The Ungoverned

Thoughts on man and his universe
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  • David Veksler

The myth of the goldfish-sized attention span Jul 19, 2019

The idea that attention span is shortening, particularly among younger generations is a myth, and the claims are not backed by any evidence. The idea of an "average attention span" is a myth, as there is no such thing. Attention span is very much context-dependent. Even within particular contexts, such as driving or listening to a lecture, there is zero evidence of a change among the public or between generations. By the way, there is also zero evidence that goldfish have a short attention span. The "eight-second attention span of a goldfish" is completely fabricated. Goldfish memory IS extensively studied, simply...

By David Veksler Vote3 0

Don’t blame markets for obesity Jul 19, 2019

For nearly the entirety of human history, the chief concern of most people has been getting enough to eat. The invention of capitalism finally enabled the majority of people in market-based societies to focus on higher pursuits. Yet capitalism is now widely blamed for causing obesity - because of the availability of fast food, "food deserts", or simply because markets incentivize products to make food as delicious and cheap as possible. Whether or not you are a fan of free markets, it is personally important for you to understand why this idea is wrong: The ultimate cause of obesity is...

By David Veksler Vote2 0

Facebook Libra’s cold reception from Congress validates the need for Bitcoin Jul 17, 2019

The hostile receptions Facebook's Libra coin received should be viewed as a validation of the need for Bitcoin. As a fiat currency pegged stablecoin, Libra offers little threat to the U.S. dollar's monopoly. To Libra users, it would be little different from PayPal, Alipay, Apple Pay, Google Pay, WeChat, Zelle, or the dozens of other peer to peer payment platforms around the world. Yet Libra threw the powers that be in such a panic that President Trump was pressured into tweeting a condemnation of Libra and a Congressional hearing was swiftly organized. Rep Brad Sherman compared Libra to the 9/11 attacks, which...

By David Veksler Vote2 0
The Intelligent Investor

Why I stopped managing my own money Jul 12, 2019

Every month, I send my robo-advisor a big check to manage my money. It’s my second largest expense, and I know I could do just as good of a job myself -- because for six years, I did. In the midst of the financial crisis in early 2009, I fired my broker and started trading stocks myself. First, though, I did my research - I read Benjamin Graham's classic "The Intelligent Investor, Peter Schiff's "Crash Proof", and many, many, blogs. I did OK - I was up 58% my first year. After that, some years I beat the market, others...

By David Veksler Vote2 0

Don’t dismiss Bitcoin just because of its wild price swings Jul 6, 2019

There are valid reasons to criticize Bitcoin, but price volatility is not one of them.  Why does the price of Bitcoin change so much from day to day? The answer is simple: the value of Bitcoin derives almost entirely from speculation on future adoption of Bitcoin rather than practical use. Bitcoin speculators are betting on the likelihood that Bitcoin will become offers a credible alternative to fiat paper money or commodities like gold. No one knows the future, so many individual market participants speculate about the future using the information available to them. They will naturally disagree and change their opinions over...

By David Veksler Vote4 1

Why I try to ignore the news cycle and focus on my own success first Jul 2, 2019

The idea that the public should be well-informed about local, regional, national, and global events is misguided and harmful. It stems from the fact that in a democracy, every citizen can theoretically influence events on a global scale through the vote. The implication of this is that every citizen is ethically obligated to stay informed on the issues in order to make informed votes. However, this standard is both impossible and harmful. The vast majority of people are busy with their personal lives and must already consume and process a huge amount of information to stay competitive in the modern...

By David Veksler Vote2 0

5 Things You Need from Your Job to Advance Your Career Jul 2, 2019

Your job won't always be your dream job. Sometimes you'll take on projects you don't like, work with people whose company you don't enjoy, or get paid less than you think you're worth. Sometimes, your focus will be on getting by until you find your next gig or get promoted. However, no matter what you do, there is almost always more to gain from your work than a paycheck. Many employees think of their salary as the sole value they derive from their job. Career growth requires a deliberate focus on personal growth to prepare yourself for the next rung...

By David Veksler Vote4 0

How can China thrive without freedom? Maybe it’s time to redefine what “freedom” means. Jun 3, 2019

Freedom is the ability to make choices without coercion, not putting your name on meaningless pieces of paper. In several key aspects, there is more freedom in China than in the USA.

By David Veksler Vote4 0

The Huawei ban and the end of the American empire May 22, 2019

Trump's ban of Huawei is much more serious than you think. American technology and intellectual property played a key role in the development of China as the world's leading electronics manufacturer. Chinese businesses import $557.9 billion of goods from the U.S. The collaboration of American innovation and Chinese skilled labor are responsible for the smartphone revolution. Trump's ban of Huawei as an executive "emergency order" in the name of "national security" threatens the current world order. China needs American innovation to power its manufacturing basis in the short term. If they are forced to, however, they will develop their own...

By David Veksler Vote4 0

How I found the ONE trick to lose belly fat overnight May 10, 2019

About three years ago, I decided to reach an ambitious financial goal, that would put me in the top 5% of my peers. I engaged in a deep dive of personal finance, which led me to reject the conventional wisdom about career, savings, and investing. I developed new principles, achieved financial success, and moved my retirement date forward by several decades. Two months ago, I became aware that though I was only slightly overweight, as I got older, my weight was having a detrimental effect on my health in many ways. I decided to engage in a similar process to...

