15 May The Weekend Starts Here...
Photo on Visualhunt.com
So, here we are in phase two. I think we have been given quite a bit more freedom here in France than in the UK, particularly in terms of meeting other people. The weird thing is, neither we nor our circle of friends are in any hurry to do so. We’re all adopting a ‘wait and see’ approach.
Life isn’t getting back to normal anytime soon.
These interactive infographics show the global policy responses to the pandemic. A few things struck me: in EVERY respect the HUGE delay between China taking action and anywhere else in the world following suit; the fact that in terms of restricting international travel, only two countries have taken no measures at all – Iran and the UK; and the fact that the UK is the only major country in the West which is doing no contact tracing.
We know that the stock market is not the economy, but it would seem logical to think that those countries who are deemed to have dealt well with the pandemic would be able to open up and restart their economies faster than countries who have struggled. The follow on from that, you would think, is that this would be reflected in the performance of their stock markets. The reality is quite different. “The stock market is not the economy but it’s also not its citizens or government leaders or crisis response team either.” [ Ben Carlson 3 min read]
Rutger Bregman, author of Utopia for Realists, discovered a real-life Lord of the Flies story when researching his latest book. But this story couldn’t be more different than Golding’s novel. [4 min read]
“I understand that we just experienced an economic shutdown that is without precedent, but come on, how hard is it to value a burrito company?” 
[ Michael Batnick 2 min read]
A few things learned in recent months (I think the first one is the one which has surprised/shocked me the most. The second one is the one I wish most we will keep in mind at a personal and national level when this is all over) [ Morgan Housel 3 min read]
When will I feel safe getting on a plane? I keep asking myself this and I really don’t know the answer. What I do know is that flying in the future is going to be very different. And not in a good way. [7 min read]
Trading is not investing [ Tom Mullooly 3 min read]
These animations show the rapid rise in life expectancy since 1950. But it’s the third chart which really stands out – the increase in life expectancy since 10,000 BC.
And finally. If the government’s various messages about the easing of lockdown have left you feeling confused, Matt Lucas has clarified things for us [3:17 video] 😂 😂
Whatever you’re up to this weekend, I hope it’s a good one.
Carolyn