Oddbean new post about | logout
â–² â–¼
mike | 1 months ago (raw) | export | reply | flag +1 
 I have some time, and frankly I'm a bit bored, so I thought I'd research the old world of investing.

Hands up if you know what a gilt is?

I've read this and I still don't 😂 

https://www.dmo.gov.uk/responsibilities/gilt-market/about-gilts/
â–² â–¼
Eye Reply. | 1 months ago (raw) | root | parent | reply | flag +1 
 Essentially, it's just a bond.
â–² â–¼
mike | 1 months ago (raw) | root | parent | reply | flag 
 You b***rd, now I've got to look up what a bond is 😂
â–² â–¼
WedgeSocial | 1 months ago (raw) | root | parent | reply | flag +1 
 Its what your parents pay to get you out of jail
â–² â–¼
Eye Reply. | 1 months ago (raw) | root | parent | reply | flag 
 Yes, or that😂😂.
â–² â–¼
mike | 1 months ago (raw) | root | parent | reply | flag 
 I'm learning it has something to do with covalent chemicals 😂
â–² â–¼
WedgeSocial | 1 months ago (raw) | root | parent | reply | flag 
 Depends if its like water where there are no free radicals its stable, if its week it might kill a cat in a box but who knows?
â–² â–¼
mike | 1 months ago (raw) | root | parent | reply | flag 
 But doesn't the government imprison all the free radicals?

Also, don't get me started about cats in boxes, I had a discussion with somebody on here about Donald Rumsfeld discussing the unknown known. 

I tried to explain that you knew he was dead and you didn't have to open his box.
â–² â–¼
WedgeSocial | 1 months ago (raw) | root | parent | reply | flag 
 I know how to some it up then:

If the black swan is bonding in the box, can we know if Rumsfeld accidentally shot it?
â–² â–¼
Eye Reply. | 1 months ago (raw) | root | parent | reply | flag 
 Oh behave😂😂. It's just a simple government bond, you buy the bond (Lend government, money) then in X years they pay you back with X interest.
â–² â–¼
mike | 1 months ago (raw) | root | parent | reply | flag 
 Or you have Premium bonds, which appear to be gambling using a computer called ERNIE invented in 1957
â–² â–¼
matt | 1 months ago (raw) | root | parent | reply | flag 
 I'd feel gilty if I bought that shit now.
â–² â–¼
Stu | 1 months ago (raw) | root | parent | reply | flag 
 It's the feeling you get when you lend money to the UK government for a set period of time.
â–² â–¼
mike | 1 months ago (raw) | root | parent | reply | flag 
 Of course 😩
â–² â–¼
Stu | 1 months ago (raw) | root | parent | reply | flag 
 We can remember the good old days before 1913, when the government had to attract people to buy bonds to fund expensive projects, like wars.

#WTFhappendin1913