“Behold, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands.”
—Isaiah 49:16
At the beginning of 2023 I gave a few predictions for the coming year. So, before we get to my predictions for 2024, let’s see what I got right and wrong about 2023. To measure the outcome, I’ll give a score of 1, 2, or 3 — 1 means it came TRUE, 2 means it was a BAD prediction and didn’t come true, and 3 means the outcome was ARGUABLE, you know, for all the middle ground stuff.
1
PREDICTION: Dissatisfaction with political parties will rise to an unprecedented level. The rampant corruption in our government can no longer be ignored by most people who pay attention to it. There will always be division, but a common cry for cleaning house will arise. The darkness cannot stay hidden.
OUTCOME: 3 (ARGUABLE)
There’s no doubt independents continue to rise and party loyalty continues to erode. One problem I see with fully evaluating this is response bias — that pesky little footnote in polling that must account (and often doesn’t) for which kinds of people actually respond to surveys and which particular forms of surveys. This can certainly skew results. When Gallup releases its report later in January, we’ll see which way these lines tick, either up or down…which will give us a slightly better picture of how 2023 panned out.
I will give myself a bit of credit on the “cry for cleaning house” prediction in that more people than ever are putting the Epstein affair under a microscope (even congressional members who presumably haven’t yet been blackmailed through one of its sister programs) and the fact that spending fervor for international war efforts in Ukraine have dramatically turned around, which tells me people are starting to see through the latest defense industry grift and graft.
PEW: “The share of Americans who say the U.S. is giving too much support to Ukraine has grown steadily over the course of the war, especially among Republicans.”
2
PREDICTION: The economy will get wrecked…for a while. The indicators I have seen are not encouraging. 2022 was a rough economic year, and 2023 will see things get worse before they get better.
OUTCOME: 2-3 (BAD to ARGUABLE)
I think most people would say the economy is not the best it’s been. That’s where I give myself an arguable outcome for this claim. This is especially pronounced in things I’m hearing from my generation, many of whom are still struggling to overcome the hit they’ve taken on inflation and their ability to afford housing. For many, purchasing a home has become a dream they’ve all but ditched. I hear this all the time.
Did the economy get “wrecked” though? I wouldn’t say so. Major banking problems appeared to presage bigger issues earlier in 2023, but I would say for the most part, things have not been as drastic or as quick. The lesson I’ve learned from all this is to be aware of just how slowly things happen on these large scales. One of the biases I carry with me is the experience of living in the Internet Age where everything happens in the blink of an eye. But great big institutions and even bigger nations and globalized economies move at the speed of snails, able to absorb economic hits because they are headed by either optimistic or highly political people who look past big red flashing lights and are thus unwittingly able to keep their ships afloat…for so long.
3
PREDICTION: New forms of monetary standards will warrant serious consideration by many more people than before. I’m talking crypto. Volatility and inscrutability have always been thorns in crypto’s side, but perceived necessity of making a change, especially in light of inflation, will cause more to evaluate crypto’s merits.
OUTCOME: 3 (ARGUABLE)
Having been plugged into crypto for a while now, this prediction could have been a real liability due to knowledge bias, but the massive push by banking and financial institutions to get crypto ETFs off the ground — despite exchange scandals (Sam Bankman-Fried) and hypocritical statements from executives about crypto (looking at you Jamie Dimon) — will help legitimize crypto as a “real thing” instead of just magic internet money. I would say the shift is ARGUABLY happening as we speak, but it’s slow, and you won’t be fully apprised of the public’s shift in attitude until the 7-11 man asks if you want to pay in cash, card, or crypto.
4
PREDICTION: Battle lines between central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) and decentralized digital currencies (Bitcoin, etc.) will be drawn. I do not see how the two can cohabitate for long.
OUTCOME: 1 (TRUE)
Ironically, the ETF situation will both legitimize crypto and become a force for centralization. The opportunity is becoming clearer, the window is closing, and the bankster’s and government’s need for a CBDC is becoming more acute. It’s either control or free enterprise. One will win. Operation Chokepoint and the continued and ever-increasing attacks, with Binance’s CEO as the most recent, are the practical lines in the sand. Let’s see if they move to make it formal through congressional henchwomen like Elizabeth Warren.
5
PREDICTION: The Ukraine war will peter out. Americans of all stripes can stomach only so many billions being shipped off to another country, and Zelensky’s pure PR role is bound to exhaust the American people. Barring an extreme turn of events, the war’s continuance cannot be sustained by media operatives.
OUTCOME: 1 (TRUE)
I think this has largely come true. Much of this petering out has been due to the incredible loss of life and equipment sustained by Ukraine and by the complete shift of global attention to Israel. Ukraine is now dragging older and disabled civilians into the fight in a desperate move to keep the war going. You know it’s essentially over when this happens…*POOF*
6
PREDICTION: The legacy media’s grip on information will continue to fracture. People will seek out more independent voices, and avenues to find them will become easier. The days of for-profit media monopolies are waning.
OUTCOME: 1 (TRUE)
I don’t think this is debatable. Independent media is growing, and big time voices are moving to free-speech-friendly platforms. It is interesting to see people of my (and younger) generations who are, on occasion, still purchasing news subscriptions from Propaganda Inc. like The New York Times to see what’s happening in the world, but those are few and far between. Most people I know now get there news from free-to-download vlogs, videos, and podcasts. And substacks!
7
PREDICTION: God will superintend much of what you will see. He will have a direct hand over upcoming events. The good news of the Messiah, Jesus, will likewise propagate along new Roman roads that he will prepare. I pray for a new and better and more global great awakening to come.
OUTCOME: Not sure how to measure this. We had an Asbury Revival didn’t we? And all around the world new people are being grafted into God’s family through a new found faith in the one and only messiah, Jesus. That’s pretty good. Keep it up!
Alright now, let’s take a look at what I see coming in 2024.