Dennis Tubbergen hosts Charles Hugh Smith, a renowned writer and economic analyst, on RLA Radio. Smith shares his journey from working in construction to becoming a prominent voice on economic issues through his blog and Substack following. The discussion centers on economic headwinds, including geopolitical tensions between the U.S. and China, the unpredictability of global trade, and the American consumer's debt burden. Smith highlights the impact of demographics on economic growth, noting that changing patterns in household formation and spending could affect risk assets like stocks and real estate. He also discusses the reverse wealth effect, where declining asset values lead to reduced consumer spending, particularly among the top 10% of wealth holders. Smith questions whether the Federal Reserve can effectively counteract potential deflationary trends without triggering inflation, given the end of deflationary forces from China and the constraints of high national debt. The conversation concludes with Smith's cautious outlook on the U.S. economy, suggesting that painful adjustments may be necessary in the decade ahead.

Charles Hugh Smith is the author of the oftwominds.com blog, #7 in CNBC's top alternative financial sites, and 18 books on our economy and society, including "A Radically Beneficial World: Automation, Technology and Creating Jobs for All," "Global Crisis, National Renewal: A (Revolutionary) Grand Strategy for the United States," "Burnout: Reckoning and Renewal" and "Self-Reliance in the 21st Century." His work is published on a number of popular financial websites including Zero Hedge, Financial Sense and Seeking Alpha and has been featured on numerous podcasts.

To learn more about our guest, Charles Hugh Smith, visit OfTwoMinds.com or CharlesHughSmith.blogspot.com. To learn more about Retirement Lifestyle Advocates, please visit our website at www.RetirementLifestyleAdvocates.com.  


2025-05-04 Retirement Lifestyle Advocates Radio w/ Charles Hugh Smith

In a riveting RLA Radio episode, host Dennis Tubbergen and financial analyst Karl Denninger deliver a sobering assessment of America's economic future, challenging conventional wisdom on tariffs by framing them as economic equalizers that could revitalize domestic manufacturing while warning of a demographic cliff similar to Japan's—with plummeting birthrates and an aging population threatening both economic growth and asset values—and offering an unsparing critique of America's healthcare system as a bloated industry prioritizing profit over patient care; Denninger acknowledges potential reforms under RFK Jr.'s HHS leadership while cautioning investors that demographic headwinds could significantly devalue retirement assets regardless of policy interventions.

Mr. Karl Denninger is an American technology businessman, finance blogger, author, and political activist, sometimes referred to as a founding member of the Tea Party movement.  Mr. Denninger is the author of the book Leverage: How Cheap Money Will Destroy the World. In the book, Denninger presents an inside look at how moneyed and powerful interests debase the dollar through the willful and intentional failure to honestly represent short and long-term mathematical truths that underlie all economic systems.

For information about Karl Denninger please visit www.Market-Ticker.org.  For more information about Retirement Lifestyle Advocates, please visit www.RetirementLifestyleAdvocates.com.


2025-05-11 - Economic Crossroads: Navigating Tariffs, Demographics, and Healthcare Reform

The Greater Depression Is Coming": Doug Casey's Alarming Economic Forecast
In a gripping conversation with host Dennis Tubbergen, investment maverick Doug Casey delivers a stark warning from Buenos Aires: America stands on the precipice of what he calls "the greater depression" - potentially more devastating than the crash of 1929. Speaking from Argentina, Casey doesn't mince words about our economic bifurcation, where the wealthy accumulate unprecedented wealth while average citizens struggle under the twin forces of currency inflation and regulatory strangulation. "We're on the razor's edge," Casey cautions, predicting interest rates could skyrocket back to 1980s levels (near 20%), devastating bubble-inflated stocks, bonds, and real estate markets while potentially collapsing a banking system built on these shaky foundations. Despite initial optimism about Trump's victory and promises of tax cuts and deregulation, Casey believes we're "approaching noon" rather than experiencing "morning in America," with time running out for meaningful reform of a government that has "grown like a cancer." For protection, he advocates physical gold ("the only financial asset that's not simultaneously somebody else's liability"), silver, and surprisingly, Bitcoin, while warning listeners not to trust FDIC insurance - "just a sticker principle" with insufficient reserves to handle a systemic crisis in what he describes as an economy floating on "a sea of debt" and a dollar that is merely “the IOU of a bankrupt government.”

