Year: 2009

Truth in Media

CNBC and Karl Denninger

Karl was a guest of CNBC’s The Kudlow Report screened last Friday evening.

Great entertainment but so little bandwidth for serious discussion about really important investment matters.

Karl then recorded a couple of YouTube videos, which must have taken some time to prepare, to show that some subjects cannot be reduced to a few minutes ‘hip’ broadcasting.

Two versions of getting to the truth of a situation.

All three vidoes can be viewed here. (In total about 30 minutes but well worth the time.)

By Paul Handover         Disclosure: Heavily invested in Long-Dated US Treasuries.

Brahma Kumaris, an update

It has been brought to my attention by a concerned reader of this Blog that there may be some aspects of the above organisation that would be unacceptable to many of you.  Whether or not this is true is besides the point.  The previous postings and the link to that organisation’s web site have been deleted.  We will find an alternative way to offer you a small distraction from the busy day.

The feedback was very much appreciated.

By Paul Handover

Moon landing exactly 40 years ago today!

At exactly 20:17 UTC/GMT today on July 20th 1969 mankind started a journey to outer space when Neil Armstrong stepped onto the surface of the Moon.

That time translates to:

  • 14.17 Pacific Time
  • 16:17 Eastern Daylight Time
  • 20:17 GMT/UTC
  • 21:17 British Summer Time

NASA’s 40th Anniversary Web Site has all the details including the link to a replay of ‘real time’ audio of the event.

By Paul Handover

What’s the Truth about Global Warming?

Let’s start with an admission.  For a long time the arguments supporting global warming seemed irrefutable.  Al Gore’s film An Inconvenient Truth seemed to popularise what was suspected.  We aren’t doing enough to combat planetary warming and it is going to destroy man’s habitat on Planet Earth.

But over the years a few doubts have started to bubble up.

  • Governments find global warming a great excuse to raise taxes (I know, call me a cynic!).
  • Most of those taxes have little effect on changing behaviours, surely the point of government policy.
  • Demographic changes mean that global population levels will fall drastically, of their own accord.
  • Research into global warming is frequently funded by Governments so, perhaps, there is a natural bias in favour of giving Governments what they want to hear (see first point).

So it was interesting to read in a recent Fortune Magazine article about Professor John R. Christy raising some well-argued alternative views.  But, hey, Fortune Magazine would promote an anti-global warming agenda, wouldn’t they!

But a quick Google search came across a fascinating lecture recorded on YouTube with the title, Global Warming – what do the numbers show? It runs for an hour but surely the truth about the state of the planet is worth at least an hour of your time.  Watch it.

By Paul Handover