Thanks for always providing either thoughtful, in-depth and sometimes surprising topics on here. I enjoy the breadth if topics - and as a fellow "dabbler" in the dark arts of analysis it gives me an outside perspective to rub against and enlighten my own thoughts - or broaden my limited knowledge horizon.
Keep on writing, you're doing great!
Musk is also a word for a strong scent. Could be good, could be bad. But is it a parallel? 😁
One of my favorite parts of this column has been the ability to think and write about a variety of topics and in a variety of styles. I’ve wondered whether a more focused genre could be more “successful” but I’ve always personally enjoyed the breadth and hoped readers do too. So it’s great to hear this feedback.
Regarding Musk, the universe has a poetic tendency.
Greek cat, living in Denmark - found you on Twitter around a year ago and have been a fan of your thoughtful analysis since then. What I find admirable is your ability to present relatively complex issues in a very simple manner but also, your willingness to keep the discussion going with your readers.
Amazing work, keep it up Bear. Thanks for all the great content!
Not sure if you ever tuned in (it doesn't exist anymore) but the T&C Chartcast podcast sure did some outstanding work on Musk, revealing the slime underneath the slick.
I don't know how I found you! Some recommendation from somewhere. I'm an American expat living in Asia. I write stuff, and in my free time I diligently learn everything I can about markets. As I've said before, I enjoy your articles because you bring nuance and a fresh perspective. Good take on Tether and now a unique take on the Twitter deal. Excellent.
I can't say that I've listened to the podcast yet. But I agree that Musk is a slimy guy and a lot his past dealings are incredibly shady. Some of the best work I've seen on it was from Plainsite (Aaron Greenspan) on Tesla/Solar City. Musk mastered the art of getting away the maximum amount of BS while retaining the smallest amount of plausibility deniability required to defeat lawsuits. And that may make him unethical in the minds of many, but it is at least rational in a Machiavellian sense.
Haha very rational, in a way. He has proven himself absurdly talented at getting away with stuff that would end other people's careers. Slimy dude, yet every time I watch a SpaceX rocket land I feel proud of humanity. So, just more complexity I suppose.
Re: Footnote 2. Found you via Twitter. Australia-based Scot. 30 years in the markets (mostly on sell side). Really enjoy your notes. Thanks TBLS! I totally agree on this & the irony of Elno whining about "the bots" was hilarious. The same bots made the Ponzi scheme that is TSLA possible!
Really enjoyed this nuanced take. Given that the bluebird looked to be a bit of a playground for the left & its potential hamstrung by censorship & deboosting, upside sure looks promising now that majority of the “moderators” & “health and safety” crowd have been shown the door. Seems like it was a liberal echo chamber of woke activists running the place & with new and motivated leadership it may reach its potential as a free speech town square. Sure seems like every big global news story is broken on Twitter & literally every big financial story is well advanced before traditional print and digital media arrive on the scene. Ie FTX. While captured MSM media are whitewashing/reshaping the story to suit the SBF saves the world narrative, spaces provide an opportunity for all to engage in real time discussion. In fact, I learned of your substack through Twitter spaces. Looking forward to more of your objective & thoughtful content. As a wealth advisor with 30 years experience, refreshing to see the other side of the perma bull trade.
Art! Hope the export biz is going just as well as your imports!
I think the political angle here is objectively interesting regardless of your orientation, and a pretty wild 180 from just a short time ago. Anyone remember Parlor, the conservative twitter that got purged from the internet by the coordinated action of big tech? Someone ironic given the circumstance today.
I agree entirely that the News is on Twitter. All information is on twitter before its published by outlets. Its the the modern newswire bulletin, plus the rumor mill all rolled into one. Just look at how SBF went down - there were no press statements by Binance or FTX, it was all tweets! Clearly the platform has value (even if monetizing it proves challenging). Elon I think understands this as well as anyone.
Thanks for writing this and other posts. I always learn something. I'm a subscriber through your posts on Twitter.
Glad that you appreciate them Brett!
"There’s even a host of fun euphemisms to use, redundancies, headcount reductions, pro forma cost savings…" My personal favorite is. "synergies"
Yea how did I leave that off!
Probably the most, perhaps the only, actually stone cold analysis of the deal.
Would be interested to see you dive deeper into this deal, construct scenarios, etc
Check your inbox at 8am ET tomorrow :)
Mine, too.
Thanks master TLBS! Always a pleasure to read you sir! Greetings from Vigo, Spain.
Thanks Alexr. If I recall from an older post, I have a mate tor a Estrella Galacia next time I’m in Spain :)
Of course!! With some pulpo a feria ;)
Thanks for always providing either thoughtful, in-depth and sometimes surprising topics on here. I enjoy the breadth if topics - and as a fellow "dabbler" in the dark arts of analysis it gives me an outside perspective to rub against and enlighten my own thoughts - or broaden my limited knowledge horizon.
Keep on writing, you're doing great!
