Here are recent rough notes from the site.
Tesla sales are (further) cratering in Europe, with a mere few hundred cars sold in France last quarter, Norway sales down almost 90%, etc. The company's run toward robots is, shall we say, multicausal.
Tesla Sales Slump to Three-Year Low in France, Plunge 88% in Norway - Bloomberg https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-02-02/tesla-sales-slump-to-three-year-low-in-france-plunge-88-in-norway
Post-Brexit job losses in UK are more concentrated among male-dominated jobs, and the unemployed are increasingly gravitating to the populist right. This is an augury of what will happen in the US as it increasingly “Brexits” itself from trade networks via unpredictable policies and high tariffs.
Britain’s Growing Ranks of Jobless Men Are Flocking to Farage https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-02-02/britain-s-growing-ranks-of-jobless-men-are-flocking-to-farage
The average Chinese retail speculator is basically just an American with even easier access to leverage, as shown by last week's gold implosion. Bloomberg has choice quotes.
Rookie Trader’s Rapid 84% Wipeout Shows Depth of China Gold Bust
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-02-02/rookie-trader-s-rapid-84-wipeout-shows-depth-of-china-gold-bust
Charts from a terrific new piece on how social media has eaten Americans' time, made them less trusting, have fewer friends, and more. The title is an apt call-out to Putnam's classic "Bowling Alone".
Scrolling Alone
https://www.afterbabel.com/p/scrolling-alone
The refuge complex—Bitcoin, gold, and silver—all got smashed this past week, suggesting that perhaps there needs to be a refuge from refuges. Somewhat seriously, that refuges, in this current closed-loop monoculture, become their own self-reinforcing bubbles, reinforced by China flows, neatly refuting the entire idea of a refuge.
