Locator: 50625TRUMP.
Updates
April 26, 2026: from The New York Times .... the headline writer a former writer for The Onion --
Original Post
This was to have been Obama’s era. A decade later Obama will hardly be mentioned in the history books, except for the beer summit. Obama’s legacy: jump-starting Joe Biden’s deteriorating career. And ending Hillary’s.
This is the same hotel outside of which John Hinckley Jr. tried to assassinate President Ronald Reagan in 1981.
Locator: 50624ARCHIVES.
Clearing out the inbox. I may or may not come back to these links later but want to get them cleared out.
Google Gemini: Nvidia introduces own line of CPUs.
Google Gemini: AMD family of CPU chips -- Turin; Venice.
Beth: Amazon's chip business, run rate -- Graviton, Trainium, and Nitro on EC2, is now $20 billion and growing triple-digits y/y. Link here. Link here.
Wasteland Capital: MU breaks $500. Up 550% in one year. The largest and fastest one year upwards earnings revision in history for any mega cap. Link here. Hardly a wasteland. A year ago I bought MU for under $80. Actually, I think I bought my first position in MU two years ago. I've long forgotten. I don't check specifics on a stock unless I plan to sell it or buy more. With MU I'm doing neither.
Beth: ASML -- "demand for chips is outpacing supply. Our customers are accelerating their capacity expansion plans for 2026 and beyond." Link here.
Market cap: top six companies -- $22 trillion -- in trillions -- link here.
PEG ratio: link here.
Polymarket: Apple's base M4 Mac Mini is sold out in the US, with some other models facing month-long waits. Link here. I love to read the comments from those who don't get it:
"Boggles me why anyone would buy an M4 when the M5 is coming out this summer."
Maine rethinks this: governor vetoes bill that would have put a moratorium on LDCs in the state. At least she doesn't want to be known as a Luddite. Link here.
Locator: 50624BOOKS.
Updates
April 26, 2026: what's the story of Ilhan Omar's husband and a $30-million winery?
Later, 7:48 p.m. CT: saw this just minutes after the original post. Strange, huh? Link here. True? I have no idea. I'll ask ChatGPT tomorrow, if I remember, but it doesn't surprise me. Accounting error? LOL.
Original Post
Earlier this evening.
**************************
Hoover History: The Book Page
Palo Alto: A History of California, Capitalism, and The World, Malcolm Harris, c. 2023. Notes are posted here.
Never stop reading.
Today, chapter 2.3 Hooverville. For those who doubt the fourth industrial revolution (actually the sixth industrial revolution), I highly recommend they read this chapter. Hoover ran the American economy from 1921 to 1932
First a reference to the Sacramento Associates in the 1860s.
The "Big Four" Sacramento associates who founded the Central Pacific Railroad and built the western portion of the first transcontinental railroad were Leland Stanford, Collis P. Huntington, Charles Crocker, and Mark Hopkins.
These businessmen, along with engineer Theodore Judah, incorporated the company on June 28, 1861, securing financing for the monumental project.
The Big Four Roles
- Leland Stanford: Served as the president of the Central Pacific Railroad and was elected governor of California in 1861, providing crucial political support.
- Collis P. Huntington: Acted as the vice president and was responsible for managing financing, lobbying in Washington D.C., and procuring materials.
- Charles Crocker: Managed the construction of the railroad, serving as the head of construction (Charles Crocker & Co.) and directing the labor force through the Sierra Nevada.
- Mark Hopkins: Acted as the treasurer, managing the company's finances and administrative duties with a reputation for caution and thrift.
These associates formed the company that began construction in Sacramento in 1863 and joined the Union Pacific at Promontory Summit, Utah, on May 10, 1869.
Now screenshots of two important pages of the chapter:
Locator: 50623SAVINGSRATE.
Previous post re: US savings rate, link here.
Update, link here.
Most recent graph:
Wow, that looks like quite a change. In fact, pay close attention to the y coordinate.
The range is 4.0 to 4.5%. What happened in January? Tax refunds? Possibly, but refunds didn't start coming out until January 26, 2026. RMDs? Possibly. My wife always takes her RMDs as early in January as possible.
The most recent month for which we have data, February, 2026: 4.0%.
