What is striking about modern America would appear to be, seen from the other side of the Atlantic, the Income Distribution.
For my father’s generation (starting a career in the late 50s or early 1960s), a good job was with a large multinational company which gave security and the chance to travel. All your ideas and effort were for the benefit of the company. Lots of PhDs were employed in research, mostly plastics (in the 60s they were the future… as in the scene in The Graduate!). Fortunately they also did some pharmaceutical research - which was the real future. My father & all his friends retired on comfortable pensions (a guaranteed 2/3 of final salary), but none of them became a millionaire. But they helped a good company to continue until it was restructured in the 90s.
Now? The finest minds in scientific research or management want to become “founders”, essentially meaning that bright-but-dysfunctional students like Musk or Zuckerberg are given cash by venture capitalists to start disruptive technology firms. If it succeeds you have another Amazon or Facebook or Tesla which a significant chunk of is given to the “founder” as a reward for their “genius”.
But seriously, did Musk need more than half a trillion of paper wealth. Couldn’t he be happy on $500 billion as a reward for his “genius”? These men have been handed wealth that hasn’t made them happy, and the best idea they have to spend this wealth is to invest in going to the moon… a perfect metaphor for losing your mind.
There is a direct connection between the US business model of Venture Capital and “founders” and the political divide between the haves and have nots. I honestly think my father’s generation was happier. Both in Europe and America at the time being paid a good salary to work in a white collar job for IBM or GM or a similar multinational was enough. Yeah, and that generation actually put a man on the moon, they did it in a decade as an offshoot of the military budget.
Musk & Bezos with all their paper wealth and genius would probably be unable to wire a plug, but dream of moonshots…. The most depressing story I have read on Reuters recently was a lawyer specialising in contracts for private jets having to cancel her vacation. The “SpaceX” IPO had created so much wealth the sale of private jets had gone through the roof. That doesn’t sound like a good way of dividing up the cake in a prosperous country.
We can always count on you for unique thoughts. Thank you!
Here’s to “Hand’s Dirty” and contemplation. My best ideas always came on my jogs and walks. I read once that exercise of the body allows your brain to move into a state where you are able to gain perspective from looking beyond and forward in a different way than when you are in your normal functional state of going through your day. It works for me, but now my stiff knees don’t allow me to jog, but swimming laps also does the trick.
I really enjoyed the piece over at Panoptica (sidebar: what’s the best way to comment/react/respond to those?).
Cycling has become almost meditative, and a good part of that is because my brain wanders wildly at first—a great time for article ideas!— but then clears out and it’s 20 minutes of just being locked in and focusing only on getting to the next waypoint on my route
Movement through space creating flow is a special kind of attention and a particularly cool one. Every decade I seem to find anew kind of attention. They’re all different and all trainable and useful. (Pilates and cycling and swimming big for me)
As for panoptica: I suspect comments are off for the regular reasons. Sigh.
Fair enough! I suppose it’s an occupational hazard of being online in 2026. I’ll figure something out. If nothing else, wanted to say that I enjoyed your latest article over there!
I have a regular practice of going to a float tank for an hour or so at least once a week. It's enforced, quiet, dark contemplation time. With the craziness that is modern life it definitely helps.
Unrelated to anything I can't hear certain songs by The Cure without thinking about you!
What is striking about modern America would appear to be, seen from the other side of the Atlantic, the Income Distribution.
For my father’s generation (starting a career in the late 50s or early 1960s), a good job was with a large multinational company which gave security and the chance to travel. All your ideas and effort were for the benefit of the company. Lots of PhDs were employed in research, mostly plastics (in the 60s they were the future… as in the scene in The Graduate!). Fortunately they also did some pharmaceutical research - which was the real future. My father & all his friends retired on comfortable pensions (a guaranteed 2/3 of final salary), but none of them became a millionaire. But they helped a good company to continue until it was restructured in the 90s.
Now? The finest minds in scientific research or management want to become “founders”, essentially meaning that bright-but-dysfunctional students like Musk or Zuckerberg are given cash by venture capitalists to start disruptive technology firms. If it succeeds you have another Amazon or Facebook or Tesla which a significant chunk of is given to the “founder” as a reward for their “genius”.
But seriously, did Musk need more than half a trillion of paper wealth. Couldn’t he be happy on $500 billion as a reward for his “genius”? These men have been handed wealth that hasn’t made them happy, and the best idea they have to spend this wealth is to invest in going to the moon… a perfect metaphor for losing your mind.
There is a direct connection between the US business model of Venture Capital and “founders” and the political divide between the haves and have nots. I honestly think my father’s generation was happier. Both in Europe and America at the time being paid a good salary to work in a white collar job for IBM or GM or a similar multinational was enough. Yeah, and that generation actually put a man on the moon, they did it in a decade as an offshoot of the military budget.
Musk & Bezos with all their paper wealth and genius would probably be unable to wire a plug, but dream of moonshots…. The most depressing story I have read on Reuters recently was a lawyer specialising in contracts for private jets having to cancel her vacation. The “SpaceX” IPO had created so much wealth the sale of private jets had gone through the roof. That doesn’t sound like a good way of dividing up the cake in a prosperous country.
We can always count on you for unique thoughts. Thank you!
Here’s to “Hand’s Dirty” and contemplation. My best ideas always came on my jogs and walks. I read once that exercise of the body allows your brain to move into a state where you are able to gain perspective from looking beyond and forward in a different way than when you are in your normal functional state of going through your day. It works for me, but now my stiff knees don’t allow me to jog, but swimming laps also does the trick.
Swimming is so great
Thanks for this, Dave. I always take what you write to heart!
Really good. Thank you for writing.
I really enjoyed the piece over at Panoptica (sidebar: what’s the best way to comment/react/respond to those?).
Cycling has become almost meditative, and a good part of that is because my brain wanders wildly at first—a great time for article ideas!— but then clears out and it’s 20 minutes of just being locked in and focusing only on getting to the next waypoint on my route
Movement through space creating flow is a special kind of attention and a particularly cool one. Every decade I seem to find anew kind of attention. They’re all different and all trainable and useful. (Pilates and cycling and swimming big for me)
As for panoptica: I suspect comments are off for the regular reasons. Sigh.
Fair enough! I suppose it’s an occupational hazard of being online in 2026. I’ll figure something out. If nothing else, wanted to say that I enjoyed your latest article over there!
Deeply grateful for your readership!
I have a regular practice of going to a float tank for an hour or so at least once a week. It's enforced, quiet, dark contemplation time. With the craziness that is modern life it definitely helps.
Unrelated to anything I can't hear certain songs by The Cure without thinking about you!
Alyxx
Love tanks. Haven’t been close to one since the 1980s but early formative experience for me. If I had the space!