Esau and Jacob Fight Over a Coke at Disney

How to Read the Bible as an Investor

When you are an investor, your mind never turns off, even when reading. I like to review the Bible each year and am always surprised by things I overlooked or was not mature enough to grasp. It talks to me when I need inspiration.

Have you ever had that experience?

Today, as I read the chapters concerning Esau and Jacob, the thoughts that ran through my mind were: Communism vs Capitalism. Tariffs and Free Trade. Soft vs Hard Power (Realpolitick). Cycles of Life.

Looking back on my life (when you are on some drugs for your health, apparently, sometimes these are the side effects), you think about the decisions and assumptions you made and where they led, and how your childhood friends with the same opportunities took it on different paths. And when you see them now, sometimes you have no idea if they are friend or foe. It’s as if you are seeing a different individual in front of you.

As I’m forcing myself to write daily, my experiences in film and pop culture keep popping out of my head (if you haven’t noticed). It was a time in my life during the 1996-2000 tech boom, when I was studying to be a famous film director, reading the Wall Street Journal Daily, and hearing my accounting teacher talk about Yahoo at 200 p/e with some upside.

Very apropos, as the comparisons and similarities to 2000 keep popping up, with regard to which company deserves a large market cap and which doesn’t.

Not just in business but in governmental policy, while we had Slick Willy in office, it was very much a capitalist society. It balanced the budget with Newt Gingrich as House leader, but now we are seeing budget deficits balloon and more government overreach.

When one drops the ball, or gives the appearance of it, the other picks up the slack. Nothing stays the same in Government and in Business, as the passage states:

“Two nations are in your womb,

Two separate peoples shall issue from your body;

One people shall be mightier than the other,

And the older shall serve the younger.”

From this passage, Comrade Esau emerged first. Esau came in from the field just like a good, honest Communist with sweat on his brow and wants food. He’s entitled to it. Plus, he’s the firstborn. But not so fast, “Pay me for it,” Jacob says.

You know capitalism when you are in July at Disney World and you pay $4.50 for a Coke (no refill, that’s $22 or something, but unlimited)

It’s also if you step back, if we view Esau and Jacob as nations, one wants free trade and the other wants to charge a tariff. What people who are spouting slogans are not thinking about is anything other than cheap stuff. Why are we building up, giving for free, the other nations’ populace? With technology transfer and experience? Jacob says there is a cost … even if it is just a lentil.

By the way, Lentils are circular and go back to the theme that nothing resolves itself; it keeps rolling…

And what did Esau not value? Something that is not tangible. A birthright? It’s not monetary. It’s not property. It was the official status as the family's and clan's representative.

You get the right to vote.

Well, it is crucial. That’s soft power influences everything. Look at the lawsuit concerning proxy advisors who wield such influence: most investments in the USA are passive, and no one votes, so these clowns can have an “agenda” unrelated to growing wealth through passive investing.

What about realpolitik, as Kissinger branded it? Isaac favored Esau because he had a taste for game; Esau made sure Isaac was happy as he did his thing. Very communist trait: smile and make everyone happy, but then act in ways that make those same people struggle under poor policy. We are seeing throughout the world that what is being presented as perfect governance in more progressive countries is, in fact, filled with dirt under the rug that you cannot hide much longer..

A key strength of Democracy is that we have freedom of speech, and it’s used for constructive criticism, so we can only see one side of the coin, since the other side isn't honest about their successes and failures.

With that comes the principle of showing up to get the business you know you deserve.

Sometimes it takes a little showmanship, as Jacob showed when he came to get his father's blessing from his blind father, Isaac.

Jacob taking the blessing is similar to how young startups survive — not by entitlement, but by scrappiness. The story of the origins of the wildly successful Discord, the app, is a good example. When you are a young startup, you have no advantage and have to take from your big brother.

(Some of you reading will have this experience with your social media account right now, probably in growing the readership base)

From Discord origins:

“However, as Jason explains, growth stalled after those first 20 users

The unlock for us was inviting people to give feedback on the app, as opposed to saying, ‘Try this thing out, we’re selling to you.”

And at some later time, I’m sure someone else will come along to unthrone them.

Esau came to Isaac after the blessing was bestowed on Jacob and pleaded with his father for a blessing, even after the cat was out of the bag and he didn’t deserve it; nevertheless, bestow a blessing.

I interpret this to mean that no one deserves unlimited resources because of our human frailty, pride, and ego. Isaac realized that life is not a straight trajectory; it’s a cycle. Without two opposing forces, there is no progress.

He completes the blessing with Esau:

“Yet by your sword you shall live,

And you shall serve your brother;

But when you grow restive,

You shall break his yoke from your neck.”

A recent, perfect example comes from Ken Burns’s documentary on the American Revolution. The British abused their powerful monopoly in the Americas, and the Colonists kicked back. It’s built into this country and a living, thriving country where new challenges are being addressed now.

The beauty and weakness of Democracy is that it requires conflict to progress. In a country where everyone thinks the same way, is it truly free?

This week is Thanksgiving, and on Wednesday, the FOMC announces. Markets tend to be strong.

My focus is on big-picture analysis, on some historical parallels that Ken Burns overlooked, a positive view of Crypto, and similarities between this cycle and other cycles in the past.

Feel free to come on chat and get some ideas with and without our software.

Happy Sunday.