Thursday, August 31, 2023
Linky Links
Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.
- Thomas Sowell's Three Question. Good practice to ask these questions in all aspects of your life.
- City Journal on Jordan Peterson on trial in Canada. I'm on team Peterson. Hail Lobster! (HT Execupundit)
- Jonathan Turley on free speech on campus in the US. Mask policies should be universally condemned. Maine should be ashamed of itself.
- China is working hard to influence your opinion. Don't let them! And remember it is against the law to post or share any negative economic information about China in China - a clear tell that the CCP is afraid of the truth.
10% Happier by Dan Harris
Thursday Flotsam and Jetsam
Have a new miscellaneous thoughts and observations post up on Substack.
Really looking forward to the "official" start of college football tonight. Don't care if its Florida State vs LSU or NC State vs Connecticut - I'll be watching football. To celebrate how about Subscribing (have you been waiting for football season?), hitting the Like button, or sharing the Link. Flotsam and Jetsam is coming to your city!
EDIT: Forgot that the Florida State / LSU game is Sunday night. Still watching football tonight!
Quotes for Today
Some quotes I hope may resonate with you.
"Children are not a distraction from more important work. They are the most important work." - C.S. Lewis
"It's impossible for a man to learn what he thinks he already knows." - Epictetus
"There are a lot of things in life that only work when you commit. The key to doing anything well is to commit. Not half-in, Not doable. Commit.. The committed person gets both the opportunity and the results." - Shane Parrish
"Be a philosopher, but, amidst all your philosophy, still be a man." - David Hume
Find Something Beautiful Today
Well - beautiful to me. (Via) Headline stolen borrowed from Execupundit.
Wednesday, August 30, 2023
More Linky Links
More stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.
- Jonathan Turley on the search for Robert L. Peters. Yes - another Turley column.
- The thought that comes to mind when people mention potentially another lockdown.
Linky Links
Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share,
- America has reached peak therapy but our mental health keeps getting worse. Imagine how bad these most vulnerable will suffer if they try another lockdown.
- Jonathan Turley on how the charges against Chief of Staff Mark Meadows may lead to the dismissal of all charges against Trump. Good chance the move to a Federal Court is upheld and that court decides to drop all charges as spurious. DA Willis badly overplayed her hand.
- I support Taibbi and Orf against YouTube. If they can do this to them they can do it against anyone. Take a stand.
Wednesday Flotsam and Jetsam
Have a new miscellaneous thoughts and observations post up on Substack.
Still find it both amusing and instructive that the movie Escape from New York was made during the tail end of the Carter Administration while the mood changed so drastically because of Ronald Reagan that the nation began looking at New York through the lens of Wallstreet shortly thereafter. If anything I wrote made you think or smile - please Subscribe, hit the Like button, or share the Link. Thanks!
Quotes for Today
Some quotes I hope may resonate with you.
"Many of the greatest disasters of our time have been committed by experts." - Thomas Sowell
"Never confuse education with intelligence, you can have a PhD and still be an idiot." - Richard Feynman
"The cyclone derives its power from a calm center. So does a person." - Norman Vincent Peale
"If someone despises me. That's their problem." - Marcus Aurelius
Warren Buffett
"Risk comes from not knowing what your doing." - Warren Buffett
Warren Buffett turned 93 today. Here's some of his best advice:
- Understanding your circle of competence.
- Life advice from Warren Buffett
- The guide to becoming the world's greatest investor
"The big question about how people behave is whether they've got an Inner Scorecard or an Outer Scorecard. It helps if you can be satisfied with an Inner Scorecard." - Warren Buffett
Tuesday, August 29, 2023
More Linky Links
More stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.
- The AP is bankrolled with $8 million from Left organizations so it covers Left interests with a Left bias. The AP is not to be trusted. Makes you wonder why the Right doesn't have its own news organization.
- Dan Wetzel on how SMU's boosters once cost the football team but now may have saved them
- Have to admit I laughed at this.
- The Free Press on the revolt of religious parents including Muslims, Christians, and Latter Day Saints. The Left took over school boards and other elected positions when nobody was paying attention but they're paying attention now and these down stream elections are bound to have upstream effects.
