JOHNNY ZURI

original junkyard photos by Jim Klein

Automotive history of 1950s is commonly reduced to an orgy of fins, chrome, V8 engines and the inexorable influence of the longer, lower wider mantra. They were heady times for the Big Three, especially GM and Ford, as they rolled up ever bigger sales, market share and profits and steamrollered the independents. But one of those independents, Nash, started the decade with a brilliant and unique vision for a different sort of American car, the Rambler, as the way to survive.

Unlike the common image as boring cars for the thrifty and practical, Rambler started out very different, with Buick-territory prices targeting an affluent demographic—particularly women. Rambler in the early-mid ’50s was the closest thing there was to a chic, upscale continental-style American “import”; the BMW of its day. That’s how it survived the onslaught of three other new compacts in the first half of the ’50s and then just barely staved off extinction from a price war by Ford and GM. It then leveraged that image—along with more affordable prices—to fight back and take on the Big Three at the end of the decade. By 1960, Rambler had increased AMC’s market share by a whopping 270%.

How Rambler pulled that off is the biggest and most unlikely automotive story of the 1950s.

Defining “Compact”:

Before we take what’s going to be a deep dive on this subject, a brief note on the terminology of “compact”. Prior to 1962, when the Ford Fairlane introduced the concept and term “mid-sized”, which then defined compacts as a specific category, the term “compact’ was used to define any car that was relatively smaller than the traditional cars (not yet called “full sized”) from the Big Three and other independents. That leaves a bit of gray area, as the traditional big cars were mostly not all that big at the beginning of the decade, but grew dramatically throughout it.

For this exercise, compacts are defined as having a maximum 110″ wheelbase. That leaves at least two somewhat smaller cars out of the discussion, which I’ll address here briefly.

The 1949-1952 Plymouth P17, P21 and P22 series had a 111″ wheelbase, and was 185″ long. It was essentially a shortened (at the rear) version of the regular 118.5″ wb Plymouth, and only accounted for some 13% of total Plymouth sales, the majority of those being the wagon (more on that later). There was also a related Dodge Wayfairer with 115″ wb and only available in two-passenger business coupe and roadster body styles. They were a short-lived attempt at something a bit shorter, but fall outside of our criteria.

Some may suggest that the Studebaker Champion should be considered a compact, due to its relatively narrower body and lighter weight. But there’s two arguments against that: in the early ’50s, its body wasn’t all that narrow in relation to other full-size cars, and its length was always very much full size. At 197″, this ’51 Champ is the same length as a ’51 Chevy. And in the later ’50s, the same was the case: the ’55-’58 Champion was a couple of inches longer than a ’57 Chevy. Length creates the visual indication of size, and impacts maneuverability and such. And its wheelbase (112″-116.5″) was always solidly in full size territory. For what it’s worth, the smaller of Nash’s “full size” cars, the Statesman, had a 112″ (later 114″) wheelbase, but was a bit over 200″ long too.

Although the term “sub-compact” didn’t exist in their time, I’m going to use it for the Crosley (l) and the Metropolitan (r), as they’re clearly well below the size and passenger capacity of the compacts in this analysis. But they are a reflection of the interest in such a category, as they both sold in not-utterly insignificant numbers during their peak years, the Crosley attaining a 0.8% market share in 1948, thanks in good part to the post-war seller’s market.

Setting the Stage:

Before we jump into what actually transpired in the great compact war of the ’50s, we need to consider what almost happened, but didn’t. The Big Three all had various experimental small car projects going back to the 1930s, when their cars started to grow and the Depression created interest in smaller and cheaper cars. These efforts were stepped up during WW2, as there was a widespread belief among economists that the country would fall into a deep recession after the war ended, as had been the case after WW1.

This resulted in some very well developed compact cars, and in one case, a quite ambitious one, in the form of the 1947 Chevrolet Cadet (above). The brilliant engineer Earl MacPherson headed up a development team and was given wide latitude to explore the concept of what a modern American compact car could be. The result was a compact and light (2200 lbs) sedan that seated four comfortably, and some of the solutions to achieving that end were novel. It had a 133 ci (2.1L) ohv six, with the transmission under the front seat for maximum space efficiency, four wheel independent suspension via the first intended application of MacPherson’s famed struts, as well as other advanced features.

It never went into production because i deemed yo be too expensive to achieve the high internal profit goals at GM at the time (30%), and GM anticipated the very issue that occurred in 1960 with Ford’s Falcon, that the Cadet would cannibalize the full size cars, which would then hurt their profitability from reduced volumes. Why build two lines of cars when one will do, especially when one has the volume to price the lowest trim versions at unbeatable prices?

Similarly, Ford developed a compact car in during and after war, intended to go into production in 1949. But when the 1949 Ford was reduced in size from its original Mercury body, Ford also anticipated the 1960 Falcon scenario of cannibalization and pulled the plug, sending off the final version to France in the form of the Vedette. I’m not sure what engine the US version would have had, as the French version was also given the old V8-60 flathead.

Chrysler also had various experimental small car programs active at the time, as a fall-back in case either Ford or GM put theirs into production. If any one of the Big Three had put their small car into production, the other two would almost certainly have put theirs into production also, as a defensive measure. This acted as a brake, as none of them wanted to start an unwinnable compact war. If it had happened, the independents would almost certainly never have jumped into the compact segment, and the automotive landscape altered very significantly. Nash/AMC almost certainly would have died along with the other independents. The Big Three’s resistance to building compacts created an opening for the independents. It turned out to be a very compact opening.

As is invariably the case, the success story behind Rambler and the survival of Nash/AMC was written by an exceptional man. George Mason was not the typical automobile industry CEO. Highly intelligent, energetic, and visionary, Mason had a keen insight into human psychology behind consumer decisions.  A key protege of Walter Chrysler, Mason moved on to head up appliance maker Kelvinator, where he quadrupled profits in the depths of the Depression, and made the firm the second largest appliance maker after GM’s Frigidaire. His experience successfully selling appliances mainly to women would color many of his future decisions at Nash/Rambler.

Approached by aging founder Charles Nash to be his successor, Mason insisted he would only come if Kelvinator came along too. The subsequent merger in 1936 created Nash-Kelvinator, and by 1940 the firm was enjoying strong profits.

Mason was progressive in his thinking, and adopted new ideas and technology readily. During the war years, he and his team of engineers explored aerodynamics in a wind tunnel. The result was the aerodynamic 1949 Airflyte range of full-sized cars, the 112″ wb Statesman (top) and the 121″ wb Ambassador, commonly referred to as “bathtub” Nashes.

Mason (r) had always been intrigued by smaller cars, which would eventually lead to the two-passenger Metropolitan, the Nash-Healey sports car, and of course the Rambler.

What arrived late in the 1950 model year was utterly different than anyone might have expected an American compact to be, certainly so what GM, Ford, and Chrysler had in mind, and as we’ll see, what Kaiser, Hudson and Willys actually built. It was not just a smaller, cheaper sedan; it was a high-content, high-style small car with a body style utterly out of the ordinary: a fixed-profile convertible dubbed “convertible landau coupe” by Nash. The fixed roof rails allowed the unibody to be very rigid, and an electric motor opened and closed the top, not unlike a Fiat 500 and a few others.

click on all images for max size

The Rambler came fully equipped with standard features that even Cadillacs didn’t have: whitewall tires, full wheel covers, clock and even an AM radio. Price? $1808, almost 30% more than a basic Chevy full size sedan and $5 more than a Buick Special fastback 8 cylinder coupe. Now that was different and unprecedented.

The Rambler’s target demographic was all-too obvious: style-conscious women who could afford a stylish car.

Like Lois Lane, reporter for the Daily Planet. “Superman” was my tv screen introduction to the Nash Rambler, as I don’t ever remember seeing one of these convertible landaus in Iowa City after we arrived in 1960.

What would this demographic be buying in 1960? A Karman-Ghia or Corvair. And in 1965? Mustangs, of course. And in 1980? A VW Cabriolet or a BMW 320i. George Mason was way ahead of his time, and playing the long game. He rightfully anticipated that the Big Three would crush the independents’ big cars through their huge volume and pricing, so he was positioning Rambler in a niche of its own, along with some of the early imports. Establishing the right public perception was more important than volume; that could and would come later. It’s the same playbook used by almost every successful new premium-brand introduced in the US; mostly imports, of course.

The convertible landau was just the opening act.

Quite late in the 1950 MY, a cute little wagon appeared, being admired once again by only women. And yes, that body style was almost as radical as the convertible landau. It’s easy to forget, but before WW2, essentially nobody bought station wagons for personal use; they were expensive, built out of maintained-intensive wood, and were bought for commercial use or for ferrying guests at a rich man’s hunting lodge or country house.

Willys broke the mold with their all-steel 1946 wagon (with faux wood-grain paint). It was the first step in domesticating the station wagon, if a bit too Jeep-like for women. The Willys Wagon essentially saved the company after the war, as its Jeepster was a sales dud.

Plymouth went one step further with their 1949 all-steel Suburban. It was on the short 111″ wheelbase, and only 185″ long, and as such can be considered a near-compact. To put it in perspective, its dimension are almost identical to a modern Toyota RAV4; no wonder the Plymouth wagon was a hit with women and young families: compact, easy to drive, and plenty of room for kids and whatever needed hauling.

The Rambler wagon was something totally new again: the first lifestyle wagon ever; the Audi Avant of 1950. Like the convertible landau, it was equally-well equipped and priced at the same $1808 in 1950, but both had a substantial increase in price for 1951: $1993. America’s first premium compacts.

1951 brought the third addition to the Rambler line: a hardtop coupe. Still no sedan! Hardtop coupes were the hot new thing, having been pioneered by GM just two years earlier. Rambler beat both Ford and Chrysler as well as the other independents in the hardtop race.

It’s easy to dismiss these little Ramblers from a modern perspective as dumpy and silly little cars, but that would be missing what was the most important story of the early 1950s. They were bold and stylish at the time, and the choice to start with these three highly unusual body styles was  radical and unprecedented.

A key part of making the Rambler appealing to fashion-conscious women was that its interior fabrics and trim were designed by the renown Helene Rother, who had been GM’s first woman interior designer back in 1943. A woman’s touch can’t be easily faked.

Let’s take a closer look at the technical aspects of these initial Ramblers, as they largely formed the basis of every Rambler to come until 1963/1964. Nash was a pioneer in unitized body construction (unibody) having switched to that back in 1941. This alone was technically advanced and almost unique in the US at the time, along with Hudson. It created a strong, stiff structure, which contributed to the Rambler’s feeling of solidity and more worthy of a premium price, especially compared to the oft-willowy BOF cars from other manufacturers.

The Rambler’s front suspension was similar to that used on the large Nashes, with long coil springs seated above the upper control arms. Ford (and others) would adopt this with their 1960 falcon, and use it for two decades. Although the trunnions that were necessary in that pre-ball joint era later got a bit of a bad rep, it was also a very advanced design at the time, offering a very good ride as well as decent handling.

The following description of this system (and related issues and repairs) is from this site, which describes more detail and rebuilding:.

This is a double wishbone and trunnion system, with the road spring directly over the steering knuckle, in line with the virtual kingpin. This design has wonderful control over understeer in turns, and a anti-roll bar is unneeded (and not available). The spring carries load directly, not multiplied by moment (distance from fulcrum) so the spring is softer and lighter. Spring-over-knuckle also eliminates decreasing roll resistance in turns, a characteristic of most American suspensions through the 1980’s, often compensated for by anti-roll bars. The downside of the spring-over-knuckle system is that it is very tall — this really limited AMC’s styling choices until the adoption of the new system in 1970.

The upper control arm trunnion system fails more often than not. The head of the trunnion pivot bolt is supposed to “jam” on the leading arm, and a nut and lock washer jams the bolt to the arm on the other (at pink Y). This does not survive ordinary use patterns.

The bolt is supposed to rigidly connect the arm halves, and pivot within the casting. What usually happens is that given the large contact area the bolt freezes in the casting. This forces the bolt to rotate in each arm half, stripping the threading in the thin, stamped arms. No longer a stiff A-arm, all of the components shift around in operation, ruining the arms.

