toomuchcredit

VCs are just cogs in the wheels taking us from an "Ownership Society" to a "Sharecropper's Society," as Buffett once put it. Private Equity buying up housing, is just the latest worrying trend in a troubling trajectory with excessive debt, centralization of power, concentration of wealth, etc.

This may go beyond the arts, as it appears everyone wants to strike it rich and quick. I did not get the same sense when I started my working career 30 years ago. Most of us just wanted to do some interesting work. Now, getting rich seems to dominate thinking.

You hear different views of the cause of this, but may see increasing inequality as a cause. I'm convinced extreme financialization from money debasement is the primary undiagnosed issue.

Perhaps because many communities deeply believe sex is more than just for pleasure?

Regulating them to a pure marketplace is the best outcome we an hope for, i.e. require them to divest any product they sell in the marketplace. India took some steps in that direction last year. Why not in the US?

Good to see the gut-brain connection getting much needed attention, and some preliminary results. We could see some interesting natural therapies for mental health issues, and even mood regulation for anyone needing it.

Given the complexity of the microbiome and individual variance, it is not going to come easy or anytime soon.

Yes, it is about antitrust and monopolies. Many of us want competitive free markets. We need policies to fight the natural monopolies of the recent past, with a recognition that network effects and financial concentration have made monopolies and oligopolies much more dangerous.

Alas, the government has largely been captured by these financial interests. And the consumer is giving up freedom of choice for convenience, and not paying attention to this seemingly abstract problem. Thus the outlook for fighting these interests is gloomy.

Would be great if he decides to forgo the capital appreciation, with a lease only policy. If this is successful, speculation in property is the disease we'd like to avoid.

Otherwise we'd get another property bubble and inflated costs soon enough.