Daily Ramble
Ok, ok. The “Rad Things on the Interwebs” may be dead, but for the lovers of it, I’m going to incorporate some of them into my Rambles. That should make a better flow to the newsletter while also ensuring I’m only putting the best of the best into the Rambles.
Housekeeping aside, I’m back on my favorite rambling topic after seeing the Biden administration roll out vaccine mandates for private companies with more than 100 staff. Besides my doubt that it’ll go over well, let’s take a clear-eyed view of mortality risks in the US population.
Huh?! If we combine cancer and heart disease, did you know that nearly 4x the number of people died from those ailments than from COVID in 2020? And if you didn’t, why not?
Most likely because there’s been a glaring lack of attention brought to cancer and heart disease in the last year, COVID has been the darling in the spotlight. It reminds me a lot of sharks and surfing. Since I picked up a board and entered the waters of the Pacific, the thought of sharks has floated around my mind and been popularized by winning Nature Channel efforts like “Shark Week.” On bigger days of surfing, I’ve ever-so-rarely heard people ask me if I’m afraid to drown. Between sharks and drowning, guess what the bigger risk is? You got it without even looking it up, I bet.
Why? Because we’re emotional creatures. The thought of a shark munching us triggers our animalistic fight-or-flight emotions—the red warning light of critter crunching blots out the risks of drowning. If someone knows how to swim, there's rarely a fear of the water. So it’s not seen as a threat, just like most people don’t see the threat of consuming an innocent Big Mac three times a week. Then, 10-20 years later, arteries bloated and constricted, their tickers stop ticking correctly, and folks start popping statins to compensate.
So when an invisible particle comes along that lays us low, killing the most vulnerable members of the population, it’s natural that we’re going to shine the bright light on it obsessively. The Whopper is boring and tasty as hell compared to this new critter who’s just lathering to do us in. Only, just like a shark, COVID doesn’t actually kill as many people as the glorious Double Double. Imagine being someone dying of heart disease or cancer right now. I’d be pissed as all get out at the lack of attention my plight was getting compared to something that is rather benign for healthy people.
But heck, what can we expect. Sharks and COVID are more exciting to talk about than water, heart disease, and cancer.
Bitcoin Price Prediction
Yesterday: $44.4k - $47.4k
Today: $45.5k - $47.4k
Tomorrow: $44.4k - $49.3k
Bitcoin’s price has continued to consolidate after the massive $10k breakdown two days ago. Not surprising in the least. The bulls and bears are duking it out for dominance right now as the price continues to trade in a tighter and tighter range. I continue to believe we’ll see a break of this temporary range to the upside for a test of $49.3k before the market decides if we’re heading up to $53k again or down to test $42k again. The fact that the bulls have absorbed the selling pressure from the bears thus far means that a break down to $42k does not seem likely, but continues to be possible. The next 48 hours should give us better insight into the situation.
Bitcoin Q & A
Q: What advantages does Bitcoin have over gold?
A: Several.
Bitcoin is more portable, has a fully accountable and transparent supply, and serves as far easier collateral for borrowing and lending.
Do you have questions or a “Rad Thing on the Interwebs”? Leave a comment or reply to the newsletter to reach me.
Me? I offer personal and corporate Bitcoin Implementation Strategies: custody, investing strategy, security, tax management, and inheritance. Contact me for a free initial consultation.
Interesting that influenza isn't listed as a significant cause of deaths in 2020. That could be because a) it's been lumped into Covid stats (see CDC's announcement ending recommended use of PCR test at 12/31/21), or b) it's not a large enough number to show up in this graph. If memory serves, a typical flu season takes 36,000 lives. Or was that 360,000?