The Barron Blog

Thursday, 16 October 2008

Non Investors In The Marketplace

On Monday and Tuesday this week, the stockmarket sheep rushed into the TSX and the Dow (900 points up). Just as fast on Wednesday, they rushed out(700 points down).
Conditions of the market didn't change in a day, but the psychology changed. Feelings of greed were suddenly replaced by feelings of fear.
This simply tells me that speculators are still trying to crap shoot the stockmarket either up or down.
I don't do the above, because I want to be a winner in this game.
Investing isn't a game for the mentally and emotionally challenged. Like a chess match, it requires some skill to get into a winning positon.
Personally, I use my gambling tendencies for casinos games and the lottery.
When you bet on decent blue stocks at a cheap price, the odds will be in your favour.
Follow the smart not the stupid money.

Posted by qualteam at 10:22 PM EDT

Updated: Thursday, 16 October 2008 10:27 PM EDT

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Monday, 13 October 2008

Today Is Thanksgiving Day In Canada

There is much that we can give thanks for in Canada. To begin with, We have plenty of natural resources and commodities like wheat and soybeans. It's more than we need for ourselves.
Canadians generally are tolerant of other cultures and religions. We have a federal policy on "Muliticulturalism" that other countries don't have.
We have a good system of public and private health care that seems to get the job done cost effectively.
Canadian banks are number one in the world ahead of Denmark, Sweden, and Luxembourg.
We have lots of lakes and forests in Ontario. The rural countryside is usually less than a half hour drive away from any city.
It's a real pleasure to see the trees turn colours in autumn.
On a personal level, I was lucky to have most of my savings in cash when the stockmarket meltdown occurred.
I'm in good health and I'm looking forward to a company pension in the New Year.
I, also, have a van that's paid for and I have more than half of my mortgage paid down.
My wife and I aren't well off, but we're getting by ok.
My Tripod blog is up and running again.
I've won over $200 hundred at poker last month.
I'm still fighting for a worldwide market recovery and justice in the financial sector. Please go through the entries on this page and the links on the right.
We have an election both here and in the U.S. Hopefully, stiff new brooms will sweep away financial corruption and their perpetrators.

Posted by qualteam at 11:10 AM EDT

Updated: Monday, 13 October 2008 11:19 AM EDT

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Saturday, 11 October 2008

Barron Blog Two Has Been Resurrected

When I couldn't get into my blog to make entries, I dusted off my other blog at http://davebarron.blogspot.com/. I used to load up this blog with my favourite YouTube videos, but they were discontinued after awhile.
I've started putting music videos on this blog again and they will remain there for some weeks or months. I wanted something happy and energetic to help people overcome the despair in the U.S. and the world. The latest tune is "The Motown Song" by Rod Stewart and it's a pure joy to hear and see.
Some humans create nothing but misery around them, others fill the world with happiness and hope.

Posted by qualteam at 10:08 PM EDT

Updated: Saturday, 11 October 2008 10:12 PM EDT

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Friday, 10 October 2008

This Is My First Blog Entry In Over A Week
Mood: happy

Over the last week, I've been unsuccessful in making blog entries.
The problem is this blog is just crammed with all kinds of goodies, pictures, music, YouTube videos and links to fun Barron Blog entries on the right side of the page.
I have over 1140 entries on just about any subject imaginable.
I've used only half of the 1 gig's worth of storage space that I pay for. Neverthess, this blog was getting too big for Tripod to handle.
They told me I to reduce my earliest entries to free up my "blog entry utility". I've done that somewhat, but it's hard to erase something that has become part of my life on Earth.

Posted by qualteam at 6:08 PM EDT

Updated: Friday, 10 October 2008 6:11 PM EDT

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Tuesday, 30 September 2008

Lord Have Mercy On Us

This includes citizens of the United States and the rest of the world.
I'm finding it very difficult to trust the politicos and the financial experts in our present condition. If you're not part of the economic solution, you're part of the economic problem. That includes much of the above.
Hundreds of millions in Canada/U.S. and the world are victims of negative returns on the stock market. Most of us have invested heavily in blue chip companies that help us to gain some measure of hope for prosperity and survival in our retirement.
Why should we be at the mercy of financiers and politicians? Thankfully, there are higher powers than the existing hierarchy to turn to.
Human reaction and emotion seem to supplant logical thought of those who make lots of noise in the media.
Most ordinary people don't want to see their house, job and pension plan go down the drain because "the powers that be" can't decide on a course of action amongst themselves.
If they can't decide, than a decision should be made for them from "The Lord of The Universe".
Obama And McCain Work For A Solution

Music Playlist at MixPod.com

Posted by qualteam at 12:45 PM EDT

Updated: Tuesday, 30 September 2008 5:40 PM EDT

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Monday, 29 September 2008

Dear Lord, Some People Need More Help Than Others

Please help us through this financial crisis. Please help the politicians, business leaders and U.S. citizens to see the big picture in this global downturn.
Any plan to turn around this economic crisis is better than no plan. We must put aside petty grievences relating to "Wall Street" and do things which will help "Main Street".
Please help people get the credit that will allow them to buy cars, homes and even pay their bills.
Help us to make a small step forward rather than a big step backward.
Deliver us from the confusion, dispair and negativity of those who have given up or who are giving up.
Help us to work together to forge a pathway out of this present mess. Help us to get a vision of the light at the end of the tunnel.
Congress Makes A Mess