The rear suspension was a typical Hotchkiss set-up, with a live axle suspended on semi-elliptic leaf springs. This would be used on the 100″ wb Ramblers until their end in 1964, and on the 1954-1955 108″ wb Ramblers before being replaced by a coil spring and torque tube drive design in 1956.

The Rambler’s flathead six displaced 172.6 ci, and was rated at 82 (gross) hp. This small Nash six dates back to the semi-compact Nash 600 from 1941. Weighing 2430 lbs, the Rambler had a favorable power-to-weight ratio for the times, and was deemed to be relatively nimble. A test by the British Magazine Motor yielded a 0-60 time of 21 seconds, which was quite typical of the times, and a top speed of 81 mph. Fuel economy was 25 mpg. Overdrive was optional, and Ramblers quickly established a reputation for good mileage; 30 mpg was possible with a light foot.  Handling, steering and braking were all deemed to be good to very good.

As is quite obvious, the engine is a rather wedged in between the massive inner fender bulges, due to the narrow track of the front wheels (52.25″), in order to provide adequate movement for them inside the covered outer fenders. The turning circle was 37 feet, not superb but not bad considering the design of the skirted fenders.

The Rambler had a stylishly simple instrument panel—not unlike the recent Fiat 500—which reinforced its image. The column shifter was nicely enclosed unlike most at the time, and the single round combo instrument was easy to read. It had a decidedly European air, as did much of the car. Nash’s vastly superior integrated heating and ventilation system only enhanced the positive qualities further.

The Rambler was billed as a five passenger car; three in the front and two in the back, where the wheel wells intruded into the seat cushion. Its exterior width was fairly ample at 73.5″, thanks to its bathtub styling. Interior width was of course not quite up to the bigger cars, but at 56.2″ inches at the front (hip and shoulder room) it was just a hair less than the 1960 Falcon would have.

We’ll get to some detailed sales analysis with charts a later, but sales for an abbreviated 1950 totaled 11k and 69k in 1951. But here’s the most significant number: 50% of those were for the wagon. That is utterly unprecedented; as a point of comparison, the popular Plymouth all-steel wagon represented all of 6% of 1950 Plymouth sales and at Chevrolet, wagons were 2% of the total. Although those percentages would not quite hold up, Rambler would go on to consistently have much higher share of its sales be wagons than any other manufacturer.

Despite the addition of two and four door sedans in 1955, that year Rambler wagons’ share of sales increased further, to 55%. And in 1959, it was still at 44%.

As a point of comparison, wagons made up 9% of Chevrolet’s sales in 1955, and 17% in 1959. It was slightly higher at 19% for Ford in 1959. Rambler had staked a claim to compact wagons, and held it. It became a key aspect of their image, which continued to resonate with a key demographic; buyers who eschewed excessive size and poor space utilization for the inherent advantages of a wagon. They really were the Volvo wagon of its time.

Page 2: The compact competition:

∗Some of the best new family haulers you need to test-drive∗

There’s no stopping the snowball that is the SUV onslaught in the USA, and with so many new utility vehicles in the market, it stands to reason that manufacturers will try to outdo each other. Some offerings, like the new Genesis GV80 read here, are proof that carmakers are upping their game in terms of what they offer to prospective buyers. The benefits of the sport utility segment are not just limited to increased space in the cabin and cargo hold, due to larger body sizes, but many offer true practicality and versatility in terms of performance on, and off, the tarmac. And, with the family-hauling nature of these cars, the vast number of standard and available safety features is a boon, too. Carmakers continue to try and top the charts with what these beasts offer.

It’s not just homegrown brands that are pouring their energy into better designs, however, with the Genesis SUVs as only one example in a wide range of contemporary offerings that have recently flooded the market. SUVs from German brands like BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Audi remain popular as luxury choices for their ability to merge comfort and practicality, but what about those with more reasonable price tags? With that in mind, here is a list of excellent SUVs that you simply must test drive if you’re shopping for a new family vehicle.

1. Genesis GV80

All-new for 2021, this luxury mid-size cruiser has yet to hit US shores, but has been launched on home turf in South Korea. Embodying the “athletic elegance” design philosophy from Genesis, this is the manufacturer throwing down the gauntlet in the luxury segment and making a very clear stand that it, too, can compete with the likes of the premium marques we are accustomed to seeing in this category. The beautiful exterior comes courtesty of the input of Luc Donckerwolke, Chief Design Officer at Hyundai, who has credits such as the Lamborghini Murcielago and Bentley Flying Spur to his name.

More than just a pretty face, though, the GV80 is equally lovely inside, with space for two or three rows of seating, depending on your needs. The cabin is also jam-packed with the latest technology, including a 14.5-inch split-screen infotainment display and a plethora of active and passive safety systems.

2. Ford Bronco

Brought back to life after a 25-year absence, the Bronco can be had in either two-door or four-door bodystyle and doubles as a daily driver and an off-roading adventurer. Built to rival the Jeep Wrangler, the Bronco looks as tough as it is, with an advanced 4×4 system available with dual-range gearing and numerous terrain modes. It has around 8.4 inches of ground clearance, give or take a smidge depending on body type, although if you equip the optional 35” tires, this increases to a height of 11.5/11.6 inches. It can also wade through up to 33.5 inches of water. This is ideal for those who take the road less traveled, much more often than not, and as retro-cool as the exterior is, the interior is comfortable and contemporary, too.

3. Volvo XC40 Recharge

The first ever fully electric vehicle from the Swedes, the XC40 Recharge is based on the gas-fed compact crossover of the same name, but boasts a platform designed for an electric motor and floor-mounted battery pack. While it looks much the same as it’s combustion-driven sibling, the Recharge has a unique grille and some special wheel designs to set it apart, too. The carmaker claims there’s a total system outpt of 402 horsepower from the electric powertrain, and features standard all-wheel-drive. What sets this SUV apart is not just it’s striking good looks, but the ability of the car to manage EPA gas mileage figures of 85/72/79 MPGe while getting to 60 mpg in the mid-four-second range. Add to that a full consignment of safety features, and you’ve got a winning recipe – not that we’d expect anything less from Volvo.

4. RAV4 Prime

Toyota’s RAV4 nameplate has long been the best-selling crossover from the brand, and after the original variant underwent a full redesign in 2018 and the popularity of the hybrid version became clearer, the manufacturer has decided to add a plug-in derivative to the family. It’s powertrain setup is efficient, with over 40 miles of pure EV range, making it much quieter from in the cabin, and is still thrillingly quick off the line for the segment, with a 302-horspower kick to get to sixty in 5.7 seconds. It’s boldly styled and packed with creature comforts like dual-zone climate control, heated front seats, dynamic radar cruise control, lane trace and lane departure warning, and wireless charging on the top-spec trim. Although it’s a pricey option from the lineup with a starting price just under $40k, it is an option that should definitely be on your short list.

5. Kia Seltos

The Korean brand has made waves in the industry for its superb contributions of late, with its most recent range being truly contemporary, efficient, and high quality. The Seltos is brand new for this year and brings an affordable starting price, a top-notch interior, ample space, and a number of safety elements as standard to the party. Although in review, some have found the base engine to be a little dull and the DCT to be somewhat iffy, the Seltos presents a brilliant value-for-money package and remains one of the most highly recommended new sports utility vehicles in the category. For only around $22k, the base model comes fitted with keyless entry, an eight-inch touchscreen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, and a six-speaker sound system. Upper trims get heated seats and premium audio, to name but a few.

The post 5 New SUVs You Didn’t Know You Needed appeared first on Atlanta Celebrity News.

The Frenchman talks a bold game about the fourth largest car firm and has the credentials from his time at PSA to back it up

Nathan Drake wrote: ↑Sun Jan 24, 2021 10:56 pm
As for PC parts, that seems a little strange. What would GameStop be selling that isn’t immediately known online at other major PC part retailers? Is this a big enough enthusiast market to really matter? Most PC enthusiasts are pretty well knowledgeable in terms of making their computers and can find better prices online. I don’t see a big market for this.

Fry’s Electronics is one of the last significant brick & mortar retail chains to offer competitive pricing on PC parts for custom builds. They’re fairly regional and also appear to be in decline. Last I heard, they were closing stores and failing to restock shelves, although they were being fairly quiet about whether it was pandemic-related or permanent. Other major retailers like Best Buy more or less gave up on that business many years ago, although they still offer a few parts, but not really with the intention of competing with online suppliers. The more common approach seems to be partnering with custom PC builders. I’ve seen people walking out of Best Buys and Walmarts with custom orders from companies like iBuyPower.

The problem here when it comes to Gamestop is they have A LOT of ill will in the PC gaming community that some of the more optimistic investors seem to be glossing over. I vaguely remember it being around the time when the 1st Crysis came out in 2007 that the gaming media world seemed to have declared PC gaming all but dead. At the time, the trend was away from PC exclusives towards cross-platform console-first games with poorly done PC ports. Steam wasn’t nearly as established or popular back then (it actually had immensely negative early reviews, in part because people were still not sure about the paradigm shift to digital), and stores like Gamestop and Walmart were steadily decreasing their PC offerings in favor of console games because that’s where the money was. I remember Crysis being a notable exception, as it made a big splash on PC amidst a sea of bad ports. Furthermore, companies like Gamestop were really doubling down on the exclusive preorder bonus marketing method, which often meant that PC versions of games simply lacked content that was available on console versions from various retailers. It wasn’t until Steam took in a bunch more publishers and opened the floodgates to indie games, plus the rise of Twitch streaming, that PC gaming really made a big comeback, but most physical retailers, especially Gamestop, missed the boat. When Gamestop is mentioned, PC gamers are usually the quickest and loudest to ask, «Wait, that company still exists? Why haven’t they gone out of business?» I suspect most Gamestop bulls forget this important history because they’re either drooling over the growth of PC gaming as investors, or they’re looking at it from the perspective of console gamers who were never really negatively impacted by those decisions.

Gamestop can continue to do okay in tangentially related businesses like selling collectibles and retro games, although even those are dangerous businesses. Retro games are hampered by the fact that they can mostly be pirated and emulated, so there’s a limited pool of buyers willing to pay for old, potentially damaged copies sold at a high markup. They also have the same issue as PC gaming where the company built a lot of ill will from retro gamers for their ripoff trade values and gobbling up all the mom-and-pop retail competition in the 90s. I just don’t see Gamestop sitting well with a lot of retro gamers, and there is already competition dedicated to that space anyway. Collectibles face cheap knockoff competition, although I don’t know how big of an issue that is for limited-run high-dollar items.

I also don’t see how Gamestop fits in the new world. I already went over how they face an uphill battle when it comes to bringing PC gamers back. On PC, there’s just so much digital competition. Steam is obviously king, but you also have Humble Bundle, Epic, Big Fish, G2A, GOG, GMG, Uplay, EA Origin, other publisher-direct stores like Square Enix, the F2P portals, etc. Why in the world would anybody favor Gamestop over all these established players? And when it comes to consoles, you have the online retailers selling physical copies, such as Amazon, Best Buy, Walmart, etc., the 1st party digital stores from Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo, and now you even have some of the digital code retailers offering console codes as well, such as PS4 codes via GMG (I have no idea how the business deal between them and Sony works, but I can’t imagine there’s much profit for GMG). Are Sony and Nintendo really likely to partner with Gamestop to sell digital codes online? I know they have the physical cards with the digital codes that they sell in stores, but that relies on Gamestop, you know, actually having stores to provide any kind of value, which is losing them money.

I think Gamestop is hopeless as far as returning to its former profitable self. I do think it can come back as a much smaller, leaner digital version of itself, but the question is how small and how much will it be worth? Also, somebody mentioned that Gamestop could revive itself by providing extremely good customer service. Yeah, good luck with that. The company became the antithesis of customer service in the hopes of sucking every last penny of profit out of customers, and when that strategy began to fail, it doubled down. Anybody who has walked into a Gamestop in the past 5 years is emotionally scared from the constant up-selling of garbage. Gamestop could create the best online service ever and it would still have to spend millions just to convince people to give it a chance again. Expecting Gamestop to come back on good customer service would be like expecting Enron to come back on financial transparency in mid-2001. And the 300% growth in online sales is a bit tricky because a lot of that is due to bulk pre-owned deals they offered around the holidays, which were heavily discounted and relied on having substantial used stock, something which they’ve yet to prove will work with an online-first model. They’re talking about mailing in trade-ins, but that’s still an unproven model, and it may well be that without customers going into the store and seeing new games to trade in towards, they may just opt to buy digitally from home in the first place. And even if it works, physical is still a declining market, and one which console makers can pretty much eliminate any time they want.

