Author, Doctor, Speaker, Joseph Bentivegna

Doctor Bentivegna is an ophthalmologist living in Connecticut. He has written numerous op-ed pieces for The Hartford Courant and The New York Times regarding health care, tort reform, and the political situation in Haiti.

Bitcoin Challenges the Powers That Be

        While the chattering classes are blathering about the racism of Dr. Seuss, the sexual harassment of Pepé Le Pew and the wokeness of Mr. Potato Head, a subterranean herculean battle is brewing over a new financial asset that could give the masses unprecedented power to prevent profligate governments from impoverishing them by printing money ad infinitum – Bitcoin.       Bitcoin is a digital cryptocurrency, meaning that it is protected by complex codes rendering it impossible to counterfeit. Its origins are somewhat mysterious but the consensus is that in 2008 a consortium of geniuses with the pseudonym Satoshi Nakamoto decided to create the digital equivalent of gold. But unlike digging in the earth or panning for it in stream, bitcoins are mined from Bitcoin software by ambitious computer geeks solving increasingly complex computer problems and then being rewarded a number of bitcoins. The number of bitcoins that would be released was fixed at 21,000,000 and presently, almost 19,000,000 have been mined. … [Read more...]

President Biden Stops Global Warming

        Hah! Take that you climate-deniers! The global warming caused by President Trump has been stopped dead in its tracks. President Biden took bold action, ending the Keystone Pipe Line, reentering the Paris Climate Agreement and banning oil and gas exploration on federal lands and - Voila! – not only is there a record cold wave; but a cold wave that is selectively punishing yahoo climate-denying, fossil-fuel-guzzling states like Texas, Oklahoma and Kansas. It’s not nice to mess with Mother Nature. But how did this happen so quickly?       Seeking answers, I decided to contact an expert. Fortunately for me, my old girlfriend from medical school (who wisely dumped me) married renowned climate change expert, Stanford professor, Dr. Enrico Pantheistelli. Since Marcia and I still remain friends, she was kind enough to arrange a Zoom interview with her husband. What follows is a slightly edited transcript of our discussion.       Me: “Dr. Pantheistelli. So kind of you to speak to me.”       Dr. … [Read more...]

GameShop Fiasco Shows the Ruling Class Grifters are Back

        Well that didn’t take long. Just one week into the Biden presidency, America’s ruling class has put the hoi polloi in its place by bailing out a flailing hedge fund because a bunch of COVID-bored bloggers and small investors were about to push it into insolvency.       First, some background. In May of 2020, the car rental company Hertz filed for bankruptcy sending its share price to 56 cents. Day traders decided to start bidding up the price, increasing it ten-fold. It was not because these day traders thought the stock should be worth more. It was because they hoped they could buy it, let suckers buy it for more, then dump in for a nifty profit – a practice called “pump and dump.” Think if it as playing musical chairs, only the last person sitting in the chair is the loser, not the winner.       Fast forward to today. Day traders decided to do the same with a stock called GameShop. GameShop sells video games from retail outlets in malls – a business model that is slightly better than manufacturing buggy whips and … [Read more...]