Or perhaps you are antifragile in preparation to a Black Swan, and robust to the Black Swan when it happens.protagonist wrote:I guess I am robust, then. At least that is something. I wish I was antifragile and made money.
Victoria
Or perhaps you are antifragile in preparation to a Black Swan, and robust to the Black Swan when it happens.protagonist wrote:I guess I am robust, then. At least that is something. I wish I was antifragile and made money.
Well, I didn't lose money in the long run, but I did in the short run, and I didn't make money either........ That's not an antifragile result, is it?VictoriaF wrote:Or perhaps you are antifragile in preparation to a Black Swan, and robust to the Black Swan when it happens.protagonist wrote:I guess I am robust, then. At least that is something. I wish I was antifragile and made money.
Victoria
The more I read this thread (and I can't stop) the more confusing it seems and the more certain I am that it will spoil the book for me. But I have to ask: does Taleb take up happiness, the general feeling of contentment and well-being, the natural resilience to adversity that is largely inherited, or does he mention optimism, which Kahneman says is largely inherited? Both play huge roles in an individual's response to minor or major shocks.VictoriaF wrote:...
Black Swans happen, and you cannot do anything about them. That is, you cannot do anything about the Black Swans. You can do something about yourself; you can make yourself antifragile. You cannot possibly know which Black Swan will land in your backyard, but if you are antifragile you have a better chance of dealing with her. [...Victoria
Our responses to stressors are as you say, likely mostly inherited. Genetics define a range with limits, but training and experience can help an individual optimize his behavior within his limited range. Just as most of us can learn to play an instrument pretty well through years of hard work, but some of us will play much better than others and very few will ever become a Mozart, I would imagine that we can also learn to optimize our individual capacity for resiliency through training and experience (using the word "resiliency" loosely, not the way Taleb might use it, since I have not read the book).Fallible wrote: The more I read this thread (and I can't stop) the more confusing it seems and the more certain I am that it will spoil the book for me. But I have to ask: does Taleb take up happiness, the general feeling of contentment and well-being, the natural resilience to adversity that is largely inherited, or does he mention optimism, which Kahneman says is largely inherited? Both play huge roles in an individual's response to minor or major shocks.
Given the numerous examples of things in Antifragile that are fragile in one context and antifragile in another, I think it's clear that Taleb regards fragility as a property with respect to some stressor. I prefer the vega (or ex ante / second moment) definition of fragility, alluded to in one of the footnotes, as opposed to ex post measures. (For example. a call option is antifragile with respect to share price uncertainty, but is not robust to unexpected declines in share price.) Under the vega definition of fragility, EE bonds are clearly antifragile with respect to nominal interest rate uncertainty, and I bonds are antifragile with respect to real interest rate uncertainty, due to their redemption options. They will be fragile/robust in some contexts, such as when immediate liquidity is required (your example).hsv_climber wrote:Imagine "Fat Nassim" and "Dr.Timer". Both are 50% stocks / 50% bonds. "Fat Nassim" is 50% in T-bills, but "Dr. Timer" is 50% in I-bonds.
Who is more antifragile during Flash Crash of 2010 and market crash of 1987? If you know the story behind Taleb's success then you know that "Fat Nassim" would put his 50% of T-bills into stocks or other risky assets on those crash days, so crashes made him richer; thus, stronger and "antifragile".
OTOH, "Dr.Timer" won't be able to move the funds from TreasuryDirect into his brokerage account fast enough to benefit from it. So, while he did not sell, crashes did not make him richer or stronger, he stayed the same. That makes him resilient or robust. But not antifragile.
Thus, by Taleb's definitions, I-bonds offer robustness, not antifragility.
Good points about different contexts.market timer wrote: Given the numerous examples of things in Antifragile that are fragile in one context and antifragile in another, I think it's clear that Taleb regards fragility as a property with respect to some stressor. I prefer the vega (or ex ante / second moment) definition of fragility, alluded to in one of the footnotes, as opposed to ex post measures. (For example. a call option is antifragile with respect to share price uncertainty, but is not robust to unexpected declines in share price.) Under the vega definition of fragility, EE bonds are clearly antifragile with respect to nominal interest rate uncertainty, and I bonds are antifragile with respect to real interest rate uncertainty, due to their redemption options. They will be fragile/robust in some contexts, such as when immediate liquidity is required (your example).
