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Burgers make better economic indicators than official statistics ever could. As I travel, I typically perform an informal price study of my own basket of consumer goods– a loaf of bread, a pack of cigarettes, a liter of petrol, and a handful of… non-family friendly wares. This is the type of information that
Nationalized healthcare doesn’t work, and I’ll tell you why: I hold as my personal mantra in life that governments screw up everything they touch… and this goes for all governments, not just the United States Congress. As I travel the world looking for great opportunities, I always try to understand the quality and
Poland– it’s a beautiful, inexpensive country with a stable economy, gorgeous women, and fantastic food… so what am I doing here exactly? Looking for citizenship. The country has been dominated, broken apart, and put back together so many times, Poland actually has multiple nationality laws on the books for former migrants, refugees, and
All- there were a lot of great comments and questions this week, I will review several here: LATVIA Excellent insights on Latvia and the way to trade the devaluation. Johan from Sweden asks if we are too late shorting Sweden’s banks. I think not, and here’s why: Swedbank, one of the largest Swedish
You probably know the story of the boiling frog. The premise is simple. If a frog is placed in a pot of water that is already boiling, it will immediately sense danger and jump out, relatively unscathed. If it is placed in a pot of cool water, the frog will happily stay in
A final note on Latvia today before I put the Baltics to bed for now– Yesterday I argued that Latvia is definitely headed for devaluation, and that European governments are practically bending over backwards to make sure we know about it. In comments yesterday, the astute Mr. Marriott pointed out that the grey
Yesterday I talked about the demise of the Latvian economy and how it will foretell the future of California. Today I want to talk about the opportunity I see to profit from it. I have seen the face of crisis before, both in the military and as a civilian. But rarely have I
I found out this weekend that Paul Krugman is wrong about Latvia. For months, mainstream luminaries like Krugman have been telling me that Latvia is the next Argentina, and that the country is on the verge of economic collapse… wait, stop– what does this even mean? Have the lights suddenly gone out? is
Earlier today, amid much pomp and fanfare, the Panama Canal Authority (ACP) opened the sealed bids for the canal expansion project. Audience members looked on eagerly like it was the Academy Award for best picture… The lowest bidder? A consortium led by Italy’s Impregilo, ringing in for a cool $3.12 billion. Wait, wait,
Making money is large part of achieving independence and living free. In my own life, I focus on select entrepreneurial ventures to generate capital, and specific investments which subsequently grow that capital. My investment habits might be best described as ‘peculiar,’ because, believe it or not, I do not have a strong risk
Yesterday I wrote to you about Lithuania and all the great things it has to offer– it’s inexpensive, has second citizenship, a low flat tax, and beautiful women. These are all great reasons to visit from time to time (and obtain a passport if you are so fortunate), but today I want to
About a month ago I was attending a private, invitation-only meeting with some of the finest unconventional minds in finance. We gathered for three days at a luxurious oceanside resort on the Maryland coast to have an open exchange of ideas, debate our philosophies, and play poker ’til dawn. Lobo Tigre, editor of
Argentina is still doomed. If you don’t know Argentine politics well, I’ll give you a quick history: the country has vast natural resource wealth and was once one of the richest in the world. It has been serially run by a group of incompetents ever since the Perons first came to power after
This always happens to me. Whether in Buenos Aires, Beirut, Rome, Bangkok, Zurich, or now Helsinki, I always seem to get caught up in some sort of protest. To be honest, I love protests… I think it’s great when people finally have enough of the system and demonstrate their unwillingness to continue going
Today I confessed my sins to Uncle Sam. No, I’m not talking about anything sinister. But in a mad dash through a US stopover today, I dropped US Treasury form TDF-90 in the mail: “Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts.” It went something like this: “Forgive me uncle for I have sinned.
