Macro

If only it were that easy. The problem is that in the real world, and especially in economics, there are second- and third-order consequences that must be considered. If there weren’t, economics would be dependable like the physical sciences, as in “if you do A, then B happens.” As theoretical physicist Richard Feynman said, “imagine how much... See more

There was nothing anyone could say they “knew,” and that included me. I was limited to gaming out my conclusions, which were as follows:

• we can’t confidently predict the end of the world,


• we’d have no idea what to do if we knew the world would end,


• the things we’d do to gird for the end of the world would be disastrous if it didn’t end, and


• most of the

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Looking ahead, the wealth divide will likely accelerate and today’s social tensions must inevitably rise. But, much like in 1920s Germany when hyper-inflation savaged the post-WW1 economy, there was also a widening split between young (stock speculators) and old (bond investors). In today’s monetary inflation World, many young (crypto investors)... See more

For example, if public debt is compounding higher at a 7-8% annual clip, then liquidity needs to keep pace to avoid financial crises. Think of it as the ‘cost’ of stability. This rate of monetary inflation represents a return hurdle for other assets because it measures the rate of debasement of paper money. Hence, investors need to figure which... See more

A central theme in Howell’s analysis is the assertion that liquidity flows have become crucial in understanding the modern financial landscape. In recent years, particularly since the global financial crisis, the nature of capital investment has evolved. Interest rates, which historically served as a critical indicator of capital allocation, have... See more

In that respect the Cold War teaches the same lesson as World War II and, for that matter, most wars in recent history. Don't let a ruling class of warriors and politicians squash the entrepreneurs. The same recipe that makes individuals rich makes countries powerful. Let the nerds keep their lunch money, and you rule the world.

In TechDollar 1, I explained that the world was bi-frucating into two systems. The countries that were producing real physical goods, and the tech and financial infrastructure of the world. That this underlying system was going to cause friction as the financial structure is currently set up to absorb real wealth from the productive countries and... See more

In the 1980s, people like [Trump’s counselor for trade and manufacturing] Peter Navarro decided that Japan pulling ahead of the US in autos threatened the future of the U.S.

Japan did indeed pull ahead and never looked back.

The U.S. economy has more than doubled in size relative to Japan since then. It has doubled even after allowing for population... See more

If the US government creates more dollars via a gold devaluation and uses some of those dollars to buy Bitcoin, its fiat price will rise. This will in turn spur competitive sovereign purchases by other nations who have to play catchup with the US. The price of Bitcoin then would rise asymptotically, because why would anyone sell Bitcoin and receive... See more