Musk is also a word for a strong scent. Could be good, could be bad. But is it a parallel? 😁
One of my favorite parts of this column has been the ability to think and write about a variety of topics and in a variety of styles. I’ve wondered whether a more focused genre could be more “successful” but I’ve always personally enjoyed the breadth and hoped readers do too. So it’s great to hear this feedback.
Regarding Musk, the universe has a poetic tendency.
Definitely don't change covering the breadth rather than the limited - or some would probably call it "focused"? - on here.
It's often the surprising pieces that are the most interesting, at least to me.
Hope you're getting inspired continuously.
Greek cat, living in Denmark - found you on Twitter around a year ago and have been a fan of your thoughtful analysis since then. What I find admirable is your ability to present relatively complex issues in a very simple manner but also, your willingness to keep the discussion going with your readers.
Amazing work, keep it up Bear. Thanks for all the great content!
Always great to hear from you Cat, and now with a little bit more context on your background.
And I agree, that the comment section has been a great forum for pretty healthy, productive discussion! Looking forward to keeping it going.
Kuppy recommended your work about China Evergrande over at Twitter (lol), that's how I found TLBS. It was a good day.
Awesome. I have a ton of respect for Kuppy, though haven't read everything he's written. Glad you found it, and have enjoyed it
Not sure if you ever tuned in (it doesn't exist anymore) but the T&C Chartcast podcast sure did some outstanding work on Musk, revealing the slime underneath the slick.
I don't know how I found you! Some recommendation from somewhere. I'm an American expat living in Asia. I write stuff, and in my free time I diligently learn everything I can about markets. As I've said before, I enjoy your articles because you bring nuance and a fresh perspective. Good take on Tether and now a unique take on the Twitter deal. Excellent.
I can't say that I've listened to the podcast yet. But I agree that Musk is a slimy guy and a lot his past dealings are incredibly shady. Some of the best work I've seen on it was from Plainsite (Aaron Greenspan) on Tesla/Solar City. Musk mastered the art of getting away the maximum amount of BS while retaining the smallest amount of plausibility deniability required to defeat lawsuits. And that may make him unethical in the minds of many, but it is at least rational in a Machiavellian sense.
Haha very rational, in a way. He has proven himself absurdly talented at getting away with stuff that would end other people's careers. Slimy dude, yet every time I watch a SpaceX rocket land I feel proud of humanity. So, just more complexity I suppose.
Yea it turns out people are complicated, who would have guessed
Terrific as usual. 🙏
Thanks Evan!
Re: Footnote 2. Found you via Twitter. Australia-based Scot. 30 years in the markets (mostly on sell side). Really enjoy your notes. Thanks TBLS! I totally agree on this & the irony of Elno whining about "the bots" was hilarious. The same bots made the Ponzi scheme that is TSLA possible!
Thanks Rupert from down under!
I’d say that Twitter functions as the free marketing arm for TSLA. Musk probably recognizes this more than anyone.
Maybe it's all for the data.
From Feb 2021.... 30 seconds from Cathie Wood on AI and big data that is Tesla:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I8PkE6Yi2x0&t=97s
"... in the end, the company with the most data and the most *quality* data ... will win."
I agree that tech companies (can) make alot money by monetizing data, of which twitter has a lot (though maybe not as much as google or FB)
All great points, thank you Bear!
Thanks as always Mr. Dustan!
Not balanced for the sake it, just calling as I see it
Really enjoyed this nuanced take. Given that the bluebird looked to be a bit of a playground for the left & its potential hamstrung by censorship & deboosting, upside sure looks promising now that majority of the “moderators” & “health and safety” crowd have been shown the door. Seems like it was a liberal echo chamber of woke activists running the place & with new and motivated leadership it may reach its potential as a free speech town square. Sure seems like every big global news story is broken on Twitter & literally every big financial story is well advanced before traditional print and digital media arrive on the scene. Ie FTX. While captured MSM media are whitewashing/reshaping the story to suit the SBF saves the world narrative, spaces provide an opportunity for all to engage in real time discussion. In fact, I learned of your substack through Twitter spaces. Looking forward to more of your objective & thoughtful content. As a wealth advisor with 30 years experience, refreshing to see the other side of the perma bull trade.
Art! Hope the export biz is going just as well as your imports!
I think the political angle here is objectively interesting regardless of your orientation, and a pretty wild 180 from just a short time ago. Anyone remember Parlor, the conservative twitter that got purged from the internet by the coordinated action of big tech? Someone ironic given the circumstance today.
I agree entirely that the News is on Twitter. All information is on twitter before its published by outlets. Its the the modern newswire bulletin, plus the rumor mill all rolled into one. Just look at how SBF went down - there were no press statements by Binance or FTX, it was all tweets! Clearly the platform has value (even if monetizing it proves challenging). Elon I think understands this as well as anyone.
Haha! Strong USD is great for my import business but had to move to a supplier in Vietnam.
Really hoping the bloody platform survives given the elites & their puppet rulers are gunning for the platform now that they lost control.
Keep up the great work.
The future is latex.
Fwiw my bet is it survives