Are Most Financial Headlines Getting to be Completely Boring and Irrelevant, or is It Just Me?
In the middle of this week between Christmas and New Year's, a typically uneventful week for markets, a question: Is it just me, or are financial headlines more and more becoming irrelevant and boring? We bring this up to help you adjust your daily habits in 2016 such that you don't waste as much time with the various media outlets, mainstream and alternative, that push out gobs of mostly superficial or irrelevant information. Stop and think about how much that you read falls into the category of superficial and/or irrelevant and ask yourself: Do I want to take up more than "X" number of minutes each day with this stuff. (And we're not even talking about the gobs of garbage that really belongs in a cesspool rather than your ostensibly rational mind.)Here's a sampling from recent days:
Carlos Slim is Biggest Loser in World's Top 400 Richest People
Slim falls into that class of people as far from the economic orbit of the vast majority of humanity as the first bits of matter from the Big Bang lingering on the edge of our expanding universe are from my front yard. He's in a separate space, if not a separate universe from most of the rest of us. Why would anyone care about his goings-about or his fortunes? Besides, should the fact that he's somehow lost money this year attract my attention and pique my curiosity, never mind my sympathy?
The One Brazilian Scandal Almost No One is Talking About
Does you really care about any given scandal in Brazil? Here's a country once touted as a future economic engine of the world's economy wallowing in the doldrums, cascading into a depression. What you might ask yourself is whether and why you might have bought the narration about the BRICs (Brazil, Russia, India, China) that was all the rage in the financial world until the last year or so. Every one of these countries - with the possible exception of India - has fallen hard from the pedestal created by the manufacturers of investment fantasy that sucked so many into their phantasmagorical universe over the last few years.
With that in mind, the real story of Brazil has to do with its economic collapse. Oh, you're thinking that we ought to concern ourselves with this once glorified now benighted country because the Olympics will soon be contended within its borders. After all, you do want to know whether or not they will be able to build and manage the venues in which the athletes compete, right? Perhaps, if you're actually going to be traveling to Brazil for the Olympics. Or maybe if you're an Olympic athlete, or someone in your family is a potential Olympian, that could catch your eye and generate some degree of anxiety over what's going on in this host country. As for the rest of us, even if you're a rabid Olympic fan, remember all those media stories before the Olympics in Sochi, Russia. To believe any of those, you would have thought that the games, if they could be conducted at all, would likely be the target of every terrorist on earth, and therefore be subject to some degree of death and destruction. None of this proved to be true, naturally. The media simply made up whatever they thought would attract the most viewers, a practice they will likely pursue for the Brazil Olympics. Do you really want to waste your time following this sort of "journalism"?
Presidential Candidates Seek Donors in a Holiday Giving Mood
So we're supposed to care about these candidates and their fund raising? A partial Democrat list includes H. Clinton and B. Sanders, one of whom will likely get the nomination. Clinton continues to astound in her ability to attract support given the depth and breadth of potential scandals surrounding her both today and in her past. One wonders how she stays out of court, if not jail, never mind manages to run her campaign. As for Sanders, the apparent darling of the Millennials and those who've discarded their former heroine, Hillary, having recognized the problematic nature of her political and personal issues, we can only say that, even if you're tastes run to socialists and their money-sucking public policies, how is it that you're concerned about how they attract donors? If you're a donor, maybe you're interested. If not, do you really care?
As for the republicans, the list of contenders being rather longer, we all know it comes down (at least so far) to Trump vs. Not-Trump. The Republican establishment desperately seeks someone to deflect a Trump triumph, fearing that Trump as candidate, never mind President, would undermine their power and disrupt or make less relevant their long-established political web of contacts. If Trump can overcome their machinations and prevail, he's got plenty of his own money, and thus attracting incremental donations won't make much difference. If, on the other hand, the Republican establishment can muster enough momentum to dislodge King Donald, we all know they've already got significant stashes of semolians to effect the result they desire. Oh, you're a Rubio (or Cruz, etc.) fan? Just give the boy some money and save your precious time for more important subjects than this.
The Protesters Putin is Reluctant to Crush
Imagine Putin, the autocratic ruler of Russia, reluctant to do crush anyone or anything that stands in the way of his increasing his power? Does that ring true? Okay, so maybe the man puts limits on whom he kills in his quest for conquest - for some relatively obscure reason. Unless you're one of Vlad's minions, fans, or assorted associates, one finds it hard to understand any interest in stories about this guy. Sure, he's the sort you want to keep an eye on from time to time. After all, Hitler and Stalin didn't lay out their plans for all to see in a day. Their intentions weren't always clear and concisely presented to those outside their inner circle. And knowing these would have assisted many of us in avoiding danger at some point. But, really, could the present subject possibly fall into the category of important stories about Czar Vladimir that you really need to know to live another day? If not, maybe you can just skip it and go bowling with family and friends, or read a good book. Seriously.
So now, with this bit of advice in hand, we really do encourage you to selectively choose those stories worthy of your time and attention. The clock of your life - an aggregate of limited bits bundled into a finite package which will be delivered into the Hands of your Maker someday - continues to tick. Consider using those minutes and hours in a fashion that will enhance the time you've got left in such a manner that those around you - especially your family and friends - will find their lives enriched by your presence.
