Michael Krieger

My name is Michael Krieger, and I am the creator and editor of Liberty Blitzkrieg. I'm originally from New York City.

As far as my academic and professional background, I attended college at Duke University where I earned a double major in Economics and Spanish. After completing my studies in 2000, I took a job at Lehman Brothers where I worked with the Oil analyst in the Equity Research Department.  In 2005, I joined Sanford C. Bernstein where I served as the Commodities Analyst on the trading floor. About halfway through my time there, I started to branch out and write opinions on bigger picture "macro" topics that no one else at the firm was covering. These opinion pieces were extremely popular throughout the global investment community, and I traveled around providing advice to some of the largest mutual funds, pension funds and hedge funds in the world.

I loved my job, but as time passed I started to educate myself about how the monetary and financial system functions and what I discovered disgusted me. I no longer felt satisfied working within the industry, and I resigned in January 2010.  At that point, I started a family investment office and continued to write macro pieces on economic, social and geopolitical topics. That summer, I drove cross country for six weeks and ultimately decided to leave the crowded streets of Manhattan for the open spaces of Boulder, Colorado, where I currently reside.

In the years that followed, I gradually recognized that my true passion centers upon writing on issues of significant societal importance given the extremely challenging times we live in. This realization culminated with me losing interest in financial markets and eventually launching this website in early 2012.

If you are interested in a more detailed description, replete with colorful anecdotes, of how I ended up making this bizarre professional transition, take the time to watch the video below.

https//www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/DcqMN-FXCIE?rel=0

In Liberty,
Michael Krieger

Just Say NO: Seattle Residents Kill the City’s Drone Program

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The anti-surveillance state movement is gaining traction and following Charlottesville, Virginia becoming the first city to pass anti-drone legislation, the engaged citizenry of Seattle have now succeeded in killing their city’s own drone program earlier this month.  On the state level, while legislation has been introduced in several places, it appears Florida is closest to enacting domestic surveillance drone regulations into law.  The title of the bill is the “Freedom from Unwarranted Surveillance Act.”  From Forbes:

After a Public Safety, Civil Rights and Technology Committee hearing in Seattle (held the night of Feb 7), where residents raised concern over the Seattle Police Departments attempt to use surveillance drones, the program was successfully killed.

In a written response, Seattle Mayor Mike McGinn wrote: “Today I spoke with Seattle Police Chief John Diaz and we agreed that it was time to end the unmanned aerial vehicle program so that SPD can focus its resources on public safety and the community building work that is the department’s priority. The vehicles will be returned to the vendor.”

On the legislative side of things, multiple states are already moving to enact laws to strongly regulate the use of surveillance drones.  According to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), Maine has a bill introduced to regulate drones, as do Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, and Texas. In Virginia a hearing has already been held on a bill, while Montana has three bills, and hearings have already been held there as well.

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The Number One Reason to Buy Gold: An Interview with Marin Katusa

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In a world where many gold investors are suffering from confusion and frustration, and where mining investors are almost at the breaking point, my friend Dan Ameduri has brought to us an interview with Casey Research’s Marin Katusa.  For those interested in separating the winners from the losers in junior mining, Marin also offers one … Read more

Prepare for More Horse Meat

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While many of you are aware of the forthcoming sequester on March 1, which may result in furloughs within the ranks of 2.1 million federal employees, you may not be aware of how this might affect your food. According to Daniel Werfel, a controller for the Office of Management and Budget, it might result in reduced food inspections by the Department of Agriculture.  Not that these guys do such a wonderful job in the first place, but this seems like a really bad idea considering that food fraud was already up 60% last year.  From CNN:

At Thursday’s hearing, Werfel said agencies might not be able to avoid furloughs that would reduce essential services. At the Agriculture Department, for example, it’s not possible to avoid furloughs that would result in fewer food inspections, because most of the agency’s expenses are the salaries and benefits of people who perform those tasks.

“So it becomes a math issue, ultimately,” he said. “This is one of the very tangible and clear and significant impacts of sequester: This division within USDA will not be able to make its core mission of sending the inspectors to these locations.”

The exact number of total furloughs planned is still unavailable, since agencies are still deciding how to spread the cuts. It’s possible some agencies may yet be able to spare some employees from furloughs or at least minimize days of unpaid leave.

