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Monday, December 31, 2012

Don't Drink & Drive

Don't Drink & Drive this New Year's Eve | Ads of the World™

Zeitgeist 2012 – Google

Zeitgeist 2012 – Google

A Better Way to Plan Your Career - Robert C. Pozen

What happens is out of your control. What you can control is preparation.

A Better Way to Plan Your Career - Robert C. Pozen - HBS Faculty - Harvard Business Review

By the Numbers: Comparing Spending by Gun Rights and Gun Control Interest Groups

It is pretty clear by looking at these numbers that it is hard to predict current law will change by much.
There is very little support for gun control. People like the idea in abstract but are not willing to commit to change. On the other hand, gun rights advocates can be motivated.

By the Numbers: Comparing Spending by Gun Rights and Gun Control Interest Groups - ProPublica

Let’s Give Up on the Constitution


Why follow the rules of "a group of white propertied men who have been dead for two centuries, knew nothing of our present situation, acted illegally under existing law and thought it was fine to own slaves "?



Let’s Give Up on the Constitution - NYTimes.com:

Saturday, December 29, 2012

There is no stagnation

The wonder of the up internets. 

How He Got It Right by Andrew Hacker | The New York Review of Books

How He Got It Right by Andrew Hacker | The New York Review of Books

File:Duck-Rabbit illusion.jpg -

File:Duck-Rabbit illusion.jpg - Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Structure of Scientific Revolutions at Fifty

The New Atlantis � The Structure of Scientific Revolutions at Fifty

Be Proud of Your Accomplishments, Not Your Affiliations

Be Proud of Your Accomplishments, Not Your Affiliations - Daniel Gulati - Harvard Business Review

Like Math? Thank Your Motivation, Not IQ

Like Math? Thank Your Motivation, Not IQ: Scientific American:

 Looks like Tiger Mom had it half-right: Motivation to work hard and good study techniques, not IQ, lead to better math skills, a new study shows.�

Noahpinion: Trust not in Shinzo Abe, ye monetarists!

Noahpinion: Trust not in Shinzo Abe, ye monetarists!

Thursday, December 27, 2012

Monday, December 24, 2012

Israelis shoot down NRA's claim that the Jewish State uses more weapons to keep schools safe - NY Daily News

Israelis shoot down NRA's claim that the Jewish State uses more weapons to keep schools safe - NY Daily News

Mobility

Mobility | askblog

Guns and Gun Deaths, State by State | Angry Bear - Financial and Economic Commentary

Guns and Gun Deaths, State by State | Angry Bear - Financial and Economic Commentary

Scientific American’s gun error

Scientific American’s gun error

The World's Largest Naval Station Is Packed Tight For Christmas - Business Insider

More aircraft carriers in Norfolk now than the rest of the world's navies combined.


The World's Largest Naval Station Is Packed Tight For Christmas - Business Insider

In Aiding Quake-Battered Haiti, Lofty Hopes and Hard Truths

Why recovery efforts fail? It is institutions all the way down.

In Aiding Quake-Battered Haiti, Lofty Hopes and Hard Truths - NYTimes.com

Sunday, December 23, 2012

Daily chart: Doomsdays | The Economist

Daily chart: Doomsdays | The Economist

NRA's Wayne LaPierre On Meet The Press -

Call me crazy.

NRA's Wayne LaPierre On Meet The Press - Business Insider

Let’s admit it… Steve Jobs was lucky

Luck versus skill debate.

Let’s admit it… Steve Jobs was lucky

the round world made flat

the round world made flat - bookforum.com / current issue

Poor Students Struggle as Class Plays a Greater Role in Success - NYTimes.com

Poor Students Struggle as Class Plays a Greater Role in Success - NYTimes.com

The Global Sociology Blog - On the Guns Thing, I would Just Like to Point Out…

http://globalsociology.com/2012/12/15/on-the-guns-thing-i-would-just-like-to-point-out/

Article: Guns in America: 45 Years on the Treadmill


Thursday, December 20, 2012

The folly of forecasting

Valuation matters.

