I'm a fan of Jonah Goldberg, and I'm sure his book has lots of meaningful and important things to say. But to be perfectly frank, I'm sick of getting it shoved down my throat everywhere I go. That's at least partly my fault of course. My online reading selection is no fault of Jonah Goldberg's. And I've cut way back on my NRO consumption recently anyway. But I have to admit, that pop-up ad in the corner isn't exactly helping to pull me back in.
As I'm sure you can imagine, I'm a little reluctant to do the very thing I'm complaining about - and I wouldn't if I didn't think this particular interview was worth it. But I think this one is better than some. If you're as tired of the same 5 'sound bites' (that he's been repeating so often that Chuck Schumer is calling him a camera hog) as I am, then I'd start in the middle of the clip. That's where all the interesting stuff begin (IMHO).
8 comments:
tom.allah is lining up on BO's side at just the right moment... jpm was a HUGE gift.....and now the eurozone crisis rearing up again. it fits perfectly for his "we would be doing alot better if it wasnt for the eu crisis"/.. ITS NOT MY FAULT.and that sounds logical to the 6%....everyday i lose any hope......
This is really off topic, but I can't remember any time when the news media was being used more effectively as a pawn. And that can only happen because they are predictable - which means they're stupid.
You can't help but think there is an element of truth in what they say, but there really isn't - not this time. It's all a show. It's all (100%) designed to manipulate the public during negotiations.
That makes them a tool to interested parties, not a 'force for truth' or whatever it is they think they are. And if they're being used in the game (and they are) that means the ball is still in play.
The point is, don't panic (given your typical pessimism Chess that's probably sound advice most days - but more so today than usual). This too shall certainly pass.
Also off-topic:
Tom:
Do you have any thoughts or observations for a possible black swan event coming from Asia?
My wife has been noticing that more and more of the upper class Chinese are leaving China (with lots of foreign currency). Friday's WSJ reported the same. This is a repeat of what happened in Thailand right before their currency collapsed in 1997.
As for my Wife's homeland... inflation has been running wild the past year, but incomes are not rising. Thailand elected an 'Evita Peron', but without the brains as prime minister.
I am beginning to wonder if we will see a wave of defaults, banking system collapses not from Europe, but from Asia.
I have no idea how such an event, should it come to fruition, affect the election in November.
i agree 110% on the media... hell im watching tivoed spewcial on dark matter in the universe. cnbc holds nothing for me.... but in the 7 yrs ive been out of medicine i have come into contact with the real world more than i did in the last 40 yrs.. and daily im amazed how far we have sunk. perfection was demande of me daily as head of open heart service at my hospital.. so when i look around and see what has become acceptable standards of service i jus shake my head .....plus now im not afraid to tell someone the work was crap and do it again. they look at you like whats wrong with you... unless we find that birth certificate we are toast...cause anyhing that goes wrong now is not his fault.
I'm very dubious about a 'black swan' from anywhere. It's not the risks you can see that get you because there is always a distribution of opinion on those. Some people long, some short, and that prevents the tail event from happening. things get worse maybe, and sell off, but it doesn't happen catastrophically.
Black swans happen when large numbers of people are convinced that something is a sure thing. Like Dot.com's or home values (otherwise known in aggregate as mortgage debt). We have nothing like that out there right now. Even governments are being looked at with cynicism.
If people are fleeing China it's probably because they fear not being able to leave. That's all.
In China there are probably 20 reasons that could happen that have nothing to do with black swans. In the end they are an authoritarian government, no matter what else they are, and the place has a history of falling inward. If I were Chinese I'd be internationalizing myself too
"Black swans happen when large numbers of people are convinced that something is a sure thing."
Like the Facebook IPO...
A frothy event if ever there was one. (and since you and I any many other in my acquaintance know that... it's not really a consensus is it?)
I have a sideline in real estate. Back in 2003, I told anyone who would listen that the market had gone insane and would crash. I guess myself and others with this view were too much in the minority.. so the black swan flew in.
There was only one person I know who asked my advice and didn't buy (she bought after the crash and saved herself about $150k in the purchase price). The rest are so far underwater on their investments they might as well walk away.
Post a Comment