If the y axis had been stretched from 0 to 10.0, the change might have gone unnoticed.
But the y axis is from about 4.0 to about 5.6, so the change was much more noticeable.
Locator: 50623IRAN.
Iran's chief negotiator said he wouldn't meet with US negotiators. Trump canceled the US delegation. Ten minutes later the Iranians telephoned Trump with an offer. Trump took the call and said, "thank you." All of a sudden the Iranian negotiators (like Qatar and Saudi Arabia) are becoming more irrelevant by the day.
Talking to himself, link here. Yes, it's "nuances" alright. Better said, nuisances.
Locator: 50622MMFS.
My favorite chart. MMFs.
Data updated April 25, 2026.
Posted this month without comment, because there's nothing to say.
Locator: 50622MUSIC.
We're gonna start with this one: link here. Put on the headphones, play it loud and listen to that bass.
The tornadic storm has just started here in north Texas! Will be a rockin' evening!
Something to write about: five to eight gun shots ring out at White House Correspondents' Dinner. Trump didn't stick around. Well, that ruins that. Can't even safeguard their own event. Why did they have the gun-screening location where they did?
Big Iron? Link here.
In my secret life. Link here.
It opens like an anthem. Link here.
Dick Dale. Link here. This may be the best tonight.
Wow, I think I could listen to this all night. Nitro, DickDale. Link here.
The surfer. Dick Dale. Link here.
Dick Dale came first but he was eclipsed by The Beach Boys. Then Jan and Dean. Is there anything finer than bikini-clad women on the California beaches? How was I so lucky to live my coming-of-age years in southern California. To meet Flavio of all things!
Leo Fender, Hank Marvin, and Dick Dale. Link here. Orange County and the Stratocaster.
"Layla" -- Eric Clapton. Link here.
Girls Meet Jazz. Link here.
The Safaris. Link here. The song. Link here.
Apache, 1960. Link here.
General George Babbitt. Link here.
Locator: 50621MEDICINE.
Annual physicals.
I don't get annual physicals.
My last physical was last week.
The physical prior to that one was in 2018, eight years ago.
In 2018, age 67 years old:
Locator: 50624BOOKS.
Updates
Later, 7:48 p.m. CT: saw this just minutes after the original post. Strange, huh? Link here. True? I have no idea. I'll ask ChatGPT tomorrow, if I remember, but it doesn't surprise me. Accounting error? LOL.
Original Post
Earlier this evening.
**************************
Hoover History: The Book Page
Palo Alto: A History of California, Capitalism, and The World, Malcolm Harris, c. 2023. Notes are posted here.
Never stop reading.
Today, chapter 2.3 Hooverville. For those who doubt the fourth industrial revolution (actually the sixth industrial revolution), I highly recommend they read this chapter. Hoover ran the American economy from 1921 to 1932
First a reference to the Sacramento Associates in the 1860s.
The "Big Four" Sacramento associates who founded the Central Pacific Railroad and built the western portion of the first transcontinental railroad were Leland Stanford, Collis P. Huntington, Charles Crocker, and Mark Hopkins.
These businessmen, along with engineer Theodore Judah, incorporated the company on June 28, 1861, securing financing for the monumental project.
The Big Four Roles
- Leland Stanford: Served as the president of the Central Pacific Railroad and was elected governor of California in 1861, providing crucial political support.
- Collis P. Huntington: Acted as the vice president and was responsible for managing financing, lobbying in Washington D.C., and procuring materials.
- Charles Crocker: Managed the construction of the railroad, serving as the head of construction (Charles Crocker & Co.) and directing the labor force through the Sierra Nevada.
- Mark Hopkins: Acted as the treasurer, managing the company's finances and administrative duties with a reputation for caution and thrift.
These associates formed the company that began construction in Sacramento in 1863 and joined the Union Pacific at Promontory Summit, Utah, on May 10, 1869.
Now screenshots of two important pages of the chapter:
Locator: 50620EPICFURY.
