Here's a statement of the obvious: The opinions expressed here are those of the participants, not those of the Mutual Fund Observer. We cannot vouch for the accuracy or appropriateness of any of it, though we do encourage civility and good humor.
Support MFO
Donate through PayPal
LewisBraham
Hi Hank,
Your satire came across very well. Don't worry about the user name.
Best,
Lewis
It's good to see a financial academic whose grades and intellect were too poor for him to make it in the real sciences figured out a way to pay his bills.
China's wages or per capita income are less than 1/4th that of the U.S. https://stlouisfed.org/on-the-economy/2018/january/income-living-standards-china
Yet Arends says:
The tariffs are simply a means to an end. The president is trying to get China …
It seems welfare, socialism and government handouts are OK for the president if you live in the right part of the country, vote Republican and have the right shade of skin color.
And yet one would be hard pressed to call tobacco stocks growth stocks either. More to the point, tobacco stocks were mainstay investments at Franklin Mutual Series where Winters was previously: https://wsj.com/articles/SB120372692782187229
In fact,…
I would definitely not call Wintergreen a growth fund regardless of what the stylebox says. To understand it, you really need to understand one stock which makes up 45% of its portfolio: Consolidated Tomoka Land https://morningstar.com/stocks/XASE/C…
The median account size is a lot more important than the average in this case for economic analysis because the largest accounts skew the numbers higher for the average. There is also the fact that a significant portion of the population has essenti…
There are also old closed-end funds, which really are mutual funds precursors:
generalamericaninvestors.com/
GAM
CET
TY
ADX
PEO
All were founded prior to 1930.
An important story. The truth is, the idea that any investment is apolitical is a myth, and that the real politics of this Institute seeking "to get politics out of investing" need to be transparent and on the table. Who are its donors?
@Ted Does it matter to you that the vast majority of Puerto Ricans don't want to be independent? They either want to be a full U.S. state or remain as they are:
https://vox.com/policy-and-politics/2018/1/11/15782544/puerto-rico-pushes-for-statehood…
@BrianW
What I find deeply offensive is the CNBC author's assertion that:
Businesses face a very challenging environment there as well. Puerto Rico imposes the same federal minimum wage as we have in the 50 states, making it much more costly to empl…
@Brianw Puerto Rico is a corrupt welfare state
Seriously, what the heck are you talking about? Puerto Rico is the exact opposite of a welfare state, but is an example of adventure capitalism at its worst. Companies got huge tax breaks to come there …
What is the possibility of the Northeast becoming independent and joining Canada? I know a significant number of Northeasterners who are sick of subsidizing red states with their tax dollars while simultaneously being called liberal freeloaders.
It is perhaps a nail in a certain kind of active management. As much as I admire the boutique money manager--something championed by this site in particular--there are definitely some risks when a manager strikes out on his/her own as Winters did. T…
It's funny a poster named RisklessinSeattle would think that a company that has dodged its taxes in the past would be risk free. Seems more like a company with a target on its back if you ask me.
The fact is you don't want stupid people in charge of any government agency but for obvious reasons this Fed appointment is getting the most attention. I am far more concerned about idiot Trump appointees in charge of for instance the Department of …
Here is the real shocker: there are 6 million small businesses and 2 million family-owned farms in America. In the last year of the old law in 2017, only 80 small businesses and farms nationwide faced any estate tax.
Nothing makes more sense than th…
The reason to own long-term investment assets is because they thrive when the world does. This analysis confuses general economic wellbeing with increases in investment capital when the two aren't necessarily correlated. In other words, a company ca…
I find the generational and classist finger wagging from rich old folks like Orman obnoxious and absurd in the extreme. There are always these articles complaining about young people "wasting their money" on lattes and avocado toast. Why aren't ther…
It's about time:
https://washingtonpost.com/business/2019/03/28/wells-fargo-ceo-tim-sloan-step-down-immediately/?noredirect=on&utm_term=.b3b4845a290b
Crazy he gets paid this after what happened:
Making matters worse was the bank’s disclosure …
From the article: In a 2013 study, Steven Kaplan and Joshua Rauh explored the backgrounds of Forbes 400 members over the years to see whether wealth was self-made or inherited. They found that the share who were self-made rose from 40% in 1982 to 69…
I’m not sure why he’s surprised nothing has been done. The Party of No has consistently blocked infrastructure bills: https://google.com/amp/nymag.com/intelligencer/amp/2018/05/trump-admits-infrastructure-promise-isnt-happening.html
Stopped libertarian clock. He said the same thing nine years ago:
He also said the same thing in February 2009, one month before the market bottomed: https://mauldineconomics.com/frontlinethoughts/buy-and-hope-investing-mwo022709
But here's how I …
To be honest, it's a terrible idea. Imagine what it would be like for someone in government to regulate Microsoft, Exxon and Amazon when the entire country's Social Security depends on their stocks performing well. It creates massive conflicts of in…
@Davidrmoran
Good grief, acknowledge that you ARE atypical first and stop with the obnoxious good griefs. (You're not talking to Charlie Brown.) Look at the damn stats about savings for most Americans and tell me how you are typical when half have n…
@MJG I disagree with your unsubstantiated charge that I am a member of the group that initiates this negative action.
My submittals in that unhealthy area are purely defensive. They become aggressive only when attacks become personal and untrue.
…
The “Bipartisan Policy Center” behind the campaign: https://washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2013/08/15/at-the-bipartisan-policy-center-is-cash-the-real-divide/?utm_term=.8c4226dcc409
@DavidRMoran How successful does this sound to you?:
Around half of American households have no retirement accounts at all. No 401(k)s, no IRAs, nothing. You might think that’s because they’re all expecting pension income in retirement. In fact, ac…
@DavidRMoran Good grief, what’s with the “good grief?” You do realize that your personal experience is in no way like that of most Americans, right?:
https://smartasset.com/retirement/average-retirement-savings-are-you-normal
Just the fact you’re h…
@msf I agree. I believe allowing indviduals to control massive sums of wealth passed down for generations in perpetuity is a fundamentally un-American and anti-democratic concept. We don't need kings, queens, earls and dukes with inherited titles an…
@DavidRMoran I'm not sure my answer to your question to me would be welcomed on this board. But let me pose a different question: How successful have such tax deferred plans been at their original intention of providing ordinary Americans with a sec…
