With a handful of economic data releases, we have actual news to talk about. However, since markets are (generally) closed for Good Friday, we can indulge a bit in more light-hearted aspects of Life. Business first, though. Questions & Data Day Q 1: Is there Mail Delivery today? Yes. In fact, despite the (nominally) Christian foundation … Read More
Might as well get the morning’s big econ story out of the way first: Retail sales for March have just been released: “Advance estimates of U.S. retail and food services sales for March 2022, adjusted for seasonal variation and holiday and trading-day differences, but not for price changes, were $665.7 billion, an increase of 0.5 … Read More
Ever see the “cutsie” office sign? “The harder I work, the behinder I get…”? This morning we look at an increasing intractable problem: How far can this trend of lessening human productivity go before the whole global economic system blows up? In a sense, Karl Marx was onto something when he claimed that everyone (proletariat … Read More
Glimpse into dying link: Glimpses of afterlife? ‘Near-death’ experiences aren’t hallucinations, scientists conclude – Brain Tomorrow Three visuals to help visualizing a few econ points. First is a long-term, 10+ year chart. One trace shows 1920-1933 while the other is from the 2009 Housing Bubble low to close of trading Tuesday 4/22/22. This is an … Read More
After a modest beat-down Monday, largely driven, we expect by the Russian Default, there is fresh economic data that’s likely to influence the outcome of today’s trading. Russia’s Monday default is being labeled a “selective default” but we have to wonder if this isn’t something like “partly pregnant.” Seems to us simple folk here in … Read More
ABM = A Boring Monday. But it’s a four-day workweek for some… This is one of those mornings when the active thinker, cursed with the inquisitive mind, hates writing. There’s just not much going on. Yet. The “Schedule” is the news. The Bigger War Game The Ukraine war has been reduced to body count claims … Read More
You may not be a frequent visitor to BrainTomorrow.com. But their article today lays out exactly the kind of topology of dying that I covered in my book “Packing to Die: Suitcase between your ears…” that I’ll be on George Noory’s Coast-to-Coast-AM talking about Tuesday night/Wednesday morning (depending on your time zone). The article is must-read. … Read More
Reader note: 7:12 AM. Bit later than usual with our Sunday Epistle. But there have been some strangish things afoot here… Texas Twilight Zone Yessir, fine Saturday in the outback, until we got to the power outage part at about 4:20 PM lasy night. Right in the middle of cocktails (champaign or rum) and the … Read More
How to become a High Output Production Writer (part 1). While Wednesday Peoplenomics reports are almost entirely income, expense, and getting-ahead oriented, several readers have asked for a “short course on writing.” We get to be “of a certain age” and the impulse to share with future generations is a natural instinct among “elders.” We … Read More
“The time has come”, the Walrus said, “To talk of many things: Of shoes – and ships – and sealing wax – Of cabbages – and kings- And why the sea is boiling hot – And whether pigs have wings.” From an earlier Jabber-Writer. Today, in lieu of news, some useful thinking points. Understand, many people … Read More
“What, oh pray tell Mr. Ure, are the meds you’re on this morning with such consummate blather?” Not necessary. Headlines are providing the insights. You see, we are watching a whole slew of “penny dreadful novellas” play out in real-time. We’ll get to the list, but first – for the Great Unwashed (the undipped sheep) the Wiki … Read More
“There’s more to Life than Money,” goes an old saying. Yet, perhaps because of the oddness of the times, we don’t pay a heck of a lot of attention to the non-monetary side of life. It’s like we denominate everything first in dollars, then in meanings like contribution to Life.. It’s a fixation that has … Read More
We need to begin by trying to understand what happened in Monday trading. Mostly nothing. In fact, as Robin Handler over at the Options Signal Service noted: “Here we are at the 4th of April. I didn’t see anything unusual. Surprise the world did not react to Russia bringing back the Gold standard. Let’s see … Read More