site banner
naraburns  nihil supernum  1yr ago (text post)   Edited 1yr ago   2387 thread views

Friday Fun Thread for October 7, 2022

Be advised; this thread is not for serious in depth discussion of weighty topics (we have a link for that), this thread is not for anything Culture War related. This thread is for Fun. You got jokes? Share 'em. You got silly questions? Ask 'em.

6
Top Bottom New Old Comments
Jump in the discussion.

No email address required.

I’m down 10% for the year although I don’t really have the time to actively manage it. I hold a little energy (VDE) which is the only reason my NASDAQ heavy portfolio isn’t substantial worse. Will need to look into tobacco… that sounds like a good idea potentially.

Here's the blog post about industry returns (table at the end) : http://www.philosophicaleconomics.com/2015/09/industry/

I think some industries are a terrible investment. It's always the same sectors: You hear about airlines never having made money, a steel company is always going bankrupt, and even buffett had a lot of trouble with his textile company. Boom-bust cycle in capital intensive sectors kills the return. You end up selling product at a loss half the time because you're stuck with all this unmovable machinery. For the winners otoh it looks like a 'sin stocks' effect.

What is this place?

This website is a place for people who want to move past shady thinking and test their ideas in a court of people who don't all share the same biases. Our goal is to optimize for light, not heat; this is a group effort, and all commentators are asked to do their part.

The weekly Culture War threads host the most controversial topics and are the most visible aspect of The Motte. However, many other topics are appropriate here. We encourage people to post anything related to science, politics, or philosophy; if in doubt, post!

Check out The Vault for an archive of old quality posts. You are encouraged to crosspost these elsewhere.


Why are you called The Motte?

A motte is a stone keep on a raised earthwork common in early medieval fortifications. More pertinently, it's an element in a rhetorical move called a "Motte-and-Bailey", originally identified by philosopher Nicholas Shackel. It describes the tendency in discourse for people to move from a controversial but high value claim to a defensible but less exciting one upon any resistance to the former. He likens this to the medieval fortification, where a desirable land (the bailey) is abandoned when in danger for the more easily defended motte. In Shackel's words, "The Motte represents the defensible but undesired propositions to which one retreats when hard pressed."

On The Motte, always attempt to remain inside your defensible territory, even if you are not being pressed.


New post guidelines

If you're posting something that isn't related to the culture war, we encourage you to post a thread for it. A submission statement is highly appreciated, but isn't necessary for text posts or links to largely-text posts such as blogs or news articles; if we're unsure of the value of your post, we might remove it until you add a submission statement. A submission statement is required for non-text sources (videos, podcasts, images).

Culture war posts go in the culture war thread; all links must either include a submission statement or significant commentary. Bare links without those will be removed.

If in doubt, please post it!


Rules


Recommended Posts And Communities

Recommended Realtime Chats