Good morning, you legend!

Remember to write to feedback@rudeawakening.info whenever you like. I read all the mail I can.

Let’s get straight into this great mailbag. 

The Italian Job

Hi Sean,

Reading your column today (a daily pleasure) reminded me of one of the best TV series I've ever seen—Gomorrah, an Italian crime drama set in Naples that ran for 5 seasons. Incredible! So well acted, filmed, and directed, with highly memorable characters and scenes. How do you not go for a series whose anti-hero is nicknamed "The Immortal"? Confession, I was told to watch it in Italian, with subtitles. I couldn't recommend any viewing more highly, but prepare for bingie behavior...Also, I hope you enjoyed my recommendation of "Conquistador," about Cortez.

Best, Brian H.

Thank you, Brian, for another great recommendation. Alas, I haven’t read Conquistador yet, though it’s on my Kindle, ready to go. AOC, of all people, gave me new impetus to read it. Not knowing her namesake was the man who brought horses to the New World is beyond hilarious.

Thank you for a thoughtful story and a reminder that so much of modern life is built by sweat, blood, and courage in faraway places. The geology may dictate which mountain gets harvested, but politics and economics often dictate the geography chosen. Mexico, like Africa, is resource-rich and inured to foreign resource exploitation, while aspiring to first-world living standards and social order. One last thought: I live and sail in Mexico much of the year, and while life here is actually safer than the US coverage implies, the cartels do occasionally make sh!t happen. Unfortunately, the cartels here do not have the smarts and/or style to operate as smoothly, without collateral damage, as your Italian crews.

Damon C.

Thanks for writing in, Damon! Stay safe down there.

Calling AROC!

Hey Sean, I really enjoy reading your emails every morning! Thanks for the effort you put into them; it shows, very much appreciated. Back in Oct., you recommended AROC May 15 $30 calls. They’re up nicely 😊. I haven’t seen any mention of them recently, especially curious considering your rotation out of your unofficial silver portfolio.

Thanks, Gary K.

Hi Gary! I wrote at the top of the Rude on February 6th:

“One last thing: at the Paradigm Shift Summit in Nashville this past October, I mentioned the Archrock Inc. (AROC) May 15, 2026, $25 calls at $3.30. They closed at $6.41 yesterday (94% gain), so you may want to exit that position if you participated. This is not a recommendation, just a reminder.”

No worries if you missed it! They closed at $8.36 yesterday. AROC has no premarket trades yet, so I don’t know where the options will open, but you should be able to sell them well above $6.41.

Silver Shivers

Hi Sean,

On Friday, you said you’d tell us what you saw that sent a chill up your spine on Silver. So I waited until Monday to read it, but it wasn’t there. Please fill in the blank! Thanks, Bill [Sean, you said, “In short, my portfolio will be 100% cash over the weekend. I did this because I saw something in the spot silver chart that sent a chill up my spine."]

Bill W.

Bill, silver’s downside target of $36 sent a chill up my spine.

I wrote:

“Yes, silver is trading above its 50-day moving average. Yes, silver’s macro story is still valid. Yes, we can’t get it out of the ground fast enough for Samsung.

But that chart is ugly. And it activated a new downside target of… gulp… $36.

Now, will silver trade that far down? No.

But silver may trade down to the $55/$45 area and retest that all-important level before taking off again. And if you notice the RSI under the candlestick chart, we’re still not oversold at these levels. Food for thought.

One of the reasons I was happy to sell my mining stocks is that every one of them has an activated downside target, most between 33% and 45% down. Yikes!”

Investing is So Taxing!

Hi Sean,

I was a little earlier than you on the silver/gold miners, but once you got on board, my confidence soared that I was onto something, and it allowed me to be more confident in my picks and to double down before things got rolling too much. So, thanks. You also made me feel better about getting out. But one question has emerged. I now have to write a six-figure (!) check to the IRS. I am mostly a W-2 income earner and am taxed generally at the highest rate, and live in commie Cal. Thankfully, a lot of my gains were long-term capital gains, but it still hurts. So, the question is how much, if at all, one should consider taxes in their choice to get out of a long-term macro bet like metals? By locking in gains, I've created a tremendous amount of friction to get back in because my basis is, of course, my taxes plus my actual basis to get back in. It is adding to my risk aversion. Any advice on this conundrum?

Jim S. 

Jim, you’re asking the right question. First, for your sanity’s sake, be grateful you were so successful that you have to write a check to the IRS instead of carrying losses forward. Small beer, I know. But it’ll keep you out of a straitjacket.

Thanks to renouncing my citizenship, I don’t have to worry about the IRS anymore. As a result, I can’t advise you specifically on this.

What I would do, though, is hire the best accountant I could to leverage their expertise. You may be sitting on deductions you haven’t used yet. The accountant’s fee may be insignificant compared to the savings they provide you. But try to get a free consultation first.

Wrap Up

One last thing: Basil and Damon, I’ve passed your notes on to Jim Rickards.

Thank you all for writing in.