The only thing that gives me any faith is that it seems the new wave of investors are legitimately interested in rebuilding the company, and I suspect they will go through as many iterations as it takes to find what works. I would not be surprised if they ended up becoming a Microsoft-only retailer that specialized in unique digital game bundles, something like a Humble Bundle for Xbox.

MIKE TYSON welcomed Frank Bruno into his home with open arms, instead of clenched fists, to celebrate their reunion 31 years on from their undisputed heavyweight world title battle.

In February 1989, with Iron Mike perhaps at his terrifying peak after recently demolishing an aging but all-time great Larry Holmes and Michael Spinks, Bruno went to Las Vegas for his second crack at gold.

Mike Tyson and Frank Bruno boxed twice with the American former monster winning both world title clashes but remain friends

The build-up was ferocious, the fight was even delayed after Tyson battered former opponent Mitch Green in a street brawl, slashing a gash into his eye and breaking his own hand.

The Sky Original documentary that brought the two fighting icons back together captures how vastly different each Adonis was depicted leading up to the clash.

On the mouth-watering press tour, Tyson said he could not imagine Bruno even being a prize fighter because he was such a “sweet and docile guy”.

While Tyson was billed as ‘an animal’ a warped human being who took immense pleasure from inflicting pain.

The childhood bullying victim lisped little more than threats now he was a fearsome man whose fanbase seemed to grow in tandem with his rap sheet.

Bruno, in stark contrast, was the 6ft 3in powerhouse still struggling to convince hardcore fight fans – who doubted his courage and chin could match his bodybuilder muscles – that he was the real deal.

The Englishman’s adoring family, including daughter Rachel, did not want their hero to leave them for the fight and she had good reason to be cautious.

The gentle-giant Londoner was battered into the canvas from Tyson’s first trademark attack but bravely beat the count.

FANCY A PUNT? TODAY’S BEST ODDS BOOSTS FROM THE UK’S LEADING BOOKIES

And he even wobbed the 22-year-old Brooklyn monster, for the first time in his career, with a peach of a left hook.

At the end of the third, Tyson clumped Bruno after the bell but in typical fashion the Brit was a gentleman and did not retaliate or make a fuss.

Bruno was brutalised in the hard-to-watch fifth but refused to return to the canvas. But the proud nation was relieved when referee Richard Steele dived in to save him from any more punishment.

Tyson, though, did not revel in his one-sided victory. Even with his new and toxic entourage clambering for his attention, the Baddest Man on the Planet walked back across the ring to embrace Bruno in a hug that marked the start of the sort of friendship only boxing can create.

Seven years later, with enough water under the bridge to drench the desert, the pair crossed swords again.

Bruno had finally been crowned WBC champion six months earlier, at the fourth time of asking, by beating Oliver McCall in a tear-soaked night at Wembley. 

Tyson had lost four prime years of his career to a rape conviction and saw a ripe and vulnerable 34-year-old Bruno as easy prey for the green and gold belt.

Back in Sin City, Bruno’s left eyelid was slashed open in the opening round and his jaw and brain reminded brutally of Tyson’s ferocity.

News Group Newspapers LtdIn 1989 a prime Mike Tyson butchered Bruno in their first clash in Las Vegas[/caption] News Group Newspapers LtdGentle-giant Bruno took a savage beating from Tyson in their first 1989 meeting[/caption] ReutersThe Brooklyn bad boy brutalised the brave Brit in their 1996 rematch for the WBC title[/caption]

The housewives’ favourite was rescued by ref Miles Lane in the third and, having suffered eye a torn retina, he retired with his name etched into the history books forever.

Both men went on to suffer mental health breakdowns and addictions and seemed destined to live out the remainder of their lives unhappily.

But in 2021 they are both in superb shape, so much so that 54-year-old Tyson just boxed Roy Jones Jr in a pay-per-view smash hit.

It was in December when Sky managed to get Bruno on a Covid-compliant trip to the US to break bread, instead of bones, with his old foe.

At the time, the national treasure could not hide his boyish excitement, telling his Facebook friends: “I am delighted to say after almost 9 months waiting we have filmed the Sky film special of Mike Tyson & myself.

“I went to the USA last week and yes we were all tested a number of times!”

The documentary airs in February, SunSport has an exclusive look at the trailer today, and it looks like a heartwarming tale of two brutally broken men rebuilding themselves and finally finding peace again.

When the pair first reunite, Bruno’s unmistakable giggle cracks the ice and Tyson smashes it by whispering “I’m here for you, baby, I’m here for you.”

Bruno v Tyson is available on Sky Documentaries and NOW TV from Friday 26th February at 21:00. The exclusive trailer was made available by Sky as part of announcing a record line-up of new and exclusive original TV shows and films for 2021 and 2022.

ReutersThe Londonder was almost smashed through the ropes in the third round when Iron Mike secured the win.[/caption] Tyson and Bruno have both battled addiction and mental health problems and are winning the battle

Ahh, a deck. The perfect place to hold family reunions in the summertime, have casual drinks with friends anytime, spend time with your sweetheart underneath the stars, or chill with a nice thick book and glass of lemonade (or cabernet) on quiet evenings.

Whether you’ve just had a deck installed or plan to DIY soon, there’s at least one thing that all woodworking projects have in common: you’re going to need a sander sooner or later.

Anytime we talk about power tools, things have the potential to get murky. But in this article, I’ll do my best to provide you with all of the information you need to make an informed sander purchase. But first…

How to Build a Deck

Believe it or not, spring is on the way and summer is right on its heels. That means fresh, breezy mornings, delightful afternoons filled with family fun, and long evenings that draw on till eight or nine p.m. in the company of friends and loved ones. What better way to savor the coming seasons and entertain guests than with a brand-new deck?

While this is a time-consuming task and requires some attention to detail (and a whole lot of patience), it’s absolutely worth every second and penny spent. To keep things simple for the sake of this article, here’s a quick breakdown of how to make your very own deck. Feel free to click on the provided links to learn more about how each step works.

Clear the Porch

This step is pretty self-explanatory. You’ll need to clear away everything that is currently on or near your porch.

Remove Concrete

The next step is to get all of the concrete removed. This might be the most strenuous step, but Homedit has a few tips to make the process go smoother for you. Using only a pry bar, a sledgehammer, and a high lift jack (and maybe a second set of hands) you can have the concrete removed by day’s end.

Make the Concrete-Mounted Frame

Depending on your preferences and where exactly your deck will be built, you can make a concrete-mounted frame. Essentially, this means that you’ll secure the frame right onto the concrete of your existing steps and along the side of your house. This can be done using a rotary hammer drill and just a few other tools. See Homedit’s dedicated project page to learn the specifics!

Prepare the Footings

Of course, not all of your intended deck area is going to be next to concrete. To finish making the frame, you should prepare footings. Homedit suggests a simple method: dig an appropriately sized hole, insert a concrete form, place the lumber piece inside, pour in concrete mix, and let it set. Do this for each footing you’ll need.

Build the Deck Frame

Using the concrete-mounted frame and footings, you’ll begin building the deck frame. This is a complex process with many steps, but the gist is that you’ll end up with pieces of lumber extending from one end of the framing to the other. These lumber pieces will be fastened in key areas to shorter lumber pieces, which will be positioned vertically to hold the actual floor.

Install the Deck Joists

The deck joists will run perpendicular to the deck flooring and will be the main component supporting it. The core concept here is that these perpendicular boards will be secured to the frame using brackets and nails. You can find all of the details you need in our dedicated article. Good news: This is the final step before you install the flooring!

Install the Flooring

The glorious moment has arrived: it is time to start installing the flooring. But before you get too excited, pace yourself. You’ll need to ensure that your framing is done correctly and take a few measurements before getting started. To learn the best method for how to lay your deck flooring, see our detailed article. (Alternatively, you can read up on how to install the flooring if your deck will be curved.)

Install the Deck Trim

All you need to install the deck trim are a few basic tools and some key measurements. Adding the trim will enhance the overall appearance of your deck, giving it a clean and “finished” look.

Stain and Seal the Deck

You’ve hung in there all this time, huh? Then you more than deserve the honor of putting the final stain and sealant on your deck! A stain goes a long way toward adding color and character to your deck, working together with the sealant to protect it from UV rays and other environmental elements.

Pros and Cons of Sanding the Deck

A common concern many people have before staining their deck is whether it needs to be sanded or not. The consensus is that you should absolutely do so! That said, you should be aware of the pros and cons associated with deck sanding so you can prepare for the project in advance.

Pros

• Prevents wood splinters from forming
• Sands off any damaged or discolored wood
• Gets rid of the old stain color
• Provides better results than the chemical stripping alternative

Cons

• Involves a lot of prep work and cleanup
• Can cause gouges in wood if using a rough grit
• Can negatively affect absorption of the new stain
• Is a time-consuming task

Keep in mind that you can avoid or offset most of the cons by using the proper tools and techniques!

How to Choose a Deck Sander

Now that we’ve (hopefully) convinced you to purchase a dedicated deck sander, you’re probably wondering how to choose the best one for your project. Because deck sanders come in many types and with varying features, there is an overwhelming selection on the market today—but not to fear! We’ve compiled a practical list of characteristics to consider before buying.

Type

One of the first things you’ll want to determine is which type of sander you’ll need. To help you make this critical decision, here is a little information on the three sander types we’ve mentioned.

Belt Sander

Belt sanders are perhaps the most useful tool for deck sanding. They work in a linear fashion to provide a clean finish and work wonders on rough or coarse wood surfaces—like your deck! In addition, belt sanders are known for their versatility. This means that even after your deck sanding project is over, you’ll be able to find other uses for your new belt sander in the future.

Orbital Sander

As opposed to belt sanders, orbital sanders are ideal for finish work rather than rough work. The orbital sander features a square foot, which makes it perfect for sanding in otherwise hard-to-reach corners or edges. In addition, the orbital sander is known to remove less of the surface material a belt sander would.

Random Orbit Sander

Random orbit sanders are known for their round shape and the random oscillating motion they use to remove wood. This type of sander has a lot to offer: more material removal than orbit sanders but less than belt sanders, less impact on the wood grain, and a more user-friendly design. However, they tend to be more expensive than their orbital cousins, and they are not ideal for sanding corners or edges.

Features

Depending on the type (or types) of deck sander you decide to purchase, there are a few features you should look for.

Dust Collection

Sanding, by nature, produces a lot of dust. One way you can avoid a huge sawdust mess is to purchase a sander that has a dust collection unit built in. The unit will collect a good amount of the dust while sanding so there’s less of the stuff floating around in the air (which is a health hazard, by the way!).

Variable Speed

Sanding projects are not one-speed-fits-all, so investing in a sander that has multiple speed options is a great idea—better still if it’s easy to switch between speeds while sanding!

Power Options

In a similar vein, you’re going to want different levels of power depending on what you’re sanding. Spending a little extra cash on a sander with different power options will save you a lot of frustration later.

Tracking Window

A tracking window allows you to see the area of the wood you’re sanding, while you’re sanding it. This is convenient for so many reasons, chiefly in that you can worry less about over-sanding.

Comfort

Survey says that sanding…kinda sucks. But you can make your deck sanding experience just a tiny bit better by opting for a sander that’s comfortable to use. Make sure the product you purchase is relatively light in weight, features a user-friendly design, and has other comfortable amenities such as an ergonomic grip. Emotionally, you might be ready to kick the bucket by the time you’re done sanding—but your hands and muscles will feel great.

Noise Level

If you’re the kind of person who goes months without vacuuming because you hate turning it on, pay attention here! Unfortunately, many sanders (and power tools in general) lean toward the excessively loud end of the spectrum. Make sure you check the noise level on any sander you’re thinking of purchasing, and opt for one with the least amount of volume. Most belt sanders can reach volumes of 103dB(A), while orbital and random orbit sanders tend to hang around 85dB(A).

