Sep
10
Why I'm not Contributing to my 401(k) at Work
September 10, 2008 | 2 Comments
After some soul searching and fact checking, I've decided it's time to dump the 401(k). I know this sounds like sacrilege to the investing faithful, but I think it's a wise financial move. My company contributes 7.5% of my salary to my 401(k). My employer makes this contribution even if I don't contribute a dime. [...]
Sep
9
The Stock Market Scam – Stock Options
September 9, 2008 | 1 Comment
I was reviewing some posts on Mark Cuban's site this morning. He's an interesting guy with real world experience. I used to follow his blog closely but a lot of it doesn't necessarily interest me. Anyway, I'm really interested in his investment philosophy and his talking stocks and money section. In short, he feels that [...]
Jul
18
How Uninformed Investors Keep the Stock Market Moving
July 18, 2008 | Leave a Comment
I used to wonder how the stock market works. After all if everyone trading stocks is rational how can so much money be made and lost? However, so many diverse people and organizations own stock that they are always buying and selling and not necessarily for the best reasons. I was having lunch with a [...]
Jul
16
Edward Jones Finally Gets Email Statement Delivery Option
July 16, 2008 | 5 Comments
If you have an Edward Jones account, you now have the option of getting your statements via email. I hated getting all that paper from Edward Jones and I think it's about time they step into the 21st century. I've called my local office and the main number several times asking for either electronic delivery [...]
Jul
7
Moving My Money Away From Prosper
July 7, 2008 | 1 Comment
I just transferred my current balance out of Prosper.com. I know they've made some changes recently but I'm not going to bid on new loans. It's just way too risky. I've posted about my experience with Prosper.com in previous articles. Here's an index of my articles on prosper.com. Peer to Peer Lending with Prosper Et [...]
Jun
19
Carl Icahn Has a Blog
June 19, 2008 | Leave a Comment
Carl Icahn is a well known advocate for share holder value. He's an outspoken critic of Board of Director and CEO misbehavior. He's famous for his involvement with Michael Milken's Junk Bonds and for stripping TWA to the bone and recently for pushing the sale of Yahoo to Microsoft. And now he has a blog. [...]
Jun
7
Nassim Nicholas Taleb got rich on a day when many many people went broke. He predicted the sub-prime fiasco and the crash of 1997. He didn't really predict these events, he just predicted some kind of event, a black swan, could happen. The Times Online has a new interview piece with Taleb. An interesting article. [...]
May
29
Yahoo Finance Adds FREE Real Time Stock Quotes
May 29, 2008 | 1 Comment
If you're a stock junkie then this is big news for you. Yahoo Finance is the first major financial site to add real time stock quotes. Up until now most financial sites displayed stock prices with a 20 minutes delay. Bats Trading is providing the real time information for Yahoo Finance. Yahoo! Inc., vying with [...]
Apr
24
How Will Global Food Shortages Affect You
April 24, 2008 | Leave a Comment
For the first time in my lifetime, there is food rationing in the United States. The last food rationing that I know of occurred during World War 2. Countries around the world are experiencing food shortages and increased prices. What does this mean for world? What does this mean for US citizens? What’s Happening? Food [...]
Apr
18
Prosper Increases Maximum Interest Rates
April 18, 2008 | 1 Comment
I’m a Prosper.com lender. One of the problems I’ve noticed is the low maximum interest rates for borrowers in some states. Prosper has now fixed this problem for most states. Previously max rates had been as low as 6%. Now most states in the US have a maximum interest rate of 36%. Some states have [...]