A reader asked me to define "powerful" since I already defined "rich" and use "rich and powerful" together so much.
Defining "powerful" is more subjective than "rich". A "powerful" person in the political or economic sense I use it [not a powerlifter or weightlifter ;-) ] is a person with recognized "power" over other people. This "power" requires one of two attributes.
A. Ability and willingness to compel or cause actions either thru force of law or through self-resources or through the ability to cause or threaten (real or implied) physical or economic harm or provide benefits. This power might require cooperative actions of others or not to be realized. Senators, CEOs and the activist rich have Type A power.
B. Leadership of a movement recognized by numerous persons who will follow his/her commands without any legal or economic (direct or implied) benefits or threats of harm or benefits in the physical world. A religious leader has this type of power, as did Hitler and Lenin before they came to have Type A power.
The power MUST be recognized by some others in both cases to be real. The power need NOT be universally recognized.
Hmmm interesting. Not sure why you use the phrase 'rich and powerful' in such a demeaning way.
ReplyDeleteWow! What a premium for AQNT.
ReplyDeleteI think you mean, I use it in a disparaging way in many contexts.
ReplyDeleteWell, I guess a "rich & powerful" person could do good things. Ronald Reagan was one. Teddy Roosevelt was another. Bill Gates [not his father] seems to be another in the context of his foundation.
But I see so many examples of the rich & powerful using their money & power to increase their own wealth & power, or trying to force people to live as "they" deem correct. "They" use it to decrease the people's freedom, not increase it. So I rant about it.
A flaw of Libertarianism is that its pure form permits the rich & powerful to run rampant. The history of the last half of the 19th century in the US illustrates this problem well. A populist Teddy Roosevelt reigned in their ability to effectuate their greed for more. In doing so he laid a more solid foundation for the increase in wealth and political stability for the entire nation.
ReplyDeleteMy point exactly. You never talk about all the good the rich and powerful do. Which is fine...you are not obligated to. But to lump them together and use it in a disparaging way confuses me. Thanks for the clarification.
ReplyDeleteI suppose the beefers will hit this futs rip. If they do, I figure the real buyers will scoop up their shorts. The all time S&P high looms large.
ReplyDeleteI agree......1517 is s and p all time closing high. A close above it today should increase size of the herd next week.
ReplyDeleteWell, Bud, my dispargement is really context driven. A rich & powerful person might do both good & bad. I can't think of an example off-hand, but it's certainly possible.
ReplyDeleteI thought I always hammer the rich & poweful in a context. I hope I don't do it in general. If I do, please let me know it. ;-)
1527, I thought, is the all time S&P closing high.
ReplyDeleteI love the term 'herd'. What animals mainly move around in herds? Besides cattle.
ReplyDeleteTwo consecutive daily closes above it will really seal the fate of the perma-bears & virtual bears, I think.
ReplyDeleteBuffalo do, I know.
ReplyDeleteElephants, maybe.
ReplyDeletecattle, deer, buffalo, elephants, llamas, alpacas, elk, gnu, goats, hippos, moose, oxen, pronghorns, reindeer, seals, walrus, yak, zebra, among others; also used for horses sometimes. Plant-eating dinosaurs, too.
ReplyDeleteHmm Bunkerman............I don't see beefers in that list.
ReplyDeletelol. I hadn't considered them "animals" ;-)
ReplyDeleteYes you are right..........1527 all time s and p closing high.
ReplyDeleteAny friendly "wagers" that the beefers short heavily at 1527 & then we hear screeches of "HUGE DOUBLE TOP !!!!!!!!!! "
ReplyDeleteThat seems reasonable Bunkerman. I won't be shorting there....but I am getting a bit scared how far we have come without even a 5% pullback.
ReplyDeleteWonder where Mern is. My guess either hungover or in jail for drunk and disorderly.
ReplyDeleteHe's probably working hard, finding corruption, illegal activity & unfair treatment of customers. ;-)
ReplyDeleteLmaooooooooooo........Mern is just like you. Always thinking if you are makin money.....you must be doin something illegal...or at the every least ....takin advantage of an 'unfair' loophole.
ReplyDeleteThat's quite a bit off, Bud. I know lots of people who made big money legally & morally correctly. Some of my best friends are rich. ;-)
ReplyDeleteBut I've sure see a lot of crooks, knaves, thieves, rogues & liars, too, among those making big money, too. :-)
ReplyDeleteUh Bunkerman..... I can only go by your posts. I am glad you know some rich who aren't 'hogs at the trough'.
ReplyDeleteGee, it must really suck to be a beefer bear. They must be looking at liquidations or bigtime redemptions. All those pathological short sellers, too.
ReplyDeleteI wonder if they will ever capitulate in the face of a bull market or just keep covering & re-shorting higher. The next short interest numbers will be interesting.
ReplyDeleteHmmm. I was called names for being "still" bullish when the market was "extended" in November, when S&P 500 was 1400. :-))
ReplyDeleteI'm sure glad I stopped listening to that crap & stuck to my own thinking.
ReplyDeleteLOL I remember when you were being called names. I personally thought you were a bit sensitive but who cares now........that was the right call. Well done.
ReplyDeleteLolololol....just read newyorktimes editorial today on private equity. They used the word 'looting'. Where else have I heard that?
ReplyDeleteUh oh. I don't like being in the same camp as the NYT. :-((
ReplyDeleteI have nothing against private equity in principal, except when they conspire with the managers to steal the company, or when the PE managers are grossly overpaid or loot huge "acquisistion" fees [I actually saw that happen a few times] or don't paid ordinary incomes taxes on their compensation.
Private equity & takeovers are valuable counterbalance to entrenched or incompetent management.
I didn't see the point of paying $$$ to get criticized for being right in trying to help others. It had become a waste of my time & no fun or satisfaction; a source of stress.
ReplyDeleteWriting this blog is fun & I enjoy it. It helps me think.
Have a good weekend.
ReplyDelete"The Trend is Your Friend"
:-))
LOL.you say that every friday. Good weekend to all!!
ReplyDelete