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Gold was once a stable backing for many world currencies. A little more than 50 years ago, the U.S. dollar itself was backed by gold and was fixed at a value of about $35 per troy ounce. In 1971, currency inflation, economic competitiveness, and other factors moved then-President Richard Nixon to decouple the U.S. dollar from gold, making the dollar a pure fiat currency. Today, one ounce of gold costs roughly $2,700, and gold is currently at or near its highest value ever in relation to most world currencies.

The H5N1 Bird Flu continues to make news. As reported by The Guardian, it has infected birds, cattle, sea lions, and humans. Scientists warn that this strain of bird flu is unique, acting as a “panzootic” disease that has the ability to cross lines between multiple species (January 15, 2025).

On Monday, January 20, 2025, President Donald J. Trump, the 45^th and now 47^th President of the United States, began his second term after a four-year hiatus. President Trump has promised, from campaign trail to inauguration, to help lead the United States of America into a “Golden Age”—a time of greatness and prosperity unlike any other. But, can any government overseen by fallible human beings, with limited time, capacities, and vision, ever bring about such an age?

In recent years, a silver amulet or phylactery was discovered in a grave in Germany (LiveScience, December 20, 2024).