German Tax Inspector Breaks World Record For Carrying Beer

He trained at the gym three to four times a week.

The lede:  A tax inspector has smashed the world record for the number of beer tankards carried at once after he managed to carry 29 brimming vessels over 40 metres.

Oliver Strumpfel, a tax inspector, clinched the title at a festival in Bavaria on Sunday after carting dozens of the litre sized glasses which weighed almost 70 kg (154lbs) in total.

The 45-year-old almost carried 31 glasses but unfortunately one glass dropped at the very last moment and another ended up losing more than 10 per cent of its beer.

Fascinating.  Just think how proud his parents are.  Read the whole thing:  www.independent.co.uk

Back in early July we linked to a story on the American history of the beer industry.  Quite an interesting read.  Here’s another very informative article on the history of beer.  Great stuff, enjoy: www.beergifts.com

Hat tip John Hawthorne

Contributing to the case for a healthy pullback in September is the view shares are quite overvalued.  We found some great stuff over the weekend from seeitmarket.com.  The lede:

“Valuations are still well below the peak of 1999” say the bulls.

They are certainly correct from an absolute basis but we caution that the current level of stock market euphoria is in a league of its own when compared to prior peaks on an “apples to apples” basis.

CAPE is the price of an equity index, such as the S&P 500 Index (INDEXSP:.INX) in this case, divided by the average of ten years of earnings adjusted for inflation.

Implied market earnings growth is the rate of earnings growth required for the next ten years to return CAPE to its historical average assuming no price changes.

More:  When one compares current valuations and supporting economic fundamentals to data that preceded damaging market corrections, they may conclude, like us, that today’s equity market valuations may very well be the most egregious observed.

Like any illness, one cannot begin to treat a condition until it is properly identified. 720Global and many other astute market observers continue to produce compelling evidence that there are a variety of economic ills and gross mis-valuations with which investors must contend. The absence of consequences to this point seems to be broadly misinterpreted as “all’s well”. It is the medical equivalent of “the x-ray must be wrong because I feel fine.” The evidence argues otherwise just as it did in the months preceding 2000 and 2008.

Hat tip seeitmarket.com.  Read the whole thing: https://www.seeitmarket.com

From strategypage.com:  Air Force F-22 Raptor aircraft fly in formation over the Rocky Mountains in Colorado, Aug. 26, 2017, while returning to Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Va. after participating in Red Flag 17-4 at Nellis Air Force Base, Nev. The aircraft are assigned to the 94th Fighter Squadron and the 1st Fighter Wing. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Carlin Leslie.

Last week we saw the best of America on display in Texas.  We also saw the worst, in Berkeley, CA.

If Texas is the heart of the country, California is its ass.

A Beating in Berkeley:  www.weeklystandard.com

A terrible loss that shouldn’t be mourned.

For your weekend reading pleasure:  https://www.the-american-interest.com/2017/08/30/end-working-class/

How important is dividend reinvestment to overall equity returns?  Incredibly important, to say the least.  Key bit:  An initial investment of $10,000 in the S&P 500 price return index would have grown to over $200,000 since 1970. But if dividend payments were included, reinvested and allowed to compound over time, that same $10,000 investment would be worth more than $900,000 today.

The lower chart shows a staggering difference in the value of $10,000 invested in a variety of different asset classes over time, ranging from low-risk T-bills to U.S. small cap stocks.

The amazing power of compouding through dividend re investment cannot be understated.  It has remained a cornerstone of our management strategy. 

From Investopedia:  Compounding is the process of generating more return on an asset’s reinvested earnings. To work, it requires two things: the reinvestment of earnings and time. Compound interest can help your initial investment grow exponentially. For younger investors, it is the greatest investing tool possible, and the #1 argument for starting as early as possible.

Hat tip JP Morgan Asset Management/Investopedia

There are only a couple of things I’d rather do less than attend Burning Man.  That being said, this is an awesome picture. 

Burning Man, explained:  Burning Man is an annual gathering that takes place at Black Rock City—a temporary city erected in the Black Rock Desert in Nevada. The event is described as an experiment in community and art, influenced by 10 main principles: “radical” inclusion, self-reliance and self-expression, as well as community cooperation, civic responsibility, gifting, decommodification, participation, immediacy and leaving no trace.

More here:  Burning Man