John Hjorth

Thanks, @Xerxes, What you posted [and deleted] was actually awesome returns, @Xerxes!, Please stop nitpicking [perhaps minor] injections, if they don't really matter.

I'm with you on that, Mike [ @cubsfan ], The only thing [let's call it a 'tool'] I may have handy in this regard is my personal vote going forward in the Danish society, when I get asked about something. Time will tell when the time eventually is up for some decisions. In that respect better not to expect anything than to end up disappointed.

Mike [ @cubsfan ], The people of Crimea & Donbas aren't live stock, available for trade, or available as leverage. Please think about what the United States of America has in its backpack in that regard. [And now I'll stop with this argument.]

@Xerxes, Did a post of yours disappear in this topic not so long ago today?

I personally think this is an accurate description of the actual situation. Frustrating to think about. Then add to that, Vladimir Putin can't be relied on or trusted in any way or in any matter, this signature on something meaning sh!t - nothing : .

Thanks for pointing to this, for information, @UK, The media coverage of this has here been very poor, under all criticism. It's important. I have and nurse my personal biases on what the solution to this conclict should be, while the truth is, that the involved people in this conflict should decide for them selves where to belong for the future, to stop the hooman madness - the meaningless losses of so many lives of primarily young Ukrainian and Russian people.

Thanks for the elaboration, @Munger_Disciple, In the 2024Q2 Berkshire 10-Q, we have Berkshire minority interests as per June 30th 2024 of USD 6,274 M. At that date, there must be more than BHE. Off my head I can't come with what the rest by now must be related to.

@Munger_Disciple, Is this about BHE minority interests, or about Bershire Hathaway minority interests in total?

It's a good one, @UK!, It makes me recall the below from Danish history : Det Danske Kongelige Bibliotek [The Danish Royal Library] : The final liberation of of Bornholm. Also : Wikipedia : Landing at Bornholm. - - - o 0 o - - - My late Dad was originally a native of Bornholm [called a Bornholmer, caracterized by their very special and unmistakable dialect, as it has more similarity to Swedish langauge than Danish language]. In the years 2012 - 2016 I had long conversations with him, where I interviewed him about all in his life that I haven't been a part of or experienced. Several times I approached this event and his recollection of it, which he by every time simply refused to talk about and turned his face away from me, staying totally silent, while I was aware that he by then was living as young man at the middle of the island, not on the coast, and not in Rønne, nor Nexø. That was for sure food for thought.

TV2.dk [August 8th 2024] : Russia threatens Denmark with legal action. This is related to the North Stream sabotage, and about the obligations of the Danish State to compliance and transparency requirements in accordance with international conventions. 1997 - convention related to suppression of terror bombings, and 1999 - convention related to suppression of terror financing. I would say, that Maria Zakharova, Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, has a good, solid case here. Typical pragmatism from Danish Minister of Foreign Affairs Lars Løkke Rasmussen just to put a 'confidential' on the existing report already produced about this event, simply put, to burry it. I would not complain by any mean Denmark loosing such case, honestly. - - - o 0 o - - - Edit : TASS - Politics [March 20th 2024] : Nord Stream gas leak investigation - Russia to continue demanding transparent probe into Nord Stream blast — Foreign Ministry

NRK.no [The Norwegian Official TV Channel] : Troms and Finmark [September 28th 2024] : The government considers a high border fence against Russia. Subheader : 'Hardly anyone crosses the Norwegian-Russian border illegally, but now a high fence can still be erected. Must act as a deterrent', according to the Minister of Justice. - - - o 0 o - - - Norway share a 1,340 km long border with Russia, up north of the polar circle. I'm not this sure this is well spent oil money. To me, it fails completely to hit the disc. A token of the times, - a considered action that is somewhat useless, not based on rationality, but sentiment.

I personally think the way to assess this overall situation [lack of performance at certain subsidiaries for the time being], is - at least to some extent - overestimating the role of Mr. Buffett here and understimating the roles of Mr. Abel and Mr. Jain. Please note the development in their bonuses : Those gents are on the payroll for USD 20 M each with operational responsibilities. Personally I feel quite confident, the man at the top is asking persistently 'what can we do about it, and what are we doing about it?'. If investments are needed to fix issues they will be done, this has always been first priority capital allocation since Berkshire became 'big'. It will certainly be interesting to follow and study going forward.

Wikipedia : Occam's razor. I always appreciate the privilege of reading here on CoBF what's on your mind about something, that you are willing to share, as what I will take the freedom to call in your capacity of being a cosmopolitan, whose life has unfolded on both sides of the Atlantic Pond. The man is to me a relic, a very dangerous one, that is. Hinged to 'Russian greatness of the past' and all that kind of *BS* that has absolute nothing to do with the present, unhinged to the reality of the Russian present, and to the present anywhere else.

The whole thing now has turned out to be absolutely terrible and ugly - non-hooman, I [and Lulu, the cat] would say. Even OSINTdefender on X has lost his composure, just posting : 'Holy shit....' : Even learned something about the definition of a 'shit-ton' today :

An awesome discussion recently in this topic! - Lots of things mentioned as basis for self-studies, that are relevant for formation and shaping of opinions, or adjustments and changes to such! -Thank you!

