The Ungoverned

Thoughts on man and his universe
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  • David Veksler

Six People Who Were Rescued by Crowd-Sourced Legal Advice Sep 19, 2017

The legal system is a mysterious and forbidding institution to most of us. This leaves us vulnerable to both private and public abuse when we either have no choice but to plead guilty to a criminal charge, or have no idea how to use the law to right wrongs against us. Fortunately, the sub-reddit /r/legaladvice has been a life-saver (sometimes literally) to thousands of people who either cannot afford a lawyer, or are even being victimized by their own lawyer. Exhibits A-F Here are just a few-example of people the /r/legaladvice community helped: A woman was told to document her sexual assault by...

By David Veksler Vote4 0

The Real Scandal Is the EPA’s Diesel Policy, Not Volkswagen Aug 25, 2017

You’ve probably heard about the Volkswagen emissions scandal. The official story is that engineers at VW faked emissions test results to meet EPA requirements. VW made it appear as though its diesel engines produced fewer pollutants while being tested than they actually produce on the road. When independent testers identified the issue, VW was forced to fix 11 million vehicles, and pay over $7 billion in fines, refits, and buy-backs. This much is true. However, that’s not the full story. VW cheated because the EPA introduced an ultra-stringent emissions standard with the expectation that automakers would invent compatible technology. VW...

By David Veksler Vote6 0

Five common errors made by abortion critics Aug 20, 2017

Opponents of abortion (those who oppose a woman's right to abortion and those think it is merely immoral) typically make five kinds of logical errors: 1: The seen and the unseen: Abortion opponents see the fetus which was aborted but ignore the good things that the abortion made possible. These include the mother who is free to pursue her life goals and the lives of the children who are born into families that want and are ready for them. The decision to have an abortion is not arbitrary: it's a choice the mother makes because she believes that she and...

By David Veksler Vote13 40

This is the real reason your iPhone cables break Aug 16, 2017

Apple products look great. Whatever else you think of the company, there’s little doubt that Apple uses high-end materials to create gorgeous and durable products. That’s true for just about everything Apple makes, with one glaring exception: the cables. It’s common knowledge that Apple cables begin to disintegrate after about six months of regular use. This has been a constant across many different devices - MacBook, iPhones, and adapters, and over the course of many generations of product. My first generation iPhone had a cable that fell apart in 2009, and my iPhone 6 cable disintegrated less than a year later too....

By David Veksler Vote4 0

How to prepare for the coming economic meltdown Aug 15, 2017

Predicting economic recession is like predicting earthquakes.  It’s impossible to predict when the next Big One will hit.  However, unless the fundamentals of local geology have changed, we should expect the past to follow the same pattern as the future.  And the last time I checked, Southern California hasn’t turned into an island, and the Fed is still wreaking havoc with interest rates.  The smart thing to do is to earthquake-proof your house -- and your finances while you can.

By David Veksler Vote16 3

Feminists ought to welcome the rise of the sex robots Aug 13, 2017

Johanna Legatt writes: "There is little coincidence that these sophisticated sex robots have emerged at a time when women's rights are under threat across the globe, when there is a president in the White House who has bragged about sexually assaulting women" 1: Is it really true that "women's rights are under threat across the globe?" One can reasonably conclude that in the Islamic world, which has rolled back Western norms introduced during colonialism. Everywhere else, women have more rights (and face fewer sexual violence) than any other time in history. In many Western countries, it is taboo to even suggest that...

By David Veksler Vote3 0

How to invest your money – from $25K to $5 million Aug 13, 2017

Your first $25,000 should be invested in an all-market (VTI) or S&P 500 index fund (VOO) in your 401K or IRA. Your first $500,000 should be invested in a broad market, low-cost, diversified portfolio of large/small cap and some international index funds. After you reach $500k, you need to invest the majority of your portfolio into individual stocks.  At this scale, tax efficiency becomes increasingly important, and you need an actively managed portfolio which optimizes the tax allocation of investments (growth stocks into taxable, REITs & bonds into 401K, etc), minimizes trading frequency, and practices tax loss harvesting (sell losses...

By David Veksler Vote4 0

Where do prices come from? Aug 10, 2017

Very few of us have the opportunity to experience the heart of what makes our civilization work. Crypto-asset markets are one of the few places where you can participate in a real asset exchange without spending a decade getting training and certifications. If you want to try your hand at playing Wall Street trader for a day, this is the place to be.

By David Veksler Vote11 0

Why I’m betting on the future of Bitcoin Aug 2, 2017

Five years of living in China spoiled me in terms of financial transactions. Most people don't use debit or credit: they either use cash or more commonly, send money electronically via mobile apps. Mobile wallet apps are often used for large payments, and your landlord or utility company is just as likely to accept them as the friend you're splitting lunch with.  You can login to your bank's website or ATM and send someone a million dollars as easily as a few bucks. Then I moved back to the U.S. I owe several thousand dollars to a friend. At first,...

By David Veksler Vote5 1

Four secrets for getting the most out of your company’s 401(k) Jul 23, 2017

Here's how to get the most out of your company's 401(k): 1 Set your savings rate high to max out your contribution early in the year You can invest up to $18K per year into your 401(k) (plus $6,000 if you're 50+).  Regardless of how much you plan to contribute, you don't have to split your contributions evenly throughout the year.  If you set the savings rate high, you can invest the entire amount you plan to invest in your 401(k) early in the year, then save up for other goals for the rest of the year.    I set...