Buy-and-Forget Portfolio: 10 Stocks To Last The Decade | The Big Picture

The ownership question

Four most important questions in macro economic policy.


- Can we introduce a living wage without pricing some workers out of jobs?
- Can we tax companies more heavily without them moving their profits overseas, or cutting investment or shifting the burden onto workers or customers?
- Are there some macroeconomic policies - fiscal policies, wage-led growth, NGDP targeting (pdf) or whatever - that can create near-full employment?
- Is it possible to regulate banks sufficiently to avoid another financial crisis, whilst ensuring that they lend sufficiently to productive businesses?


Stumbling and Mumbling: The ownership question

Newtown kids v Yemenis and Pakistanis: what explains the disparate reactions?

Newtown kids v Yemenis and Pakistanis: what explains the disparate reactions? | Glenn Greenwald | Comment is free | guardian.co.uk

Four State Department Officials Are Out After Benghazi Report

Four State Department Officials Are Out After Benghazi Report - NYTimes.com:

The following quote should be the lesson. Not firing some mid level bureaucrats.

“It is not reasonable nor feasible to tether U.S. forces at the ready to respond to protect every high-risk post in the world,” Mike Mullen, the retired admiral and former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, who served as vice chairman of the independent review, said Wednesday.

Wednesday, December 19, 2012

It’s not the video games

It’s not the video games | The Incidental Economist

Postscript: Robert Bork, 1927-2012 : The New Yorker


Sometimes it might be better to have no obituary.

Postscript: Robert Bork, 1927-2012 : The New Yorker

Quote For The Day - The Dish | By Andrew Sullivan - The Daily Beast

http://andrewsullivan.thedailybeast.com/2012/12/qu-2.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+andrewsullivan%2FrApM+%28The+Daily+Dish%29&utm_content=Google+Reader

Why isn’t Obama demanding corporate welfare cuts?

Why isn’t Obama demanding corporate welfare cuts? - MarketWatch

Visual History Of The S&P 500 | ETF Database

Visual History Of The S&P 500 | ETF Database

Chart of the day: U.S. gun and traffic deaths over time

Chart of the day: U.S. gun and traffic deaths over time | The Incidental Economist

There is no great stagnation

Obsidian Wings: Another neat invention

Data Visualizations | Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation

Data Visualizations | Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation

Pythagorean Theorem - Chart Porn

Pythagorean Theorem - Chart Porn

Crazy White Girls Part II

Blast From the Past | TPM Editors Blog

Dark Pools, Internalization, and Equity Market Quality |

Dark Pools, Internalization, and Equity Market Quality | The Big Picture

Crazy White Girls

Newsweek's Megan McArdle Calls For Children To Be Trained To Run At Active Shooters | Blog | Media Matters for America

Crazy White Boys

What I learned from my gun show tour | Max Blumenthal | Comment is free | guardian.co.uk

In Unusual Move, Cerberus to Sell Freedom Group, a Gun Company

In Unusual Move, Cerberus to Sell Freedom Group, a Gun Company - NYTimes.com:


Cerberus, a private equity and hedge fund firm that manages more than $20 billion, is owned by the billionaire financier Stephen A. Feinberg. His father, Martin Feinberg, lives in Newtown, Conn.,

Party Identity in a Gun Cabinet

Party Identity in a Gun Cabinet - NYTimes.com

Sunday, December 16, 2012

Build Your Own Hedge Fund - WSJ.com

Build Your Own Hedge Fund - WSJ.com

In Reaction to Newtown, Connecticut, School Shooting Lawmakers Weigh In on Gun Control - WSJ.com

In Reaction to Newtown, Connecticut, School Shooting Lawmakers Weigh In on Gun Control - WSJ.com:

Some republicans are idiots.

 "I wish to God that she had had an M-4 in her office locked up" so that she could take "his head off before he can kill those precious kids," he said.

