De Beers has boosted rough diamond prices by 16 percent so far this year due to strong demand, the firm said on Tuesday.
De Beers, 45 percent owned by mining group Anglo American, said in July it was cautious about developments in the second half due to a downturn in the United States, the top diamond jewelery market.
Last month, De Beers said a difficult retail market in the United States, which accounts for around half of all diamond jewelery sales, was dampening sales of cheaper, mass market items using lower quality gems.
Anglo American has been a great stock play since I started following it back in 2004. But it seems like the Down Economy might even soften the Diamond Trade. I still think it will hold strong since every girl in middle America still wants a rock for her wedding.
The Rest is Up to You….
Michael Porfirio Mason
AKA The Peoples Champ
AKA The G you should have Killed last year
AKA The Only One
The Guide to Getting More out of Life http://www.thegmanifesto.com
Ryan Leslie “Diamond Girl” Official Video – Rough Cut
It’s no secret that the US Economy is taking heavy shots, like keeping your hands low in a fight with Andre Berto. We have a trade imbalance. A Weak as Affliction shirt, US Dollar. Sky-high, rocketing debt. A national housing market in the dumps. A credit crunch with tight as my Game lending policies. Energy costs through the roof. Devastated consumer confidence. Tortoise Slow job growth. A really stupid war that is getting stupider by the minute. Pending elections.
Seems like everyone is walking around with slim pockets these days. You even see mortgage brokers, in their striped shirts, that were buying Bottle Service 9 months ago, walking off the bankruptcy floor of a chop shop law firm now. Except instead of the striped shirts, they are wearing Christian Audigier. And instead of selling mortgages, they are auditioning for wack Reality TV shows.
Anyways, there are still a lot of moves you can make that are “recession proof” and even some moves that perform better in a Down Economy.
So if you are looking to “cake up”, you have come to the right place, because I have some tricks up my high-arm-holed sleeve of my custom Neapolitan suit. We have already covered Swooping Girls in a Down Market, now here are the Top Ten G Manifesto Certified ways to make money in a Down Economy:
Import – Exports
Exports to China. We have a very weak US Dollar right now. Which means our products are Compton Swap meet-cheap for countries with strong economies like China. China is gobbling up innovative US products right now. (However, very recently, the Chinese economy is showing signs of slowing).
Bringing automatic weapons across the border to Mexico is also a profitable move. There is a War going on outside and the cartels will pay a premium for quality “Goat’s Horns” and other weapons. The increasing globalization of trade and electronic info-commerce has made it easier than ever for Arms Flippers to circumvent the national arms control systems and to exploit weak links in the very fragile international regulatory chain. I mean, who doesn’t like exploiting weak links?
Open a Taco Shop
You might think I am joking here. But with a Down Economy, comes the need for “cheap eats”. In Southern California specifically, people can’t get enough of Mex. It’s akin to Crack Rock in the 80’s. Serious, people in Southern California eat the stuff non-stop.
You could also open a flip-flop store. I am being serious here again. Girls in Southern California wear tons of flip-flops. Way more than high- heels. That’s why Southern California girls seem so short. Or open a store that sells Affliction Shirts. Seems like every jerkoff can’t stop wearing Affliction these days.
I bet if you open a Taco Shop that sells flip-flops and Affliction Shirts in Southern California, you would be a millionaire in no time. People are that stupid.
Commodity trading
Commodities have been very bullish for the past 10 years. Pockets have gone from flat to fat, your humble author’s included. Commodity trading is however, by definition, risky. (Let’s keep this in perspective. Commodity trading is not as risky as say, heisting armored trucks). Personally, I embrace that risk. For the weak at heart, invest in commodity-based exchange-traded funds which can be pretty Smooth as well.
Cigarette costs are ridiculous in some states. Cheaper in others (and other countries). If you can’t see the profit play here, I don’t know who can help you.
BRICS
Expansion is happening in unprecedented proportions in the so-called BRIC countries (Brazil, Russia, India and China) and elsewhere around the world. By my estimates, there should be additional spending of $40 trillion over the next quarter-century or so. Investing in global providers of electrical-system services and components are a good solid profit play. Also, power-transmission, power-management systems and industrial-automation products and systems should help you stack mountains of chips over the next few years.
Porn
Sure it’s saturated. But show me a girl that hasn’t thought of doing porn in this Down Economy and I will show you 20 Southern California girls that already have thought of it or acted on those thoughts. And I will show you a hundred guys that are plastic ready to pony up the dough to check it out on their laptop.
With a Down Economy comes cut backs. Fortunately for the G/ Heistman, these cut backs include security and security systems. All the better for daring heists by dashing Heistmen, Oh my Brothers.
