Today’s Water Cooler: China v. Us trade, Biden, Buttigieg, Delaney, Sanders, Trump and fascism, Warren, Yang, DSA resolutions, consumer confidence, Epstein and our ruling class, safety deposit boxes, Google tracks pr0n sites, Airbus pitch-up issue, gardens, alligators, intergenerational trauma
Friday, July 19, 2019
The UK’s Dubious Role in the New Tanker War With Iran
Unpacking the issues in the seizure of an Iranian tanker.
“The Ten Brexit Questions No-One’s Giving a Straight Answer To”
A short Brexit update and some questions on the state of Labour.
Trump Was [Selectively] Right About the Dollar
Turns out Trump was not all wrong in saying the dollar was overpriced.
China: The Covert Credit Superpower
An new working paper by Sebastian Horn, Carmen Reinhart and Christoph Trebesch on China’s foreign lending has some important findings, such as that China accounts for more than 40% of the external debt of 50 developing countries. We’ve embedded the document at the end of this post. The study is an ambitious undertaking, seeking to […]
2:00PM Water Cooler 7/18/2019
Today’s Water Cooler: Booker, Sanders, Trump, AOC vs. Trump vs. Pelosi, centrist Democrat angst, business outlook, leading indicators, sleep tracking apps, Boeing, miltary hydrocarbons, California wildfires, ocean temperatures, games and Big Stream, CBD, Bezos and the planet, Storm Area 51
Everything’s Fine Until Suddenly it Isn’t: How a “Leveraged Loan” Blows Up
A post-mortem of a leveraged loan bust: private equity wins, too bad for everyone holding the bag.
Why Are Billionaires Like Jeff Bezos So Interested in Space?
There are good reasons to be leery of billionaires colonizing a public sector activity like space exploration.
Agroecology as Innovation
A UN report on agroecology finds that many farming methods pooh-poohed as traditional offer significant advantages over industrial farming.
Banks Again Hoist on Their Cost-Cutting Petard: Burgeoning Credit Card Fraud
Credit card companies are paying for their stinginess via being exposed to rapidly rising levels of fraud.
2:00PM Water Cooler 7/17/2019
Today’s Water Cooler: Castro, Gabbard, Sanders, Warren, IA, PA, fundraising, immigration numbers, AOC v. Pelosi, housing, Prime Day, social media and depression, EU GND, Christians and climate change, weaponized ticks?, Magic: The Gathering includes a Turing Machine (!), free trade, Elon Mush brain mods
As Flood Risks Rise Across the US, It’s Time to Recognize the Limits of Levees
How levees become counterproductive as flood severity increases.