Yes he does, but apparently that's all part of his awesomeness. A keen grasp of the obvious.gd wrote:I'm only on page 70, but he's already bloviated thoroughly on this point. [snip] He's just chosen to write a book focusing and expounding on it. And bloviate. Lots and lots of bloviation...
Yeah, the adulation in this thread leaves me shaking my head. Then again I don't get the appeal of Ayn Rand either.hsv-climber wrote:I really don't understand why should we have a cult of a person and then apply our personal investment...
I would say IBonds are anti-fragile to hyperinflation- i.e. they will be the likely be the winner in that scenario.hsv_climber wrote:Good points about different contexts.market timer wrote: Given the numerous examples of things in Antifragile that are fragile in one context and antifragile in another, I think it's clear that Taleb regards fragility as a property with respect to some stressor. I prefer the vega (or ex ante / second moment) definition of fragility, alluded to in one of the footnotes, as opposed to ex post measures. (For example. a call option is antifragile with respect to share price uncertainty, but is not robust to unexpected declines in share price.) Under the vega definition of fragility, EE bonds are clearly antifragile with respect to nominal interest rate uncertainty, and I bonds are antifragile with respect to real interest rate uncertainty, due to their redemption options. They will be fragile/robust in some contexts, such as when immediate liquidity is required (your example).
But I don't think I/EE-bonds would ever be antifragile. By Taleb's definition, antifragile means gains under some stress.
Exact definition is "Anti-fragility goes beyond robustness; it means that something does not merely withstand a shock but actually improves because of it.". But I-bonds won't gain anything extra with rising real interest rates, they'd just the same. That is the property of "robustness". Shorting treasury bonds would be antifragile with rising rates. I really can't think of an example that would make I-bonds either antifragile or fragile (maybe except higher taxes or US default in the future?), but they are "robust" in almost every situation. And that is a very good property to have as well and that is what makes them useful in the portfolio.
protagonist wrote:[quote="pastafarian"Yeah, the adulation in this thread leaves me shaking my head. Then again I don't get the appeal of Ayn Rand either.
"There are two novels that can change a bookish fourteen-year old's life: The Lord of the Rings and Atlas Shrugged. One is a childish fantasy that often engenders a lifelong obsession with its unbelievable heroes, leading to an emotionally stunted, socially crippled adulthood, unable to deal with the real world. The other, of course, involves orcs."Matt Taibbi seemed to get the entire gist of Ayn Rand, reducing it to the following in Griftopia:
“To sum it all up, the [Ayn] Rand belief system looks like this:
1. Facts are facts: things can be absolutely right or absolutely wrong, as determined by reason.
2. According to my reasoning, I am absolutely right.
3. Charity is immoral.
4. Pay for your own f***ing schools.”
Unfortunately, vast portions of our species are oblivious to the obvious. And everybody to something. His books are interesting to me because they provoke thought by waving around a lot of stuff I haven't thought about, making connections I haven't made. In some cases the value is the mental exercise of figuring out why I don't agree with him. His points are not necessarily (if ever) novel, but they are underappreciated, and if this interests you he does a nice job of beating them to death. I find it handy to have a tablet nearby (his book is hardback from library) and every few pages find myself looking up some passing historical trivia-- last night it was Maxwell's 1868 "On Governors" paper. I suspect I'll get through about half the book, return it to the library, and check it out next year to finish. Or not.pastafarian wrote:.... A keen grasp of the obvious.
I'd say that you are forgetting about taxes. Lets say there is a hyperinflation of 25% / year. Don't forget that you are keeping I-bonds in a taxable account and the only real value you are going to get from them is when you sell or at the end of a 30-year period. But that is a taxable event. So, your huge gains will be taxable; and with 0% real rate, you are guaranteed to lose a lot of original purchasing power of the money that you've invested.grok87 wrote: I would say IBonds are anti-fragile to hyperinflation- i.e. they will be the likely be the winner in that scenario.
TIPs may or may not do well. It depends on what happens to real rates. Tips real rates might rise in a hyper-inflation scenario if there is suspicion that inflation is being understated/underestimated.
cheers,
You raise a good point. i don't have access to a Roth though. I guess one way to look at it is if all else fails and i have little other income, perhaps my tax rate will be low enough that it won't matter. So sort of a hedge on future poverty I guess...hsv_climber wrote:I'd say that you are forgetting about taxes. Lets say there is a hyperinflation of 25% / year. Don't forget that you are keeping I-bonds in a taxable account and the only real value you are going to get from them is when you sell or at the end of a 30-year period. But that is a taxable event. So, your huge gains will be taxable; and with 0% real rate, you are guaranteed to lose a lot of original purchasing power of the money that you've invested.grok87 wrote: I would say IBonds are anti-fragile to hyperinflation- i.e. they will be the likely be the winner in that scenario.
