Top Hedge Fund Manager Warns on Hitler Scenario

by Robert Wenzel
Economic Policy Journal

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Billionaire hedge fund manager Ray Dalio appeared on CNBC this morning and warned of potential social unrest and what it could mean.

Dalio said (via BI):

I don't know whether we're beyond the point of being able to successfully manage this. And I worry then about – social disruption. I worry about – another leg down in the economies – causing – social disruptions. Because deleveraging – can be very painful, it depends how they're managed.

But when people – get at each other's throat, the rich and the poor and the left and the right and so on, and you have a basic breakdown,that becomes very threatening. And for example, Hitler came to power in 1933, which was the depth of the Great Depression because of the social tension between the factions. So I think it very much is dependent on how the people work this through together and worry about the social elements.

This is not the only major player I have heard this from. There are others who believe the die is cast and that it will be near impossible to get out of the current environment without major unrest (in the U.S.), and once the unrest hits, it is unclear what will emerge.

Reprinted with permission from Economic Policy Journal.

September 22, 2012

©2012 Economic Policy Journal

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