December Market Insights by James Thorne: The Law of the Hammer
The Law of the Hammer: A Volcker Shock in 2022? Download this article as a PDF. “It’s burning down the house to roast the pig.” —Robert Solow, Nobel Prize Winner, Economics (1987) The concept of the “law of the hammer,” attributed to psychologist Abraham Maslow, suggests that humans can often be biased to have an over-reliance […]
November Market Insights by James Thorne: Economic Squid Games
November Market Insights by James Thorne: Economic Squid Games October 29, 2021 Economic Squid Games: China’s Enduring Mastery of Survival Download this article as a PDF. “We’ve already come too far to end this now.” – Sang-Woo, Squid Game Squid Game is a dark drama set in Korea that depicts the lengths some individuals will go […]
October Market Insights by James Thorne: Stagflation
October Market Insights by James Thorne: Stagflation October 5, 2021 Stagnation or Change: Crypto and the End of the Petrodollar Download this article as a PDF. “Just follow the money.” – Deep Throat, All the President’s Men In 1972, while Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward were investigating the break-in of the Democratic National Committee at […]
September Market Insights by James Thorne: Covid’s Lasting Economic Scar
Covid’s Lasting Economic Scar & A Goldilocks 2022? Download this article as a PDF. “This porridge is just right.” – Goldilocks and the Three Bears As the delta variant exerts its strength, the world is coming to terms with the sobering reality that Covid-19 is not going away anytime soon. Since the pandemic began, influential researchers […]
August Market Insights by James Thorne
The Case for Deflation: Central Banks & Princes of the Yen “Central banks have the power to create economic, political and social change.” — Princes of the Yen, 2003. In his book, Princes of the Yen, Richard Werner warns us to never underestimate the central bank’s ability to achieve its agenda[1]. He follows the actions of the Bank […]
July Market Insights by James Thorne
Meme Stocks, Millennials and The Fourth Turning Download this article as a PDF. “We are the middle children of history…raised on television to believe that one day we’d all be millionaires, and movie gods, and rock stars. But we won’t. And we’re slowly learning that fact. And we’re very, very pissed off.” — Fight Club, 1999. […]
June Market Insights by James Thorne
Welcome to the Matrix: Cryptocurrencies Download this article as a PDF. “Denial is the most predictable of all human responses.” — The Architect, The Matrix, 1999. In The Matrix, one of the top cyberpunk movies of all time1, the protagonist, Neo, is offered the option of a red or blue pill by the […]
May Market Insights by James Thorne
Breaking Bad: Modern Monetary Theory (MMT) Going Mainstream Download this article as a PDF. “Now say my name…Heisenberg.” – Walter White, Breaking Bad (Season 5, Episode 7). According to the Urban Dictionary, to “break bad” is to reject social norms for one’s own gain, regardless of the legality or ethics. Breaking Bad[1] – the Netflix series – follows the evolution […]
April Market Insights by James Thorne
Download this article as a PDF. “Just because you despise me, you are the only one I trust.” (Casablanca, 1942) Perhaps one of the greatest films of all time, Casablanca is a love story about an American expat facing the moral dilemma of choosing between his love for a woman and helping the escape of her husband, a […]
March Market Insights by James Thorne
Download this article as a PDF. “So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past.” – F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby Depicting a period of dramatic social, technological and economic change, The Great Gatsby, set in 1922, is often seen as a somber critique of the American Dream. Jay Gatsby overcomes […]