TIPs may or may not do well. It depends on what happens to real rates. Tips real rates might rise in a hyper-inflation scenario if there is suspicion that inflation is being understated/underestimated.
cheers,
OTOH, TIPS, which are hold in RothIRA, would allow you to keep your purchasing power even with 0% real coupon.
Things that are anti-fragile and do really well in hyperinflation scenario are real goods, like gold, metals, oil, real estate, etc. where prices rise with inflation, but no taxable event is automatically triggered.
I was just discussing this "hedging on future poverty" thing with a frequent poster. The best hedge on future poverty is to stop thinking Southern California and the Riviera, and start thinking South America, Asia, etc. You don't know how nice it can be until you have tried it. I live like a king by a windsurfing beach on a Caribbean island of Venezuela for less than $1000/month (upper limit estimate) to escape New England winters. What I save on heating costs alone in 4 months (plus rental income from my MA home ), funds long music education vacations in France in the summer and keeps my annual retirement budget well below SWR limits, despite the fact that I'm no Warren Buffett, and my life in Massachusetts is hardly spartan. Asset allocation can go just so far when you are spending your money and nothing seems to safely and reliably beat inflation. If things really hit the fan and the stock market drops 95% I could move there full-time and live well on under $10K/yr, windsurfing daily, eating fresh fish dinners, etc. Being anti-fragile means thinking out of the box. I don't know if Taleb does that or not, or if he over-complicates what seems to me to be glaringly simple solutions. I'll read the book someday perhaps.grok87 wrote: You raise a good point. i don't have access to a Roth though. I guess one way to look at it is if all else fails and i have little other income, perhaps my tax rate will be low enough that it won't matter. So sort of a hedge on future poverty I guess...
I guess I'm not getting the concept of someone wanting to rent your house in Massachusetts just for the winter (4 months).protagonist wrote:I was just discussing this "hedging on future poverty" thing with a frequent poster. The best hedge on future poverty is to stop thinking Southern California and the Riviera, and start thinking South America, Asia, etc. You don't know how nice it can be until you have tried it. I live like a king by a windsurfing beach on a Caribbean island of Venezuela for less than $1000/month (upper limit estimate) to escape New England winters. What I save on heating costs alone in 4 months (plus rental income from my MA home ), funds long music education vacations in France in the summer and keeps my annual retirement budget well below SWR limits, despite the fact that I'm no Warren Buffett, and my life in Massachusetts is hardly spartan. Asset allocation can go just so far when you are spending your money and nothing seems to safely and reliably beat inflation. If things really hit the fan and the stock market drops 95% I could move there full-time and live well on under $10K/yr, windsurfing daily, eating fresh fish dinners, etc. Being anti-fragile means thinking out of the box. I don't know if Taleb does that or not, or if he over-complicates what seems to me to be glaringly simple solutions. I'll read the book someday perhaps.grok87 wrote: You raise a good point. i don't have access to a Roth though. I guess one way to look at it is if all else fails and i have little other income, perhaps my tax rate will be low enough that it won't matter. So sort of a hedge on future poverty I guess...
And when Chavez nationalizes my condo and moves in 24 Venezuelans, you will all have the last laugh. But whatever. All the world is but a stage.
Me neither. But that is part of the point. (smiling) The huge financial savings dwarfs just the fact that I don't have to be there until the flowers pop out.grok87 wrote:I guess I'm not getting the concept of someone wanting to rent your house in Massachusetts just for the winter (4 months).protagonist wrote:I was just discussing this "hedging on future poverty" thing with a frequent poster. The best hedge on future poverty is to stop thinking Southern California and the Riviera, and start thinking South America, Asia, etc. You don't know how nice it can be until you have tried it. I live like a king by a windsurfing beach on a Caribbean island of Venezuela for less than $1000/month (upper limit estimate) to escape New England winters. What I save on heating costs alone in 4 months (plus rental income from my MA home ), funds long music education vacations in France in the summer and keeps my annual retirement budget well below SWR limits, despite the fact that I'm no Warren Buffett, and my life in Massachusetts is hardly spartan. Asset allocation can go just so far when you are spending your money and nothing seems to safely and reliably beat inflation. If things really hit the fan and the stock market drops 95% I could move there full-time and live well on under $10K/yr, windsurfing daily, eating fresh fish dinners, etc. Being anti-fragile means thinking out of the box. I don't know if Taleb does that or not, or if he over-complicates what seems to me to be glaringly simple solutions. I'll read the book someday perhaps.grok87 wrote: You raise a good point. i don't have access to a Roth though. I guess one way to look at it is if all else fails and i have little other income, perhaps my tax rate will be low enough that it won't matter. So sort of a hedge on future poverty I guess...
