Sundays are a special day. As indicated by the name of this site, they’re meant for lazy mornings, often spent in bed (preferably crisp white sheets), with creamy coffee and a newspaper (I’m partial to the National Post, WSJ, or The New York Times). Today is no different, in fact, I write this from bed, with a coffee on one side and a paper on the other.
With that underway, here are five top news stories from the week, that you’ll enjoy, and maybe even share over brunch.
1. Yesterday legendary investor Warren Buffet put out his annual letter to shareholders. It’s a 29 page report, and if you desire to scroll through it, then I recommend Bloomberg’s annotated version. In the high chances that you do not, Forbes has kindly pulled out the top 7 quotes and takeaways from the letter, here. This quote is a favourite, because it challenges my view that corporations do spend far too much energy and money on stock repurchases rather than research & development, two things that drive a healthy economy, and forces me to further research:
“As the subject of repurchases has come to a boil, some people have come close to calling them un-American – characterizing them as corporate misdeeds that divert funds needed for productive endeavors. That simply isn’t the case: Both American corporations and private investors are today awash in funds looking to be sensibly deployed. I’m not aware of any enticing project that in recent years has died for lack of capital. (Call us if you have a candidate.)”
Side note: You can purchase Berkshire Hathaway shares if you like, the B-share version are priced at only USD $170, vs. Berkshire Hathaway, priced at over USD $255k.
2. The race to the political bottom. Evan Solomon writes for Macleans about our own issues of political correctness here in Canada, throwing serious blame at opposing parties for recent current events, and how it all creates a very poisonous political atmosphere. One, I might add, that becomes vitriolic at times, to the point where we’re surely turning people off of politics – the worst possible thing at a time like this.
3. GOP members of congress are finally (FINALLY) making noise about Trump needing to offer up some transparency. It comes on the heels of requests for an investigation into the Trump administration’s ties to Russia, as well as recent town halls, where constituents are asking their Republican representatives the tough questions.
4. Fast Company looks at what great software companies understand: “great products match with problems, not people.” It’s an interesting read on problem solving, turning the status quo approach on its head, and totally relevant to everybody, software designer or not. This one’s only a 4 minute read.
5. Where do you sit on the political spectrum? A group recently published a survey on BuildQuorum that helps you identify where you fit into the vast array of political identities. I took the 20-question survey, and no surprise here, landed on, “populist-leaning centrist.” This means that I have moderate views, and look to represent that interests of “ordinary” people. Basically, I use logic to assess political goings on, and want to ensure that the average person is being looked out for, while aligning with some conservative and liberal values.
Off to brunch now.
