We Must be Something

 

I do not know. Anyway, he should be a great addition “My entire life is pro-Semitic,” Elon Musk said in the initial minutes of his live chat this evening with Ben Shapiro on Twitter/X.

Musk joined Shapiro, the Jewish conservative pundit and social media figure, for a discussion on “X, anti-Semitism, and the future of free speech."

He referenced the Hebrew roots of his first name, claiming it is like “being called Bob” in Israel. Musk was also metioned that he went to a Hebrew preschool, and that his father took him to Israel when he was thirteen. Several times over the course of the discussion, Musk mentioned that he has visited Israel twice.
“I don’t know if I am genetically Jewish...but I am aspirationally Jewish,” he said.

I like Chris Christie

 This New Jersey politician is competing for the second place in the Republican party. I like him not only because he is exceedingly obese, just like me. His career is based on persecuting corruption. His momma is Sicilian, that is, Ionian descendent. He must know some Sicilian expletives I used to hear in my barrio, Liniers. Ma’ va te ne a fanculo! 

Vaffanculo! 

The London Tideway Project is 90% ready

I was hosted by the project in my last visit to London. It is impressive. 

Dementia, A National Threat

 

Think about 81-year-old Senate minority leader Mitch McConnell freezing mid-speech multiple times, and the 90-year-old Sen. Dianne Feinstein, a key member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, being hospitalized and publicly exhibiting confusion and a "rapidly deteriorating” memory. Feinstein’s extended absence earlier this year delayed numerous judicial confirmations—she missed over fifty votes during her ten-week vacancy. A Pentagon-funded study released in April this year identified dementia among high-level US officials as a national security threat. RAND points out that many of the high security officers have military backgrounds with possible brain damage. RAND used to be a serious think tank. 

The prevalence of dementia among people over 65 is 10%. People (like me) are working till they die so there must be a high prevalence of the disease among senior politicians. I think Ehud Barak may be suffering dementia. He was exposed to traumatic experiences in the military, and he is at increased risk to develop dementia. The RAND report focus is on federal employees in general, but also deals with the risks associated with elderly leaders. RAND uses the same risk evaluation matrix required by firefighters in Israel for permits, a standard form I am familiar with. 

Watching the recent conservation between Bibi and President Biden, I noticed that Bibi was talking animatedly to an absent Biden. Biden slowly touched his left ear with his right hand and the dreamy movement ended by crossing himself in a way totally out of context. Maybe he heard the word Jerusalem and automatically crossed himself. He is 81 and candidate to another four years. His vice, a former ferocious attorney, is a mystery. Haris is half Iyer and half Jamaican mulatto. No children. She stands in line to be the next President or the one after.

Potash supplies - tight?

 Mosaic said global supplies of potash and phosphates are expected to remain tight “through 2023 and likely beyond” because of lower shipments from Belarus, port constraints in North America and exports from China that remain “well below” 2021 levels. Meanwhile, the company sees demand benefiting from “favorable grower economics” amid high crop prices.

“Mosaic is well-positioned to capitalize on the fertilizer market’s recovery, which is well underway,” chief executive officer Joc O’Rourke said in the statement.

Potash price fell from 800 to 300 US$/ton this year, and Belarus is channeling Russian potash exports. Experts say "Sell" - but Mosaic (pic: Mosaic's Colonsay mine) is increasing production. What is happening? Why am I so confused?

I am invested (and losing) on ICL. ICL is an Israeli company dual-listed in Tel Aviv and New York. ICL has gradually expanded into a global business since helping to establish its home country’s potash industry 80 years ago. Israel Corp, Israel’s largest holding company, owns just over 45% of the business. As the world’s sixth largest potash producer, the company is responsible for over one-third of global production of bromine, which is used in agricultural chemicals, dyestuffs, insecticides and pharmaceuticals. ICL has become one of the largest providers of specialty fertilizers, bromine and flame-retardants, and a significant supplier of pure phosphoric acid. Its operations include the Boulby mine in the UK, where the company has shifted towards exclusive production of Polysulphate, claiming to be ‘the first and only supplier of this new and unique fertilizer’.

