Money and Finance
- John Mauldin: Unrealistic Expectations
"In the short run, the market is like a voting machine, tallying up which firms are popular and unpopular. But in the long run, the market is like a weighing machine, assessing the substance [intrinsic value] of a company." – Benjamin Graham Way back...
- Druckenmiller Sees Storm Worse Than ’08 As Retirees Steal
It's not the complete interview, but there's about a 23-minute video clip HERE. UPDATE: The complete show is available HERE. Stan Druckenmiller, one of the best-performing hedge fund managers of the past three decades, has a warning for...
- John Mauldin: Who Took My Easy Button?
Everyone knows by now that the US is facing difficult choices. Depending on what assumptions you use, the unfunded liabilities of Social Security and Medicare are between $50 and $80 trillion and rising. It really doesn’t matter, as there is no way...
- Sprott October Comment: Surreality Check Part Two...
In case you failed to catch it in our previous articles this year, we thought we’d state it outright for our readers this month: the United States Government is on a trajectory to default on their obligations. In its current financial condition, it...
- Sprott September Comment: Safe Harbour No More
The US dollar (USD) is the world’s “reserve currency”. This status is arguably the greatest privilege enjoyed by the US as an economic entity. Most people don’t appreciate its significance. As the world’s reserve currency, the USD is used by...
Money and Finance
John Mauldin: How Not to Run a Pension
For all the focus on the unfunded liabilities of Social Security and Medicare, there is another unfunded crisis brewing, and this one is in your own back yard. It’s coming to you even if you live outside of the US; it just might take a little longer to get there. I wrote ten years ago that state and local pension funds might be underfunded by as much as $2 trillion. It turns out that I was being overly optimistic. New government research suggests that the figure might be as high as $3 trillion. But what if you take into account that retirees are living longer? An IMF study that we’ll look at in a few minutes does just that. And if we live a lot longer? Oh my. The problems are not universal – some cities and states will do fine, while others are already in deep kimchee – but it’s a big problem and getting worse.
At the end of the letter, I’ll add a personal note on housing. Longtime readers know that I was bearish on housing well before the bubble. I sold my home (for personal reasons) and decided to lease until things became more settled. I have said several times that I would tell you if and when I decided to buy a home. Now, I have put an offer in on an apartment and it has been accepted. But it’s more complicated than that. (Isn’t it always?)
- John Mauldin: Unrealistic Expectations
"In the short run, the market is like a voting machine, tallying up which firms are popular and unpopular. But in the long run, the market is like a weighing machine, assessing the substance [intrinsic value] of a company." – Benjamin Graham Way back...
- Druckenmiller Sees Storm Worse Than ’08 As Retirees Steal
It's not the complete interview, but there's about a 23-minute video clip HERE. UPDATE: The complete show is available HERE. Stan Druckenmiller, one of the best-performing hedge fund managers of the past three decades, has a warning for...
- John Mauldin: Who Took My Easy Button?
Everyone knows by now that the US is facing difficult choices. Depending on what assumptions you use, the unfunded liabilities of Social Security and Medicare are between $50 and $80 trillion and rising. It really doesn’t matter, as there is no way...
- Sprott October Comment: Surreality Check Part Two...
In case you failed to catch it in our previous articles this year, we thought we’d state it outright for our readers this month: the United States Government is on a trajectory to default on their obligations. In its current financial condition, it...
- Sprott September Comment: Safe Harbour No More
The US dollar (USD) is the world’s “reserve currency”. This status is arguably the greatest privilege enjoyed by the US as an economic entity. Most people don’t appreciate its significance. As the world’s reserve currency, the USD is used by...