By David Veksler Vote3 0

How cultural Marxism ruined PC builds Feb 17, 2019

How cultural Marxism ruins everything: Perhaps the most popular and well-produced technology commentary site on the Internet is The Verge. The Verge recently published a how-to guide for building a $2000 gaming computer. The guide was full of wrong and cringe-worthy information and was widely ridiculed by YouTube commentators. The Verge responded by calling its critics "toxic" and "racially motivated" and filed DMCA copyright infringement claims against YouTube commentators who used the video to explain why the information was wrong. The Verge first deleted all negative comments, then disabled all comments and votes on the video, then ultimately acknowledge that...

By David Veksler Vote1 0

The Fatal Conceit Feb 14, 2019

Imagine that planet Earth had a sister planet, like our Earth, but without any people. Imagine that you could magically transport humans and all their possessions to this planet, one at a time.How many people would you need to transport to create a standard of living equal to our Earth? Without a period of rebuilding knowledge and capital, I believe that the answer would be quite close to seven billion.Virtually all of humankind is integrated into a global web of civilization. The physical and mental bonds linking every human being together are just as essential to our survival as our technical...

By David Veksler Vote1 0

Welcome to the experience economy, where ownership is a hobby Feb 10, 2019

I love the awesome stuff you can get these days. I was born in Soviet Ukraine and grew up before the internet, before cell phones, before the smart-everything, connected-everything, disposable-everything era. Don't even get me started about groceries. My second favorite thing about the United States is Costco and their cheap five-pound strawberry crates, giant cheese wedges, and more. Ownership Is a Drag But as much I love stuff, I hate owning things. Ownership is a drag. As soon as I acquire anything, it begins to decay, get outdated, and lose its relevance to me. Every single possession is a...

By David Veksler Vote2 0

How egalitarianism ruined education Feb 6, 2019

Children should not be forced to memorize anything that does not serve a practical purpose. Education beyond basic social function should be "just in time" not "just in case." What is "practical?" That depends on the context of the child's abilities and socio-economic status, but it can be objectively answered. Plumbers don't need Shakespeare. A plumber is welcome to read Hamlet, but forcing him to spend 16 years in useless classroom rituals wastes both money and the most productive years of his life. The egalitarian myth is: if all children are given a proper education, they can all have an...

By David Veksler Vote3 0

Why Hollywood villains have become politically correct Feb 6, 2019

Why even Hollywood villains have become politically correct: According to the "nothing about us without us" principle of intersectionality, it is verboten to present racism, sexism, homophobia, transphobia, ableism, xenophobia, classism, etc without being a member of the victim group. As a result, creators not allowed to have their *villains* have such traits unless the writer/producer themselves are in the victim group. For example, the left forced Chinese-American writer Amélie Wen Zhao to withdraw her debut fantasy novel containing slavery because, even though Chinese immigrants experienced racism, they were not actually enslaved. The only evil which remains a fair target...

By David Veksler Vote2 0

Third-wave feminism is an assault on women’s rights Feb 6, 2019

If today's feminists stood for anything at all, they ought to support a woman's basic right to own her body. Yet today's "woke" feminists stand for precisely the opposite: In the West, the feminist movement won basic rights for women to enter into contracts, vote, and change the legal status of women from "property" to "human being." Faced with the victory of their original aims, modern "third-wave" feminists decided to redefine feminism by combining it with intersectionality. Intersectionality is the idea that society is dominated by "layers of oppression" such as racism, classism, ableism, ageism and many more. Equality before...

By David Veksler Vote1 0

Three Key Differences Between Traditional and Crypto Markets Jan 15, 2019

What is the real market value of cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin? The numbers used to explain the performance of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies are less meaningful than most assume. Cryptocurrencies are not exactly like stocks, and cryptocurrency exchanges do not work like traditional securities markets. As a result, many crypto-asset investment strategies based on conventional definitions of market share, capitalization, volatility, and trading volume are deeply flawed. Misleading numbers mean that cryptocurrency valuation and adoption is poorly understood, which creates a false perception by the media and investors about cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin.  One implication of this analysis is that Bitcoin has...

By David Veksler Vote1 0

Will Bitcoin burn the planet to ashes? Not so fast. Dec 8, 2018

Environmentalists have recently become concerned about the impact Bitcoin mining has on global warming. Headlines such as "Bitcoin Will Burn the Planet Down. The Question: How Fast?" and "Bitcoin Mining Alone Could Raise Global Temperatures Above Critical Limit By 2033" suggest that Bitcoin is an unfolding environmental disaster. However, those panicking about crypto make three fundamental errors. First, they do not understand how Bitcoin works, second, they do not understand what mass adoption would look like, and third, they do not understand the problem Bitcoin is intended to solve. Regardless of your opinion on the danger of global warming, Bitcoin...

By David Veksler Vote7 0

Happy 10th birthday to Bitcoin! Nov 1, 2018

Happy birthday to Bitcoin! 10 years ago, Satoshi Nakamoto published a white paper for "a Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System" which would "allow online payments to be sent directly from one party to another without going through a financial institution." Just a few short months later, the Bitcoin network launched on 3 January 2009. Bitcoin is the culmination of thousands of years in the evolution in money. It is durable, portable, divisible, uniform, and limited by design. Over the span of human history, money has taken the form of shells, salt, coins, banknotes, and fiat bills. While money serves a crucial...

By David Veksler Vote2 0

Is your “side hustle”​ holding back or advancing your career? Oct 24, 2018

I encourage people to develop a “side hustle,” but they are not suitable for everyone, and many people get hustles that do more harm than good. The proper function of a side hustle is not to earn a few extra dollars — it’s to grow your value proposition and train for a life of financial independence and entrepreneurship. Many people get a side hustle that distracts rather than enhances their career. Driving Uber at night or hosting Airbnb guests every night is not going to enhance your career unless your dream is to be a chauffeur or enter the hospitality...

By David Veksler Vote2 0

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