Thank you, @formthirteen , But since when have we started to use essays of history majors scheduled to graduate in 2003?, and from where? Well, never mind, I'll read the whole thing any way, because your quotes above really punched hard on some of my personal biases.

Q : Now what has that to do with the Ukraine-Russia War? A : Nothing! Please post the right place!

Thank you, @Xerxes !

Naturally you do, @Xerxes. But from which brickwork actually is the question.

How is it, that I - some place in my mind - knew, that exactly this - a post something similar to the above quoted - would appear - in this topic - by exactly now by @Xerxes ? [And that is actually here meant as a compliment!] To me, the above is Pasghetti argumentation. Let me just say, that Pasghetty argumentation was defined many years ago, when my daugther found out, she coulden't always respond to my questions about my questions and proposals about what to eat for diner today with : 'Beef, Sauce Bearnaise and potatoes!'. So @Xerxes, where to start to read to get some kind of understanding of what's going on? - Everything seems intertwined historically, to a point that is beyond the point of no return, historically?

I personally think this is the right time to start such topic here in the 'General Discussion', because we - I mean those of us here on CoBF interested in the sector - constantly have things to bring up, that may belong to several different topics in the 'Investment Ideas' forum, that goes by 'one only' company ticker and name. I also sense, that the traction may now be sufficient here on CoBF for such a topic. An industry, that is just so friggin' counterintuitive in its concepts and core to a frugal and rational, old fashion value investor! So let the show begin! - - - o 0 o - - - I think it was a couple of days ago @UK posted about his idea of LVMH being a possible vehicle of riding on the recent China stimulus. Bloomberg - Economics [September 27th 2024] : China Cuts Key Rate, Frees Up Cash for Banks to Spur Growth, Bloomberg - Markets [September 27th 2024] : European Stocks Hit Record High on Rate-Cut Bets, China Stimulus. Bloomberg - Markets [September 27th 2024] : Luxury Stocks Set for Best Week in Years as China Fuels Revival.

Thank you, Mike [ @boilermaker75 ]

Today, I've spent some time on trying to educate myself on what what was going on in Ukraine in 2014. Simply because my own memory about it is pretty much 'blank' - just not just say totally empty. To the best of my recollection it was as close to a 'non-event' as it could be, here. [Here understood as : 'This is about an Ukrainian pensinsula, - is that important?'] Later all the political counter measures with economic sanctions started, based what was going on in UN, related to it. Alone reading : Wikipedia : Annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation one get the feeling of a period saturated with locally violent [strong] oppositely directed and conflicting currents in a chaotic situation by all means already in place. Now add to that a historic backdrop that has been exactly the same stuff. Absolute frustrating to read about. I'm in no way sure I would have sensed Putin true intentions, if I had followed how the situation evolved over time back then in 2014 , which I diden't.

Wikipedia : List of military aid to Ukraine during the Russo-Ukrainian War. Total commitment USD 380 B, of which USD 118 B in direct military aid. Add to that [by deducting it] the self-determined 'collateral' of USD 280 B in frozen [seized] Russian central bank assets and you get a total different overall picture. [X is what it is : X]. But yeah, freedom isen't always free, and should never be considered a given. Here in tiny Denmark, the military spending is also under a material ramp-up, but with no consequences in the form tax raises in the state budget because of healthy public finances, but I would accept even material tax raises with a shrug, if this was needed, as a citizen to contribute to make this situation come to an end.

Good questions, Sanjeev [ @Parsad ], I have spent a good deal of today to find some answers to some this, - to understand how the man is thinking and try to understand his world view. I recalled hearing a bite of interview some time ago with Samuel Rachlin, a Danish journalist and author of several books about Russia and Putin, here considerered an expert in Russian relations and affairs. Mr. Rachlin was born in Sibiria and lived there in the first nine years of his life, while his parents were deporteret thereto for 14 years, after which the family ended up in Denmark. I found it on a streaming service called 'TV2 Play' provided by the Danish TV channel TV2, the streaming service avaiable to me, all services from TV2 are included in the TV package in my household. Mr. Rachlin mentions specifically a speech held by Vladimir Putin at MSC [Munich Security Conference], in 2007, where he is totally candid towards the participants about his intentions : The objective being a new world order. Actually stunned by hearing this I started to seach for that speech, and found : Wikipedia : 2007 Munich speech of Vladimir Putin. Link to the speech : kremlin.ru : President of Russia : Speech and the Following Discussion at the Munich Conference on Security Policy [February 10th 2007, Munich]. - - - o 0 o - - - Speech also attached here. - - - o 0 o - - - Let me just say that I today personally have been hit by a very frustrating feeling of being naive - very naive - earlier - before February 24th 2022. Speech and the Following Discussion at the Munich Conference on Security Policy - President of Russia 20070210 - 20240926.pdf