Coffee and a Mike Mel Mattison #1298
Jan 24, 2026
Mel Mattison, writer, investor and fintech founder who also wrote the novel Quoz, joins to discuss AI, geopolitics, monetary trends and markets. Conversations hit central banks buying gold and the death of dollar dominance. He weighs multipolar power shifts, Taiwan semiconductor risk, immigration and U.S. self‑sufficiency. Practical portfolio moves toward gold, emerging markets and non‑USD assets are explored.
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Episode notes
Global Cycles Over US Generation Labels
- Global cycles matter more than neat four-generation models like the Fourth Turning.
- Mel Mattison says an 80-year elite cycle explains global change better than US-centric generational labels.
Post‑War US Hegemony Was Temporary
- The US peak after WWII was an anomaly, not a permanent global primacy.
- Mattison argues we're reverting to multipolar normalcy where US dominance declines and others rise.
Opening Up Lowers Privileged Averages
- Opening privilege to broader groups raises average competition and can reduce some groups' living standards.
- Mattison calls this shift a loss of 'American privilege' rather than only 'white privilege.'