Our Moloch

Our Moloch by Garry Wills | NYRblog | The New York Review of Books

Alan Tonelson: 'The Insourcing Boom That Isn't'

Alan Tonelson: 'The Insourcing Boom That Isn't' - James Fallows - The Atlantic

In decision-making, it might be worth trusting your gut

The problem is determining whether you are an expert or not...

In decision-making, it might be worth trusting your gut | ScienceBlog.com

The Omnipotent Fed idea

Maybe they are not.
Noahpinion: The Omnipotent Fed idea

Sidney Gilman’s Shift Led to Insider Trading Case

Sidney Gilman’s Shift Led to Insider Trading Case - NYTimes.com

Do We Have the Courage to Stop This?

If we cannot ban guns, we should regulate them.

Do We Have the Courage to Stop This? - NYTimes.com

School Yoga Class Draws Religious Protest From Christians

School Yoga Class Draws Religious Protest From Christians - NYTimes.com:

America goes crazy, bit by bit:

 “They’re not just teaching physical poses, they’re teaching children how to think and how to make decisions,” Ms. Eady said. “They’re teaching children how to meditate and how to look within for peace and for comfort. They’re using this as a tool for many things beyond just stretching.”

Saturday, December 15, 2012

Obama, Crying

Obama, Crying

Inequality: power vs human capital

Very important quote:
"Inequality, then, is better explained by power than by human capital or marginal productivity. "


Stumbling and Mumbling: Inequality: power vs human capital

I'm Just Not Ready To Accept That We Have To Have Mass Shootings All The Time - Business Insider

I'm Just Not Ready To Accept That We Have To Have Mass Shootings All The Time - Business Insider

Twelve facts about guns and mass shootings in the United States

Twelve facts about guns and mass shootings in the United States

David Petraeus, Lance Armstrong, and Other ‘Super Heroes’

Frank Rich on David Petraeus, Lance Armstrong, and Other ‘Super Heroes’ -- New York Magazine

Cassandra Does Tokyo: The Cats In The Hat Won't Be Coming Back

Cassandra Does Tokyo: The Cats In The Hat Won't Be Coming Back:

Lessons from the Olympus events (and many other similar crises):


 (1) Never, ever, EVER try and trade yourself out of a loss; (2) Operating companies should not speculate outside their area of expertise for speculating is hard-enough for dedicated speculators; (3) Coming clean early with mistakes almost always trumps getting caught later with dishonesty. (4) If following the herd down a perditious route, one must take care not to be the last one left; (5) Listen to all approaches by investment bankers with the utmost of cynicism; (6) There are few free lunches. (7) If your excuse is too implausible or convoluted to convince your old schoolteacher, it is half-baked and you will be caught in your deception. Japanese organizational inertia carries unstoppable forces that can be harnessed for much good, but, when it goes awry, is capable unthinkable stupidity.

In conversation with Bill Gurley, Benchmark Capital [Video]

What it takes to be a VC

In conversation with Bill Gurley, Benchmark Capital [Video] — Tech News and Analysis

Bill Ackman on Everything You Need To Know About Investing & Finance

Good intro to investing.

Bill Ackman on Everything You Need To Know About Investing & Finance In 1 Hour ~ market folly

The Man Who Occupied the Fed: How Charles Evans Saved the Recovery

A major change at the Fed.


The Man Who Occupied the Fed: How Charles Evans Saved the Recovery - Matthew O'Brien - The Atlantic

Tuesday, December 11, 2012

At the Ivies, Asians are the new Jews

At the Ivies, Asians are the new Jews | AEIdeas

Politico Accidentally Exposes Beltway Elite

Politico Accidentally Exposes Beltway Elite -- Daily Intel

The Conventional Wisdom Re Growth is Unwise

The Conventional Wisdom Re Growth is Unwise | Jared Bernstein | On the Economy:

" Treasury yields at 1.6% on one hand…Kennedy Airport on the other…doesn’t make sense."

Amtrak from Boston to DC less sense.

