Groundrush

Dear Kali,

‘It is what it is.‘

— The Irishman

History must be obeyed. Natural laws must be respected. The future’s gotta happen, whether we like it or not.

In the news yesterday, Invezz:

Palantir stock falls 7% amid sixth straight day of losses: analysts weigh revival prospects

Cryptopolitan:

Stock erases $73 billion in value, as short sellers finally win

Forbes:

Palantir Stock Down 20%. May Fall 74% More As AI’s Payoff Stays Low

Palantir was the biggest success story of the year. Profiting from creepy contracts with the feds, its stock rose to 230 times profits…and 114 times sales.

Talk about a disconnect with the real world! At that price, Palantir was hardly in the same solar system. Investors were lost in space.

Everything has a beginning and an end. In between is detail. Often misleading. Always puzzling and dazzling. But if you jump off a high building, you know where you’re going. You may feel perfectly good for a few seconds. Imagine the feeling of weightlessness Palantir shareholders must have felt…with no financial gravity holding their feet to the earth. It must have seemed as if they had reached a financial escape velocity — free from the tug of the planets…headed for the stars.

We humans fall off the ledge the day we are born. And every bubble. Every human life. Every empire. And every paper currency ends the same way. The ground rush might be exhilarating, but the final chapter reads: splat.

And now…all appear to be in the home stretch. The empire peaked out around 1999. The dollar has been losing value at least since 1971; Palantir hit its high a week ago. And Donald J. Trump, along with all of us baby boomers, is forgetting the name of that big puddle between California and China.

We all face a rendezvous-with-destiny. And all seem to be gaining speed.

The US empire increases outlays and deficits, while reducing revenues with tax cuts.

Money keeps flowing to the Military-Industrial-Israel-Complex, including funding for the Ukraine, even as POTUS angles for a peace prize by ending the war.

Tariffs are slowing world trade, making everyone — especially the US — a little poorer. Importantly, they bring such instability and disorder that it drives other nations away from the US orbit.

India has the world’s biggest population. China is the world’s leading exporter and cutting-edge technology developer. They are traditional enemies. But put the two together with Russia…and you have a huge, creditable rival for the world’s leading hegemon. Anadolu Agency:

China’s top diplomat hails ‘positive trend’ in ties with India

[China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi] is on his first trip to India since 2022..The trip also comes as the US-India strategic ties have witnessed strain under Trump’s second term, as Washington has punished New Delhi with staggering 50% tariffs, accusing the world’s most populous country of “unfair trade” and “funding” Russia’s “war machine” as conflict in Ukraine continues.

Meanwhile, the dollar continues to fall; the feds threw it out of a window 54 years ago. It then became a purely ‘paper’ currency, un-tethered to anything real or durable. The lifecycle of paper currency is long studied and well known. Like an empire, it begins with great excitement and pleasure…but ends as trash.

And now, the big question is: which will end first? The bubble in stocks? The empire? The dollar? Our own dear readers…or dear writer?

We don’t know. But we hope we’re still floating down past the 3rd or 2nd floor when we find out.

It is what it is.