Slope initially began as a blog, so this is where most of the website’s content resides. Here we have tens of thousands of posts dating back over a decade. These are listed in reverse chronological order. Click on any category icon below to see posts tagged with that particular subject, or click on a word in the category cloud on the right side of the screen for more specific choices.
This post has gone through three lives in the past twenty-four hours.
The first life was in the swimming pool. I was taking my first swim of the year, since the water temperature was finally in the 80s. I am a “temp wimp”, so I really want the pool to be warm before I get in. Of course, once my ancient yellow lab Kobe saw me in there, he jumped right in too and swam right beside me. Although he is the human equivalent of over 100 years old, he is a far more capable swimmer. (more…)
My interest in how wealth is distributed has grown over the years from non-existent to almost obsessive (check out the SocialTrade stack dedicated to Wealth Distribution). It’s particularly on my mind these days for two related reasons: (1) the staggering surge of wealth, particularly since the financial crisis; (2) the proximity of that wealth to me personally, since I am surrounded by Silicon Valley zillionaires.
I used to be very naive about money. In my teens, I thought it was a fairly accurate representation of one’s abilities and intellect……….a scoreboard of the meritocracy. Suffice it to say I don’t think like this anymore. In some societies, it is little more than a measuring stick of dumb luck or criminal abilities, whereas in others it is, at best, a very crude approximation of the value one has created in their lifetime. (more…)
Today the Slope of Hope turns nine years old. Nine. Years.
As some of you may recall, I wrote my first post on March 29 2005 from the Ritz in Cancun, Mexico. I had sold Prophet just two months earlier, and I had taken my wife and children on vacation. I remember Joe Montana took the elevator with us and counseled us to enjoy our kids since “they grow up fast.” As much of a cliche as that is, it certainly is true. (more…)
