Risk Parameters (letter)

Recount #2

Risk… a word that permeates commerce, war, love, and the soul’s great wagers. A word interwoven into the fabric of Life itself.

As mentioned in the inaugural Recount, words are containers of power. Most weeks we will look back into the roots, the etymology of a word, to gain better context of its denotative versus connotative implications.

We begin this pattern by unearthing Risk, out of its etymological lineage, which is layered in peril and potential, spanning poverty and prosperity.

It is defined as the possibility of loss, danger, or harm; or, in its verb form, to expose to hazard.

But its roots reveal it to be deeper than just danger. It implies a daring encounter with the unknown.

Traveling past-ward from the modern to the Italian, we come across risco / riscoare – which is to dare, to venture – particularly seaborne voyages.

This word is the genesis of maritime insurance, which we know became inclusive of cargo protection, which resulted in due course in the stocks and bonds of our persons, the precursor to the Securities and Exchange market.

While the majority of our diaspora was already here, there was some kidnapping and delivery of people and any conversation about the oceanic transport of prisoners of war naturally brings us to the Portuguese. They used risco to identify a reef, cliff, or any hazard to navigation.

Stemming from the Vulgar Latin, the word here is risicum. This means not just danger, but danger that arises from a decision. Not passive fate, but active participation.

So boom – let’s get into a decision that deals with navigation risk, from the suffocating hold of a contemporary slave ship.

I began this project fully intending to use my own likeness, and certainly my voice. This, no doubt, was equal parts a self-imposed demand for authenticity, the vanity of ego admittedly, and naturally, a dash of ‘screw them’ – which is really just more ego.

A member of the team recommended that I cloak my voice. Not replace it, but use an A.I. tool where it’s pointedly shown to be altered. The suggestion was both for security as well as effecting a mysterious aura.

I balked. Hard. The batter got three bases on it.

I absolutely refused.

As Al Pacino famously said in Heat,

“You ca’ get killed walkin’ ya’ doggy.”

While I most certainly do not support the position of Tone Loc’s chop-shop character, it is true that risk is inherent in all things. It’s about managing that risk as relative to the potential gain.

Most people take risk in hopes of escaping from the world; I risk to escape back to it.

Disclaimer – by ‘escape’ I mean orchestrate my free & clear physical liberty with no strings attached, back to my life. A new, enhanced life.

Still, what’s the point of having a team you ignore? So I forced it into consideration. I asked another team member, that agreed with the first. I asked my mother’s opinion, and well, as you can imagine, the Mother-Goddess agreed.

I was unmoved. I drafted a memo detailing the reasons why I must insist on this level of authenticity, the potential risk, the possible outcomes of those risks, the resultant consequences of the unfavorable scenarios, and the likelihood of arriving at that exact aftermath regardless of any action taken or refrained from, and therefore, why not max out on position sizing?

I circulated this memorandum to those two members as well as the rest of the team. They responded that it was unnecessary to explain my reasoning. Me? I strongly believe that anything less would defeat the purpose of having a team. One individual in particular commented that he could see I had considered all exigencies carefully and was willing to accept the drawdowns. However, if I could minimize the risk further, why wouldn’t I?

I still maintained my self-justified stance.

I brought it before my mentor (actually, the mentor of us all) who reiterated the point that if you don’t listen to legal, why have the department? He then offered some added benefits to the equation, above and beyond protecting my safety, which I clearly did not hold in the highest regard. What he said somehow clicked different.

It occurred to me that over the space of quarter-century I have mediated innumerable conflicts. Many times I swore there was nothing the other side could say to sway me. I heard them out solely as a courtesy, only to hear something that shifted the tide. I’ve always endorsed the prerogative – and wisdom – of changing your mind, when it is the wiser path, no matter the what-it-looks-like.

I got back with the team that very night, and utilizing the implant technique – which you will read about as we continue our journey navigating these choppy waters – I input it into my overnight processor (set the issue on my mental plate) released it, and slept.

What downloaded from the Source was a compliment of gradated steps that would satisfy both camps.

Okay, so boom – Everything openly accessible to everyone (including social media bounty hunters) would remain print-only, or employ the innovative advancement of AI voice.

Media reverberating from my actual voice box, or displaying my likeness, would be lodged behind a paywall. Or more appropriately, the Commissary Wall. As I am Behind the Wall, it reasonably follows that to touch my Life, it’s necessary to reach beyond the ‘wall’. In this case the “comm-wall”

This is for the protection of myself as well as those that have been gracious enough to contribute to the project, even though they remain inside.

This is not to present some façade that I am averse to compensation for my work. At this time, it is that very revenue that allows me to write freely. To write when I want, say what I want, help who I want.

If you allow me a play on Queen Maya Angelou’s classic aphorism, it is that freedom is what allows this caged phoenix to harmonize.

So, Boom – Time to Lock In

Notwithstanding the foregoing, the primary purpose of the comm-wall is insulation from those who would seek to silence me for political agenda (as the social media task force is unable/unlikely to enter a credit/debit card even for a trial subscription), or for whatever reason, those with a personal begrudgement. ⬇️

Note: Writing freely also includes word alchemy!

So boom – now we can move forward with the slated itinerary, giving you what you need to save time, money and frustration in navigating the system, while preserving your relationship with your loved ones.

While the following might play out like an acknowledgement page, as I said, this was a critical juncture, especially for ensuring that Mom-dukes would have peace of mind. Plus I’m big on pointing out the shoulders that enable me to stand that much taller. straighter, stronger, higher.

That being said, next release I’m in ya chest with harsh realities. So put on your grown up eyes & ears.

Before these doors roll into the locked position, I gotta send a special Thank You to those below for weighing in (read: insisting) on this critical decision.

My team: Shresia, Mike Dolo, Shelly J, Tlae74 and Jasmin Cimone.

Salute & Gratitude to our mentor:

Ian Dunlap, The Master Investor 🙏

#okaysoboom

Special mention to Edwin Lopez, Stock Chart Shawty,

Earn Your Leisure University, and the entire Red Panda Stock Club Family!

CUFF KEYS

Survival Key –> Get You Home-Work: Truth has a vibration.