Do women secretly rule the world?

Divorce, it turns out, can spark serious emotional trauma, enough so to throw off even the world’s most powerful CEOs. You are receiving this email because you subscribed to Wealth Daily. [Click here]( to manage your e-mail preferences. [Wealth Daily logo] Do women secretly rule the world? [Jason Stutman Photo] By [Jason Stutman]( Written Jan. 19, 2019 Recently, I took a trip to California to visit an old friend of mine from high school. He’s currently living in San Francisco after taking a job with Google a year ago, so we found time to catch up last week, as I was already attending a pair of conferences on the West Coast — the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas and the JP Morgan Healthcare Conference in San Francisco. Come August, my friend is getting married, so naturally we fell into conversation over drinks about relationships and the power dynamics within them. We talked about the density of beautiful women in California and the importance of self-control in monogamous relationships. At some point this led to a lighthearted debate about whether or not an open relationship could ever really work. My friend entertained the notion that some couples need non-monogamy. I decried the idea, arguing that an open relationship is nothing more than friends with benefits, dressed up in a tuxedo and gown. As the alcohol flowed, we fell further into “locker room talk.” My jovial conclusion was that women secretly ruled the world behind the scenes. It’s an idea my friend couldn’t help but laugh at, yet we both agreed there’s some underlying truth to the notion. After all, life is built on the process of natural selection, and, at least in the case of most species, females take up the role of the selector. As for how any of this is relevant to the market, I couldn’t help but view our conversation through the lens of recent events. In case you haven’t heard by now, Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) CEO Jeff Bezos recently announced that he and wife MacKenzie Bezos will be undergoing a divorce, and, with that split in limbo, the market has been wondering exactly what it means for the world’s most valuable company. As it stands, the general consensus is that MacKenzie Bezos is legally entitled to half of the $140 billion Amazon fortune. The market remains focused on the potential consequences this will have on voting power at Amazon, but in all likelihood, Jeff will maintain those rights. At the end of the day, voting power is a distraction from what really matters, and that’s Jeff’s ability to continue running Amazon with the same level of efficiency we’ve come to expect. Divorce, it turns out, can spark serious emotional trauma, enough so to throw off even the world’s most powerful CEOs. Global Shortage Primes Gains Up to 1,324% There’s a shortfall in one tiny but crucial component used in every electronic device in the world. Prices for these “chips” have increased by 200 times in the past year. One simple move could make you 1,343% or more in the next few months... [Click here now for details.]( Take what recently happened with Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) CEO Elon Musk. In early 2018, the eccentric billionaire split with actress Amber Heard, only to latch on to musician Grimes a few months later. At risk of seeming superficial, visual context helps. Elon went from dating this classy lady: To this mess of a human being: Around this time is when Musk started to really go off the rails (are you really so surprised?). The CEO called a man on Twitter a pedophile without evidence, smoked a joint on the Joe Rogan Podcast, broke out into tears on 60 Minutes, and ultimately lost his seat on Tesla’s board of directors after falsely announcing that “funding [was] secured” for a private takeout at $420 a share. Consequently, Tesla’s share price suffered dramatically during this time, sinking from as high as $370 a share to as low as $250. It’s not much of a stretch to say that Musk’s behavior during this time was being influenced behind the scenes by Grimes. Earlier this week, interestingly enough, a court granted the motion to serve subpoenas to Grimes in a lawsuit relating to the “funding secured” tweet, so it’s safe to assume she was involved to some extent. Was Elon desperately trying to impress Grimes as he dealt with the loss of Amber Heard? Was he lashing out at shorts because his ego was in damage control mode? Obviously, we can only speculate, but I think those are fairly reasonable conclusions. Women, it turns out, wield the power to make men do some pretty stupid things (intentionally or not). Still, that’s just one piece of anecdotal evidence, so let’s look at what the research has to say. According to Wheatley, Vogt, and Murrell (1991), 37% of companies report that employee divorce negatively impacts firm productivity. According to Neyland (2012), total CEO compensation increases following divorce (boards react to offset the CEO’s loss of wealth), and the cost of that usually comes at the direct expense of shareholders. And according to Larcker, McCall, and Tayan (2013), divorce can affect the productivity, concentration, and energy levels of the CEO. In fact, one of Larcker’s findings is that divorce is often even a catalyst for accelerated resignation or retirement. If Michael Faraday Had the Right Lawyer, He’d Be Worth Trillions Today When Michael Faraday invented this gizmo in the 1820s, he had no idea that within a century and a half, it would be the most commonly used electrical device on the planet. Today, in its millions of forms and functions, Faraday’s inventions consume more than half of the energy mankind produces. They play primary roles in almost every piece of consumer, commercial, and industrial equipment, from electric watches and cell phones to electrical vehicles and all the way up to nuclear submarines. But what would surprise Faraday even more is that since the 1820s, when he finished his first prototype, the basic design has not changed... [Find out how this tiny tech startup just flipped a $3 trillion industry upside down.]