Episode notes
Mentor Sessions EP 104 | Jim Rickards & Simon Dixon on the petrodollar, who runs the world, the AI bubble, dollar collapse, gold vs Bitcoin, stablecoin bank runs and frozen bank accounts.
Two wars, a quiet Russian diesel deal, and a $2 trillion AI build-out that one of these guests calls the greatest bubble in history. James Rickards and Simon Dixon sit down to map who is actually calling the shots in the Iran and Ukraine conflicts, and what it means for the dollar, gold, and your Bitcoin.
Rickards war gamed finance as a weapon for the Pentagon, advised the CIA on financial threats, and was general counsel at Long Term Capital Management when the Fed stepped in. In this conversation you'll learn why he argues the debasement trade is nonsense and the dollar is getting stronger, why China's yuan can't become a reserve currency, and why he believes an unregulated stablecoin bank run could trigger a panic in the Treasury market.
Simon Dixon pushes back with the view that war is the product, that the petrodollar is being quietly renegotiated as China becomes Saudi Arabia's main oil buyer, and that both gold and Bitcoin matter in the programmable control grid he sees coming. You'll also hear a sharp breakdown of the AI bubble, why superintelligence won't be achieved, and the latest supply-chain attacks on hardware wallets.
⏱️ Timestamps:
0:00 - Intro
0:33 - Who Is Calling The Shots In These Wars
2:33 - Who Really Controls Ukraine's Leadership
3:38 - Why Iran Has No Exit Strategy
6:46 - US-Russia Deal That Could End Two Wars
9:25 - Why Only China Russia And US Matter
12:16 - Simon Dixon: War Serves The Power Structure
15:13 - Midterms Weapons Shortages And Trump Agenda
18:46 - Seventy Years Of Petrodollar Monetary History
23:47 - Bigger Picture Above Trump And World Orders
26:19 - Why The Debasement Trade Is Nonsense
29:05 - China's Gold Reserves And Yuan Limitations
32:08 - Using Inflation To Solve The Debt Problem
33:09 - Petrodollar Shift From Saudi Arabia To China
49:26 - Two Trillion Dollar AI Infrastructure Bubble
55:42 - Why Superintelligence Cannot Be Achieved
56:11 - Ice-Nine Freezing Accounts And Redemptions
1:00:06 - Rickards Bitcoin Casino Chip Metaphor Explained
1:01:08 - Stablecoin Bank Run Risks On The Horizon
1:03:55 - Simon Dixon Stablecoins Versus Bank Deposits
1:26:48 - Hardware Wallet Attacks Targeting Self Custody
1:31:49 - Simon Dixon New Book Game Of Money
Links & Resources:
James Rickards newsletter - https://rickardswarning.com
Simon Dixon on X - https://x.com/SimonDixonTwit
This one is for the people trying to make sense of the whole board at once, not just the headlines. If that's you, join us live for the next Mentor Session and drop your take on war-is-the-product vs the-dollar-is-fine in the comments. We read them.
⚡Previous Episode:
Michael Howell: https://youtu.be/Tzyifqs-Bg0
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