Updates
April 25, 2026: we've gotten into something of a truce, ceasefire, a Korean stand-off, in the Middle East. It may not seem to be the best possible outcome right now, but it may be better than what folks expected, including what some very smart analysts expected. Right now, what do Americans see? Three US carrier groups in the Mideast. Not noticed by most, the Israelis continue to take out Hezbollah / Lebanese terrorists one-by one. Every day with the strait closed, the more irrelevant Qatar (natural gas) and Saudi Arabia (oil) become. "Rope-a-dope" in Pakistan ends.
Ask yourself:
Pax Americana / Pax Shiolam
Monroe Doctrine
Permian; Canada; Venezuela; Brazil, Guyana, Argentina.
Link here. Most outrageous headline today. Apparently the Europeans are already phoning it in.
Original Post
April 10, 2026
We need to go back to basics: making America great again.
The Monroe Doctrine.
Venezuela.
Burgum and Wright know exactly what's going on. As do the world's oil companies.
Presidents are change agents.
Trump has met his objectives. He is eager to end hostilities with no more American deaths, but his hand(s) may be forced to take military action if the Persians do not negotiate in good faith.
The only question is Trump's acceptance of the end-state of the strait.
This is simply fascinating.
Someone with much better writing than I will have to write the "story."
I'll flesh it out later at another blog but I don't need the pushback so it won't be posted continuously on the blog.
I just feel very comfortable with this.
Hint: to sort this out, you start backwards. Start 30 years out and ask what Trump sees as an end state in 2050. You have to start with the end state in 2050.
Hint: who will be the US' #1 military and economic competitor?
Hint: where does 90% of crude oil and natural gas that flows through the strait end up?
I've given up way too much, already.
I'm going to go watch a splashdown.
Locator: 50619APPLE.
AI query: will Apple's M6 be a chip or a chiplet?
Reply: wow, wow, wow -- first time I've seen "Baltra" in a reply in which I did not specifically ask about Baltra. This now puts us through at least three new Apple iterations since Intel started work on their "14."
Based on 2026 reports, Apple's M6 family is expected to be a, or a series of, system-on-a-chip (SoC) designs rather than a, or a series of, chiplet design, manufactured using TSMC's base 2-nanometer (N2) process. Expected to launch in late 2026 for redesigned MacBook Pro models, the M6 will focus on high-density monolithic design improvements for better power efficiency and performance.
Key M6 Chip Details:
- Manufacturing: The M6 is expected to utilize TSMC's base 2-nanometer N2 process, rather than the N2P variant, notes iLounge.
- Launch Timing: Redesigned MacBook Pro models featuring OLED screens, likely in late 2026, according to MacRumors.
While some reports suggest Apple is experimenting with chiplets for specialized AI server chips (codenamed "Baltra") by 2027, the M6 for consumer Macs is expected to follow the traditional high-end silicon approach.
- Design Focus: The chips, which also include potential Pro and Max variants, aim to offer significant performance boosts over the M5 family.
Locator: 50618APPLE.
Apple and M5 are tracked here.
Jargon: 2.5D Fusion.
This is important. By the time Intel's best chips get released in 2028 (or whenever it is) the industry will have moved on to chiplets. Intel will sell every chip they make but end-users (Apple, for example) will have better margins, among other things.
I haven't yet read the skeptic's article in Barron's yet but I bet it's interesting.
AI query:
Was Apple one of the first chip designers, with the M5, to go to chiplets, rather than chips?
Reply:
Chiplet: A chiplet is a small, specialized, and modular "piece" of a chip designed to be combined with other chiplets into a single package, whereas a traditional "chip" (or System on a Chip/SoC) is a single, large piece of silicon containing all necessary functional blocks.
Essentially, chiplets break a single large die into smaller functional components to improve manufacturing yields, reduce costs, and increase performance.
Apple's M5 Pro and M5 Max are true chiplet-based designs, separating CPU and GPU functions, a change from previous monolithic approaches.
The new chiplet design for the M5 Pro and M5 Max is expected to allow unique CPU and GPU configurations for better flexibility.
One of the M5 Pro’s and M5 Max’s biggest highlights is that both chipsets are rumored to feature TSMC’s SoIC packaging (Small Outline Integrated Circuit) and a 2.5D chiplet design that will enable the company to mass produce even more capable SoCs at a lower cost. A new rumor pretty much repeats the same information, talking about the advantages of the new Apple Silicon lineup, while also mentioning that both the M5 Pro and M5 Max will feature a slightly higher transistor density.
