CONFUCIUS

Said Kung the Master: "I have passed whole days without food, entire nights without sleep for the sake of my meditation, and in this there was no real use. It would have been better to have studied something in particular." Confucius, as quoted in Ezra Pound's Guide to Kulchur.

This is why Kung surpasses Siddhartha in MY book. Pound for pound (no pun intended) the practicality and enthusiasm he expresses are worth twenty Buddhas or more. Go to your local bookstore and order Confucius by Ezra Pound, his translation of The Unwobbling Pivot, The Great Digest, and The Analects. Everything that is left of the stones, the commentaries, and E.P.'s fantastic notes. New Directions Paperback, order it if you have to. The above quote is taken from the first chapter of Kulchur, also a book well worth reading and keeping.

My copy of Selected Prose fell into a friend's hands years ago, never to return. Once I re-acquire it, I'll mine it, along with others from time to time for valuable quotes to post here.

"YOU DON'T BUY THE FARM WHEN TIMES ARE GOOD, YOU BUY DURING THE DROUGHT SEASON"

Warren Buffet on the aftermath of AIG, explaining the opportunities present during volatile times. Somewhere in the book I'm reading he explains the basis for his and Munger's success as ignoring the bad advice and examples around them and sticking to rational thinking. "...we try to get fearful when others are greedy. We try to get greedy when others are fearful. We try to avoid any kind of imitation of other people's behavior. And those are the factors that cause smart people to get bad results."

When people are panicking and selling, the Buffets and Mungers of the world are calmly looking for the best buys; when everyone is spending like crazy, they are sitting and watching the prices rise and evaluating. They systematically do the opposite of what the uninformed and emotionally swayed public is doing. They have to, otherwise they don't pick up the right side of any given market.

So many lessons can be learned from this, and it goes right along with Greene's advice in the forward to The 48 Laws: controlling one's emotional responses to any given situation is critical in life.

I've just borrowed "Seeking Wisdom: From Darwin to Munger" by Peter Bevelin. Only skimmed through it thus far, but it seems like a real treasure trove. I have only a passing knowledge of Charles Munger- that his writings and speeches are featured in "Poor Charlie's Almanack: The Wit and Wisdom of Charles Munger", that he is Vice-Chairman of Berkshire Hathaway Corp., that he is Republican, and that he is an extremely wise and humorous man. His speeches are legendary.
Aside from Munger, the book also quotes Warren Buffett, Confucius, and Richard Feynman, to list a few. The one repeating theme I've noticed is: do things right and keep things simple.
I'll post a review when I'm finished reading.

NIHIL TAM MUNITUM QUOD NON EXPUGNARI PECUNIA POSIT

No fortress is such that it can withstand money

Gordon something-or-other in the movie Wall Street begins his address to a roomful of eager listeners with the simple statement: "Greed is good.", then goes on to praise his foremost virtue with all the smugness and charisma he can muster. The film actually ends very badly for the character when greed clouds his judgement and causes him to panic and sell a company prematurely, losing a great deal of money to a waiting rival. Nonetheless, I clearly remember that particular line on the lips of many who were unable to appreciate the film's message. "Greed is good."

Greed was good for the rival robber-baron who saw his revenge. Remember the Englishman? He took the opportunity presented him by the young man who realized he'd been played. The trap was laid, the bait was set, and the kill was made. Greed and panic cost Gordon a shitload of money to the patient and cunning gent. Prior to this the SEC chappies leading Charlie Sheen's character in handcuffs got to make an example to the rest of the office. Charlie's greed got them their man.

Greed is good for those who know how to recognize it as someone's potential downfall, or at least as a thumbscrew. Greed is good for the few who remain relatively untouched by it, as it surrounds them with opportunities where others would fall into traps. Greed is good.

Personally, I prefer ambition. Something more stable and all-encompassing. Ambition is more of a universal virtue. Leave greed for the common man.

The exception to all of this would be a circumstance wherein it would be advantageous to appear greedy in order to feign weakness, possibly drawing someone out or forcing them to show their hand, or perhaps to conceal one's true character for a specific purpose.

Be the fortress that does withstand money, whenever possible. And remember there's no such thing as a truly free lunch.

HYPERGRAPHIA: REDUX

On the heels of Hypergraphia, now discontinued due to severe techincal problems, I've decided to open another can of whoop-ass on the world. New and improved.

Mostly this will serve to keep me warmed up during those boring stretches between APITF posts, which have slowed a bit pending our next publicity venture. AT PLAY IN THE FIELDS will be getting some new photos within the week, Jack and I just have to coordinate our schedules for a photoshop session. One of the "unaltered" photos is currently on the Myspace account here.

I also will do a monthly blog entry on the Myspace page, just for shits and giggles. That might change at any time, though. Enjoy.