In this context, we wish you a restful, restorative respite during these days between Christmas and New Year's. Rather than gaping at stories that have little to do with your life, and will only drag you down if they have any impact at all, pursue those activities that will enliven your mind and enrich your spirit all to the end of bolstering your chances for a happy and healthy 2016.
Carlos Slim is Biggest Loser in World's Top 400 Richest People
Slim falls into that class of people as far from the economic orbit of the vast majority of humanity as the first bits of matter from the Big Bang lingering on the edge of our expanding universe are from my front yard. He's in a separate space, if not a separate universe from most of the rest of us. Why would anyone care about his goings-about or his fortunes? Besides, should the fact that he's somehow lost money this year attract my attention and pique my curiosity, never mind my sympathy?
The One Brazilian Scandal Almost No One is Talking About
Does you really care about any given scandal in Brazil? Here's a country once touted as a future economic engine of the world's economy wallowing in the doldrums, cascading into a depression. What you might ask yourself is whether and why you might have bought the narration about the BRICs (Brazil, Russia, India, China) that was all the rage in the financial world until the last year or so. Every one of these countries - with the possible exception of India - has fallen hard from the pedestal created by the manufacturers of investment fantasy that sucked so many into their phantasmagorical universe over the last few years.
With that in mind, the real story of Brazil has to do with its economic collapse. Oh, you're thinking that we ought to concern ourselves with this once glorified now benighted country because the Olympics will soon be contended within its borders. After all, you do want to know whether or not they will be able to build and manage the venues in which the athletes compete, right? Perhaps, if you're actually going to be traveling to Brazil for the Olympics. Or maybe if you're an Olympic athlete, or someone in your family is a potential Olympian, that could catch your eye and generate some degree of anxiety over what's going on in this host country. As for the rest of us, even if you're a rabid Olympic fan, remember all those media stories before the Olympics in Sochi, Russia. To believe any of those, you would have thought that the games, if they could be conducted at all, would likely be the target of every terrorist on earth, and therefore be subject to some degree of death and destruction. None of this proved to be true, naturally. The media simply made up whatever they thought would attract the most viewers, a practice they will likely pursue for the Brazil Olympics. Do you really want to waste your time following this sort of "journalism"?
Presidential Candidates Seek Donors in a Holiday Giving Mood
So we're supposed to care about these candidates and their fund raising? A partial Democrat list includes H. Clinton and B. Sanders, one of whom will likely get the nomination. Clinton continues to astound in her ability to attract support given the depth and breadth of potential scandals surrounding her both today and in her past. One wonders how she stays out of court, if not jail, never mind manages to run her campaign. As for Sanders, the apparent darling of the Millennials and those who've discarded their former heroine, Hillary, having recognized the problematic nature of her political and personal issues, we can only say that, even if you're tastes run to socialists and their money-sucking public policies, how is it that you're concerned about how they attract donors? If you're a donor, maybe you're interested. If not, do you really care?
As for the republicans, the list of contenders being rather longer, we all know it comes down (at least so far) to Trump vs. Not-Trump. The Republican establishment desperately seeks someone to deflect a Trump triumph, fearing that Trump as candidate, never mind President, would undermine their power and disrupt or make less relevant their long-established political web of contacts. If Trump can overcome their machinations and prevail, he's got plenty of his own money, and thus attracting incremental donations won't make much difference. If, on the other hand, the Republican establishment can muster enough momentum to dislodge King Donald, we all know they've already got significant stashes of semolians to effect the result they desire. Oh, you're a Rubio (or Cruz, etc.) fan? Just give the boy some money and save your precious time for more important subjects than this.
The Protesters Putin is Reluctant to Crush
Imagine Putin, the autocratic ruler of Russia, reluctant to do crush anyone or anything that stands in the way of his increasing his power? Does that ring true? Okay, so maybe the man puts limits on whom he kills in his quest for conquest - for some relatively obscure reason. Unless you're one of Vlad's minions, fans, or assorted associates, one finds it hard to understand any interest in stories about this guy. Sure, he's the sort you want to keep an eye on from time to time. After all, Hitler and Stalin didn't lay out their plans for all to see in a day. Their intentions weren't always clear and concisely presented to those outside their inner circle. And knowing these would have assisted many of us in avoiding danger at some point. But, really, could the present subject possibly fall into the category of important stories about Czar Vladimir that you really need to know to live another day? If not, maybe you can just skip it and go bowling with family and friends, or read a good book. Seriously.
So now, with this bit of advice in hand, we really do encourage you to selectively choose those stories worthy of your time and attention. The clock of your life - an aggregate of limited bits bundled into a finite package which will be delivered into the Hands of your Maker someday - continues to tick. Consider using those minutes and hours in a fashion that will enhance the time you've got left in such a manner that those around you - especially your family and friends - will find their lives enriched by your presence.
In this context, we wish you a restful, restorative respite during these days between Christmas and New Year's. Rather than gaping at stories that have little to do with your life, and will only drag you down if they have any impact at all, pursue those activities that will enliven your mind and enrich your spirit all to the end of bolstering your chances for a happy and healthy 2016.
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