Hi Team,
Welcome to the latest edition of Ramble, a compilation of what I have been pondering, learning and enjoying for the past month or so.
Now, grab a beverage and let’s begin.
Something Interesting:
Portugal is still recovering from the 2008 Financial Crisis and has a rapidly shrinking population with huge brain drain. It is in dire need of foreigners to live, work and spend money there to recover. So the Portuguese government is looking to attract high tech remote workers with favorable benefits through the so-called 'NHR' program.
Under the Non-Habitual Resident program :
- 0% tax on foreign income
- 0% tax on crypto
- 0% tax on dividends
- 0% tax on wealth
- No minimum stay requirement
- Fast track to EU passport
We should all move to Portugal...
What I am Reading:
"The world’s political elite fly in by private jets to tell the rest of us we should cut down on commercial air travel."
"The big news this week was that Leonardo DiCaprio had flown in to Glasgow to join the conference. Because as everybody knows, there is no major world issue that cannot be solved by actors."
"In 1951 Globke helped draft a law that restored full pension rights to all officials who had lost them as a result of the Allies’ de-Nazification programme. Not only were they returned to their previous positions, or the nearest equivalent; the new law even set up a quota for the compulsory employment of former Nazis. This worked. By 1957 over three quarters of senior officials at the West German justice ministry were former Nazis."
"Earlier this month the film Getting Away with Murder(s) was released. David Wilkinson’s documentary stresses the number of those involved in the Holocaust who led untroubled new lives in this country: those such as Anton Gecas, who took part in the murder of an estimated 40,000 Jews and Russian prisoners of war. Our courts never acceded to Lithuania’s extradition request. Gecas died aged 85 in Edinburgh in 2001, where he was fondly remembered for running a popular bed and breakfast."
From the author of 'Guns, Germs and Steel' is another sprawling epic explanation of the reliable methods one might choose to ruin a society, which we as flawed apes have done from time to time.
Step 1 is to ensure that you plant more trees to replace those that you to cut down for timber...seriously.
(I couldn't believe how common forest mismanagement was in the list of mistakes made by our past failed societies)
What I am Watching:
- The Closer (Dave Chappelle) - Netflix
If you have heard anything about this special, don't worry, just watch it.
It is the only comedy special I have seen that can capture a room (be it your lounge room, as you lift your head from your phone, or the theatre it was delivered to) - towards the end when Dave speaks about his friend Daphne...
- Squid Game - Netflix
The South Korean survivial drama...
I love that it was weird and didn't end like people wanted it to.
What I am Listening to:
Darius Rucker
Everyone really actually loves country music...
What I am Writing:
Not sure I have written about medical education much on this here little newsletter, but I write a newsletter called 'Your Daily Meds' which is targeted at Junior Doctors and Medical Students. It is just a free daily email with a couple of question and answer sections.
Anyone interested or who might want to pass it on can find it here.
What I Learned:
How Imaginary Numbers Were Invented - Veritasium (23 mins)
Cool history and actuallly understandable mathematics that is kind of actually important and relevant. This was really entertaining.
This channel is also helping cement my view that YouTube is a better place to learn science and mathematics than schools.
A Quote:
On Travel:
“I see that it is not useless travel, if we wish to see anything new.” - Passepartout
- Around the World in 80 Days (Jules Verne)
On Simplicity:
"Very simple ideas lie within the reach only of complex minds."
- Remy de Gourmont
Closing Thoughts:
Thank you once again for reading along with me.
If you found something you liked, let me know.
If you think I can do something a little smoother, please let me know.
Talk soon.
Luke.