Loan Sharking
I can’t even begin to tell you how many people have asked me for a loan since the Down Economy started. I was involved in the Shylocking Game as a younger Prototype G and I can tell you it can be very profitable. It can be really messy too, but that’s neither Super Tuscan nor Superfly.
For less risk but less juice, get in on the payday loan scams.
Drugs
When we have a Down Economy, people seem to have the need to get lifted. Even more lifted than normal. (I will go into setting up a Drug Dealing Firm in a Future G Manifesto). Just keep in mind, to be a successful drug dealer concentrate on Excellent Quality, Safety and have Fast, Trustworthy distribution.
One of my personal favorites. Drug dealers by and large are scum, have lots of CASH and give up their CASH easy when you point a Desert Eagle at them. Sort of an “easy come, easy go” situation, if you will. Most drug dealers are just asking for you to Standover them. Just make sure you deal with “independent” pharmacists. Yuppie dealers and suburban dealers are your best targets.
Doing biz with the rich
This is pretty obvious. The rich always have money even in a Down Economy. It doesn’t matter if you broker deals with them, sell crap to them or heist them.
Business, in this day and age, is done in one of two ways: sell lots of crap to tons of retarded people, i.e. the masses, or sell few high-end products to a high-end clientele. (Actually, Business is done in more ways than that, but I am trying to simplify things…it’s a Blog Post for Christ’s sake). American corporations (McDonalds, Starbucks, Christian Audigier) typically focus on the former. But as Immortal Technique says:
“So if your message ain’t shit, fuck the records you sold
Cause if you go platinum, it’s got nothing to do with luck
it just means that a million people are stupid as fuck”
Concentrate your business on the latter. It will help you sleep well at night. After all, money isn’t everything.
So what do I do to make money in the Down Economy?
Michael Porfirio Mason
AKA The Peoples Champ
AKA The G you should have Killed last year
AKA The Only One
The Guide to Getting More out of Life http://www.thegmanifesto.com
I was recently in a Nightclub in the Meatpacking district, or maybe it was West Chelsea. Not sure. No, it was Kiss & Fly. Or it could have been Marquee. Maybe it was Tenjune. I can’t remember. Like it matters anyways.
Regardless, I was attacking the spot with the kind of controlled mayhem not seen since the days of Lloyd “The Raggamuffin Man” Honeyghan, suited down, rakish as usual. Being the The Model Racker, Bean stacker, Zippo clacker you all know and love.
Taking a little break from the action, I went to the bathroom.
When I was tipping the bathroom attendant with a customary $20, the bathroom attendant was eyeing my Bankroll laced with dollars and colorful Euros.
He actually asked me if I could tip him in Euros instead of Dollars!
Wow. The dollar is pretty weak right now.
Walked back in the spot, spit some Game, and walked out the spot with a Moldovian Model Girl. So I am not really too bothered by it all.
Not bad for a Tuesday night.
The Rest is Up To You…
Michael Porfirio Mason AKA The Peoples Champ AKA The Game Doctor Spock The Guide to Getting More out of Life http://www.thegmanifesto.com
Wayne Wonder – No Letting Go [youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0NOgEcqxlTQ&hl=en&fs=1]
As an international G, I’ve seen many places and met many people. Surprisingly though, I have never met anyone who has out-Gamed me. Sure, I’ve met people who are smarter than me or wealthier than me. And coincidentally, all of them have the same rap about being creative or innovative.
On a side note, I’ve never met anyone better looking than me.
But my point is, to truly be successful; you have to be a First Mover. Make other people follow you. At first, some might be hesitant or reluctant but with enough influence and persistence, everyone comes around.
Just this past week, while an old friend of mine was in New York, I had the opportunity to discuss this specific topic. My friend always had a knack for technology and made suitcases full of skrilla by simply pulling numbers out of thin air. When we were younger, he had done very well with the pin codes of analog cell phones and most recently his favorite past time is driving by a BestBuy and extracting credit card numbers via unsecured wi-fi connections. Apparently, being innovative with technology inherently gives you a Side Hustle. More than half of his revenue and profit derives from consulting companies on how to prevent exactly what he does.
Anyway, while in town on a “consulting” job, he was staying at the Mandarin and so we decided to break bread at Asiate (I recommend the cote de boeuf with roasted rib-eye and smoked potato). I arrived 15 minutes early suited down in a Paul Stuart soft brown Nailhead number (side vents & ticket pocket, of course), a solid crème colored Stefano Ricci shirt, dark brown Hermes tie and matching pocket silk. Needless to say, my bankroll could be listed in the Mitchell Report.
Surprisingly, my friend was already at the bar, casually dressed in a Loro Piana dark gray Vicuña sweater over a burgundy colored woven shirt and black Zanella pants. He was nonchalantly sipping on a 21 year old Balvenie Scotch Portwood while concurrently conversing with a 21 year old English Hardbody. But that’s neither NYMEX nor pyrex.
