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Commentary 10-29-24

The noise is reaching a feverish pitch as the interminable election season heads for the finish line.
Anyone who thinks they know who will win has more insight than we do.
There is a continuous fog of illusion out there in the media space. And there is so much deceitful posturing in play to confuse the voters, it is just too difficult to weigh the seemingly infinite number of variables associated with outcomes.
Once the makeup for the House, Senate, and Executive Branch are more clear, the outlook for public policies affecting capital formation will clear up a bit.
There’s at least one irrefutable fundamental truth in these periods that always prevails. And it is that winning politicians will always, regardless of party affiliation, make sure the problems they solve first, are their own.
There are simply too many examples to cite, that suggest this is true.
So, suffice to say, if your investment structure is reliant on one party or the other prevailing, your strategy is flawed.
Only shares of extraordinarily well-managed and dominant businesses with impeccable financial characteristics capable of transcending politics will stand the test of time.
And only fixed income strategies that withstand the test of time, can work effectively enough to stave off a portion of the cancerous effects of inflation.
Will and Ariel Durant, the great historians of the 20th century said in the Lessons of History, that economic history is replete with inflation and that “money (currency and short-term instruments) is the last thing a wise man will hoard.”
We will let the dust settle next week, and then come back with some comments that look into 2025 and beyond, once the landscape develops more clarity on things that politicians can destroy with one stroke of their partisan pens.

 

Commentary 10-24-24​

The decibel levels in the marketplaces that represent places for capital deployment are at hysterical pre-election levels. This makes listening exceedingly difficult.

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Once the election outcome has been determined, some of the smoke and a lot of the noise will clear, and we will return to a more reasonable sense of predictability, in terms of where policies are headed that can have an impact on the margin.

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In the end, relying on sound fiscal policies, a controlled federal bureaucracy, or intelligent use of debt by lawmakers will remain a pipe dream.

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Still, America has built in advantages that domestic politicians shamelessly exploit in ways that boggle the mind. It is noteworthy that leaders of Russia, China, and India are meeting to discuss ways to diminish the impact of the U.S. dollar being the world reserve currency. Of course the answer is these nations could begin by building more trust in what they do. Good luck with that possibility.

 

Despite gross mismanagement by both major U.S. parties, mismanagement in America is relatively benign, when compared to that of Russia, China, or India, not to mention all of Europe and Japan.

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For the foreseeable future, the U.S. dollar will remain the world reserve currency. And the great leaps forward in innovation and wealth creation will continue to rely heavily on a small number of the best run companies in the world, most of which are American. The task of figuring out which companies fit this category is neither easier nor more difficult than it has always been.

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The rewards for wise capital deployment in equities remain enormous, as do the risks.

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The direction of interest rates remains an open question. My experience tells me that a short stint of tighter monetary policy in the U.S. has not put out the fires of inflation. It is an advantage for America to be able to "export" a fair portion of our inflation rate.

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Stay tuned for an update after the election noise and smoke clears.  

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Synopsis of:

Answering the Great Question

“Diversions, Detours & Dead Ends”​​

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Synopsis: Petri Dish Foundation’s new eleven-part documentary series emphasizes compelling historical and scientific evidence. The evidence is tied directly to the methods used by various powerful ruling educational bureaucracies in the 21st century, to perpetuate the widespread perception that these institutions are uniquely qualified to serve as mankind’s sole trusted gatekeepers of the "truth."​​

 

The film segments are sequenced to illustrate distinct historical patterns encompassing thousands of years of human history. Layer after layer of cohesive evidence, from the physical, historical, and behavioral sciences are the cornerstones of the film.

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Part 1 of the film begins with a well-hidden, but profound assertion made by Albert Einstein in 1936. Einstein's position on what everyone who "seriously pursues science eventually concludes," is a direct contradiction of what is being taught to students at K-12 and higher education institutions today. Einstein's assertion was discovered in a private letter discovered in his personal papers after his death in 1955. The conclusion Einstein expressed so unequivocally in this private letter is not shared with students. This exclusion serves as the first of many examples of overt diversions, detours, and dead ends this film examines. That Einstein's most important assertion regarding the "answer to the great question" has been shielded from millions, if not billions of students for almost seventy years prompted the thorough investigation conducted in this film.

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The opening segment of the film also provides evidence of a litany of other similar tactics routinely practiced by ruling educational bureaucracies in possession of enormous power, wealth, and social status in the 21st century. The film illustrates why these patterns are not new. Instead, they date back thousands of years. Each example of practices and policies highlighted, can best be described as self-serving to the institutions, instead of serving the mission of seeking truth. The initial segment finishes up with the exposure of absurd characterizations of the findings of Watson and Crick regarding the astonishingly complex properties of DNA.​​​

 

Part 2 introduces corroborating evidence of the patterns of the opening segment. An examination of the eruption of academic scandals over the last two decades continues the theme. In the spotlight are over 10,000 retractions of “peer reviewed” scientific papers published in scientific journals in 2023 alone. Ten thousand annual retractions amount to more than 27 bogus scientific papers being published every day of the week, 365 days a year, only to be later withdrawn, usually after independent investigations. Part 2 reveals the fact that both Harvard University and Stanford University exposed themselves in 2023, and 2024, as high-profile educational institutions that have gradually created environments where scientific fraud has become rampant.

