It’s Armistice Day, November 11th, in thenation's capital. It is a brisk day at Arlington National Cemetery. Dignitaries stand silently on the third anniversaryof the ending of World War I, watching as a single white casket is lowered into a marbledtomb. In attendance is President Calvin Coolidge,former President Woodrow Wilson, Supreme Court Justice (as well as former President) WilliamHoward Taft, Chief Plenty Coups, and hundreds of dedicated United States servicemen. As the casket settles on its final restingplace in the tomb, upon a thin layer of French soil, three salvos are fired. A bugler plays taps and, with the final note,comes a 21 gun salute. The smoke clears and eyes dry as the UnknownSoldier from World War I is laid to rest; the first unknown soldier to be officiallyhonored in this manner in American history. The United States’ allies in World War I,France and Britain, were the first countries to practice the concept of burying an “unknownsoldier.” World W...
In architecture, pyramids are famed for their sturdiness. They’ve lasted for thousands of years despite overgrown jungles and blasting desert sands ripping at their foundations. They’re about as indestructible as our buildings get. But as businesses? Not so much. A pyramid scheme beings to collapse the moment it's begun. Because it's not really a pyramid. The base is flipped. And if you invert a pyramid, you're left with a funnel. There’s not a lot of buildings that are shaped like a V. In 1997, Albania learned a very hard lessonabout funnels. No matter how much water you pour into them,it doesn’t stop trickling halfway down. If something sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Be it a beautiful woman looking to chat online,a company that says you can retire at thirty-five, or a politician saying that he’ll make yourcountry great again, they’re all selling a fantasy. The world is never so simple as jingoistswould have you believe. The whiff of money, power and fame ar...