tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2986124651030959736.post3622849845913900599..comments2024-03-26T21:50:50.895-05:00Comments on Stocks, Bonds & Politics: Analysis of Prior Question: ZBPRA vs. ZBPRC OR ZBPRB/Madoff, W. & Tiger/TENNINDEPENDENThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17444227958539559639noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2986124651030959736.post-63875012241694666342009-12-21T19:08:21.237-06:002009-12-21T19:08:21.237-06:00I am riding the wave of whatever pays me good inte...I am riding the wave of whatever pays me good interest and dividends & whose businesses do not offend me.<br /><br /> I have some small exposure in two ETFs in alternative energy that have gone nowhere. One is the Claymore sponsored Global Solar Energy (TAN)<br />http://www.claymore.com/etf/fund/tan<br /><br /> The other is sponsored by Powershares called WilderHill Clean Energy (PBW). <br />http://www.invescopowershares.com<br />/products/overview.aspx?ticker=PBW<br /><br />My total exposure is about 1 thousand dollars. I was however contemplating increasing it some.<br /><br />I do not pick individual stocks in this sector. These kind of ETFs, and Powershares has several of them, do not generate any dividends for Headknocker. <br /><br />I have never had a course in finance or economics or accounting. <br /><br /> Over the long haul as an investor, success or failure depends on just controlling impulses, what some call the reflexive part of the brain, and to perform careful reflective analysis before making a decision. This will not prevent mistakes, but will over time keep them to a minimum. <br /><br />And, there are always tried and true ways to value companies, or to know when an asset class is in a bubble, whether it be stocks, bonds, or homes, and those time tested ways should never be disregarded.TENNINDEPENDENThttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17444227958539559639noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2986124651030959736.post-66244620743260960982009-12-21T16:38:40.944-06:002009-12-21T16:38:40.944-06:00Finance needs to be adopted as a formal curriculum...Finance needs to be adopted as a formal curriculum taught in high school. If I am required to learn caculus I can handle discounted cash flow analysis, current yield, etc.<br />No, not retired. In fact most of my investable assets were acquired not in the finance industry but the software industry in Silicon Valley.<br />My interest these days is to ride the next wave in our economy, "anything but fossil fuels," to renewable/alternate energy sources. The Beanpole seems to get it, at least in theory.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04353197462456757440noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2986124651030959736.post-78271070413770322732009-12-21T11:28:03.048-06:002009-12-21T11:28:03.048-06:00Lurther: I take it that you are retired.
If one...Lurther: I take it that you are retired. <br /><br /> If one thing is clear, competence and compensation are not related to one another in the financial services industry. My background is in law, primarily litigation and entertainment contract negotiation. <br /><br /> One of the most egregious examples of "legal" compensation was the hundreds of millions paid to a few individuals in AIG's Financial Products unit in London to write credit default insurance, which ultimately destroyed the world's largest insurance company and would have without massive government infusions of capital. <br /><br /> I have never worked in the financial services industry, and would not even consider hiring anyone to manage my money. I have had that attitude since I was about 13. <br /><br /> Most passive investors would be better off with low cost ETFs than with mutual funds. The hedge funds seem to have a better racket, charging that 1 or 2% and 20% of the profits. <br /><br /> I would add that I am dismayed by so many individuals plowing money into bond funds now after selling stock funds at or near the bottom.TENNINDEPENDENThttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17444227958539559639noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2986124651030959736.post-68702593998235750292009-12-21T11:15:05.708-06:002009-12-21T11:15:05.708-06:00The magnitude of "legal fraud" perpetrat...The magnitude of "legal fraud" perpetrated by financial advisors operating within the law everyday selling individuals (often successful, intelligent people) on "customized" portfolio management and taking 1-2% of assets (not to mention the expenses lost in what they invest in) regardless of performance is actually sad. However, these advisors create thousands of jobs and creates huge wealth amongst a few insanely wealthy individuals, one of which I worked for. Wish I could be paid literally 10's of millions every year for, on average, underperforming my benchmark indexes.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04353197462456757440noreply@blogger.com