Still Learning After All These Years
We can never stop learning - or at least we shouldn't. If you keep your edge here, and keep learning, you'll find it most helpful in reading the "tea leaves" of every day existence. They're there for all of us to see after we've drunk the cup of our day-to-day activity.
Of course, those of you who've never brewed a cup of tea from the actual tea leaves, rather than using tea bags, likely have no idea what I'm talking about. Here's a fancy photo of what they look like:
What you do is heat water in a tea pot, add the tea leaves, brew. Like this:
The glass tea pot helps you see what's going on in there.
You pour the tea in a cup and, unless you strain it, you get tea leaves in the bottom of your cup when you're done. It looks like this:
Certain folks believe they can "read" those leaves as they sit there in your cup and tell you what's going on in your life, particularly what's going to go on in your life. Of course that's rather quack-ish, but with that, let's proceed with our reading of today's tea leaves regarding the markets, society, and life.
First, the markets: Nothing much there; just a lump of brown. Stocks remain in a tight range. Bond yields reversed after threatening to assail the stock market, the economy, mortgage rates, etc. (if you believe what you read). Gold "popped" over 1300, but really it was only a snap back after dropping last week, so don't read anything into it. Oil dipped after rushing upwards, driving gas prices up just in time for the holiday weekend (Memorial Day) and all those folks taking to the roads.
Next, society: The tea leaves take shape. Weekly reading and research over the last week or so included commentary on the current state of affairs, focusing especially on our kids and grandkids - their world, what they'll face going forward. The picture's a bit muddy, unless you simplify things to "The world's going to hell in a hand basket," or, "Everyday, in every way, things are getting better and better." There is, of course, truth to both. But recent reading, with its focus on the next generations, brought cause for alarm. The loss of an understanding that some things are true, some false, that some things are good some evil, regardless of what you or I think or feel about them, now shapes our world. Everything's "relative" so every view, generally based on some vague emotion, must be considered equal, in some fashion, to every other. Since we lack the ability to discern true and false, good and bad, that inability has been passed on, as a rule, by our public education. Many of us, and as a consequence our kids, have no ability to think, no moral compass.
The biggest impact on society can be seen in our laws. Once they were fashioned based on British Common Law, which derived from Natural Law - the belief that valid law ultimately comes from God, or, if you like, the Ten Commandments. Our "rights" flow from Natural Law, and every right is accompanied by a responsibility. I have a right to life; I must respect the right to life of others...etc. Our rights are guaranteed, ultimately by God, and cannot be taken away. By the way, that was the central premise of those who ultimately fought British tyranny and founded our country. They asserted their "natural" rights over what they saw as unjust laws regarding taxation and other threats to liberty perpetrated by the British Parliament. In the last century or so, that's changed. Now we have "positive law." That's where the government makes us laws however it sees fit. And since these come from politicians, those laws typically spring from the politicians' desire to satisfy his customers - the voters - so they can be re-elected. Our rights are now "granted" to us by the government. What's given can be taken away.
Setting aside the impact on our families and individuals of a society of unintelligent, amoral people, there's the threat to the prosperity that made our country a relatively wealthy one. If laws aren't secure, grounded in some permanent, solid foundation, they undermined the ability of people to commit capital and effort to building enterprises (businesses). Why should I pour out my time and substance into an enterprise that can be declared illegal, or outright taken from me, by the government. Why should I invest in and improve property over which I have no absolute rights? This is the case in many of the poorer countries of the world, which have never gained any economic traction. While our country is still relatively sane in this regard, it's slipping. What does the future hold? The tea leaves are murky here. The optimist will likely think we'll either straighten things out, or, at worst, muddle through. The pessimist sees a darker image.
Next. life: Anyone who claims they can tell you something meaningful about your life by reading tea leaves is - to use an old expression - a quack. Ditto for Tarot card readers and all the rest of those fakes who take your money so you'll know the future. We can't know the future with any certainty. That's just part of life. Besides, we're all unique and precious beings, created in the image and likeness of God. We're not some lump of things that make up "society." Every day brings us a fresh opportunity to make the most of that day. Growing up, I was taught that the entire purpose of life was to know, love and serve God. So each new day means a fresh start on fulfilling that purpose. The fact that I can't know exactly what's in store doesn't matter. What does matter is something else I was taught: We were made to know, love, and serve God, and be happy with Him in the next. That "next" would be heaven.
So think about it: The tea leaves may not be painting a pretty picture when it comes to our society. But if I wake up each morning and make the effort to know, love, and serve God such that I'll be happy in eternity with Him in Heaven, how bad can that be?