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Video of the Day: Regulators Squirm When Asked About “Too Big to Jail”

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This video has been going around for a few days, but wow.  Very powerful and could be effective in knocking some sense into more sheeple if it gets spread widely enough.  It’s an absolute joke that these people being questioned by Senator Elizabeth Warren are supposed hold the banks to task.  I mean this Tom … Read more

“Freiheit stirbt mit Sicherheit” – Project Camover Has Crossed the Atlantic

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Ever heard of Project Camover?  Probably not.  It relates a movement to locate and destroy CCTV spy cameras that began in Germany, and since spread to many other countries in Europe such as Finland and Greece, and has finally reached the West Coast of the United States.  Their motto is “Freiheit stirbt mit Sicherheit,” which translates to “Freedom dies with Security.”  This is simply an inevitable reaction to the increased surveillance state around us, from things like “Trapwire,” to audio and video recording devices on public buses.  Apparently, they really enjoy using the fire extinguisher method to get the job done.  The U.S. offshoot has been identified as the “Barefoot Bandit Brigade” and is operating the Puget Sound region.  From Vice:

Have you ever walked down a street in a developed country? If yes, consider yourself the unsung star of a silent short, because someone, somewhere was almost certainly watching you as you did.

CCTV’s nothing new, which is probably why people seem to have either forgotten about or become disinterested in how creepy it is. Not so Camover, a group from Germany who have been running around Berlin smashing CCTV cameras to pieces, which isn’t surprising given that their slogan is: “Freiheit stirbt mit Sicherheit”, or “Freedom dies with Security”.

Watch these guys in action in the video below.


VICE: Hey, Camover – what’s with all the aggro?
Camover: We were bored. Just kidding. We’re critical of consumer society, where people swallow the opinions given to them by the media. They forget to think for themselves. And we thought it would be fun to motivate people to go out at night and get rid of these annoying cameras.

How many cameras have you destroyed?
We have no idea how many we’ve already destroyed. It’s not a big deal to destroy a camera – often you can do it quickly on the way home.

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Pope to Stay in Vatican City for “Immunity” and “Security”

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It doesn’t take a “conspiracy theorist” to wonder about the reasons behind the sudden resignation of the Pope; the first time this has happened in 600 years.  As the days have passed, details have begun to emerge and it seems that the most likely catalyst was his connection to the child abuse scandals rampant within the Catholic Church.  Now we find out that as a result of these concerns, he will be hiding out in the Vatican for the remainder of his days.  From Reuters:

(Reuters) – Pope Benedict’s decision to live in the Vatican after he resigns will provide him with security and privacy. It will also offer legal protection from any attempt to prosecute him in connection with sexual abuse cases around the world, Church sources and legal experts say.

“His continued presence in the Vatican is necessary, otherwise he might be defenseless. He wouldn’t have his immunity, his prerogatives, his security, if he is anywhere else,” said one Vatican official, speaking on condition of anonymity.

The final key consideration is the pope’s potential exposure to legal claims over the Catholic Church’s sexual abuse scandals.

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Stop CISPA: The Internet Spying Bill is Back in Congress

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If at first you don’t succeed in implementing total state surveillance on your citizenry, try and try again.  These guys are just unbelievable.  From the EFF: It’s official: The Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act was reintroduced in the House of Representatives yesterday. CISPA is the contentious bill civil liberties advocates fought last year, which … Read more

Fish Becoming Easier to Catch Due to Anti-Depressants in the Water Supply

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What an epic headline.  I’m certainly not the only one that will draw parallels to the human experience as it relates to the overuse of such drugs in society.  I’ll let the following quotes from the UK’s Daily Mail speak for themselves: A new study shows that anti-depressants in the water supply are making the … Read more

Two Tier Society: In Boston Politicians’ Parking Spaces Are Plowed Before the Handicapped

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While this seems like a minor incident, I do think it reflects a growing two-tier society in America where certain connected people are not only granted privilege when it comes to low interest loans, bailouts and a free pass on the rule of law, but increasingly, also special treatment in the smaller things.  Incredibly, in Boston, bureaucrats’ parking spaces are immediately cleaned off even while those of the handicapped remain covered in snow.  From The Boston Herald:

With much of Massachusetts buried under mountains of snow while residents shoveled out their cars, state lawmakers parked on Beacon Hill in special snow-free parking spaces courtesy of taxpayer-funded plows, the Truth Squad has found.

The free, reserved spaces for lawmakers around the State House were cleared of all snow within hours after the storm ended, while spaces reserved for city residents still remain entombed in snow, untouched by city plows.

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Texas DMV Sells Personal Information and There’s No Opt-Out

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Don’t mess with Texas!  Everyone needs to relax; don’t you know privacy is for terrorists? From Tech Dirt: The Texas DMV claims its “top priority” is protecting drivers’ information, but that hardly seems to be the case when it’s pulling in $2.1 million a year selling it off. There are protections in place, but they … Read more