And when Chavez nationalizes my condo and moves in 24 Venezuelans, you will all have the last laugh. But whatever. All the world is but a stage.
protagonist wrote:Me neither. But that is part of the point. (smiling) The huge financial savings dwarfs just the fact that I don't have to be there until the flowers pop out and I can wear sandals.grok87 wrote:I guess I'm not getting the concept of someone wanting to rent your house in Massachusetts just for the winter (4 months).protagonist wrote:I was just discussing this "hedging on future poverty" thing with a frequent poster. The best hedge on future poverty is to stop thinking Southern California and the Riviera, and start thinking South America, Asia, etc. You don't know how nice it can be until you have tried it. I live like a king by a windsurfing beach on a Caribbean island of Venezuela for less than $1000/month (upper limit estimate) to escape New England winters. What I save on heating costs alone in 4 months (plus rental income from my MA home ), funds long music education vacations in France in the summer and keeps my annual retirement budget well below SWR limits, despite the fact that I'm no Warren Buffett, and my life in Massachusetts is hardly spartan. Asset allocation can go just so far when you are spending your money and nothing seems to safely and reliably beat inflation. If things really hit the fan and the stock market drops 95% I could move there full-time and live well on under $10K/yr, windsurfing daily, eating fresh fish dinners, etc. Being anti-fragile means thinking out of the box. I don't know if Taleb does that or not, or if he over-complicates what seems to me to be glaringly simple solutions. I'll read the book someday perhaps.grok87 wrote: You raise a good point. i don't have access to a Roth though. I guess one way to look at it is if all else fails and i have little other income, perhaps my tax rate will be low enough that it won't matter. So sort of a hedge on future poverty I guess...
And when Chavez nationalizes my condo and moves in 24 Venezuelans, you will all have the last laugh. But whatever. All the world is but a stage.
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/17/books ... ?ref=booksA reader could easily run out of adjectives to describe Nassim Nicholas Taleb’s new book “Antifragile: Things That Gain From Disorder.” The first ones that come to mind are: maddening, bold, repetitious, judgmental, intemperate, erudite, reductive, shrewd, self-indulgent, self-congratulatory, provocative, pompous, penetrating, perspicacious and pretentious.
Hi Joe,JMacDonald wrote:Here is a review of the book in the NY Times today:http://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/17/books ... ?ref=booksA reader could easily run out of adjectives to describe Nassim Nicholas Taleb’s new book “Antifragile: Things That Gain From Disorder.” The first ones that come to mind are: maddening, bold, repetitious, judgmental, intemperate, erudite, reductive, shrewd, self-indulgent, self-congratulatory, provocative, pompous, penetrating, perspicacious and pretentious.
Hi Victoria,VictoriaF wrote:Hi Joe,JMacDonald wrote:Here is a review of the book in the NY Times today:http://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/17/books ... ?ref=booksA reader could easily run out of adjectives to describe Nassim Nicholas Taleb’s new book “Antifragile: Things That Gain From Disorder.” The first ones that come to mind are: maddening, bold, repetitious, judgmental, intemperate, erudite, reductive, shrewd, self-indulgent, self-congratulatory, provocative, pompous, penetrating, perspicacious and pretentious.
Thank you for the link. Don't you think that the list of adjectives you cited is more extensive than most other books can claim?
Victoria
You may want to check calendars of the bookstores in your area. The last time I looked, Taleb's website listed only the initial events in NYC and Philadelphia.JMacDonald wrote: I go to book signings here on the left coast when someone I am interested in comes to town. Maybe Mr. Taleb will be in this area on his book tour.