By David Veksler Vote7 0

Here are the 10 cards I keep in my wallet Jul 22, 2017

As promised, here are all the cards I keep in my wallet*, with a rationale of why I acquired each card.  Jump below the image to read why I got each card:     I have two criteria for credit cards: No annual fees: I don’t spend enough to warrant paying an annual fee for any card. Cash back only: I don’t mess with complex point systems which only encourage spending.  I just want some money back on my bill.   American Express Blue Cash My favorite card.  Why?    3% back at supermarkets 2% back at department stores and...

By David Veksler Vote7 1

The sapient mind is a parasite Jul 17, 2017

The conscious, rational mind is a parasite which has hijacked the homo sapiens species for its own purposes. For billions of years, life on earth was organized by genes directing primitive bio mechanical systems. Recently, the genes began building neural networks with built-in instructions, and even the capability to pass learned behaviors between generations. But the genes screwed up royally when they enabled the replicators doing their bidding to override their programming and develop a culture of their own. You see, when homo sapiens invented culture, they gained the ability to overrule their genetic programming and do whatever their rational...

By David Veksler Vote4 2

Here is the best personal finance & budgeting app Jun 3, 2017

I tested all the popular budgeting and personal finance tracking apps out there: Mint, Personal Capital, Truebill, Prosper Daily, Albert, Level Money, Proper Daily, and more. These apps can connect to most banks and credit card companies to pull your transaction history and track your spending. Some of them can monitor and help you cancel recurring subscriptions, or recommend relevant (or not) financial products. Most of the apps I tried ran into problems such as double-counting credit card charges and credit card bill payments, classifying bank or brokerage transfers as bills (Truebill), not showing pending charges or credit refunds, unable...

By David Veksler Vote5 2

Laziness must be learned May 29, 2017

After reading the "toddler maximum effort" story, I was thinking back to when Sophie was an infant. I noticed that while she was crawling around or playing, she was usually covered with sweat. We adults sometimes think that because kids are not good at the things we take for granted, their play is not focused or meaningful. In fact, babies are far more likely than adults in engage in prolonged "maximum intensity" effort. Productivity is our default mode, while laziness must be learned! The activity we call "play" refers to its low economic value to adults, not to a difference...

By David Veksler Vote5 2

Company scrip and other great ideas pushed out by employment regulations May 28, 2017

The relationships between unrelated services that the government imposes on us often don't make any sense: * Why should my choice of doctor depend on my job? * Why should my kids be forced to attend a school based on where I live? * Why does my retirement plan depend on the provider my employer choose? But other relationships would probably be more common if the government did not force them to be separate: * Why doesn't our employer pay for our education? If a certain skill is needed to perform our job, then our employer could pay for it...

By David Veksler Vote2 1

Dear NPR: “Steal from the rich to give to the poor” is not a genius new economic theory May 27, 2017

I've been avoiding TV and radio for many years now, but I catch glimpses of NPR now and then because my wife listens to it in the car. It usually only takes a few minutes to remind me why: A "human interest" story features an average guy who figured out a "trick to save social security." This "amateur economist" has a "brilliant" proposal: eliminate social security taxes on middle-class incomes by raising the cap on earnings subject to the Social Security payroll tax. So: steal more from middle-upper families and redistribute their money to middle-lower families. This is hailed as...

By David Veksler Vote4 2

How learning to hurt people helped me deal with chronic stress May 24, 2017

I like going to Krav Maga practice because it's very practical: each session is about learning how to maim and cripple your opponent until you eliminate or escape the threat. Technique is key, but during most practices, there comes a time when I am exhausted during an exercise and have to find the strength to continue. It often comes out as a roar and a total focus to finishing the task. Every athlete knows what that feels like. How do frequent sessions of learning to hurt people change a person? I was driving today, and someone did something that upset me....

By David Veksler Vote8 2

Introduction to Modern Portfolio Theory Apr 30, 2017

The key principle you must understand to have a well-balanced portfolio is modern portfolio theory. Although the idea was introduced in 1952 by Harry Markowitz (who got a Nobel for it), it still doesn't get the central focus it deserves in investment planning. Like the efficient market hypothesis introduced by Friedrich Hayek seven years earlier (who also got a Nobel for it), it is a very useful theoretical model to understand the relationship between investment risk and performance, but should not be abused by failing to question whether its underlying assumptions hold true in particular cases. Let me try to...

By David Veksler Vote6 0

How to prepare your life for the Technological Singularity Apr 22, 2017

If you believe that a technological singularity is coming in the 2030's, is there anything you can do now to prepare? Yes, plenty: Career: As increasing automation replaces rote human labor with machines, work that requires creativity, adaptability, and self-direction is becoming more valuable.  Expert systems will augment and then replace technicians, and deep understanding and expertise will fall in importance relative to broad cross-functional heuristics.  Engineering and programming will increasingly be performed by creatives working with high-level design tools, while algorithms work out the technical details.  "Employment" itself will become obsolete, and most work will be performed by either temp workers...

By David Veksler Vote10 2

Why you (probably) don’t need life insurance: how to self-insure your family Apr 6, 2017

I'm not categorically opposed to life (and most other kinds of) insurance, but if you follow good financial practices, you're better off self-insuring.  Self-insurance is essentially the idea that you assume a risk instead of paying an insurance company for the service, either by not taking out the policy at all, or selecting a high-deductible. This requires financial discipline and planning to keep sufficient savings to pay for emergencies. Here are my thoughts on why insurance doesn't make sense in most cases. I'll focus on life insurance, but it applies to many others. When (term) life insurance makes sense: I'll...

By David Veksler Vote4 0

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