Everything is Astroturfed

Let’s face it: we live in an era where destruction is the new construction. Everything that’s built – from our political systems to our smartphones – seems designed to break down, morally or mechanically. Why? Because those who control the levers of power are about as capable as a screen door on a submarine. They…

Grifting Elites

If you’ve ever turned on the ol’ television set, browsed through the interwebs, or chanced upon a newspaper (remember those?), you’d know that Western politics is, and I say this with the utmost respect, a bit of a circus. Now, I don’t mean the kind with fluffy cotton candy and delightful elephant tricks. No, this…

Digital Gulags

We find ourselves now in a strange world where our hard-earned money is subject to the whims of an increasingly nosy and selective bank. I mean, it’s all starting to look like a Monty Python sketch, isn’t it? There was a time, you see, when a bank was a bank. You’d put your money in,…

Tax the Rich

Here’s something that’s been on my mind. You know how when you’re young, you’ve got all this energy and enthusiasm, like a brand new Duracell battery right out of the pack? Well, there are some folks out there, big corporations, government bodies, sneaky intelligence agencies, who look at that energy and think, “Hmm, how can…

Middle Management

My friend pointed out that despite all the credentials and ability, a big group of us were trapped under a glass ceiling in middle management and had no path or connections to anything better. Middle management is a lonely no-man’s land. Workers hate you for keeping them on task. They are infantile and just want…

Preparing For the Future

Emerging trends clearly indication how young boys will have to find good career paths. Since 2015, women are the majority of college graduates, now at 60% and projected to continue increasing their dominance. “In the next few years, two women will earn a college degree for every man, if the trend continues, said Douglas Shapiro,…

Take an Extended Break

You can take a break for a while and rediscover yourself again. A short pause might be enough, or a few years if you need. Shift your costs to the public while getting free food, housing, and medical care. Small crimes will get you 60 or 90 days away from jobs. More significant crimes might…

Honor and Money

“Honor and money cannot fit in the same bag.” -Proverb So it is. When the goal is money, it is clear that you must renounce honor. This is the purpose of workplace culture displacing normal standards. In the office you are asked to remain silent about your values, preferences, or beliefs while complying with orders…

Money Left On The Table

Some people in IT obviously earned good money, but how they earned it was unclear. Top talent was often well paid, but not rich, while those who received millions in stock were often mediocre and seemed to be lucky to get free money because their company was acquired. An organized approach for using talent to…

Living in Triplicate

Because of instability and chaotic reactivity throughout society, you have to operate in triplicate for resilience. In addition to your primary career, you need to keep a secondary career in case your specialty falls out of favor and is replaced. You’ll also need to develop a third career as a backup, one which is midrange…

How To Invest

Ideal investment markets are so predictable they are boring. Companies regularly hit analyst quarterly projections. Normal returns obviate speculative plays, constraining economic activity to value. Reminded by current geopolitical events, could you in good conscience tell a young person at their first job to invest in a 401k? No one expects the US to last…

Installing Regimes

Regime change by force is a hard job. You have to send troops and weapons halfway across the world to clear out military leaders. Neighbors don’t understand the opportunity others envision from regime change. It’s understandable that regime change by color revolution operation is preferable. Fund a few people to instigate chaos, make accusations, synchronize…