Howard Marks’s Latest Memo Is His Worst Ever. And It Saddens Me Greatly To Say That
"I wrote a memo a week for six weeks starting on March 3, but I've skipped the last three weeks", Howard Marks says, kicking off his seventh memo since the onset of the COVID-19 crisis.
He's apologetic about taking a three-week hiatus from blogging. "The string had to end sometime", he sighs.
Indeed. But the break is over now, and Marks is back with a piece called "Uncertainty" which is all about... well, it's all about uncertainty.
"Our inability to know the future is a theme I’ve touched
Ouch. True but unhelpful TRH. I appreciate all you do. Please keep doing… the best.
“I’m not going to sugar coat this: Marks’s latest memo is, in my judgement, a total and complete waste of your time and, more tragically, of Howard’s. A man of his considerable resources and intellect could have doubtlessly found something fruitful and lucrative to do with the hours that went into producing what is, frankly, a laughable attempt at philosophical profundity.”
🙂
Whew! Thanks Heisenberg! I’m glad I decided to read your review before I spend the time on Howard’s 13 pager!
Thanks -JimC-TX
I think Buffett’s recent video and Howard’s current memo are two of those intangible indicators of just how really, really bad things are. I mean, when those two between them can’t come up with one interesting or valuable thing to say…things are bad.
This is a very good comment.
100 percent.
Marks forgot to quote Donald Rumsfeld on “known unknowns.” Wish I had some of what he’s been smoking…
Poor Marks on this one.
Remind me to not stoop to below average performance and thereby get on your bad side. LOL Actually I am good in this arena to achieve something above blathering idiot. However you are helping to raise my awareness. Thanks.
Schiff and Roubini claim to know what is going on.
The best take on this for me was one older investor who said,
Who’s kidding who,it was always guessing,we call it analysis so people are comfortable forking over money. Who would have guessed that we might actually admit to ourselves that we are just guessing.
Roubini’s latest for the Project Syndicate platform. TL:DR version: We’re screwed:
https://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/greater-depression-covid19-headwinds-by-nouriel-roubini-2020-04?
My takeaway on the market: the amount of risk is so immeasurable, you might as well ignore it entirely. We can probably thank 3 years of Trump for this national capability.
When economics and the geopolitical consequences get as far off the beaten track as they are currently , semantics become the rule of thumb in the best of commentators… Maybe taking commentary off the beaten path and into the abstract or philosophical dimension is a better tactic… By Howard’s example even the best thinkers can sound well….stale ( kind description) for want of a better word…. No exceptions …these are unprecedented events in these days.we are experiencing..
Truly great traders take a rat’s nest like today’s world, fail to explain it rationally with words and then sit down and wail the shit out of the rest of us. I read George Soros’ books, sold him my consulting (35 years ago), sat through discussions. Was fired and then watched him out trade everybody with a lasar precision. I have seen some others but not as closely. I call it humility AND genius. Bet on Howard Marks. This is a great game now – too bad that lives and futures depend on it.
I had the same reaction as heisenberg when I read the memo…it was a head scratcher….Mark’s has done better memos…I like many of his previous memos, except when he acts as an apologist for right wing politics and assumptions…