Traveling in June

It’s been way too long since I’ve posted anything on here. So I’m going to try to make up for the “silence” on the blog by posting some pictures from June. A picture is said to be worth a thousand words so consider this an essay on my travels around the Bulgarian countryside. Basically, every weekend I tried to get the hell out of Sofia and either hike somewhere or visit friends and family. So much to see so close to you…

In a reverse chronological order, the first photo is from the center of Plovdiv, and the rest are from a 35k hike that I did through the mountains of central Bulgaria which ended up in the historic town of Koprivshtitza

The Donald Gets Trumped

Yo, people. Here is some Trump v Trump action. The ABA Journal and the AmLaw Daily report that the co-op Board of Trump Plaza in Manhattan is suing to evict the Donald from the premises because he has been delinquent on rent. Here is the good part – the tenant, Trump Corporation, signed a standard Trump lease which is very pro-landlord since Trump is usually the landlord, not the tenant. The complaint states that Trump’s company missed payments totaling about $87k for April and May. Ouch.

Welcome to the Club

We are all space monkeys each of us standing on top of our own tall building... and we are all close to the edge of the rooftop. Don't ask me how I know this.
I know this because Tyler knows this.
No, I know this because Chuck Palahniuk wrote this.
That's right, ten+ years overdue, I finally got a copy of Fight Club (yes, the book) and I am gonna follow rule number one - never talk about fight club at least, in this case, until I finish the book (meaning until tomorrow).

later.

Obama in Europe: veni, vidi, vici

Obama is in Europe and he is delivering. I happened to turn on the TV when he was giving his speech at the end of the G20 summit in London and I thought the speech and the Q&A were superb. What a break from the approach of the previous administration when it comes to foreign policy and working with your allies. Plus, unlike the previous president, I am pretty sure Obama used complete sentences and they made sense. Haven’t followed much of the subsequent European tour and the NATO meetings, but from what I gather the President is getting a nice reception. This New York Times piece says that Obama connects with young Europeans. Well, Obama understands the issues. It is all too clear that the US and the EU need to cooperate on all kinds of issues starting with the economy and ending with terrorism and the Middle East. Mudslinging and blaming the others have always been counterproductive. It’s that simple.

Cicero, Sofia, the future

Yo readaz. It’s been a while. There were a few busy weeks in February, but after that I spent some time traveling (on weekends) and following the news about lawyers getting fired left and right. I have also been reading a lot of history books lately. I just finished re-reading Anthony Everitt’s “Cicero” – a very enjoyable account of the life, works and tribulations of one of Rome’s greatest men.

Rome of the late Republic/early Empire was a curious place in many ways. The city was mostly ruled by the powerful aristocracy and the newly rich, and had very few established institutions, at least in the sense we know them today. There was no banking system, no police, no real penal system and problems basically sorted themselves out on their own. Everitt tell us that “when politicians took office… they had to bring their own people to help them conduct business.” Citizens depended on a network of relationships and connections for their employment and protection. Various wealthy Romans (many Senators among them) would stay at the pinnacle of a large aristocratic clan. Members of the clan will depend on each other for finding work, protection and for their political career. Political careers were possible for only those few who were part of the highest Roman aristocracy and those who were extremely rich. If you wanted money, you can borrow from your high-ranking clansman (no banks, remember). If a Senator wanted protection from the street gangs that roamed the city he could rely on his loyal followers from the clan.

Sounds familiar? Well, of course nothing has changed when it comes to politics and connections. But in the city of wisdom, Sofia, things appear very much the same as during the days of Marcus Tullius Cicero. Police here is a joke. It formerly exists but it serves various political and economic interests. Real money and real loans don’t necessarily come from the banks, or if they do then you know that it is because somebody stands behind somebody else and calls the shots. Want a good job – call your clansman. No street gangs though. There also appears to be some form of public transportation and public utilities, although garbage collection for example is sporadic and largely left to the plebs. It is in many ways an exciting place to live, that’s for sure. Hopefully, couple of thousand years from now things will be better. I would not bet on it though.

Out.

The End of Wall Street’s Boom

Hundreds of articles have been written about the collapse of Wall Street’s giants and the sub-prime mortgage mess. However, THIS article by Michael Lewis is one of the best I have ever read. If you want to read something refreshing, straight to the point and BS-free, this is for you. Michael Lewis tells it as it is – the greed, mediocrity, complacency and sometimes plain ignorance that caused the current meltdown. I was totally impressed by Steve Eisman – the man who was not afraid to ask the tough questions and see the disaster that was looming on the horizon. Great piece.

Hat tip to my buddy, Ivan Karamanolov, a finance wiz at a leading pharma company.

Some Stuff on Liberalism

The term "liberalism" has been used and abused over the years, its meaning has been distorted in different eras and countries to the extent that to different people who use it in the most narrow sense it has come to signify diametrically opposite ideas. So, for example, leftists in parts of the former Soviet bloc will deride "liberals" as heartless, free-market capitalists who ruthlessly exploit workers, natural resources, the earth... you get the picture. In the US, however, "liberals" are considered by many in the mainstream to be just the opposite - leftists and hippies who favor big govermnent and all kinds of welfare. I remember some of my friends in the US being quite surprised when I told them that they are typical free-market (right) liberals. Why am I getting into this topic? Because here is a great article that came out in the New York Times that, I think, silences the "conceptual cacophony" as the author puts it. This piece takes a close look at how the perception of "liberalism" and "liberal" has evolved over time and in different parts of the world.

I particularly agree with the author's point that there are some enduring values that constitute the core of liberalism such as it is in the 21st century. Some of them, as he points out, are liberty under the law, limited and accountable government, free markets, tolerance, individualism and equality. If these values endure, as they will, liberalism will be around for quite a while, no matter what spin some people will try to put on it.