Tomgram: David Vine, The True Costs of Empire

Tomgram: David Vine, The True Costs of Empire | TomDispatch

Google Revenues Sheltered in No-Tax Bermuda Soar to $10 Billion

Google Revenues Sheltered in No-Tax Bermuda Soar to $10 Billion - Bloomberg

U.S. Students Still Lag Globally in Math and Science, Tests Show

U.S. Students Still Lag Globally in Math and Science, Tests Show - NYTimes.com:

Duh lede of the day. If you teach a child how to learn, then they will learn.

 “What’s remarkable is that in all the countries, this concept of an early start is there over and over again,” said Michael O. Martin, the other executive director of the center. “You can get the early childhood experience in a variety of ways, but it’s important you get it.”

Monday, December 10, 2012

Landfillharmonic

http://m.youtube.com/#/watch?v=7IfmCMTjABk&desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3D7IfmCMTjABk

CRAZY did not cause the financial crisis

Mispriced risk caused the financial crisis.



Mark O'Friel
C: 914-907-7144
O: 617-903-0251
F : 419-710-3449


Napoleon's Generals

http://www.newyorker.com/arts/critics/atlarge/2012/12/17/121217crat_atlarge_filkins?currentPage=1

U.S. Intelligence Agencies See a Different World in 2030

I predict that half of these predictions are wrong.
US intelligence agencies cannot tell us what will happen next week in Syria. How can they pretend to predict 2030?

U.S. Intelligence Agencies See a Different World in 2030 - Bloomberg

There are few times in history when this line could not be quoted:

“We are at a critical juncture in human history, which could lead to widely contrasting futures,” Council Chairman Christopher Kojm writes in the report.

Evolution, Creationism, Intelligent Design

The level of American education is stunning. Maybe we should get the UN in our homeschools.


Evolution, Creationism, Intelligent Design

Fiscal cliff standoff is a debate about the size of government

Finally some honesty. Fiscal cliff fight is not about deficit. It is not about economic growth. It is only about the size of government. Republicans just want a smaller government, except in business subsidies and defense spending.


Fiscal cliff standoff is a debate about the size of government | The A-List

The Nonsense About a Demographic Crisis7

The Nonsense About a Demographic Crisis | CEPR Blog

Tuesday, December 04, 2012

Indigenous To The Hood

Los Angeles Review of Books - Indigenous To The Hood

2012 KPCB Internet Trends Year

Queen of the net. Ignore the last four slides.

2012 KPCB Internet Trends Year-End Update

Beat It

What I listened to in college. 30 years ago.

Late, Late Night FDL: Beat It | Firedoglake

Gen. Carter F. Ham Details Al Qaeda Influence in Mali

Gen. Carter F. Ham Details Al Qaeda Influence in Mali - NYTimes.com:

The law of unintended consequences:

"The fall of Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi in Libya prompted Tuareg fighters from northern Mali, who had been fighting alongside Colonel Qaddafi’s forces, to return home with weapons from Libyan arsenals. They joined with Qaeda-affiliated Islamist militants who had moved to the lightly policed region from Algeria, and the two groups easily drove out the weakened Malian army in late March and early April. The Islamists then turned on the Tuaregs, routing them and consolidating control in the region in May and June."

Saturday, December 01, 2012

Can Wall Street Tame Elizabeth Warren?

Can Wall Street Tame Elizabeth Warren? -- Daily Intel

Global Manufacturing: A McKinsey View

Very good charts which show how manufacturing component of the economy changes as it grows wealthier. Interesting cross country comparison.
The question is whether this trend continues. There is some talk now of the return of manufacturing to the US. Too soon to tell?

CONVERSABLE ECONOMIST: Global Manufacturing: A McKinsey View

Buffett Math

So John Cochrane, an economist, claims that Warren Buffet does not know the process that investors use to evaluate investments?
Epistemic closure.

The Grumpy Economist: Buffett Math

The Big Data Fallacy And Why We Need To Collect Even Bigger Data

Good graph to show the fallacy that big data always leads to insights.

The Big Data Fallacy And Why We Need To Collect Even Bigger Data | TechCrunch