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Letters from a Contrarian

Letters from a Contrarian

By Eugene Fernandes

The internet and its spawns have massively shifted societal incentives. Individuals don't speak up for fear of cancellation, politicians pander to polls to "play it safe," and journalists and the media try to story-tell instead of relay the facts.

But the internet offers great promise too. Online pseudonymity pushes everyone criticize the speech and not the speaker, blockchain governance offer internet-native alternatives to elections and parliaments, and everyone can get wealthy thanks to crypto!

I just ask how.

Hosted by Eugene Fernandes. To reach out, DM @eugenefds on twitter.
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Zach (@zachcantrad): Traditional Architecture, Objective Beauty, and The Cult of Modernism

Letters from a ContrarianMay 29, 2020

00:00
01:39:59
Jana Petkanic - DeFi Scams, Evaluating S**tcoins, and Starting Meetups
Feb 15, 202255:49
James Rosen-Birch: Canadian Monopolies, Health Care, and Entrepreneurship.

James Rosen-Birch: Canadian Monopolies, Health Care, and Entrepreneurship.

Thanks to James for coming onto the podcast!

You can find him (and his thoughts) on the following platforms:

https://twitter.com/provisionalidea

provisionalideas.com


Twitter: www.twitter.com/eugenefds 

Instagram: www.instagram.com/fernandeseugene/ 

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC3SoM1kuW8mWAB1pNZ5aPJw

Website: www.eugenefernandes.com

Feb 02, 202201:04:24
Frank Hepworth - Crypto Lawyer Explains the Threat Crypto Poses to Lawyers

Frank Hepworth - Crypto Lawyer Explains the Threat Crypto Poses to Lawyers

Thanks to Frank Hepworth for coming onto Letters from a Contrarian!

To get started buying your first bitcoin, solana, and ethereum, sign up for Newton today! https://web.newton.co/r/NY371Z

Topics Discussed:

etherscan.io

The Block Explorer

Terra

Luna

The Anchor Protocol (to make 20% interest): https://www.anchorprotocol.com

NDAX, Newton, Coinbase, Shakepay.

Contact Frank:

On Twitter: https://twitter.com/frank_hex

Twitter: www.twitter.com/eugenefds

Instagram: www.instagram.com/fernandeseugene/

YouTube: www.youtube.com/channel/UC3SoM1kuW8mWAB1pNZ5aPJw

Website: www.eugenefernandes.com

Jan 15, 202259:39
Mackenzie Putici - Picking Profitable NFTs, 20% Returns from Yield Farming, and Selling a Bored Ape!

Mackenzie Putici - Picking Profitable NFTs, 20% Returns from Yield Farming, and Selling a Bored Ape!

Thanks to Mackenzie Putici for coming onto Letters from a Contrarian!

The *iconic* Bored Ape Yacht Club: https://opensea.io/collection/boredapeyachtclub

Solana Platforms like OpenSea on which you can trade NFTs:

Digital Eyes: https://digitaleyes.market

Solanart: https://solanart.io

Solana Wallets:

https://phantom.app

https://www.sollet.io

https://flarewallet.io

To get started buying your first bitcoin, solana, and ethereum, sign up for Newton today! https://web.newton.co/r/NY371Z

Other Topics Discussed:

Impermanent loss

Uniswap and Sushiswap for yield farming ethereum.

Places to yield farm using Solana: radium, orca, tulip, solflare, francium.

For crypto loans, check out AAVE and Celsius.

Justin Blau using the blockchain to publish music. https://twitter.com/3LAU

Helium as discussed by Steve Paolasini on S.3.E.1:

https://eugenefernandes.com/2021/11/01/steve-paolasini-jumping-down-the-crypto-rabbit-hole/

The Bitcoin Standard by Saifedean Ammous: https://amzn.to/3dViga7


Contact Mackenzie:

On Twitter: https://twitter.com/macmac_x

On Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/travelingsomm/?hl=en

For Virtual Wine Tours: https://newworldwinetours.com

Twitter: www.twitter.com/eugenefds

Instagram: www.instagram.com/fernandeseugene/

YouTube: www.youtube.com/channel/UC3SoM1kuW8mWAB1pNZ5aPJw

Website: www.eugenefernandes.com

Dec 16, 202152:36
Nicholas Merten - Founding and Running Digifox, The Value of Bitcoin, and Energy Stocks

Nicholas Merten - Founding and Running Digifox, The Value of Bitcoin, and Energy Stocks

Full disclosure, I happen to work at Digifox, and Nicholas is my boss. But as a 23 year old who's responsible for the salaries of ~2 dozen people and a Praxis graduate, Nicholas is an extremely impressive guy. In this episode, we discussed his background and origins, the rise and potential of crypto as an asset class, the failures and inefficiencies of the banking system, and renewable energy. Enjoy!

