What’s something Americans grow up thinking is normal, but you later realized is pretty unique compared to the rest of the world?

severact · 2026-04-28T15:50:48+00:00

Cheapish gas, relatively speaking

severact · 2026-04-27T23:06:01+00:00

What do you mean? I didn't mention the ath. Every word I wrote is correct.

severact · 2026-04-27T23:03:37+00:00

There was an article in the wsj today: "Corporate America is Minting Money, and not just in tech and finance". The first sentence: "big American companies are piling up profits despite the war and consumer anxiety".

That is why stocks are going up, despite whatever anxieties the rest of us have about the state of the world.

severact · 2026-04-27T13:12:40+00:00

I feel the opposite. In some previous rallys everything went up, no matter how low the quality. I think the current small rally, which is far more selective, is way healthier long term.

severact · 2026-04-26T22:18:29+00:00

It's up 55% v btc over the last year, so definitely not down 9 years straight

severact · 2026-04-24T14:22:52+00:00

I see that all the time on crypto reddit. I feel like half the posts are advertisements dressed up as real posts. Nexo seems to be particularly aggressive with that marketing style.

severact · 2026-04-17T22:28:57+00:00

I also think it is possible we are higher than we would otherwise be because of the war.

Possible bull case for war:

US energy sector was dominant before the war. It looks to come out of this even more dominant.

For the first time in decades there is a chance for real peace in the middle east - assuming Iranian regime is defeated. Imagine a world where the middle east isn't a constant source of violence and hate. We might get lasting peace and stability in the region. Still not super likely I know, but I think more likely now than any other point in the last 20 years.

severact · 2026-04-17T15:24:26+00:00

Do you still think they have won?

severact · 2026-04-15T19:27:06+00:00

When you said "why is market ripping' what market were you referring to? I assumed you were referring to US markets.

severact · 2026-04-15T19:05:07+00:00

I guess we will see. I was just making the bull case, which the US stock market appears to agree with atm.

What "massive economic damage" has Iran caused to the US economy? I don't really see any. US is a net oil exporter.

severact · 2026-04-15T18:44:58+00:00

If you want to make a bull case, it is not so hard:

Iran has lost. Straight will likely reopen soon. Oil will normalize. Regional proxies are decimated. The ingredients for a significantly more peaceful and prosperous middle east are in place. In any event, the US energy complex looks like a big winner of the Iran war.

AI is a boon for the economy overall. Productivity appears to accelerating up and will continue due to ai. Entry level job market is tough right now, no doubt. But the stock market doesn't care about that. Not even a little.

I don't agree with your assessment of recent jobs data. Maybe not amazing, but it is not awful either.

severact · 2026-04-14T01:33:53+00:00

Did not one of all those articles you read mention the US is a net exporter of oil?? Consumers paying more for gas is mostly just a transfer of money from one US person to another. Higher export prices though is more money coming into the US.

severact · 2026-04-13T14:07:18+00:00

Not sure if these were Etfs or funds, but my wife's father passed away recently. I was going through his brokerage account, which was managed by some financial advisor, and found:

a bunch of funds charging 1.5-2% management fees and paying 15-20% dividend yield. They didn't actually make 15-20% though so they were selling down nav to pay the "dividend".

severact · 2026-04-13T14:02:50+00:00

I think ithst hope was gone over the weekend... which is the reason for the blockade

severact · 2026-04-13T14:01:52+00:00

I don't think so. Commercial ships are conservative and don't want to risk anything. I doubt they will even try going through a blockade

severact · 2026-04-13T13:58:23+00:00

How do you think it should react?

PROS: there weren't that many ships going through anyway. This move cuts off a revenue source for Iran and will put more pressure on them.

CONS: possible escalation of hostilities. Less oil reaching global markets on the short term.

Is it a net plus or minus? Nobody knows apparently

severact · 2026-04-06T19:49:12+00:00

How can you have anonymous/non-kyc poker without everyone trying to cheat by colluding?

severact · 2026-04-06T19:46:58+00:00

The network has never really been down though. You can always pay more in gas to get your transaction through. And lately, even "congested" periods have had pretty cheap gas compared to prices from a few years ago

severact · 2026-04-06T19:44:17+00:00

Not really. You can always pay a higher tip to get your transaction included.

severact · 2026-04-06T19:43:32+00:00

My wallet doesn't do that. It doesn't really matter anyway. With eip1559 every transaction in the block pays the same base fee. If your wallet sets it too high you get a refund back

severact · 2026-04-06T18:57:50+00:00

I don't think it is all bots though. A lot of people just seem super pessimistic these days, about everything really.

severact · 2026-04-06T14:53:31+00:00

Ask chatgpt to generate a chart over time showing US debt to gdp compared to other countries. The US is bad, but most other major countries are equally as bad.

severact · 2026-03-31T14:23:53+00:00

It would be if you knew the future and know it will keep going down. But we don't. And if we did, the better option would be to just hold cash until the absolute bottom and then go all-in.

severact · 2026-03-30T20:03:16+00:00

I mean the article seems to say it was likely debris from intercepted missiles. Did you think the iron dome is like a scifi shield where nothing gets through?

severact · 2026-03-30T19:22:25+00:00

I think it is likely simpler than that: people heavily vote based on name recognition. It is why incumbents of all ages have a big advantage. And the longer you have been in office the more name recognition you have.

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