A myriad swirling currents have distracted eyes from the boiling Middle East despite its accelerating pandemonium. For Israel's part, they are five-times-more surrounded than when Obama first took office. But our attention has been fixed on other pressing matters: the election, fiscal cliff, Hurricane Sandy's $70 billion... read more »

In the previous issue we looked at the US and Eurozone economies. Now for Part Two: updates on the Arab Spring and Israel-Iran conflict. In the broader context, the speed of change continues its breathtaking pace, and we remain stuck in an unprecedented worldwide acceleration trap. It is a privilege to live... read more »

Two weeks ago I noticed something unique, at least in my experience--the entire world is now in play. By this, I mean that every important region and country is simultaneously being disrupted by economic tension, political instability, or international threats. I've never seen such a situation in thirty years of close ob... read more »

The cover of today's The Economist (Britain's respected 170-year-old news weekly) shows a swirling black hole sucking in the words "Be Afraid." The insinuation is we're nearing an event horizon, the devastating boundary at the mouth of a black hole beyond which nothing can escape, not even light. The past few week... read more »

I step away for a month to finish a book and look what happens. The weirdness keeps piling up. Send in the clowns.

My thesis throughout these newsletters is that the world is behaving strangely. History has morphed and no longer plays by the rules. The math continues its dysfunctional, unpredictable, and almo... read more »