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August 22, 2011 Zell am See, Austria One of my favorite books is the Personal Memoirs of Ulysses S. Grant— West Point graduate, Union commander, former President, and failed businessman. It’s a bit long-winded, but brutally honest, and much of the first volume deals with Grant’s personal experiences as a young military officer
August 19, 2011 Zell am See, Austria Yesterday’s letter about social upheaval received a lot of comments, and I want to address the major themes today. First, ‘Simon the White’ wrote: “You imply that it’s not just the USA, but that all Western countries are screwed. Where will the contagion end? You appear
August 18, 2011 Zell am See, Austria Let’s be honest– most history books are crap. They have a terrible way of oversimplifying major cultural shifts, as if someone flips a light switch and society turns on a dime. Take Martin Luther, for example. In 1517, Luther publicly posted a list of 95 grievances
August 17, 2011 Zell am See, Austria Did you know that the word ‘idiot’ is actually derived from the origins of democracy in ancient Greece? Thousands of years ago, a Greek citizen who demonstrated disinterest in politics was labeled ‘idiotes’; it literally meant ‘private person,’ which curiously enough was a term of derision
August 15, 2011 Zell am see, Austria It’s easy to be pessimistic on a day like today. Forty years ago on this very day, Richard Nixon put a bullet into George Washington’s face, cancelling the direct convertibility of dollars into gold and once and for all ending any hope of an honest money
August 10, 2011 Vilnius, Lithuania I had a little piggy bank when I was kid. It was blue. And ceramic. In fact, I think I broke its nose off at one point and I was really sad about it. Most of all I remember loving the sound that the coins made when I
August 9, 2011 Vilnius, Lithuania [August 10th Update from Simon: Several people wrote that my numbers were incorrect and that a Big Mac sandwich costs much less than $17 in Switzerland. This is correct and its my mistake. It’s not the Big Mac sandwich, but the meal that costs > $17, around CHF
August 8, 2011 Vilnius, Lithuania Ancient Greek mythology tells the tale of Odysseus, the heroic king of Ithaca whose 10-year journey home after the Trojan War became one of the world’s most famous epics. At one point in the journey, his ship was heading straight for two deadly hazards– on one side was
August 5, 2011 Vilnius, Lithuania Fridays are normally the days I like to engage in a light-hearted Q&A, answering subscriber questions on a variety of topics ranging from libertarian philosophy to exotic international travel to investment insights. Given the meltdown that we witnessed yesterday, however, I wanted to take a moment to cut
August 4, 2011 Vilnius, Lithuania Here’s some food for thought that I’d like you to chew on for a bit. The debt ceiling debacle has been settled… President Obama is celebrating his 50th birthday, no doubt dancing a little jig that a major crisis has been averted, and equity markets in the US
August 3, 2011 Vilnius, Lithuania As is typical for me, I woke up this morning with the sun shining in my face from the east-facing window of my apartment here in Vilnius. It’s a really spectacular place– 2 bedrooms, around 1,000 square feet, and generously decorated with a lot of elegant finishings. From
August 1, 2011 Sofia, Bulgaria Even with so many things wrong with the world right now, there are a lot of interesting opportunities out there. When you watch the news, it seems like the world is coming to an end. It’s all doom and gloom. But I’m here to tell you that there
July 29, 2011 Belgrade, Serbia It’s a rainy morning here in Belgrade, one of those days where the gray skies and drizzle sap the spirit and motivation to do much at all. But I have quite a few things to be excited about today. Most importantly, we’re making great progress in our property
July 28, 2011 Belgrade, Serbia When I was a kid, it was a big deal when the postman came around. He was an important man carrying important documents from far away lands that we could only dream about… and each time he pulled up there was a brief glimmer of anxiety, wondering what
July 27, 2011 Zagreb, Croatia There’s one question that I’ve been seeing over and over for the last several weeks as the price of gold has taken out its all-time highs and continued a nearly uninterrupted ascent: Should I buy gold now? It’s understandable, especially for people who don’t own precious metals yet.