Best-selling author, world-renowned speculator, and libertarian philosopher Doug Casey has garnered a well-earned reputation for his erudite (and often controversial) insights into politics, economics, and investment markets. Doug wrote the book on profiting from periods of economic turmoil; his book “Crisis Investing” spent weeks as #1 on the New York Times bestseller list. He has been a featured guest on hundreds of radio and TV shows, including David Letterman, Merv Griffin, Charlie Rose, Phil Donahue, Regis Philbin, Maury Povich, NBC News, and CNN; has been the topic of numerous features in periodicals such as Time, Forbes, People, and the Washington Post; and is a regular keynote speaker at FreedomFest, the world’s largest gathering of free minds.

For information about Doug Casey please visit InternationalMan.com. For more information about Retirement Lifestyle Advocates, please visit www.RetirementLifestyleAdvocates.com.


2025-05-18 - The Greater Depression Is Coming": Doug Casey's Alarming Economic Forecast

This week on RLA radio your host Dennis Tubbergen talks with Gerald Celente, the veteran trends forecaster and publisher of Trends Journal, warns of an impending "dot-com bust" driven by overinvestment in AI companies, particularly as China's Deepseek has demonstrated superior AI capabilities at a fraction of the cost, potentially wiping out billions in overvalued tech investments. He predicts President Trump will manipulate interest rates to prop up the economy short-term, but sees inevitable market crashes ahead, recommending gold and Bitcoin as safe havens while warning that mounting U.S. debt (which he claims is actually $220 trillion, not $37 trillion) may force a gold revaluation similar to FDR's 1933 action. Celente also forecasts an office building bust due to persistent work-from-home trends and warns that escalating geopolitical tensions, particularly potential conflict with Iran, could double oil prices and crash equity markets, embodying his famous maxim: "When all else fails, they take you to war."

Gerald Celente is the Founder/Director of the Trends Research Institute and Publisher of the weekly Trends Journal magazine. He is the author of the highly acclaimed and best-selling books “Trend Tracking” and “Trends 2000”. With a 40-year track record of identifying, tracking, and forecasting trends, Celente is world-renowned as today’s #1 Trend Forecaster. Celente, developed the Globalnomic methodology to identify, track, forecast, and manage trends, is a political atheist. Unencumbered by political dogma, rigid ideology, or conventional wisdom, Celente, whose motto is “Think for Yourself,” observes and analyzes current events forming future trends for what they are – not for how he wants them to be.

For more information about our guest, Gerald Celente, please visit www.trendsresearch.com.  For more information about Retirement Lifestyle Advocates please visit, www.RetirementLifestyleAdvocates.com. 


2025-05-25 Trump May Revalue Gold 70% to Erase $220 Trillion Debt

The Hidden Cost of Nixon's 1971 Decision: How Abandoning Gold Destroyed Fair Trade and Made America the World's Chump

This week on RLA radio your host Dennis Tubbergen talks with Jeffrey Tucker, founder of the Brownstone Institute, where reveals how President Nixon's 1971 decision to close the gold window fundamentally broke global trade and turned America into a permanent disadvantage against countries like China. In this eye-opening discussion, Tucker explains how the shift to fiat currency created "unfair competition" that has gutted American manufacturing for over 50 years, leading to our worst-ever trade deficits. He also dives into Trump's controversial tariff strategy, the pharmaceutical industry's price-gouging of American consumers (paying 5-10x more than other countries for the same drugs), and the revolutionary changes happening in public health under the MAHA movement. From removing COVID shots from childhood vaccine schedules to eliminating chemical dyes from food, Tucker argues we're witnessing the first real government progress he's seen in his entire adult career.

Jeffrey A. Tucker is the Founder and President of the Brownstone Institute and the author of many thousands of articles in the scholarly and popular press and ten books in 5 languages, most recently publisher of Blindsight in 2020. He is also the editor of The Best of Mises. He speaks widely on topics of economics, technology, social philosophy, and culture. 

For more information about our guest, Mr. Jeffrey A. Tucker, please visit https://brownstone.org.  For more information about Retirement Lifestyle Advocates, please visit https://retirementlifestyleadvocates.com.

