Entries by Ken Veit

A House Divided [Thoughts for the 2024 Election]

Estimated Reading Time: 6 minutes

It is alarming that such an important election coming in November may be decided by people who think that the only issue that matters is the “correct“ use of pronouns according to their personal preferences. Rather, there are a lot more important issues that voters should consider and unfortunately, the country is deeply divided on […]

The U.S. Fiscal Ponzi Scheme: Enjoy The Sun While You Can

Estimated Reading Time: 6 minutes

There are few things as confusing as the concept of money. Thorough explanations quickly become bogged down in technical weeds. I am going to attempt to make this as simple as possible for the general reader. It will probably upset my more technically savvy financial friends, but let the chips fall where they may. Perhaps […]

Rules For Dealing With Crisis

Estimated Reading Time: 4 minutes

Editors’ Note: Ken Veit is a man of immense experience. A trained actuary, he managed an international firm for many years as well as a successful local business.  He has worked and traveled extensively abroad and is one of the most well-read people we have ever met. In a world that could use some wisdom, […]

Waking Up To Wokeness

Estimated Reading Time: 6 minutes

What is this trend called “Woke“ that is sweeping the country like some out-of-control kudzu? The concept apparently originated with the idea that American culture has been asleep over the fact that racism (and other “isms”) have always dominated American life. To be “woke“ is to have awakened to this fact, and to have become […]

A World Turned Upside Down

Estimated Reading Time: 5 minutes

When Cornwallis surrendered to Washington at Yorktown, the band played a tune called “The World Turned Upside Down”. We could use some of that music today. As I quietly celebrate a new national holiday called “Juneteenth”. I am grateful for the opportunity to have another chance to feel guilty about something. Another reminder that we […]

Could Chile Turn Its Back on Freedom?

Estimated Reading Time: 6 minutes

Editors’ Note: Chile is a beautiful country, as is the United States of America. This article is clearly about America as much as it is about the potential loss of liberty and a far leftist takeover in Chile. The parallels are stunning with actors like Elizabeth Warren, Bernie Sanders and the radical progressives (Obama inspired) […]

Organized Confusion

Estimated Reading Time: 3 minutes

Sometimes the average person wonders whether what passes for Government is really just organized confusion. Consider the current situation involving Russia, Ukraine, and U.S. energy policy. The stated positions of the United States are: Climate change is an existential threat. Fossil fuels must be eliminated, and the energy industry shrunk. Russia is bad for invading […]

No Pain Free Way Out

Estimated Reading Time: 5 minutes

The average person does not understand and could care less about Fed policy, Government budget deficits, and the National Debt. All he wants to know about “finance” is how much he earns and how much he has to spend to maintain his lifestyle. Be that as it may, these big picture items have a major […]

MANCHIN: A Rare Man of Truth In A World of Lies

Estimated Reading Time: 2 minutes

West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin has just done something almost unheard of for a professional politician. He publicly announced that he would not vote for Joe Biden’s BBB reconciliation plan because it has been presented dishonestly to the public. The Biden-Pelosi bill says that the cost will be less than $2 trillion and be completely […]

What Makes A Country?

Estimated Reading Time: 6 minutes

A loose definition might start with “an aggregation of people sharing some or all of the same culture: language, religion, values, arts, music, sports, political organization, history, etc.” In other words, a country consists of people with a shared culture. Not everyone shares everything identically or completely, but there is a general commonality of beliefs […]

A Perspective On the Problems of Wokefulness

Estimated Reading Time: 7 minutes

One of the irritations of the last year has been the endless repetition of the words: Covid, virus, vaccine, mask, social-distancing, etc. Even more tedious is the over-use of the three “ITY” words: sustainability, diversity, and inclusivity, not to mention the favorite of the “woke folks”: social justice. Now I hesitate to write this essay, […]

Understanding Value and Crypto Currencies

Estimated Reading Time: 5 minutes

At this time, there is a rare concurrence of opinion among students of financial markets that a serious disconnect exists between prices and reality. What is meant by that is that prices suggest a cloudless sky ahead, while economic realities are waving warning flags. To understand this, let’s look at the concept of “intrinsic value”. […]

Money, Debt, and Bitcoins

Estimated Reading Time: 8 minutes

Suppose soaring inflation caused our money to be of so little value that it was no longer acceptable for business purposes. It should be obvious that a modern economy cannot function purely on barter trade. What would we do? This has happened in many countries. Usually, they turn to doing business in dollars. But suppose […]

The Insecurity in Social Security

Estimated Reading Time: 6 minutes

One of the few things where there is widespread agreement is about the fact that Social Security and Medicare are going broke unless something is done to stem the financial drain as the retirement rolls swell. Choices are raising taxes or cutting benefits. Neither alternative is palatable politically, so the problem is put off for […]

A Perspective on Social Justice

Estimated Reading Time: 5 minutes

Consider the expression “social justice”. What does it actually mean? Presumably, everyone is in favor of justice, as opposed to unfairness. But let’s consider what the people bloviating most strongly actually mean by the expression. What do they really want? In the broadest sense the expression suggests that someone (or some group) is getting more […]

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