On this day in 1974, Richard Nixon resigned as President of the U.S., to be replaced by Gerald Ford, who had replaced Spiro Agnew as Vice President after Agnew resigned amid criminal charges of tax evasion and money laundering.
Thus Ford became the only U.S. President who was elected neither President nor Vice President, while Nixon, [...]

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Because the year and decade is winding to a close, and because I am more than just a studly stock picker (I also have a softer side that comes out around the holidays), here’s a poem I put together … a decade in review.  Hope you enjoy!
When we review the decade past,
Since Y2K came storming [...]

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What kind of government does China actually have?
It’s not an idle question.  The country is governed by the Chinese Communist Party, but the constitution of the People’s Republic of China doesn’t actually mention The Party.  And while the 1982 State Constitution–along with the laws passed by the National People’s Congress–is technically the highest authority in [...]

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Speaking of skepticism, I’d like to register a skeptical opinion of my own about the tide of recent stories about China that are painting the future global role of that country in apocalyptic terms.
I’m thinking specifically about one story that trumpeted “The Coming Trade War with China!”  Another looked at the recent riots in Xinjiang [...]

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One of the dangers of life in our hyper-connected world, where electronic technologies keep us apprised of the latest developments all over the world, is that we lose a sense of perspective.
We don’t take time to reflect, and to put into context the events of the moment.
We grow to prize immediacy but in the process [...]

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