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Part 3 explores the sweeping implications of the 2022 Nobel Prize in Physics award for work on Quantum Entanglement. Revealing statements by the Nobel Committee itself, of the presence of “philosophical issues,” are thoroughly dissected in this segment. Suddenly at issue, are previous false “cause and effect” assumptions associated with mysterious information transfers at the particle level. The segment explains physical laws of the universe are now "blowing the minds" of the greatest scientific thinkers of the modern era. Nobel Prize winning laboratory findings regarding Quantum Entanglement can now best be described as, “supernatural.” Perhaps not coincidentally, this same description fits the mysteries related to the origins of infinitely complex coding in DNA, as well as the fundamental properties of prayer that have been described by scores of theologians for thousands of years.

 

Part 4 takes its cue from the Nobel Prize Committee's statement in Part 3 that "philosophical issues" require in new depth discussions, thanks to the latest advances in the field of physics. This segment follows the lead provided by former NASA planetary scientist Dr. Robert Jastrow. Comparisons and contrasts of theological evidence trails associated with the world’s four largest religions (Hinduism, Buddhism, Islam, and Christianity) including their philosophical foundations are examined in the light of the latest scientific advances. Well established findings in controlled studies by behavioral scientists are used as primary tools in this segment, simply because they represent the most reliable method of analyzing witness testimonies to corroborate the veracity of their statements.​

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Part 5 illustrates the many ways in which mathematics is now being selectively applied in higher education institutions as if it were a retractable tool. This segment reviews how five different world-changing scientific advances were all deeply dependent on mathematics. That some mathematical illustrations have been deemed not useful to preferred narratives promoted by ruling educational bureaucracies regarding origin of life studies, explains for viewers why this produces irreconcilable scientific contradictions. The evidence regarding the consequences of withholding of corroborating mathematical proofs, points directly towards intent to create diversions and detours that run directly counter to scientific methods, producing dead ends in all origin of life research projects.​

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Part 6 focuses on two very profound philosophical questions posed by a student. This student requested that the following two questions be addressed, 1) “Why is there so much pain and suffering in the world?” 2) Why should any student believe “the spirit” Einstein identified as being "manifest in the laws of the universe that is superior to man," is NOT completely detached from human pain and suffering?

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This segment addresses this student's questions carefully, since grief, pain, and suffering are widespread maladies affecting the human condition throughout the entire world.

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Part 7 explores the evidentiary patterns that distinguish teachers from educational institutions. Patterns of “mission abandonment” by institutions controlling education systems throughout human history are laid bare, while some of the most remarkable accomplishments of historically influential teachers are explored.

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This segment focuses on the powerful influence of Machiavelli’s teachings regarding integrity by those in the 21st century by institutions that acquire and retain power, wealth, and social status.

 

This segment finishes with a contrasting examination of Isaac Newton's astounding scientific credentials, as well as his profound assertions regarding the attribution of answered prayers to his brilliance. ​​​​​

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Part 8 provides overwhelming new evidence that puts Harvard University back under the integrity microscope for a second time in the series. Eyewitnesses in this segment include Derek Bok who served as president of Harvard University for 20 years (1971 – 1991) and Harvard faculty member Dr. Robert Coles, who was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Clinton in 1998. These two men, intricately familiar with the culture at Harvard, supply chillingly predictive testimonies forecasting current events that place Harvard and many other higher education institutions in the “mission abandoner” category. It is clear these highly esteemed Harvard official’s assessments of the lack of emphasis on integrity in higher education institutions, now point directly towards the existence of the current negative feedback loop producing the lax environment where instances of academic fraud scandals in higher education now take place as a matter of routine.

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Part 9 supplies even more powerful evidence supporting the troubling theme of the entire film series. In this segment, the number of perpetrators identified expands geometrically. The examination of an announcement by the NCAA, which is the rulemaking business partner of hundreds of higher education institutions, involves an astonishing $2.8 billion settlement offer made in May of 2024 to compensate more than 14,000 student damage claims. Amazingly, the damages involved in this compensation offer apply to past, present, and even future damages to students.

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This segment explores more than a dozen disturbing reasons why mission abandonment by higher education institutions in this area of our culture has produced these enormous damages. Once again, the overwhelming evidence corroborates distinct patterns of self-serving behaviors by higher education institutions highlighted in previous segments in the series.

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Part 10 begins with the recognition of a phrase coined by the late great Dr. Dallas Willard, a professor at the University of Southern California. According to Dr. Willard, "The Great Transition," is the period one enters immediately after one recognizes he or she has the freedom to choose their own teacher. The stunning contrasts between the teachings of Machiavelli and Jesus, including the examination of concepts such as “inclusion, anger, contempt, and condemnation," are explored in this segment.

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Additionally, this segment reveals evidentiary results of a double-blind controlled scientific study confirming the efficacy of prayer. Context is provided that ties biased policies at higher education institutions, to their dubious accommodations of other powerful bureaucracies, resulting in diversions of research funding away from all additional studies of the possibility that prayer might have power.

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Part 11 continues to make extensive use of the teachings of Dr. Dallas Willard in his book, The Divine Conspiracy. In this final segment, the mountains of evidence presented in the previous ten segments are tied together. To help viewers digest the body of evidence, the segment includes basic interpretations by Jim Spence, the series author.

 

All eleven segments of: Answering the Great Question can be previewed in advance at petridishllc.com right here on this site.

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Starting Friday August 30, 2024, the Petri Dish YouTube Channel, a new episode will be released each week.

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