From TG re my April 8 review of A Purple Place for Dying:
“I didn’t know you’ve ever read Travis McGee. I thought it was just for boat people and sailors. As Dean Koontz says, MacDonald captures the mood and feel of the times before there were cameras on every corner, computers in every police car, cellphones in every hand.”
From TA: “Thank you for posting the link to the climate change movie in the April 3 issue…”
“I have been a climate skeptic for many years…. My gut told me that a planet that has been around for billions of years has seen huge fluctuations over that time that had to have been worse than what we’re seeing today. And life survived. This movie gave me more resources to inspect the ‘other side’ of the climate debate. It’s frightening how scientists like those in the film have been labeled as heretics, and that the same culture was at work during COVID to limit debate against doctors and scientists of equally high regard.”
From JM re “Biden’s Dangerous Game at the UN” in the March 27 issue:
“Thank you Mark for your clarity. Still, in our lifetime, unless you are Granada,
being an ally of the US is a very iffy proposition.”
From RR: “Ready, Fire, Aim – the best book ever written on starting and growing businesses”
“I’m a massive fan of your work and really admire your entrepreneurial accomplishments. I’ve read Ready, Fire, Aim 5+ times. I’m convinced it’s the best book ever written on starting and growing businesses. It’s effective and practical advice explained in simple terms by someone who has been there and done that. Nobody has taught me more about business and entrepreneurship.”
Editor’s Note: Readers of this blog can order most of Mark’s books – including Ready, Fire, Aim, at a discounted price. Click here.
From GM re the “How Much Do You Know About Beer” quiz in the March 13 issue:
“I got 19 out of 21. I don’t know if that’s a good thing or if I should be worried about myself.”
From BY re “My Crazy New Eating Strategy” in the Mar. 4 issue
“Fasting works well for the exact reason you mentioned. You are eliminating the insulin peaks and valleys that lead to craving and binging. The lack of hunger is a pretty magical side effect. It’s a lot easier to diet when you don’t have a devil on your shoulder telling you to eat something.
“I fast for 16 hours a day and have five meals in the remaining eight hours. I’m currently getting 3,000 calories a day and losing a pound every month or so. I’m actively putting on core muscle as well. Total weight loss… 145 lbs since May 1, 2023.
“My ‘secret’… no added sugar foods. Like you, I have no cravings because I have no insulin spikes. It can be a giant pain in the ass going to restaurants. I feel 30 years younger, though… and I’ll take that trade any day.”
My Response: Wow… 145 pounds! That’s amazing!
The thing I like best about this eating plan is that I give myself permission to indulge in anything – ice cream, candy, cake, booze. The only restriction is one hour.
The first few days on it, I was eating 2,400 calories per meal, which is more than my normal range (1,800 to 2,100). But since then, I’m eating less. Not because I’m restricting myself, but because, knowing I can eat all I want, I eat just until I’m full.
From IK: “What’s your investment strategy right now?”
“After trying a bunch of different assets, I’m not sure which one can be a reliable strategy that I can lean on for the next 20 years. I’ve got some money in mutual funds, stocks, crypto, and some real estate. But I don’t have one go-to strategy. Since you’ve walked the path I’m on, I was wondering if you could share any insights on what’s best and any resources you’ve found helpful?”
My Response: I don’t think there is one go-to asset class today. There are too many seriously dangerous economic issues, such as the US’s $33 trillion debt and the inevitable digital dollar. And then there is AI. That has the potential to change the world fast and completely.
My strategy, like yours, is diversification, including gold and direct investments in small businesses I control.
From GA: “Totally agree about Nicaragua”
“I totally agree with what you said about Nicaragua in the Mar. 4 issue. I’m more comfortable and feel safer here than in the US, as well. I say this with a great deal of sadness, but then I’m from the fascist state and city of NY. I’m at Rancho now… own several properties here for about 14 years.”
