Have You Found Reasons to be Cheerful?

It was a wet, cold March evening as I parked up in Hammersmith and walked across the bridge to the Apollo. A now familiar route that I enjoy with my wife since the closure of the bridge in 2019. This evening we were to see David Byrne in concert, an evening of songs that in truth, we weren’t that familiar with. A missing older brother meant that our first exposure to Talking Heads was the whacky, off-piste videos from their 1985 album Little Creatures and tunes that quickly became ear-worms like And She Was and Road to Nowhere, which introduced us to earlier songs Once in A Lifetime (1981) and Burning Down The House (1983).

The oddity of David Byrne amused me at the time, but I wasn’t in a place to be intrigued enough by his messages at the time; fun tunes but little else. As I’ve aged, read more and become more engaged with difference as a way of making sense of the world, Byrne has come to be a rather engaging subversive optimist, someone who points to the absurd and causes us to think again.

Optimism is needed by all investors, there is little point in investing in future growth if you don’t really believe in much of a future and at the moment, that sense of optimism is being severely challenged by the lunatics and sycophants in the White House. Our once reliable, thoughtful, intelligent allies have reverted to the very worst of failing school bullies. The Trump administration and the couldn’t-care-less way in which they brutally treat people and the planet is deeply depressing. I wake most days hoping for news of his arrest or end, and within the week he has managed to dig even deeper into the depths of depravity.

So I seek out stories of hope, taking minor actions (reading, discussing, writing and protesting) to counteract the mainstream narratives. To make a stand for decency and our sole inhabitable planet. Some days it is harder to do than others. When I meet with clients, the sentiments expressed are of the same exasperation. I have come to rediscover people like Byrne who provide some respite and relief and of course a genuine sense that most people are actually decent, not complicit in a march towards fascism, but struggling to cope with the overwhelming amount of chaos and stupidity on display not simply in the US, but here in the UK and around the world.

Byrne also gives me hope as he turns 74 in May and whilst having some breaks from public attention, has been relentless in his creativity. Byrne took inspiration from Ian Dury (yes the hit me with your rhythm stick, Dury) title Reasons to Be Cheerful (1979) and founded an organisation of the same name which provides stories from around the world that most people would find hopeful. He attempts to counteract the mainstream narratives of division and hatred, building a sense of togetherness and an appreciation for the beauty of life and our planet. So whilst the media and the US regime probably makes many of us feel both despair and disbelief, there are, thankfully many billions of us who have reasons to be cheerful. As you may have read or heard me say, I encourage clients to “tune out the noise” by which I mean – try not to listen to the news which leans towards pessimism and strife and gets you living in a state of permanent anxiety about the future and your portfolio. We never hear news like “billions wiped ON to the market this week”. Of course we all need to be informed, but I think careful selection of our choice of media is important, and sadly the traditional forms appear to be considerably compromised under any substantive inspection. Indeed, we have witnessed the Trump administration threaten, cancel and mock journalists, actual news stations, comedians and frankly anyone who challenges their lies.

So you may find it helpful to have a look at Byrne’s organisation and perhaps put some music on and dance. He danced and performed on the very large Hammersmith stage for a solid two hours – no small feat for a man of 73.

References:

Reasons to Be Cheerful: https://reasonstobecheerful.world/

David Byrne: https://whoisthesky.davidbyrne.com/

Hammersmith Apollo: https://www.eventimapollo.com/

Talk by Byrne at SXSW2019: https://youtu.be/To50fTfNqn0?si=eSwnGJP4kgarL0IP

What is SXSW? https://sxsw.com/about/

SXSW London: https://www.sxswlondon.com/

Gapminder: https://www.gapminder.org/factfulness/

UK News Fact Check: https://fullfact.org/

Reuters Fact Check service: https://www.reuters.com/fact-check/

UK Government fact check: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/how-content-requests-from-government-get-published/fact-checking-content-on-govuk