Back up a bit. It must have been about 10 years ago -- '97 or so -- when I last walked the streets of New York City. Whenever I'm in a great city -- be it New York, San Francisco, Chicago, Paris, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Singapore, etc. -- it is my consistent habit to be out and about fairly early in the morning. Lots of reasons why, but I suppose it's primarily that I like seeing the things come alive as they do.

Back then, I recall grabbing a sausage, egg & cheese croissant, tater tots and coffee from a Burger King and then browsing the tables of a sidewalk book vendor. Fitting, I thought -- seeing as I was in NYC -- to pick up this book, The Education of a Speculator, by Victor Niederhoffer. But through some set of circumstances I no longer recall, I got sidetracked somewhere near the beginning of the book, put it down, and forgot about it. Then I saw it two weeks ago amongst my significant book collection that I keep up at the cabin. Seeing as I now trade virtually full time, I took it down, began reading, and began googling here and there about the man.

And he's a most interesting guy. On the heels of the book being published, he lost it all. Tens of millions -- his own money and clients'. Now he's back on top, taking the hedge fund he started in 2002 from $2 million to about $350 million now. That's of course both additional capital from new investors and capital gains. A $1 million investment in 2002 would be worth over $4 million today. Not bad. Of course, to invest in a hedge fund, you have to be an accredited investor -- a silly, depression-era law that appears to be growing new legs rather than being dumped as it ought to be. On the other hand, in practical terms, it's probably just as well. Nobody cares if a hedge fund loses billions for rich people. Indeed, most "working people" chortle with glee at the prospect. This affords hedge funds some measure of freedom in managing their own affairs and the affairs of their clients. "Too many" people are now reaching the $1 million watermark and it's a virtual certainty that you'll eventually have sob stories about moms & pops who invested their life savings in a hedge fund and lost it all, "not realizing" that the 50% annual returns imply sometimes huge risk.

Check out his reading list and note what comes first. What have I been telling you forever? Note also the Liberty Reading List at the bottom. Yea, I've read many of those myself. I know a few people who've read all of them.

He also maintains a blog, Daily Speculations that I have found quite interesting to have in my RSS. So bookmark accordingly, if it suits you.

Would that Sam Harris laid it to the dustbin of history once and for all.

That's the moron so roundly put down and kicked about yesterday by every rational person with keyboard, blog, and righteous rage.

Well, it seems like the moron himself feels qualified to write on these matters. The only real difference between his screed and the thousands of imbecilic screeds like it is that he bet against the odds of being proved stupid, and lost.

Guns don't belong in classrooms. They never will. Virginia Tech has a very sound policy preventing same.

Well, mutherfucker, your "sound policy" and $3.50 will get you a latte at Starbucks, you brainless and dangerous shithead.

(Aaron)

There are reports -- granted unconfirmed at this time -- that several students were forced to line up, kneeling, and executed from behind.

I pray to the old gods -- the gods of war and blood and thunder -- that this is not the case.

I pray that some students went down fighting.

Because as bad as this is -- and this is a horror -- as bad as this is, if fifty some-odd people were injured and killed by one person whilst on their knees begging like so many Eloi, like a herd of sheep -- if no one stood up and fought back, then this is becomes an example of evil.

Not the evil that allows a man to kill other men -- although that is here in abundance. No, I am speaking of the putrescent evil which convinces good men not to fight back; the sordid filth of the soul which allows one bad man to prevail against fifty -- or 25,000 -- good men because good men have been systematically denied the mindset required to meet with, engage and defeat evil -- even if all you have is fingernails and rage.

One man. On a campus of 25,000 people. 25,000 people surrounded by fire extinguishers, book bags, pencils, pens, drafting compasses, chairs, broom handles, power strips, ceramics, chains and everything heavy and/or sharp.

One man managed to gun down fifty people -- or more -- without being stabbed and bludgeoned to death where he stood by the other 24,950 people.

I weep for the dead. I weep for the families who lost their treasured children today.

I weep even more for a land which not only denies the tools required for self-defense, but also denies the very mindset required for self-defense.

(LawDog, via Bill St. Clair)