My morning train WFH reads:
• The Great Credit Convergence: How public and private credit are now one market (Paul Kedrosky)
• The Emperor’s New Oil Wealth: You may have heard that Venezuela has the world’s largest oil reserves — 300 billion barrels. You probably don’t know that Venezuela’s reported oil reserves tripled while Hugo Chavez was president. This increase, from roughly 100 billion to 300 billion barrels, didn’t reflect major new discoveries or exploration — it reflected the Chavez government’s decision to reclassify the country’s Orinoco Belt heavy oil as “proved.” It is not… (Paul Krugman) see also On the Legality of the Venezuela Invasion: Executive branch precedents can be garnered to support the action—which does not, of course, mean that it is lawful. (Executive Functions)
• A tale of two Ralphs — Lauren and the supermarket — shows the reality of a K-shaped economy: Wealthy shoppers browse Ralph Lauren on Rodeo Drive while struggling consumers hunt for bargains at Ralphs grocery, revealing America’s stark wealth divide this holiday season. The K-shaped economy shows high-income households thriving with rising pay and asset gains while lower-income families squeeze budgets amid inflation and stagnant wages. (Los Angeles Times)
• America Is Falling Out of Love With Pizza: Restaurant chains explore strategy changes as sales slow for food-delivery mainstay. (Wall Street Journal)
• A Risk of Cognitive Convenience: What ChatGPT and GPS have in common. (Range Widely)
• Disgust Over Jan. 6 Is No Longer Bipartisan. The aftermath of Jan. 6 made the Republican Party even more feckless, beholden to one man and willing to pervert reality to serve his interests. Once Mr. Trump won election again in 2024, despite his role in encouraging the riot and his many distortions about it, it emboldened him to govern in defiance of the Constitution, without regard for the truth and with malice toward those who stand up to his abuses. (New York Times) see also Five years later, these 10 corporations still aren’t funding election deniers. On January 6, 2021, a violent mob stormed the Capitol building. Following the attack, over a hundred major companies released statements condemning the insurrection and promising to stop donating to the 147 members of Congress who voted to overturn the 2020 election, or to halt all political donations entirely. (Popular Information)
• Why Trump wants Greenland and what’s standing in his way: Denmark’s leader warned that any use of force by Washington to seize Greenland, as Trump officials have suggested, would render the postwar NATO alliance defunct. (Washington Post)
• Millions of Kids Are on ADHD Pills. For Many, It’s the Start of a Drug Cascade. Powerful psychotropic drugs are often the next step, even though their combined effects in young children haven’t been studied closely. ‘I was living in a body hijacked by the medication.’ (Wall Street Journal)
• Nine science-backed ways to help you feel better in 2026. From channelling your anger to writing lists and singing more often – here are some science-backed tips to boost your wellbeing. (BBC) see also The New Rules Of Good, Deep Sleep Will Help You Feel More Rested And Energetic: Spoiler: Quality may be more important than quantity. (Women’s Health)
• The Worst Shot Ever Taken: The author and his closest basketball confidantes undertake a formal analysis of Steph Curry’s shot at the Paris Olympics as art object (The Believer)
Be sure to check out our Masters in Business interview this weekend with Ben Hunt, founder of Perscient, a firm that studies how narratives and stories shape markets, investing, and social behavior through the lens of information theory, game theory, and unstructured data analysis. His work analyzes the language, story arcs, and viral spread of explanations in media
Why Trump wants Greenland and what’s standing in his way
Source: Washington Post
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