Immortality: The Investment Problem

Life Extension has a hard limit defined by personal income over time. Wife Elaine nailed it at breakfast Monday when she said “You can’t have one without the Other.” Life extension mainly costs money and investments usually cost time.

Today, we’ll look at this balancing problem.  And begin to draw an odd kind of outlook in a   Financial demography sense.

While the mental/spiritual aspects of extended lives is touted everywhere from Biblical passages to modern religious groups, the underlying fiscal support gets lesser play.  Comes down to “How long can you afford to Live?” With the secondary question “How much time can you buy?”

Some frame working of both on tap today, after a look at markets for the week (so far) and our latest dart toss at the FOMC whose announcement is (as of press time) about five-hours distant.

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Nervous Weekend, Anyone?

Between Banking (and “special treatment for the rich”) along with one war hot, one brewing, a former president facing a possible perp-walk, and rampant inflation in hard assets, it’s a hard weekend not to have the jitters.

Sorry to say:  We can’t alleviate too many.  But, our steely-eyed view of things will remind you that it all “works out in the end.”  Only question is “Whose end?”

Of special interest today is the ChartPack – which promises an even-more interesting week just ahead.

The Biggest of Big Deals, then, will be the Federal Reserve FOMC meeting which begins Tuesday and will release a rate decision Wednesday afternoon during an otherwise very quiet week ahead.  Unless you’re Zelensky, Xi, Trump, Biden, or maybe even you.

Our first item on the agenda today, however, is not the world’s most delicately balanced forecast of what’s ahead.  Because we have zero control over that.

Instead, we focus on personal time management because, when the news gets turned off, We the People are the ones “For whom the clock ticks.”

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The Gamer’s Guide to the Afterlife

I was wrong when I thought my book Packing to Die: Suitcase between your ears” was done.  It turns out that upon reflection, there is still a chapter missing. Maybe even a missing “next book.”

Which we will rectify today with an additional chapter that will be added to the book (on Kindle) in the coming week, or two.

So in addition to threats to the banking system, Ukraine being on a short (and soon glowing?) fuse, political wonkyspeak of politicians without clue but beyond number, we do keep our focus on things that really matter in today’s report.

A next chapter of Packing to Die.  Which hopefully won’t be too relevant or too soon.

Along with market and other sorts of fallout, too. Can the lid stay on until Easter?

We apologize in advance for a 28-page report of >5,700 words.  But there’s trouble afoot and much to cover.

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Replaying 1929: The Bank Run Marker

Silicon Valley Bank is likely not to be the only bank in this period to go down. Because in our work in long wave economics, for more than 20-years, the severity of economic recessions (and “depressions”) the number of failing banks in a period is a good (early) indicator as to severity.

For example, in the Dot Com Bust, less than three dozen banks failed.  The Housing Bust saw more than 500 folded.

And now we see the “Leading Edge of Tainter” – the urge to walk out and away from a failing economy – with the takeover this week of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB).

In addition, the break becomes even more stark when we roll out this weeks update (in our ChartPack) to the long-running Replaying 1929 charts.  The next few weeks could be a 24-karat bitch.

But no point in getting upset about it.  Economic agnostics (like us) are usually well positioned to make money in fair weather, or foul.  Certainly, the case again this week.

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