Budget

As with any major purchase, you need to consider your budget before setting out to buy your new sander. In many cases, the price of a sander correlates to the item’s quality as well as how reputable the brand is. For a belt sander, you can expect a median price of around $150 with higher-end models costing more and lower-end models costing less. A quality orbital sander will cost you upwards of $50, while a random orbit sander can range anywhere from $35 to $300.

Check Out These Awesome Deck Sanders

Alrighty. You now have all the information you need to build a deck, know which types of sanders are best for sanding it down, and are aware of what factors to consider before making a purchase. That means you’re ready to dive in and see our top picks!

1. BLACK DECKER Mouse Detail Sander

It should come as no surprise that BLACK+DECKER has created such a user-friendly sander. Its Mouse Detail Sander, featuring 1.2 amps of power and 1400 orbits per minute, is perfect for small sanding projects or detail work. Its compact and lightweight design further adds to its ability to provide a nice finish, as it’s comfortable to use and can reach those hard-to-get-to corners with ease.

Throw in its ergonomic handle (which provides three possible gripping positions), its dust collection unit, and its included sanding pads and finger attachment, and you have one heck of a sander. Best of all, it comes with a two-year limited warranty and won’t break the bank!

2. SKIL 7510-01 Sandcat 6 Amp 3-Inch x 18-Inch Belt Sander with Pressure Control

Anyone who has sanded before knows how easy it is to press down a little too hard and end up with a worse problem than you started with. The folks at SKIL know this too, which is why they’ve created a practical belt sander that employs a pressure control system.

This system gives an alert any time you start applying excess pressure, so you’ll never again have to worry about damaging the wood while sanding. Its 6 amps of power make it quite the powerhouse for all your belt sanding needs, and its auto track belt and dust collection unit will make each and every sanding experience so much easier for you. And all of this convenience is at such an affordable price for the quality…what are you waiting for?

3. DEWALT Random Orbit Sander

As per the norm, DEWALT has crafted yet another tool keeping the end user firmly in mind. Everything about this random orbit sander ensures comfort and ease of use, from its short stature for extra user control to its easy-to-lock dust bag. This bad boy boasts a moderate 3 amps of power and an OPM range of 8000 to 10,000, lending it more than enough power to get that detail work just right.

If you have a large project up ahead or plan on using this product often, you’ll certainly appreciate the efforts taken to minimize vibration and keep the user—you—feeling up to the task with reduced fatigue. Oh, and it comes with convenient carry bag. What more could you ask for?

4. Makita 9403 4″ X 24″ Belt Sander

If you’ve done any research before coming to this article, you’ve probably seen the name Makita come up quite a few times. That’s because, quite frankly, it is the best of the best in so many categories! Considering its 11 amps, 4-inch belt, and crazy-fast removal rate, you may be surprised to find out that it’s one of the quietest belt sanders on the market at 84 decibels (about the same noise level as a diesel truck, but still…).

Its motor is kept safe from dust buildup via its labyrinth design, it has a cleverly placed grip on the front for comfort and control, and it comes with a one-year warranty. I mean, come on. If you’re a professional in any woodworking field, you have to get this.

5. TACKLIFE 5-Inch Random Orbit Sander

Affordable, attractive, compact, comfortable…need I go on? This 5-Inch Random Orbit Sander from TACKLIFE does more than get the job done: it gets it done well, while providing you with all of the comfort and maneuverability you could need. It runs at 3 amps with an OPM of 13,000 and it features six different speed settings so you can choose the best option for your current project.

When you add in its effective dust collection unit, ergonomic rubberized grip, and vibration reduction, you have yourself a sander you’ll just love to use! Finally, you’ll appreciate that it comes with twelve sandpaper pieces (half of them 80-grit and half 180-grit), which is one less thing you’ll have to buy. The reviews speak for themselves—see why others are raving about this random orbit sander and try it out for yourself!

Frequently Asked Questions

If you’ve never sanded a deck before or are still new to the DIY game, you probably have some questions. To give you a hand, we’ve answered a few of the most frequently asked questions for you!

What type of sander do you use to sand a deck?

As mentioned above, there are three main types of sanders used for deck sanding: belt sanders, orbital sanders, and random orbit sanders. Of these, professionals tend to lean toward belt sanders as they offer plenty of power and make for a more efficient sanding process. Some people prefer to use a palm sander as well for the finish work.

Can you use a floor sander on a deck?

Floor sanders are not an ideal option for sanding decks. Though it may be tempting to use a floor sander—especially if you happen to have one on hand already—it’s much better to spend the money on a more suitable sander option. This is because floor sanders are specifically designed for use on flat surfaces; because the boards of your deck are curved, it will render the floor sander ineffective.

How can I sand my deck fast?

Unfortunately, there is no fast way to sand your deck. The typical deck-sanding job takes upwards of eight hours. The best way to speed up your sanding time is to use the proper tools and techniques.

Conclusion

We hope our article helped you get your DIY affairs in order and gave you a better idea of which sander is best for your upcoming project. Any of the products we listed will be a fantastic addition to your tool collection, but you can always keep looking if you haven’t found your perfect match yet. Remember: Taking the time and effort to find the best deck sander for you will pay off big in the end. Good luck!

The post Ensure Your Deck is Smooth with the Right Sander appeared first on Home Decorating Trends – Homedit.

vroshii:

1967 computer

I started a retro futuristic save and wanted one of these in my game lol. Happy New Year! :D

Download – Dropbox

‎Energy policy

Fashion Designer for Girls 1.1

Device: iOS Universal
Category: Games
Price: $1.99, Version: 1.0 -> 1.1 (iTunes)

Description:

*****Fashion Designer for Girls*****

It’s time to design your own model just for walking down on the red carpet!
It is sure to be a game your kids will love.

** Features **
– Different hair style to choose
– Lots of Party Dresses
– Huge variety of party items, including earrings, necklaces, bags and bracelets.
– 5 models of different colors to choose
– Dress her up in the gown of your dreams
– Pick out a handbag
– Lots of beautiful scenery with different background music
– Drag your model to anywhere
– Select one partner with your model
– share your dress up girls easily over Facebook or E-mail with one click

This is full version game,No Adds & In-App purchase.this game is optimized all Devices.

What’s New

Minor bug fixes.

New devices support added.

Fashion Designer for Girls

Strange Snake Puzzle 3.0

Device: iOS Universal
Category: Games
Price: Free, Version: 1.0 -> 3.0 (iTunes)

Description:

Remember that addictive SNAKE game the whole world used to play? It’s BACK! Check it out! Looks different but it’s the good old fun all over again!

Feeling nostalgic for retro games? Download Strange Snake, one of the best classic games, and dive into the memories of the classic snake game.

When was the last time you played the classic snake game? Wanna give it a try again? This fun game takes you back to the time when cool games were simple, yet addictive.

Snake only TURNs RIGHT. While there are not only 99 mysterious mazes but also many kinds of monsters and obstacles blocking your way, how can he pass all these hard-to-die levels of Snake Game? Fortunately, a fabulous elixir can make him TURN LEFT. During your journey, you should take the elixirs on time to guide the Snake to escape the maze. Each maze has many problems for you to solve and there are many ways to solve them.

Therefore, Snake Game is not purely an action game, it is a strategy game. Players have to utilize every single item, from a teleport hole to an elixir. Find the best way and Escape the area or complete the Level.

Everything must be taken and used on time. Especially, you can change the skin of the Snake to make it gorgeous.

How long can you last before your tail becomes your dinner? Take the challenge! Test all the snake games within the game and join our hall of fame by being one of the longest-lasting players. Ready? Go for it!

Get ready for the new exciting gameplay of Strange Snake in the exciting world of fun. There are 9 Different Snakes you can play with, each one is of its own type. There are 3 chapters containing more than 70 levels. You would surely love its gameplay.

Classic games have never been more fun! Download Strange Snake Game and add this simple game to the list of the cool games you have recently played. Retro games are in so do not hesitate to join the craze!

What’s New

⊙ Added Annoying Fly during Gameplay
⊙ Haptice feedback of Device on collision

Strange Snake Puzzle

Kenya Moore of The Real Housewives of Atlanta is known for throwing shade. The reality TV personality has infamously feuded with Nene Leakes over the years and never misses a moment to take a jab at her former co-star. During an appearance on Watch What Happens Live, Moore made sure to call out Leakes and fans took to social media to react to the dig.

Kenya Moore and Nene Leakes | Prince Williams/Wireimage / Annette Brown/Bravo/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty Images

What did Kenya Moore say about Nene Leakes?

Things didn’t end well between Moore and Leakes after season 12. Since then, Leakes has left RHOA but the animosity between the two stars has seemingly lived on. When Moore made an appearance on WWHL, she took the opportunity to allude to the “tastiest peach” in Atlanta.

Cohen put up Shereé Whitfield to play a game called “The Shady Bone Collector.” Whitfield was tasked with asking shady questions to Moore.

“Name a Real Housewife from any franchise who went too far in efforts to, ‘fix that face,’” Whitfield asked.

Moore laughed at the question as she even knew it was completely shady. Although she hesitated to answer in the beginning, she did hint at the name of the housewife.

“Oh, God! Uhhhh… Ohhhh…,” Moore said as she thought about who to shade. “I mean, most of them have been improvements but I probably would say one that’s not on a franchise right now. So, that’s all I’ll say.”

Cohen pressed Moore to say which housewife she was referring to and the former beauty queen said, “The one that originally said, ‘Fix your face.’”

RHOA fans know that the moment Moore was talking about was a feud Whitfield and Leakes had during a reunion. The shade toward Leakes could not be more evident.

RELATED: ‘RHOA’: Andy Cohen ‘Ready To Send’ Shereé Whitfield Contract To Return

Nene Leakes calls for Bravo boycott

After Moore alluded to Leakes, Cohen quickly changed the subject and took to break. The relationship between Leakes and Cohen deteriorated drastically after the former quit the franchise she helped make a mainstay. Leakes has called out Bravo and even suggested a boycott of the network on Twitter.

“Y’all ready to start this boycott yet? What has happened behind the scenes is WRONG,” Leakes tweeted in December 2020. “While others were being promoted, BLACK WOMEN who created shows, created genres, built franchise, and built networks were being DEMOTED…TURN OFF YOUR TV’S.”

RELATED: ‘RHOA’: Sherri Shepherd Claps Back at Kenya Moore After Shade on ‘WWHL’

Leakes also linked to a petition that demands justice as they feel there has been an unfair treatment toward their Black talent.

“We have witnessed her sacrifice her physical health, have her mental health jeopardized, and her spiritual well-being tested,” the petition reads. “It is also evident that your disciplinary actions are far more stringent when it comes to your black talent. This is not acceptable and needs to be more balanced.”

The Fashion Police alum has also alluded to taking her former employer to court for the treatment she has received.

“If you know someone that works in the U.S. Department of Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in California, New York or Georgia, please have them contact me,” the tweet read.

Leakes has been focused on opening a new lounge in Atlanta and other projects for TV.

