Monday, September 28, 2020

The Deficit Myth

As a society, we spend a lot of time worrying about debt. Consumer debt, household debt, municipal debt, state/provincial debt, federal debt etc. But one of these types of debt is not like the other: the federal government creates currency out of thin air, therefore its debts don't matter. So says Stephanie Kelton in her book, The Deficit Myth.

Saturday, September 19, 2020

Caste

Despite the belief among many Americans that they live in a meritocracy, income and wealth disparities among racial lines persist. In Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents, Isabel Wilkerson argues that America actually lives in a caste system on racial lines.

Thursday, September 17, 2020

Friedman Industries

While a certain sector of the market does seem overheated, I'm finding plenty of value opportunities around. Much of the market is still behaving like one in recession, and that's probably a good place to invest for the long term. One example is Friedman Industries (FRD), a steel processor.

Thursday, September 10, 2020

ADF Group

ADF Group is engaged in "the design and engineering of connections, fabrication, including industrial coating, and installation of complex steel structures, heavy steel built-ups, as well as miscellaneous and architectural metalwork", having been originally founded as a blacksmith in 1956. It trades under the ticker symbol DRX in Toronto.

Sunday, September 6, 2020

Very Important People

My memories of my trips to Vegas are bittersweet. On the one hand they have been a lot of fun, but on the other hand a number of incidents leave me feeling ripped off. None more so than going to a club and having to fork over obscene amounts of money at markups of thousands of percent. I don't find this to be good use of either money or time, but the friends I have gone with usually do, so I end up paying my share despite realizing what a racket this is. So it was with great interest that I read former model Ashley Mears' expose of this industry in her book, Very Important People: Status and Beauty in the Global Party Circuit