Linky Links
Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.
- Did not see this coming - Joe the Plumber has died at age 49
- Can't find a flaw in this logic.
- Glenn Reynolds on Bears, Boston, and the Gods of Copybook headings.
- Heh Heh
Tuesday Flotsam and Jetsam
Have a new miscellaneous thoughts and observations post up on Substack.
Swear I had the best intention of seeing the Oppenheimer movie but haven't gotten the chance to see a movie in the theater with the weather so nice or sports are on TV. Not even Cocaine Bear. Will try to do better. As always please Subscribe, hit the Like button, or share the Link. Thanks!
Quotes for Today
Some quotes I hope may resonate with you.
"If women knew what we were really thinking - they would never stop slapping us." - Larry Miller
"It is because we left the State to people who can only inherit and can't build that we got the current state of San Francisco." - Balaji Srinivasan
"There is no dignity quite so impressive, and no independence quite so important, as living within your means." - Calvin Coolidge
"I wonder if, instead of calling it 'Type II Diabetes.' we renamed the disease 'Carbohydrate Intolerance.' how many people would require insulin?" - Robert Lufkin
Monday, August 28, 2023
Linky Links
Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.
- Noah Smith on how BRICS is not a real threat to the US. Don't disagree with what he wrote but I'd also warn against overlooking 50% of the world's population and oil production at your own peril. Was also unaware that BRICS was originally a creation of Goldman Sachs.
- Interesting: AI vs human performance
- The Tail End by Tim Urban. Interesting perspective (from 2015 but new to me)
- Wow! ND is a massive brand.
So Is the Science Now Settled?
Monday Flotsam and Jetsam
Have a new miscellaneous thoughts and observations post up on Substack.
Really have to say that I think I learned more from the Netflix documentary on Johnny Manziel, even though it was much shorter, than I did about Untold: Gator Kings. Guessing this may prove the old adage that people prefer bad boys (like Johnny Football over Tim Tebow). As always - please Subscribe (great way to start off the new week), hit the Like button, or share the Link. Thanks!
Quotes for Today
Some quotes I hope may resonate with you.
"All laws which are repugnant to the Constitution are null and void." - Marbury vs Madison
"Compounding is magic. Look for it everywhere. Exponential curves are the key to wealth generation." - Sam Altman
"I've learned to ignore what experts say I should do. Instead, I do what they do." - Scott Adams
"A black woman will become President over my dead body!" - Joe Biden
Sunday, August 27, 2023
Linky Links
Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.
- New lawsuit filed against Ozempic alleging stomach paralysis. When something sounds too good to be true - it probably is.
- Wearing an N95 mask exposed the wearer to toxic compounds.
Sunday Flotsam and Jetsam
Have a new miscellaneous thoughts and observations post up on Substack.
Have to say the Finding Forrester is one of Sean Connery's more under appreciated movies. Don't sleep on the chance to watch it if you have a chance. As always - if anything made you think or smile please Subscribe, hit the Like button, or share the Link. Thanks and thank you Mr. Connery,
Quotes for Today
Some quotes I hope may resonate with you.
"Far more money has been lost bt investors trying to anticipate corrections, than has been lost in corrections themselves." - Peter Lynch
"The perfect day is caffeine for 10 hours, alcohol for 4. It balances everything out perfectly." - Marc Andreessen
"Perhaps the most powerful Tollean [Eckhart Tolle] insight into the ego was that it is obsessed with the past and the future, at the expense of the present." - Dan Harris
"When I say cut taxes, I don't mean fiddle with the code. I mean abolish the income tax and the IRS, and replace them with nothing." - Ron Paul
Saturday, August 26, 2023
Today I Join "the Free" (While Watching College Football)
Intoxication is an antidote to cognitive control, a way to temporarily hamstring that opponent to creativity, cultural openness, and communal bonding...
Dionysus appeals to the more ancient, primitive regions of our brain, those dedicated to sex, emotions, movement, touch...
We need to become looser - one of Dionysus' alternative names in Latin was Liber, "The Free."
From Drunk: How We Sipped, Danced, and Stumbled Our Way to Civilization by Edward Slingerland.