Read the original article from The Cheat Sheet

It’s true that Canada has one of the highest quality of life ratings around the world and has an international reputation for being prosperous, modern, and good to its citizens. But we seldom hear the truth about how the socialist programs in Canada have many drawbacks that need discussing to get the whole picture. Canada Is a Liberal Democracy It’s important to start this discussion with the fact that Canada is not in fact a socialist country. Canada is a liberal democracy. Equality is the top virtue among most Canadian people, which is one of the main reasons why we’re thought of as being socialist. Even though we have a free-market that certainly provides much of the prosperity we enjoy, there’s a great degree of skepticism that the free-market alone can provide equitable results for everyone. There’s a generalized belief in the public that the government should enforce and secure equal outcomes where the market fails to do so. Other ways that Canada is not socialist is that we enjoy a thriving private and public sector, property ownership is common, and we operate under a capitalist economic model. The means of production don’t belong to the people, nor do we have regulations that prohibit corporate monopolies or market domination from huge conglomerates. Ask any Canadian about their cell phone or internet provider to hear much lamenting about the lack of choice, over-priced plans, and abysmal customer service.  There’s a great degree of skepticism that the free-market alone can provide equitable results for everyone. Resources, wealth, land, and power are not equally distributed among the population in Canada. We don’t even have free post-secondary education like Switzerland or the Netherlands. So it would be a completely false statement to say that Canada is a socialist country. We simply aren’t. We do have certain social programs that are lifted from the socialist model though, and this is the main cause for the popular misconception that we are a functioning socialist nation.  The Problems with Canada’s Health Care System Arguably, Canada is successful and prosperous because we aren’t socialist, but you won’t hear about that in the mainstream media. The socialist economic policies we do have, such as our extensive welfare or health care system, are the aspects of Canadian society that have some of the most extensive and complex problems.  The health care system in Canada provides all people with access to health care and a large discount on all treatments and prescription medicine. Sounds great, right? Wrong. The problems with our health care system begin with the absolutely unbelievably long waiting times to see doctors, schedule life-saving surgeries, and receive that precious high standard of health care in a timely and efficient fashion.  We have an aging population in Canada. This means that in many cities we simply have more people seeking medical attention than we have health care providers. Most doctors are absolutely overwhelmed with the number of people in need, are overworked, and as a result, are often not functioning at top performance. We don’t have the benefit of seeing the same doctor every time we need health care. Canada is notorious for malpractice — something not often spoken about when outsiders dream of a health care system like ours. Tens of thousands of people die and are harmed by malpractice every year in Canada. One in 13 people who see a Canadian doctor will be the victim of malpractice, and when malpractice happens, victims often lose their lawsuits because doctors are awarded millions of dollars in legal defense by the goliath state-funded health care system.  We don’t have the benefit of seeing the same doctor every time we need health care either; we’re subject to seeing whoever happens to be in the clinic that day. We can’t choose to pay for speedy, top of the line health care services if we wish, and finding and locking down a “family doctor” is near impossible in some locations, further degrading the quality of care we receive.  Our health care system also faces the challenges brought forth by chain migration and family reunification laws which allow for elderly immigrants to enter Canada, having never paid taxes or paid into the health care system, but reap the benefits of free health care services just like everyone else. While turning the sick and needy away purely from an economic standpoint raises certain ethical considerations, it’s clear to see how the ballooning amount of need is not proportional to the availability of care on offer here in Canada. As a result, everyone suffers. It’s important to state here that I’m not saying there aren’t good, caring doctors in Canada, there are. I’m also not saying that it’s bad that we don’t have to go into debt or remortgage our homes to pay for expensive medical treatments. Paying nothing when you have a baby or break a leg is a huge advantage for low-income citizens. What I am saying is that the system we have overburdens our doctors, limits timely access, and in some cases reduces availability to a high standard of health care for patients. In other words, you get what you pay for.   Sick People Are Faced with an Excessive Wait or with Seeking Care out of the Country Some anecdotal evidence to this fact, of which almost any Canadian can offer: My grandfather contracted cancer of the kidney’s five years ago, and he was waitlisted for six months to receive surgery, in which time he might have easily died. These six months were excruciating for our entire family to endure, and when the time came for the scheduled surgery, my grandfather went to the hospital, but they had no record of his surgery being scheduled at all.  We will never know exactly why this happened, but I will highlight that sheer incompetence does play a role in our substandard health care too. The surgery had to be rescheduled, and the wait time increased by another three months. Thankfully, my grandfather pulled through and survived this absurdly long wait time for the removal of his kidney. Others with more aggressive forms of cancer and illness are not so lucky.  My family and I are grateful that he was cured of his cancer without it bankrupting our family, which it might have if we were American.  When my grandfather contracted kidney cancer, he had to wait nine months for surgery. Popular social media influencer Lauren Chen’s father was diagnosed with cancer, and due to the lack of responsiveness from Canadian health care providers, she was forced to use her large platform to save her father’s life. She was met with hypocritical criticism from socialists in Canada for doing so. She asked for help from any and all doctors worldwide and had to resort to crowdfunding to pay for the surgery. Luckily, due to Lauren’s widespread reach online, she was able to get her father’s surgery done in the United States rapidly. Other Canadians without the benefit of a large social media platform are not so fortunate.  Statistics Canada reports that over 200,000 people traveled abroad for medical reasons in 2018, and the death toll of people who died waiting for surgery is upwards of 3,000. Remember these numbers the next time someone begins to speak longingly about Canadian health care. The Welfare System Has Caused Social Degeneration  The extensive and bloated welfare system is another issue that’s a result of well-meaning but ultimately naïve socialist efforts. Welfare is supposed to be a social safety net that citizens pay into in the event that, due to no fault of their own, they lose the ability to work. This safety net provides people the benefit of not having to go without food or shelter when they’re in between jobs or healing from injury. In theory, it’s a very good idea that provides humane living conditions for the most vulnerable and impoverished people in society.  Welfare is supposed to be a social safety net that citizens pay into in case they lose the ability to work.  Unfortunately, though, welfare has become a way of life for some people as it is too tempting to put one’s feet up and rake in the dole rather than work for a living. As the welfare state has expanded, with it has grown fatherlessness and single motherhood, drug addiction, criminality, and other signs of social degeneration. This is not unique to Canada; it seems that as the challenges of survival are removed from people’s lives, with it comes new issues of social deterioration.  Loss of Freedom of Speech in Canada   Culturally, we face other hurdles where the reigning socialist worldview on people and society is spreading swiftly throughout the public and private education system. The radical, progressive, and revolutionary movements champion ideas like “trans women are women” and “gender is a social construct.” They executed it into the law here in Canada with little actual resistance. Laws have been made which force people to use the preferred pronouns of trans people or else be fired, have their lives ruined, or be hauled in front of a human rights tribunal and be fined heftily.  A human rights tribunal is essentially a kangaroo court that’s not restricted by the burden of providing hard evidence. All that’s needed to justify the infringement on an individual’s right to freedom of speech is the accusation that a person has offended a minority by deviating from the acceptable standards of the current progressive paradigm.  We’re forced by law to not offend, so we give the impression of friendliness when what we really are is afraid. In an attempt to protect those deemed most vulnerable to discrimination, we’re forced to accept increasingly restrictive limitations on what we’re allowed to say and, by proxy, what we’re allowed to think. We Canadians have the reputation of being the world’s friendly neighbor and a group of well-mannered, enlightened people, when in reality the truth is more like we’re forced by law to not offend each other, and so we give the impression of friendliness when what we really are is afraid.  Bill C-16 Bill C-16 was passed in Canada back in 2016 as a measure expanding the human rights legislation prohibiting discrimination against people on the basis of their gender or gender identity. This piece of legislation doesn’t simply prohibit actual hate speech against sexual minority groups like trans people, which likely few would oppose, but it compels speech. It compels us to play along with their version of reality. Regardless of if we disagree with their opinions on neutral political or religious grounds, we have no choice but to play along. The compelling of speech is a part of the very scary ideological aspect of socialism in Canada that many find intolerable. One could make the argument that these efforts are not meant to be tyrannical, but emerge from the left’s desire to be compassionate to those of us who are weak. The unfortunate reality though is that it has the effect of tyranny in that we all are forced to accept (at least publicly or at our place of work) that it’s only okay to be progressive. To be conservative or right-leaning is to be seen as literally evil.  The conditions of progressivism are enforced socially among the public as well, adult hall monitors delight in tattling on their fellow citizens for infractions of various forms of “hate speech.” Since Bill C-16, this is also enforced legally. Jordan Peterson rose to prominence for resisting this very bill and is famously quoted saying, “In order to be able to think, you have to risk being offensive.”  In order to be able to think, you have to risk being offensive. In Canada, you’re highly discouraged from taking the risk of being offensive, and thus in Canada, there isn’t much thinking outside the framework of what the government, media, and academic establishment deem acceptable. This is the truth of socialism in Canada. We’re all forced to be equally obedient, subservient, and mediocre. Punishing Christians for Speaking about Their Beliefs It’s against the Christian belief system to accept that a man can ever literally become a woman via medical or surgical interventions and vice versa. This is a fundamental aspect of the Christian worldview. There has been an attack on religious freedom in Canada in that expressing these beliefs publicly has become synonymous with committing a hate crime.  Bill Whatcott is a socially conservative Christian man from British Columbia who’s story rose to international prominence when he was hauled in front of a human rights tribunal to atone for distributing flyers around his neighborhood regarding a trans politician named Morgane Oger.  Morgane Oger is a B.C based politician who is well known for pushing gender theory and sex ed programs into the elementary public school system. Bill Whatcott obviously opposed her actions on the basis of his Christian belief system, not on the basis of hate as was reported by the media. By simply circulating a flyer around his neighborhood alerting people to who Oger was and why he believed people should be wary of Oger’s intentions, Bill was slapped with a human rights hate speech violation and a fine totaling 55,000 Canadian dollars.  Bill Whatcott was slandered by every mainstream news publication as a bigot who was motivated purely by hate, which further exposes the problem with socialist groupthink. If you dare step out of line and voice your opinion opposing ideological beliefs held by the socialists in this country, then you’re ostracized, slandered, fined, and made into an example for others.  Socialists Can’t Accept Hierarchies of Competence Socialists would rather live in a pretend world where they can day-dream of their utopia indefinitely. In this fantasy, all people are equally abled and equally rewarded for their efforts. They wander about in a daze of egotistical self-aggrandizement, believing themselves to be a modern-day Che Guevara until their rage and hatred are revealed when confronted with anyone who’s at the top of a social hierarchy. To them, these hierarchies are evidence of the tyranny of power politics, not competence.  They will never accept that highly intelligent and skilled people are able to rise in social hierarchies more easily than others because they worked hard and deserve to be there. To them, inequality is always undeserved and always unfair; they believe the game is rigged by such forces as white supremacy and the patriarchy. Thus, ironically, creating a culture of discrimination against men and the white population. To socialists, inequality is always undeserved and always unfair.  Rather than attacking the government, or corporate and international oligarchs that truly hoard power, wealth, and influence, socialists in Canada would rather attack one another over trivial disagreements in politics and worldview, and maybe that’s the point. Inherent in socialism is the desire to be taken care of by the powerful nanny state. To have the harsh conditions of existence, survival, and personal limitations leveled so that life is easier. What this actually creates is a drone population of people terrified to think for themselves or to question the narrative being fed to them, who are hopped up on their own sense of personal virtuousness without ever actually having to do the work of being a person of virtue.  Closing Thoughts Canada is by no means a “bad country” to live in, but busting the myth of Canadian socialism has been a long time coming. If we’re a good country, it’s in spite of the ways in which Canada has adopted Socialism not because of it. Beware the unchecked power and tyranny behind the idealistic socialist dream. It’s just that, a dream and nothing more.  It’s a dream that takes away the opportunity for excellence in the misguided pursuit of vanquishing all forms of failure. A dream that favors spared feelings over unveiling truth. We must be free to succeed and free to fail if we want to be truly human. If we want people to thrive in society, truth must be the chief virtue, not equity.

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Debuting during the golden age of home computing, Turrican shook up the action gaming genre with a string of explosively popular releases that, whilst somewhat different in and of themselves, are all typified by their dynamic combat, ruthless difficulty, awesome soundtracks, and eye for exploration.

Initially developed for the Commodore 64 in the late 1980s by German coder Manfred Trenz, Turrican would make a name for itself thanks to Factor 5’s stunning Amiga port, bagging a bevy of media plaudits and awards while simultaneously blowing players away with its huge host of technical achievements. 1991 sequel Turrican II: The Final Fight would only serve to further establish the brand as one of the premier shooters, thanks in no small part to composer Chris Huelsbeck’s legitimately industry-changing score.

And now, some 30 years since release, ININ Games has compiled Turrican and Turrican II – as well two of its console-based pseudo-sequels – to create Turrican Flashback. This new compendium will offer fans and newcomers the opportunity to experience this iconic franchise, with every weapon, every power-up, every boss, every secret, and every joystick-snapping death exploding onto modern platforms.

To paraphrase a classic: Welcome Back to Turrican.

Turrican Flashback (PS4 [reviewed], Nintendo Switch)
Developer: Factor 5, Ratalaika Games
Publisher: ININ Games
Released: January 29, 2021
MSRP: $29.99

It all began with Turrican (1990). At launch considered one of the finest action titles ever made, Turrican tasks a cyber-soldier with clearing out the intergalactic colony of Alterra, laid waste by a rampant A.I. known as MORGUL. Turrican is an epic sci-fi adventure that sees our hero battling wave upon wave of Alterrian bots, attaining massive firepower from hidden weapon caches and utilizing a variety of special abilities (such as a Metroid-style «morph ball») to pick their way through each of the game’s large, non-linear stages.