On Weibo, Fixed-focus digital cameras has shared various updates surrounding Apple’s upcoming chipsets, including a transition from InFO (Integrated Fan-Out) technology to 2.5D, bringing a slew of benefits to the table. On the latest post, the person has pretty much summarized the same perks, such as improved heat dissipation, a new packaging, with the only addition worthy of attention that hasn’t been mentioned before being increased transistor density.
Then again, Apple never disclosed the transistor count for the M5, so there’s no way of knowing if it differs from the M4. Fortunately, the only proper evidence that the M5 Pro and M5 Max offer a higher transistor count than the M4 Pro and M4 Max is Apple switching from TSMC’s 3nm N3E node to the 3nm N3P technology.
Locator: 50617ARCHIVES.
The links:
****************************
The Book Page
Palo Alto: A History of California, Capitalism, and The World, Malcolm Harris, c. 2023. Notes are posted here.
Today, chapter 2.3 Hooverville. For those who doubt the fourth industrial revolution (actually the sixth industrial revolution), I highly recommend they read this chapter.
Locator: 50616APPLE.
The most interesting story I've been following for me personally involves Apple.
See disclaimer. I am inappropriately exuberant about Apple. Not AAPL, but Apple. I said I was Apple's #3 fanboy decades ago. I remember writing on the blog that our younger daughter and I would take our prayer rugs and go down to the Apple store at the mall and pray in front of the doors before the Apple Store opened. The mall? I thought it was called the Gold Coast Mall, southern California. In fact, it was:
But I digress. So, see the disclaimer. I am inappropriately exuberant about Apple, just as I am inappropriately exuberant about the Bakken. But this post is about Apple, not Bakken.
I don't even know where to start. So, I'll start here.
Apple's M4 Mac Mini is sold out. Gone, gone, gone. Never to be replaced -- at least not with the M4.
So, where are these M4 Mac Minis going? My hunch: they're going overseas. Regardless, they're being bought by the truckload and shelves are being emptied. The MacMinis are being used for AI.
Really, really, really. Not really.
Indirectly they're being used for AI. A better way to say it: the Apple M4 Mac Mini is being used BECAUSE of AI, not FOR AI. It's a subtle difference but an important difference. And it became clear when Intel announced it 1Q26 earnings -- blowout earnings by the way. [Another digression: when earnings are so far better / worse than forecast, the question quickly becomes why? How did analysts miss this? In this case, it was easy. And connecting those dots confirm that this was a one-off quarter. It won't happen again.]
A clue in the next two screenshots, but in just one of the screenshots.
Wow, the dots connect.
I'm really proud of this one.
The first screenshot:
The second screenshot, the money shot:
Microsoft hates Apple. I assume Microsoft News (MSN) hates Apple.
By the way, a digression. Has anyone noticed how inexpensive top-end Apple products are getting? Exhibit A: the MacBook Neo.
But I digress.
Macrumors, link here:
Apple never sells out of anything. There may be delays in delivery, as there are now with regard to the Neo but Apple has not sold out of Neo. You can buy the Neo today, but it might be on backorder.
You cannot buy the M4 Mac Mini. It's sold out, gone forever.
Actually I'm wrong. Apple does sell out of stuff, but not in the way one thinks. Apple sells out of something for only two reasons, and the shelves go bare. The shelves go bare over a few months.
The two reasons Apple sells out of something:
So, fast forward:
M6:
M5:
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The Book Page
The best books I've read on this subject matter.
Winter reading program, 2025 - 2026:
Without question, the most important for investing: Chris Miller's Chip War.
Without question, the best for understanding semiconductors: Orton's.
The most recent:
Why Machines Learn: The Elegant Math Behind Modern AI, Anil Ananthaswamy, c. July 16, 2024, purchased March 18, 2026. Bought at Powell's Book at the Portland, OR, airport.
Over at the 2026 Summer Reading Program.
By the way, although I bought it some time ago, the following is on my 2026 SRP -- I'm reading it now. Finding it fascinating.
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More M4 Mac Mini Screenshots
