The Guardian (March 12)
“Theresa May’s Brexit lost to the ultimate adversary: reality…. There might still be ways that Brexit can go badly; unexplored dead ends and byways of failure. But the road to success is now closed.”
Bloomberg (October 1)
“Stocks of the so-called sogo shosha, the groups that drove Japan’s postwar export success—the likes of Itochu Corp., Marubeni Corp. and Mitsubishi Corp.—have rallied as much as 36 percent over the last year, outpacing the race to a three-decade high by the broad Topix Index. The trading companies’ free cash-flow levels are above those reached in their heyday, and their leverage much lower.”
Tags: Export, FCF, Itochu, Japan, Leverage, Marubeni, Mitsubishi, Outpacing, Postwar, Rallied, Sogo shosha, Success, Topix
Washington Post (May 11)
“Lord save the world…. President Trump is making rash and risky moves that promise either brilliant success or catastrophic failure. The odds aren’t great, “given that it’s Trump we’re dealing with.”
CNN (June 21)
“If ever there were a country in need of modernization, Saudi Arabia is it.” The newly named Crown Prince “is deeply committed to carrying major reforms to fruition. He embodies dynamism, youthful boldness and a vision of possibility. But the far-ranging changes he is bringing to the conservative kingdom and to the region carry risk and no guarantee of success. In a region roiled with instability, they add another element of uncertainty.”
Tags: Boldness, Conservative, Crown Prince, Instability, Modernization, Reforms, Risk, Saudi Arabia, Success, Uncertainty, Youthful
The Week (May 23)
“How much of a problem is it that the president of the United States, the most powerful person on Earth, is a blithering idiot?” Depends what kind of blithering idiot. “Raw intellect doesn’t translate to presidential success, and its absence could, in the right circumstance, be compensated for.” But “President Trump’s particular brand of stupidity” is very dangerous. “You can be dumb but modest, or dumb but thoughtful, or dumb but careful. Trump is none of those things. He’s boastful, impulsive, and careless, all while continuing to blaze new trails of thickheadedness, while the rest of us are left to stand back and gawp in amazement.”
Tags: Boastful, Careless, Dangerous, Dumb, Idiot, Impulsive, Intellect, Powerful, President, Problem, Stupidity, Success, Thickheaded, U.S.
Boston Globe (May 8)
Trump is making a tense situation on the Korean Peninsula perilous. His “sole success is adding himself to the things South Koreans most fear. Indeed, his erratic behavior has affected South Korea’s presidential election Tuesday, helping elevate the candidate least favorable to the United States. As Trump oscillates, risks burgeon.”
Tags: Election, Erratic, North Korea, Risks, South Korea, Success, Trump, U.S.
The Week (November 14)
“Success has its own kind of persuasion. And in the wake of Donald Trump’s stunning electoral victory, many conservatives who long opposed him are trying to talk themselves into President Trump.” Even though “we don’t know what sort of president Trump will be, largely because he campaigned out of both sides of his mouth,” there may still be “a path whereby Republicans really can save Trumpism from Trump, and reinvigorate the country.”
Tags: Conservatives, Persuasion, Reinvigorate, Success, Trump, U.S., Victory
Washington Post (November 25)
The Iran nuclear talks have been extended, which may prove a good thing. The talks resemble “a labor negotiation in which it’s too costly for workers to go on strike or for management to impose a lockout, so the two sides continue without a contract while negotiations proceed.” Whether this will ultimately lead to success, however, will largely depend on whether Iran decides to be a nation or a cause, pragmatic or zealous.
The Economist (November 22)
It has become fashionable to praise long-termism and deplore the corrosive influences of short-termism, but this is simplistic. “Long-termism and short-termism both have their virtues and vices—and these depend on context. Long-termism works well in stable industries that reward incremental innovation.” In other businesses, however, long-termism “is a recipe for failure” and success goes to those who can constantly “abandon their plans and ‘pivot’ to a new strategy, in markets that can change in the blink of an eye.”
Tags: Failure, Incremental innovation, Long-termism, Markets, Pivot, Short-termism, Stable industries, Strategy, Success
Financial Times (March 27)
Abenomics “has been judged a qualified success but there are concerns the effort will peter out.” The upcoming consumption tax increase ranks high among these and an even more fundamental concern, that higher inflation would make the government’s debt burden unsustainable, remains untested. If the latter holds true, however, “it is precisely when Abenomics reaches its stated aim that it will begin to unravel.”
Tags: Abenomics, Concerns, Consumption tax, Government, Inflation, Success, Unsustainable
