COVID
We are still at 1 active community case in QLD, and 2 active community cases in NSW. Employers can now force employees back into the office full time in Victoria. Probably not a recommended approach to take. Of course the groups in charge of office building are pushing for people to come back 100%. Also this guy automated his presence in online video meetings for a whole week and no one noticed.
The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases in the US is questioning the efficacy data from AstraZeneca vaccine trial data. It’s the latest saga of the mishaps and miscommunication that overshadows the AstraZenca vaccine. An advisory group in Australia said the vaccine should be deferred for people with a history of rare blood clotting. An investigation has started in Nantes, where a healthy student was found dead from blood clot 10 days after getting the AstraZeneca vaccine. If you have extended symptoms after getting COVID, otherwise known as long COVID, where you feel like crap for months. It seems the vaccine, any vaccine can make you feel 99% better. The only downside of the vaccine is that now when I see people gathering in groups I’m more hesitant to judge them. Did you know that the US maintains a database call VAERS that anybody can submit to if you had an adverse reaction to any vaccine since 1990.
The world is at 21,951,155 active cases, and 2,791,550 deaths. Here is a video montage of France 2020 COVID year in review. Germany was going to go full authoritarian mode, when they decided that between 1st to 6th April, they will go into lockdown, even essential services will be closed, not even supermarkets will be allowed to open. If you starve, too bad. I think they have since back pedals on this. Younger Brazilians are now dying from COVID. Probably should just do as advised below and just walk away.
Here are some reasons why we shouldn’t dismiss the theory that COVID was leaked from a lab in Wuhan. Double mutant version of COVID that’s being found in India makes me think it’s like when Cyclops and Jean Grey had a baby aka Cable.
Economics and Finance
The RBA is either incompetent or trying to cover up. Since 1998 the RBA have lobbied the bureau of statistics to remove land price from the CPI, so for more than 2 decades the RBA trying to target inflation with the wrong metrics. They also have no plan on how we get out of this low interest rate environment. Did you know that the RBA doesn’t need to tell the truth when they go in front of the senate as they are considered a “special case”, and so not required to go under oath. There is so much debt out there, that the moment interest rates need to rise, then it’s going to blow everything up.
If you are rich enough to prop up our housing prices, you can buy yourself Australian citizenship. Contrary to New Zealand where Jacinda Ardern rejected that same idea. And then she goes on to announce that NZ is axing their version of negative gearing to get housing prices under control. There’s going to be people who are going to have financial issues with JobKeeper ending.
Here’s what it looks like in Venezuela where fiat currency has failed. Fiat currency is defined as currency based on faith, ie your faith in the government is not going to hyper inflate the supply of money.
Interesting take on the origins of hedge funds.
Bitcoin is trading at $73,132.87 AUD, or $55,629.7 USD. Norwegian billionaire and bitcoin skeptic, Øystein Stray Spetalen buys bitcoin, because he can’t bear to see another Norwegian billionaire (Kjell Inge Røkke -who previously brought bitcoin) make money and not him. New Zealand Funds Management Ltd. (NZ Funds)’s KiwiSaver growth fund has invested 5% of its money in bitcoin. How far are we from super funds in Australia investing in bitcoin? I remain pessimistic, they don’t yet understand what’s going on. The only way to get 600% return in 1 year in your super fund in Australia is to have a SMSF and buy bitcoin. But that’s not for the lazy as there’s admin and complexity involved.
Tech
Intel’s new rocket lake CPU Intel Core i7-11700 is a waste of sand, you should get an AMD instead. I feel vindicated with not waiting for an Intel CPU.
I’ve watched a few Starlink reviews, and it has been overwhelming positive. The speed, the availability in rural areas, it’s going to give Australia’s NBN a run for the money. Well done Elon Musk. It is going to allow more and more people to come online with super faster internet. Also did you know you can now buy a Tesla with bitcoin, so much for the arguments that you cannot buy anything with it. Also note that if you pay Tesla with bitcoin, they are not converting into fiat currency.
Other Stuff
If you ever wanted to know how scammers get lots of money from people, they use a combination of empathy, and pressure. And this guy getting revenge with a glitter bomb is so satisfying.
Some behind the scene of a few famous movies will change the way you view those movies forever.
There’s this guy who does Photoshop edits to troll people, and I was ROFL cause it was so funny.
Visit the planets in our solar system and be amazed about just how little we know of our own neighbor hood.
When Tony Hawk yells at you to do a kick flip, you address him as sir and you promptly do a kick flip or die trying.
Cereal is just a type of soup, it’s solids floating in liquid. Stop fighting this fact.
Have a great week.