The FDIC Nightmare
Wal-Mart is often criticized because when they put up their store in a small community, they drive out small businesses and mom and pop stores which cannot compete on price. Nevertheless, Wal-Mart still pays taxes and has a cost of capital, so they cannot go everywhere. Imagine if a Wal-Mart like competitor to small business […]
The Bond Bubble
The financial press has given credence to those who insist that, because interest rates have fallen rapidly since April, we are in some kind of a bond bubble. Investors, they say, should shy away from fixed income because, surely, they will be hurt when interest rates rise. Technically, this statement is correct – the crucial […]
Fighting the Economic Headwinds
I have written many blogs about the faltering U.S. economy and the continuing headwinds that will prevail for the next few years. The headwinds include: A consumer balance sheet loaded with debt with flat to falling income; The consumer’s major asset, the home, continues to fall in value with approximately 25% of homeowners with mortgages […]