Thanks for listening! Follow me on socials to get updates on new episodes.

Twitter: twitter.com/eugenefds

Instagram: instagram.com/fernandeseugene/

YouTube: www.youtube.com/channel/UC3SoM1kuW8mWAB1pNZ5aPJw

Website: eugenefernandes.com

Dec 02, 202156:45
IJ Makan - Cultural Appropriation, Crypto, NFTs, and Future Cities

IJ Makan - Cultural Appropriation, Crypto, NFTs, and Future Cities

IJ and I met over twitter! We covered a lot of ground in this episode, including discussions about Canadian identity (or lack thereof), the potential that blockchain and crypto has, how he got started creating his NFT collection of philosopher kings, and how we'll build cities in the future. Also, the video doesn't show my face for the first hour or so because I forgot to unpin IJ's screen on zoom.   


Thanks for listening! Follow me on socials to get updates on new episodes.   

Twitter: twitter.com/eugenefds 

Instagram: instagram.com/fernandeseugene/ 

YouTube: www.youtube.com/channel/UC3SoM1kuW8mWAB1pNZ5aPJw 

Website: eugenefernandes.com

Nov 16, 202101:45:57
Steve Paolasini - Jumping Down the Crypto Rabbit Hole

Steve Paolasini - Jumping Down the Crypto Rabbit Hole

Steve Paolasini joins us once again to talk about his journey into crypto and all of its possibilities!

Nov 01, 202101:19:10
Pandemic Populism - Season 2 Wrap Up

Pandemic Populism - Season 2 Wrap Up

In Season 2 of Letters from a Contrarian, I sought to understand what went wrong with Canada's pandemic response, and what a more ethical, constitutional, and tolerable response would've looked like.

I summarize my two answers to these questions based on the conversations I had with my guests in Season 2 in this episode. I also go through why crypto, web3, and decentralization is the best way to preserve liberal values without the use of naked power.

Oct 15, 202101:03:58
Bruce Pardy - Vaccine Passports
Sep 01, 202101:18:55
D. Jared Brown - Revelations from Cross-Examining Manitoba's Health Experts in Court

D. Jared Brown - Revelations from Cross-Examining Manitoba's Health Experts in Court

D. Jared Brown is a litigator and Bencher of the Law Society of Ontario.

References:

Section 3 of Manitoba’s Public Health Act: 

“If the exercise of a power under this Act restricts rights or freedoms, the restriction must be no greater than is reasonably necessary, in the circumstances, to respond to a health hazard, a communicable disease, a public health emergency or any other threat to public health.”

Transcript and YouTube Video:

eugenefernandes.com/letters-from-a-contrarian

Show-notes

2:51 How the JCCF tapped Brown to help represent seven churches and three individuals in Manitoba, and what their case was. The churches couldn’t gather, and the individuals couldn’t protest.

6:01 The Government argued that the infringements on rights and freedoms were justified.

8:46 Brown cross-examined Dr. Jason Kindrachuk, Lanette Siracusa, Carla Lipkey, Dr. Brent Roussin, Dr. Jason Bullard, and Dr. Joel Kettner.

10:38 Three revelatory insights that came to light in the cross examination: one, the Manitoba government had exaggerated the scarcity of hospital and ICU beds in the province during the Christmas season, along with their ability to expand the hospital system. Two, a positive PCR test result does not mean that the person is infectious.

14:29 Lastly, three - the government justified their measures on the basis that everyone else was doing it. No cost benefit analyses in sight.

16:47 This bandwagon defence (“everyone else was doing it”) might’ve been understandable at the pandemic’s start, but after 14 months, not as much.

22:11 The government does not have a legal obligation to justify their infringements up until someone challenges them in court. But the expectation is that they would justify the measures publicly. They didn’t. They used fear instead.

23:29 One consequence of using fear to threaten citizens into accepting public policy: vaccine hesitancy.

27:01 Are medical officers of health legally supposed to have the power and the role that they currently have? Thoughts about accountability mechanisms and a faith in democracy.

28:39 Rights and freedoms: easy to give up, bloodily difficult to get back. That’s why you don’t give an inch. Equality jurisprudence is developing far more than negative freedoms. Lawyers don’t seem to care.

31:55 Courts and discretion: Canada vs USA.