Rather than run ‘n’ gun in typical left-to-right fashion ala Contra, Turrican takes a more open-ended approach, rewarding players who take the time to traverse its verticality en route to memorable boss encounters. It was this exploratory nature that stood Turrican out from its contemporaries – widely welcomed by the «home drawn map» crowd. It can’t be denied that some three decades later Turrican’s control is a tad unwieldy – particularly its unfriendly jump mechanics – but its audio/visual elements remain as cool today as they ever were, while the team’s underlying ambition remains readily apparent.

Turrican II: The Final Fight (1991) is perhaps the most widely experienced title in the entire series. With good cause. Factor 5’s tale of revenge against intergalactic terror «The Machine» trims the fat from the original Turrican, keeping the same chaotic and challenging gameplay while tweaking mechanics, streamlining weapon systems, and being a little more creative with its enemy design. These changes helped to create an instant classic that spawned myriad imitators. Today, Turrican II still feels epic, a truly influential action game that should be experienced by anybody with interest in our humble hobby.

Leading Turrican Flashback’s two console entries is Sega Mega Drive release Mega Turrican/Turrican 3 (1993). This anomaly sees the series redesigned for console players, perhaps more attuned to arcade experiences. Of all sequels, Mega Turrican is the most «accessible», with a linear approach to level design and more typical platform-shooter action. Mega Turrican’s highlight lies in its smart use of the Mega Drive’s capabilities – packing each stage with special effects rarely seen on Sega’s 16-bit platform. Though Mega Turrican takes the biggest divergence from the series’ norm, it boasts a gameplay style more comfortable to modern players, increasing the pace to keep the action fast ‘n’ furious.

The final entry is SNES release Super Turrican (1993) which sees the franchise look for a sweet spot between the unrestricted scope of the Amiga classics and the more linear arcade action of the Sega Mega Drive effort. This hybrid style works very well for the most part, with a return to the earlier titles’ sense of exploration, while keeping the bombastic action of Mega Turrican. The latter’s grappling hook mechanic has now been abandoned in favor of an equally blah ice beam, but the great visuals, superb soundtrack and knuckle-cracking challenge remain.

With each title being a digital kick in the cajones, Turrican Flashback evens the odds a little with the addition of new save states for each title. Also available is a «Rewind» function, allowing players to take a few steps backwards at the mere tap of a button to correct misjudged jumps and misplaced shots. The original cheat codes for each title are also in full effect, offering infinite health, ammo and other helping hands, though usage of any of the above precludes you from those all-important Trophies. These are neat quality-of-life additions, even if removing Turrican’s challenge essentially negates a series trademark.

For nostalgia fiends, Turrican Flashback also includes a selection of visual filters, allowing players to adjust the screen ratio, scan-line quality, picture sharpness, edge curvature, and RGB to truly replicate that early ’90s «bedroom TV» feel. A sound adjuster allows players to mix Turrican’s famous, multi-channel scores into single channels, in order to find the sweet spot of audio ecstasy – the only term befitting Huelsbeck’s incredible OSTs.

Unfortunately, however, that’s your lot. While Turrican Flashback feels like a solid ground layer for a true celebratory release, ININ Games’ compendium is almost entirely bare-bones, featuring four games under a very naked presentation style for a steep $30. While Turrican Flashback is no doubt a well-meant retrospective of a golden franchise, (there’s no debate the games themselves play very well), the compilation as a whole has the feel of a slightly polished but expensive emulator.

There are no new modes on offer – no time-attack, boss rush, or challenges. There are no remixed soundtracks or stages. There’s no sprite viewer, developer interviews, or any form of multimedia gallery whatsoever. The most baffling omission: there’s no external music player. Add the frustration that missing titles – such as the «Director’s Cuts» and 1995 SNES sequel Super Turrican 2 – are being held in reserve for a possible second compilation, and it’s ultimately a disappointment ININ Games hasn’t gone all-out to ensure Turrican Flashback is the tribute the brand deserves.

As dynamic and challenging today as they ever were, Turrican Flashback offers an authentic compilation of games from this classic series, without a single dud among them. Unfortunately, wafer-thin presentation, missing titles, and a complete lack of side-features (in addition to a subjectively high price-tag) let down what could of – should of – been an encapsulating tribute to one of history’s most influential and beloved shooter franchises.

_{[This review is based on a retail build of the game provided by the publisher.]}

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In this episode of The Acquirers Podcast Tobias chats with Jim Carroll. He’s the @vixologist on Twitter and Senior Vice President and Portfolio Manager at Toroso Advisors. During the interview Jim provided some great insights into:

• The Volatility Complex
• The Vol Tsunami Of 2020
• From Value Investor To Vixologist
• Volmageddon or The Volpocalypse
• The Difficulty With Managing Institutional Vol ETFs
• VIX Futures As A Form Of Insurance
• Most Of The Time You Want To Be Short Volatility
• Life Before Factors
• Dual Momentum Strategy
• Sometimes The Best Exposure Is No Exposure

You can find out more about Tobias’ podcast here – The Acquirers Podcast. You can also listen to the podcast on your favorite podcast platforms here:

 Apple Podcasts

 Breaker

 PodBean

 Overcast

 Youtube

 Pocket Casts

 RadioPublic

 Anchor

 Spotify

 Stitcher

 Google Podcasts

Full Transcript

Tobias: Hi, I’m Tobias Carlisle. This is The Acquirer’s Podcast. My special guest today is Jim Carroll. He’s the @vixologist on Twitter. He’s Senior Vice President and Portfolio Manager at Toroso. We’re going to talk all things, VIX, what’s happening in the market, what’s going to happen in the market, where Jim sees the VIX and the market right after this.
[intro]

Tobias: It’s great to chat with you, Jim. I particularly love chatting to vol guys, because I think that volatility and value go hand in hand because when the volatility guys are having a party, the value guys should be hard at work because the value guys’ party starts the next day. Let’s start with who you are, and then we’ll go on from there. Who are you?

Jim: Sure. Jim Carroll, currently a Senior Vice President and Portfolio Manager at Toroso Investments. Just a thumbnail sketch of Toroso. It’s a relatively new registered investment advisor, started six, seven, eight years ago by a guy named Mike Venuto, and three legs to our stool. It’s good. We have three legs so the stool doesn’t tip over. We have a more or less traditional wealth advisory business. High net worth individuals primarily, but also work with quite a few retirement plans. Advisors in different parts of the country. Venuto runs an investment management business that both is a series of separately managed accounts. We also recently brought on Michael Gayed, a name that people will know and his ATAC mutual fund and recently launched an ETF around one of his strategies.

Tobias: The Lead-Lag Report.

Jim: The Lead-Lag Report, yes, and is RORO, risk-on, risk-off, a great ticker. That business also supports an OCIO platform. We work with a lot of external advisors on portfolio management. We have the ETF think tank, steered by a guy named Dan Weiskopf.

Tobias: The ETF professor.

Jim: The ETF professor, indeed. An increasingly popular series of Zoom sessions around different topics. Then we have a business that really is a consulting arm around exchange-traded funds. Where we help people conceive launch market, exchange-traded funds. Recent examples would be our own RORO. We also helped a group out in California launch RPAR, a risk parity ETF last year, that’s become a very big business for us. Overall, it’s been a great ride the last couple of years actually are AUM, AUA, more than doubled in 2020. We’re over 4 billion now.

Tobias: Congrats.

Jim: Very, very rapid rise for the firm.

From Value Investor To Vixologist

Tobias: You’re a volatility guy, and you are the Vixologist on Twitter, which is a great handle by the way. How do you come to be vol guy?

Jim: Well, that’s a great question, because I didn’t start out as a vol guy. Actually started on Wall Street in the investment banking business. Corporate finance guy back in the 80s and 90s, became the CFO of a little internet company that went public in March of 2000-

Tobias: Oh, congrats.

Jim: -through Morgan Stanley.

[laughter]

Jim: Squeaked that one out the window and it just went thud. The good news is we didn’t get sued by anybody, but the bad news is it meant that there was going to be another chapter in my life. I was actually a value investor back in those days with my own portfolio. You will recall that value works like a charm in the aughts. When the internet was melting down, there were actually sectors of the economy that were chugging along nicely, real estate some of the commodity areas. For my own portfolio, I had discovered a handful of managers that I was basically building a portfolio around. People like Bill Nygren at Oakmark, Mason Hawkins at Longleaf Partners.

Tobias: Some great names there.

Jim: John Murray Aveyard at First Eagle, folks out at Dodge & Cox. Really, I was building my own portfolio and family around a group of value managers who successfully navigated the internet crash. During that time after my own little internet company was clearly not going to be the end game. I had some friends who were experiencing that meltdown, asked me, “Jim, what should I do with my money. I’m getting killed.”

There was enough critical mass there that I decided to start my own registered investment advisor, which originally was long-run capital in 2003. I’ll continue doing what I had been doing. The global financial crisis comes along and suddenly, I recognize that not only am I allocating assets to managers, I’m allocating risk management. As you know, Toby, value manager loves nothing more than for a stock to be cheaper tomorrow than it is today. [chuckles]

The portfolios were suffering along with everything else, in part because the other difference in the GFC was that everything was correlating. There were very few safe havens, in the back half of 2008, you could buy long term treasuries, and that worked. The dollar caught a bid, but other than that, it didn’t matter what sector or market cap strategy you were invested in, it was going down.

Life Before Factors

I had to think hard about how I was going to manage risk, and decided to undertake a research project to look at what was going on in the world that I just hadn’t experienced. I was a value guy, so there’s growth. What are all these quantitative people doing? We didn’t really have factors.

Dual Momentum Strategy

Nobody was really talking about factors in 2008-2009. If you did some digging into the body of research, there were some people talking about things like momentum. Tom Dorsey, Dorsey, Wright always called it Relative Strength. I manufactured my own momentum strategies in the fashion that now is best documented by Gary Antonacci with calling a Dual Momentum.

The idea that you are investing in the best performing whatever you want stocks, sectors, asset classes, with a hurdle, so that if they’re not jumping the hurdle, you’re going to move to cash. I look across asset classes, use different measures of momentum with a cash hurdle and create what I call an absolute return portfolio. Varied responsive to changes in markets, horribly tax-inefficient. I did actually come up with a methodology that moves a little more slowly, but is tax-efficient, and does tend to still ride the winners, and that is based on the Dorsey, Wright relative strength methodology.

This sounds so silly these days. All the way back in 2015, when the Shiller PE was already starting to look rich, bond yields had been plummeting for decades, Bogle and Arnott everybody were saying, “Gee, looking out 10 years, we’re not sure where the returns are going to come from.” I tripped over this stuff going on in volatility, with the VIX and betting on the VIX. Wall Street had invented these great new things like VXX, you could be long VIX. XIV, you could be short VIX. Okay, let’s do another deep dive. Who cares about weekends and nights?

Most Of The Time You Want To Be Short Volatility

Let’s start reading research on volatility and term structure and contango and backwardation. The internet’s a great resource. There were people out there saying, “Okay, here’s how these things are constructed, here’s how you might use them, here’s some systematic approaches.” Did a deep dive into that and came up with an approach to use these things to express either a short opinion or a long opinion. Most of the time, you want to be short volatility. That’s why I’d say to people, “What do you have in your portfolio?” I got S&P 500. I got these stocks,” da, da, da. “How would you say that expresses a view on volatility?” “Well, it doesn’t.

I just own a bunch of stuff.” “Yeah, you’re short volatility.” “What do you mean?” “If the stuff hits the fan, and your stuff goes down, it gets pretty exciting, doesn’t it? Yeah, that’s because you’re short volatility. What do you do about that?” Oh, by the way, we still haven’t really figured out what to do about that. The industry is still trying to figure out how to put the pieces together to offer a hedge product, a long volatility product, a long-short volatility product. I’m in the mix, as the vixologist trying to create that cocktail.

