Within the recent release of Cato Institute's Human Freedom Index 2022 lies a warning—global freedom is in sharp decline. Cato's scholars report: The HFI is the most comprehensive freedom index so far created for a globally meaningful set of countries and jurisdictions representing 98.1 percent of the world’s population. The HFI covers 165 jurisdictions for 2020, the most recent year for which sufficient data are available. The index ranks jurisdictions beginning in 2000, the earliest year for which a robust enough index could be produced. On a scale of 0 to 10, where 10 represents more … [Read more...]
Biden Administration Destroying Retiree Fiduciary Protections
The Biden administration is undermining fiduciary protections created by the Trump administration to protect retirees from money managers who would use their wealth to push the radical progressive agenda rather than to secure the savers' retirements. Now, 25 state attorneys general are suing to stop the Biden administration. Keith Griffith reports for the Daily Mail: The Republican attorneys general from 25 US states have filed a lawsuit challenging the Biden administration's plan to allow retirement fund managers to make 'socially conscious' investment decisions. The federal suit filed on … [Read more...]
4 Life Changing Words for Your Survival Guy: “You Should Try This”
Life throws you a curveball when you least expect it. Which is where I found myself recently when I came home from work. “I’m doing a liver cleanse,” she said. “You can join me or fend for yourself.” Bam! No warning. No time to grab a snack at the office before heading home for dinner. Just trapped like a rat. Cornered. What was I going to say, “No, you do it alone. Take care of yourself. I’ll be fine.” No. I like sleeping in my bed. We’re in week two. I’ve strayed here and there. Don’t tell anyone. One of the problems with the internet is you have all sorts of personalities in your … [Read more...]
Suddenly, Holding Cash Looks Good Again to Many
In The Wall Street Journal, Hardika Singh explains that investors are finding new interest in cash. She writes: The dash for cash on Wall Street is back on. Investors have added about $135 billion to global money-market funds over the past four weeks, according to EPFR data through Jan. 18. That is the best stretch since the four-week period ended May 2020, when those funds logged roughly $175 billion in net inflows. A money-market fund is a form of mutual fund that invests in short-term debt securities including Treasury bills and commercial paper. Companies and consumers often use … [Read more...]
Anti-Carbon Crusaders in Davos Talk ESG and OPM
Dear valued investor, There was a time when you could buy an index mutual fund, set it, and forget it. That time is gone. When Jack Bogle founded Vanguard, he wasn’t thinking about politics. Hardly. He wasn’t envisioning an 800-pound gorilla like BlackRock using your money to vote your shares for its political agenda. Please. The mutual fund, in Bogle’s mind, was a low-cost, diversified (not exactly the case anymore in a lot of funds), tool for the individual investor. Now funds are acting like Super PAC influencers with a Great Reset agenda. It would be one thing if the S&P 500 made … [Read more...]
Is Passive Investing Already Passé?
In the Financial Times, Mohamed El-Erian suggests that for now at least, passive investing's time in the sun is over. He writes: Should the vehicles that investors choose to place their money be a function of the investing environment? This question is not asked often enough by investment committees, which tend to focus on asset allocation issues, model portfolios and manager selection. Yet it is a question that has become a lot more important for generating high risk-adjusted returns, particularly given the massive shift of money from active to passive investment strategies in recent … [Read more...]
Welcome to Hotel California, Where You Can Never Leave
Leave it to California to sap the wealth from the successful. You can add New York, Illinois, Maryland, Hawaii, Minnesota, Connecticut, and Washington to the list too. You know from my Super States ranking where your money will be treated with more respect than it is by these money grabbers. I’ve never been a fan of letting taxes wag the dog but what we’re seeing is more than taxes, it’s about taking away your freedom. Now politicians in California want to emulate the famous Eagles tune, "Hotel California," and not allow even those who leave the state to escape its draconian … [Read more...]
What You’re Telling Me Matters
If being a successful long-term investor was easy, everyone would be doing it. Building wealth over time is hard. Saving money is hard. Sacrifice is not fun. But as Your Survival Guy, it’s my job to help you through times like these when uncertainty prevails. Your Survival Guy knows investing can be tough when prices are down. Question: Why is it that everyone loves a sale at the store but can’t stomach one with stocks? I learned a long time ago the pain from lower stock prices far exceeds the joy of higher ones. Your key to surviving in times like these is to keep your focus on your own … [Read more...]
Can Banks Compete with Apple Pay and PayPal?
Banks are tired of sharing their customer experience with Apple and PayPal. Now, they want to develop their own digital wallets to compete. AnnaMaria Andriotis reports in The Wall Street Journal: Big banks are teaming up to launch a digital wallet that people can use to shop online. Wells Fargo, Bank of America Corp., JPMorgan Chase & Co. and four other banks are working on a new product that will allow shoppers to pay at merchants’ online checkout with a wallet that will be linked to their debit and credit cards. The digital wallet will be managed by Early Warning Services LLC, the … [Read more...]
America’s Super States and Stocks that Respect YOU
When you look at my Super States map, you instantly get a feel for where your freedom is better respected in one state vs. another. Yes, this is a competition. There’s a reason certain regions are more competitive than others. Look at the northeast, for example, a region where politicians always seem to be looking for what you can do for them rather than the other way around. It’s why my favored New Hampshire stands out as a beacon for freedom. And when the northeast is compared to, for example, Florida, it's night vs. day. Dear investor, look at the carnage in the tech industry with … [Read more...]
- 1
- 2
- 3
- …
- 548
- Next Page »