Bondi. Now they’re all backtracking.
Perhaps enough Trump associates are involved that he’s afraid to have them exposed. Or perhaps he’s being intimidated or blackmailed: “If you allow me to be exposed, I’ll expose you for what I know.”
This isn’t just another sleazy sex scandal. Americans have accepted their presidents as horny hound dogs since the days of JFK. Even the credible rumors about Obama frequenting sauna clubs and acting as a rent-a-boy were disregarded. But maybe this is a thread that pulls apart the whole corrupt fabric.
International Man: Epstein was known for owning unusual works of art, reportedly including a painting of Bill Clinton in Monica Lewinsky’s purple dress (link). What’s your take?
Doug Casey: I’d like to know the circumstances under which that painting was put together, why it was hung in Epstein’s NY house, and why Clinton didn’t kibosh it all.
It’s further evidence that the people who run in these circles are degraded and perverted. It’s as if they’re reenacting the world of the Roman Empire, where anything went among the so-called elite as it gradually disintegrated. Or perhaps the world of Louis XVI, bankrupted by wars, taxes, inflation, and corruption. It was so dissipated that the French Revolution was inevitable. Fortunately, for today’s elite, the American peasants are zonked by Prozac, fentanyl, and cannabis. They’re gutless. And don’t have pitchforks and torches.
So maybe we won’t have a revolution as the Epstein Affair unfolds. After all, even Mao Zedong, possibly the greatest criminal in world history in terms of death and suffering, wasn’t overthrown. In fact, the Chinese seem to love him. Even Pol Pot skated, even though he killed perhaps a quarter of his countrymen.
It’s hard to predict what might happen if the Epstein Affair boils over. Maybe nothing, as supine as Americans are. As for myself, I’m ambivalent. On the one hand, a revolution would be so unpleasant and inconvenient that I’d like to see it all swept under the rug.
On the other hand, my righteous streak says fiat justitia ruat caelum—let justice be done though the heavens fall. On the third paw, as my friend Lobo Tigre would say, it doesn’t matter what we want. We’re just little people.
The point I’m trying to make is that only the worst people are in politics. With very few exceptions, like Ron Paul, even if they have good intentions going in, if they stay in, they’ll be co-opted and corrupted. Widespread bribery, blackmail, and worse among the elite is the real meaning of the Epstein Affair.
International Man: What do you think will happen next in the Epstein scandal? Do you believe Trump will be able to make it go away?
Doug Casey: Top people are unquestionably involved in this scandal. They’re so arrogant and entitled that they weren’t worried. My bet is that when he was campaigning and saying that all would be revealed, bullshitting as usual, Trump didn’t realize how deep it went. This is not 5D chess. This is what happens when you hang out with slimy people, and the truth is revealed. Let’s hope the revelations Tulsi Gabbard made a few days ago get traction. Trump is about to discover that the coverup is worse than the crime.
International Man: Do you believe the Epstein scandal is delegitimizing the US government? If so, where do you see this trend heading?
Doug Casey: I certainly hope it winds up delegitimizing the US government, which has become a predator on America. Unfortunately, however, the average American conflates the government with America itself. As an anarchocapitalist, I’d like to see Epsteingate delegitimize the idea of the State itself.
But that’s a ridiculous and idle dream. It’s not going to happen, because the nature of government, for all of recorded history, has been all about scandals.
And worse: pogroms, wars, persecutions, and every type of horrendous criminality.
I think Trump is running a risk of being impeached. And it may work this time, because the Republicans—depending on a number of factors—may lose bigly in the elections late next year.
I’ve asked myself why all the horrible things that governments have done throughout history haven’t discredited the institution. Could the fact that we now have an interconnected electronic world make a difference?
I think the answer is no. Humans are pack animals, and we live in a hierarchy. The hoi polloi love to chatter about their betters, the so-called elite. And the elite, within the security of their inner circles, love to decry how stupid and naïve the little people are.
I don’t know what the upshot of the scandal will be, but it has the potential to be big, especially in combination with the numerous other landmines that Trump may stumble on, and time bombs that are waiting to go off.
It seems to me that now’s a good time for a Plan B. And not a particularly good time to be long government bonds, or even the stock market.
Reprinted with permission from International Man.
