Alchanati Campbell & Associates
Dear Reader,
Validation, acceptance, acknowledgment, belonging, approval... all outer feelings dependent on another’s judgments and perceptions of you. The need to feel wanted. To go out of your way to please others. To seek validation to feel better knowing that what you’re doing is right. Did I do this correctly? Does this look good on me? Am I beautiful? People need to feel important. Wanted and desired. Looked up to and idolized. So they try to seek those feelings from others or from “things”. Just like how you must love yourself before you love somebody else, and just like how you need to work on yourself before helping others, you need to seek acceptance, approval, and acknowledgment from yourself. Build up your self-esteem and confidence, and know your mind and your body, so you don’t have to seek confirmation and validation externally. The Market. As many as one million plant and animal species across the globe are at risk of extinction due to the damage from human beings. The US birth rate hit a 32-year low. China, the biggest holder of US debt, reduced its holdings of US Treasuries in March by $20.5 billion, bringing the overall ownership to $1.12 trillion. Bond yields in the US are close to their lowest since 2016. Falling bond yields often indicate declining confidence in the economy. The US ranks only slightly higher than Botswana in adult financial literacy. You need $2.3 million to be considered “wealthy” in America. Californians need to get ready for the fire season starting in June, and East Coasters need to prepare for hurricane season coming in the fall. The UK plans to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions to zero by 2050. Book Summary. “All About Love” by Bell Hooks. It was love's absence that let me know how much love mattered. Love returns us to the promise of everlasting life. When we love we can let our hearts speak. "I am afraid that we may be raising a generation of young people who will grow up afraid to love, afraid to give themselves completely to another person because they will have seen how much it hurts to take the risk of loving and have it not work out. I am afraid that they will grow up looking for intimacy without risk, for pleasure without significant emotional investment. They will be so fearful of the pain of disappointment that they will forgo the possibilities of love and joy". To truly love we must learn to mix various ingredients- care, affection, recognition, respect, commitment, and trust, as well as honest and open communication. The heart of justice is truth-telling and seeing ourselves and the world the way it is rather than the way we want it to be. If you do not love yourself, you will be unable to love anyone else. Love is our true destiny. We do not find the meaning of life by ourselves alone- we find it with another. The financial strength of Americans. A majority of Americans, 56%, rate their current financial situation as "excellent" (12%) or "good" (44%). Overall, just 25% of Americans say they worry "all" or "most" of the time that their family income will not meet their expenses; 37% worry "some of the time"; and 37% "almost never" worry. At the same time, 56% of Americans report that they are currently saving money (19% say "a lot" and 37% "a little"). Not having enough money for retirement and not being able to pay for medical care in the event of a serious illness or accident are the most worrisome of eight financial issues for Americans. Cutting rates. The Federal Funds rate determines the prime interest rate, the interest rate used for mortgages, credit cards, consumer and business loans… Many individuals believe the Fed will cut rates, making it easier to borrow money. More access to money = economic stimulation by encouraging more borrowing and investing. Typically, this tool is used when the economy is doing poorly to try and force it out its slump. Many economists regard interest rate cuts as something done in a crisis. "Why doesn't rates always stay low even when the economy is doing good?" Well, think of it like this. If the rate is already low, say from 1.75-2.00%, and the booming economy starts receding, the Fed can't do much to stimulate as there isn't much room to drop the rates. That’s why they like to increase during times of economic prosperity so that when the bad times come, they have options. Now, Federal Reserve officials have been adamant about not cutting the rates. They believe that so long as inflation is near their 2% goal, and economic growth is steady and healthy, there isn't much concern. Recent data, however, might contradict these two standards, and that is a decision the Fed will have to make shortly. Let’s talk money, power, and influence. E&P, which is better known as the oil and gas exploration industry, is big time money. What you may not know is the extent of power this industry has. E&P is worth an estimated $90 trillion dollars. To put that in perspective, the American GDP for 2017 was $19.39 trillion. That is not just big money, that is topple nations and end regimes money. One of the most strategic ways this money is used is lobbying. Oil companies lobby governments all over the world and this tactic has paid off big time. A new report by the IMF found that in 2015 the US spent more than $649 billion dollars (10 times the amount spent on education) in various oil subsidies, while the same year it spent $599 billion on its entire defense budget. That means that we spent more money on oil companies than we did funding and maintaining the most powerful military on Earth. Averaged out, the fossil fuel subsidies cost each man, woman, and child in the United States $2,028. This trend does not stop with the US. The same report found that the governments of the world spent $4.7 trillion dollars subsidizing fossil fuels. The true impact of this corruption goes further than that fact this money could have been spent on much more noble causes. Without subsidies, oil companies would face stronger competition from competitors and be forced to find more sustainable sources of energy and cleaner ways to burn their energy. Consumers would have more access to alternative options like solar panels or electric cars, but the fossil fuel industry has been so heavily subsidized that competitors are left at a fierce disadvantage. In fact, the IMF concluded that without these subsidies global carbon emissions would have been cut by 28%. Keep Climbing, The Alchanati Campbell and Associates Team |
AuthorWHAT'S UP FRIDAY? is a weekly newsletter that will give you a summary of "What's up?" on Wall Street, in the US and around the World written by The Alchanati Campbell and Associates Team. What makes us unique is we focus on long-term knowledge; knowledge that will still be useful to you 10 years from now. Archives
July 2020
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