–The US stock market continues to be a world laggard, a position it has held since the inauguration, and one it is in for an extended period the first time in 25 years. Ex 1993, the US dominated the 1990s, as well.

–a recent Financial Times article discussed being like the US as an aspirational goal for governments in the rest of the world. What struck me is that, deliberately or not, it was written entirely in the past tense.

–My first company commander in the Army (Fort Carson, CO) was Lawrence Wissell, killed in combat in late 1968 during his second tour in Vietnam. He was hard on his subordinates, but I learned a tremendous amount from him about leadership. One of his favorite sayings was, “Everyone wants the privilege of command, but no one wants the burden of leadership.” i.e., unless you make it clear to the people you manage that you put their welfare ahead of your own, there’s no chance they will follow you when times are difficult. Both parties in Congress seem blissfully unaware of this.