We like to call this the “peculiar math of corrections” because at first, it does not make sense. Suppose you buy a stock and it falls by 50%. If the stock comes back 50%, you will break even, right? No, if an investment falls 50%, it must come back 100%. Could that happen? Well, yes […]
https://thepricklypear.org/wp-content/uploads/iStock-1024555126.jpg13692190Neland Nobelhttps://thepricklypear.org/wp-content/uploads/logo_2023.pngNeland Nobel2023-12-12 00:30:532023-12-12 11:02:56The Peculiar Math of Market Corrections
It is interesting to think about what future generations will look back on and think, “How barbaric and backward. Did those people really believe _______?” From our current vantage point, for example, we look back on religion that way. For thousands of years, church and state were symbiotically linked, but many now see the separation […]
https://thepricklypear.org/wp-content/uploads/banco.jpg602640Michael Mungerhttps://thepricklypear.org/wp-content/uploads/logo_2023.pngMichael Munger2023-12-11 00:28:472023-12-10 06:05:05Argentina Agonistes: The Separation of Money and State
In the last several months I have had the occasion to debate some of the intellectual leaders of a group called the “national conservatives.” I consider myself a conservative (on most issues, though I lean more libertarian). They are well-meaning and make some very valid points about the things that are going in the wrong […]
https://thepricklypear.org/wp-content/uploads/natcon.jpg5981134Stephen Moorehttps://thepricklypear.org/wp-content/uploads/logo_2023.pngStephen Moore2023-12-10 00:29:022023-12-09 06:55:18The NatCons Are Dead Wrong
Editors’ Note: A variety of ideas to “fight climate change” are afoot. Some are directly pushed by the government that uses its taxing and regulatory power to substitute its judgment for those of its citizens. They want to dictate what kind of dishwasher, stove, or heating system you will use. Other methods are subsidization and […]
https://thepricklypear.org/wp-content/uploads/fakemeat-scaled.jpg17072560Phillip W. Magnesshttps://thepricklypear.org/wp-content/uploads/logo_2023.pngPhillip W. Magness2023-12-09 00:26:032023-12-08 06:06:33Fake Meat: More Entrée or Agenda?
Editors’ Note: This little exercise performed by a TikTok user is illustrative of how painful inflation is, especially for the poor who don’t own assets to any extent. They get through life largely by living from paycheck to paycheck. It has been 33 years since the movie was made so if you divide the 248% […]
https://thepricklypear.org/wp-content/uploads/homealone.jpg6051139Julianna Friemanhttps://thepricklypear.org/wp-content/uploads/logo_2023.pngJulianna Frieman2023-12-07 00:28:262023-12-07 20:54:32‘248% Increase In Price’: Video Reveals Kevin McCallister’s Grocery Bill In Biden’s Economy
They amount to 32% of Tier 1 capital and don’t matter, until they suddenly do. “Unrealized losses” on securities – mostly Treasury securities and government-guaranteed MBS – at FDIC-insured commercial banks at the end of Q3 jumped by $126 billion (or by 22%) from the prior quarter to $684 billion, according to the FDIC’s quarterly […]
https://thepricklypear.org/wp-content/uploads/bankrun.jpeg502640Wolf Richterhttps://thepricklypear.org/wp-content/uploads/logo_2023.pngWolf Richter2023-12-04 00:28:562023-12-02 07:26:30“Unrealized Losses” on Securities Held by Banks Jump by 22% to $684 Billion in Q3, Oh Lordy
A few essays ago, we suggested that given the extreme financial leverage (overuse of debt) in both the governmental and private sectors, the risk of a deflationary period may be higher than many believe. You might remember the extreme events during the Great Financial Crisis of 2007-2009. We are still living with the echo from […]
https://thepricklypear.org/wp-content/uploads/iStock-1386030854-scaled.jpg17072560Neland Nobelhttps://thepricklypear.org/wp-content/uploads/logo_2023.pngNeland Nobel2023-12-01 00:30:102023-11-30 18:27:17Weekend Read: How Do You Invest For Deflation?
When I read about an executive order issued by the Biden administration last year regarding a plan for digital currency, I naturally suspected something quite dire. Generally speaking, whatever the modern, self-described “liberal democratic” administrative state claims to be doing to help supposedly disadvantaged people is actually intended primarily, if not exclusively, to increase government […]
Our last market commentary noted that the stock market was very oversold, both in momentum and particularly in sentiment. As we moved to the end of October, we entered a period where “seasonal” strength is typical. The combination of “oversold” and seasonal strength prodded us to become more bullish on the market, at least for […]
https://thepricklypear.org/wp-content/uploads/new-york-city-wall-street-bull.webp650900Neland Nobelhttps://thepricklypear.org/wp-content/uploads/logo_2023.pngNeland Nobel2023-11-24 00:32:512023-11-25 08:09:15Will Seasonal Strength Become a New Bull Market?
