January 2020
70 articles published this month.
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From My Work-in-Progress Basket
Merriam-Webster’s
“I believe we developed language because of our deep, inner need to complain.”– Lily Tomlin Merriam-Webster’s Words of the Decade What Do They Tell Us About These Last 10 Years… and What Does It Tell Us About…
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A Word to the Wise
prescriptive vs. descriptive (adjective)
In general, prescriptive (pruh-SKRIP-tiv) refers to an action or behavior based on the imposition or enforcement of a rule or method, and descriptive (duh-SKRIP-tiv) refers to an action or behavior based on a…
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Fun and/or Interesting
How Many Words Does English Actually Contain
According to the Oxford English Dictionary, there are 171,476 English words in current use.
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Worth Reading
8 Mistakes to Avoid When Naming Your Business” from Entrepreneur.com
I’ve never been good at naming businesses. In fact, I’d say that of the dozens of businesses I’ve named, 90% of them broke one of the rules articulated in this essay. (I should have learned these rules long…
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Fun and/or Interesting
How To Finally Pronounce French Words Correctly
If you've ever struggled to pronounce a French word, you'll enjoy this.
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From My Work-in-Progress Basket
Masterson’s Law: Why You Should “Fire” 10% of Your Customer Base
“A business absolutely devoted to service will have only one worry about profits. They will be embarrassingly large.”– Henry Ford Masterson’s Law: Why You Should “Fire” 10% of Your Customer Base You own a…
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A Word to the Wise
pseudonymous (adjective)
Pseudonymous (soo-DON-ih-mus) means having or using a fictitious name. As I used it today: “I have observed that there is another percentage that is equally reliable and yet rarely discussed: Ten percent of…
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Fun and/or Interesting
Gambling's Surprising Economic Dominance Over Entertainment Industries
The revenue from gambling is greater than the revenue from movies, cruise ships, recorded music, theme parks, and spectator sports combined.
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Worth Reading
What Color Is Zorro? A Taki's Magazine Essay
What Color is Zorro? in Taki's Magazine LINK
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Fun and/or Interesting
Computing And Internet Predictions From 1974
The future of computers and the internet... back in 1974.
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From My Work-in-Progress Basket
Honesty, Honestly
“It’s hard to know the truth about people by how they look or even what they say, but you can discover a good deal by rummaging through their belongings.”– Michael Masterson Honesty, Honestly Ralph, a protégé…
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Fun and/or Interesting
The Incredible Sensory Power Of Your Hands
In one square inch of your hand, there are nine feet of blood vessels, 600 pain sensors, 9000 nerve endings, 36 heat sensors, and 75 pressure sensors.
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Worth Reading
Energy Paradoxes Put Europe in a Precarious Position” from Townhall.com
An interesting perspective on European attitudes towards global politics and global warming. LINK
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Readers Write
An email from KM
Thank you Mark. For what? For being an example…. I just found out today that Michael Masterson was you. Imagine that. All this time and I didn’t know…. Anyway. Just thank you and I’m happy I found your blog.
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Fun and/or Interesting
What We Really Mean By Unfair
A good perspective on what we mean when we say, "It isn't fair!"
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Notes From My Journal
Spotting The Warning Signs Of A Terrible Idea
“An idea, like a ghost, must be spoken to a little before it will explain itself.” – Charles Dickens I began writing an essay this morning tentatively titled “Early Warning Signs You’re Writing a Bad Essay.”…
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A Word to the Wise
animadversion (noun)
Animadversion (an-uh-mad-VER-zhun) is an unfavorable or critical remark. Example from Pencil Sketches by Eliza Leslie: “Albina soon perceived herself to be an object of remark and animadversion, and she was…
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Fun and/or Interesting
Harvard's Asian Enrollment Gap Raises Admissions Questions
Asians represent about 5% of public high school students, but constitute 22.9% of Harvard’s freshman class. If admission to Harvard were based solely on academic performance, it would be 43%.
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Worth Reading
Bad Blood: Secrets and Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup by
The story of the now well-known Silicon Valley scam. Written by the Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist who broke the story and pursued it till the end, the book is a page-turner and an inside look at the sort…
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Fun and/or Interesting
Antique Curiosities Worth Discovering Today
Beautiful antique curiosities...
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Notes From My Journal
Remembering Harriet Zinnes (1919-2019)
“In the end, there is no end.”– Robert Lowell Remembering Harriet Zinnes (1919-2019) The person one becomes is the result of innumerable factors, including hundreds if not thousands of personal relationships…
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Worth Reading
The Equality Conundrum” in The New Yorker
Believing inequality, as this essay makes clear, is a challenge. A challenge that leaves the believer with a perpetual conundrum – what is equal here is not equal there… and what is equal now is not equal…
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A Word to the Wise
conundrum (noun)
A conundrum (Kuh-NUN-drum) is a confusing and difficult problem or question. As I used it today (see “Worth Reading,” above): “Believing inequality… is a challenge. A challenge that leaves the believer with a…
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Fun and/or Interesting
Why Babies Have More Bones Than Adults
There are 206 to 208 bones in the adult human body (depending on how the sternum is counted). Babies are born with 270 bones, but the number decreases with age as some of those bones fuse.
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Fun and/or Interesting
Islamic Peace Conference Convenes in Oslo
The Islamic Peace conference in Oslo...