Over dinner he schooled me on the enormous profit potential in other countries that don’t have a fully operational internet because of their vulnerabilities and parallel desire for protection and security. I schooled him on the capital being thrown towards these emerging markets. It seemed that our future endeavors were going to become intertwined.
I told him about my Side Hustles and how I’ve been investing in developing nations for some time. Besides swapping US paper for Japanese Yen, I went on to say that like our street hustling counterparts, my dealings are mostly in BRICs.
As a cautious friend and G, I could see the uneasy feeling rushing over him…
It took a minute before he realized I was referring to Brazil, Russia, India, and China… Not the traditional raw.
The wack is tryin’ to shorten our lives, it sorta waters my eyes
But here is some’n the cryin’ talk about
The verse on that cassette you and cousin fought about
[Wordsworth]
G’s stick together and help each other out by sharing tax advice and tips, and in this Guest Manifesto that’s just what we’re going to do…
As we know, the G can be found in all corners of the globe; late breakfast at Le Cinq in Paris then flight to Hong Kong for dinner at The Felix in the Peninsula before flying out to Macau for a poker tournament; mobile like Bentley drivers, Louis Vuitton buyers, Jet fuel abusers, sippin’ on Pétrus.
What does this have to do with taxes?
Listen up, the first thing you need to know is that you can shake off The Man in your previous country as soon as you officially become non-resident there for tax purposes. In most cases, this means you expatriate for at least 183 days in a given tax year (and really, which G doesn’t enjoy posting up at 183 days in sunny tropical paradises?).
The next thing you need to know is that every nation has different tax rules relating to everything from the income you generate to the amount of that income you remit to a given country, from capital gains on assets, to the bottle of Goose at the bar or the Spa at the Ritz.
This means that you have to Be Informed of your likely taxation burden in your new nation before you commit to it ideally – and certainly get Structures and Solutions in place as soon as possible to ensure you are living, as tax efficiently as possible; keeping it hot like matches and on lock like latches.
Structures: Tropical islands where cost of living is low, but standard of living is high. Found in many 3rd world countries along the equator, places that have never seen a snowflake & girls are tan wearing bikinis year round.
Solutions: Luxury villas owned & operated by your friends/associates who want you to ‘house sit’ or ‘lock down the crib’ while they’re away — perhaps for years at a time. Fly restaurants & the hottest clubs, just so owned by your friend/associates & offer you the menu persona grata where the owners refuse your money.
Add structures & solutions together, and your actual cost for living becomes virtually nil, yet your quality of life is elevated, high like Pete Rock.
Pete Rock – His favorite tracks, the hip hop “high”, samples
As we know from The G Manifesto, G’s deal only in Ca$h, thick bankrolls & pockets bulging like the Himalayas. Dealing in Cash only, you stay off the radar on the one hand & attract model girls on the other; a win-win situation. Don’t think that The Man isn’t watching, he is, you have been warned.
Wu-Tang Clan – C.R.E.A.M.
Many people feel that they are working harder than ever, and paying more taxes than ever, with no real benefit in return. As an Expatriate G you really do have an advantage over Regular Guy ‘back home’ and you need to begin exploring your Manifesto Destiny as soon as possible.
Taxation in America: John Hancock was probably the leading tax evader in Boston, and props have to be given for his oversize signature on the Declaration of Independence — a defiant “buck the system” reminder to the British authorities that America was founded by tax rebels (whose rebellion eventually gave birth to the United States of America.)
Speak to a tax planning company that can take into account your tax history & current financial status, from your countries of residence to your assets protection requirements in order to insure that you make the most of your wealth, your assets are not at risk, that your financial & lifestyle position is secure. Make tax time a leisurely affair, involving Goose Mojito’s (more on that in another Guest Manifesto) and enjoying a tropical sea breeze, seaside & bird watching (and I don’t mean ornithology) i.
This is about getting the best “return on your money” and a higher standard of living for less — the essence of the G Manifesto.
As the People’s Champ says: The rest is up to you…
Tafari
The Poster Boy
Yo the time is wastin, I use the mind elevation
Dime sack lacin, court pen pacin
Individual, lyrical math abrasion
Psychic evaluation, the foulest nation
We livin in, dangerous lives, mad leak and battered wives
A lifestyle where bad streets is patternized
Chours: I made it like that, I bought it like that, I’m livin like that
Nas – Take it in Blood
Some said HOV, how you get so fly?
I said from not being afraid to fall out the sky
My physical’s a shell
So when I say farewell
My soul will find a even
Higher plane to dwell
So fly you shall
So have no fear, just know that
Life is but a beach chair (chair, chair, chair)
Jay-Z
