Awareness Petrodollars. Saudi Arabia is in talks with Beijing to price some of its oil sales to China in Yuan a move that would dent the U.S. dollar’s dominance.
Meaning Happiness Indexed. The headline from Gallup this morning is the “World Happiness Report Shows Bright Spots in Dark Times”. In the world of casual research, happiness is an extremely difficult term to define.
Financial turmoil Real Estate's Rise U.S. home prices are up 18.8% over the past 12 months. That’s well above the highest year-over-year rate (14%) notched leading up to the bursting housing bubble in 2008.
Awareness Future Self. Three years from now, what will your “future self” think of your current self? Will you even be the same person? A very compelling question.
Gold. Today gold prices flirted with multi-year and all-time highs. Panic has finally set in for investors and speculators hunting for a safe haven.
Energy Prices War & Energy Prices. The Russian invasion of Ukraine is unsettling the world’s energy markets.
Warrior Poets. “The society that separates its scholars from its warriors will have its thinking done by cowards and its fighting by fools.”—Thucydides
Cold War Retrospective. Let us not be deceived—we are today in the midst of a cold war. Our enemies are to be found abroad and at home. Our unrest is the heart of their success.
Travel & Awareness The Dolomites The Dolomites are situated in northern Italy and are widely regarded as one of the most attractive mountain landscapes in the world.
Awareness Media. To grab and hold our attention, media has chosen to feed our “hard-wired” human need for drama. Media “tends” to frictionalize (to add to existing friction) and to fictionalize (exaggerate) storylines for dramatic effect.
Ukraine. Sadly, in our public discourse, we are prone to generate devilish memes with contrived spin and speculation unwittingly serving elusive propaganda masters devoted to chaos.
Confidence. Confidence is a feeling of certainty; a firm trust or belief in something or oneself. It can be seen on the faces of those who possess it.
Okay at 128K A recent survey of more than 2,000 people found Americans with “a dwindling sense of financial confidence. But well-being can be bought for $128K.
Bitcoin Bitcoin 2022. A social phenomenon for the last couple of years, Bitcoin has captivated the world's attention. But what is Bitcoin?
Awareness Books. Is reading still fundamental? Do the deep narratives in books help us make sense of our world?
Financial turmoil Optimists What is the face of pure speculation? Optimists have reigned in my trading lifetime.
Awareness LA. If I am unreachable for any significant amount of time, I am either in Geneva, Switzerland, or LA, California recharging my battery.
Awareness Flattery & China. “Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery that mediocrity can pay to greatness.” –Oscar Wilde
Awareness Kids. "In 2021, according to the Census Bureau, the U.S. population grew at the slowest rate in recorded history.”
venice Venice. Pitched as one of the more romantic spots in all of Europe, Venice has held a special place in travelers’ logs since the 14th century.
Fashion as an Asset Fashion as an Asset. Vintage & secondhand fashion are thriving in the resale market.
Travel & Awareness Summer in Switzerland. A Swiss Summer - a generation ago, I entered the valley with Lake Lucerne for my first night on Swiss soil.
The Art of Thinking for Yourself Fast World. “The most important decision you will ever make is to be in a good mood.” –Voltaire
New Year's Resolutions Wildest Dreams for 2022. Ancient Romans believed Janus ruled over life events such as weddings, births, and deaths and seasonal events such as planting, harvests, seasonal changes, and the new year.
The Holy Land The Holy Land Only days before Christmas it seemed logical to travel back in time for one of the reasons for the holiday season. The birth of Jesus of Nazareth. Which means we are wondering through Israel. The world’s three major religions consider parts of the country of Israel scared. Muslim, Jew,
