Book notes: Weapons of Math Destruction by Cathy O’Neil is a “frightening look at the risks of the algorithms that regulate our lives..” (NYTimes)
Quote of the Day
"If you’re a purveyor of high-cost, high-tax, high-transaction, high-bullshit, wannabe macro-genius strategies, you might want to look into the things you have so much to say about before mocking others who are doing the best they can to save and invest rationally."
(Josh Brown)
Chart of the Day

Investors have not taken advantage of the returns to the First Trust Dorsey Wright Focus 5 ETF ($FV).
Markets
- The Treasury market is preparing for a rate hike. (capitalspectator.com)
- Financial stocks are doing better than you would think. (twitter.com)
- High yield bond market ownership is surprisingly concentrated. (businessinsider.com)
Strategy
- The prospects for a 60/40 portfolio are pretty bleak over the next decade. (bloomberg.com)
- How secondary markets work. (alephblog.com)
Offers
- The Dot is Alexa on a budget. Buy 5 Amazon Dots and get the 6th for free here: (amazon.com)
- Try Audible.com and get two free audiobooks including the new memoir by Bruce Springsteen, "Born to Run." (amazon.com)
- Amazon is taking on Spotify with Amazon Music Unlimited. Sign up for a trial here: (amazon.com)
- If you've read "Thinking Fast and Slow" you will likely want to read Michael Lewis' forthcoming "The Undoing Project: A Friendship That Changed Our Minds." (amazon.com)
REITs
- REITs are not a homogeneous sector. (wsj.com)
- Ugh. Blackstone ($BX) is getting into the non-traded REIT space. (wsj.com)
AT&T-Time Warner
- Why arbs are avoiding the AT&T ($T)-Time Warner ($TWX) deal. (wsj.com)
- The AT&T ($T)-Time Warner ($TWX) deal is a "Hail Mary pass." (nytimes.com)
Finance
- The IPO market is (finally) heating up. (wsj.com)
- Market surveillance is going all AI. (fortune.com)
Funds
Rechargeable batteries
- Rechargeable batteries don't suck any more. (kottke.org)
- Get some rechargeable batteries at Amazon now. (amazon.com)
Economy
- Chemical activity shows continued growth in October. (calculatedriskblog.com)
- The bear case for the economy: higher wages get swallowed up by higher health care and housing costs. (bloomberg.com)
- Why the US economy has permanent downshifted. (ftalphaville.ft.com)
- When did work become so important to our psyches? (bloomberg.com)
Earlier on Abnormal Returns
- ICYMI here is my post on rising sea levels and investing risk. (abnormalreturns.com)
- Personal finance links: focusing on "the number." (abnormalreturns.com)
- What you missed in our Tuesday linkfest. (abnormalreturns.com)