Hello C3 Family!

Weekly Rant - Suicide on the rise.

The below rant is a bit rough, given the topic. So, I thought I would soften the blow and share this movie trailer to soften the blow.

• Men have come in first and second place in the Illinois State Women's Cyclocross Championship.
• Hundreds of teen girls, some as young as 12, have gotten double mastectomies to remove their healthy breasts over the last 3 years.
• 300,000 kids ages 13-17 identified as transgender in the US last year.

I did not have to search long and hard for the above headlines. They were just some of the first stories I saw when combing through my typical FINANCIAL outlets that i use to build this weekly newsletter. Two of the three headlines above were touted as being "good" and not some heinous evil. 

The reason I bring these three headlines up is because a fourth headline also caught my attention this week. Deaths by Suicide reach highest number ever recorded; ideation likely higher. I won't waste time going over all the stats, and making the connection as to how the above three headlines are related to the one just mentioned. I do believe my readers are capable of making that connection on their own. The things I would like to point out is that all of the above problems are problems caused by decadence. These are problems more often than not experienced by an overly indulgent society. 

A famous stat that is often quoted by conservative pundits is that suicide rates are higher among transgender people then among holocaust prisoners. They bring this up as if it is shocking, but I think it makes perfect sense. The people imprisoned by the Nazis in those death camps typically had a Faith in God and were not ignorant to the idea that life is hard and Faith matters. In contrast, those who claim to be transgender are coddled by society and told God doesn't exist, that they are in control, and if they feel bad it is someone else's fault. Those living through the holocaust were dealt a horrible hand, but they lived in reality. Those dealing with the very real mental illness of transgender ideology are living in a fantasy. And we all know that living in a fantasy, being disconnected from reality, is a sure-fire way to enter into despair. Once life inevitably hits you in the mouth and you realize that your fantasy is not obtainable then reality becomes too much to bear.

There are of course many reasons that suicide is on the rise and I am picking on the transgender stuff right now just because that is the flavor of the day. My only wish here is to drive home the point that a decadent population will produce more suicide than even an oppressed population, and that should surprise no one. This all drives home the point that striving for comfort is just not something we should concern ourselves with as the Body of Christ.

Of course, we all should avoid being decadent or oppressed and strive for a free and hard-working society rooted in Jesus Christ. I hope that goes without saying.

Top Stories of the Week

• Stocks were on a five-day win streak until Monday broke the streak. Starbucks has been especially struggling lately with 11 straight losing days. Slowing sales seem to be the cause of investors turning away from the coffee giant.

• Moore vs. US - The court case with big Tax implications for everyone. The US Supreme Court is hearing a case by Charles and Kathleen Moore who had to pay just under $15K as a one-time repatriation tax on profits they held overseas. But the Moores say they didn't receive any profit from their investment and should not have been taxed. SCOTUS must now decide what exactly counts as income! Does income have to be realized or received to be taxed and what is the proper definition of realized income and received income? This decision, if in favor of the Moores, could upend the US tax code in major ways. If the Moores win some think it would eliminate a third of the US tax code and cost the US $340 billion in tax revenue.

• The money is running out for Ukraine. The White House's budget chief, Shalanda Young has said that money and time are running out for Ukraine. 

• Another pandemic hiring spree turns sour as Spotify is set to layoff 1,500 employees (that is 17% of their workforce). CEO Daniel Ek says that high interest rates and an economic slowdown are to blame. The tech industry as a whole has laid off more than 240,000 people so far this year.

• Gold and Bitcoin seem to be on the rise. BTC is up over $41K for the first time since April 2022 and Gold hit an all-time high on Sunday night of $2,100/ounce (Though it later pulled back). 

• A pair of law professors found that bets against Israeli companies spiked before the October 7th terrorists' attacks by Hamas. This suggests that some investors may have known the attack was coming.

• Mark Zuckerberg sold off $185 million worth of Meta stock. This is the first time Zuck has sold Meta stock since November 2021.

• The Sackler family, the owners of OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma, have reached a $6 billion settlement to resolve thousands of lawsuits alleging that Purdue Pharma fueled the opioid epidemic. This settlement would give the Sackler family immunity against any future lawsuits and this has many victims of the epidemic outraged.

• Iran, via Yemen Houthi Rebels attacked several commercial vessels and the USS Carney in the Red Sea. Tensions are rising in that part of the world and a larger conflict is on the brink that will of course lead to war and all the tragedies therein, but it will also lead to a major disruption in international trade.