34:13 Brown was vilified by his peers and many others on social media in March 2020. Many lawyers are now changing their minds - if an emergency has lasted 14 months, then maybe it isn’t an emergency.

37:22 How Brown stood up to the pushback: say what you think, look at the reaction, and ask if it’s creating unnecessary conflict. Try to be minimally impairing. Have skin in the game by directing your energy towards the venues where it makes the biggest impact and where you’ll be heard. Instead of being a Twitter warrior, he took the opportunity to challenge the restrictions in this court case. And know what your principles are.

41:16 As a citizen who opposes the restrictions, write letters to your (provincial) elected leaders. Let them know you want to calculate your own risk and that their paternalistic attitudes aren’t welcome. Second, step forward to the JCCF or the CCF! They need volunteers to help challenge these Charter violations.

43:01 The possible costs of stepping forward for public interest litigation (some public shaming in court by lawyers, and it’s unlikely but you may have to pay too).

45:20 Safety culture eroding liberty.

Contact

Contact D. Jared Brown at brownlaw.ca or on twitter at @litigationguy

Contact Eugene Fernandes at eugenefernandes.com or on twitter at @eugenefds



May 29, 202147:04
Dr. Doug Allen - The Flawed Assumptions Beneath COVID-19 Modelling (Epidemiological and Economic)

Dr. Doug Allen - The Flawed Assumptions Beneath COVID-19 Modelling (Epidemiological and Economic)

Dr. Doug Allen is a professor of economics at Simon Fraser University.

Video Link: https://youtu.be/GVsQdUa9_Ds

References:

Allen. “Covid Lockdown Cost/Benefits: A Critical Assessment of the Literature.” April 2021. http://www.sfu.ca/~allen/LockdownReport.pdf

Atkeson, Kopecky and Zha. “Four Stylized Facts about COVID-19.” August 2020. doi = 10.3386/w27719

Timestamps:

2:15   His original thoughts on the pandemic when it first hit, and then how his thoughts changed.

6:10   What were the four false assumptions economic and epidemiological models have?

14:38   Why did governments latch onto the Imperial College London epidemiological model when it was so immediately and obviously flawed?

17:10   Based on what Allen observes, their models are epidemiological curves. This explains why health modelling goes up and up and up.

19:05   What is “endogenous” behaviour, how do epidemiological models fail to include it, and why are economic models simply superior?

21:35   Atkeson's model looked like it correctly followed the actual death rate as soon as he adds in the endogenous assumption. How do we know that lockdowns don’t actually work? Different lockdown policies but the same curves?

27:35   What should the media be reporting?

29:31   How does Atkeson distinguish between government and human action causing COVID-19 policy?

31:25   Variation in policy lets us identify whether lockdowns actually work or not. Why did Sweden have so many deaths, and is it really a “precautionary tale”?

33:38   What Dr. Allen was doing in his OLS Regression/Table 2 of his pdf. He correlated stringency and death numbers.

38:00   What are the costs of lockdowns? They are hard to identify, how to measure them (or to measure “lost value”).

41:48   How do you measure the cost of lost civil liberties? One big cost: social trust.

43:40   Bryan Caplan’s thought experiment that measures life years which gets around the issue of measuring all of the primary, secondary, and tertiary costs of lockdown.

51:24   What if it were young people were the most vulnerable to COVID? How would that change Caplan’s thought experiment?

52:22   The feedback that he’s been receiving - 99.9% positive. Politicians, health professionals, teachers, psychologists have been all reaching out.

55:11   How does Dr. Allen deal with the frustration about the incompetence up above? Quick shoutout to Ron DeSantis

56:24   Is this incompetence a result of stupidity or malevolence? Politicians’ institutional constraints.

Please check out my website at eugenefernandes.com/letters-from-a-contrarian/ to read the full show notes for this episode, along with the transcript.

My e-mail: lettersfromacontrarian2020@gmail.com

My twitter: eugenefds

Apr 30, 202158:60
Dave Redman - Models, Mismanagement, and Emergency Planning
Mar 31, 202101:02:58
Dr. Ari Joffe: A Cost-Benefit Analysis of Lockdowns
Feb 28, 202101:00:22
Season 2 Trailer
Feb 27, 202117:22
Ryan Elson: No Humble Opinions, Dialogue, Social Connection, and Changing Minds
Dec 29, 202058:27
Matt Strauss, MD: Lockdowns, Trust, China, Philosophy, and Doctors.
Nov 28, 202001:43:01
Dr Eddy Lang - Overdiagnosis, Cancer, ADHD, and Equity, Diversity and Inclusion

Dr Eddy Lang - Overdiagnosis, Cancer, ADHD, and Equity, Diversity and Inclusion

Dr Lang shares his concerns about overdiagnosis in breast cancer and prostate cancer screening, among other conditions, like ADHD. We chat about the incentives behind overdiagnosis along with some solutions to it too. Lastly, we chat about how Equity, Diversity and Inclusion applies in his work. You can learn more from the following websites:

canadiantaskforce.ca
preventingoverdiagnosis.net

You can reach Eddy on twitter at @eddylang1, and email him at eddy.lang [at] albertahealthservices [dot] ca.


