Unlocking Success: Mastering Geopolitics, Money, and Business
229: Arbitrage Andy Fall Book List
With everything going on geopolitically, economically, and socially I thought it might be a good time to do a revised reading list for the Winter.
I got a lot of questions about where I source my information, opinions, and posts and outside Twitter and select sources online, books are generally where I initially read about a lot of the thing I cover in Arb Letter.
So today I am compiling a list of the most valuable books I have read or am reading that expand one’s ability to understand the shifting nature of global politics, conflicts, and international relations.
If you missed older book lists I put out you can find them below:
Today’s post includes books I am reading or have read covering the following areas:
Business/Finance/Markets
Geopolitics/History/Conflict History
This list is mainly to serve as a useful reference for a wide range of books that can genuinely improve your life — whether it’s educating you on financial markets and starting a business, learning more about the world we live in, or understanding and working better with people.
I feel like there’s certain types of book people — some who swear by them and read voraciously and others that pick a few, reference them regularly, and have short bursts of reading here and there ( the category I fall into — outside news/global developments stuff). I do think there’s downsides to reading all the time instead of reading and applying what you learn with action. More doing. Less thinking/ruminating.
With everything going on in the world right now there are several things I value above mainstream media propaganda and state sponsored narratives. We saw how useless this information was and how incorrect it was during the last several years.
Everything from vaccine efficacy to the origins of covid, to crime, to the true reasons we are in Ukraine, to China and Russia’s posturing overseas, to the current corruption in our government has been endlessly lied about. “Fact checks” and “fact checkers” have ensured millions of people remain in the dark about critical issues and historical context — so much so that it will undoubtedly change the entire course of our country.
By reading about history — your bullshit detector skyrockets. For example, when Nordstream blew up you might’ve drawn parallels to the infamous Gulf of Tonkin event that dragged the US into the Vietnam war (potentially under disingenuous circumstances). Fortunately Nordstream didn’t have that effect, but the current US positioning of naval strike groups and military units in the Mediterranean could.
Alternatively, had you been educated on the events leading up to the assassination of Robert F Kennedy, you’d know the CIA and DOD attempted to get Kennedy to bomb movie theaters in Miami in order to gain the public support necessary for a full fledged invasion and war against Soviet backed Cuba or in their words a “Communist Cuban terror campaign in the Miami area, in other Florida cities and even in Washington".
Had you known this — maybe you’d be more skeptical of Pearl Harbor or 9/11 or mass shootings that occur without motives or details released. Or maybe even all the escalating tactics being taken by the Neocons and uniparty in Washington that seem intent on getting us into the next world war.
Nobody is having a shred of foresight into the ramifications of all of the current sabre rattling and conflicts that are growing by the hour across the world.
Had you read the Bitcoin Standard years ago — perhaps you would be well positioned and semi-financially free to the point where you wouldn’t have to stress every day about your day job or your boss micromanaging your time on a Friday at 3pm.
Point being — reading, especially about history and geopolitics expands you’re knowledge on the way the world, governments, and societies truly function. It’s no coincidence in the modern age that we’ve seen so much suppression, shadow-banning, censorship, and narrative control by big tech and the government.
Your thoughts, feelings, and sentiment are the most powerful and valuable resource available in the age of information. By reading extensively on these topics, you can illuminate key issues, paradigms, and concepts for yourself without the traditional bias or ulterior motives that come through mainstream media and the politically charged coverage of world events we see today.
So many people today waste away in the endless sea of cheap dopamine that modern technology has provided at our fingertips. Social media, apps, games, the list goes on. But how many people can say they are actually getting smarter day to day and week to week?
How many people actually have historical precedent to reference when they are making a decision or formulating an opinion?
Today’s list contains some of the absolute most valuable books I have read (or am currently reading) that allow you to become better.
Better at understanding global conflict and relations.
Better at investing and making money.
Better at navigating your life to see success in all of your personal, social, and financial endeavors.
Let’s start with Geopolitics, History, and Conflict.
“Spend each day trying to be a little wiser than you were when you woke up. Day by day, and at the end of the day - if you live long enough - like most people, you will get out of life what you deserve.”
— Charlie Munger
Geopolitical/Historical Books
War of the Flea: The Classic Study of Guerrilla Warfare
War of The Flea is a great book to read if you want to understand the dynamics present in most guerilla wars and insurgencies globally.