Billionaire hedgie Ron Baron owns a ton of Tesla, bought at about 25% below where it is now. He told CNBC this morning he’ll make 20 times on his money on the stock.
I think he’s right.
Arguments in favor of electric cars (like Tesla) are enormously persuasive, including:
+ Safety. Safest car ever built.
+ Cost of key raw materials — like batteries — plummeting in price.
+ Cost of service equals zero (except for tires). Tesla doesn’t have to build engines. They’re pricey, pain in the necks.
+ Significant upcoming improvements in production, including just in time manufacture. Much easier to make a Tesla than a Ford F150.
+ Ability to improve Tesla’s software by through the air updates. Think how Apple does it. Software is easier than machining parts.
+ Fun to drive. I drove a Tesla recently. It’s enormous fun. I think Susan and I should buy one.
Other stuff in our portfolio:
+ Amazon’s Echos are selling so well that Americans have stopped naming their babies Alexa.
How to make a cool $2 billion. Last time I published this, I figured $20 x 100 million Amazon Prime Subscribers. Bingo $200 million. WRONG. I got this email yesterday.
$20 x 100 million Prime customers equals $2 billion. That’s a lot of money to earn for a single key stroke!
+ Square will build you a web site for free — so you can sell your stuff. You only pay them when you sell something. Just like you do with the little square white Square credit card machines.
Saying NO.
The economy is speeding up. We’re all being inundated with deals. Most popular: marijuana, bitcoin, ICOs (Initial Coin Offerings), syndicated residential properties sporting IRRs over 20% per year.
Stay also away from offerings with a negative sales pitch, e.g. “We’ll stop you getting a virus.”
Just say NO. Then go play tennis.
Useful stuff
+ It’s always the cable or the plug. Wiggle the plug. Replace the cable. Half busted handset cords sound “scratchy.”
+ Two keys to a happy life: Don’t open any email attachments. Don’t go to any web site you got from an email.
+ The most important doc on your Windows machine is normal.dot. You need it for transferring preferences from one machine to another.
+ Uber is cheaper (and cleaner) than most taxis — any and everywhere.
+ Eat less. You’ll feel better. Skip main courses. Eat appetizers. They taste better, too.
+ Don’t answer “unknown” callers. I started blocking each one on my iPhone. It didn’t stop them. They’re too good at “spoofing” — sending me a caller ID that looks legitimate.
+ Every airline and Amtrak are now demand pricing. A trip two hours later (or earlier) might cost twice as much.
Cutting the cord
They’re pricing cable TV as if the patent was about to run out — i.e. higher and higher. Keys:
+ Call and “Say reduce my bill.” They will. You don’t have to have a reason.
+ How much TV do you actually watch? You can buy over-the-air antennas for as little as $13 (and no monthly fees). Click here.
+ Smart TVs (like my favorite Samsung) have Internet connections. Plug an Ethernet cable from your WiFi router in. Bingo, you can watch Amazon and Netflix — without Roku, Google Chromecast, or Apple TV.
+ You can buy a fine Roku for under $30. click here.
Favorite reader email
Top jokes from the U.K. circuit
+ “If you arrive fashionably late in Crocs, you’re just late.” — Joel Dommett
+ “My wife told me: “Sex is better on holiday.’ That wasn’t a nice postcard to receive.” — Joe Bor
+ “My therapist says I have a preoccupation with vengeance. We’ll see about that.” — Adam Hills
+ “I was in my car driving back from work. A police officer pulled me over and knocked on my window. I said, ‘Wait a minute, I’m on the phone.'” — Alan Carr
+ “Standing in the park, I was wondering why a frisbee looks larger the closer it gets…then it hit me” — Stewart Francis
+ “The easiest time to add insult to injury is when you’re signing somebody’s cast.” — Demetri Martin
+ “Crime in multi-storey car parks. That is wrong on so many different levels.” — Tim Vine
For more, click here.
Recent favorite New Yorker cartoons
Harry Newton. Here are two reasons Susan and I went to Maine for the weekend.
Zoe is 8 months. She has two teeth. Sophie is nearly 4. She lets me read her books.
