The weekend is here! Pour yourself a mug of Organic Ft Vienna Mexican HG EP Co-Op Fesich coffee, grab a seat by the fire, and get ready for our longer form weekend reads:
• America Abandoned Its Economic Prophet. The World Embraced Him. The pandemic has put Galbraith’s global legacy into stark relief. One can now map out the rise and decline of nations simply by distinguishing between those that have continued along the lines that once defined U.S. economic success as Galbraith saw it and those that fell under the spell of illusions about free, competitive, and self-regulating markets and under the dominating power of finance, hanging on to a self-image that no longer corresponds to reality. (Foreign Policy)
• Anti-Virus: The Covid-19 FAQ The arguments made by Covid Skeptics are frequently misleading, misconceived, or based on misunderstandings of the evidence. We believe these mistaken arguments are often dangerous, since they might lead people—or entire countries—to take fewer precautions against this deadly virus. (Anti-Virus: The Covid-19 FAQ)
• The Bit Short: Inside Crypto’s Doomsday Machine This is the story of a Bitcoin trade — the most financially impactful trade I’ve ever made in my life. It’s also the story of the deep-yet-frantic investigation of the crypto ecosystem that led me to make that trade. And it’s the story of what’s really going on in crypto — and what we should do about it. (Crypto Anonymous)
• The Unauthorized Story of Andreessen Horowitz While there’s a lot of loose talk on Twitter about cutting out the media and “going direct” – publishing your own story to the world without the press as an intermediary – Andreessen Horowitz is really doing it, consciously and methodically. The firm’s strategy has dramatic implications for the future of media and the venture capital industry. (Newcomer)
• The fight for the future of America’s local newspapers Small and midsized regional and local newspapers, once swimming in cash and an essential service to Americans living outside New York or San Francisco, have been converted into distressed assets boomeranged among investors for short-term profits. As hedge funds and private equity snap up titles, what does it mean for journalism? (Financial Times)
• A U.S. Grand Strategy for the Global Digital Economy For America to remain the global leader in IT, the U.S. government must formulate a grand strategy grounded in a new doctrine of “digital realpolitik.” The first priority should be advancing U.S. interests by spreading the U.S. digital innovation policy system and constraining digital adversaries, especially China. This will entail working with allies when possible—and pressuring them when necessary. (Information Technology & Innovation Foundation)
• I Am Not a Soldier, but I Have Been Trained to Kill A sprawling tactical industry is teaching American civilians how to fight like Special Ops forces. By preparing for violence at home, are they calling it into being? (Wired)
• Total eclipse How falling costs will secure solar’s dominance in power Renewables are the proven zero-carbon technology where much of the capital funding the energy transition will be invested. Over the next 20 years, we expect more than 4 terawatts (TW) of wind and solar power to come on stream globally, taking renewables’ share of the world’s power capacity to 30% from 10% today. Of this new capacity, some 2.6 TW will be solar. (Wood Mackenzie)
• Turn off the gaslight: The skilled manipulator casts a shadow of doubt over everything that you feel or think. Therapy can bring the daylight in (Aeon) see also The enduring allure of conspiracies Conspiracy theories seem to meet psychological needs and can be almost impossible to eradicate. One remedy: Keep them from taking root in the first place. (Nieman Lab)
• The Radicalization of Kevin Greeson: How one man went from attending President Barack Obama’s inauguration to dying in the mob protesting Donald Trump’s election loss during the Capitol insurrection. (ProPublica)
Be sure to check out our Masters in Business interview this weekend with Andrew Beer, Founder and Managing Member of Dynamic Beta investments. The firm manages several ETFs that seek to replicate illiquid alternatives at lower costs, with full transparency and daily liquidity. Their hedge fund replication fund, iM DBi Long Short Hedge Strategy ETF (DBEH) is up 27.7% since it launched in December 2019.
For companies with physical offices, 2 or 3-day office work weeks will become the norm
Source: Initialized
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