Nov 02, 202001:20:33
Ford v. Pardy — The Conflict on the Right

Ford v. Pardy — The Conflict on the Right

Hey everyone! We're back! This week we have a debate between Caylan Ford, and Bruce Pardy. A debate between common good conservatism and libertarianism. The motion?

"In the face of growing intolerance from the left, the state should enforce the virtues of common good conservatism rather than the freedoms of classical liberalism."

Enjoy!
Oct 12, 202002:24:36
Jesse Clarke (@jesseclarke95): Ex-Muslims, Abduction, Fathers, and Fear

Jesse Clarke (@jesseclarke95): Ex-Muslims, Abduction, Fathers, and Fear

Hey there :) This week I spoke with Jesse Clarke, a charming ex-muslim activist from the UK. Enjoy!

Aug 12, 202001:48:10
JL (@stucatz101): From Finance to Carpentry, and Nassim Taleb.

JL (@stucatz101): From Finance to Carpentry, and Nassim Taleb.

Ciao everyone! This week I spoke with someone I met on twitter - a guy from Toronto who talked about the university system, graduating with a finance degree, going into carpentry, and more generally, his thoughts on how to become a skilled and competent person. Enjoy.
Aug 03, 202046:59
Nadia Guo: Police Accountability, a Lawyer's Reputation, Media Deception, and Sex Work

Nadia Guo: Police Accountability, a Lawyer's Reputation, Media Deception, and Sex Work

Welcome back. This week I spoke with Ms. Nadia Guo - a criminal defence lawyer and sex worker based in Toronto. You can reach her on twitter at @ngdefence. Enjoy. 

Jul 29, 202001:59:34
Dr. Ryan Alford: 7 Absolute Rights, Canada's Unwritten Constitution, Torture, and Law Schools
Jul 20, 202001:49:51
Lisa Bildy: StopSOP, Creating New Institutions, Liberalism, and Flirting

Lisa Bildy: StopSOP, Creating New Institutions, Liberalism, and Flirting

Hey everyone! We're back with another episode. Lisa Bildy is a lawyer for the Justice Center for Constitutional Freedoms. Reach her on twitter at @ldbildy
Jul 14, 202002:41:09
Ryan Handlarski: #metoo, Apartheid, StopSOP, and Boomers
Jun 30, 202002:21:38
Candice Malcolm: Kenney, Khalistani Extremism, and Journalistic Courage

Candice Malcolm: Kenney, Khalistani Extremism, and Journalistic Courage

Hey everyone! On this episode, I speak with Candice Malcom. We talked about Jason Kenney and Danielle Smith (two of Alberta's political leaders), how Candice uses intimidation to drive her forward (she's antifragile!), her article on Sikh extremism in Canada and Jagmeet Singh, how she views the media, the value of taking a public position and arguing with friends, and, of course, some book recommendations. 

Jun 25, 202001:16:32
Ara Ghougassian: "hey Duolingo, i'm coming for your a**!"

Ara Ghougassian: "hey Duolingo, i'm coming for your a**!"

That infamous and viral tweet was what launched Ara's startup "Fluent" into the public's view. I chat with him on this episode. This was an awesome episode! I loved loved loved it. Give him a follow at @araghougassian (ara - ghou - gas - sian). And here's the timestamps:

4:15 (How Ara got Fluent’s tweet to BLOW UP). 18:30 What Fluent is and its origin story. 28:59 (Odyss). 38:20 (University vs. a Startup for Education). 55:57 (A defence of interruption). 1:02.47 (The pros and cons of being an honest and funny person + Andrew Schultz). 1:17:12 (The Left-Right spectrum doesn't apply to violence). 1:52:52 (we get meta with politics and offer solutions). 2:16.06 (How to get a startup job without a degree - SELL YOURSELF). He ends with life advice.

Jun 16, 202002:28:44
Lindsay Shepherd: Yaniv, TERFs, Motherhood and Courage

Lindsay Shepherd: Yaniv, TERFs, Motherhood and Courage

Hey everyone! We're back with Lindsay Shepherd today. Enjoy.

