The US is losing power and geopolitical legitimacy by its mishandling, or one might say misguided handling, its clients Israel and Ukraine.
Thursday, January 1, 2026
Jim Chanos: “The Crypto Ecosystem Is Well-Suited for the Dark Side of Finance.”
The famed short-seller talks Sam Bankman-Fried, why Wall Street is still so keen on crypto, and how technology is making us dumber
2:00PM Water Cooler 11/9/2023
~ Today’s Water Cooler: Open Thread ~
The Fed’s Bank Capital Three-Card Monte: Undermines Tighter Rules by Allowing Synthetic Risk Transfers to Famed Hedge Fund Bad Actors Like Magnetar, Ares
The Fed again seems unable to contain its bad impulses.
The ‘Pay-or-Consent’ Challenge for Platform Regulators
Users expect online services to be free but some digital firms are now offering pay-or-consent options, affecting competition dynamics.
Resources to Save ‘Every Creeping Thing of the Earth’ Are Limited. What Would Noah Do?
A discussion of Martin Weitzman’s ideas about the best way to look at species preservation.
2:00PM Water Cooler 11/8/2023
By Lambert Strether of Corrente. Bird Song of the Day Common Nightingale (golzii), Ile River Delta–Zheltorangy Poplars; Almaty, Kazakhstan. * * * Politics “So many of the social reactions that strike us as psychological are in fact a rational management of symbolic capital.” –Pierre Bourdieu, Classification Struggles Capitol Seizure Hmm: A person is disqualified from […]
UN Special Rapporteur Calls Out Walmart, Amazon, DoorDash as Creating Poverty by Not Paying Living Wages
Major companies like Walmart create poverty via obscenely low pay, most recently confirmed via a UN special rapporteur.
Biomedical Science versus Biomedicine, a Continuing Series
A case study of biomedical science progress against cystic fibrosis, and the resulting “biomedicine” profiteering.
What Did the Houthis’ Attempted Bombing of Israel Aim to Achieve?
The Houthis are trying to mix things up, at least a little bit, in the conflict in Gaza. To what end?
PPPs Fiscal Hoax Is a Blank Financial Silver Bullet
More on why public private partnerships, aka PPPs, amount to private enrichment at public expense, not just governments but also users.
2:00PM Water Cooler 11/7/2023
~ Today’s Water Cooler ~
