“As Florida State linebackers coach in 1972, Bill Parcells read the preface for Bill Libby’s The Coaches, published that year by Regnery. Feeling that it eloquently described his profession, Parcells condensed the 1,039-word introduction into roughly 390 words that hit home the most. The coach laminated the shortened version. Throughout his long football career, he re-read it, especially during tough times. Below is the exact wording from Parcells’s sheet,” from Parcells: A Football Life, by Bill Parcells and Nunyo Demasio. He is called “Coach.” It is a difficult job, and there is no clear … [Read more...]
Vanguard GNMA
Your Survival Guy’s been digging through his investment attic looking for wrapping paper and came across these four letters: GNMA. It’s been a while since I’ve written to you about Vanguard GNMA, and like most investments I make, I still own it. I’m a collector. A pack rat, if you will. I find things I forgot I have all the time. But I never really forgot about Vanguard GNMA. I know many of you, too, wonder about it. Let’s talk about it. It’s been slim pickings through the most recent years with Vanguard GNMA. But those are the cards we were dealt by the Fed’s zero percent interest rates … [Read more...]
Major Tax Changes for 2026: Will You Be Affected?
If the 2017 Trump tax cuts aren't extended, there will be some major changes to the tax code in 2026, and you could be affected. The Cato Institute's Adam N. Michel explains the changes and puts them into a neatly displayed chart you can find below. Michel writes: In 2017, Republicans cut and reformed taxes for individuals and businesses. The vast majority of the changes for individuals expire at the end of 2025, which will increase taxes in 2026 by about $400 billion a year. There is broad bipartisan support to extend about three‐quarters of the tax cuts. In addition to cutting … [Read more...]
Investing Habits of the Fairly Wealthy: #1 Y-O-U
The investing world lost our Confucius, Charlie Munger, this year. His words of wisdom were the fortune cookies of finance—short and sweet. Perfect sized treats in a world overstuffed with information. Munger said: “When you mix raisins and turds, you've still got turds.” “People calculate too much and think too little.” “A lot of our respected financial institutions are just casinos in drag.” “Step by step you get ahead, but rarely in fast spurts.” Munger, with his billions in wealth, put his money where his mouth was, a rarity in a “look at me” Tik Tok world. He lived in the same … [Read more...]
BIDENFLATION: Why Christmas Costs So Much This Year
You can feel it. Every time you head to the store, or click the "Buy Now" button online, you feel it a little more. Christmas is more expensive this year. Inflation has done a number on Americans' spending power in the Biden years, and it's still adding up. The TIPP Insights editorial board explains why Americans "can expect to spend more-for-less this Christmas." They write: The dark reality of Bidenomics is 16.7% inflation under President Biden’s watch. When he took office, inflation was at just 1.4%. Inflation has stayed above the Federal Reserve's 2% target for 34 consecutive months … [Read more...]
Wellesley and Wellington: “To all a Good Night”
A major publication is doing somewhat of an about-face on the virtues of balanced investing. As I mentioned, there have been a couple of foul balls lately in the form of articles with themes along the lines of “balanced investing is dead.” “Please stop,” I said to myself. “Is there a greater disservice to the long-term investor?” A wise man once wrote, in his strategy report, Richard C. Young’s Intelligence Report, about how savvy investors should invest within a framework of 70-30 of stocks and bonds, or vice versa. In my regular conversations with him, Dick Young, my father-in-law, he … [Read more...]
Soaring Options Volume Head for a Record in 2023
In The Wall Street Journal, Gunjan Banerji reports that soaring options volume in 2023 is on track for an annual record, doubling the volumes of just five years ago. He writes: Oodles of risk. Bold bets on artificial intelligence. Round-the-clock activity. The options market is booming like never before. About 44 million options contracts have changed hands on an average day in 2023, on track for an annual record based on Options Clearing Corp. data going back to 1973 and more than double the figure from five years ago. Activity in contracts expiring the same day—among the market’s … [Read more...]
Wellesley Fund: “Balanced Investing Is Dead” (Please Stop)
Wellesley Fund: Balanced Investing is Dead (Please Stop) Happy Friday, Your Survival Guy needs to clear the air. Over the last couple of months, a major publication has done a disservice to balanced investors. You know, the investor I cater to who likes to sleep well at night, has saved ‘til it hurt, and is fairly wealthy. One of my favorite proxies for such a manner of investing is the Vanguard Wellesley fund. When I think balanced investing, this fund comes to mind, as does its brother, the Vanguard Wellington fund. Over the last ten years, Wellesley averaged 5.04% per year. And … [Read more...]
DIRTY JOBS: America Needs Mining Engineers
You may be frustrated that Joe Biden is paying billions in student loans for American students whose degrees didn't earn them enough to pay the loans back themselves. That's the sad reality of attending an expensive school and majoring in something with no job prospects. But one thing America does need is people who aren't afraid to do the dirty jobs. Right now, America needs mining engineers. Mining engineers probably aren't hoisting shovels and picks and climbing into mine shafts to actually dig, but they are a necessary part of America's commodity markets, and not nearly enough are … [Read more...]
Investing Habits of the Fairly Wealthy: #2 Coach
“The games you remember most are on the negative side,” Parcells says. “I don’t know why. You’d have to speak to a psychologist about that. But the time you enjoy a win is minimal compared to how long you feel disappointed by losing.” That’s a quote from Parcells: A Football Life by Bill Parcells and Nunyo Demasio. As a lifelong New England Patriots fan, I remember when Bill Parcells became head coach, having won two Super Bowls with the New York Giants and the media attention that surrounded his hiring. As “The Big Tuna,” he was the show, which would be a problem if you, the player, didn’t … [Read more...]
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