If your not interested in long term strategies or retirement plans, then simply put, your not an experienced professional. In fact, only a "newbie" would not be pursuing multiple strategies.
Retirement accounts, like IRAs, are protected accounts and cannot be touched by creditors or bankruptcy courts. Many times you hear about those guys who made a killing either in the market. However, you do not ever hear about the guy who lost it all.
Losing it all does happen everyday to many individuals. Think of the guy who decided that he was going to short RNAI with full leverage. Uh-oh. There are many famous Americans who have died bankrupt men. The fact of the matter is that if they had a retirement account (that is after 1975), then they would not have died poor men.
Retirement accounts are a cheap type of insurance that assures you will live a semi-comfortable existence after the age of 65. Everyone should have one and parents should be opening up ROTH IRAs for their children.
When I say my IRAs and 401ks are my most valuable accounts, I mean just that. If I get sued or the IRS comes in here one day, they will not be able to touch those accounts.
It is my belief that someone, anyone, should not be speculating unless they have multiple layers of investments. At any given time, I have at least 6 months of living expenses in savings bonds. I contribute at least $30000 each year to different retirement strategies, IRAs, 401k, DRIP plans. Then there are my real estate holdings.
http://finance.yahoo.com/q/bc?s=^DJI&t=my&l=on&z=l&q=l&c=
In response to the second poster, when looking at the Dow since 1929, we notice that there are many different trends.
1929-1933 Market Crash
1933-1955 Recovery from Crash
1955-1965 Bull Run
1965-1983 Malaise
1980-2000 Super Bull
2000-current Consolidation and Correction
When superimposing historical trends over the DOW, we can (anectdotally) conclude that the reasons behind these phases was simply the leadership of the United States.
The Market Crash of 1929 was a direct result of the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act. Hoover should have vetoed this legislation and that would have prevented the Great Depression.
The Recovery from the Crash was facilitated by World War II. Actually, World War II had caused a meandering in the market, but right after it was over was a time of great expansion.
The Bull Run from 1955-1965 was a result of great leadership and general content with the country.
When John F. Kennedy died in 1963, we then started down the road of malaise and a series of bad leaders. This mailase was not destroyed until Ronald Reagan. After Ronald Reagan, we had George Bush and then the powerhouse Bill Clinton. Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton were both strong leaders.
Now we have George W. Bush, a controversial President, and we see the DJIA again meandering about. Only now is it catching up to its past high and what do you know, its almost time for Bush to go. A coincidence?
If you are old enough, then you have probably been through all this before. You dont need hind-site. All you need to do is look back and make a judgement based on your past experiences.
Here is one great example involving the real estate market. Here are three articles. Read them and do not look at the date.
http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9D04EEDA153BF934A2575BC0A967948260
http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=950DE4D6143FF930A3575AC0A96F948260
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/realestate/2003303607_harney15.html
Its hard to believe that all three articles were written in 3 different time periods 1981, 1989 and 2006. I have heard many things the last few years in regards to housing.
"It will never go down"
"We have to live somewhere"
"My house is my greatest investment"
etc etc
Most people had forgotten the lessons they learned back in 1981 and 1989. A man who had lived during those times would not have forgotten, however, and would have sold his house in 2004 foreseeing the problems that were about to take place in 2005 and 2006.
There is no replacement for experience, however, Wall Street never seems to want to hire mature workers. They favor the right out of college clowns. Those are the guys that seem to run the market.
You dont need hind-site if you have experience. Chances are, you have been down that road before. In fact, we have been down this bankruptcy thing with GM twice before I believe. 1975 and 1983?
Who does the market define as an "experienced professional"? A guy right out of college with an Ivy League degree.
What about a 55 year old with a wealth of experience and education who speaks about such things like 401k accounts and IRAS? I guess that guy is a wash-out, a has been and a newbie to this new age.
So there you have it. Thats the reasoning for the meandering of the DOW. The market is run by "experienced professionals"; translation, some guy right out of college with less then ten years of investment experience. The country is run by a controversial leader.
I say to give it some time. The college graduates will get a few years more experience and they will elect a new leader. Can the American public get it wrong again?
As for recognizing an opportunity like American Airlines, I should be able to slap down all the paperwork right in front of you and you should be able to give me the right answer within a reasonable period of time. The piano player knows his job. He can play the music without missing a beat. If you are the one, then you can give me the right answer too. Dont give me this hind site baloney. I've studied for tests that were harder to figure then American Airlines.
Many people make the simple mistake of looking on Yahoo and coming to a decision, but making a decision like the one with American Airlines takes time. You have to look at the players, look back through history, you have to look at the books. Simply put, American has the best frequent flyer program in the industry and they have many brand loyalists. Their employees are patriots as well and will not quit. They will bend to demands and make sacrafices if it means taking a financial hit.
