Today Amazon offers The Great Crash of 1929 by John Kenneth Galbraith. It costs only $1.99.
Rampant speculation. Record trading volumes. Assets bought not because of their value but because the buyer believes he can sell them for more in a day or two, or an hour or two. Welcome to the late 1920s. There are obvious and absolute parallels to the great bull market of the late 1990s, writes Galbraith in a new introduction dated 1997. Of course, Galbraith notes, every financial bubble since 1929 has been compared to the Great Crash, which is why this book has never been out of print since it became a bestseller in 1955.
Galbraith writes with great wit and erudition about the perilous actions of investors, and the curious inaction of the government. He notes that the problem wasn’t a scarcity of securities to buy and sell; “the ingenuity and zeal with which companies were devised in which securities might be sold was as remarkable as anything.” Those words become strikingly relevant in light of revenue-negative start-up companies coming into the market each week in the 1990s, along with fragmented pieces of established companies, like real estate and bottling plants. Of course, the 1920s were different from the 1990s. There was no safety net below citizens, no unemployment insurance or Social Security. And today we don’t have the creepy investment trusts–in which shares of companies that held some stocks and bonds were sold for several times the assets’ market value. But, boy, are the similarities spooky, particularly the prevailing trend at the time toward corporate mergers and industry consolidations–not to mention all the partially informed people who imagined themselves to be financial geniuses because the shares of stock they bought kept going up. –Lou Schuler
Some words about the Author
John Kenneth Galbraith wrote more than 30 books, spanning four decades. He was awarded honorary degrees from Harvard, Oxford, the University of Paris and Moscow University. He was the Paul M Warburg Professor of Economics Emeritus at Harvard University. He died in 2006.
For young reader Amazon makes a good deal: today only, six of Lucy Cousins’s award-winning Maisy the Mouse picture books are just $1.99 each (up to 85% off). Featuring a sweet cast of characters and bright illustrations, these endearing books are popular around the world. (Available on Kindle Fire, Kindle Cloud Reader, Kindle for iPad, and Kindle for Android). Here the list of these books with direct links to them:
Preschool for Maisy means a day filled with friends and things to do, from the time she hangs her coat on a special peg to the time she says good-bye. There’s painting and snack time, stories and nap time (and a bathroom break in between). Soon everyone’s ready to haul out the instruments and make some noise, then head outside for a turn at the sandbox or slide. In a bright, full-size storybook full of familiar scenes, this child-friendly look at a day in the life of a preschooler is one that newcomers and seasoned pros alike will be happy to share.
When Maisy sets off to go camping in the country, it’s only natural that all her friends come along, too. But they soon find that pitching a tent is not an easy thing to do. Even if they do manage to keep the tent up, there’s the matter of fitting them all in — Maisy, Charley, Cyril, Tallulah, and finally, the huge elephant, Eddie. What a squeezy squish-squash! Good night, campers! Uh-oh-what’s that popping sound?
Maisy likes going to the library. She loves to read a book in a nice, quiet place. Today, Maisy wants to read a book about fish, but she can only find books about birds or tigers. So she explores some of the other things to do in the library, like using the computer, making copies, listening to music, or looking at fish in the aquarium. Aha! Finally Maisy finds a sparkly book all about fish. But just as she settles into a corner to read, along come Cyril, Tallulah, Eddie, and Ostrich — and they all have noisier activities on their minds!
How exciting! Maisy has put her sun hat, pajamas, toothbrush, and camera into a bag, and she’s off to the train station with Panda and Cyril. They’re headed for the seashore, but getting there is only half the fun. Coloring and snacks help pass the time on the ride to the beach, where Maisy can’t wait to swim, collect seashells, build sandcastles, and lots more. At nighttime it feels special to go to bed in a hotel—knowing that tomorrow another vacation day awaits!
5. Maisy, Charley, and the Wobbly Tooth
Maisy’s friend Charley has a wobbly tooth! He’s going to the dentist for the first time, and he’s a little nervous. Luckily, Maisy, Tallulah, Eddie, and Cyril are happy to accompany their toothy friend to the dentist’s office, where they make some fun discoveries: a twirly chair that goes up and down, a special cup to spit in, and a proper tooth-brushing demonstration. Charley gets an x-ray, a smiley button, and a book to take home, but what will happen with his wobbly tooth?
Broom, vroom, beep! Maisy and Charley are in the city visiting their friend Dotty, and there are many things to get used to – noisy traffic, enormous buildings, and sidewalks so crowded they have to walk very slowly (all the better for looking in store windows). Riding the escalator and elevator – and hanging on tight in the subway – are almost as much fun as exploring the giant toy store and eating pizza in a cafe. Even the playground is busy in the city!
Ghost Radar®: LEGACY is a game just for fun. It is free today only.
Ghost Radar attempts to detect paranormal activity. Working on the same principle as traditional paranormal detection equipment, the app employs your mobile device’s sensors to measure electromagnetic fields, sounds, and vibrations. But while traditional tools are easily fooled by bursts of normal electromagnetic energy, stray vibrations, and background sounds, Ghost Radar sets itself apart by analyzing its readings and indicating hits only for interesting patterns.
To improve your chances of finding paranormal signatures, the app enables you to easily adjust its sensitivity to control for noise. Collected information can be displayed either numerically or graphically, appearing similar to a radar display. Any interesting words it detects are repeated by a recorded voice and logged for future reference. Directions and an FAQ can be found in the Menu.
Please note that there is no guarantee of Ghost Radar’s accuracy since results cannot be verified scientifically. The app should be used for entertainment purposes only.
Product Features:
- Detect and track nearby paranormal activity
- Measure local electromagnetic energies, sounds, and vibrations
- Record and log phantom words
- Adjust sensitivity to account for background noise
- Toggle between numerical and graphical interface