The Mandarin is the latest super-villain in the MCU (“Marvel cinematic universe” for tho
The Mandarin Class
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One of my clients is married to a (now retired) Federal judge. Whenever we would meet for our quarterly conversations I would give him my thoughts about this company or that one, we’d figure out if we could make improvements to the portfolio, and then he’d tell me he’d get back to me next week. See, he had to talk to his wife first and make sure that she wasn’t hearing any cases–at the moment or on the docket for the future–that involved any of the companies I was recommending. I worked with them for six years and they were always vigilant and adhered to the rules. Turns out that was the sucker move.
Who, besides the mandarins themselves, is against this? In the past 20 years, I can’t recall even one regular person arguing that senators and congresspeople should be allowed to flagrantly trade on inside information.
I used to work for a mutual fund company, in a freaking sales role, and I had to pre-clear every trade. My trade requests to trade a security would get rejected automatically if any fund had any open order (buy or sell) on that security. Our complex had a couple of 1-2 star large cap core funds that were in net-redemption virtually everyday, so that meant that I couldn’t trade most S&P 500 names on most days. I had to get a hardship exemption just to come up with the downpayment for my house. “Well, this is just one of the sacrifices you need to make in order to work in financial services.” was the standard refrain of management.
There should absolutely be some personal sacrifices attached to the being elected or appointed to a position in which one is entrusted with the power to ensure the common good.
I would consider a different question…
“Who is going to take on the formidable task of taking on the Mandarins to make real change?”
the system has too much momentum and lacking a mechanism for fundamental change, momentum rules the day.
This problem falls in the zone of important enough to get animated about, but not important enough to go out and expend real energy and effect change.
At least, until all the walls come tumbling down and the inertia is gone.
I never thought I’d want to pick up a history book and read all about Mandarins, until I read your post. Well done!
Kleinbloo, loved your insights and thoughts ( and I’m definitely buying “Superpower “ ) , right up until the very end when you stated “crypto” is going to solve this (or anything).
I’m with N Taleb on crypto, at least the coin version, it’s a bubble, akin to the Tulip bubble of 400 years ago in Holland ( without the aesthetics)
The most speculative instrument in the most speculative market in our nation’s history.
Thanks Federal Reserve…………
Kleinbloo,
First thought – Oof ! That was harsh. One reason I like “the pack” so much is because people don’t rip into other pack members like it’s no big deal. I like what Ben and Rusty have created, Don’t try to turn this good thing into something ugly.
Honestly, I meant it when I complimented you on the great points and research you did on the mandarin history, it really was interesting.
It was when you closed with “crypto fixes this” that I had my doubts. I never said
Further , Taleb is certainly not the only serious thinker out in the universe who have doubts about the legitimacy of crypto-coins. Implying I depend on him for my reasoning isn’t fair or enlightening. BTW, dismissing him based on one comment vs the thousands he has made is odd.
Who do you admire that is a regular commentator that has NEVER said something off to you?
I and the other readers would love to find that perfect human being. Please tell us.
What best encapsulated your comment has to be
I’ll close with that and hope you will be more civil, understanding and empathetic in the future
I’m with Taleb as well, but weakly, and don’t own crypto because (1) I don’t have enough time to learn enough not to get scammed and (2) Taleb’s black paper on BTC.
But following Soros’ Human Uncertainty Principle, I’m not convinced that fundamentals actually matter at this point. What concerns me is the faith of a huge group of people in the idea of crypto. Everyday people who work with me, who make normal amounts of money and have significant amounts of it invested in crypto, amounts that can rival their annual salaries. Because, eg, they all know this one guy we work with who made a quick $30k on Doge.
I hope I am wrong and these people are right and they all FIRE before SHTF or whatever, because frankly their jobs are harder than mine. But I fear what will happen when/if crypto falls and they are proven wrong and lose their money. I hope they will be adults about it and take it lying down, but they are so passionate and so incendiary about this that I’m not 100% sure.
When I read this exchange my first thought was to create a new topic on this Forum called Forum Decorum. Taken in the context of “treat others as you would like to be treated yourself” this exchange merits some consideration. @kleinbl00 would not like being told that neither nobody needs his/her answer on a topic that where he/she has specifically replied to. @kleinbl00 is imo clearly in violation of Forum Decorum.
Some quick thoughts:
If we are a pack interested in the proper functioning and well being of the pack then @psherman should not be alone in standing up to a violation of Forum Decorum. I am involved in the fisheries and seafood industry. It is a very special industry because to a great extent it’s grounded in real people and community, like a pack, and that has a lot to do with treating others the way you would like to be treated yourself. If I were in @psherman place I would appreciate if a fellow pack member would speak up and stand with me on this for reinforcement of Forum Decorum. I have experienced this treatment in the industry and have appreciated it greatly. It helps me to formulate thinking around a pack mentality.
Many of these discussions are emotionally charged, mixed in with other stimulus which we can’t escape, and many of us work or have worked in a full-contact environment . If a comment made by another pack member rubs you the wrong way, try to generously apply a liberal interpretation of their comment with a view to treating others as you would like to be treated yourself.
For the sake of not arguing about trivia, I have been trying for days to ignore your use of the phrase ‘common good’.
I can bear it no longer. I must say it:
There is no such thing as the common good. It is a phantom of wishful thinking. It has been used by racoons to gain a
socialist mandate too many times, for me to stay silent. The common denominator that it alludes to is not determined.
Politics is mostly about resource allocation, a heterodoxy of distributing capital .There are many people on this planet who deserve all the help that I can spare. There are also many who do not. What is the commonality that can be supplied
with goodness? We are an incredibly diverse species, there is less and less homogenous about us everyday. Please do not lump what is ‘good’ for a 100 year old Chinese national into the same frame as what benefits a western teenager, because in any practical sense, you can’t. The problem is obvious. Politics must pick winners and losers.