Slope of Hope Blog Posts

Slope initially began as a blog, so this is where most of the website’s content resides. Here we have tens of thousands of posts dating back over a decade. These are listed in reverse chronological order. Click on any category icon below to see posts tagged with that particular subject, or click on a word in the category cloud on the right side of the screen for more specific choices.

Freedom From Fear

By -

I am currently re-reading Freedom From Fear, the superb history by David Kennedy of 1929-1945 in the United States. I emphasize re-reading, since this sucker weighs in at 900 pages, but I'm a history buff, and the Depression and World War 2 is at the top of my list of interests.

I'm halfway through this tome at this point, just before the attack of Pearl Harbor. I can share a few thoughts off the top of my head:

+ Roosevelt was much more hamstrung by an uncooperative Congress than most people remember. It's incredible he got as much done as he did, particularly in the late 1930s.

+ People think of the French as the pathetic do-nothings in World War 2. They don't hold a candle to the people of the United States, which watched apathetically as Ethiopians, Chinese, and Jews were slaughtered. The isolationist/pacifist attitude of the United States was, in retrospect, revolting.

+ Thank God for Winston Churchill.

0614-freedom

Euro-Strength

By -

The Euro is having a sensationally strong day, which is the main reason equities are so strong right now. It's approaching 1.233, which was its former "Geronimo!" point earlier on. We'll see if it blows past it or not; it certainly hasn't shown any signs of slowing down yet.

0614-eur 

Guest content has totally dried up, so my posts might be few and far between for a while.