I checked to see if there was a schedule for his book tour, but I couldn't find anything. Here are the two places that I have been to for book signings:VictoriaF wrote:You may want to check calendars of the bookstores in your area. The last time I looked, Taleb's website listed only the initial events in NYC and Philadelphia.JMacDonald wrote: I go to book signings here on the left coast when someone I am interested in comes to town. Maybe Mr. Taleb will be in this area on his book tour.
Victoria
Here is a link to Taleb's schedule. He has University of Chicago there. Perhaps, he will come to UCLA?JMacDonald wrote:I checked to see if there was a schedule for his book tour, but I couldn't find anything. Here are the two places that I have been to for book signings:VictoriaF wrote:You may want to check calendars of the bookstores in your area. The last time I looked, Taleb's website listed only the initial events in NYC and Philadelphia.JMacDonald wrote: I go to book signings here on the left coast when someone I am interested in comes to town. Maybe Mr. Taleb will be in this area on his book tour.
Victoria
Los Angeles Main Library: http://www.lfla.org/aloud/upcoming.php
Vroman's Bookstore started in 1894: http://www.vromansbookstore.com/event
Thanks.VictoriaF wrote:Here is a link to Taleb's schedule. He has University of Chicago there. Perhaps, he will come to UCLA?JMacDonald wrote:I checked to see if there was a schedule for his book tour, but I couldn't find anything. Here are the two places that I have been to for book signings:VictoriaF wrote:You may want to check calendars of the bookstores in your area. The last time I looked, Taleb's website listed only the initial events in NYC and Philadelphia.JMacDonald wrote: I go to book signings here on the left coast when someone I am interested in comes to town. Maybe Mr. Taleb will be in this area on his book tour.
Victoria
Los Angeles Main Library: http://www.lfla.org/aloud/upcoming.php
Vroman's Bookstore started in 1894: http://www.vromansbookstore.com/event
Victoria
Thanks for the link to the ny times review. I read it. I then went back and read the wsj review. I agree with the wsj review more.JMacDonald wrote:Here is a review of the book in the NY Times today:http://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/17/books ... ?ref=booksA reader could easily run out of adjectives to describe Nassim Nicholas Taleb’s new book “Antifragile: Things That Gain From Disorder.” The first ones that come to mind are: maddening, bold, repetitious, judgmental, intemperate, erudite, reductive, shrewd, self-indulgent, self-congratulatory, provocative, pompous, penetrating, perspicacious and pretentious.
I suppose you could have used quotation marks and attributed the remarks to Wendy...or not. At the risk of getting this thread locked, Rand is mind numbingly boring...and I simply could not force myself to get very far into her work. Geez the sheer physical heft of her work, to me at least, is truly a waste of trees. I felt the same way when reading the Communist Manifesto or assigned works of Soviet Literature in the genre known as "socialist realist" in the west. And while probably not fair or accurate, I'm inclined to lump acolytes of Rand into the same bin with those of L Ron Hubbard.james22 wrote:I’m not trying to mock [Rand's detractors] here – [they are] just repeating an old propaganda line that was hatched by Rand’s opponents – but I have to ask the “adults” who claim they outgrew Rand exactly what earth-shattering insight they have learned against her solution to the problem of universals? Against her solution to the is-ought problem? To her foundation of knowledge in the axiomatic validity of sense perception? To her theory of the locus of free will? How about her theory of aesthetics?
http://www.forbes.com/sites/realspin/20 ... mself-out/
On topic: I'm a Taleb fan, myself.
VictoriaTom Bartlett wrote:I had lunch with Nassim Nicholas Taleb. It didn't go well.
gatorking wrote:I recommend reading the book "resilience" http://resiliencethebook.com/ It seems to cover the same ground as Anti-Fragile (which I haven't read) but with the advantage of not being written by Taleb.
I recommend that you read in order: Fooled by Randomness, The Black Swan, Antifragile.EyeYield wrote:Would it be beneficial to start with Fooled By Randomness then proceed through The Black Swan first or just dive into Antifragile?
In my opinion, not before finishing The Black Swan. One has to get used to Taleb's way of thinking and know his background before reading his aphorisms.nisiprius wrote:And where, in that sequence, would you recommend reading The Bed of Procrustes: Philosophical and Practical Aphorisms?
Thanks Victoria, that's what I gathered from reading the excerpts. Looking forward to them and taking a break from general investing and retirement reading.VictoriaF wrote:I recommend that you read in order: Fooled by Randomness, The Black Swan, Antifragile.