Quotes for Today
Some quotes I hope may resonate with you.
"We often forget the existence of words is no statement on their truth." - Shane Parrish
"Re-watching Idiocracy in 2023... it should have won an Oscar for Best Documentary." - Danielle Bolelli
"If my critics saw me walking over the Thames, they would say it was because I couldn't swim." - Margaret Thatcher
"Our society is run by insane people... I think we're being run by maniacs for maniacal ends." - John Lennon
Friday, August 25, 2023
More Linky Links
More stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.
- Australia's Great Barrier Reef's coral cover up to highest levels seen in 36-years.
- Mercator maps are still lying to us. Yet we still teach using them.
- Jonathan Turley on the Trump mug shot.
- Mike Myers Sean Connery tribute. Connery would have turned 93-years old today.
Top 5 - Nick Saban and the Values He Wants His Players to Have
1. Discipline
2. Commitment
3. Toughness
4. Effort
5. Pride
With Week Zero around the corned thought it would be a timely post.
Linky Links
Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.
- Live by the Cloud - die by the Cloud. (HT Borepatch)
- Amused by people learning that shock-rocker Alice Cooper is at heart a conservative. Still say he should be the nation's poet laureate.
- The BRICS expansion in 4 charts. Ignore about 50% of the world's population and oil production at your own peril.
Friday Flotsam and Jetsam
Have a new miscellaneous thoughts and observations post up on Substack.
Seriously - has Lucio Pavarotti and Sebastian Cabot ever been seen in the same room? With them both being deceased what's to stop one from making a satirical movie of them being the same person? As always please Subscribe, hit the Like button, or share the Link. Mucho gracias!
Quotes for Today
Some quotes I hope may resonate with you.
"Crackheads were taking cold showers and doing intermittent fasting way before it was cool." - Ed Latimore
"It is much more important to kill bad bills than to pas good ones." - Calvin Coolidge
"They don't teach literature any more for the most part. They teach ideology of one sort or another." - Harold Bloom
"Your liberty affects my health." - Mitt Romney
Thursday, August 24, 2023
Linky Links
Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.
- The GOP had their first Presidential debate last night and The Free Press does a review. Their analysis is the Vivek surged but the real winner was Donald Trump who wasn't even there. Admit that I watched neither the debate nor Trump's appearance on Tucker Carlson. Played pitch and watched the Red Sox instead.
- Jonathan Turley on how Joe Biden's story on Ukraine is falling apart.
Untold: Johnny Football
Saw Netflix's new documentary Untold: Johnny Football and have a review up on Substack.
If you lived through the Johnny Manziel experience this is worth a read whether you've seen the documentary or not. It may even make you want to see it.
As always - if anything I wrote made you think or smile please Subscribe, hit the Like button, or share the Link with others.
Quotes for Today
Some quotes I hope may resonate with you.
"It was astonishing just how much of what we are can be tied to the beds we woke up in the morning. And its astonishing how fragile that could be." - Coraline
"Problems are inevitable. Problems are solvable." - David Deutsch
"...if we open a quarrel between the past and the present, we shall find that we have lost the future." - Winston Churchill
"No one is more hated than he who speaks the truth." - Plato
Wednesday, August 23, 2023
Linky Links
Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.
- Science has known for some time that junk food rewires the brain. Yet its still not a bigger story, Old article but new to me.
- Interesting: the story behind Phil Michelson's call to Billy Walters.
- Jonathan Turley on the Democrats and their Hunter Biden problem.
Wednesday Flotsam and Jetsam
Have a new miscellaneous thoughts and observations post up on Substack.
Ain't going to lie - went to see Nickelback (no apologies from me) last night and I'm still hung over. Help me cure my hangover by Subscribing, hit the Like button, or share the Link. Thanks and don't talk so loud.
Quotes for Today
Some quotes I hope may resonate with you.
"My reading strategy is to start as many books as I can but finish few of them." - Morgan Housel
"The names are the first things to go, after the breath has gone, and the beating of the heart." - Neil Gaiman
"A nation that is afraid to let its people judge the truth and falsehood in an open market is a nation that is afraid of its people." - John F. Kennedy
"In fact, punk rock means exemplary manners to your fellow human being." - Joe Strummer
Tuesday, August 22, 2023
More Linky Links
More stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.