From IR re my goal-setting routine:
“I’m reading The Pledge. Thoroughly enjoying it. I’d like to know what kind of planner you use to keep track of your progress in achieving your short-term/ long-term goals. Digital? Manual?”
My Response: Thanks for the question. When the book was first published, I was asked about that a lot.
Back then, I used a commercially produced paper journal and planner for my daily goals, and I used a Word document for my yearly and monthly objectives. When writing with a pencil became difficult for me (basal arthritis), I switched my daily records to Word and created a template that has itself evolved over the years as I discovered more ways to maximize my productivity,
Whether keeping track of my progress online or on paper, I’ve always highlighted the important-but-not-urgent tasks on my monthly, weekly, and daily to-do lists to remind me to handle them early in the day when I could use my best energy to move them forward.
Online, I am able to visibly reward myself for accomplishing specific tasks by changing their colors. I initially enter them in red, then change them to black when accomplished or blue when half-accomplished. And I copy/paste all of my completed goals for each month at the bottom of the document.
I know this sounds very anal, and it is. But I still get a bit of a good feeling every time I change a task from red to black.
From EA: “Can you help me?”
I shortened EA’s VERY long message to these three paragraphs:
“I am a 22-year-old entrepreneur who has been following your work and has been inspired by your writing. I have decided to reach out in faith, hoping that you will have an interest in a problem that horrifically kills so many. The problem is that 100% of reported home fire deaths in America happened in homes where fire alarms were present but did not work. You can check that statistic here on the official US Govt. FEMA website.
“I believe that you may be able to help me on my mission to put an end to this problem and save the lives of countless people now and in future generations. I hope to hear back from you, Mr. Ford, to receive any guidance, wisdom, and even funding if you would like to contribute towards a seed round.
“Thank you for taking the time to read this. I really appreciate all the work that you’ve done and all the wisdom you’ve shared through your writing. It has already changed my life and the lives of countless others.”
My Response: EA, if you can send me your business plan in no more than 100 words, I can help you. I will give you my advice in a future blog post so that other readers in your position can learn from it.
From RY: “What are you hearing from Nicaragua?”
“I’m hearing some bad news about what’s happening in Nicaragua. At one time, I was even considering being an expat there with my wife. Are you hearing anything of value from the people you work with there?”
My Response: There has been a lot of political and social turmoil in Nicaragua in the last several years, including protests and government reprisals that got some publicity in the US before they were quashed by the government. But when I’m there (as I am right now in my second home on the Pacific coast of the country), I don’t feel in any way endangered. In fact, I feel safer and often happier than I do in the States.
Ortega’s government is in theory a democracy, but there is no denying that he wants to rule the country for a good while longer. So, he treats elections pretty much like the Democrats are doing in the US today – by putting (or trying to put) his major political opponents in jail.
His administration has recently done a few things – like taking over foreign gas stations and replacing them with ones that presumably he or his friends have an interest in – that are concerning. But he did that quasi-legally, by raising taxes and regulations. Again, the way the US does when it exerts eminent domain laws: carefully, quietly, and legally.
Since he was elected in 2007, he hasn’t done what he did when he was a revolutionary conqueror, seizing property and redistributing wealth and thus turning the country from one of the richest in Central America to one of the poorest.
The local population is divided between those that support him and those that don’t. But those that don’t generally keep their opinions to themselves. And I believe that’s largely because Ortega is no longer a Communist ideologue testing out a failed theory. He’s a pragmatist hoping to make Nicaragua a wealthier and more successful country, while taking care of himself and those loyal to him.
As a foreigner in Nicaragua, I don’t have the feeling I have as a US citizen in the US. In Nicaragua, I feel like things are getting better despite the sometimes questionable actions Ortega and his administration take.
Nicaragua, under his one-man control, is still beautiful, largely peaceful, and welcoming to foreigners who are there to help build the country, rather than work to undermine his plans and his authority in any significant way. Our resort community here is thriving, as is the non-profit community center my family has established across the road.
