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The Pager Files, AI Smart Glasses, Vitalik: An Ethereum Story, A Rate Cut and 'Investor Mode'... Sunday Reads And Listens

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Howard Lindzon
September 22, 2024

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Good morning from Amsterdam.

Yesterday was a spectacular day for walking the streets of the town with warm and sunny blue skies. I had a great dinner with my old friends Michael and Michiel. I am lucky to have such great friends here in Amsterdam and across the globe.

I am off to Venice today for my regular fall cycling trip with pals. Life is good.

I have a crazy busy end of year work schedule ahead with Stocktoberfest in October dead ahead as well so this is my last hurrah of down time for 2024.

Onward…

What a week for ‘pagers’!!!

I am sure the ‘pager files’ will be something that will be studied for decades.

The most updated reporting I have read is from The Times Of Israel. The whole operation is truly remarkable.

The weakest, dumbest, meanest, dishonest, most paid for by Qatar and other terrorists, ‘useful idiot’ takes come from inside America. AOC (Alexandria Cortez) and Rashida Tlaib are leading that charge.

A cartoonist captured what a ‘useful idiot’ for terrorists looks to people (like me) that know Hezbollah and Hamas are terrorist organizations and that Israel did not start this war.

These women and too many others are giving shelter/cover to terrorists. So much so that The UN and UNRWA are trying to claim ‘immunity’ for their members that actually participated in the October 7th massacre. You will not here a peep about this from college encampments, University leaders, AOC or Rashida.

When in doubt on how I should ‘feel’ about Hamas and Hezbollah and this war, I go to Sam Harris for some clarity. Yesterday he wrote a piece titled ‘Sometimes, Violence Is The Only Answer’ which was excellent and on point…

The recent attack against Hezbollah in Lebanon produced the expected bafflement and preening among those who can afford (or think they can afford) to remain confused about the ethics of human violence.  

Thousands of electronic pagers—and later, hand-held radios—exploded simultaneously, killing dozens and injuring vast numbers of jihadists. This attack, the ingenuity of which cannot be denied, has been widely criticized as a dangerous escalation, as a breach of the rules of war, and most ludicrously, as an act of terrorism.

But if this Trojan Horse operation was as precise as it appears to have been, then it ranks among the most ethical acts of self-defense in memory. There are no “innocent” members of Hezbollah—whose only contributions to human culture have been the ruination of Lebanon and the modern evil of suicide bombing. This Iranian proxy has been firing rockets into northern Israel since October 8th, in response to… well, nothing at all. Israel’s occupation of Lebanon ended a quarter century ago.

If the Israelis managed to target members of Hezbollah by turning their personal electronic equipment into bombs—without seeding such bombs indiscriminately throughout Lebanon—then they achieved a triple victory. First, they killed or maimed the very people who have been trying to murder them, and who have displaced 70,000 innocent Israeli civilians from their homes. Second, they marked actual jihadists among the survivors, presumably making them easier to capture or kill in the future—and, one can only hope, reducing their status in Lebanese society. And third, they have stripped away some of the glamour of jihad. The promise of Paradise is one thing; the prospect of living without fingers or eyes is another.

ok…enough…onward…

The rate cut in the United States was the big market ‘story’ this week. Stocks worldwide ramped up. The Stocktwits ‘Daily Rip’ covered it well.

I like up markets so I will just enjoy it while it lasts.

My friend Chris Temple (he made the documentary I helped produce called ‘This Is Not Financial Advice’ premiered their latest documentary titled ‘Vitalik: An Ethereum Story’. Here is a clip:


Filmed over three years, the feature documentary is a human look at the creator behind this technology and offers a relatable entry point into the often misunderstood world of crypto.  Fred Wilson wrote a post about it here.

My ‘Trends With Friends’ co-host Michael had a great piece on ‘AI Smartglasses’. I am bullish on Facebook’s Ray Ban product the most because fashion matters most if you are going to ask consumers to wear something. The Verge has a detailed piece on why they think so too.

Finally, my colleagues in venture are enamored with the term ‘founder mode’ which means nothing and everything to the venture capitalists and founders making it trend.

In this weeks ‘Trends With Friends’ Michael and I spoke with the incredible investor Mike Maples on the subject of ‘Pattern Breakers’. Near the end I brought up the term ‘Investor Mode’ which too many venture capitalists have ignored and too many founders do not understand. You can listen on Spotify, Apple or Youtube.

Have a great Sunday.

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