Fooled by Randomness is technically interesting, whereas The Black Swan is more philosophical. You have to like Taleb of Fooled by Randomness to be interested in his philosophy. Then you will read The Black Swan and think, "OK, Nassim, I get it, there are some extreme things that I have no inkling about and that may completely change my life. Is there anything I can do about them?" Once you internalize the question, you will look into Antifragile for the answers.
Good luck,
Victoria
VictoriaF wrote: Then you will read The Black Swan and think, "OK, Nassim, I get it, there are some extreme things that I have no inkling about and that may completely change my life. Is there anything I can do about them?" Once you internalize the question, you will look into Antifragile for the answers.
Good luck,
Victoria
Hello Protagonist,protagonist wrote:So what new substance can Taleb add to my understanding that would justify all that reading? I WANT to want to read him, but so far I am not that motivated by what I have learned from you and the posts above. It seems like it may be much ado about the obvious.
One of the most important insights for me was about scalable and un-scalable occupations. In scalable occupations people can win big, but the masses engaged in these occupations are doomed to obscurity. A trader puts as much effort into a $1k trade as into a $100k trade, but the outcomes are dramatically different. An author puts as much effort into writing a bestselling book as in a book that will sell in single digits. Luck plays an enormous role in scalable occupations. Taleb was lucky in both his trading and writing, but he does not recommend others to follow his path.protagonist wrote:Please try to convince me that all that reading of Taleb might teach me something new , perhaps by telling me some insight that Taleb expresses that I (and many others) don't already know and haven't internalized.
Black Swans could represent a sudden disease or an unexpected recovery. For me, an instantaneous death is better than alternatives, and I would consider it a positive Black Swan. Of course, the main feature of Black Swans is that they surprise us.protagonist wrote:By the way, though not technically a "black swan", I assume we are all going to die, yet none of us know when or how. If you have ever come very close, you may have more of an internalized appreciation of "black swans".
To some extent I am playing devil's advocate. To another I am very serious.
Respectfully,
protag.
I read Matt Taibbi's "Griftopia" to get a better understanding of the financial crisis. He, like Hunter S. Thompson, and (from what people say here) perhaps like Taibbi , is an engaging and incendiary author (also like Thompson, but perhaps not like Taleb, often offensive and profane). I don't know enough about the underlying subject matter to evaluate whether or not he got his facts right. But I had to read the whole thing to get an understanding of complex ideas that I had not previously encountered, such as collateral debt obligations squared, default credit swaps, etc. Cliff's notes would never have done that for me.VictoriaF wrote:
The lesson I learned was to rely on my un-scalable occupation for my general well-being and venture into scalable pursuits in my spare time to test my luck. Perhaps, you have learned this lesson already. Perhaps, my description has provided a time saving shortcut. I have never used Cliff Notes, but that's me.
You read that to avoid reading rest of Marx-- which is much more subtle. Marx the critic still cannot be ignored, even if Marx the Prophet turned out to be horribly, tragically wrong.protagonist wrote: That is also why I never bothered reading stuff like the Communist Manifesto,
Of historical interest. The books of madmen *do* matter if they go on to positions of authority. Which is why Rand matters-- she's so influential with the likes of Alan Greenspan etc.Mein Kampf,
It's not the book so much as the application. Having it practised rigorously on you is pretty disturbing. I had a colleague who had picked up (from 'Primary Colors') that trick of grasping your elbow-- creepy. Oh and saying your name a lot when they want to persuade you of something (to your detriment) THAT is SOP at various 'influencing' courses taught at churches and in business contexts.How To Win Friends and Influence People, etc. I assume they can all be summed up in a paragraph or less.
I think it is baby Nietsche. That very adolescent sense that we are alone, superior, benighted and oppressed, and we need to 'break free' from that and become 'free men'.I did read Atlas Shrugged and The Fountainhead, which were a lot of pages to try to convince me that charity was immoral and truth as Rand perceives it is absolute, but I was so much younger then.
I should think the academic year? Lots of people have half term appointments either as professors, or untentured faculty, post grads, grad students, etc.protagonist wrote:Me neither. But that is part of the point. (smiling) The huge financial savings dwarfs just the fact that I don't have to be there until the flowers pop out.grok87 wrote: I guess I'm not getting the concept of someone wanting to rent your house in Massachusetts just for the winter (4 months).
