Written on 2/7/12 Style Update Last month we got a move in the model in each reporting period. I quickly went back over the last decade (that’s how long we’ve been running the model) and couldn’t find a period when it’s ever happened before. I’m sure this is more interesting to me than to you, [...]

I’m sitting here doing my year-end review of everyone’s accounts. I do it every year over the New Year’s holiday, and for the most part, I think it’s safe to say the following about the past year: Goodbye and good riddance! It’s not that we fared particularly poorly, it’s that trendless markets like these are [...]

It’s that time of year again! Before I get started on the monthly update, here is the annual checklist of things to do or check by the end of December (in no particular order): If you are over 70 ½, did you take your Required Minimum Distribution? Do you have an IRA/401(k) that needs to [...]

Yes, that was a nod to the passing of one of the more amazing business and marketing minds of the last 50 years. Steve Jobs, in many ways, changed how we do a lot of things, but for me personally, his innovations helped change how I think about “change.” For that Steve, “thanks.” Speaking of [...]

Have you ever been on one of those “spin” rides at an amusement park that physically makes you ill and can cause seizures? The quarter-end numbers are similar to that experience. I mean, even bonds lost money last quarter! Here are the numbers in all their gory detail: As of 9/30/2011 Style 1 Month 3rd [...]

Edmond Hoyle (1672 – August 29, 1769) was a writer best known for his works on the rules and play of card games. The phrase “according to Hoyle” came into the language as a reflection of his generally-perceived authority on the subject; since that time, use of the phrase has expanded into general use in situations in which [...]

Not surprisingly given the circus in Washington over the debt ceiling, I’ve heard from a few people over the last couple of days and wanted to address the question everyone has asked: “What should we do?” First, how about a constitutional amendment outlawing all elected government officials from speaking publicly when they have nothing of value [...]

Well, the 4th of July has come and gone and we’re in the throes of another summer solstice. This month I will do the impossible and not give you an opinion about anything. I will, as I have done periodically in the past, turn it over to our friends at LPL Financial Research who have put together another complete 2011 [...]

Written June 3, 2011 My computer coincidentally got a virus this morning, so unlike most early mornings when the talking heads are just background noise, this morning Alan Greenspan on CNBC had my full attention. Greenspan was being interviewed about debt limits and what he said was interesting and instructional. I have paraphrased below.  Greenspan [...]

There’s not much to report this month. There’s a lot going on in the world and you would think it would be having a big effect on the market, but it’s not. What a snoozer… not that I’m complaining. A little less drama is perfectly fine with me but isn’t it interesting considering all of [...]