What absolute twaddle! Of course, my net worth is not zero! I have assets such as:
A Healthy Bank Account.
Well, just make sure that you do not donate any money to a cause the government then decides it does not like. Look what happened to those who legally donated to the Canadian truckers. The emergency law was passed retroactively and so the government could and did freeze bank accounts without due process.
Look what western governments have done to the Russian oligarchs.
But I have property.
Go talk to a farmer who has had great chunks of land designated as a Significant Natural Area. They lose their right to use their property as they wish but still pay the rates. Or talk to someone who paid multi-thousands for a view from their home only to find that their neighbourhood has been designated as an area where the new Medium Density Residential Standards apply and the neighbour now has automatic resource consent to build three dwellings up to three storeys, completely obliterating the view.
Look what western governments have done to the Russian oligarchs’ London mansions and yachts.
And there is my Kiwisaver …
How did that work out for the shareholders in the great crash of 1929? Billions of dollars were lost, wiping out thousands of investors. The panic selling reached its peak with some stocks having no buyers at any price.
But being smarter than the average bear, I have gold bullion in my safe!
In 1933, Executive Order 6102 made it a criminal offence for US citizens to own or trade gold anywhere in the world, with exceptions for some jewellery and collector’s coins.
Luddites! I have invested it all in Crypto.
Algeria, Bolivia, China, Columbia, Egypt, Indonesia, Iran, (the list goes on) have all banned or heavily restricted crypto owning or transacting. And if our government ever issues CBDC (central bank digital currency to replace notes and coins) then they will have complete control over what you can and cannot do with your asset.
In short, our assets seem to exist and disappear at the whim of the markets or government edicts.
But, luckily, the WEF tells us we will be happy when we own nothing.
However, the good news is that communism has never worked in the past and it will not work this time around either. We will continue to search for freedom and find a way back from the current increasingly totalitarian system. It could be very painful getting there though.