—

Tobias: What’s your approach to volatility? I have a friend, who we both know Chris Cole. Chris’s, I think he would characterize himself probably mostly as a long volatility guy. Then he’s trying to arbitrage the term structure, so when he sees some things that are out of shape, he’ll put trades on with the objective of reducing the cost of being long volatility, but what he’s ultimately trying to do is hedge a portfolio that you would characterize as being short volatility. That’s anybody who’s long a risk asset, like a value investor, or anybody as long equities is really short volatility. What’s your approach to volatility?

Jim: Well, it’s funny, somebody recently asked me or remark that, “Gee, you started your own registered investment advisor in 2003. Man, that took a lot of guts.” My response was, “I didn’t know any better so I did it.” When I looked at the volatility space, what intrigued me was the idea that you could play both sides of it, you don’t have to be dogmatic, either short, or long.

Short volatility through VIX futures, through volatility instruments, could be viewed as an equity substitute. Depending on how you’re doing it, it may give you a 2X or a 3X of the beta of the S&P 500, if you want to look at it that way. Certainly, the sex appeal is figuring out how to use a long volatility exposure to hedge your core portfolio. I think that’s where people have tended to focus. My view was, “Gee, I think I want to try and it’s really hard to structure something that can play both sides.” I don’t want to be dogmatic one direction or the other.

I honestly believe that it’s possible to where– Chris and others who are trying to offer a long volatility product that fits into somebody’s portfolio, checks the box that somebody has created, managing that bleed is critical. I look at it the other way and say, under normal market circumstances, that VIX term structure is rolling down, and if you’re short those VIX futures, you’re just collecting premium, recognizing that you can get kicked in the face on any given day. If I can do that, and figure out some way to avoid the real hard drawdowns, or ideally flip from short to long, then you’ve really got something. That’s the Holy Grail. I’m not there yet, but that’s the objective.

—

VIX Futures As A Form Of Insurance

Tobias: You’re agnostic, and you think about it like an equity substitute. So for people who aren’t in volatility all the time, it can be a little bit confusing, but you’re basically just the reverse of the market. When you’re long volatility, you’re essentially short the market, when you’re short volatility, you basically long the market.

The reason that the vol guys who are long vol guys like Chris are attracted to it, is because it tends to have this explosive move. If the market goes down, volatility spikes very, very materially. That’s why Taleb wrote the book, and he describes that– he characterized as someone who is short volatility, that the return pattern that they see is quite consistently– quite consistent regular returns, until the day that they’re like the turkey on Thanksgiving, who gets their head chopped off. How do you manage that kind of risk, what signals that you’re looking for?

Jim: I look at different measures of the term structure. If you think about what the term structure looked like in March–

Tobias: What’s the term structure? We should just define that term?

Jim: Yeah, certainly. You have VIX futures contracts that go out. I think we now go out 9 or 10 months. Right now, the front-month VIX futures contract which is going to expire next week is the January future. So, then you have a February, March, April, May on out. In normal circumstances, if you think about VIX futures as a form of insurance, you would expect the longer that insurance covers the more you’re going to pay for it. The out month VIX futures contracts typically are going to be more expensive than the near month VIX futures contracts. There’s typically a premium between spot VIX and the VIX futures.

Tobias: You can’t actually trade VIX, that’s a calculation based on some options.

Jim: Correct.

Tobias: The only things that you can trade are the futures or options on the futures or one of these products that has those things embedded in it the ETFs that hold them.

Jim: That’s correct. Any option contract, so you could also be trading SPX options as a play on volatility. You could be expressing a view that you think the options are too cheap. You think that they don’t express enough volatility, and you could buy them, you could say that they’re expressing too much volatility and you could sell them. There are a bunch of different ways that you can express a view on volatility.

The typical, where I’m focusing my attention is the VIX futures term structure 80% of the time, that is in contango, it rises in price over time. You get into situations like the end of 2008, or where we were in March of last year. Hard to call it last year already, but March of 2020. The front end, people freak out. Everybody wants to buy insurance after the hurricanes hit.

Tobias: [chuckles] I need that insurance right now.

[laughter]

Jim: “The house is on fire. Can I please get some insurance?” You’re going to pay for it. The front months spike higher, the back months will tend to rise as well, but instead of the curve being lower left upper right, it will go from upper right to lower left. If you can get in the way of a move like that. In February and March, we went from a VIX of below 20 to a record close over 80 in 19 days, unprecedented.

We also recovered faster than anybody anticipated. If you go back to 2008, we didn’t see VIX go back below 30 until the middle of 2009. I think it was 141 trading days, it was some crazy number. The VIX futures are the toolset available for people to use as the most direct way to express a view on volatility.

—

Volmageddon or The Volpocalypse

Tobias: Have you seen any changes to the behavior of VIX or the term structure over the period of time that you’ve been following it? I raised it, because that’s one of the things that I’ve heard Chris talk about quite regularly, where he says that the spikes are more regularly sold. The volatility seems to drain away faster and faster all the time. You give that 2008 example where it was elevated for a very long time.

Then it seemed to be very sensitive to even 2012, as far out as that it was still popping. Anytime there was any kind of market event, it was quite sensitive to it. Then it went through this very long period of time of being crushed, quite low. I think even until last late 2019, it was still very, very low. People wondering whether it would ever– will this ever get back to like a 20? Because it was trading in the low like 10, or 11, 12 kind of number.

Jim: There’s the old saying, “No good deed goes unpunished.” I think the Wall Street equivalent is, “There’s no good idea that doesn’t get overused.” One of the things that clearly has changed over time is that the volatility ecosystem has expanded and expanded in terms of use cases, instruments, and larger players using it to express a view or using it to hedge a portfolio or using it to augment returns.

Clearly, one of the things that Chris saw and documented was the institutional evolution in the use of volatility as a way to not only hedge but to scrape some so-called risk premium out of the market. We’re going to sell volatility premium, most of the time we’re going to just be able to collect it and move on and do it again and do it again and do it again. As you suggested, that’s all well and good until– I’m reminded of the Roadrunner cartoons where the coyote finds himself off the edge of the cliff. [laughs] And then it’s straight down.

If we go back to February 2018 as an example of, what we call Volmageddon or the Volpocalypse, where it seemingly all of the sudden VIX doubled and people were crushed. One of my favorite exchange traded products disappeared, XIV.

Tobias: After the close.

Jim: Yeah. I will never forget watching it in real-time and chatting with colleagues about what was going on. Then hearing some stories in the aftermath about people who were buying it after the close. [laughs]

Tobias: Well, I saw people buying it on Twitter, people talking about buying it on Twitter, because that because it was down 94% or something off to the close and then not knowing it was going to be ultimately a zero.

—

Jim: Yeah. I think there have been a number of changes over the years. It has matured– the VIX futures have matured as a product, options on the futures have matured on the product. These instruments have generated demand and volume for the underlying over time. Institutions have gotten involved, for better or for worse. There’s a debate ongoing right now about, are they all back in the game after March?

Clearly, there were some hedge fund blowups in the vol space, people who were doing things that they probably shouldn’t have been doing, including some significant pension funds. That’s the nature of the beast, if you can get away with it, make a bunch of money, and you think you have the risk cordoned off, somebody’s going to do it. Somebody may be doing it, even if they don’t necessarily have the risk cordoned off. We see that from time to time, it’s the nature of the beast.

—

The Once in 1000-Year Volatility Storm

Tobias: Well, Taleb talks about it. Where he says that it’s one of those trades that you can be short volatility for years and years and years and get paid to be short volatility. Then the year where you blow up, you say, oh, well, that was the unforeseeable once in 1000-year storm that rolls around every seven years or so.

Jim: I’ve gone back to the best of my ability and looked at different little events that have taken place since all of this stuff started. The only one that really was terminal on its face was February of 2018. There’s some evidence to suggest that the analogy I use is that XIV was standing in the window, looking down and somebody pushed because there are certainly a lot of smart people out there who understand the specific mechanics of the rebalancing of these things on a daily basis and knew exactly what the guys managing XIV were going to need to do.

Maybe they helped. The only thing I could say about that is, in my analysis, my experience suggests that most of the time, maybe not– you never say never, never say ever, but most of the time, if you’re paying attention to the behavior of the term structure, to the behavior of different measures of volatility, you can get some hints.

There are a few little footprints in January of 2018, I think it was January 16th, to be precise there was just a little hiccup. Not necessarily enough for people to be paying attention. Certainly, if you had spent all of 2017 short volatility, you wanted that ride to just continue, because lots of people cashed a lot of money in 2017, myself included.

I lived in Hawaii for four years, and we were always paying attention to the volcanoes. Before they erupt, if you’re paying attention, they’re giving you some signals. There’s some steam rising, there’s some stuff moving around. If you’re standing on the edge of the crater, when the full eruption happens, you’re stupid. You probably deserve what you get. I can make an argument that people who were still short volatility on February 5th, 2018 just weren’t paying attention, because there were some things happening that were inconsistent with short vol being safe.

Tobias: Yeah, that’s interesting. It seems to me that it’s there was a similar event, I remember the manager, but I can’t remember the name of the product. I don’t want to mention the manager, but there was a very popular retail product. I think it was an ETF in about 2011, late 2011, early 2012 that it was getting so much flows, that in order for– and I think the market might have been a little bit thinner at that point.

Basically, they were pushing, the market was getting out of shape, their trading was impacting the underlying instruments. There are a lot of guys out there, and the reason I know about it is because Chris was trading the other side of it at the time and apparently was a reasonably well known, reasonably popular trade.

Eventually that product had to be wound up just because it got too big. Is that something that happens in this market? Or is it because it’s a thinly traded market? Is that something that doesn’t happen anymore? Or, is it just one of those things that it gets popular? Everybody gets to one side of the boat, same thing that happens in every single market.

—

The Difficulty Managing Institutional Vol ETFs 

Jim: I think that that clearly can happen. It happened with XIV. XIV assets ballooned to over $2 billion by February 2018. You had this sort of stereotypical cab driver. “Hey, have you heard of this stock? XIV? It just goes up.” I had no idea what it was, thought it was a stock, I thought it was a company.

Clearly, that was one where everybody was on that side of the boat. Another example from March of 2020 was the other side, TVIX. Credit Suisse sponsored product which was 2X long volatility. If you bought TVIX in the middle of February and held on to it, you made a boatload of money.

By the middle of March, the AUM for TVIX, I’m not going to get the number right, was $8 or $9 billion. That was exposure that Credit Suisse had because it was an exchange-traded note. Somebody at Credit Suisse said if this starts going the other direction, this could blow a hole in our ship, and we could go under.

They announced that they were going to delist, they didn’t actually redeem, which is one option they had, but Credit Suisse decided to delist TVIX. It is still out there. It does still trade. TVIXF, but it’s over the counter pink sheet kind of thing now, but that was another example where a combination of inflows and price appreciation ballooned this thing up to a size where the manager just said, “We’ve got exposure that we never imagined here.

This is not what we signed up for.” That can happen. The other aftermath of February 2018 was the two of the popular products, UVXY, which had been a 2X, and SVXY, which had been a minus 1X, like XIV, both had their leverage taken down. SVXY became a point five inverse. UVXY became a 1.5 long instead of too long.

There is some risk to the sponsors of these products in terms of managing their exposure, but they’re popular. When SVXY was neutered, we immediately saw increased activity in VXX, which is the 1X long, the most popular. A lot of that activity was people using the short side of VXX to express a short vol position.

Tobias: That was shorting the ETF rather than–

Jim: They were shorting the long ETF to get the full minus one exposure.

Tobias: Got it.

Jim: Instead of going long–

Tobias: A short ETF.

Jim: Exactly. Again, people are very ingenious. A lot of smart people out there who can do the math and figure out how to get the exposure they want. Quite a few hedge funds do play with these things. The more sophisticated investors will say, “Well, that’s crazy. You’re paying a management fee to get exposure for VIX futures. Why don’t you just go get the VIX futures directly?”

Well, because I don’t want to roll the VIX futures every day. I don’t want to manage the duration of that exposure actively the way you one might want to. I prefer to get the exposure and let a trading desk manage that exposure for me. I know what I’m getting. I’m willing to pay the expense ratio, because I think on a net basis, it’s going to do X or Y, and that fits my objectives.

