Due to a death in the family, I have not been able to post recently. We saw this coming but yet, we were not prepared for it. I supposed one is never ready to accept the death of a loved one. However there were many things which I should have said and done, but did not - because we did not want to be reminded.

So during the funeral wake I took the opportunity to catch up with many friends and family members and discussed many things. Strangely the one question which weighed a lot on my mind was whether money be one’s prime motivator. Clearly if it were not, I would not have left our dearly departed in search of a brighter future abroad. I am not beating myself up, but I do wonder whether a different society is possible where life is better than it is today. Sadly I think so, but we are not doing enough to make it happen.

We live in a world where less than 0.1% of the population control more than 99.9% of its wealth in a personal capacity, and a society which promotes wealth aggregation beyond everything else. Damage to things which cannot be quantified such as the environment, societies, and even the human mind get classed as ‘externalities’. And companies which destroy habitats  and places of beauty through over-development, pollution and extraction of natural resources are rewarded and such losses don’t appear on their balance sheet.

So where does that leave me? Although I have been permanently changed by the perspective of death at a personal level, I am reluctant to change my trading style and goals. After all I am a trader, not a politician. But where does one draw the line? Should we be supporting the companies and people which are damaging our country and society? If not, how would we measure them? These are the real BIG questions. Perhaps I may help find an answer one day..