Skip to main content

The Greatest Showman!

We saw the musical "The Greatest Showman" based on one of the greatest showman of 19th century P.T. Barnum. I love musicals (who won't especially folks who grew up seeing bollywood movies - 99 out of 100 movies are musicals). After seeing Hugh Jackman singing in Les Miserables, this was must watch for us. I would recommend both movies if you love musicals. Finally Hugh Jackman is done with his Wolverine claws and exploring other genres (Hugh - there is an idea "Wolverine the Musical"). Now coming to PT Barnum - he was one of the most famous personalities of 19th century. He tried his hands in many fields from entrepreneurship to politics. Along the way he got famous (and infamous) for many of his quotes like:
  • There's a sucker born every minute
  • Without promotion, something terrible happens... nothing! 
  • We have got something for everyone
  • The noblest art is that of making others happy
PT Barnum is also associated with "Barnum Effect". It is a common psychological phenomenon whereby individuals give high accuracy ratings to descriptions of their personality that supposedly are tailored specifically to them but that are, in fact, vague and general enough to apply to a wide range of people. To some extent modern medicine trials including placebo (random double-blind) are based on psychological effects associated with Barnum effect. So Barnum's influence on American society continues well into 21st century in many fields he may not have even imagined.
Who is today's Greatest Showman? I am sure you know the answer. He has all the ingredients of what made Barnum The Greatest Showman. Many of the Barnum quotes could be directly attributed o him. You guessed it right. Today's Greatest Showman is undoubtedly President Trump. He knows how to promote himself and he knows that in his latest tax bill, he got something for everyone (more for his rich friends than common man). Everyone got surprised at the speed Tax Reform Bill was passed by congress and signed by President. He did not even wait for big celebratory function to sign the bill. He really wanted to get those tax-cuts effective on new year's day. He kept his campaign promise. Many folks may not like him but he is keeping his campaign promises like "declaring Jerusalem Israel's capital" without the consequences. After all he was elected based on those promises!
What should President Trump do: Embrace the "TIIH"
  • Taxes - done!
  • Immigration - He had given time-bound ultimatum to congress to act on DACA before these kids are forced to leave US. By taking on making DACA into law, he would score another major policy victory. Democrats would be fully supportive of this
  • Infrastructure - Its time for America to invest in infrastructure (and avoid train accidents near Seattle). There are so many opportunities to bring America's infrastructure to 21st century. This initiative would also get support from democrats and boost economy to 3% plus which Tax bill is counting on.
  • Healthcare - Trump tried and failed to repeal Obamacare. Trump and GOP are trying their best to kill it slowly by removing individual mandate in tax bill without providing any alternative. It's time for them to work with democrats to fix remaining parts of Obamacare (and call it Trumpcare if that's what he wants).
If President Trump can get these 4 initiatives done and be more inclusive and less abusive on Twitter, it would be good for him (for his re-election campaign) and America. 
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!
/Shyam

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Clicks to Tokens: Will 2026 Echo 1998's Boom or 2000's Bust?

My "blogging" was in hibernation last 8 months due to my self-imposed restraint given the environment as well as built-in inertia to get started despite so many interesting events and markets reaching all time highs after taking a big dump around "Liberation Day" in Apr...Around that time I had the blog ready that it would be repeat of Mar/Apr 2020 panic and recovery during onset of Covid Pandemic. The hunch happened to be correct and I was glad that I could keep and take some positions which I am still holding especially around AI theme. But that was then...as 2025 is about to wrap up in 10+ weeks, let's look at what's in store for rest of 2025 and 2026. And what's better time than to start writing again just before one of the most important week on the calendar with multiple key events coming up next week... Fed meeting to decide the course of interest rates - it's almost guaranteed that Fed will cut rates by 25 basis points (2nd time in 2025) and...
Post a Comment
Read more

2026: The Year of Convergence – Melt-up, Moonshots, or Mid-cycle Correction?

Happy New Year! After another period of self-imposed hibernation from the blog—partly due to the festivals, travel, intertia and partly to watch the dust settle on a chaotic 2025—I decided to use the quiet of this New Year’s morning to finally reboot.  Looking back at my October post,  “Clicks to Tokens,”  the hunch about the AI theme held firm. We spent much of 2025 debating whether we were in 1998 or 2000. As we enter 2026, the answer seems to be "neither and both." We have the roaring optimism of the 1920s fueled by "Silicon Spirits," but with the high-speed volatility of the 2020s. So, as the calendar flips, what is in store for 2026? Markets may experience melt-up (S&P touching 8000),  with some moonshots (like SpaceX and OpenAI) IPOs or even see mid-cycle correction bringing down S&P to 6000. That's a wide range and will be decided by Four R's... Here are my thoughts on the " Four R’s ":  Rates, Robots, Rotations, and Real Assets. 1. ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Stree-Dhan vs. Oracle of Omaha!

Happy February! After another brief hibernation from the blog—partly to digest the early year volatility and partly to observe the shifting sands of global liquidity—it’s time to look at some fascinating disconnects in the market. Lately, I’ve been thinking about the "Unbeatable Asset Class." No, I’m not talking about the S&P 500 or Nvidia. I’m talking about a collective force that has quietly outperformed the "Oracle of Omaha" for over two decades. 1. The Golden Saree: Indian Women vs. Warren Buffett If you look at the performance of Berkshire Hathaway (BRK-B) since the launch of the GLD ETF (the first gold ETF) in late 2004, you’ll find a startling reality. While Buffett is the gold standard of value investing, the "Gold Standard" itself—specifically in the hands of Indian households—has been a formidable rival. Data shows that since the inception of the GLD ETF in November 2004, the total return on Gold has actually surpassed Berkshire Hathaway. I...
Post a Comment
Read more