Table of Contents
Locked in. Here's the full rewrite:
When the World Catches Fire, Your Money Has to Be Ready
What war in Iran means for your wallet — right now.
In this issue: We're skipping the small talk. There's a war. Six U.S. service members are dead. Oil is surging. Your gas prices are about to go up. And while all of this is happening, your portfolio is either positioned or it isn't.
PERSONAL
Lincoln's MSL team just wrapped an undefeated winter season and walked away with the championship. Watching that kid score two goals after grinding through his confidence issues on the ball, honestly, that one hit different. It's one thing to see your child win. It's another to see them beat the version of themselves that was holding them back. That's the real W.
Croix wrapped up his final winter training sessions. Now we're locked in on Spring season and March Madness. The house is in full sports mode and I wouldn't have it any other way!
WHAT I'M SEEING
There's Only One Story Right Now and It's War
I'm not going to pretend there are three or four topics competing for attention this week. There aren't.
The United States and Israel launched joint strikes on Iran, Operation Epic Fury, over the weekend. Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in the initial strike. The retaliation came fast. Six American service members have been killed and four others seriously wounded CBS News as of this writing, with CENTCOM confirming the death toll is still rising. Trump said it plainly: there will likely be more casualties before it ends. The Hill
We are in a war. Say that slowly.
The Strait of Hormuz Is Effectively Closed
The Strait of Hormuz, the world's most critical energy chokepoint carrying one-fifth of the oil consumed globally, has ground to a near halt amid Iranian attacks on oil tankers in the region. Al Jazeera This has never happened before in the strait's modern history. Not like this.
Global crude oil prices briefly surged past 9% Monday, and Brent crude was trading in the high $70s. NPR Gasoline futures surged as much as 9.1% to $2.496 a gallon Monday, their highest since July 2024. CNBC You're going to feel this at the pump this week. Not in a few months. This week.
JPMorgan's head of global commodities research told clients that Brent prices could surge above $100 per barrel under a prolonged disruption scenario. CNBC And if it extends past three weeks? Brent could hit $120 per barrel. CNBC
Receipts:
Defense Stocks Moved. Gold Moved. The Market Told You Something.
While most of Wall Street was shaky Monday, specific sectors sent a clear signal. Shares of Northrop Grumman rose 6%, RTX Corporation gained 4.7%, and Lockheed Martin climbed 3.37%. CNN Gold briefly reclaimed $5,400 a troy ounce before paring gains, benefiting from haven demand as the conflict stirred fresh uncertainty in markets. CNN
The market doesn't lie. It was telling you exactly where smart money was moving. The question is whether you were listening.
Receipts:
The Epstein Files Are Still Buried
Let's not forget. This war is also the loudest possible distraction from everything else on the table. The Epstein files. Domestic policy. Economic pressure. All of it. War has a way of making people stop asking questions they should keep asking.
I'm not saying one caused the other. I'm saying don't stop paying attention.
THIS WEEK'S DROPS
NoBS Wealth — The Gap Between Hustle and Strategy
This one is timely. We sat down with our newest NoBS Collective member Gabriel Langley to have a real conversation about why hustle culture is actually killing people's chances at success when there's no real strategy behind it.
Here's what you'll get out of this episode:
Why working harder without a framework is just expensive chaos
How Gabriel built a strategy-first approach that actually compounds
The difference between motion and momentum (most people confuse them)
What joining a collective of serious people actually does for your trajectory
LGR — Raising Black Boys When America Can't Decide What You Are
This one is personal. I got into the history of Black History Month, but more specifically what it means to move through America as a light-skinned Black man. The complexities. The contradictions. The responsibility.
Here's what we covered:
The real history behind Black History Month and why it still matters
What it means to be light-skinned in America, the privilege and the pain
How I talk to my own kids about identity in a country that keeps shifting the definition
Why we can't afford to let this conversation stay on the surface
MONEY MOVES TO MAKE
The theme this week is simple: defense positioning.
Not panic. Not reactionary trading. Positioning. There's a difference. Here's where your eyes should be and what to do about it right now.
1. Defense Stocks Lockheed Martin $LMT ( ▲ 0.83% ) , RTX Corporation $RTX ( ▲ 0.77% ) , Northrop Grumman $NOC ( ▲ 0.79% ) all moved up Monday. They were already well-positioned before this war started, with elevated NATO defense budgets and growing domestic contracts. This conflict just added fuel. If you've been sitting on the sidelines, this sector deserves a hard look. Not a bet. A considered allocation.
2. Oil and Gas Brent crude is flirting with $80 and analysts at JPMorgan, Deutsche Bank, and Bank of America are all saying $100+ is realistic if the Strait of Hormuz stays closed. Exxon $XOM ( ▼ 0.06% ) , Chevron $CVX ( ▲ 0.79% ) , and domestic energy ETFs like $XOP ( ▲ 1.64% ) are worth watching. The U.S. is also the world's largest LNG exporter now, so higher global gas prices put domestic producers in a profitable position.
3. Gold and Silver Gold already briefly broke $5,400. It's up roughly 2% on the week and climbing. This is the classic geopolitical hedge. If you don't have any precious metals exposure in your portfolio, this is your reminder that you should. Physical, ETF, or miners, pick your lane. Silver tends to follow gold in these environments, often more aggressively.
4. What to Watch Carefully Airlines got hit hard Monday. American Airlines down over 4%, Delta $DAL ( ▼ 1.24% ) and United $UAL ( ▼ 3.02% ) each down 2-3%. Travel stocks broadly are under pressure. Tech, which was already shaky, faces additional headwinds. If inflation re-accelerates because of oil, rate cuts get pushed out and growth stocks suffer.
The honest note: Nobody knows how long this lasts. Trump said 4-5 weeks. Markets are priced for something shorter. If this extends, the moves get bigger in both directions. Position, don't gamble.
If you want a structured approach to how your family wealth is positioned through environments like this, where the rules keep changing and the noise is deafening, that's exactly what we built the Modern Family Office for. Learn more at BlackMammoth.com/modernfamilyoffice
MONEY MINDSET
War is hell.
Life, for a lot of people right now, feels like it too. Rising costs. Rising body counts. Rising uncertainty.
But here's the thing about hell: you still have to choose how you move through it.
Choose grace. Not because it's easy. Because it's the only thing that doesn't cost you more than the war already has.
Stay grounded. Stay positioned. Take care of your people.
See you next Tuesday.
The Uncomfortable Truth About Money — Black-led. Built to Stay In the Black.
Not financial advice. Do your own research. Talk to a professional.
