Do you agree with financial analysts who are optimistic that the worst of the financial crisis is over?

People have to always look at the difference between the spin and the reality. Sometimes the things that are most spun or most talked about are the things that actually have the biggest problems. We know that on a personal level, if somebody comes up to you and says, you know– you ask them how they’re doing and they go, “Man, great. Everything is doing great. Business is doing great. Great…Great…Great!! It’s just great!” You kind of think that maybe something is going wrong, right? Because he’s just a little bit too much on that, sort of, everything’s great side and he’s kind of covering something. That’s what it is with the cheerleader and the stock market and so forth, Is be careful about the guy who’s saying, “Everything’s great. We’re never going to have another problem.” In fact, I was at a conference in Malaysia about the next financial crisis. The first thing that hits me is that at least in Malaysia and much of Asia where actually our books sell very well — I even translated them into Chinese, Korean, and Japanese — but they’re thinking about the next financial crisis that will occur. Whereas in the U.S., we don’t even assume there’s going to be another one, right?

We just sort of go, “Next financial crisis? Well, we had one and we got through that. We’re all done– Financial Crisis’ are over.” Of course, that’s really not going to be true. That’s part of what… when we’re not saying it and something like somebody in Malaysia is… It reminds me of the guy that says everything Great…Great…Great…Great…Great… but they kind of know in their heart they’re not, they’re covering. That’s what cheerleading really means, is that they sort of know that they do have a problem. Just like if gold is so bad, as I say… Wall Street always says, “Gold’s gains are always temporary and stock’s gains are permanent.” Why has gold done so well since the Internet crisis? The Internet…I mean the stock crisis of 2000. Why has it done so well? If it’s really so bad people wouldn’t be investing in it, but they do and they’ve done very well at it. So just keep in mind, that spin is spin and often spin is done as a way of covering a problem, not really telling the truth. In other words, the real truth maybe exactly the opposite of what that spin is for. It may be, instead of Great…Great…Great… it’s really not and the things that are bad… bad… bad… bad… bad… like gold may actually be pretty good. We’re trying to deny the truth as they said… we’re trying to fool ourselves or at least they’re trying to fool you.