Month: April 2006

Better investing through clichés

by

Every dog has its day (trendy sectors)

The popular financial magazines each have an article that they publish at the end of every year. This article lists the best and worst performing funds, and if you weren’t smart enough to put your money into it, that’s just too bad. But if you want to be really stupid with your money, buy into one of these funds as soon as you see the new list.

The problem with many of these lists is that they are dominated by sector funds. These are funds that invest in a particular set of industries, such as health care and pharmaceuticals, precious metals, natural resources, real estate, utilities, and energy. What the list doesn’t tell you is how much of these spectacular gains were due to those industries’ performance and how much was attributable to the fund managers’ skill and insight.

If you compare one year’s list to another’s, you will often find that there is a completely different list every year for the shorter periods (past year, past six months, past quarter). Events outside the fund managers’ control are responsible for much of the funds’ performance. For example, funds specializing in public utilities performed poorly in 2005 because of the increase in oil prices; funds investing in oil stocks obviously have done quite well in the same year.

Even funds that are not explicitly described as sector funds may be heavily invested in a sector that did well for a brief time. Fund managers often have their favorite investments, and if this was the lucky year for that type of investment, the fund may have done well. Of course, fund managers may take credit for anticipating events and taking advantage of their insight. Long term, though, it is difficult to find any money manager who can consistently anticipate the market in which he invests.

It may be true that every dog has its day; but when that day is over, it’s still a dog.

This is part of an occasional series on investing. It is meant for the beginning investor and contains only general advice, not recommendations for any specific investment. Terms and conditions apply. Actual mileage may vary. May cause nausea, vomiting, hair loss, and a nasty rash. See program details for blackout dates, lease terms, and all-purpose weasling.

Hump Day Humor

by

Since it already seems like the week should be over:

Chris Muir is dissecting the Demo’s slogan – helpfully suggesting: “Vote Democrat Because Your Betters Can Do America.”

The misogynist Hutton admits “Looking back on my career, I think I can honestly say that none of my students has ever learnt to speak English, and fewer than 10% of them have made any detectable progress at all.” This leads him to his new slogan: The Hutton School of English – Wasting Your Time and Money. Maybe it’s just the people I knew, but ESL always seemed more an adventure than a discipline – one of my daughter’s bridesmaids spent the fall in Colombia – never finding the right school for her well-honed ESL talents. She did, however, return unscathed from various hitchhiking adventures around the country – which either shows a competence or luck. Further adventures this spring are making some of the fittings difficult.

Iowahawk doesn’t scale the heights of his discussion of the defaming of the Saint of the Packers, but, then, he remains pretty great. He’s been discussing the Democrat’s plan:

HARRY: That’s right, Nancy. That’s why our tough, no-nonsense emails to the generals will include pictures of Osama bin Laden, so they will know who to get.

NANCY: But whats about disguises?

HARRY: Way ahead of you Nancy! Using state-of-the-art PhotoShop smart computers, we will create simulated pictures of Osama bin Laden wearing a mustache, soul patch, trucker hat, and so on, and these will also be included in our emails. Then, the generals will distribute the pictures to the soldiers, and they can then make a surprise attack at Pakistan and get Osama bin Laden, no matter his latest look. Imagine the looks on the terrorists’ faces!

On the other hand, if you want an oldy but goody & go for timeless culture, you might check out Ingmar Bergman’s ‘Hazardous Dukes’

And for yet another rousing Republican hymn (just as third parties are appearing on the horizon – likely to take out any chances of Republican future presidents, check out the music video.

A charming reader notes my mistake (now changed): “I assume your “daughter’s bridesmaid” was teaching ESL and hiking in the country of Colombia, not the District of Columbia. Although it would be an interesting study to determine which is more dangerous and in need of proper English language training. Sorry, as a former resident in, and fan of, the country, this misspelling usually provokes a response.”

ABC Punishes Producer

by

All whistleblowers are not altruistic. “It is widely believed at ABC News that the e-mails were leaked by a former employee who has a vendetta against Green.” The ABC producer has apologized to the White House (which made him puke) and Madeleine Albright (who has “Jew shame” and besides, well, he didn’t like her). Nonetheless, he’s given a month without pay to think it over.

On the other hand, I’d prefer the transparency of free & open speech. I suspect we might more easily talk out problems & reach solutions if the bullshit factor were a bit lower.