Jun 15, 202001:03:29
Caylan Ford: Revolution, Liberalism's Failings, and Transcendent Justice
Jun 04, 202002:08:03
Zach (@zachcantrad): Traditional Architecture, Objective Beauty, and The Cult of Modernism

Zach (@zachcantrad): Traditional Architecture, Objective Beauty, and The Cult of Modernism

Hey everyone! This podcast was about architecture and why architecture has become ... uglier and wackier over time. Thank you to Zach (who graduated from architecture school in 2019) for joining me and talking about his experience at architecture school. You can reach him on twitter at @cantradionalist. I would post all of the show notes here but they turned out to be three pages long. If you want to know the exact minute you should go to that touches on the subject you want to learn more about, you can read the show notes on my website at eugenefernandes.com. Thanks! Oh, and here are the links to the things we mentioned: Here's the NUMTOTS group on facebook.  Wrath of Gnon Christopher Liberatos Peterson and Paglia’s discussion  Palladio awards  Zach's thesis project - slavic inspired buildings.  Zach's example of "Frankenstein buildings" which poorly trained architects end up designing.   Adrian Vermeule 9 lane highway vs a beautiful town. Zach's book recommendation: Traditional Construction Patterns: Design and Detail - Rules of Thumb. To reach me, you can tweet me @eugenefds or email me at lettersfromacontrarian2020 [at] gmail [dot] com. This conversation was recorded on May 28, 2020.

May 29, 202001:39:59
Steve Paolasini (pt. 2) - Deporting Native-Born Citizens, Facebook Arguments, and Government.

Steve Paolasini (pt. 2) - Deporting Native-Born Citizens, Facebook Arguments, and Government.

Hey everyone! Steve's back by popular demand for part 2. We talk about what he learned from running for office, his dreams moving forward, his thoughts on COVID-19 government policy, and non-alcoholic beers. Hope you like it! 

Here's how you can reach me: twitter, facebook, website

Here's a show index (give or take 3 minutes). 

Enjoy!

5:00 – Stephen Harper, how it feels to run, and the Christian Heritage Party.

9:00 – What he’s learned from the process – don’t get started in politics to change policy. He did it to spread a message and to get his name up. He also now has a much greater appreciation for democracy.

14:00 – Running for the Libertarian party – WHY?! Marijuana legalization, pipelines, taxes (aka punishment), drug decriminalization, “last calls” at bars. Potential run for Calgary city council?!

21:00 – Competition between provinces, blockchain, competitive citizenship, US immigration.

33:00 – Going back into politics. Steve’s dream of retiring at 35 years old. The 4 hour Workweek.

36:00 – Future plans: Make Canada the BEST! Solve problems like Saudi Arabia, Hong Kong. We could be so much richer as a country! We should deport unproductive people.

41:00 – Immigrants > native-born citizens. Freer markets make people richer. All businesses are essential… Blockchain solves so many problems!

47:00 – “Is the juice worth the squeeze?” from The Girl Next Door.

49:00 – Change yourself first.

53:00 – Whether it’s worth it to get into Facebook Arguments. Guns. It’s wrong to say that “Americans are gun killers.” Time wasting, being a contrarian.

1:03:00 – Free expression. HustleCo's libertarian press release.

1:09:00 The Government has taken away our freedoms! Or has it? Fears of freedoms being taken away. The Runnymede Society. Our justice system and how it’s pretty good.

1:22:00 – Control is worse than privacy violations! AB tracing app. Blockchain is perfect for this!

1:27:00 – Is it worth it to be a contrarian?

1:30:00 – What would you tell your old self? Find the other contrarians, try not to get emotional, don’t let it affect you. “Facebook is a mental asylum.” Try not to drink your problems away. Have some humour!

1:38:00 – Trump.

May 27, 202001:42:44
Michael Kudla: 7th Day Adventists, Atheism, Reason, and Thought

Michael Kudla: 7th Day Adventists, Atheism, Reason, and Thought

Thanks to Michael Kudla for joining me for the 3rd episode of the podcast. Here are the show notes (where you can find what subjects are spoken about, and when).

You can also reach him on Facebook and on Instagram

To reach me, you can tweet me @eugenefds or email me at lettersfromacontrarian2020 [at] gmail [dot] com.

This conversation was recorded on May 22, 2020. 

May 24, 202001:17:38
Steve Paolasini: Libertarians, Immigration and Starting a Marketing Company
May 21, 202001:06:46
The First Episode! A Chat with my good friend Nikola Kuzmanovic
May 08, 202001:08:55