On a day where the Dow shed 831 points and tech heavy Nasdaq lost over four percent, many bonds made money. It’s a simple, yet important, reminder of how counterbalancing works. Originally posted on Yoursurvivalguy.com. … [Read more...]
Your Retirement Life: A Dire Warning
You may want to pay attention to what public pensions are buying and, more often than not, do the exact opposite. Case in point, a few years ago this group loaded up on “alt-investments” and hedge funds. Don’t look now, but hedge funds, which charge an exorbitant 2-and-20 (2% per year on your assets under management and 20% of your investment gains), are going out of business left and right. And then, as reported yesterday in The WSJ, the California Public Employees Retirement System (CALPERS) spent more than $2 billion on Southern timberland and harvested the trees at depressed prices to … [Read more...]
Your Retirement Life: Columbus Day in Newport, RI
Early October is a wonderful time to visit Newport, Rhode Island especially Columbus Day weekend. Discover Newport is a great place to find out what's happening each week. Here's what Brittany Lauro wrote about Columbus Day weekend: Columbus Day weekend on the Classic Coast brings with it all the fall feels as festival season kicks into full gear with seven (yup, seven!) fairs, festivals and major events taking over. Stroll cobblestone byways and enjoy special deals at the annual Columbus Day sidewalk sale on Bowen's Wharf where you'll find great deals on unique items from area shops; … [Read more...]
Rage Gage October: Interest Rates and Employment Up, Up, and Away
My early October readings are in, and clearly Americans are back to work thanks to the Trump Economic Revolution. And as interest rates rise, retired and soon to be retired investors can rejoice in the long-awaited Interest Rate Revolution. CNBC explained the good news for America's economy here: The number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits fell to a near 49-year low last week, pointing to sustained labor market strength, which should continue to underpin economic growth. The labor market, which is viewed as being near or at full employment, is steadily … [Read more...]
Southern Migration
If you’re a politician the easiest way to grow “revenue” is to treat your successful residents with respect—respect for their money that is. And yet time and time again politicians do the exact opposite. Is it any wonder the most successful New Yorkers spend at least half the year in Florida? The Wall Street Journal editorial board chides Governor Andrew Cuomo for his tone deaf assessment of why people are fleeing the Empire State. They write: Andrew Cuomo is on a roll. After a deft rebuttal of President Trump last month—America “was never that great”—the New York Governor has now finessed an … [Read more...]
California Pensions Continue to Make Headlines
Is there a more Machiavellian story than this? We’re talking about a fiduciary responsibility in the many billions of dollars. Is anyone paying attention? The Wall Street Journal's Heather Gillers reports: In what was otherwise a lighthearted question-and-answer session at a staff meeting this month, Marcie Frost turned serious. After rising from a clerical position in Washington state government to head the largest pension fund in the country, the California Public Employees’ Retirement System, Ms. Frost had been the subject of reports questioning how she had presented her educational … [Read more...]
Your Retirement Life: On the Road Again
If you like the idea of seeing the country with your spouse, paid leave, matching 401(k) contributions and a joint income of $100,000 per year, then you might like this story about team driving gigs. Simply put, freight companies love team drivers because they deliver loads twice as fast. There’s a lot to like about living part-time on the road. I remember as a kid when we drove across the country in our Winnebago, how cool it was to talk to the truck drivers using our CB radio and also just listening to the chatter. It was Waze before there was Waze, and it was like a game, especially when … [Read more...]
Nothing Wrong with a Hershey’s Kiss Now and Then
I like this take from James Freeman of The Wall Street Journal, who highlights CEO Michele Buck, for noticing that Americans still like tasty snacks. Freeman writes: This column doesn’t make stock calls. This column is not irrationally exuberant about the market for sweet packaged snacks given the frequency at which Americans are told to stop eating sugar and to stop eating processed food and to stop snacking. Still, it’s worth remembering that not every consumer is craving locally grown, organic quinoa. And there seems to be at least one CEO in the food industry who understands that … [Read more...]
RAGE Gage September: Imagine Interest Rate Levels in a Year
September's RAGE Gauge was little changed from the previous month. Fast forward for a moment and imagine where interest rates will be one year from today. Because yesterday, the Federal Reserve increased rates for the third time this year and the eighth since late 2015 and has basically said expect much more to come. There is a Titanic like shift underway with bonds. Wait until corporate bond yields are at a level where finally you won’t need as much of the fois gras stock market, which has been force fed by the likes of Ben Bernanke et al. Imagine the competition stocks will face then, and … [Read more...]
P.J. O’Rourke: Money and the Visa Card of the Future
You don’t want to miss P.J. O’Rourke’s excellent response to a question posted at minute mark 41:47 about the role of government in our lives. In reference to a lawless Mogadishu, Somalia, circa 1992, O’Rourke is asked if he prefers lawlessness to our current government. His response is a wonderful reminder of what founding father James Madison had in mind for our young country. But first, listen to minute 22:00 where he talks about being a radio reporter for ABC News in Mogadishu and visiting a crowded makeshift market with his reporter friend Leon. Standing in the crowd Leon waves his 9mm … [Read more...]
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