PS: Sept.25 and ICL dropping in NASDAQ. ZIM falling 6%. This winter will be cruel. 

Israel's First Proxy Victory

 The Armenians in Azerbaijan surrendered and thus, that war ended with our ally's victory. Russia's friend lost. We supplied Azerbaijan with weapons paid with oil, and with the use of its 3 or 4 air bases left by the Soviets. Thus, in a very modest scale, we are proving that our friendship is worth a lot. Good.

Pic.

Xi's Faction under attack

The secret detention of Chinese Defense Minister Li Shangfu means that there is no job security in China's government. He had been promoted in May, together with other Xi loyalists. Former Foreign Minister Qin Gang, who was officially removed from his post in late July was another mandarin promoted under Xi. Their presumed sin is corruption, attending banquets and demanding sex and money from underlings. Since that kind of behavior is rather expected from officials, I assume that Xi is under attack. 

In the center of the pic, Gen. Zhang Yang who committed suicide a few years ago amid an investigation into his ties with two disgraced military figures. Zhang, 66, a former head of the powerful Central Military Commission's (CMC) political work department, "hanged himself at his home in Beijing. 

A good day in TASE

If I needed another demonstration, today's TASE shows that financial speculation yields more than backbreaking work. The web page today shows a paper profit equal to one year's work as water engineer. I'm not selling and taking this profit, but it proves the correctness of my strategy. My dear wife cares for my lifestyle like did for her mother, prolonging my life like her years, gifting me ten years more than I would last if the actuarial tables were predictive and relevant.  
 

Gifted in Israel

  

My second granddaughter was classified in the school (2nd grade) as gifted, so naturally I wanted to learn what that means. The Central Bureau of Statistics has a long explanation (in Hebrew) how they are selected. There are two categories: the gifted (mehunanim) and outstanding (mitztaynim). The numbers are broken down by the economic-social grade of the school (that is, the neighborhood) - above: left=low, middle=middle and right=high. 

The ranking city is Tel Aviv with 8.39 (from 10) and my city is number 5 with 7.59.  According to the graph, in 2021 they found about 11,000 gifted children, 40% of them from the high-ranking cities. About 10% of the age group is selected. The proportions (gifted = brown line, outstanding=green line) grows from year to year, meaning, may be, that a larger portion of the children are gifted? The whole explanation is so obscure that it is impossible to make sense of it, which is the point. 

My granddaughter says she did not answer the numbers questions yet got selected. How come? I don't know, she certainly has no "protectzia". 

War is bad for the potash business

Nutrien, the world largest potash mining company, is projected to report earnings of $0.96 per share, which would represent a year-over-year decline of 61.75%. Meanwhile, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for revenue is projecting net sales of $5.68 billion, down 30.6% from the year-ago period. Analysts advise "Sell today".

I have been collecting potash shares for the last twenty years and now am losing much money. The war in Ukraine, instead reducing the offer as I expected, incentivizes the massive dumping of the mineral at any price. In this case, war is no good for business. 

Yet, I am not selling. The world needs potash fertilizers. 

My impression of yesterday's debate

Yesterday, the Supreme Court of Justice of Israel held an open, televised debate of the recent modification of a Basic Law (part of a future Constitution). My impression is that the judges know that they cannot repeal the legally approved legislation, however horrible it may be in their view. 

The opponents voiced fears of the eventual long-term consequences, but the judges said that they cannot deal with eventualities, they judge only facts. 

The most ridiculous of the speakers was "Adam, Teva, etc." environmental organization, which said the new law will make impossible the elimination of micro-elements from drinking water. 

The most serious was the military exposition that European countries are looking for a case to invalidate Israel's system of justice, so they can start jailing Israelis for war crimes. They are not doing that because the Israeli system is so severe and defends so effectively Palestinian terrorists. Should happen that a soldier inadvertently kills one and is not immediately jailed, the Europeans will declare it a war crime and start taking measures against Israel. They hate us that much. And more.

