Optimism: The Best Economic Medicine
Infectious Fear: Across Time & Place “. . . . and you always fear what you don’t understand . . . ” thunders Carmine Falcone (played by Tom Wilkinson) to…
Lessons from the Godfather: Never Underestimate Your Opponent, Never Insult his Emissary
“There is no greater danger than in underestimating your opponent.” Lao Tzu “You can start by acting like a man,” Don Corleone yells at a dejected Johnny Fontane. A famous…
Lessons from The Godfather: Winning Battles is Useless if they Cost You the War
“You will never reach your destination if you stop and throw stones at every dog that barks.” Winston Churchill “I’ll pour it on, and then those ba$*@rd$ will come…
Lessons from The Godfather: Angry Decisions Invite Disasters
So terrifying is the bullet ridden face of the slain Sonny Corleone, even the seasoned undertaker, Amerigo Bonasera, gasps with horror – against his will and despite years of professional…
Lessons from The Godfather: Excessive Favoritism is Not Just Bad, its Cancerous
In the first article of this series, Lessons from The Godfather: Make an Offer he Can’t Refuse, we explored the implication of the takeaway in the routine but critical activity…
Lessons from The Godfather: Make an Offer he Can’t Refuse
“The Godfather is the I Ching. The Godfather is the sum of all wisdom. The Godfather is the answer to any question,” says Joe Fox (played by Tom Hanks) in…
Decoding the Rise, Rise, and Rise of Gold
“Get gold humanely if you can, but at all hazards, get gold.” King Ferdinand of Spain, 1511 A.D. Gold: A Timeless Troubleshooter Athens was an endangered city-state in 407 B.C.…
Causes for World War 1 beyond German Culpability
‘War begins in the minds of men.’ Atharvaveda, ancient Indian text. Prologue: Is Germany Alone to Blame for World War 1? Few events have left an imprint as vast and…
The Priest & The Brat
Why the ability to read minds a.k.a. emotional intelligence is so important! (This short narrative is a work of fiction and is a redrafted version of an old story) Just…
Inequality & the Fall of Civilizations Part 3 : Why Morality Matters?
History’s Take on the Moral Hazards of Inequality “Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it.” George Santayana. Once Upon a Time . . . Long,…