Monthly Archives: January 2024

The Cult

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That could’ve been the title of Rob Copeland’s gripping inside look at Ray Dalio’s hedge fund, Bridgewater Associates.

Cults seem to have a few things in common including leaders who combine delusions of grandeur with atypical charisma. In the Bridgewater Associates cult, Ray Dalio combined delusions of grandeur with unfathomable wealth which he used to maintain a loyal following. Many Bridgewater employees sacrificed their morals, mental health, and general well-being for the prospects of striking it rich.

The gap between Dalio’s public persona as an investing and human relations genius and Copeland’s portrait of an insecure, simple-minded, self-centered, and cruel bully, is a searing indictment of the financial press.

After reading The Fund, one can’t help but be skeptical, if not hopelessly cynical about anybody with a glowing public persona. With no end in sight, we continue to buy what the rich and famous are so desperately selling.

Almost like we’re in a cult.

Apple’s Next Breakthrough

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Vision Pro. John Gruber, of Daring Fireball, is the rare “Elements of Style” writer who says things simply and succinctly. Vision Pro’s importance is evident in what may be his longest post ever.

Quite literally, for AAPL investors, here’s the money paragraph.

“But I can recommend buying Vision Pro solely for use as a personal theater. I paid $5,000 for my 77-inch LG OLED TV a few years ago. Vision Pro offers a far more compelling experience (including far more compelling spatial surround sound). You’d look at my TV set and almost certainly agree that it’s a nice big TV. But watching movies in the Disney+ and TV apps will make you go “Wow!” These are experiences I never imagined I’d be able to have in my own home (or, say, while flying across the country in an airplane).”

Fast forwarding to Gruber’s final paragraphs:

“Spatial computing in VisionOS is the real deal. It’s a legit productivity computing platform right now, and it’s only going to get better. It sounds like hype, but I truly believe this is a landmark breakthrough like the 1984 Macintosh and the 2007 iPhone.

But if you were to try just one thing using Vision Pro — just one thing — it has to be watching a movie in the TV app, in theater mode. Try that, and no matter how skeptical you were beforehand about the Vision Pro’s price tag, your hand will start inching toward your wallet.”

If you know Gruber’s work, you know it’s not hype. However, the question Gruber and his fellow tech analysts never seem to get around to is whether it will improve our quality of life. Based on Gruber’s review, maybe it will if what’s keeping you from living a more fulfilling life is the unsatisfying quality of your home television and movie watching experience.

History Is Myth

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It’s been Old Home Tour this week. Ventura, LA, Orange Counties.

I would’ve gone with “History is Selective” and/or “History is Contested”, but who am I to argue with her.

Speaking of history, here is where I took my first college history class, “Western Civilization A” with Geoffrey Symcox in the fall of 1980. The Neolithic Revolution, Hammurabi’s Code, Gilgamesh. May sound cliche, but life changing.

Fave “Western Civ” memory. One winter day in “Western Civ B” our whip smart,Turkish Ph.D. student discussion section leader got so disgusted with our lack of preparation, he suddenly announced, “You guys haven’t read! There’s no point in continuing. Class is cancelled!” And then proceeded to pack his leather shoulder bag and walk out. Badass to the core. It’s a real shame I’ve never honored his memory by doing the same.

Speaking of history, last night the GoodWife and I had dinner with SWright, KBabb, and CBabb in suburban Irvine (redunant). After a wonderful dinner and desert, KBabb busted out some Cypress High School memorabilia including the 1979 Varsity Water Polo Team stat sheet.

I coulda sworn I scored more goals at a higher clip, but the history in my head is myth. It will come as no surprise to RZ and other PressingPausers who know me best that I rocked the second-to-last shooting percentage on the team. Major props to Eric Candelaria for having a slightly worser shooting percentage and saving me from bringing up the absolute rear.

To Dan, Dan the Retired Transpo Man and everyone else laughing at me right now, get back to me on how easy it is for you to dominate in the water and on the golf course at damn near the same time.

Paragraphs To Ponder

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File this under “The Fall of the American Empire”.

“Exhibiting a distinctly 21st-century form of raw media power, X has also throttled and punished Mr. Musk’s perceived competitors and foes while reinstating accounts that were previously banned for content violations, some relating to the lie that the 2020 election was stolen. The platform’s algorithm — which dictates how posts are circulated on the site — also now gives added promotion to those who pay to be “verified,” including previously banned accounts.

Among them is @KanekoaTheGreat, a once-banned QAnon influencer who this month circulated a 32-page dossier promoted by Mr. Trump that recounted a barrage of false charges about the 2020 election.

