On September 11th, 2001, I was in my 5th floor office on King Street in Alexandria. From my window, I could see the Capitol and Washington Monument, as well Potomac side of the Pentagon. Early that morning, everybody began rushing to the conference rooms, watching television coverage of the World Trade Center in New York. Then, they rushed into my office to see the Pentagon. …
I agree with President Trump about the infamous section 230 of the Communications Decency Act of 1996 . . . but for a different reason. When the social media industry was getting started, there was understandable concern that they might be held liable for things written on or advocated on their websites. For example, should the website owners be held liable if a user advocated…
If you think it has been a long time since Trump was elected in the Fall of 2016, then offer condolences to your British friends, who have been living with increasing anxiety since the Summer of that year, as the Brexit negotiations dragged on and on. A month ago, those negotiations were dead, and Britain faced a “hard exit” from the European Union at yearend,…
An old friend was driving by and saw me. As she slowed down and lowered her window, I rummaged in my pocket for a mask. After exchanging the customary pleasantries, I asked if she had any special plans for Christmas? She answered “Jim, you know I don’t have any kids.” Later, I wondered about that linkage between kids and holy observances? One theory is that…
Seldom do I listen to angry old white men, especially those who already know everything. You know the type – more opinions than thoughts. But, John Bolton does have an interesting opinion. You’ll recall he was U.N. ambassador for President George W. Bush, and National Security Advisor to President Trump, until he was fired. This weekend, he was discussing the latest massive hack of America’s…
All of us have received those annual “what we have done” letters from our friends and relatives each year. However, we received one from our friend and neighbor, Ivana Basnight, that I thought was original and meaningful. She points out that 2020 was not all bad. With her permission, here is her message: Christmas Greeting 2020 – A Simple Message This Year – JOY, We…
In 1962, a popular movie was called “The Music Man.” One scene involved a parade, playing “76 Trombones”. At the parade went by, onlookers jumped into the end of it. After all, they didn’t want to miss the parade. In recent weeks, several prominent, high-profile investment figures on Wall Street have said they are buying bitcoin and other crypto-currencies. They point out the extensive media…
I support President Trump’s legal attack on social media giants, such as Facebook and Google, but for a different reason. The FTC and antitrust division of the Department of Justice have been moribund since the last Bush Administration. They slept peacefully during the unfortunate consolidation of the hospital industry and also in the hotel industry. Suddenly, Trump woke them up to attack Facebook. The European…
There is a difference between rising anxiety and rising dread. Before my father came ashore in Normandy during World War II, he spent two-three very-long-months in Colchester, England, preparing for the invasion. He told me that it was a time of rising anxiety – increasing worry about the unknown. What would happen to them in France? The wait was excruciating. More recently, our national health…
As a longtime member of the National Association of Business Economics, I always look forward to their member-survey of economic conditions. In no particular order, here are some of their latest predictions: After the whipsaw Q3 increase in GDP of 33.1%, we expect GDP will increase only 4.1% in this quarter and 2.9% in the next quarter – a definite slowdown! GDP will grow 3.4%…
Take a look at this graph, and you will see how the stock market rebounds after a major bear market, which is defined as a 30% drop. This has happened six times since 1950. Looking at the gray line, you can see that, historically, the stock market rose slightly more than 40% on average in the first 250 trading days after the market bottom. Looking…
First, there is Thanksgiving Thursday, followed by Black Friday, followed by Cyber Monday, followed by Giving Tuesday, which was yesterday. Some people refer to the Season of Giving as the Season of Guilt. When the continuous Medicare commercials end on December 7th, you will notice a surge in commercials featuring sick kids or suffering animals. You know . . . show some Christmas spirit by…