Taleb says bitcoin effectively worth zero
People also conflate the success of bitcoin as a digital currency with the success of bitcoin as a speculative investment. To be a currency would require it to have some…
Inflation is inflating: “Inflation climbs higher than expected”
The consumer price index was expected to increase 5% year over year in June, according to economists surveyed by Dow Jones. Source: CPI report June 2021: Inflation climbs higher than…
Economist shows correlation between economists and idiots
R^2 = 0.25. This is not a correlation. In case he deletes the chart
Number of People With Master’s and Doctoral Degrees Doubles Since 2000
Stunning: 35% of those age 25-64 now have at least a 4-year degree. About 13.1 percent of U.S. adults had a master’s or doctoral degree in 2018, up from 8.6…
Study finds that lockdowns – in the real world – did not reduce deaths
SIP = Shelter in Place In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, many countries implemented social distancing and SIP policies. These policies are designed to slow COVID-19 transmission by limiting physical…
Paper: Shelter in place Orders “had no detectable health benefits”
We study the health, behavioral, and economic effects of one of the most politically controversial policies in recent memory, shelter-in-place orders during the COVID-19 pandemic. Previous studies have claimed that…
Climate change requires “degrowth” say “experts”
Presumably the authors of this study will agree to demonstrate “degrowth” by cutting their own salaries, their departments and their university budgets. They can go first, right? “We can still…
Adopting Scandinavian social benefits and taxes in the U.S.
For something unrelated, I was researching some of the “social benefits” programs in Norway. This is my summary of what I came across – which may be sort of accurate…
Biden proposes incentives to have large families, increase population
Giving incentives to have large families is solving which problem? This is in opposition to his “Green New Deal” goals. President Joe Biden unveiled his next $1.9 trillion stimulus package…
Inflation: “Price hikes are ahead, but consumer companies hope you won’t notice”
Higher prices coming from printing money/deflating dollar/increasing asset valuations, and then demand increasing from “stimulus” dollars and savings pouring back into the economy: Consumer companies like Coca-Cola and Procter &…
Efficiency in Agriculture
Many think the quaint and tranquil working the land by hand is the future of agriculture. Uh, no, its ont. In some ways, it is not surprising that many of…
Does auto-enrollment in retirement plans make sense?
Source: A new law would require employees to save for retirement – MarketWatch The law would mandate automatic payroll deductions of 3%, rising 1% per year until 10% is reached…
Told you: “‘Zero Covid’: Ensuring low cases is ‘necessary’ even if eradication is impossible”
15 days to flatten the curve morphed into “Zero Covid”. At this point, its all about power trips by public health officials and politicians who want to grow government and…
The death of small cars in America
I drive a 2015 Honda Fit and love it; in fact its the 2nd Honda Fit that I own. Unfortunately, auto makers have decided Americans only want large SUVs. Some,…
“When Disneyland reopens, it’s going to have even more of a privilege problem”
Many governments and organizations are seeking to turn tourism in a post pandemic world into an elites-only experience. Many have said they want fewer tourists who are more upscale and…