Product Description

From desperate interest rate cuts and chaos in global financial markets to the sub-prime mortgage crisis and a fast-crumbling tower of public and private debt, Wall Street insider Michael J. Panzner exposes the cracks in the dike, the looming economic threats, and the vast array of promises and obligations that will ultimately go unfulfilled.

How did we get to this place, and how can we protect ourselves from the fallout?

This revised and updated edition features a new introduction by the author on the predictions that have come to pass since the book was first published. It also provides a financial bomb shelter for every American by identifying the most pressing risks we face today as well as what we can do to survive the crisis:

• How an unraveling economy will affect each one of us
• When to sell, what to buy, and where to invest as the crisis unfolds
• The social, political, and geopolitical fallout from widespread financial upheaval

Everyone must learn of the disaster-in-the-making so they can protect themselves, their families, and their economic well-being—before it's too late. Financial Armageddon is today’s call to action.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #321760 in Books
• Published on: 2008-05-06
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 256 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9781427797414
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

Review
"A Magnum Opus of the facts and figures of the astounding monetary and fiscal stupidities of the last decade; the incredible financial ignorance, intellectual sloth, and shameful gluttony of the public; and the despicable, pandemic corruptions that made it all possible." -- Richard Daughty, the Mogambo Guru

"An absorbing report on the gruesome inner workings of the Frankenstein Finance monster that is dragging the rest of our economy into a dark future." -- James Howard Kunstler, author, The Long Emergency

"Panzner is one of the few people I know who can deal with day-to-day Wall Street action and yet have a big picture perspective-a picture he paints in Financial Armageddon as one that should terrify us." -- Bill Cara, BillCara.com (Forbes Favorite, 2006)

"The definitive work on our economic future. Read it now or dwell on the consequences later." -- Bruce Stratton, SafeHaven.com

"Timely, accessible....Readers who follow Panzner's advice will be among the few who successfully weather the storm ahead." -- John Rubino, co-author, The Coming Collapse of the Dollar and How to Profit from It

An informative work with much food for thought and excellent advice in preparing for the coming financial storm. -- Bull Not bull!, March 5, 2007.

Financial Armageddon doesn't pull any punches....[it's] a hard-hitting exposé of what may be our future. -- Seeking Alpha on Yahoo! Finance, March 17, 2007

Review
“I may not always agree with him, but 'Armageddon' Panzner is a brilliant analyst and a great trader. He has a tremendous grasp of investment principles.”

—Larry Kudlow, Host of CNBC's Kudlow & Co.

“A disturbing book about the all-too-possible scenarios for our future which we must work hard to avoid coming to pass.”

—Thom Hartmann, progressive talk show host and a three-time Project Censored Award-winning New York Times bestselling author

“This is an informative work with much food for thought and excellent advice in preparing for the coming financial storm. It provides concrete and uncommon ideas on how to protect yourself and your investments…. For many, this will be a disturbing book. But if it is disturbing enough to awaken Americans from their current slumber, that is precisely its value.

—Michael Nystrom , www.bullnotbull.com

“Michael Panzner fluently describes the build-up of financial risk on a number of fronts—from credit derivatives through to the government’s long-term fiscal problems—and imagines how a future crisis might develop. A breathtaking and coherent vision of financial disaster.”

—Edward Chancellor, author, Devil Take the Hindmost: A History of Financial Speculation

“The end of the credit bubble, derivatives excesses, unfulfilled government promises and the upcoming retirement squeeze will provide investors with their greatest challenge since the 1930s. Financial Armageddon lays out the blueprint for what will happen and how to best prepare yourself and protect your loved ones.”

—David Tice, President and Fund Manager, Prudent Bear Funds

“A wonderful, entertaining, and easy-to-digest account of some very disturbing economic and financial trends….Panzner has done a great service to reveal the truth, which the over-paid Wall Street crowd and the government have conspired to hide from the ‘working man.’”

—Marc Faber, Managing Director, Marc Faber Limited

“Our country faces many large financial problems which the media largely ignores. Financial Armageddon alerts you to the painful scenarios that may lie ahead, including the worst case outcome. It may not come to pass, but you will not be caught off guard if it does.”

—William A. Fleckenstein, President, Fleckenstein Capital, and MSN Money columnist

“Too busy cutting down trees, people fail to see what’s happening to the forest. Panzner, however, is one of the few people I know who can deal with day-to-day Wall Street action and yet have a big picture perspective—a picture he paints in Financial Armageddon as one that should terrify us.”

—Bill Cara, BillCara.com (Forbes Favorite, 2006)

“Timely, accessible…Readers who follow Panzner’s advice will be among the few who successfully weather the storm ahead.”

