The Harry Browne Depression-Inflation Survival Course

Harry Browne's Depression-Inflation Survival Course, recorded live in New York in January of this year, offers a rainbow of hope in an increasingly difficult investment climate. Browne's style of making complex subjects understandable penetrates this seven-hour recorded seminar. To those familiar with his best-selling books, most recently, You Can Profit From A Monetary Crisis, as well as to those who wonder whether it's too late for profit or protection, this cassette recorded course will prove valuable. Perhaps because Browne is largely self-taught, his insights into his audience's problems are refreshing. While the course does stand on its own, it would be worthwhile to have a copy of Mr. Browne's book handy for reference. [Ed. Note: available from BFL.] Although the central theme of his course is that we must each make our own investment decisions, the alternatives made available within a hard-money framework are plentiful.

Browne makes the unusual declaration that we are now in the early stages of a depression. History, he believes, may record that the depression of the '70s began on January 24, 1973. On that date the Swiss government ceased supporting the dollar in foreign exchange markets. The present state of the economy is characterized as a depression because it is a period of time during which most people in the economy cannot maintain their former standard of living. The background on how we got ourselves into such a situation is covered and the possible scenarios of the future progression of events are explored. Even though the depression is real, those who act with foresight can still protect their capital from further erosion. The basic means will be through precious metals (gold and silver), strong, gold-backed foreign currencies, and Swiss bank accounts. The outlook for all recommended investments is covered in detail. During the several question and answer periods, Browne gives full replies to the often thought-provoking queries, and I found a number of my own questions answered. If you were wondering about his views on the developments in the gold and silver markets, the impact of the oil crisis, proper investment timing, procedures for privately handling your transactions, it's all here.

Some of the topics covered in these informative recordings include why you should protect your assets against the possibility of both a runaway inflation (which he sees as a 75% possibility) as well as a deflation. At some detail he discusses why your permanent wealth should be outside the country, provides a checklist for knowing when the crises have passed, discusses the outlook for traditional investments like stocks, bonds and real estate, suggests what to look for in an investment and explains why you should consider spending some of your capital. He also explores the fallacy of interest-seeking in an inflationary environment, how to regard home ownership, which types of risks to eliminate, the right way to diversify your holdings, how to find a long-term financial program you can live with, how to structure your investment portfolio, as well as what provisions you can make in your will regarding overseas assets.

As you can see there is a lot of material covered. Browne covers the spectrum from tax considerations and Treasury regulations to obtaining freeze-dried food. The main difficulty with the course was my desire to absorb the whole thing in one session. The length of the course and the amount of material covered precluded that, however, If you'll listen with notebook in hand, you too may come up with 47 pages of notes! Of course, the advantage of having the "portable Browne" is that you can replay the tapes as often as you like and wherever you please. There is something here for everyone interested in financial survival in the troubled times ahead and its price is well below the $150 paid by those who attended his seminars in person, or his $1750 fee for a private four-hour consultation.

In the span of a few short years, Browne, through his best-selling books, How You Can Profit From The Coming Devaluation, How I Found Freedom In An Unfree World, and You Can Profit From A Monetary Crisis, has become one of the most well-known and respected financial counselors and practical libertarian philosophers to capture the public's fancy. These recordings are a valuable addition to his literature and to your survival library.

Reviewed by James P. Kennedy / Cassette Recording / (Tape #250, 7 Hours) / BFL Price $49.95