2025-06-08 The Hidden Cost of Nixon's 1971 Decision: How Abandoning Gold Destroyed Fair Trade

The Case for Gold: Why Central Banks Are Hoarding and Currency Devaluation Is Accelerating

On RLA radio this week, host Dennis Tubbergen visits with gold expert Simon Popple, founder of Gold Program, reveals why gold has delivered 10.1% annual returns since 2000 and explains his "MIDI" framework—Market uncertainty, Inflation, Debt, and Interest rates—driving gold prices higher. In this eye-opening interview, Popple discusses how massive quantitative easing programs are creating unsustainable debt burdens, why central banks worldwide are accumulating gold at unprecedented rates, and how currency devaluation may be the only way out of the current fiscal crisis. He also shares practical advice on physical gold ownership, compares gold versus silver opportunities, and warns why the recent Japanese bond market collapse could be a preview of what's coming for other major economies. Whether you're new to precious metals or a seasoned investor, this conversation provides essential insights into protecting wealth during these uncertain times.

Mr. Simon Popple is the author of the Brookville Capital Intelligence Report.  Mr. Popple started a newsletter with MoneyWeek called Metals & Miners, and when they were acquired, he set up Gold Speculator with Jim Rickards. During this time, he was a featured speaker at MoneyWeek and Mines & Money conferences. Mr. Popple has also done numerous interviews with IGTV on the gold market.

To learn more about this week’s guest, Simon Popple, and his new book “The Beginner’s Guide to Investing in Gold,” please visit https://goldprogram.co.uk.  To learn more about Retirement Lifestyle Advocates, please visit our website at www.RetirementLifestyleAdvocates.com.

2025-06-15 Why Central Banks Are Hoarding Gold and Currency Devaluation Is Accelerating

Today RLA Radio show features a captivating interview with guest Kerry Lutz's which reveals how his 14-year journey following controversial financial forecaster Martin Armstrong led to his Amazon bestseller "The World According to Martin Armstrong." Armstrong's jaw-dropping track record includes predicting the 1987 crash, Soviet Union's fall, and calling Dow 32,000 when it was only 12,000—plus his recent Dow 45,000 prediction that hit exactly on December 14th, 2024. Now he's forecasting Dow 62,000 by 2032, a 2026 recession, and even more startling geopolitical predictions. Using his mysterious Economic Confidence Model that tracks cycles of confidence and money flows, these forecasts come from a man once imprisoned as a "political prisoner" who continued producing remarkably accurate predictions from his cell using only an IBM typewriter. Combined with discussions about AI as the "great equalizer," Japan's bond market implosion, and America's potential use of Bitcoin and gold to address national debt, this interview is essential listening for navigating today's unpredictable financial landscape.

Kerry Lutz has been a student of Austrian Economics since 1977. While attending Pace University, he stumbled upon an extensive cache of Austrian Economic Literature in a dark, musty, abandoned section of the school’s library. After graduating from The New York Law School, he became an attorney and lifelong serial entrepreneur. In 2010, Kerry gave up most of his other interests to pursue his desire of becoming a radio show host and founded the Financial Survival Network, whose mission is to help you prosper and thrive in the New Economy.

To learn more about Kerry Lutz and subscribe to his free newsletter, please visit http://kerrylutz.com.  To learn more about Retirement Lifestyle Advocates, please visit our website at www.RetirementLifestyleAdvocates.com.


The Man Who Predicted Dow 45,000 When It Was 12,000 - Now Says It's Going to 62,000

The Great Reset: Why America's Economy and Healthcare Are Heading for a Crash
Karl Denninger joins Dennis Tubbergen to deliver a sobering analysis of America's economic reality, revealing how negative GDP growth, soaring inflation at nearly doubles the Fed's target, and a locked-up real estate market signal an impending recession. Denninger exposes the truth behind tariff fearmongering and explains why Fed rate cuts are impossible with money supply growth running at triple the inflation target. But the real bombshell comes when he breaks down America's healthcare crisis using a brilliant analogy about "bar insurance" - showing how forcing everyone to pay for others' medical bills has inflated prescription drug costs by 10,000% compared to other countries. From a drug costing $60 in India versus $7,000 in America, to why hospital bills are astronomical, Denninger reveals the hidden mechanisms destroying American healthcare and explains why politicians refuse to fix a system that enriches pharmaceutical companies while bankrupting families. This is essential listening for anyone wanting to understand the economic and healthcare crises heading our way.

