• European energy prices
• US natural gas prices spike due to exports to Europe
• US Midterm Elections discussion
• Polarization of congress – it’s hard to be a moderate and win elections (Kendra Horn)
• The people voting to end US oil production now blaming US oil producers for “price fixing”
• The spike in mineral costs needed for the energy transition is causing evolving renewable economics
• Rivian IPO and subsequent stock crash

• Doubling of Russia’s oil revenue versus 2021
• Financial sanctions hit the poor but have not been successful at defeating the war machine
• Russia forcing companies to pay for commodities in Rubles and India clearly stating they will continue to trade with Russia
• Saudi’s shifting away from the petrodollar
• Taking oligarchs’ stuff
• Sanctions are easy to avoid in 2022 and most countries are focused on feeding their people and economies first
• Politics has become a sporting event

• Ukraine War update
• Comparisons of Ukraine War to the buildup prior to World War I and World War II
• China backing Russia
• Weird war vibes
• Media distractions while the world as we know it seems to be falling apart
• Public perception
• US funding for Ukraine War proposals versus Afghan direct military aid over War in Afghanistan
• Russia’s invasion calculus with same US foreign policy brain trust that was in place during invasion of Crimea
• Predicting war last year
• Putin’s legacy and Russian succession plans
• Russia’s threats to bomb European cities

• Elon Musk Twitter purchase
• Monthly active users as a valuation method for social media companies
• Advantages/disadvantages of going public as an internet company 
• Public companies need bots to maintain monthly active user metrics
• People have been focusing on culture war issues but why Twitter is a great business buy for Musk - Twitter job cuts, Twitter financials
• Why Twitter is a better purchase financially versus other billionaire media purchases (WaPo, Time, etc)
• Bot removal improves product and can improve advertising rates
• Elon musk is a businessman that had to have a clear business plan and profitability trajectory to obtain financing
• Why the Twitter board had to approve the Musk deal - board fiduciary duties and liability
• Founder stock structures to maintain control when public
• Advantages of taking public tech companies private 

• Food supply chain, fertilizer shortages, coming food shortages 
• Ukraine wheat production
• US food storages versus China food storages
• A near future where China leverages their food storage for geopolitical influence

Mike asks Matt about his newly published children's book, ABC's of Oil and Gas, now available on Amazon.

• Going after what you want despite what others say - don’t let people rain on your dreams
• Living life like a child approaches play
• Journaling

Mike and Matt discuss the advantages of taking public tech companies private.

• Why the Twitter board had to approve the Musk deal - board fiduciary duties and liability
• Founder stock structures to maintain control when public

• NFTs
• Bored Ape Yacht Club hack $13M 
• Tulip Mania
• NFTs as a mechanism for artists to capture future sales value
• OpenSea NFT sales volume
• Virtual reality applications beyond media and entertainment 
• The gamification of war