The problem with populism

A few years ago, I read a tragic story in a local newspaper about a young man who was walking along the train tracks with his earphones blasting loud music. Far ahead, he could see a train hurtling towards him and people on the side of the tracks were yelling and waving to get his attention. He ignored them, he had plenty of time to move … and then he was instantly killed by a train coming the other way. As we head towards the mid-term elections, America is bitterly divided politically, and many investors worry that "Chaos in Washington," variously defined, will cause the market to crash.