Mr. Karl Denninger is an American technology businessman, finance blogger, author, and political activist, sometimes referred to as a founding member of the Tea Party movement.  Mr. Denninger is the author of the book Leverage: How Cheap Money Will Destroy the World. In the book, Denninger presents an inside look at how moneyed and powerful interests debase the dollar through the willful and intentional failure to honestly represent short and long-term mathematical truths that underlie all economic systems.

For information about Karl Denninger please visit www.Market-Ticker.org.  For more information about Retirement Lifestyle Advocates, please visit www.RetirementLifestyleAdvocates.com.

2025-07-06 - The Great Reset: Why America's Economy and Healthcare Are Heading for a Crash

Market Storm Warning: Why the Dollar Collapse Could Trigger the Next Major Financial Crisis

In this week’s interview with Dennis Tubbergen on RLA radio , veteran market analyst Michael Oliver warns of major market disruptions brewing across multiple asset classes. Oliver explains how his unique Momentum Structural Analysis technique has identified critical breakdown patterns in the U.S. dollar index, which he believes will drop another 20 points and create significant volatility across global markets. He argues that U.S. stocks are forming a "laborious top" similar to 2000 and 2007, with internal weakness masked by narrow market leadership, while the traditional safe haven of Treasury bonds is failing to provide refuge due to mounting debt concerns. Oliver sees this convergence of factors as highly bullish for precious metals, predicting silver could surge to $60-70 by year-end and potentially outperform gold, while commodity-related stocks and energy sectors may offer the best opportunities as traditional markets face a reckoning that could unfold dramatically over the next three to five months.

Michael Oliver has been studying markets for over four decades, but it was the 1987 stock market crash that became his “aha!” moment and converted him to what he calls “momentum structural analysis.” Mr. Oliver is the CEO of Momentum Structural Analysis LLC based in Greensboro, North Carolina. He is also the author of The New Libertarianism: Anarcho-Capitalism. Since 1992 Momentum Structural Analysis has provided unique technical research to the financial industry - banks, RIAs, hedge funds, and mutual funds - as well as to individual investors.

To learn more about this week’s guest Mr. Michael Oliver, please visit https://www.olivermsa.com/.  To learn more about Retirement Lifestyle Advocates, please visit our website at www.RetirementLifestyleAdvocates.com.


2025-07-13 Why the Dollar Collapse Could Trigger the Next Major Financial Crisis

The End of Fiat Money? Why Bitcoin and Stablecoins Are Reshaping Global Finance
In this eye-opening episode of RLA Radio, host Dennis Tubbergen interviews Mark Jeftovic, publisher of The Bitcoin Capitalist, about the crumbling global financial system and emerging monetary alternatives. Jeftovic explains how the Federal Reserve is trapped between unsustainable debt levels and inflation, with the dollar index down 10% year-to-date as countries accelerate de-dollarization efforts. The discussion covers the rise of stablecoins as a bridge between traditional finance and crypto (with major legislation like The GENIUS Act gaining traction), the corporate Bitcoin treasury revolution led by companies like MicroStrategy, and why Bitcoin's 25-28% minimum four-year returns are becoming the new benchmark for capital allocation. For retirement investors, Jeftovic recommends getting "off zero" with modest Bitcoin exposure while reducing bond holdings he calls "dead money walking." This episode captures a pivotal moment in financial history as traditional monetary systems strain and alternative stores of value gain institutional acceptance. Essential listening for anyone seeking to preserve wealth amid monetary uncertainty. Visit thebitcoincapitalist.com/tubbergen for special resources.

Mark E. Jeftovic Mark is a 30-year veteran of the Internet, the co-founder & CEO of easyDNS Technologies, a Toronto-based web services company, and the author of two books about the internet; Unassailable: Protect Yourself from Cancel-Culture, and Deplatform Attacks, and other Online Disasters. Additionally, Jeftovic authors the blog site bombthrower.com and The CryptoCapitalist Newsletter.

To learn more about Mark Jeftovic please visit www.thecryptocapitalist.com or take advantage of his trial newsletter offer at http://www.thecryptocapitalist.com/tubbergen. To learn more about Retirement Lifestyle Advocates, please visit our website at www.RetirementLifestyleAdvocates.com.


2025-07-20 The End of Fiat Money? Why Bitcoin and Stablecoins Are Reshaping Global Finance

RLA Radio Host - Dennis Tubbergen

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