- Steven Pressfield on Israeli fighter pilot Giora Romm.
- Interesting look at King Harald Bluetooth of Denmark (yes that's where we also get the word)
- Heh Heh
- Scott Van Pelt not only set to host Monday Night Countdown, ESPN also gives him a new contract. Good for SVP - think he does a good job.
Linky Links
Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.
- Tucker Carlson issues Episode 18 on X featuring Colonel Douglas Macgregor on the Ukraine War (less than 1 million views as I type)
- Big news! Lego announces they are moving HQ to Boston in 2025 from Enfield. Even bigger news - their HQ is not in California near Lego Land.
- Not for nothing but I've been dealing with the stress of missing pool shots by doing this for years.
- The Missouri v Biden case is not getting enough coverage in the media. Thank goodness for The Tablet.
Tuesday Flotsam and Jetsam
Have a new miscellaneous thoughts and observations post up on Substack.
In the debate between picking Al Pacino or Robert DeNiro as the best actor. I tend to lean Pacino because even though DeNiro may have the greater number of hits he also has vastly more money grab stinkers like Rocky and Bullwinkle or Dirty Grandpa. As always - please Subscribe, hit the Like button, or share the Link. Thanks!
Quotes for Today
Some quotes I hope may resonate with you.
"All the energy you spend on your fourth priority comes at the expense of your first." - Share Parrish
"If your expectations grow faster tan your income, you will never be happy with your money." - Morgan Housel
"The unvaccinated face death and severe illness this winter." - Joe Biden
"Psychologists have now discovered what causes homophobia. It's "being a moron.'" - John Cleese
Monday, August 21, 2023
More Linky Links
More stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.
- Biden quietly sells off border wall parts to thwart GOP plans. Is there any doubt that the Biden Administration hates America?
- Even the Washington Post admits that Ukraine's counteroffensive isn't working. Where did all the money go?
- Noah Smith on why China's economy ran off the rails. To give Smith credit - he has been pointing out for years (as have I) that China's economy was in trouble. Of course you can no longer get any negative economic news out of China at this time (another indicator of how bad things are).
Linky Links
Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.
- 14 American cities that want to "target" real meat and dairy along with cars for elimination by 2030. Sad that Boston is on the list but no way I'm making plans to visit any of these. No more Fenway Park or TD Garden for me I guess.
- The movie The Usual Suspects came out 28-years go this week. Michael Biehn in the Stephen Baldwin role would have been an interesting change. In German-Turkish Kyser Soze can be loosely translated as "King of the Talkers" thus the name "Verbal" Kint. Get it?
- Tucker Carlson met with the President of Serbia. Have to admit that Tucker does laugh like a goofball.
- Matt Taibbi on the Orwellian change to the meaning of the word "transparency"
Monday Flotsam and Jetsam
Have a new miscellaneous thoughts and observations post up on Substack.
You should be sure to Subscribe - almost forgot to post it here. Also please hit the Like button and share the Link with others. Thanks in advance!
Find Something Beautiful Today
Great view of the Moon and Earth taken from 1 million miles away. (Via) Headline stolen borrowed from Execupundit.
Quotes for Today
Some quotes I hope may resonate with you.
"I have learned to seek happiness by limiting my desires, rather than trying to satisfy them." - John Stuart Mill
"If you take a job and they pay you five dollars a day, give them seven dollars a day worth of work." - Bill Russell
"A fool and his money is soon elected." - Will Rogers
"Hunting, bathing , gaming, laughing - that's living!" - Ancient Roman saying
Sunday, August 20, 2023
More Linky Links
More stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.
- Noah Smith on economists and economic policy. Believe in industrial policy to a point but more in tune with reciprocity. If a country has free trade with us - we should have free trade with them. If they impose a tariff - we likewise impose a tariff.
- Jonathan Turley on advocacy journalism. Everything is biased and reflects the viewpoint.We tend to gravitate towards those which agree with ours but at the same time remember to "take nobody's word" for anything.
