"Liberation" Zimbabwe fed sub-Saharan Africa. White commercial farmers ran some of the continent's most productive land, exporting maize, tobacco, and beef across the region. Then Robert Mugabe decided the land belonged to the people, and the people he had in mind were his cronies. Beginning in 2000, Mugabe's government seized +-4,000 white-owned farms under the Fast Track Land Reform Programme, handing them to veterans and political allies who knew nothing about commercial agriculture. Output collapsed immediately. Maize production fell from 1.5 million tonnes in 2000 to under 500,000 tonnes by 2008. The government's response was to print money. The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe printed money to cover fiscal deficits it refused to close through spending cuts, issuing progressively larger denominations until the $100 trillion note arrived in January 2009, barely enough to buy a loaf of bread. Destroy property rights, and farmers stop farming. Print currency to patch the wound, and you destroy the price signals that tell producers what to grow, buy, or sell. Mugabe's government chose hyperinflation through deliberate policy steps, no accident. Inflation robs you silently. Starvation is less subtle. From the breadbasket of Africa to the poorest shithole in the world within 10 years. Venezuela's socialist government looked at this disaster and said, "Hold my beer."

Meta Platforms ($META) will create a new class of non-voting shares, giving the company another way to raise capital while allowing CEO Mark Zuckerberg to maintain voting control. Meta’s board declared a dividend of one Class C share for every outstanding Class A and Class B share, with the recapitalization taking effect Jan. 19, 2027. The Class C shares will carry no voting rights. Entities tied to Zuckerberg and Priscilla Chan, which control 56.1% of Meta’s voting power, already approved the change, meaning shareholders will not vote on it. Meta said the new shares could be used to raise capital, compensate employees and fund acquisitions without diluting existing voting control. The company expects to sell Class C shares periodically. World Trade Securities CEO Nicholas Mugalli said the structure could signal “more capex coming,” particularly as Meta already expects 2026 capital expenditures of $135 billion to $145 billion amid its aggressive AI infrastructure buildout. Others highlighted the trade-off for investors. Future Class C issuance could dilute shareholders economically while leaving Zuckerberg’s control largely unchanged. The structure resembles Alphabet’s 2014 creation of non-voting shares and initially functions economically much like a 2-for-1 stock split, with shareholders receiving an additional share without changing the total underlying value. The move comes alongside strong third-quarter results. Meta reported revenue of $64.6 billion versus $63.37 billion expected and adjusted earnings of $7.40 per share versus $5.74 expected. Fourth-quarter revenue guidance of $73 billion to $76 billion also came in around or above Wall Street expectations.