Confusion confusion
"CONFUSION OF CONFUSION, Dialogues between a philosopher curious sharp, a discreet merchant and a shareholder scholar" is the first book bag of history, written in 1688 by the Spanish D.
José de la Vega. I leave a few lines of the book, I've found here.
Philosopher: What business is it that though I often heard him, nor understand, nor have I applied to understand, nor have I found any book that talks on him to be understood?
Shareholder: Well I say that you know nothing, oh Barbon [bearded] friend, because you have no knowledge of an enigmatic business, which is the most real and most true that Europe is the most noble and most infamous who knows the world, the finest and coarsest exercising the globe: the map of science and epitome of intrigue, a touchstone for the attentive and stone tomb of the bold, treasure and incentive earnings leaped, and finally, a portrait Sisyphus never rests, and a symbol of Ixion who always live in a wheel.
Filósfo: Do not you deserve my curiosity a brief epilogue of this trick, and a compendious statement of that riddle?
Merchant: I also beg you, go so tired poque commissions, heaviness and turns, which would apply to this new job, to see if I can Aquisto fotruna and one out, at the cost of risk, so many pains.
Shareholder: The best and funniest of all is that, without risk, poddéis der rich, and without exposing the flow of storms, for [correspondence], disbursements, warehouses, delivery charges, cash, bankruptcy and other accidents, serendipity, you are on the verge of achieve affluence, changing only the name on the errors: so if the Hebrews, suffering from dangerous diseases, they change their name to get the improvement, simply acknowledging that the shareholder is wrong, change the name to get rid of all the dangers that threatening, and all the scares that worried. "
The book also gives us some interesting tips:
- "If suspicious, do not sort, and if ordered, do not panic"
- "A thing, you, suggest a discreet"
- "To hold pride with a loser is not a feat, but cowardice"
- "There are speculators whose delight is not knit networks but do hooks"
- "Not wanting to take precedence at the higher gain the greatest danger, but earn little and gain safe"
Interestingly, as after over 300 years many of the tips and principles shown in this book remain fully valid.
If I were now writing a book describing the current economic situation, no doubt also titled "Confusion of confusion." If not, tell that to the poor Icelanders, a small land with natural resources being one of the countries most affected by the current crisis. So what we have in the world: Iceland, a small country by a giant frozen financial crisis.
Since the beginning of the year, the Icelandic krona has depreciated by 25% while the stock market has plummeted 40% since last summer. Moreover, inflation rises to 6.8% and interest rates reached 15.5% last week. Moreover, the imbalance in their trade balance is charged, primarily because consumer spending in recent years.
You were talking about it the other day on the blog friend "gurusblog" in his article "Hedge Funds Iceland attack"
Probably, this forgotten island of 300,000 people is the main victims of the credit crunch that began last August. It is somewhat paradoxical that one of the countries with the highest per capita in the world (about $ 54,000), with an unemployment rate touching the 1%, the fourth largest country productivity rate in the world and that 99 % of electricity generation from renewable sources, and whose economy had grown at rates of 4-6% in recent years, this now seeing as his entire financial system (banking and state) is in check.
As you can see we are talking about sustainable development paradigm and can go bust.
Even if we talk of confusion, are the growth forecasts for Spain this year. The government says a number, the IMF says in half and Banco Santander reaches and stays between the two saying that believe that the Spanish economy will grow by 2.5% in 2008.
Banco Santander estimates that the Spanish economy will grow by 2.5% in 2008, more than a point lower than the previous year (3.8%), following an unfavorable environment and adjustment in the housing sector.
This forecast is above other much more pessimistic as the IMF (1.8%), Func (2%), and even the Bank of Spain (2.4%), but is still far from 3.1% who still holds the Government.
Well, at least everyone thinks that something will grow ...
And to finish and revive the debate "buy vs rent" and stop talking about transfers (with their synonyms) I leave an article that appeared yesterday in The Country: Spain wakes the car.
(No rating)
Written by Carlos Lopez on April 21, 2008 with 195 reviews.
Buy or Rent DICES?
Who are the opportunists in now? Who is going to make or take advantage of the crisis? Who will benefit from falling prices of flats?
To give an example. Apartment of 127 m2 in the center of Zaragoza released 10 months ago by 468.000 € for transfer of city property owners. If the floor had been released 4 or 5 months earlier, would have removed from the hands. Several scouts are watching waiting for the opportune moment to sink its claws into the vendors increasingly need to sell. Last Saturday was offered the floor for 318.000 €. It is the seventh cut in ten months.
In other words, in ten months, the price of this floor has been lowered by 32%
Sure the price was more than swollen, but is what makes this time was sold. The owners, who know well, they simply ask what was the normal selling price and hung the sign for those 468,000, ready, because I was in a hurry to cut up to 10%.
The situation is sociologically more interesting: many pasapiseros and speculators of all kinds, sort and condition, desperately seeking a way out of the finger caught they have suffered. By contrast, others who were looking for anything with your property speculation (but not be labeled by giving away Cardelino telos or the floor), got caught by the estate of this insanity bull hide.
Does anyone know what they are called the vultures are currently a field of corpses waiting to see the big feast? Who has the fresh pasta to go to sac to buy apartments at bargain prices? (Look out for some bargains, others at the price they should be).
I suppose the easy answer is that banks, boxes, etc..
Are you sure? You do not know any particular with the increasingly pale complexion who would grow and sharpen it, surprisingly, the fangs (at your age, things), a drop of blood hanging? (Yeah, yeah. And rubbed his bony hands nervously).
Beware neovampirillos because these are about to spread its wings convinced that the future pensions are in serious jeopardy. Somehow the poor who have ensured the future. Or not?
It's war. Every man for himself.