Category Archives: Economics

A Chinese jobs creation programme

Posted on October 17, 2019 by

In a story beloved by economists it’s said that Milton Friedman* was once visiting China when he was shocked to see that, instead of modern tractors and earth movers, thousands of workers were toiling away building a canal with shovels. … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Politics, quips | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Del’s culinary tips for a healthy heart

Posted on October 10, 2019 by

Do you ever use vegetable bouillon? A popular make sold by Tesco is Marigold at £2.00 for 150 gms. The ingredients make interesting reading with salt at the top of the list, it forms almost half (44.6%) of the total … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Health, Mathematics, statistics | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

John Maynard Keynes on the First World War

Posted on September 9, 2019 by

If the European Civil War is to end with France and Italy abusing their momentary victorious power to destroy Germany and Austria-Hungary now prostrate, they invite their own destruction also, being so deeply and inextricably intertwined with their victims by … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, History, Philosophy, Politics, War | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

How supermarkets promote theft

Posted on August 15, 2019 by

“A 2015 study of self-checkouts with handheld scanners, conducted by criminologists at the University of Leicester, also found evidence of widespread theft. After auditing 1 million self-checkout transactions over the course of a year, totalling $21 million in sales, they … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Finance, Technology | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: John Carreyrou ~ Bad Blood: Secrets and Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup (2018)

Posted on July 29, 2019 by

Without trivialising this wonderful book I was reminded of a joke as I followed the career of Elizabeth Holmes: Q. What’s a gold mine? A. A hole in the ground owned by a liar Elizabeth worshipped Steve Jobs and Bill … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Finance, Health, Literature, Review | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Japanese Koi Carp

Posted on July 18, 2019 by

    Anything strike you as special about this fish here? Well, it’s worth 1.8 million dollars. It won grand champion at the All Japan Koi Show in 2017, and is the most expensive koi fish ever sold. https://www.businessinsider.com/koi-fish-worth-millions-expensive-japan-2018-12?r=US&IR=T

Posted in Economics, wildlife | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

A start a middle and an end

Posted on July 17, 2019 by

I’ll start this story in a tenants association hall in Myrtle Road, Harold Hill. I used the small bar for a pint or two in the 1980s when I heard that the chair had decided to resign. I put my … Continue reading →

Posted in Autobiography, Economics, History, housing, Politics | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment