Criticism

5 Reasons Why Bitcoins are the Dumbest Investment Ever

April 4, 2013

If you haven’t heard of bitcoins by now, you will soon.  They were recently profiled in this week’s BusinessWeek, they have skyrocketed since the Cyprus banking mess and in a nutshell, it’s an alternative currency play which resides in cyberspace only – there is no physical exchange, no regulatory oversight, not even an inkling as [...]

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Extreme Early Retirement – Mainly a Myth Except for Hippies and Drifters

March 31, 2013

I was reading the other day about extreme early retirement (CNBC) where they profiled a few people who were retiring much younger than what you might consider even “early” retirement at 55 or so. In one case, it’s a 40 year-old retirement target – so sure, that counts as pretty extreme early retirement.  But I’m [...]

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Here’s Everything I’ve Done with my Money by NOT Having an Emergency Fund

March 24, 2013

The traditional personal finance advice is that everyone needs an emergency fund, often with absurdly unrealistic amounts of cash (6 month’s salary or more) stashed in a savings account losing money to inflation.  This is a horrible waste of capital in my opinion and while my approach isn’t for everyone, I also want to highlight [...]

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When Enough is Enough – Funding Family Members Because You’re “Well-Off”?

March 10, 2013

So, I’ve now come across enough stories of friends “taking care” of their family when they’re well off and the others aren’t that it begs the question as to when it’s right, when it’s wrong and how prevalent this is.  I’ll share two recent stories that I’ve come across where young, successful people are basically [...]

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Report from Greece: Entitled, Lazy, Hate Americans, Blame the Immigrants

March 7, 2013

I was talking to a co-worker today who just got back from Greece to settle an estate.  I always find it fascinating to travel to other countries or to get first-hand accounts of what others have recently experienced when they travel abroad.  There’s plenty to criticize here in America, but I’ll tell ya, I wouldn’t [...]

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Why Stocks Are Breaking Records and it’s Not a Bubble

March 5, 2013

So, we’ve seen the stock market continue to rally in the face of all sorts of should-be lousy news ranging from the re-election of “anti-biz” Obama to the end of the world sequestration that we have somehow survived thus far.  This momentum and continued rally in equities has many investors and analysts scratching their heads [...]

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How Much Would You Sell a Kidney For? Seriously, Name your Price

January 27, 2013

I read the occasional story about someone selling a kidney for what amounts to a few hundred dollars or less in emerging markets and it begs the question as to what a fair price is for a kidney for an individual.  Circumstances vary, but people donate kidneys to loved ones and even strangers all the [...]

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Committing Financial Adultery – Lurid Examples, Gray Areas and Your Stories

January 22, 2013

Financial adultery is a newer term you’re probably going to be hearing a lot more about.  This recent survey indicates that HALF, yes, half the people surveyed have committed financial infidelity.  As the economy languishes and people continue to struggle with low-paying jobs and increasingly burdensome amounts of student debt, this notion of couples hiding [...]

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Definitive Evidence That Your Fellow American is a Moron

January 6, 2013

In case you had any doubt that you are surrounded by complete and utter idiots any time you leave your residence, I present you with this national survey from Consumer Reports.  I was reading along this weekend from one of the few periodicals I enjoy and happened upon this survey.  I was a bit surprised [...]

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Friend’s Cat Pisses on and Ruins Jackets, Purse: Who Pays?

December 5, 2012

I’m an animal lover, but cats really piss me off. My wife’s a cat person, I’m a dog person. So, we have both. While my dog barks to go out or feels terrible if he has an accident, we’ve had cats that piss on our stuff intentionally – just to be nasty. Either they’re mad [...]

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