“There is no greater impediment to the advancement of knowledge than the ambiguity of words.” Thomas Reid Most Canadians are familiar with the trope about how ‘the Inuit have more than 50 words for snow.’  A claim that was originated by anthropologist Franz Boas during his time on Baffin Island in the late 19th century. […]

“Free lunches don’t come cheap.” Charles Petzold In the nineteenth century, taverns and saloons would offer their drinking patrons a ‘free lunch’.  These inexpensive and salty meals kept the customers staying longer and consuming more of the high-margin alcoholic beverages.  This practice, which led to some saloons being charged with false advertising, gave rise to […]

“Inflation is when you pay fifteen dollars for the ten-dollar haircut you used to get for five dollars when you had hair.” Sam Ewing Every now and then it would be nice to have a crystal ball.  As complete and utter bond nerds, one of the questions we would be asking is the direction of […]

“Since becoming a central banker, I have learned to mumble with great incoherence. If I seem unduly clear to you, you must have misunderstood what I said.” Alan Greenspan Summer has officially arrived and brought with it a healthy dose of optimism.  The sunshine and second jabs have pierced through the corona clouds, as the […]

“The best time to buy a home is always five years ago.” Ray Brown This time last year, the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation predicted that house prices would fall 9 – 18%. They got the magnitude about right, just the direction wrong. Over the past year, strong demand for detached homes and ultra-low mortgage […]