Wealth is not what you have; it’s what you keep.In this deep dive, Arie van Gemeren explores the paradoxical collapse of the Spanish Empire—the wealthiest nation on Earth that somehow managed to go bankrupt five times in 50 years.We break down why an endless supply of silver and gold actually destroyed the Spanish economy and what modern investors can learn about inflation, currency debasement, and the "Dutch Disease."What you’ll learn in this video:The Resource Curse: Why more money often leads to less productivity.Default Logic: How King Philip II used bankruptcy as a "reset button" (and destroyed his credit).The Fugger Failure: Lessons from the bankers who financed an empire and lost everything.Monetary Illusion: Distinguishing between "currency" and "actual value."Portfolio Resilience: How to build a "Spanish-proof" strategy in 2026.

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June 28, 1914. An archduke is assassinated in Sarajevo. Within six weeks, every major power in Europe is at war. Within six weeks of that, the greatest monetary system humanity had ever created — one that delivered 44 years of 0.1% average inflation — is dead.

In this episode, I break down the classical gold standard: what it actually was, how it mechanically worked on a Tuesday afternoon in 1895, and why it enabled four decades of unprecedented stability, global trade, and technological innovation.

Then I walk through how World War I murdered it — and make the case that if the gold standard had survived, the war itself might have lasted months instead of years.

We've been living in the wreckage ever since. Your dollar has lost 87% of its purchasing power since 1971. And the principles that protected wealth during the golden era still apply today.

In this episode:

- The monetary chaos the gold standard replaced

- What 0.1% annual inflation actually meant for savers and builders

- How the price-specie-flow mechanism worked (explained simply)

- How trade exploded when currency risk disappeared

- The honest downsides: deflation, rigidity, and the Cross of Gold

- How governments killed convertibility to finance total war

- From Bretton Woods to Nixon's "temporary" gold window closure

- 5 investment principles for a post-gold standard world

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The same asset class returned +13% annually during 1970s stagflation—and lost 25% in 2022.Same country. Same interest rate risk. Same inflation dynamics. Completely opposite outcomes.Why? Because most investors optimize for one environment and get destroyed when the regime shifts.In this episode, I break down:→ The 4 macro regimes that actually drive investment returns→ How to identify which regime you're operating in→ What works (and what gets destroyed) in each environment→ Where I think we are right now—and what's coming nextTimestamps:0:00 - The 1970s vs 2022 Paradox2:18 - Why Investors Get Destroyed4:40 - The Four Regimes Framework5:25 - Regime 1: Goldilocks (2010-2019)8:00 - Regime 2: Stagflation (1973-1982, 2022-2024)14:00 - Regime 3: Deflationary Bust (2008-2011)20:00 - Regime 4: Financial Repression (1946-1951, 2020-2021?)27:30 - Where Are We Now?30:00 - How to Position Across Regimes📄 Full article with additional data: https://thetimelessinvestor.substack.com/p/the-2026-real-estate-macro-playbook?r=d424hThe second owners always win. The question is whether you're positioned to be one of them.—📩 Newsletter: https://thetimelessinvestor.substack.com💼 LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/arievangemeren🐦 X/Twitter: https://x.com/TimelessArie