Warnings from Keynes and Kipling about our mad empire
Hubris is the destroyer of Empires. The mad American Empire might be next. We can learn from Britain’s history. Or we can crash on our own.
Hubris is the destroyer of Empires. The mad American Empire might be next. We can learn from Britain’s history. Or we can crash on our own.
Summary: As part of our holiday festivities, here’s an article by one of the great intellects of the 20th century. John Maynard Keynes made seminal contributions in statistics, risk management, and (above all) macroeconomics. Here he looks at our future, seeing things already happening yet about which we remain unaware — with even better news …
One of the 20th century’s top minds sees a great 21st century for humanity Read More »
Summary: A sad aspect of our age is the willful blindness we impose on ourselves. It’s not just the blindness to our world so often described on this website, but also blindness to our past. To avoid learning from our sages we mutilate their message — then laugh at the debased result. Perhaps the clearest …
Summary: Bad decisions often transform a crisis into a disaster. Sometimes bad decisions are unavoidable. Today we’ll look at two episodes of the past, mining them for useful lessons for us about leadership. Contents Introduction Learning from the Titanic Learning from the Great Depression Looking at responses to the 2008-2009 crash, and the crises that …
The Titanic’s lessons for us about the coming economic crisis Read More »
Summary: This week Europe’s leaders faced a choice somewhat similar and perhaps equally momentous as America’s leaders faced in 1787. But this week they chose a path that looks punitive and short-sighted, pursuing European unification but likely to generate discord and eventually fragmentation. Seldom does one act determine the future, but they might find it difficult to …
Europe has chosen a harsh future. All the paths for Greece lead into darkness. Read More »