He’s not alone. Many contrarian economists seem to agree. And given the state of economic and geo-political affairs they could well be right, much to our detriment.

On the domestic front, the much touted economic recovery is in significant danger of being revealed for the illusion that it really is. Nationwide home sales, for example, have dropped off in record numbers in the last few months and a report released this morning indicates that mortgage originations are as bad today as they were just before the Lehman crisis of 2007. Couple that with a jobs market that is at best stagnating and at worst completely falling apart, and you can probably deduce that if there is any economic growth at all taking place it is about to come to a standstill.

Internationally, the world is fed up with The Fed and the U.S. government’s unabashed debt growth. China, Russia, Iran, India and a host of other countries are establishing trade relationships that are bypassing the U.S. dollar altogether, a move that will soon see the world’s reserve currency lose purchasing power and status. In anticipation of this imminent collapse gold is being hoarded by private and public entities from Berlin to Beijing in an effort to preserve wealth before the Tsunami hits.