Category Archives: Economics
Calvin and Hobbes explain the Economy
Calvin and Hobbes, my most favourite cartoon, have something to add to the current debate about how corporations think and act: (Click on the image for an enlarged view.) I don’t know when this particular strip first appeared, but Bill … Continue reading
Geographical Diversification of your Investments
This morning while cycling to the library, I was listening to a podcast of Money Box, a BBC radio show. This particular show was about investment advice and the whole panel recommended to split your investments in equities (shares or stocks) at around 50 to … Continue reading
Globalisation is a Myth
Globalisation, this concept that everyone writes about and that many people blame for their woes or use as an excuse for their policies, is in large parts a myth. Who am I to claim this? Having grown up in a … Continue reading
If you don’t read my blog, you will die.
That caught your attention, didn’t it? And on the face of it, it’s true and backed up by facts and statistics: About 150,000 people died worldwide yesterday. Of these, none had read my blog yesterday. The few people who did … Continue reading
Print is King
I have some information stored on 3.5-inch discs, but I can’t find a computer that still has a slot for these floppy discs. With my old phone, I had taken some cool photos, but I can’t retrieve them because I … Continue reading
Assessing the risk of nuclear technology
The nuclear industry is keen on coming up with probabilistic risk assessments that show that a serious accident at a nuclear power plant can only happen every 20,000 years or so (admittedly this number is from a somewhat outdated report … Continue reading
The real explanation for the gender pay gap
Women have consistently been earning less than men, even in highly developed countries, and even in 2011. This is still true in most industries, even for women with the same qualifications as men. (For the related topic of female under-representation … Continue reading
Merger Control of a different kind
With merger control, governments and courts usually try to prevent companies from joining forces and forming a monopoly that would have negative effects for the market and for consumers. A court in Germany has now stopped a merger of a … Continue reading
Frauenquoten – warum nur in Vorständen und Parlamenten?
Die deutsche Bundesarbeitsministerin will Unternehmen zwingen, ihre Vorstände und Aufsichtsräte mindestens zu 30 % mit Frauen zu besetzen. Dies führt zu offensichtlichen Fragen, die schon vielfach diskutiert wurden: Was wenn sich nicht genug Frauen bewerben? Was wenn diese Bewerberinnen nicht … Continue reading
Lottery of Life
From the advertising campaign “Lottery of Life” by the charity “Save the Children”: If you think that your wealth, your health, your education and your prospects in life are something that you have earned yourself, think again. Links: If you … Continue reading
The Happy Hermit 