November 3: Sunday Funday #25
Articles, streams and books that caught our attention this week
Articles 📰
The hard truth: Americans don’t trust the news media
“In the annual public surveys about trust and reputation, journalists and the media have regularly fallen near the very bottom, often just above Congress. But in this year’s Gallup poll, we have managed to fall below Congress. Our profession is now the least trusted of all. Something we are doing is clearly not working.”
The US tax code will change next year; the presidential election will determine how
Not only are taxes one of the only certainties in life, they are also one of the only certainties in this presidential election. That is because of the looming expiration of tax provisions passed in 2017, the main legislative accomplishment of Donald Trump’s term in the White House. This presents a fiscal cliff. By the end of 2025 whoever is president must sign new rules into law, or most Americans will see sharply higher income taxes.
Howard’s End? How SiriusXM Will Survive After Stern
After inking big deals for ‘SmartLess’ and ‘Call Her Daddy,’ the audio giant aims to keep bringing in new names to grow subscribers and battle rivals as it readies for the eventual retirement of its biggest cash cow.
The Battle Brewing Over How Much Red Meat You Eat
“Scientists advising the U.S. government on its next round of dietary guidelines have drafted recommendations that would tell Americans to limit how much red meat they eat. It is part of an effort to nudge us to eat more plant foods, including beans, peas and lentils.”
We All Need Solitude. Here’s How to Embrace It.
“… most of us do require a balance of solo and social time, said Thuy-vy Nguyen, a social psychologist who runs the Solitude Lab at Durham University in Britain and is an author of the book “Solitude: The Science and Power of Being Alone.” Her research has found that spending time alone has physical and emotional benefits, such as stress reduction and mood regulation, and can lead to increased creativity and productivity.”
A Luxury Giant, a Reclusive Heir and the Case of the Missing $13 Billion
A member of the Hermès family says his fortune is gone. Was it the handyman? The consigliere? Someone else?
Why Sitting All Day May Shorten Your Life
We’ve all heard that sitting too long is bad for you. We’re not evolved to do it, it can undermine our exercise gains, it causes dead butt syndrome. Sitting might not quite be “the new smoking,” but too much of it can still shorten your life.
How Comic Sans became the Crocs of fonts
After 30 years of abuse, Comic Sans is ready for its redemption.
13 Food and Cooking Superstitions From Around the World
From blowing out birthday candles to breaking a wishbone in half, we all take part in culinary superstitions and food folk practices, many of which are so common that we don’t even think about them. What are the origins of these beliefs and traditions? In time for spooky season, we rounded up some of the most intriguing food and drink-related practices and superstitions from around the globe.
What We’re Streaming 📺📲
The Reading List 📖📚
The Plant Paradox by Dr. Steven R Gundry
Most of us have heard of gluten—a protein found in wheat that causes widespread inflammation in the body. Americans spend billions of dollars on gluten-free diets in an effort to protect their health. But what if we’ve been missing the root of the problem? In The Plant Paradox, renowned cardiologist Dr. Steven Gundry reveals that gluten is just one variety of a common, and highly toxic, plant-based protein called lectin. Lectins are found not only in grains like wheat but also in the “gluten-free” foods most of us commonly regard as healthy, including many fruits, vegetables, nuts, beans, and conventional dairy products. These proteins, which are found in the seeds, grains, skins, rinds, and leaves of plants, are designed by nature to protect them from predators (including humans). Once ingested, they incite a kind of chemical warfare in our bodies, causing inflammatory reactions that can lead to weight gain and serious health conditions.
Don’t be a stranger
Thanks for reading and if you have a suggestion for an article or book we should read, or a stream we should catch, email us at info@tematicaresearch.com. The same email works if you want to know more about our thematic and targeted exposure models listed below.
The Strategies Behind Our Thematic Models
Aging of the Population - Capturing the demographic wave of the aging population and the changing demands it brings with it.
Artificial Intelligence – Software, chips, and related companies that facilitate the collection and analysis of large data sets and autonomous generation of solutions given non-machine language prompts.
Cash Strapped Consumer - Companies poised to benefit as consumers stretch the disposable spending dollars they do have.
CHIPs Act – Capturing the reshoring of the US semiconductor industry and the $52.7 billion poised to be spent on semiconductor manufacturing.
Cloud Computing – Companies that provide hardware and services that enhance the cloud computing experience for users, such as co-location, security, and edge computing.
Core Holdings – Companies that reflect economic activity and are large enough to not get pushed around by day-to-day market trends. Low-beta, large-cap names able to better withstand economic turmoil.
Cybersecurity - Companies that focus on protecting against the penetration of digital networks and the theft, ransom, corruption or destruction of data.
Data Privacy & Digital Identity - Companies providing the tools and services that verify authorized users and safeguard personal data privacy.
Digital Infrastructure & Connectivity -The buildout and upgrading of our Networks, Data Storage Facilities, and Equipment.
Digital Lifestyle - The companies behind our increasingly connected lives.
Digital Payments - This model focuses on companies benefitting from the accelerating structural adoption of digital payments and financial technology (FinTech).
EPS Diplomats - Profitable large capitalization companies proven to produce above-average EPS growth and provide investors with the benefit of multiple expansion.
EV Transition - Capturing the transition to EVs and related infrastructure from combustion engine vehicles.
Guilty Pleasure – Companies that produce/provide food and drink products that consumers tend to enjoy regardless of the economic environment and potential long-term health hazards associated with excessive consumption.
Homebuilding & Materials – Ranging from homebuilders to key building product companies that serve the housing market, this model looks to capture the rising demand for housing, one that should benefit as the Fed returns monetary policy to more normalized levels.
Luxury Buying Boom - Tapping into aspirational buying and affluent buyers amid rising global wealth.
Market Hedge Model – This basket of daily reset swap-based broad market inverse ETFs protects in the face of market pullbacks, overbought market technicals, and other drivers of market volatility.
Nuclear Energy & Uranium – Companies that either build and maintain nuclear power plants or are involved in the production of uranium.
Rebuilding America - Turning the focused spending on rebuilding US infrastructure into revenue and profits.
Safety & Security – Targeted exposure to companies that provide goods and services primarily to the Defense and security sectors of the economy.
Space Economy – Companies that focus on the launch and operation of satellite networks.
The Strategies Behind Our Dividend Income Models
Monthly Dividend Model – Pretty much what the name says – this model invests in companies that pay monthly dividends to shareholders.
ETF Dividend Model – High-yielding ETFs that provide a range of exposures from domestic equities, international equities, emerging market equities, MLPS, and REITs.
ETF Enhanced Dividend Model – A group of high-yielding ETFs that utilize options to enhance yield through collecting option income.
Don’t be a stranger
Thanks for reading and if you have a suggestion for an article or book we should read, or a stream we should catch, email us at info@tematicaresearch.com. The same email works if you want to know more about our thematic and targeted exposure models listed below.