Meanwhile, enjoy your Memorial Day celebrations and remember those who gave their lives to preserve the good that we still have in our country.
Of course, those of you who've never brewed a cup of tea from the actual tea leaves, rather than using tea bags, likely have no idea what I'm talking about. Here's a fancy photo of what they look like:
The glass tea pot helps you see what's going on in there.
You pour the tea in a cup and, unless you strain it, you get tea leaves in the bottom of your cup when you're done. It looks like this:
Certain folks believe they can "read" those leaves as they sit there in your cup and tell you what's going on in your life, particularly what's going to go on in your life. Of course that's rather quack-ish, but with that, let's proceed with our reading of today's tea leaves regarding the markets, society, and life.
First, the markets: Nothing much there; just a lump of brown. Stocks remain in a tight range. Bond yields reversed after threatening to assail the stock market, the economy, mortgage rates, etc. (if you believe what you read). Gold "popped" over 1300, but really it was only a snap back after dropping last week, so don't read anything into it. Oil dipped after rushing upwards, driving gas prices up just in time for the holiday weekend (Memorial Day) and all those folks taking to the roads.
Next, society: The tea leaves take shape. Weekly reading and research over the last week or so included commentary on the current state of affairs, focusing especially on our kids and grandkids - their world, what they'll face going forward. The picture's a bit muddy, unless you simplify things to "The world's going to hell in a hand basket," or, "Everyday, in every way, things are getting better and better." There is, of course, truth to both. But recent reading, with its focus on the next generations, brought cause for alarm. The loss of an understanding that some things are true, some false, that some things are good some evil, regardless of what you or I think or feel about them, now shapes our world. Everything's "relative" so every view, generally based on some vague emotion, must be considered equal, in some fashion, to every other. Since we lack the ability to discern true and false, good and bad, that inability has been passed on, as a rule, by our public education. Many of us, and as a consequence our kids, have no ability to think, no moral compass.
The biggest impact on society can be seen in our laws. Once they were fashioned based on British Common Law, which derived from Natural Law - the belief that valid law ultimately comes from God, or, if you like, the Ten Commandments. Our "rights" flow from Natural Law, and every right is accompanied by a responsibility. I have a right to life; I must respect the right to life of others...etc. Our rights are guaranteed, ultimately by God, and cannot be taken away. By the way, that was the central premise of those who ultimately fought British tyranny and founded our country. They asserted their "natural" rights over what they saw as unjust laws regarding taxation and other threats to liberty perpetrated by the British Parliament. In the last century or so, that's changed. Now we have "positive law." That's where the government makes us laws however it sees fit. And since these come from politicians, those laws typically spring from the politicians' desire to satisfy his customers - the voters - so they can be re-elected. Our rights are now "granted" to us by the government. What's given can be taken away.
Setting aside the impact on our families and individuals of a society of unintelligent, amoral people, there's the threat to the prosperity that made our country a relatively wealthy one. If laws aren't secure, grounded in some permanent, solid foundation, they undermined the ability of people to commit capital and effort to building enterprises (businesses). Why should I pour out my time and substance into an enterprise that can be declared illegal, or outright taken from me, by the government. Why should I invest in and improve property over which I have no absolute rights? This is the case in many of the poorer countries of the world, which have never gained any economic traction. While our country is still relatively sane in this regard, it's slipping. What does the future hold? The tea leaves are murky here. The optimist will likely think we'll either straighten things out, or, at worst, muddle through. The pessimist sees a darker image.
Next. life: Anyone who claims they can tell you something meaningful about your life by reading tea leaves is - to use an old expression - a quack. Ditto for Tarot card readers and all the rest of those fakes who take your money so you'll know the future. We can't know the future with any certainty. That's just part of life. Besides, we're all unique and precious beings, created in the image and likeness of God. We're not some lump of things that make up "society." Every day brings us a fresh opportunity to make the most of that day. Growing up, I was taught that the entire purpose of life was to know, love and serve God. So each new day means a fresh start on fulfilling that purpose. The fact that I can't know exactly what's in store doesn't matter. What does matter is something else I was taught: We were made to know, love, and serve God, and be happy with Him in the next. That "next" would be heaven.
So think about it: The tea leaves may not be painting a pretty picture when it comes to our society. But if I wake up each morning and make the effort to know, love, and serve God such that I'll be happy in eternity with Him in Heaven, how bad can that be?
Meanwhile, enjoy your Memorial Day celebrations and remember those who gave their lives to preserve the good that we still have in our country.
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