( As for how this will all play out for Jeff Bezos, time will ultimately tell, but it’s safe to say that the unprecedented breakup adds at least some level of risk to Amazon shareholders. So far, the market has not priced any of this in, with shares up 13.9% year to date. Now, maybe I’m reaching here a bit by digging into the tabloids, but Lauren Sanchez smells like trouble for Bezos. For one, former football player and Sanchez's ex-fiancé Anthony Miller claims she cheated on him and cannot be trusted. Exes can be spiteful, of course, but considering that Sanchez was having an affair with Bezos right under husband Patrick Whitesell’s nose, the characterization doesn’t seem so outlandish. Now, I ain't sayin’ she’s a gold digger... But when sources close to Sanchez say, “She’s got an uncanny ability to make people do anything — she’s very persuasive — both intentionally and unintentionally,” that should be enough to raise the alarm for investors. I ain't sayin’ she’s a gold digger... But when she’s sending her friends “dick pics” from the world’s richest man (I’m not making this up) and putting his reputation at risk, that should give you a pretty good idea where both of their heads are at. So, Amazon investors, you’ve been be warned. As the saying goes, behind every great man, there’s a great woman. MacKenzie Bezos was behind Jeff for the last two decades. Now, it’s Lauren Sanchez. Take from that what you will, and invest accordingly. Until next time, [JS Sig] Jason Stutman [follow basic]( [@JasonStutman on Twitter]( Jason Stutman is Wealth Daily's senior technology analyst and editor of investment advisory newsletters Technology and Opportunity and The Cutting Edge. His strategy for building winning portfolios is simple: Buy the disruptor, sell the disrupted. Covering the broad sector of technology and occasionally dabbling in the political sphere, Jason has written hundreds of articles spanning topics from consumer electronics and development stage biotechnology to political forecasting and social commentary. Outside the office Jason is a lover of science fiction and the outdoors, and an amateur squash player at best. He writes through the lens of a futurist, free market advocate, and fiscal conservative. Jason currently hails from Baltimore, Maryland, with roots in the great state of New York. Enjoy reading this article? [Click here]( to like it and receive similar articles to read! Browse Our Archives [Meet the McDonald's of Cannabis]( [One of 2019's Best]( [Your Gut Is Not Smart]( [Where Are the Best Value Stocks After the Market Sell-Off?]( [Who's Going Public? Cannabis IPOs in 2019 Part 3]( --------------------------------------------------------------- This email was sent to {EMAIL}. It is not our intention to send email to anyone who doesn't want it. If you're not sure why you've received this e-letter, or no longer wish to receive it, you may [unsubscribe here](, and view our privacy policy and information on how to manage your subscription. To ensure that you receive future issues of Wealth Daily, please add newsletter@wealthdaily.com to your address book or whitelist within your spam settings. For customer service questions or issues, please contact us for assistance. [Wealth Daily](, Copyright © 2019, [Angel Publishing LLC](. All rights reserved. 111 Market Place #720 Baltimore, MD 21202. The content of this site may not be redistributed without the express written consent of Angel Publishing. Individual editorials, articles and essays appearing on this site may be republished, but only with full attribution of both the author and Wealth Daily as well as a link to www.wealthdaily.com. Your privacy is important to us -- we will never rent or sell your e-mail or personal information. [View our privacy policy here.]( No statement or expression of opinion, or any other matter herein, directly or indirectly, is an offer or the solicitation of an offer to buy or sell the securities or financial instruments mentioned. While we believe the sources of information to be reliable, we in no way represent or guarantee the accuracy of the statements made herein. [Wealth Daily]( does not provide individual investment counseling, act as an investment advisor, or individually advocate the purchase or sale of any security or investment. Neither the publisher nor the editors are registered investment advisors. Subscribers should not view this publication as offering personalized legal or investment counseling. Investments recommended in this publication should be made only after consulting with your investment advisor and only after reviewing the prospectus or financial statements of the company in question.