One of many memorable quotes by Winston Churchill came in 1922 when he described the cabinet of then British prime minister Andrew Bonar Law as “the Second Eleven”. He was justified. Law’s rule lasted just seven months. Almost a century later the curse has spread with B Teams occuping not just Whitehall but most equivalents elsewhere.
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Churchill’s description will surely resonate with neutrals who watched last night’s televised interaction between the two candidates for the US presidency. In the first of three supposed debates of their ideas, incumbent Donald Trump (74) and challenger Joe Biden (77) spent much of 90 minutes trading personal insults or over-talking.
Even though most US voters have long ago chosen their side, these debates do matter. It’s likely to end up a close race and many Americans still “undecided”. More importantly, as the US accounts for a quarter of global economic activity – and its share markets half the world’s market cap – when the country sneezes everyone else catches cold.
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That said, for 95% of humanity who live outside America’s borders, there was something deeply unsettling about last night’s spectacle of two grandfathers behaving like children. Especially as, for the next four years, one of them will have significant influence over what happens elsewhere on earth. The curse of the Second Eleven.Â
PHOTO: OLIVIER DOULIERY/PRESS POOL
For your attention today…
Yesterday’s webinar featured UK-based Saffer Sean Peche of Ranmore Funds on Value Investing lived up to its billing. Here’s the recording https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iGtmRjUYKMQ
Webinar alert…
* In tomorrow’s Noontime Thursday webinar, Tim Modise and guests will dig into SA’s passenger rail disaster called PRASA. Register here: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/1324111475714234383
* In this week’s Finance Friday, Biznews editor Jackie Cameron focuses on passive investing and how to simplify your choices. Her panelists are Michael Rossouw of 10X and Magnus Heystek of Brenthurst Wealth Management. https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/6646694434270030861
For downloading…
* Today’s top story on Biznews is my long-form interview with Spur founder Allen Ambor. Here’s the link to the audio and transcript: https://www.biznews.com/leadership/2020/09/28/spur-allen-ambor
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