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Notes From My Journal
The Age of Descent: A Short History of the 21st Century (So Far)” by Bill Bonner
In response to Donald Trump’s latest demonstration of his version of foreign policy – i.e, coming out into the center of the ring very aggressively and then backing away before his opponent figures out what…
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Worth Quoting
By Dr. Martin Luther King
* We must learn to live together as brothers or perish together as fools. (Western Michigan University, December 1963) * Violence is immoral because it thrives on hatred rather than love. It destroys community…
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A Word to the Wise
ineluctable (adjective)
Ineluctable (in-uh-LUK-that-bul) means inescapable; unable to be resisted or avoided. As Bill Bonner used it in the above essay: “And now, despite the irrefutable math and ineluctable financial debacle, the…
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Fun and/or Interesting
Only Two Presidents Impeached Before Trump
Impeachment (which is basically a charge of misconduct made against the holder of a public office) is rare. The House has initiated proceedings against top U.S. civil officials more than 60 times, but only 17…
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Worth Reading
The Oral History Of American Pie
For a little comic relief… “The Oral History of a 1999 Comedy Movie” in The New Yorker LINK
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Readers Write
An email from RN
I’ve read through Ready, Fire, Aim. I loved it, and in 2019 built a 7-figure… business based on the strategies you teach.
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Fun and/or Interesting
ABC News Anchor's Leaked Comments On Epstein Investigation
Leaked ABC News Insider Recording EXPOSES #EpsteinCoverup "We had Clinton, We had Everything" -
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From My Work-in-Progress Basket
Setting Stretch Goals Without Unrealistic Business Expectations
“There is no intellectual merit in holding conventional ideas but there is sometimes wisdom in doing so.” – Michael Masterson Have You Given Your Business “Stretch Goals” for 2020? “Double your revenues with…
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A Word to the Wise
prestidigitation (noun)
Prestidigitation (pres-tih-dish-jih-TAY-shun) is sleight of hand, magic tricks performed for entertainment. As I used it today: “The combination of genuinely innovative technology, marketing hyperbole, and…
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Fun and/or Interesting
Side Hustles For The Cautious Entrepreneur
Thanks to the internet, it’s getting easier and easier to be a “chicken entrepreneur.” By being a “chicken entrepreneur,” I mean starting a side business in your free time… while you still have the security of…
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Worth Reading
Forget the Fads: This is the Only Diet Tip You Need” in Dr. Eifrig’s Health & Wealth Bulletin
Dr. Eifrig, a friend and colleague, has come to the same conclusion I have: The Mediterranean diet has the most science behind it, and the Keto diet, while good in some respects, is not sustainable and…
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Fun and/or Interesting
Evolution's Hidden Nurturing Instinct Rivals Fight Or Flight
We are, indeed, cousins... and nurturing is as much an evolutionary instinct as fighting or "flighting."
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From My Work-in-Progress Basket
So… You Want to Get Rich? Really?
“When I was a child I dreamed as a child. When I became an adolescent I stopped dreaming and gave up my soul to desire. I became a man when I gave up desire and began to take action.”– Michael Masterson So……
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Fun and/or Interesting
More Facts About Millionaires
* 86% of millionaires have a college degree. * 75% of millionaires work. One out of four is retired. * 86% of millionaires are married, including 65% in their first marriage. * 66% of millionaires own at least…
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A Word to the Wise
prophesy (verb)
To prophesy (PRAH-fuh-say) is to foretell or predict. As used by Winston Churchill: “I always avoid prophesying beforehand because it is a much better policy to prophesy after the event has already taken place…
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Worth Reading
US-Iran Tensions: From Political Coup to Hostage Crisis to Drone Strikes” on History.com
This brief review of US-Iran relations over the last 70 years provides a depressing picture of how difficult it is to try to control the activities of other sovereign nations – particularly when you have…
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Fun and/or Interesting
Why The New Old People Will Disappoint
Why the new old people are going to suck...
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Notes From My Journal
The Language Police Are At It Again!
“Be careful that what you write does not offend anybody or cause problems…. The safest approach is to remove all useful information.” – Scott Adams The Language Police Are At It Again! Last year, according to…
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A Word to the Wise
officious (adjective)
Officious (uh-FISH-us) means meddlesome; asserting authority in an annoying, domineering way. As I used it today: “Lest you continue to unwittingly offend, the (anonymous) author of this article officiously…
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Fun and/or Interesting
Why Only The Monkey Wears Clothes In Animal Crackers
Since 1902, 37 different kinds of animals have been featured in Nabisco’s Animal Crackers – and the only one wearing clothes has been the monkey. This bizarre fact has been a topic of conversation on the…
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Worth Reading
The Best Way to Profit From Government Stupidity
In this article, Doug Casey makes a compelling case for having some gold in your portfolio. LINK
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Readers Write
An email from FB
I regularly read this blog…. Mark’s writings have inspired me to get into copywriting and taking my marketing job more seriously. Instead of endless, pointless meetings, I have shifted my focus to planning…
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Fun and/or Interesting
This Guy Is Genuinely Hilarious
This guy is funny...
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Notes From My Journal
James Altucher's Essential Writing Tips And Books
“I hate writing. I love having written.” – Dorothy Parker In a very good and very readable recent essay – titled “Ruin Your Life” – James Altucher chronicles his journey as a writer. His advice to wannabe…
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A Word to the Wise
bafflegab (noun)
Bafflegab(BA-ful-gab) is pretentious and wordy language. As used by Peter Shawn Taylor in an article titled “Donald Trump: America’s First Millennial President”: “Conversations that would once have been…
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