MIT scientists have developed a new super material that is both stronger than steel and as light as plastic. Study Finds reports: Scientists at MIT have developed a material that is as light as plastic — but stronger than steel. They believe the material could revolutionize the car, mobile phone and building industries. The easily manufactured substance – up to six times more difficult to break than bulletproof glass – is the result of an engineering feat previously thought to be impossible. It is a two-dimensional polymer that self-assembles into sheets, unlike all other polymers, which … [Read more...]
Archives for February 2022
February RAGE Gauge: Biden Backed Criminals on the Street
OK, Your Survival Guy’s latest RAGE Gauge is in. Let’s dig into it. What stands out immediately is the decline in gun background checks, my favored proxy for final sales. Americans, no longer flush with government handouts, are not buying guns at the pace they were at this time last year, or even last month for that matter. Does that mean we live in a safer country, a conclusion only a George Soros NYC DA would consider? Hardly. Bad guys will always get their guns. But it tells you something about Americans’ expectations of Joe Biden that they spent so many of their stimulus dollars on arming … [Read more...]
Now Inflation Finds Its Way to Your Car Insurance
As prices of nearly everything soar during the Biden era, now the price of car insurance is rising as well. Leslie Scism reports in The Wall Street Journal: Car insurers are rapidly raising rates to try to get ahead of inflation, which has boosted the prices of car repairs, replacements and rentals. Many insurers are boosting premiums by 6% to 8% while some are asking for double-digit increases, according to industry executives and analysts. The rising rates are an example of inflation leading to more price increases as businesses try to compensate for higher costs. After having a … [Read more...]
Your Survival Guy: DARKNESS and WITHOUT POWER AGAIN
OK, Your Survival Guy awoke with a start this morning as our bedroom fan stopped turning—the silence deafening—the normal steady cadence, like crashing waves, is usually the background noise dreams are made of. But when it stops, something’s wrong. “What was that droning sound?” I wondered. Military choppers doing a predawn exercise at First Beach? The Coast Guard performing a near-shore rescue? No, just the neighborhood generators. That could mean only one thing—no power. This is no way to start the day. As Your Survival Guy was getting dressed in the dark, I thought this would be a good … [Read more...]
Is Amazon Operating an Illegal Business?
In The Wall Street Journal, Joe Lonsdale, a general partner at the venture-capital firm 8VC, explains why Amazon may potentially be running an illegal business, and why it may need to be split into two pieces. He writes: If the price of a service seems too good to be true, it probably is. Amazon’s most recent earnings report sent the stock price soaring, up nearly 14%, closing Friday at over $3,150, near its all-time high. Amazon beat expectations on quarterly revenue, reporting $137 billion, with companywide operating income of $3.5 billion. But the report’s most notable trend is the … [Read more...]
Time to Find Some Dividend Religion
Don’t be the one who misses the boat on DIVIDEND RELIGION. Investors are finding out now what Your Survival Guy has known for a long time, there is something special about dividend paying stocks. The Wall Street Journal's Hardika Singh and Michael Wursthorn report: Boring companies have been hot during the stock market’s winter swoon. An early-year tumble in major U.S. stock indexes has some investors searching for safety by dumping shares of high-growth technology stocks for stodgier businesses that pay shareholders cash, including banks, oil companies and telecoms. Through Feb. 4, the … [Read more...]
YOUR INVESTMENT STRONGHOLD: A Moat Around Your Money
Happy Monday from Your Survival Guy. It was quite a week for two S&P 500 darlings, Facebook (Meta) and Amazon. What’s interesting is how so many commentators are saying, “I told you so,” as if predicting the future is easy. I can give you plenty of reasons why it could be tough sledding ahead for Amazon’s stock price. But the low hanging fruit is to pick at the road ahead for Facebook. Here’s my takeaway, why bother with either when such huge price swings are part of the equation? Because when everyone’s talking about the same stocks, isn’t the secret out? Why not focus on the picks and … [Read more...]
How High Can Bond Yields Rise Before Killing the Stock Market?
At what point will stock investors give up and instead invest in bonds? How high can bond rates rise before company financing costs begin to hurt profitability? Those are the questions Philip Coggan examines here in the Financial Times, writing: The year has not started well for equity markets. Fears of inflation and tighter monetary policy are weighing on share prices as tensions between Russia and Ukraine darken the outlook. There is a sense that government bond yields, after declining for 40 years, might be trending upwards again. There are three reasons why this can be bad news for … [Read more...]
MY SCOTTSDALE STORY: AZ Proves the Value of Freedom
Look, not too long ago, Your Survival Guy spent a long weekend at the Scottsdale, AZ Four Seasons and loved it. I can see why wealthy Americans are flocking there. If you like golf and beautiful weather you’re good to go. Check out this article below. When you go through the reasons Paradise Valley, AZ (between Phoenix and Scottsdale) is surging with new residents from other states, one trend stands out to me—more freedom, fewer lockdown restrictions. This is a trend that’s not going away as we begin to realize that COVID is yet another way to suppress your freedom. Make sure you have your … [Read more...]
NEARSHORING WAVE: American Companies Flee “High Risk” China
American companies are recognizing the ever increasing risks of doing business in China, and adjusting their future plans. Chuck Dobrosielski explains the near shoring trend and what it means in Sourcing Journal, writing: After countless years of rumblings and promises, the long-heralded rise in nearshoring appears to finally be here. In a McKinsey & Co. survey of 38 chief procurement officers at clothing companies, 71 percent said they plan to increase their nearshoring share, including 13 percent who expect to do so by more than 10 percentage points. Twenty-four percent plan to … [Read more...]