Political polarisation has become a global trend in the past 10–15 years, particularly in democracies. The local elections in the U.K. in early May have clearly shown that the political landscape in Britain is now getting more polarised as well, following in the footsteps of for example Germany, Spain and France to name but a […]
Author: Grumpy Old Man
AI vs Human Advisors: The Future of Investment
Some 45 years ago I trained as a banker in Switzerland and quickly became interested in the stock markets, which led me to work for some two decades as a trader for a Swiss private bank in Geneva and London. What a glorious time this was! There weren’t nowhere near as many regulatory restraints as […]
The Risks of Capping Switzerland’s Population Growth
It‘s not very often that a country‘s population has a say on the maximum number of people which are allowed to call themselves its residents. But on 14 June in Switzerland 5.6 million citizens over the age of 18 out of currently 9.1 million inhabitants get the chance to have their say as to whether […]
Claude: From Famous Namesakes to Modern AI
Claude once upon a time used to be a popular first name, particularly in the French speaking parts of the world. Multiple sources analysing name popularity trends (e.g. Geneanet and similar demographic tools) show that Claude peaked mainly between the 1930s and 1970s, especially in France, Belgium, and Switzerland, and has declined sharply since then. […]
Kids’ Marketing Needs a Reality Check
Beauty is big business, but increasingly the global brands also create product lines especially marketd to children. Kids nowadays are omnipresent on social networks and big brands such as Gap and Dior capitalise on this trend. The GapKids “Just Dance / Be Yourself” (2024) and Dior Kids “Diorling” (Spring 2025) campaigns both targeted young audiences […]
Catchy Clips orThe New Face of War Propaganda
Since the start of the latest war in the Middle East at the end of March, Lego-style propaganda movies have become very popular (as you would have guessed, they are not associated with the danish brand of plastic construction toys). These are opinionated short clips distributed on social media reacting often to the latest developments […]
Insider Trading Allegations: Trump Administration’s Shadowy Deals
Rumours of insider dealing within and close to the Trump administration persist. Satirical piece on corrupt politics and potential consequences Looking at the timing of President Trump’s utterances as far as theirs war is concerned, I can‘t help thinking that somehow they might actually benefit members of his inner circle or other close associates in […]
Why Immigration and Emigration Are on the Rise
Countries worry about immigration, but many don’t realise – or maybe don’t want to know – how many of their own citizens leave each year. In the developed world these days it is trendy to worry about immigration. Not the undesirable kind, meaning criminals and all sort of shady types, but immigrants in general. People […]
Wine, Crypto, and Modern Art: Confessions of the Confused
There are, broadly speaking, two types of people in the world: those who confidently admit they don’t understand something, and those who nod along vigorously while internally screaming, “What on earth is going on?” This post is dedicated to the latter group—heroes of polite society—who have mastered the ancient art of pretending. Let’s begin with […]
The Hidden Cost: Can Human Life Be Valued?
Can one really calculate the value of a human life? Does it make sense to do so? And if so, how to go about it? In fact there are different accepted ways of estimating the value of of a human life, each serving a very distinct purpose: Economics and public policy often use the Value […]
The grumpy older man 