But the thing is that we don't take is seriously until it's too late. Think of Lenin's statement, "The Capitalists will sell us the rope with which we will hang them." The capitalists sold the rope and the communists hung them, literally.Valuethinker wrote:If we'd all sat down and read Mein Kampf in 1936 say (and if there was an English translation) and if some Prussian officers and aristocrats had taken it seriously, then we might have saved the world a *lot* of grief. But we thought he was just writing and would be a reasonable chap once in office.
I never quite recovered from the portrayal of Rand in Tobias Wolf's Old School, I have to admit- -when she and her acolytes come to visit his private school. Her personal life is richly entertaining in the best possible and most salacious way.james22 wrote:I’m not trying to mock [Rand's detractors] here – [they are] just repeating an old propaganda line that was hatched by Rand’s opponents – but I have to ask the “adults” who claim they outgrew Rand exactly what earth-shattering insight they have learned against her solution to the problem of universals? Against her solution to the is-ought problem? To her foundation of knowledge in the axiomatic validity of sense perception? To her theory of the locus of free will? How about her theory of aesthetics?
http://www.forbes.com/sites/realspin/20 ... mself-out/
On topic: I'm a Taleb fan, myself.
? on that.VictoriaF wrote:But the thing is that we don't take is seriously until it's too late. Think of Lenin's statement, "The Capitalists will sell us the rope with which we will hang them." The capitalists sold the rope and the communists hung them, literally.Valuethinker wrote:If we'd all sat down and read Mein Kampf in 1936 say (and if there was an English translation) and if some Prussian officers and aristocrats had taken it seriously, then we might have saved the world a *lot* of grief. But we thought he was just writing and would be a reasonable chap once in office.
Victoria
Along with Charles Ferguson's film Inside Job (which has an agenda, but tells the story well) I can recommend Nouriel Roubini's book as quite comprehensive and balanced.protagonist wrote:I read Matt Taibbi's "Griftopia" to get a better understanding of the financial crisis. He, like Hunter S. Thompson, and (from what people say here) perhaps like Taibbi , is an engaging and incendiary author (also like Thompson, but perhaps not like Taleb, often offensive and profane). I don't know enough about the underlying subject matter to evaluate whether or not he got his facts right. But I had to read the whole thing to get an understanding of complex ideas that I had not previously encountered, such as collateral debt obligations squared, default credit swaps, etc. Cliff's notes would never have done that for me..VictoriaF wrote:
The lesson I learned was to rely on my un-scalable occupation for my general well-being and venture into scalable pursuits in my spare time to test my luck. Perhaps, you have learned this lesson already. Perhaps, my description has provided a time saving shortcut. I have never used Cliff Notes, but that's me.
I don't recall the details, but I think Western entrepreneurs ("capitalists") were trading with Russia just as their countries were fighting it.Valuethinker wrote:? on that.VictoriaF wrote:But the thing is that we don't take is seriously until it's too late. Think of Lenin's statement, "The Capitalists will sell us the rope with which we will hang them." The capitalists sold the rope and the communists hung them, literally.Valuethinker wrote:If we'd all sat down and read Mein Kampf in 1936 say (and if there was an English translation) and if some Prussian officers and aristocrats had taken it seriously, then we might have saved the world a *lot* of grief. But we thought he was just writing and would be a reasonable chap once in office.
Victoria
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Once they were in power, the Bolsheviks fought a war against every capitalist power there was: German, US, Britain, Japan, Canada all invaded Russia and fought on the White side against the Reds.
Viewing "The Capitalists" as a collective is a communist view of history. To a capitalist "the capitalists" are nothing but a group of competing individuals. Some of whom did quite well by selling the rope to hang their competitors.VictoriaF wrote: But the thing is that we don't take is seriously until it's too late. Think of Lenin's statement, "The Capitalists will sell us the rope with which we will hang them." The capitalists sold the rope and the communists hung them, literally.
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The communists were exploiting these individualities while trying to create a unified and expanding force. Thankfully they have not succeeded.Epsilon Delta wrote:Viewing "The Capitalists" as a collective is a communist view of history. To a capitalist "the capitalists" are nothing but a group of competing individuals. Some of whom did quite well by selling the rope to hang their competitors.VictoriaF wrote: But the thing is that we don't take is seriously until it's too late. Think of Lenin's statement, "The Capitalists will sell us the rope with which we will hang them." The capitalists sold the rope and the communists hung them, literally.
Victoria