—John Rubino, co-author, The Coming Collapse of the Dollar and How to Profit from It

“The definitive work on our economic future. Read it now or dwell on the consequences later.”

—Bruce Stratton, SafeHaven.com

“An absorbing report on the gruesome inner workings of the Frankenstein Finance monster that is dragging the rest of our economy into a dark future.”

—James Howard Kunstler, author, The Long Emergency

“A Magnum Opus of the facts and figures of the astounding monetary and fiscal stupidities of the last decade, the incredible financial ignorance, intellectual sloth and shameful gluttony of the public, and the despicable, pandemic corruptions that made it all possible, all perfectly intertwined with timeless economic wisdom.”

—Richard Daughty, the Mogambo Guru

From the Inside Flap
When the stock market bubble burst in 2000, the collapse that followed wiped out over two-thirds of the value of the Nasdaq Index and decimated the hopes and dreams of millions of Americans.

Now, imagine not one, but four such disasters looming on the horizon, all poised to erupt in a massive economic firestorm that will wreak widespread havoc in the months and years to come.

In Financial Armageddon, Wall Street insider Michael J. Panzner identifies the most pressing financial risks we face today: First, a burgeoning tower of public and private debt wobbling precariously on a foundation of excess and fraud; second, a multi-trillion-dollar house of cards to which all Americans are exposed but few understand; third, a vast array of largely hidden government promises that will ultimately go unkept; and fourth, a retirement mirage that will leave millions enslaved to the workplace until the day they die.

Panzner details the devastating impact that each phase of the coming calamity will have on the lives of every American, and shows readers how to recognize, guard against, and overcome myriad threats to their wealth and personal finances. Learn:
-How an unraveling economy will affect earnings, prices, and interest rates
-When to sell, what to buy, and where to invest as the crisis unfolds
-What to watch out for in relationships with friends, employers, and others
-The social, political, and geopolitical fallout from widespread financial upheaval

Financial Armageddon offers practical advice to weather the storm, simple steps to plan ahead, and a plan to survive if the unraveling hits before you're prepared. With time running out, every American must learn of the disaster-in-the-making so they can protect themselves, their families, and their economic well-being--before it's too late.

Customer Reviews

Gripping, terrifying and informing
Financial Armageddon presents an alarming discussion of the Four Horsemen riding towards the U.S economy. Panzner has turned what might seem dry or inaccessible subjects - i.e derivatives, deficits, pension liabilities - into a tale even the layest of laymen can understand. Some will suggest it goes overboard in it's pessimism (hyper-inflation? widespread beggary and pestilence?) but even if it does it scarcely begins to offset the institutionalised optimism pumped out in the popular media. However the book is not just doom and gloom, it also provides concrete ideas on how individuals can prepare themselves and their investments. If even a fraction of Panzner's predictions come to pass investors will be grateful for the recommendations contained in this book. Read it and come away disturbed, but informed.

Forewarned is forearmed.
Part One of this book offers a brief overview of four financial threats the author suggests Americans will be facing in the near future. This is the mild stuff.

What follows, in Parts Two and Three, is a very disturbing "worst case" scenario of what life might be like for the average American once these four threats hit home. We could be facing a full-fledged systemic economic breakdown. And we will each be on our own. There is no certainty that we can count on Social Security; retirement pensions; Medicare, or financial institutions to save us. And this is just the tip of the iceberg. There will be fallout from dozens of other disasters headed our way as society begins unraveling. We need to start taking immediate steps to educate and protect ourselves. Part Four of the book offers some advice on how to do just that.

This is an intense read. It is fascinating in somewhat the same way a trainwreck is fascinating. I couldn't put it down.

Ain't no sugarcoating here!
This was not a "fun" book to read. I disagree with the comment above that describes this book as "sobering" - it's outright depressing! I was simultaneously fascinated and horrified by the way the author details what life will be like if the crashes he outlines come to happen. The first two sections of the book outline the 4 basic threats and then the risks to our society from those threats, which is frankly a little dry. But then it gets juicy...the "fallout" section grabs you in a scary-movie sort of way and almost makes you want to put the book down and walk away, but you can't, just like you can't pull your eyes away from, say, an airplane crashing in you own backyard. The final section, "defenses," gives some ways to protect yourself, but the solutions fluctuate, depending on the circumstances of the economy at the time. He even discusses how this will affect your relationships and the kind of lifestyle you will lead if you're not prepared. It certainly will make you think twice about your own situation, and even if he's partly wrong, it will make you want to live the Boy Scout motto. The only reason I don't give it 5 stars is because the recommendations aren't real specific, but I still strongly recommend it.