Posted by qualteam at 11:57 PM EDT

Updated: Tuesday, 30 September 2008 5:23 PM EDT

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Saturday, 27 September 2008

Top Ten Poster Boys Of The U.S. Financial Crisis

Stan O'Neal (the suit on the right) was one of the architects of the subprime program. We have to give him number one spot in our rogue's gallery of financial screwups.
Stanley O'Neal former CEO of Merril Lynch walked away with 66 million dollars in severance.
Charles Prince former CEO of Citigroup got a 16 million dollar package.
Richard Syron former CEO of Freddie Mac received $18,000,000 last year in pay and bonuses.
James Cayne former Bear Stearns CEO escaped financial hardtimes with a $33,000,000 package.
Despite the Lehman Brothers bankruptcy, Richard Fuld made off with $34,000,000 through share selling before the company collapsed.
Despite the enormous debts of Fannie Mae, former CEO, Daniel Mudd, received $11,600,000 million in pay and bonuses.
The Bank of America took over Merrill Lynch at $29.00 dollar a share. Half of what it was last year. Despite that, CEO John Thain still received $17,300,000 in pay last year.
Former Wachovia CEO, Ken Thompson paid 25 billion for a California mortgage lender, but still had a good payday of $16,000,000 last year.
AIG CEO, Martin Sullivan, was bailed out earlier this month. He was paid $14,000.000 last year.
It wasn't a good year for Goldman and Sachs' CEO, Lloyd Blankfein, but he was paid very well anyway to the tune of $70,300,000 last year.
Whatever happened to rewarding someone for doing well and penalizing them for doing poorly?
It's time for American taxpapers to get on politicians' cases about this issue.

Posted by qualteam at 11:14 AM EDT

Updated: Saturday, 27 September 2008 4:30 PM EDT

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Wednesday, 24 September 2008

It's Time To Bring Law And Order To Wall Street

The only way this bailout is going to work is if Congress and the President put a "hired gun" or "czar" in charge of accountability and reorganization of financial institutions in the United States.

Personally, I recommend Satyajit Das who has spent 25 years creating exotic derivatives for hedge managers.

He wrote a book in 2006 called "Traders, Guns & Money: Knowns and Unknowns in the Dazzling World of Derivatives".

He now works against these junk financial products.

Washington now has to take charge of this whole area of corporate/financial failure. This is like receivership. A czar would have the power to hire or fire anyone in the financial sector. He would assess all financial products and label them on a scale from safe to highly toxic.

The FBI could be called in if fraud was suspected. Any compensation package for financial CEOs would have to pass through him and be based on actual merit.

The czar would be the CEO of a newly created "Watchdog Financial Commission" which would investigate all corporate financial actitives in the United States over the last five years and then recommend
a clean up of the sector to the President and the Senate/Congress. The length of time should be less than a year.

All financial products and services would be examined by the czar and the commission.

The results would produce more transparent, productive and ethical financial institutions. Before this can happen, a stiff new broom must clean out the garbage.

This is playing hardball with Wall street and their backers.

Posted by qualteam at 11:07 AM EDT

Updated: Wednesday, 24 September 2008 5:17 PM EDT

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Monday, 22 September 2008

Investing And Saving For Kids

You might call this blog entry things I wish I knew when I was a kid. However, I did learn some good "rules of thumb" when I was young.
A penny saved is a penny earned
Save money for a rainy day.
Pay yourself first from your wages or allowance.
Take care of your nickels and dimes and they'll take care of you.
When you want something, save for it.
Unfortunately, there were no courses on basic financing or investing at school or anywhere else.
Even today, I don't thing there's much for kids on money management or finding a job in today's world. However, there is information on work and investing for teens and preteens on the internet.
Grownups and even bankers have a sorry record when it comes to investing and saving. Look at the mortgage/debt crisis in the United States. I've written many blog entries on that subject below.
The trouble is most people get into spending habits when they're quite young and it's hard to develop saving habits later in life. Here's some tips to help you develop savings and investing habits for the rest of your life:
Put your loose change into different piggy banks, one for pennies, one for nickels, one for dimes and one for quarters. The savings will accumulate over time.
Open a high interest sayings account at a bank. President's Choice offers a 3.05% account at service centres which are found in Loblaw's and Fortino's grocery stores.
Get your mother/father and grandparents to contribute into RESPs (Registered Educational Saving Plans) for you.
Practice buying and selling stocks through an online discount brokerage like Questrade. You can do this for 30 days on the website using play money.
Develop your own source of income through "jobs that kids can do".
Please email me back on any successes you have on the above program: qualteam@rogers.com.

Posted by qualteam at 10:25 AM EDT

Updated: Monday, 22 September 2008 10:59 AM EDT

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Friday, 19 September 2008

Taming Of The U.S. Financial Wild West

2008 will be remembered as the time law and order was imposed on the financial institutions and individuals in the banking and investment sector.
Do you remember CODs and ABCPs. Basically, these were junk securities sold as paper gold. Their status is now reduced to toilet paper.
Until 2008, U.S. banking was whatever you could get away with. If the suckers bought into the not so hot subprime mortgages, it was their fault.
If financial stocks could be bought and sold cheaply, then the hedge fund guys could still make money in a bear market. Who cares about the U.S. financial system? If there's profit to be made off of a company that's a loser, why not make it?
Well the Federal Reserve and the U.S. Government stepped in to stop the abuses.
Both presidential candidates blamed each other for the mess. Comments were made about "putting lipstick on pigs". Are the pigs Wall Street bankers or politicians?

Posted by qualteam at 5:56 PM EDT

Updated: Friday, 19 September 2008 6:22 PM EDT

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