—

The Vol Tsunami Of 2020

Tobias: Last year was an interesting year in volatility, which is not always true. Not every year is an interesting year in volatility. Last year was particularly interesting because we had the gigantic crash at the start, which is the most rapid crash, more rapid than 1929 volatility had that unprecedented spike. Then it was a lumpy term structure because of the election. Early in the year, there was a lot of fear around the election, so people will long volatility. Can you walk us through what happened last year? What was unusual about it beyond that?

Jim: [laughs] Well, yes, as you said– what was interesting was, we started off the year, fairly benign, equities churning higher, volatility relatively low, down in the teens. People, essentially, not appreciating the potential of this COVID thing, until the very end of February.

Then it was just like, somebody opened the trapdoor, and the whole market fell through. The market with VIX in the teens was clearly not pricing the what happened. I mean, who would? It was one of those tsunami kind of events, where you wake up one morning, and maybe you turn on the TV or somebody sends you a text. “Do you know that there’s 100-foot wave headed toward your beach, Toby?” [chuckles]

You might want to get out of the way. Well, how quickly can you get out of the way? Clearly, this was a circumstance where people were not prepared to get out of the way of the pandemic. It slammed hard, limit down day after limit down day. VIX crept up steadily to a brand-new closing record in the 80s.

The relief package, the Fed actions, it was reminiscent of the end of 2018 when we had the little fear that the Fed was going to tighten and the markets sold off hard, and then they came out and said, “No, we’re just kidding.” The market turned right around and started marching higher again. This was very reminiscent of that episode. Hardcore sell-off, and then March 23, the market bottoms and turns around and obviously there were hiccups along the way, but generally, just started marching back to all-time highs.

People scratching their heads saying, “There’s no way. How can we go back to all-time highs?” That’s expressing itself in the volatility space because as we have notched all-time highs, I’m looking at the market today, we’re not quite there on the S&P, but the Russell’s caught up, a lot of single stocks have just blown through their previous all-time highs. Yet, VIX and the VIX futures are sticky in the low to mid-20s. We’ve been above 20 since February 24th.

I’ve lost track of the day count, I’ve got it someplace, but it’s the second-longest stretch of VIX north of 20. The prior one being in the 2008-2009 timeframe. Somebody out there is still a little nervous. There’s still a bid for insurance in the volatility realm.

—

The Volatility Complex

Tobias: I saw a chart yesterday that showed that I think it was an inverse VIX with the S&P 500. Basically, what that means is that, basically they track each other reasonably closely, but it had started diverged, which you might be able to interpret that. But the way that I interpreted it was just that there’s a lot more fear out there than perhaps the all-time highs. We’ve seen many all-time highs late last year. We may not have seen one yet this year, but we’re close, very close to all-time highs. What does it typically mean for the market?

Jim: Well, what it’s suggesting is that not everybody’s buying into the all-time highs in the equity indices. It would be, again, that inverse correlation between the S&P 500 and the VIX tends to be quite high. With the S&P making new highs, kind of grinding higher, but VIX, not making new lows, which is what you would expect if that correlation is holding. Does that mean that the equity market is going to turn around and go down?

What it means to me is, pay attention. There’s a divergence, there are lots of you can get the technicians on, you can look at divergences and a whole bunch of different indicators, new highs, new lows, market breadth, percent over 200-day moving average. If you want to find a divergence, there’s one out there. [chuckles] It doesn’t necessarily mean that the market is going to turn around and go lower. What it means to me as somebody who pays attention to the volatility complex is, okay, pay attention, because there’s a bid for the SPX options that make up the VIX calculation. Somebody is buying enough of those things to keep the VIX in the low to mid-20s where you might expect that by now, it would have gone back below 20.

—

Sometimes The Best Exposure Is No Exposure

Tobias: You’re a little bit in front of me, that’s where I was going to go next because I’m aware that there’s a lot of Robinhood options speculation in the market. I’ve had the in-laws back Christmas and New Year’s and had an opportunity to discuss with people who aren’t markets people, but who are now in Robinhood, punting options, because you can get all the leverage. They need those high returns. Does that impact? Does it change the signal that you get from those things?

Jim: I wish I could say that I have completely figured that out. I certainly haven’t. I do pay attention to– and try to talk reasonably regularly with people who are more sophisticated in the options landscape than I am, and in the flows. Jim Carson is a rising star on Twitter because of his regular observations on what’s going on with flows, and derivative activity. Benn Eifert, who you know. There are a number of people who are closer to what’s going on in that world than I can be. I try to see what I see and then look to see how other people might be interpreting the same information.

I have my own little dashboard of indicators signals. Sometimes they are just all green, there’s just no question which side of the trade you should be on. Sometimes they’re all red, there’s no question which side of the trade you should be on and whole bunch of the time with a mixed bag of red, green, and yellow, and you’re just like, “Okay.” The probabilities are not as strong as you might like them to be. Oh, by the way, sometimes that means I’ve got no exposure. I’ve got no trade because I’m not sure what’s going on. To me, that can be an appropriate place to be.

Tobias: When I was first learning about volatility with Chris, he pointed out that the late 1990s had a similar behavior when the market got very bullish when there was a lot of speculation, VIX started running up along with the market, which was unusual behavior because usually when the markets going up, volatility is pretty compressed and vice versa. That started something that I noticed happening again in late last year, mid to late last year that volatility has– the speculation is upside speculation is creating upside volatility in the market. Has that behavior continued on? Is that something that you’re seeing?

Jim: Well, I think people forget that VIX as a measure of volatility doesn’t care whether the volatility is on the upside or the downside. If the S&P is moving 3% a day up, that’s volatility. That will probably be expressed in the level of the VIX. When the markets moving up, it tends to be moving up in small increments and fairly steadily. Therefore, volatility tends to be relatively low.

A market that’s of rumbling higher with a lot of activity and perhaps an increase in specular activity can certainly justify a higher level of VIX. Sometimes you have to recognize that the markets going up, and VIX is steady or going higher in part just because it’s reflecting the fact that the markets moving higher in steps that are bigger than they are typically.

Tobias: Jim, fascinating conversation. We’re coming up on time, if folks want to get in contact with you or follow along with what you’re doing, how do they go about doing that?

Jim: Well, the easiest way is to follow me on Twitter, @vixologist. I tend to be responsive to direct messages if people want to jump in there and ask me a question. I had somebody suggest that I was cagey sometimes on Twitter. I said, “Well, I’m an investment advisor, I can’t give advice.” I’ve tried to make that clarity a number of times. If some of my Twitter commentary is cagey, it’s because I do have compliance people keeping an eye on what I’m doing and I want to stay on the right side of the law.

Tobias: We’ll throw that up in the show notes, Vixologist. Sorry, Jim, I cut you off there.

Jim: No, that’s quite all right. I’m on LinkedIn for what that’s worth. Happy to connect with people there. Twitter tends to be the center, the eye of the storm for FinTwit and VolTwit and all things happening in the space these days.

Tobias: That’s great. Jim Carroll, Vixologist at Toroso. Thank you very much.

Jim: Thank you, Toby. Great to be with you.

Tobias: My pleasure.

Are you looking for an easy way to play your favorite retro games on your Android phone or tablet without having to tinker with complicated emulators?

In this post, we present you with a list of the top 7 classic games that have been remastered for Android devices.

If you’ve been scouring Google Play Store for old games, you may have noticed the huge number of games launched every week. While most of them are definitely not worth your time, there are a few good ones, especially those that you enjoyed playing in the 1990s and 2000s in arcades, on a console, or even on a handheld device. Fortunately, these retro games are now available on Android too.

Most of the classic games remastered for Android look pretty much the same as they did years ago. You can now relive those great moments and fond memories of arcade games straight from your Android device. And we are not talking about using complicated emulators to play the games on your phone. You can, however, use emulators to access even more retro games if you wish.

There are also many people today using ROM emulation to modify classic games for their personal use. This is done for many purposes. For instance, ROMs can be used to change a game’s difficulty level, change the graphics to fit a mobile device screen, or even change the game’s native language and translate it for users in other countries.

In most cases, ROMs are used to create free copies of paid games. The practice is, however, illegal in some countries but quite legal in other countries such as the United States.

Google recently launched their Android 11 for Pixel devices and is already sending its source code to the Android Open-Source Project (AOSP). This means that developers can now create skinned versions of Android using custom ROMs. It also means that we’ll be seeing more classic games remastered for Android in the near future.

Meanwhile here is our list of the best 7 retro games remastered for Android. All the games discussed below are official Android releases of popular games that dominated the 1990s console, PC, and Arcade gaming. The games have now been remastered and expanded for use on Android devices.

One thing you’ll also agree on is that the new versions are better and more enjoyable on your phone this time around, thanks to advanced graphics and other technical features.

Take time to test these retro games on your Android device.

1. Pac-Man

Pac-Man is perhaps one of the most popular games ever made. Most adults and children can still remember the munching sound of Pac-Man and the eerie ghost sounds of the game.

Pac-Man was a favorite in every gaming arcade. The hugely popular classic game has made a comeback as an Android app to ensure that the younger generation can also enjoy it just like their parents did. You can download multiple versions of the Pac-Man app in Google Play Store.

Some of the key features of the remastered Pac-Man include the classic arcade mode complete with all the original mazes, additional mobile mazes, a tournament mode, and daily missions to earn tokens.

2. Pinball Arcade

If you were to go back, way back, in retro games, you cannot fail to mention the classic pinball machines. Pinball arcade might look very 70s but one thing most people agree on is that the game never goes out of style.

The good news is that you can now recreate the same experience of playing glass-top pinball at the arcade on your Android device. It’s just like bringing the arcade experience to your palm.

Some of the key features of the Android version of Pinball Arcade include a total of 70 pinball tables with the same classic look and style, awesome sound effects, and beautiful 3D graphics.

3. Super Mario Run

There are several Super Mario games already available for Android devices. One of them is the Super Mario Run version that you can easily play with one hand by tapping as Mario runs.

You can also time your taps to execute midair spins, wall jumps, and other stylish jumps and collect even more coins. The game allows you to try all the four Super Mario Run modes – World Tour, Remix 10, Toad Rally, and Kingdom Builder – before you decide to buy the full version.

Another notable improvement is the ability to play Super Mario 64 on Android, thanks to a recent development that made it possible to run a Nintendo 64 game on Android without using an emulator. Just launch the game on your device like you would launch any other game app and have fun.

4. Sonic the Hedgehog 2 Classic

Sonic the Hedgehog was a household name in the 1990s and 2000s. You can now relive those endless adventures of Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, and the crew fighting against Dr. Eggman on your Android.

The mobile version features 12 Badnik infected zones, a secret hidden palace stage, a new Boss Attack mode, Time Attack mode, and the ability to compete with other players online.

The Android version of Sonic the Hedgehog 2 Classic is definitely worth your time, especially if you played the game as a child.

5. Metal Slug 3 Shooting Game

Metal Slug 3 is a classic example of shooting games that dominated arcades the world over 15 to 20 years ago. The game has now been remastered for Android and is available at the Play Store.

It is a good option for people who want to relive the excitement of run-and-gun classic games. It is also perfect for those who love fast action shooting games from the past. The new game version allows you to play in multiple ways including single-player campaigns using either mission mode or the classic mode.

You can also coordinate with other players wirelessly via Bluetooth for more cooperative gameplay. The Android version comes with a wide range of slugs and weapons too.

6. Pole Position: Remix

There was Pole Position before Need for Speed was born. It was an 8-bit and 16-bit racing game with rather primitive gameplay compared to today’s racing games.

However, the action was great despite the lack of controls. You can now relive those fond memories of early racing games with the remastered Pole Position: Remix.

7. Prince of Persia Classic

This list of classic games remastered for Android would be incomplete without mentioning everyone’s favorite, The Prince of Persia.

The classic version is actually the original game before it was acquired by Ubisoft and transformed Prince of Persia into the Sands of Time franchise.

If you are still a fan of the 2D Prince of Persia, you can now get it on your Android device from Google Play Store.

Conclusion

Classic games never go out of style. They only get better after being remastered to work on current devices.

The retro games discussed above will definitely bring back those nostalgic moments of your childhood when played on Android devices.

The post Top 7 Classic Games Remastered For Android appeared first on Android Headlines.