India-Europe Trade Corridor

 
US President Joe Biden’s announcement over the weekend at the G20 meeting of an India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC), with India to be linked to the Middle East and Europe through rail, shipping lines, pipes, and cables, conceives Israel as the hub of the regional trade. The corridor would be an alternative to the Suez Canal. Something like Singapore in the Far East. Fantastic.

I looked up what merchandises could be traded on this new corridor. India is big and populous but sells and buys very little. I could not find one product in my professional area where Indian products were used, Indian pumps are of low quality and antiquated. This is a paradox since India just put a vehicle on the moon while the Russians failed. It has technology and excellent Iyer Brahmin minds. In time it may develop. 

More Food for Vultures

 Argentina keeps providing more food for the vultures. They keep doing mistakes and owing more and more. The fools expropriated 51% of YPF in 2012 after accusing the majority shareholder, Spanish company Repsol SA, of failing to invest sufficient resources into oil production. At the time, Argentina was already fighting claims by investors led by Paul Singer’s Elliott Management over its 2001 default on $95 billion in sovereign debt, and the YPF takeover further contributed to a perception of the country as an inhospitable place for foreign investment.

Judge Preska found that the by-laws of the company, which had been privatized in the 1990s, required any future re-nationalization to be accompanied by a tender offer at a predetermined price. But when an expropriation came in 2012, Deputy Economy Minister Axel Kicillof called the requirement a “bear trap” that only “fools” would expect Argentina and YPF to honor, according to a court filing.

My next jobs will fall from the sky

 

Tel Aviv 1992.I was manager of the Herzliya WWTP and the Municipality wanted to use "my" pumps to dry off the "Bassa". And the Insurance accused the WWTP of flooding with wastewater some construction site.  This winter appears to be especially rainy, so I think I shall have lots of order in drainage.

 Get ready!

War of Religion in Israel

Evey weekend thousands demonstrate in the streets of Israel. It is a pacific civil protest, with many national flags and big antigovernment posters. There have no social demands, like better salaries, nor foreign policy changes, or destruction of the settlements on the West Bank. Their issue is against nationalism and religion. Apparently, they are fighting for democracy in the abstract, since they פhave no concrete demands. The big difference is religion: all the protesters are secular, they are against religious impositions like separation of male and females in public spaces, against patriarchy and for sexual freedom. And most they hate that full time religious students don't serve in the army. On the other side, we have a government democratically elected. It is rather conservative, and family orientated - so in my opinion, the dividing issue is the belief in God. It is secular (unbelievers) vs religious (Jewish). Secularization has won all over the West and the East, here we are the last remnant. It is only in Israel that the seriously religious are part of the governing coalition and fighting for the survival of Judaism. 

God always wins.

Escapism in America

 Since I know myself, always admired America. The first thing I did after graduation was to take a long coast-to-coast trip on a 3-month Greyhound pass. To my surprise, the real thing did not measure up to my expectations. I was disappointed with the food - the gelatinous pies, the over-fried chickens, the dirty bus station restaurants. Without a doubt, I returned to Argentina and took a job. But this graph shows something different - today, Americans are smoking marijuana by the ton and are stoned on the road and on the job. They are hooked on drugs. I can compare them to Yemenites with their khat. What good can come out of this? How will they compete against the ferociously money hungry, work obsessed Chinese? 

Campaign of Intimidation

 The despicable fishwrap of HaAretz is persistent in its campaign of intimidation against the elected government of Israel and against the majority. It reports Palestinian claims before the International Court of Justice in The Hague against the occupation of the West Bank and the frightening consequences of not vacating it. Government officers stand to be judged and jailed, soldiers will be identified and processed, pilots will be detained in foreign countries. I checked the Court site and there is nothing. It is incredible that Israeli Jews would be manipulating world institutions of the goyim to cause problems, ultimately to themselves. In yiddish it is called moyser and there is no pardoning them. Pic.: Tomas de Torquemada, Head of the Inquisicion.