If you are interested in Nicaragua as a possible retirement destination or second home, or even as a regular place to visit, come down here for a week or two and decide for yourself.
Click here to see what it’s really like.
From JM re Tucker Carlson:
“I have not looked at Tucker Carlson in years. I find him to be too snarky, and his ridiculous giggle… ugh! But in this interview with Xi Van Fleet, she relates an interesting story.”
My Response: I had the strongest negative reaction to Carlson when I began to watch him many years ago – for the same reasons you state. He comes across as a smart-ass frat boy, with a handful of cheap debate tactics that allowed him to spar effectively with his intellectual superiors.
My instinct was to dismiss him as such. But what kept me coming back was that he was so often touching directly on news events, social movements, and political topics that were culturally off limits. They were more than politically incorrect. They were unthinkable.
And yet, many of them were questions and speculations that were floating through my head.
And so I started listening to his show, or clips of his show, more regularly. Some of them – for example, the ones where he interviews some totally nutty Woke person – are, admittedly, B-level entertainment. But as time went by, I noticed that he was asking questions and hinting at allegations that the rest of the conservative media wasn’t willing to touch.
And several times – such as when he immediately challenged the US position on backing Ukraine – I was astonished by his bravery. Who else at his level of celebrity was saying what he was saying, which to me was the obvious truth… that Russia was responding to yet another attempt by the US to ignite another fire in our Cold War with them, which has never ended? And, of course, almost everyone hectored him for interviewing Putin. Even those that have no idea why NATO was created, what it is, and what it does. I could give you other examples… but I can’t think of another newsperson at his level that has the balls he has. There is a reason he got kicked off Fox. And that reason is what explains why the conservative movement in the US has been so self-destructive for so many years.
That said (as they say)…
I still cringe when he employs his cheapest debate tactics. And I suffer endlessly when watching his never-ceasing and never-ending facial gestures – those weird, almost perverse, child-like faces. And, as you say, his cackling, demented laugh. But it’s a price I’m willing to pay to be able to see someone – someone with a large commercial platform – ask the questions and make the suggestions that nobody else is willing even to talk about.
Here’s one more thought: The immediate impression I had of Carlson allowed me to put him in a mental box I reserved for right-wing whackos who seemed to be willing to say anything to get ratings, and who then did say many, many things that were proven to be obviously and patently false. But he doesn’t do that. If you listen to him, you will notice that he is very careful to use the right nouns and adjectives when he is pushing up against a major, politically sensitive issue.
From GM re what I said about the failure of “The War on Poverty” in the Feb. 12 issue:
“I don’t see how any progress can be made when you have a country hell-bent on importing poverty at a furious rate. The US has been doing this for decades and, most alarmingly, for the last three years. Under the current circumstances, I’m surprised the numbers aren’t much, much worse. I believe they are. More lying figures from our overlords.”
From JS:
“Mark, did you see the Feb. 6 press conference the Republicans had defending Donald Trump against claims of ‘insurrection’ and then charging the major media with covering up news that damaged Biden and son? If not, you should check it out. This is the first time I’ve seen so many pols criticizing the media in such harsh terms.”
My Response: Yes, I saw it. And I agree. I’ve never seen so many Republicans take such a strong stance in defending Trump. They were always divided on Democratic-led attacks on Trump, but now that it’s becoming clear that he will not only be their candidate for president in 2024 but that he has a good chance of winning, they are changing their tactics by harshly criticizing the media for supporting the most absurd conspiracy theory – that on Jan. 6, 2021, he incited an insurrection.
Of the statements made in the press conference, the one by Rep. Eli Crane (R-AZ) got the greatest media response because it had the harshest criticism of the media. In fact, his words were so blunt that I sat there watching it, slack-jawed, half-expecting some guys in jackboots to haul him off the platform!
