Bulls make money. Bears make money. Pigs get slaughtered.
Some thoughts on Ponzi schemes, perfectly legal Wall Street products that burn retail investors, and why doctors and small business owners are often the easiest targets.
Business
When Leaders Lose: Josh Allen vs. Mary Barra
Josh Allen lost a playoff game and took responsibility.
Mary Barra presided over billions in EV losses and said she had no regrets.
This isn’t about football or automobiles. It’s about how leaders respond when outcomes can no longer be spun — and how accountability often seems easier to find in locker rooms than on CNBC.
Can Jamie Dimon Survive Trump’s Stress Tests?
JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon is among Wall Street’s — and the media’s — most admired executives, closely identified with the bank he has led for nearly two decades.
President Trump, however, is no admirer of Dimon’s stewardship of America’s largest bank.
Here’s why Trump’s promised lawsuit alleging JPMorgan debanked him for political reasons — along with the president’s broader pressure on banking practices — could open a level of scrutiny Dimon’s admirers don’t yet appreciate.
Among the questions such scrutiny could raise: why JPMorgan severed ties with Trump while continuing to bank Jeffrey Epstein until 2013, despite internal objections from some senior executives.
China’s EV Barbarians at Detroit’s Canadian Gates
Canada’s Mark Carney has said bonjour to China’s EV manufacturers. It may mean au revoir to GM and Ford’s EV ambitions.
Why Uber Turned Me into a Waymo Convert
Never in a million years did I expect I’d trust a robot over a human driver.
But after years of rising prices, declining service, and watching Uber enrich its CEO while degrading both drivers and riders, I found myself choosing Waymo — reluctantly at first, then repeatedly.
This isn’t a tech love letter. It’s a story about how Uber hollowed out ride sharing so thoroughly that automation began to feel like relief.
A Man-Bites-Dog Car Dealership Repair Story
Car dealerships are deservedly among the most distrusted businesses in America. So when I was told this past weekend that my six-year-old, out-of-warranty vehicle needed a major engine repair, I braced for the worst.
The bill never materialized. I don’t know why Subaru absorbed the cost, and I didn’t press my luck by asking. Given how rare that outcome has become in the car business, the experience was worth noting.
Wall Street Owns America’s EV Debacle
In 2021, Wall Street analysts spoke about EVs with near-messianic certainty. Four years later, the strategy is being unwound, billions have been written off, and the media has largely allowed those same voices to move on without explanation or accountability.
Alas, I’m not so charitable.
Trump and Sen. Warren Agree on Stock Buybacks
When a company’s stock price soars after a CEO retreats from her transformational vision and takes a $1.6 billion write-down linked to that strategy, it’s worth asking what’s actually being rewarded.
In a largely overlooked moment, President Trump and Sen. Elizabeth Warren recently began asking that same question about stock buybacks and corporate incentives. While both have pledged to do something about it, here’s why I wouldn’t hold my breath.
Platinum Equity’s POS Toilet Buyout
A private equity firm sold a company to itself, booked a gain, kept the fees — and, surprise, surprise, the company filed for bankruptcy this week.
That story doesn’t end with a portable toilet company. It leads to private credit, bank regulatory “workarounds,” and provides important context for an alarming report by former New York Times investigative reporter David Cay Johnston showing that the Fed is quietly propping up the banking system.
Remembering Chris: Jim Farley on Homelessness
I’ve spent years criticizing Ford CEO Jim Farley. In recent days, I learned about a side of him that rarely shows up in corporate America.