It drew nearly 22 million views.”

More here.

Thirty Two Years of Heartbreak

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“Alas, the end of Camelot came quickly. Since that moment, none of Minnesota’s four major pro sports teams — MLB’s Twins, NBA’s Timberwolves, NHL’s North Stars (later the Wild) and the NFL’s Vikings — have advanced to a championship series or Super Bowl, much less won. The span of 32 title-free years, extended at times via comically unlikely scenarios, is the longest active streak among the nation’s 13 markets with all four leagues present. It’s a decade longer than the next-most starved market in Arizona.”

The whole sordid story is here for your reading displeasure.

Not to mention having to endure Michelle Bachmann, mosquitos, and constant Canadian cold fronts.

I know what you’re thinking. . . how ’bout Ant and those Western Conference leading Timberwolves. Not so fast says Whenesota who says he can’t stop thinking about the league’s 1994 season — when the No. 1-seeded Seattle SuperSonics lost to the Denver Nuggets in the first round of the playoffs.

“I can totally see that happening,” he said. “You don’t want it to happen, but you can totally see it and you’d be like, ‘That’s Minnesota sports.'”

Thoughts and prayers for Dan Whenesota and the nice people of Minnesota.

Sentence To Ponder

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“In 2022, according to the Federal Reserve, the average American household directly or indirectly owned almost $500,000 worth of stocks. But these holdings were concentrated in the highest-income 10 percent of the population; the median household owned only $52,000.” Paul Krugman

File this under “the New Aristocracy”. Relative to the “income gap”, the more pernicious “wealth gap” flies well under the radar.

The Village People Had It Right

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It IS fun to stay at the YMCA.

YMCAs are right up there with public libraries as the (dis)United States best hope for not completely unraveling.

In late December, since my Olympia “Y” pool was closed, I visited the Lakewood, Washington “Y”. And today, I swam at the Santa Monica, California “Y”.

Now, the obvious question is why didn’t I swim in Santa Monica College’s Olympic-sized outdoor pool. Two reasons. Most importantly, I’m stupid. Secondly, it was raining, and not having a locker, I wasn’t sure if I could keep my towel and sundry-related items dry. Upon further thought, I’m sure I could’ve stuffed them under a bleacher, so, see reason one.

The results are in. Lakewood GOLD; Olympia SILVER; and Santa Monica a distant BRONZE. The GalPal had the perfect adjective for Santa Monica—rough. So rough, but instead of dunking on the fine people of Santa Monica, let me highlight the things that earn a “Y” the most points in my rigorous reviews and associated rankings.

  1. Cleanliness. No hairballs floating around in the pool or in the sinks or showers por favor.
  2. Showers that stay on. Talking to you Olympia. I work out too hard to also have to punch the shower knob every 30 seconds. And it’s hard to really enjoy your shower when all you can think is “It’s about to cut off isn’t it. Now? Now? Now for sure!”
  3. HOT showers. Not warm. Go ahead, scald me. Promise I won’t sue.
  4. Water pressure. Go ahead, by all means, blast me across the shower floor. See above, I’m not litigious.
  5. Sink facuets that stay on. Talking to you Olympia. . . Briggs and Plum Street. The faster I can shave, the brighter your review/ranking prospects.
  6. Have a large digital clock poolside. This should prob be number one. Ignore this criterion at your own risk. Talking to you Olympia.
  7. Nice benches to sit on, not stools (Lakewood) or short slabs of wood masquerading as benches (SM).

From this foundation, I could get all bougie and add in carpeted locker rooms, sauna and steam rooms, and and and, but then the “Y” might loose it’s greatest asset, its relative accessibility and middle class vibe.

Public Education Fail

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Social studies education more specifically.

From the Independent:

“A quarter of Americans falsely believe federal law enforcement ‘probably’ or ‘definitely’ orchestrated the attack on the US Capitol on January 6, a claim at the centre of a persistent conspiracy theory promoted by right-wing media, Republican officials and former president Donald Trump.

The results of a Washington Post-University of Maryland poll also found that 34 per cent of Republicans and 44 per cent of Americans who voted for Mr Trump continue to believe that FBI operatives organised and encouraged the attack.”

Of course, when it comes to our collective mania, more is it at play than just social studies education, but no one seems to be saying the obvious that history and civics coursework is doing little to promote a critical thinking, media-literate citizenry.

I propose we start from absolute scratch with a complete rethinking of social studies education K-12. I’m too old, too worn down by the lecturing/memorizing status quo, and too cynical to be any more specific.

And yes, you’re right, that is one sad(sick) and deflating final sentence.