Note to Readers: I included a link to a video clip of Crane in last week’s blog. If you missed it, here it is again. And if, after watching it and looking up the denotation of “insurrection” in the dictionary, you still believe that what happened on Jan. 6 was an insurrection, and that Trump is guilty of instigating it, please write to me and explain how that could possibly be true.
From CD re global warming:
“If you doubt the veracity of government figures on unemployment, why do you not question the data on global warming. It seems the scientists are all on the government teat too! Where I live in South Australia, it has been a cool summer for the last three years. Taking the temperature in city areas heated by the infrastructure is surely not an accurate way to gauge temperature. With the northern icecap seemingly increasing, there is some thought that with sunspots decreasing we may be in for global cooling in a new Solar Minimum. Maybe you could take a look when you get time.”
My Response: Thanks for the question. As for me, I doubt everything the government publishes – reports, statements, explanations, and data. That doesn’t mean I think everything the government and its agencies report to us about everything they track is false. But since the government is political and since politics is about power rather than truth, I take everything they say as propaganda, unless my reading and thinking convinces me otherwise.
In the case of COVID, what the government was saying, from the very beginning, was so utterly and evidently absurd that I began calling out the contradictions from day one. And as the lockdowns took hold and the government and its cronies began to silence, by threat and by force, the many scientists that refuted their propaganda, I became increasingly alarmed by how far this was going towards Fascism. And by how many – how most – supposedly educated Americans believed every obvious lie.
In the case of global warming, I distrust the government narrative for the same reason: I see it as politically motivated – i.e., a set of often-unproven talking points to bond with a significant group of voters. I’m also aware of the data and theories that contradict the global warming narrative. If our government agencies were not corrupt, they would consider all contrary information with alacrity and respect, instead of denying it with authoritatively pronounced statements that have little to no basis in science.
In any case, I believe the entire debate about global warming is a useless farce because countries with the largest and poorest populations in the world – India, China, Africa, and South America – need fossil fuels to survive whatever problems are on their way and to increase the quality of life for their billions of inhabitants.
Given the actual science, and the desire of the governments to move their economies into first-world status, there is going to be no pulling back on the consumption of fossil fuels for the next 10 years or so. If anything, there will be an increase in consumption.
Re my Contrary Truths series:
From SC: “I’m looking forward to reading more of this series. The first few contrary truths you shared in the Feb. 6 issue have already been thought-provoking. Point No. 3, particularly: ‘If the universe has any meaning, it is ironic – that life is a joke laughing at itself. All the best art and music is… a recognition of the fundamental irony of life and living.’
“I agree that the ‘universe’ is a neutral force, functioning on and reflecting irony, as that is its nature. And I think the art that rings true is the kind that acknowledges that our efforts to change things is ultimately frivolous. But I think the art that feels most complete, most wholesome, is the kind that urges us to strive anyway. Sure, it might not make much of a difference, but something within our human spirit demands it and feels rewarded just by the effort, not necessarily based on the result.”
From RB: “Your five behavior modification points in the Feb. 12 issue are all ones my wife and I struggle with daily in handling our adult special needs child. And my greatest frustration is that I cannot get my wife to stop doing #2 (‘trying to beat the odds by scolding or cajoling someone into changing their ways’).”
From JS: “How Does a BAD Thing Succeed?”
“As we all know, the country of Argentina is in a very, very bad economic situation, with inflation and poverty skyrocketing – and it was one of the richest countries in the world. How does that happen? Just open your eyes and you’ll figure it out.
“Now Javier Milei, the new elected leader, wants to end this downward slide and he has opposition. But what are they opposing? Success!
“Two different times in this article titled ‘Lefts Take Aim at Argentina’s New President’ in The Daily Signal, The Heritage Foundation’s Mike Gonzalez, uses the word ‘succeed’ in reference to Milei’s free-market reforms – and then says it’s a BAD thing.
From RD re this essay – “Ego, Inspiration, and Achievement” – that I wrote years ago:
“Thank you for writing this one. It resonated with me.”