- American Bar Association considers crackdown on "disruptive conduct." Simply make the next White House Council or head of the DOJ a member of FIRE and the message will be made.
- How to get more exercise without changing your normal routine. I've avoided elevators when I can since I heard Kirk Douglas explain its one of the things he does to maintain a healthy lifestyle.
Linky Limls
Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.
- Patriot's Isiah Bolden injured and Patriots / Packers game suspended in 4th quarter. Was watching the game just prior to the injury but stopped so as surprised to learn of it.
- The New Nuclear Moment. Put me on Team Nuclear Power. From 2021 but still relevant,
Quotes for Today
Some quotes I hope may resonate with you.
"If I had to prescribe two things to improve health and happiness in the world, it'd be movement and play. Because you can't play without moving, so they're intertwined." - Jason Nemer
"All problems I have in the daily world subside when I do [cold exposure]. Exposing myself to the worthy cold... it is a great cleaning purifying force." - Wim Hof
"You don't have to fix the whole world, but you can reach and mend the places that you can touch." - Jack Kornfield
"Many seek happiness higher than man; others beneath him. But happiness is the same height as man." - Confucius
Saturday, August 19, 2023
Linky Links
Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.
- Sam Altman on How to be Successful. Long but impactful read that should be taken to heart. (HT Tim Ferriss)
- A look at the post Frank Beamer struggles at Virginia Tech. Interesting read that subconsciously makes the case for relegation in college football.
- Dan Wetzel on how state governments are using NIL to juice in-state recruiting.
- Reminder - the more you use something like Facebook/Meta the worse you feel
Saturday Flotsam and Jetsam
Have a new miscellaneous thoughts and observations post up on Substack.
Looking forward to tonight's Patriots-Packers pre-season game. Hopefully we'll learn more about Ezekiel Elliot. Man I really miss football. Just a reminder but today would be a good day to finally Subscribe or simply share the link with someone. Just saying.
Quotes for Today
Some quotes I hope may resonate with you.
"The guiding principle is, as always, to reject bad explanations in favor of good ones." - David Deutsch
"The effective strength of sects is not to be ascertained merely by counting heads." - Thomas Babington Macaulay
"Rome wasn't built in a day. Empires are built with consistent progress over a period of time. You don't have to do it all today. Just move one step closer." - Shane Parrish
"...no one has the right to impose his or her religion on anyone else. Morality was a different matter. Religion is personal and unconditional, but morality is social and conventional." - Louis Menand
Friday, August 18, 2023
More Linky Links
More stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.
- Good for Worcester! A new Catholic School policy in Worcester's diocese outlines that there's only two genders and proper bathroom use.
- Saint Thomas (Doubting Thomas) in India. Who knew? The roots of Christianity in India is as old as the roots in Italy.
- Will the Patriots Malik Cunningham be the next Taysom Hill?
Friday Flotsam and Jetsam
Have a new miscellaneous thoughts and observations post up on Substack.
If you follow the advice I lay out in the post and you find success - feel free to pay me back by Subscribing. Or you can just Subscribe anyway. Much appreciated!
Linky Links
Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.
- Good for Hormel - Hawaii loves Spam (and needs it now more than ever)
- Shouldn't laugh at this but too funny.
- Why Bill Waterson disappeared. Long(ish) but interesting read. (HT Execupndit)
Quotes for Today
Some quotes I hope may resonate with you.
"This increasing intimate connection between explaining the world and controlling it is no accident, but is part of the deep structure of the world." - David Deutsch
"I'm in Vermont and there are more Black Lives Matter signs than black people." - Zuby
"People with mental illness are dying early deaths. Some people think it's their fault. Others blame the pills they are prescribed. I believe it's a biological part of their "illness" and that we can improve their health and prevent these early deaths." - Chris Palmer MD
"Biden won't be serving a second term. That question has been answered. But watch the faces of the Democrats defending Biden today. It's hilarious and educational." - Scott Adams
Thursday, August 17, 2023
Thursday Flotsam and Jetsam
Have a new miscellaneous thoughts and observations post up on Substack.
Remember all those articles about Tom Glavine potentially being the last MLB pitcher to reach 300 wins. Turns out that's true - until the next one. As always if anything made you think or smile - please Subscribe, hit the Like Button, or share the Link with others. Thanks!
Linky Links
Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.
- Truth
The Internet Remembers
Never forget how these "superior" people wanted to treat others. Never forget and never forgive.
Quotes for Today
Some quotes I hope may resonate with you.
"The art of know is knowing what to ignore." - Rumi
"Because when you're scared and still do it anyway, that's brave." - Coraline
"It is a capital mistake to theorize before one has data." - Sherlock Holmes
"None of my inventions came by accident. I see a worthwhile need to be met and I make trial after trial until it comes. What it boils down to is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent perspiration." - Thomas Edison
Wednesday, August 16, 2023
Wednesday Flotsam and Jetsam
Have a new miscellaneous thoughts and observations post up on Substack.
Meant to mention this but we just missed VJ Day (Victory over Japan) normally celebrated August 15th. Think Rhode Island is the last State to formally have the holiday as a legal day off. As always - please Subscribe (thank you to those who have done so already), hit the Like button, or share the Link with others. Mucho gracias!
Linky Links
Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.
- Morgan Housel with a Few Stories about Big Decisions
- Cool: America's most valuable companies 1995-2023
- Interesting: the average American home now streams 4 services and spends about $30 per month.
Quotes for Today
Some quotes I hope may resonate with you.
"Socialism in general has a record of failure so blatant that only an intellectual could ignore or evade it." - Thomas Sowell
"Reading is to the mind what exercise is to the body." - Joseph Addison
"An important daily chore is moving a sizable number of topics into a Zone of Indifference." - Michael Wade
"Everyone starts out innocent. Everyone is corrupted. Wisdom is the discarding of vices and the return to virtue, by way of knowledge." - Naval Ravikant
Tuesday, August 15, 2023
Tuesday Flotsam and Jetsam
Have a new miscellaneous thoughts and observations post up on Substack.
Feel the same about people who question the US dropping atomic bombs on Japan as I do about people who bemoan the US invasion of Iraq. If you ask them if they would have preferred if Nazi Germany or Russia got the bomb instead they have no answer. Just as if you asked them if they'd prefer to have Saddam Hussein still in power. After a while they'd just call you a racist and storm off in a superior manner. As always - please Subscribe, hit the Like button, or share the Link with others. Thanks!
Don Wildman - a Name You Should Know
Linky Links
Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.
- Heh Heh
- Tucker Carlson Episode 16. Was at 1.1 million when I first clicked the link.
- VDH on Joe Biden's race against the truth.
- J6 committee accused of destroying key evidence about the Capital riots. When they start destroying evidence you know they are trying to cover something up.
Farnam Street Knowledge
Machiavelli and the Four Princes of Pragmatism.
You have to both see and accept the world for how it really is.
Quotes for Today
Some quotes I hope may resonate with you.
"There are few things more dangerous than someone who's powerful, unscrupulous, and afraid." - Paul Graham
"I never forget a face, but in your case I'll be glad to make an exception." - Groucho Marx
"I cannot escape death but at least I can escape the fear of it." - Epictetus
"The universe is a book written for man's understanding." - Charles Pierce
Monday, August 14, 2023
Jordan Peterson and Eckhart Tolle - Comparing Two Teachers
Monday Flotsam and Jetsam
Have a new miscellaneous thoughts and observations post up on Substack.
Some new offerings while I wonder how the summer can go by so fast while the rest of the year seems to go by so slowly. As always if anything made you think or smile - please Subscribe, hit the Like button, and share the Link with others. Thanks in advance.
Linky Links
Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.
- Think most of these cell phones moved to Texas or Florida.
- The Great Inflection? AI and Explosive Growth.
- West Virginia U outlines proposed program and facility cuts. Proposed cuts only represent 2% of enrollment. (HT Stephen Landry)
Quotes for Today
Some quotes I hope may resonate with you.
"If you want to control something, call it racist until you control it." - James Lindsey
"When did we stop believing young people are impressionable? When did we stop believing that young people should not make life-changing choices while they are still young?" - Joe Rogan
"The duty of a leader is to serve the people, not for the people to serve them." - Elon Musk
"There are more instances of the abridgement of freedom of the people by grateful and silent encroachment of those in power than by violent and sudden usurpations," - James Madison
Farnam Street Knowledge
Habits vs Goals: A Look at the Benefits of a Systematic Approach to Life.
"First we make our habits, then our habits make us." - Charles C. Nobel. So very true.
Sunday, August 13, 2023
Sunday Flotsam and Jetsam
Have a new miscellaneous thoughts and observations post up on Substack.
Have to admit that I've cancelled Disney+ because of lack of interest in the new MCU offerings. Haven't been interested in Star Wars since the original trilogy (although Mandalorian season one drew me in). As always please Subscribe, hit the Like button, or share the Link. Thanks in advance.
The 1980's
The 1980's were a strange time to be alive. The period started with the end of Jimmy Carter's term as well as the Iranian hostage crisis. Many say it ended with Ronald Reagan's second term as President. I always think the stark difference between 1981's Escape from New York and Michael Douglas in 1987's Wall Street highlight the change in mood in the country very well.
Probably nothing signifies this period better than Wall Street and no financiers embodied this better than Berkshire-Hathaway's Warren Buffet and Drexel-Burnham's Michael Milken. It should be noted that Buffet has continued with his compounding financial ways to this day to become one of the world's richest and most celebrated investors while Milken was the highest paid investor of his day, peaking at $550 million cash in a year, before being sent to prison.
Many like to point out that Apple's original IPO and Chrysler's government bailout happened at roughly the same time. Apple is well known today as a great stock and one of their largest investors is Berkshire-Hathaway. Chrysler's government bond helped lead the way for an automotive turnaround but what's lesser known is it also symbolizes Reagan and the US government as Milken's biggest rival to the heyday of junk bonds. Chrysler's bond paid off at a 13.99% interest rate which would be comparable to credit card rates most eras. Much of the vaunted government turnaround was financed by this fact.
It was a strange time to be alive. We seem to be living in a similarly strange time today.
Quotes for Today
Some quotes I hope may resonate with you.
"I too hated capitalism when I spent all my money on marijuana." - Bridget Phetesay
"The cash that comes from selling your labor is vulgar and unacceptable for a gentleman... for wages are effectively the bonds of slavery." - Cicero
"No, that is the great fallacy: the wisdom of old men. They do not grow wise. They grow careful." - Ernest Hemingway
"What's the difference between misinformation, disinformation, and malinformation? Whether you've been illegally pressured by the White House, the State Department, or the FBI to take it down." - Marc Andreessen
Saturday, August 12, 2023
Linky Links
Stuff I found interesting or amusing and thought I'd share.
- Heh Heh
- What is it about Iowa State and gambling
- Joe Rogan and Post Malone not fans of government digital currency or social credit scores.
Quotes for Today
Some quotes I hope may resonate with you.
"If there's something you may want to do later, do it now. There is no 'later.'" - Naval Ravikant
"Pain can only feed on pain. Pain cannot feed on joy. It finds it quite indigestible." - Eckhart Tolle
"How do you know when you have sufficiently good colleagues? In my experience, when you do, you know. Which means if you are unsure, you probably don't." - Paul Graham
"Nobody wants Kamala!" - Donald Trump
Find Something Beautiful Today
Jim Rockford's trailer and Firebird in Legos (via). Headline stolen borrowed from Execupundit.
Friday, August 11, 2023
The River of Dreams
FridayFlotsam and Jetsam
Have a new miscellaneous thoughts and observations post up on Substack.
Would have posted this earlier but today's a travel/beach day. Enjoy these thoughts and observations while I try to decide what was historically worse for the US - Prohibition or the 55 MPH rule. As always - please Subscribe, hit the Like button, and share the Link. Thanks!
Godfather II
- Francis Ford Coppola was burned out and suggested Martin Scorsese as a replacement.
- The movie is both a prequel (Robert DeNiro) and a sequel (Al Pacino)
- The courtroom scenes were based loosely on The Valachi Papers
- Who knew? The woman young Vito helps not get evicted was supposed to be Sonny Corleone's grandmother.