Links - 03/16/2025
“We want to be a good partner ourselves because it attracts good partners. And that is a reputation that Berkshire deserves. Charlie and I do our part toward keeping that reputation intact, but that takes a lot of other people also behaving in a way that causes people to want to join them, causes people to want to trust them.” —Warren Buffett (2014)
“By the standards of the rest of the world, we over trust. And so far, our results have been way better because we carefully selected people because they were going to be over trusted. And it’s worked very well for us. And, I think a lot of places work better when they create a culture of deserved trust. And that’s been our system.” —Charlie Munger (2014)
The Rational Walk: Berkshire Hathaway’s 2025 Proxy Statement (LINK)
I was surprised to see that Berkshire now has an age limitation of 80 for most directors…. The language of the new policy clearly exempts Warren Buffett from the age limit, both because he currently serves as CEO and because he controls far more than 5% of the voting rights. The 5% provision will also allow Mr. Buffett’s children to serve on the board after their 80th birthdays which will occur in about a decade, assuming that by that time they will control the shares left by Warren Buffett to the family foundation.
HomeServices of America is not for sale, CEO says (LINK)
The Week the Smart Money Got Whipsawed by the Market (LINK)
Republicans in Congress weigh tax increase for top university endowments (LINK)
Big Retailers’ Hardball Tariff Playbook: Haggle, Diversify, Raise Prices (LINK)
Investing Politics: Globalization Backlash and Government Disruption! - by Aswath Damodaran (LINK)
Dead of Winter: Is another European energy crisis in the offing? (LINK)
Navigating Finances in Your 40s: Essential Financial Strategies for Mid-Life (LINK)
Richer, Wiser, Happier Podcast: How to Live by an Inner Scorecard w/ Pico Iyer (Video and Transcript, Podcast)
Business Breakdowns Podcast: Apollo: Connoisseurs of Complexity (LINK)
Grant’s Current Yield Podcast: REALLY GOOD BREAKS (LINK)
Bob Kierlin, Frugal Fastenal CEO Who Wore Secondhand Suits, Dies at 85 (LINK)
Related podcast: Founders Podcast: #360 Robert Kierlin: Founder of Fastenal
The Last Decision by the World’s Leading Thinker on Decisions - by Jason Zweig (LINK)
Shortly before Daniel Kahneman died last March, he emailed friends a message: He was choosing to end his own life in Switzerland. Some are still struggling with his choice.
“Few things help an individual more than to place responsibility upon him, and to let him know that you trust him.” —Booker T. Washington