Category: Trends & News

There’s a long-standing joke in international finance that goes “Brazil is the country with the most potential… and always will be.” The idea is that a Brazil, with all of its immense resources and capacity, will never come close to realizing its potential because of how screwed up everything is. The same joke

I’ve been traveling for the past ten days with a group of friends, one of whom is a highly accomplished entrepreneur. I’ll call him Michael to keep things simple. Several years ago Michael started an automated domain business that used special software to buy domains, find the most likely buyer, and then sell

There’s nothing quite like watching animals in the wild. I’ve spent the past four days at an enormous game reserve in Zimbabwe with a guide who would put Bear Grylls to shame. (Ironically, guides in Zimbabwe are the most highly qualified and well-respected in Africa– they undergo more years of rigorous training and

Some people just don’t learn. After becoming the most famous case of hyperinflation in modern history roughly ten years ago, Zimbabwe is about to have another go at conjuring paper money out of thin air. I’m sure this time will be different. You know the story. Starting in the late 1990s, the Zimbabwe

I’ll start with an admission that I don’t do vacations very well. Or frequently. Over the past ten years I’ve probably only taken a week or two off in total. A big part of that is a deep character flaw of me being a workaholic… but that’s a natural extension of genuinely loving

Below is a short email that my friend Sam posted this morning to his Facebook page about his surprisingly positive experience with the US healthcare system. I thought it a fantastic read, and I wanted to pass it along to you: I had to run to the emergency room today for what may

On Friday afternoon, New York state Governor Andrew Cuomo signed a bill making it illegal to advertise your home for short-term rent on websites like Airbnb. The law specifically targets New York City homeowners in apartment buildings who advertise their properties, or even just a spare room in their homes, to rent for

The series of debates in the contest to see who will become Captain of the Titanic is finally over. And as the smoke clears from the evening’s entertainment, the main headlines are focusing on just one thing: Donald Trump’s pledged refusal to say he will accept the election results. The media is spinning

On May 12, 1780, John Adams wrote to his wife Abigail, “I must study politics and war that my sons have the liberty to study mathematics and philosophy. . . in order to give their children a right to study painting, poetry, music, architecture, statuary, tapestry and porcelain.” (… to which I would

The King of Thailand died yesterday, and the military junta running the country has declared an entire year of mourning. I saw a quick headline from The Economist which screamed, “The death of the Thai king throws the country into turmoil.” Really? This must be a different country from the one I know.

First of all, I want to say thanks for all the well-wishes. I’ve been flat on my back for the past several days with a particularly nasty case of the flu that I likely contracted en route to Los Angeles last week. Picking up the occasional bug is one of the hazards of

“This is a global problem,” said billionaire hedge fund manager Ray Dalio yesterday to a packed audience of central bankers. “Japan is closest to its limits, Europe is a step behind it, the US is a step or two behind Europe, and China is a few steps behind the United States.” I can

In the modern history of the US economy over the past seven decades, the longest period of time the country has gone without a recession was 10 years. Since the end of World War II there have been 11 recessions in the United States of America, so the average time in between recessions

It’s official. The United States government closed out the 2016 fiscal year that ended a few days ago on Friday September 30th with a debt level of $19,573,444,713,936.79. That’s an increase of $1,422,827,047,452.46 over last year’s fiscal year close. Incredible. By the way, that debt growth amounts to roughly 7.5% of the entire