The Crisis of the Middle Class and American Power

My Comments: Yesterday, a friend attended a luncheon where the speaker focused on our “debt crisis”. His position was that it is much worse that suspected, that it approaches $65 Trillion. That’s Trillion, with a “T”. I have no way to know if this is true or not, but to whatever extent it is real, …

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Tax Increases, Spending Cuts Earn Public Support

My Thoughts on This: The media would have you believe that the “fiscal cliff” is the most closely watched and critical issue on the planet. How else can they promote listeners and eyeballs that result in advertising revenue? For me, it’s interesting but not critical. I think there is likely to be a slowdown in …

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3 Self-Defeating Investor Behaviors:

By Joyce Hanson, AdvisorOne The intricacies of investor psychology shed light on what people are doing to miss out on long-term opportunities—and on how advisors can help them overcome those behavioral hurdles, according to a recent report from Franklin Templeton Investments. Behavioral phenomena can have a negative impact on investor psychology, says Franklin Templeton in …

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10 Overlooked Tax Breaks

With October 15 behind us and April 15 still comfortably far away, it’s a good time to start boning up on ways to save money once things start getting serious. With that in mind, Bankrate.com identified 10 great deductions that individual taxpayers should use – but often forget. 1. Charitable expenses Sure, the donation is …

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J.P. Morgan Weekly Market Recap – October 22, 2012

I try to post these every week. Some you like to time the market and this report from J.P.Morgan is perhaps the best summary to help your decision making:

J.P. Morgan Weekly Market Recap – October 8, 2012

I am remiss for not posting these every week. Some you like to time the market and this report from J.P.Morgan is perhaps the best summary to help your decision making:

The Biggest Bubble in Human History

My Comments: The word “bubble”, in the context of investments, has come to mean a time when values are overstated, and many people are going to suffer financial disaster. The classic examples include the Tulip Mania, where in February 1637 in Denmark, some single tulip bulbs sold for more than 10 times the annual income …

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The US Economy May Surprise Us All

My Comments: Yes, the last few years have been very frustrating for those of us concerned about jobs, earning a living, having confidence that life will return to normal. The stock market has done OK, but you don't have to listen to politicians to notice all the empty buildings around town. To those who will …

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Americans’ Sense of Security Rises

My Comments: There are six questions asked here and the responses to these questions lead the author to conclude that we as Americans are experiencing more comfort as the economy slowly improves. At least that's my conclusion. This is not easy to follow but on a rainy Monday, this might give you a measure of …

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J.P. Morgan Weekly Market Recap – August 27, 2012

For those of you who pay attention and want to time the market, here’s this weeks best summary: