Time to Retire Ben and Borden, Grant and King?

One of the problems, post Christmas, is having one or more hundred dollar bills in your wallet. This is the traditional Christmas gift in my family, from elder to younger. My dad hands me a $100 bill. My mother hands me a $100 bill. When my grandparents were alive that meant another couple $100 bills. I have one nephew which means I take one of the $100 bills given to me and simply pass it down to my nephew. I don't even bother anymore to put it in a new Christmas card for my nephew. I simply remove the bill from my mother's card, issue the customary mock surprise and real gratitude, and then put it in my pocket. Next day when I see my nephew, I just take it out of my pocket and hand it to my nephew. My nephew, being 17 years old, does not at all mind the lack of the personal touch.

Mortgages, Congress and Contractual Rights

A number of stories regarding mortgages and Congress have been circling this week. More specifically, Congress has been working on legislation that would allow bankruptcy judges to modify mortgage contracts. In fact, some of the rumored provisions only apply to second homes and investment properties. There are some serious issues with this sort of idea.

Suicide Myths

There have been quite a few unfortunate, high profile suicides lately. Several were directly a result of the Madoff scandal- investors who lost everything or were disgraced by participation. Another just this week, German billionaire Adolf Merckle ,threw himself in front of a train.

Misery Loves Company

I recently happened upon a conversation where people were discussing how much their 401K's lost last year. Down 35, 40, 45%. All stock investments presumably, and no bonds. It was very interesting to hear how they were taking solace in each other's losses. "Misery loves company" goes the old saying, and for good reason.

Obama's Stimulus Plan

Since late November, ideas have been steadily leaked regarding the form of the stimulus package. So far, I have refrained from commenting since the final package will look very different from today's talk. What did prompt this post, however, is just how masterful a politician Obama is from the start. As one would expect from seasoned Washington leaders, Obama's aids have been steadily leaking ideas, no doubt to test the water and see what Wall St and Washington think.

Asset Classes

It occurred to me, for reasons I'll mention shortly, that we haven't specifically discussed the concept of an 'asset class'. There is a universe of assets out there: you can buy stocks, bonds or real estate for example. Some assets trade on exchanges with daily liquidity and pricing while some assets, like direct investments in real estate, have little liquidity and vague estimates of the current value. There are currencies and gold, commodities and collectibles (e.g. art, wine) amongst others.

Where we stand II

First, a very happy New Year to everyone. I hope everyone enjoyed their holiday week(s) and some time off (I did). We are going to try something a little different this week. For the next week or so, I will post everyday about something. Whatever catches my eye will get mention, whether it is in depth or simply an observation.