A Potemkin village is a construction—literal or figurative—designed to deceive people into believing a situation is better than it is. The term arose from a fake portable village reportedly built by Russian military leader Grigory Potemkin, former lover of Empress Catherine II, solely to impress her while she traveled to Crimea in 1787. The Biden […]
https://thepricklypear.org/wp-content/uploads/umbrella.jpg8071280Carrie Sheffieldhttps://thepricklypear.org/wp-content/uploads/logo_2023.pngCarrie Sheffield2023-11-21 00:30:312023-11-21 08:36:33U.S. Job Market Growth Inflated By Government Hiring, Not Real Value Creation
The Peculiar Math of Market Corrections
/in Featured, Latest News, Liberty, Personal Finance/by Neland NobelWe like to call this the “peculiar math of corrections” because at first, it does not make sense. Suppose you buy a stock and it falls by 50%. If the stock comes back 50%, you will break even, right? No, if an investment falls 50%, it must come back 100%. Could that happen? Well, yes […]
Argentina Agonistes: The Separation of Money and State
/in Economy, Featured, Latest News, Liberty, Personal Finance, Politics/by Michael MungerIt is interesting to think about what future generations will look back on and think, “How barbaric and backward. Did those people really believe _______?” From our current vantage point, for example, we look back on religion that way. For thousands of years, church and state were symbiotically linked, but many now see the separation […]
The NatCons Are Dead Wrong
/in Culture War, Economy, Featured, Latest News, Personal Finance, Politics/by Stephen MooreIn the last several months I have had the occasion to debate some of the intellectual leaders of a group called the “national conservatives.” I consider myself a conservative (on most issues, though I lean more libertarian). They are well-meaning and make some very valid points about the things that are going in the wrong […]
Fake Meat: More Entrée or Agenda?
/in Culture War, Economy, Featured, Latest News, Liberty, Personal Finance/by Phillip W. MagnessEditors’ Note: A variety of ideas to “fight climate change” are afoot. Some are directly pushed by the government that uses its taxing and regulatory power to substitute its judgment for those of its citizens. They want to dictate what kind of dishwasher, stove, or heating system you will use. Other methods are subsidization and […]
‘248% Increase In Price’: Video Reveals Kevin McCallister’s Grocery Bill In Biden’s Economy
/in Economy, Featured, Latest News, Personal Finance/by Julianna FriemanEditors’ Note: This little exercise performed by a TikTok user is illustrative of how painful inflation is, especially for the poor who don’t own assets to any extent. They get through life largely by living from paycheck to paycheck. It has been 33 years since the movie was made so if you divide the 248% […]
“Unrealized Losses” on Securities Held by Banks Jump by 22% to $684 Billion in Q3, Oh Lordy
/in Economy, Featured, Latest News, Personal Finance/by Wolf RichterThey amount to 32% of Tier 1 capital and don’t matter, until they suddenly do. “Unrealized losses” on securities – mostly Treasury securities and government-guaranteed MBS – at FDIC-insured commercial banks at the end of Q3 jumped by $126 billion (or by 22%) from the prior quarter to $684 billion, according to the FDIC’s quarterly […]
Weekend Read: How Do You Invest For Deflation?
/in Economy, Featured, Latest News, Personal Finance/by Neland NobelA few essays ago, we suggested that given the extreme financial leverage (overuse of debt) in both the governmental and private sectors, the risk of a deflationary period may be higher than many believe. You might remember the extreme events during the Great Financial Crisis of 2007-2009. We are still living with the echo from […]
The Administrative State’s Digital Currency Ruse
/in Culture War, Education, Featured, Latest News, Liberty, Personal Finance, Politics/by Paul GottfriedWhen I read about an executive order issued by the Biden administration last year regarding a plan for digital currency, I naturally suspected something quite dire. Generally speaking, whatever the modern, self-described “liberal democratic” administrative state claims to be doing to help supposedly disadvantaged people is actually intended primarily, if not exclusively, to increase government […]
Will Seasonal Strength Become a New Bull Market?
/in Economy, Featured, Latest News, Personal Finance/by Neland NobelOur last market commentary noted that the stock market was very oversold, both in momentum and particularly in sentiment. As we moved to the end of October, we entered a period where “seasonal” strength is typical. The combination of “oversold” and seasonal strength prodded us to become more bullish on the market, at least for […]
U.S. Job Market Growth Inflated By Government Hiring, Not Real Value Creation
/in Culture War, Economy, Featured, Latest News, Personal Finance, Politics/by Carrie SheffieldA Potemkin village is a construction—literal or figurative—designed to deceive people into believing a situation is better than it is. The term arose from a fake portable village reportedly built by Russian military leader Grigory Potemkin, former lover of Empress Catherine II, solely to impress her while she traveled to Crimea in 1787. The Biden […]