Delta? Who flies Delta? The employees hate working there. Frequent flyer program?
Retirement accounts, like IRAs, are protected accounts and cannot be touched by creditors or bankruptcy courts. Many times you hear about those guys who made a killing either in the market. However, you do not ever hear about the guy who lost it all.
Losing it all does happen everyday to many individuals. Think of the guy who decided that he was going to short RNAI with full leverage. Uh-oh. There are many famous Americans who have died bankrupt men. The fact of the matter is that if they had a retirement account (that is after 1975), then they would not have died poor men.
Retirement accounts are a cheap type of insurance that assures you will live a semi-comfortable existence after the age of 65. Everyone should have one and parents should be opening up ROTH IRAs for their children.
When I say my IRAs and 401ks are my most valuable accounts, I mean just that. If I get sued or the IRS comes in here one day, they will not be able to touch those accounts.
It is my belief that someone, anyone, should not be speculating unless they have multiple layers of investments. At any given time, I have at least 6 months of living expenses in savings bonds. I contribute at least $30000 each year to different retirement strategies, IRAs, 401k, DRIP plans. Then there are my real estate holdings.
http://finance.yahoo.com/q/bc?s=^DJI&t=my&l=on&z=l&q=l&c=
In response to the second poster, when looking at the Dow since 1929, we notice that there are many different trends.
1929-1933 Market Crash
1933-1955 Recovery from Crash
1955-1965 Bull Run
1965-1983 Malaise
1980-2000 Super Bull
2000-current Consolidation and Correction
When superimposing historical trends over the DOW, we can (anectdotally) conclude that the reasons behind these phases was simply the leadership of the United States.
The Market Crash of 1929 was a direct result of the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act. Hoover should have vetoed this legislation and that would have prevented the Great Depression.
The Recovery from the Crash was facilitated by World War II. Actually, World War II had caused a meandering in the market, but right after it was over was a time of great expansion.
The Bull Run from 1955-1965 was a result of great leadership and general content with the country.
When John F. Kennedy died in 1963, we then started down the road of malaise and a series of bad leaders. This mailase was not destroyed until Ronald Reagan. After Ronald Reagan, we had George Bush and then the powerhouse Bill Clinton. Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton were both strong leaders.
Now we have George W. Bush, a controversial President, and we see the DJIA again meandering about. Only now is it catching up to its past high and what do you know, its almost time for Bush to go. A coincidence?
If you are old enough, then you have probably been through all this before. You dont need hind-site. All you need to do is look back and make a judgement based on your past experiences.
Here is one great example involving the real estate market. Here are three articles. Read them and do not look at the date.
http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9D04EEDA153BF934A2575BC0A967948260
http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=950DE4D6143FF930A3575AC0A96F948260
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/realestate/2003303607_harney15.html
Its hard to believe that all three articles were written in 3 different time periods 1981, 1989 and 2006. I have heard many things the last few years in regards to housing.
"It will never go down"
"We have to live somewhere"
"My house is my greatest investment"
etc etc
Most people had forgotten the lessons they learned back in 1981 and 1989. A man who had lived during those times would not have forgotten, however, and would have sold his house in 2004 foreseeing the problems that were about to take place in 2005 and 2006.
There is no replacement for experience, however, Wall Street never seems to want to hire mature workers. They favor the right out of college clowns. Those are the guys that seem to run the market.
You dont need hind-site if you have experience. Chances are, you have been down that road before. In fact, we have been down this bankruptcy thing with GM twice before I believe. 1975 and 1983?
Who does the market define as an "experienced professional"? A guy right out of college with an Ivy League degree.
What about a 55 year old with a wealth of experience and education who speaks about such things like 401k accounts and IRAS? I guess that guy is a wash-out, a has been and a newbie to this new age.
So there you have it. Thats the reasoning for the meandering of the DOW. The market is run by "experienced professionals"; translation, some guy right out of college with less then ten years of investment experience. The country is run by a controversial leader.
I say to give it some time. The college graduates will get a few years more experience and they will elect a new leader. Can the American public get it wrong again?
As for recognizing an opportunity like American Airlines, I should be able to slap down all the paperwork right in front of you and you should be able to give me the right answer within a reasonable period of time. The piano player knows his job. He can play the music without missing a beat. If you are the one, then you can give me the right answer too. Dont give me this hind site baloney. I've studied for tests that were harder to figure then American Airlines.
Many people make the simple mistake of looking on Yahoo and coming to a decision, but making a decision like the one with American Airlines takes time. You have to look at the players, look back through history, you have to look at the books. Simply put, American has the best frequent flyer program in the industry and they have many brand loyalists. Their employees are patriots as well and will not quit. They will bend to demands and make sacrafices if it means taking a financial hit.
Delta? Who flies Delta? The employees hate working there. Frequent flyer program?
