Introducing Books from the WC

(yes, those are my initials, and yes, I know what they mean, but I’m owning it)

Curated from among hundreds of books I've read over the last several decades, these are the best.

Most are non-fiction, but you'll also find works of fiction sprinkled in. They tell an important story, give essential historical context, or present a compelling or necessary vision of the future.

They're all books that will make you a better investor, give you essential context for our world, and possibly help you become a better human.

You can view them all here.

Here’s a closer look at one recommendation. The Diamond Age by Neal Stephenson.

I actually found reading this book exceptionally hard work, but perhaps that's because I slogged through it while deployed with NATO during the Libyan uprising. Nonetheless, the vision of the future presented here, specifically around AI as a tutor for our children, is compelling and thought-provoking.

If you enjoy it, I encourage you to check out ​Snow Crash  as well. It looks at what might happen if America (and the world) split up into corporate city-states.

Which isn't, like, an impossible outcome.

• Markets bounced back, with the S&P 500 crossing 5,000 again. Iran and Israel appear to have skipped starting WW3, and this week is crammed full of big earnings data.

  • The S&P 500 rose 1.2%, while the Nasdaq Composite gained 1.4%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rallied nearly 1%.

  • 180 S&P 500 companies, representing over 40% of the index's market cap, are set to report Q1 results this week. [Ed: I told you it was a big week]

• The historic criminal trial of Donald Trump began in New York. He appeared to fall asleep again.

• Tesla stock tumbled over 3% after big price cuts in the US, China, and Europe.

• Britain’s FTSE index notched an all-time high.

📈 Trends you need to know

Google has beaten estimates four quarters in a row (after missing four times on the bounce).

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Ideas, trends, and analysis

• Luxury real estate prices hit an all-time record, soaring nearly 9% in Q1 while the broader market struggled.

• A TikTok ban could be the ultimate tailwind for Meta's Facebook and Instagram.

• Global military spending surged 7% to $2.43 trillion in 2023, the steepest rise since 2009.

🌍 Global Perspectives

• 🇮🇹 Italy's 2023 budget deficit soared to 7.4% of GDP, more than double the EU average.

• 🇲🇻 🇨🇳 🇮🇳 A pro-China party won a landslide victory in the Maldives parliamentary elections.

• 🇵🇭 🇺🇸 Nearly 17,000 Filipino and American troops kicked off joint combat drills in the Philippines, including maritime exercises in the South China Sea.

• 🇩🇪 🇨🇳 Germany arrested three people suspected of giving technology to China to strengthen its navy.

• 🇮🇱 🇵🇸 Israeli troops stormed back into eastern Khan Younis in a surprise raid.

📊 Crypto

• The Biden administration reintroduced a 30% tax proposal on Bitcoin mining electricity costs.

• The Runes protocol sparked a spike in Bitcoin transaction fees.

• Grayscale's new Bitcoin Mini Trust will have a rock-bottom 0.15% fee, making it the cheapest spot Bitcoin ETF. [Ed: just trying to stop the bleeding]

• Avraham Eisenberg was convicted of crypto's first market manipulation case for a $110M scheme on Mango Markets, facing 20 years in prison.

• Swiss activists have pushed the Swiss National Bank to add Bitcoin to its reserves.

🧠 Errata

• This summer might be painfully hot in the States.

• A celebrity handbag designer was sentenced to 18 months in prison for smuggling crocodile handbags from Colombia.

• A former NASA engineer claims his startup has invented a thruster that doesn't require propellant …. everyone not wearing tinfoil hats is skeptical.

• Officials broke ground on a new high-speed rail system connecting Southern California and Las Vegas, reaching speeds of 200 mph.

That’s all for today. Did I miss anything? Smash the reply button to let me know.

Cheers,

Wyatt