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Around the time of Passover in 67 AD, the Jews of Judea were in the midst of a major rebellion against the occupying Roman Empire. Riots and violence were commonplace, and an organized rebel force of more than 25,000 men fought regularly against the imperial legions. But a small group
One of the quirks about being an expat in a faraway land is that, whenever something unusual happens in your home country, your local friends look to YOU for answers. You become, by default, the de facto expert of your home country’s nuances. Case in point: this weekend we had
On January 17, 1917, as the Great War raged in Europe, the government of the United States signed a deal to purchase the Virgin Islands from Denmark. The agreement transferred Denmark’s territories in the West Indies, “including the islands of Saint Thomas, Saint John and Saint Croix together with the
If there’s one thing that’s certain in the intelligence business, it’s that there’s rarely any certainty. That’s pretty much the first thing they teach you at spy school. Back in the early days of my intelligence career, I had one instructor who explained it in a way that I’ll never
One of the best books I’ve ever read is the autobiography of Charlie Chaplin. That’s probably not what you were expecting. But it’s true. Chaplin’s book is a remarkable story of his impoverished childhood in England, subsequent migration to America, and rise to wealth and worldwide stardom. Chaplin lived the
Let’s say you have two equal size safety deposit boxes. One box you completely fill up with stacks of $100 bills. The other box you fill up with gold. Which of the two is “worth” more? It’s easy to calculate. A stack of 100x $100 bills is 6.14 inches long,
In Venezuela, hyperinflation has become so pitiful that shopkeepers are no longer bothering to actually count money. Instead, they’re weighing it… … as in literally pulling out a scale and weighing giant stacks of money. Do you want to buy a bottle of Coca Cola? That’ll be 1 kilo of
In 524 BC, a group of pirates set sail for Sifnos, an ancient Greek island famed for its vast gold and silver mines. The mines of Sifnos were unparalleled in the ancient world. They produced so much gold and silver that the local government at Sifnos could erect countless monuments,
The latest apocalypse du jour, following in the footsteps of Brexit and the Donald Trump election, is Italy’s Constitutional referendum that takes place this weekend. Global financial media is in a panic about this, suggesting that a “NO” vote will lead to total chaos in Europe. The referendum itself isn’t
It’s happening faster than we could have ever imagined. Every time we turn around, it seems, there’s another major assault in the War on Cash. India is the most notable recent example– the embarrassing debacle a few weeks ago in which the government, overnight, “demonetized” its two largest denominations of
[Editor’s note: This email was written by Peter K, a former McKinsey consultant and securities analyst who now leads the private investment division at Sovereign Man.] Simon Black sent me to the former Soviet republic of Georgia to spend some time on the ground conducting due diligence on some potential
In late January of the year 98 AD, after decades of turmoil, instability, inflation, and war, Romans welcomed a prominent solider named Trajan as their new Emperor. Prior to Trajan, Romans had suffered immeasurably, from the madness of Nero to the ruthless autocracy of Domitian, to the chaos of 68-69
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