XRP being used by banks

xRapid is live. XRP, the cryptocurrency, is being used already by a few banks and financial institutions. What many said was a pipe-dream a year ago, is today a real product set to revolutinize not only the financial world, but business in general. Today at Ripple’s Swell conference Brad Garlinghouse announced xRapid is live and … Read more

Guantanamo Bay & Covering Up Mistakes

by Martin Armstrong QUESTION: You once mentioned that Guantanamo Bay was a violation of human rights and Obama had pledged to close it when he ran for office the first time. Yet it is still open. Why is America acting in a manner it condemns others? FG ANSWER: The Guantanamo Bay detention camp is a United States military … Read more

The American Dream is harder to find in some neighborhoods

This map, a screenshot from The Opportunity Atlas, shows household income in 2014-2015 for people born between 1978 and 1983 to low-income parents. In areas that are more red, people who grew up in low-income households tended to stay low-income. In areas that are more blue, people who grew up in low-income households tend to make more … Read more

U.S. Households Loaded Up On Stocks

by Dana Lyons Outside of the 2000 dotcom bubble, U.S. households have never had more of their assets invested in the stock market. The U.S. stock market, i.e., the S&P 500, soared back to new all-time highs again today – always a welcomed development for investors. And it is especially welcomed now considering the fact that … Read more

Study finds it doesn’t matter which party is in charge

Given how partisan it can get here, this study seems worthy of our consideration. Yes, party platform policies differ. The linked study does not address this. Rather, the study investigates how both parties feed off of polarization, and neither party appears interested in stopping the trend of increasing polarization. Can we as a community refuse … Read more

Stocks In Cycle Sweet Spot?

by Dana Lyons Stocks are entering the best stretch of the 4-year Presidential cycle, historically speaking. When it comes to investment decision-making inputs, seasonality is typically pretty low on the hierarchy for us. However, as we have written on occasion in the past, there are some seasonal tendencies that have proven to be rather consistent throughout the … Read more

Taxi drivers in the belly of NYC multicultural Babylon, Uber competition, middle age, stress, debt, anti-depressants, suicide and fewer customers

Exerpt from article “NEW YORK — Both men were longtime taxi drivers from Romania. Both were worried about paying their bills as Uber decimated their industry. They were best friends. And both had struggled with depression. Nicanor Ochisor’s wife dragged him to a doctor in March to get help. Two days later, he hanged himself … Read more