Just as 2007 and 2008 were the years of subprime woes, 2010 will go down as the year of Option Adjustable rate Mortgage (ARM) resets. This crisis is about to unleash a fury no one's prepared for. It won't be as bad as subprime, of course — it'll be worse. Words: 557
Read More »"The Crowd: A Study of the Popular Mind" – Understanding Why You Should Be a Market Agnostic (+2K Views)
At its lowest level of over-simplification, Le Bon's thesis is that the behavior of crowds is based on sentiment and emotion rather than intellect and research. That may seem rather obvious today since other social scientists have been agreeing with and building upon his work for over a century - but how many of us invest accordingly? Words: 837
Read More »"Extraordinary Popular Delusions and the Madness of Crowds": A Review of the Best Book Ever Written On Market Psychology
This book is more than a book on intelligent investing – it is really a classic in critical thinking. Anyone can learn how to read a chart or throw bones into a circle, but this book will teach you about human psychology. That is how you beat the market, since it is always a marketplace of humans motivated by fear, greed, hope, arrogance and all the other human emotions, good and ill. Words: 1086
Read More »Why We Are Likely to See a DROP in Gold Prices (+2K Views)
for the coming months, deflation is the bigger concern than inflation as China and the EU both experience slowing growth, and the inflation figures remain tame in both the US and Japan - [and that means we are likely to see a DROP in gold prices.] Words: 481
Read More »Gold Bullion or a ‘Guaranteed’ Retirement Account: Which Would You Rather Have in Your IRA or 401(k)? (+2K Views)
“If one believes that the deployment of Guaranteed Retirement Accounts are reasonably probable”, Blasi maintains that “then the remaining action item in such a scenario would be to coax the public into personally assuming the debt the rest of the world was refusing to accept,” and asks: “If the beliefs of many regarding activities conducted by ‘The President's Working Group on Financial Markets’ (Plunge Protection Team) are sound, could not this same entity be utilized for such theoretical events as those described? Frankly, the possibility that such an initiative might be needed to rescue the Treasury market does add an additional, and considerable, threat to the equity markets.” Words: 1052
Read More »Don't Sucumb to Fear When Choosing Gold Investments
There's the greatest irony! Gold bugs panicking over GLD's connection to physical gold instead have flocked to an ETF that in no way, shape or form actually tracks the price of gold. Investors in PHYS are paying serious cash to avoid a better-constructed ETF, simply out of paranoia and fear. Words: 689
Read More »Words of Wisdom from Warren Buffett (+2K Views)
To invest successfully over a lifetime does not require a stratospheric IQ, unusual business insight, or inside information. What’s needed is a sound intellectual framework for decisions and the ability to keep your emotions from corroding that framework. Words: 895
Read More »Is Your IRA or 401K a Target of Government Appropriation? (+3K Views)
Will the laws and rules in place to protect individuals in their attempt to set something aside for retirement be safeguarded by the representatives elected to advocate for them in Washington? Will the principles and moral integrity of the political class keep them from appropriating the trillions of dollars held in 401k's and IRA's? I'm not so sure! Words: 1207
Read More »Energize Your Portfolio With These Energy ETFs (+2K Views)
Crude oil, natural gas, gasoline — our civilization can't live without them. So it's no surprise that energy exchange traded funds (ETFs) are also big business. Today I'm going to give you a brief overview of the ETFs in this sector. As you'll see, energy is a surprisingly diverse industry. Words: 870
Read More »"The Great Dollar Devaluation Disaster" is Beginning – Position Your Investments for MAJOR Inflation! (+4K Views)
The great dollar devaluation disaster has begun and will continue — with minor short-term pauses and corrections in the decline — for at least the next two to three years and at the very least, the dollar will sink so low and inflation will soar so high that you will eventually need at least TWICE the income you have now just to survive. A lifestyle that costs you $100,000 per year today will be $200,000 or more. Words: 2313
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