John Hjorth

Right, Greg [ @Gregmal ], Good point. I'll try to look up in earlier 10-Ks and 10-Qs if there are even any changes in all that repetivitive stuff in these types of documents at that particular place, that - at least for my ovn personal part, - I tend to ignore and skip.

It's on p. 31 in the 10-Q, about mid page :

Great to see this first thing on a Monday morning!

Having some fun at about anything as dull as Berkshire is simply an art! -Awesome!

Awesome post, @gfp!, Still, generally, but certainly in a way Berkshire off topic : It's about not to rely on the kindness of strangers. If that is not the case, next and second best alternative is to have friends trusting you with pockets deeper than your own. What was going on at Fairfax at that time is 'before me' - I haven't experienced and met this excellent explanation before.

@73 Reds, Home bias. What do you know about that? In corporate Europe he is just dubbed 'The man with the red tie'. I have heard this term on AGMs and quarterly calls and its not meant as a compliment, more as an expression of a nuisance in the corner offices on floors that matter in running business. I think it's fair to say the perception of POTUS and his doings here in Europe is totally different than in USA, and he does not occupy the total narrative.

@mengan, I personally coulden't agree more with @73 Reds here. Thank you.

Exactly, and as also explained by @dwy000 and Sanjeev [ @Parsad ] above. Allegations made public of a public servant politically appointed of falsification state provided statistics is a serious matter, that noone, not even POTUS, should be allowed to just throw around, without providing the basis for the allegations. But that's just not POTUS' opus moderandi, and he obviously gives a damn about it.

Chris Bloomstrans take upon review of Berkshires 2025Q2 10-Q - a quite uneventful quarter - to me personally always worth a read, a short thread on X : If not particularly interested, his indignation over lack of credit from some reporter he helped walk through the 10-Q is a bit amusing to me personally and may perhaps stimulate your interest! - Perhaps I should suggest Jeff [ @DooDiligence ] to provide Chris Bloomstran with his hurt feelings report shared here on CofB&F earlier! - Perhaps it is about specifically asking for it [credit] as a condition for being available next time, in this game of selfpromotion, or simply to say 'no' next time.

Then why even publicly [on Truth Social] giving this reason in the first place, if it's not for the sake of 'The story', when Dr. Erika McEncarfer was potically appointed? Likely Dr. Erika McEcarfer was on a visit at an attorney on such stuff yesterday. [I personally certainly would, if it was me getting this treatment.] Supplementary post on Truth Social from POTUS, after he likely realized that he made a mistake here: https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/114955222046259464 - - - o 0 o - - - Edit :

@73 Reds, It's in the 2013 Shareholder Letter, p. 7 : That year float was USD 77 B. [I wonder if this should have been posted in the jokes topic.]

Quoting @dwy000 here, but respectlully also remembering other CofB&F members posts expressing similar line of thinking : Lars Christensen - The Market Monetarist [August 1st 2025] : Trump Fires BLS Chief: The Argentinisation of American Data

Anyway, a nice first post from you here, @mengan, Welcome to CofB&F! - - - o 0 o - - - Insurance float at USD 174 B at EOP 2025H1, at USD 173 B at EOP 2025Q1, so still growing a bit. - - - o 0 o - - - Berkshire continues to evolve gradually into looking like a huge pile of T-bills with a conglomerate on top as a letterpress.

What is it even that you gents has been going on with each other here in this topic?

@Cod Liver Oil, I'm un-opinionated - this is going on in the Financiére Agache / Agache sphere, where I'm invested lower in total group breton pulley structure, in CDI.PA and MC.PA. Quality beef is good, though.

@jfan, We should definitely have a separate topic in the Investment Ideas forum for Hermes International SA to discuss the company. It's so striking how the different companies in the top of this sector are evolving and doing recently.

@valueventures, Not yet.

This book [the first of the two anthologies] finally arrived with DHL today at home here in Denmark. What a pleasant surprise! Absolutely unused and mint condition, despite age. It still has that characteristic smell / odor of a book that came just directly from the press!

@Spekulatius, HaHa! - It just made my Friday!

YouTube : Guy Spier [October 18th 2024] : Building a Framework for Business Quality with Simon Kold - - - o 0 o - - - YouTube Description : Simon Kold is a Danish entrepreneur and investor who’s making waves in the financial world with his firm, Kold Investments. Before founding Kold Investments, Simon spent over a decade at Novo Holdings, a powerhouse investment firm managing around €150 billion in assets. His approach to investing is anything but ordinary. Simon runs a single-strategy, concentrated public equity firm that focuses on companies with network effects and scale advantages, a strategy that sets him apart from the crowd. He’s all about finding businesses that have the power to grow and dominate in their sectors. Full transcript available here: https://aqfd.docsend.com/view/akcftcz... Contents: (00:00:00) Stand-Up, Fall Down, Get Back Up: Lessons from Comedy and Life (00:13:47) From Stand-Up to Stocks: The Unlikely Path (00:30:30) Falsification, Not Verification: Rethinking Investment Strategies (00:53:30) Tattooed in Business: The Long-Term Rewards of Relentless Commitment (01:02:57) The Evolving Landscape of Business: Insights on Leadership and Network Effects (01:20:47) Demutualization: Unlocking Hidden Value in Financial Infrastructure (01:26:07) Network Effects, Brand Identity, and the Global Shifts Reshaping Investments (01:37:33) Investing in Relationships: Timing, Goodwill, and Business Success

Needless to say, I have been trying to control my propensity to uncontrolled laughter now for the last about 4 hours, and I can't hold it back any longer, I'm giving in. A tiny footnote kicked in here, though : [1] Here by tested in live production environment, - but please don't try it a home!

There exists - more or less - the concept of 'mutually and silently agreed exploitation' inside every marriage. It's about 'I diden't merry him [or her!] for the sake of all his [or her] money, -I married him [or her] to take all his [or her] money!'

The phenomen discussed above by Charlie [ @dealraker ], @73 Reds, @changegonnacome and others, and on which there so seem to be an overall concensus here, has here in Europe its separate name : Social Dumping [<- link to the Danish Wikipedia article, translated to English laguage, - I personally think it's better than the Wikipedia page in English language, so to say, 'directly']. Here in Denmark, there is basically no way to cheat on the weight with salaries. At employment, an employeé has to provide a Danish social security number for the employeé to the employer, which is based on an approved staying and working permit for a a person being a citizen of foreign country. A decent Danish salary and payroll system with respect for it self can provide an reconciliation of total wages, total withheld employeé taxes etc. on wages and salaries etc. on all employeés reconciled the the company general ledger, with yearly and monthly detailed reporting on person level to the IRS, to be distributed at the Danish IRS on each person employed. - - - o 0 o - - - I just checked : The oldest yearly reportings to the system at IRS I can access for my self, are for the year 2003. Monthly details appear to be stored for three years [, from the meny to judge, I personally haven't received a payslip in ten years now]. It works great here, but as with everything, it isen't perfect.

Thank you, @Eldad, Here is a link to it : REQ Capital [December 2023] : The Deep Dive intoShareholder Value Creation by Acquisition-Driven Compounders :