How history is remembered is one of the best ways of determining how a people wishes to understand itself. Currently we are in the midst of the 150th anniversary of the Civil War and this conflict, and the way that it is taught and learned and understood tells us much about ourselves in the early 21st […]
Black Friday is upon us! But where did it start?
Martin Apfelbaum and the origin of the term “Black Friday” Read More »
Lost in our everyday trials and tribulations is a proper appreciation about what we have to be thankful for. We live in the greatest time to live in history, in the greatest country. A middle class American today has a far better life than a European king had 200 years ago. Losing a child to
Happy Thanksgiving Read More »
Many endeavors have disputes over who are the greats in the field. Baseball aficionados have argued for decades over the greatest players and teams. Complex statistical analyses have been devised that can be used to compare players from different generations to each other. Others statistics rate the comparative values to their teams of pitchers versus
The Cobb, Ruth and Mays of Philately Read More »
The Endowment Effect is a concept in behavioral economics which states that people tend to increase their idea of the value of an item depending on whether or not they are the owner. The Endowment Effect was first hypothesized by the economist Richard Thaler and is an example of a big name for an idea that
Psychologists Explain Why Collectors tend to Over Value Their Stamps Read More »
It is always interesting to speculate on future winners and losers in the stamp market. Philatelic popularity is ever changing. In 1900, foreign postal stationery cut squares were a serious specialty that looked likely to continue in popularity. Today, almost no one collects them. In 1950, US precancels were avidly collected. Today there are few fans.
Ten Years From Now Read More »
There are two major factors that influence philatelic popularity- first, the number of collectors who have a nationalistic interest in the particular stamps and, second, the intrinsic sex appeal of the stamps from their use, colorfulness of area of origin or design. Thus US stamps or German stamps are popular under the first guide line
One Hundred Years Old and Still Popular Read More »