- Biden is setting a new goal for global vaccine equity: 70% of the world to be vaccinated by next year… which is already a stated goal by the W.H.O. “The U.S. wants to be engaged,” French virologist Dr. Marie-Paule Kieny said in response to this development, “but they still don’t know exactly how to engage with the new world that has developed while they were away.” Isolationism is not just a plaything for Trumpian political appeal: it has a real cost, on real human lives.
- The “bloated” size of the Malaysian civil service has been a favourite topic amongst opposition politicians of the past several decades, so this take on the size of the civil service is a pleasant surprise. Granted, the PSM would certainly have a bias for stronger public services. But at a time when much attention is being devoted to the Government’s operational expenses – and the heavy cost of civil servants’ emoluments – it would be interesting if a more nuanced position can be staked out on this long-running debate.
- Another taper tantrum ahead? At least it is good to know that the recovery seems to be progressing in earnest. But with concerns over Evergrande and the punishments being meted against Chinese businesses, a tapering could lead to oversized shocks for developing economies.
Three Things I am Thinking about Today #1
- Keep all your rough drafts and notes. You never know if you make it big some day, just like Van Gogh.
- Even with better medical care, the death toll from Covid-19 is now officially worse than the 1918 Spanish flu, thanks to all those anti-vaxxers who “want to do their own research.”
- With China cracking down on businesses, is a “bamboo curtain” about to fall, and would Southeast Asian nations like Malaysia be forced to choose?
What I’m Reading Lately – Mon 6 IV 2020
- If you are Malaysian and you have loans to pay, this is a good read.
- When people are angry and frustrated at their political leaders (whether rightly or wrongly), there often comes a time when the finger-pointing leads the public to assign (usually disproportionate) blame to the leaders’ advisors (especially when public criticism of the leader invites punishment): the Tsar’s Rasputin, the recent fascination with Dominic Cummings amongst Guardian columnists, and Pak Lah’s own Fourth Floor are examples of this. It seems Trump now has his “Slim Suit crowd” as another target for the wrath of the many people who cannot wait to vote him out in November.
- Some times I wonder: are Malaysian politicians just really unlucky? Were they tripped up by hapless advisors (see my earlier point above)? Or were they sabotaged by hidden hands? Or maybe Ockham was right, and the simplest explanation is like the most correct: that we just have too many inept folks in our political class.
What I’m Reading Lately – Sun 5 IV 2020
- This is a good read on the growing phenomenon of “zoombombing”; clearly a sign of the times.
- Warren Buffett said it best: it’s when the tide goes out that you finally see who amongst us have been swimming naked. The buzz around “founders” and the deification of “entrepreneurs” has always been a pebble in the shoe for me; this Economist article exposes “fake tech” and other frothy detritus of our tech-crazed era.
- So it turns out that the man of the moment, Malaysia’s Director General of Health and the face of the Malaysian Government’s response to the coronavirus outbreak, is a son of a single mother, and grew up in a public housing project. I like him even more now.
What I’m Reading Right Now
- A good read on the idea of electability (remember when @NajibRazak kept talking about “winnable candidates”?) in the context of the ongoing Democratic primaries, and a good example of how to insert a fancy word like “ouroboros” into a conversation – FiveThirtyEight
- I’ve been putting my money on Warren for this primary cycle, and was somewhat dismayed to see her campaign falter in Iowa and New Hampshire; nice to see her bring her game on at the Las Vegas debate – Politico
- An early take on how the Covid-19 coronavirus outbreak will hit the private equity industry – AVCJ
- Is there a Cult of Youth in venture capital? – AVCJ
- University endowments in Asia are beginning to take a closer look at alternative investment asset classes, including private equity – AVCJ
- Grab is expanding into electric bike hailing – AVCJ
- Is there a “Stop Anwar” movement afoot? – Berita Harian
- EPF drops AirAsia like it’s hot… – Berita Harian
- I cannot shake off my longstanding suspicion that a lot of these “branding awards” are just con jobs… – Berita Harian