CURRENT REVIEW for 2013 Quarter 1
Play Ball!
Spring is upon us, and so is the beginning of a new baseball season. While our Milwaukee Brewers are off to a tough start, with an extensive injury list, I love the start of each baseball season. It signifies that warmer weather is ahead and we will be able to enjoy the multitude of cycles that inevitably occur during the long campaign toward the fall playoffs, when the benefit of a lot of hard work pays off for a few select teams.
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MARKET REVIEW ARCHIVE
Review for 2012 Quarter 4
What Happened?
I wonder how many investors think back to the news they read, or the emotions they felt, at the beginning of any investment period of time. Let's try to remember the news from four years ago. We had just lived through a financial system collapse and the U.S. Government signed into law a $700 billion rescue package, the stock market delivered the third-worst calendar year pummeling on record, auto makers were begging for federal money to try to remain solvent, and Bernie Madoff was arrested for running a massive Ponzi scheme.
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Review for 2012 Quarter 3
Presidential Musings
We are enjoying an absolutely spectacular autumn season here in Wisconsin! Temperatures have been moderate and the colors are bursting from our trees and landscape, making travel around the state a pure joy. Fall is my favorite time of the year…except every four years when we are all subjected to the political campaigns and the media outlets incessantly barking at us about how completely incompetent and immoral each of the candidates is. It is tiresome…
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Review for 2012 Quarter 2
A Plane on the Tarmac (or A Truck Heading for a Cliff)
Recently, on a flight from Raleigh, NC to Atlanta, GA, the plane that I boarded rolled out to its position on the tarmac and then suddenly slowed to a halt. The pilot soon announced that bad weather had hit Atlanta, but we were going to wait it out as the thunderstorm seemed likely to pass through quickly. Five hours later, with lots of fidgety (or angry) passengers, the plane finally resumed its path and took off to Atlanta.
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Review for 2012 Quarter 1
Global Warming
Recently, my family travels have reminded me how truly global our economy is. Our family
(at least those who are still living at home) spent spring break in San Francisco – a wonderful city with a great deal of culture and diversity. As we walked around Chinatown, we were fascinated by the amount of commerce being done there every day. It made me think of the amazing growth in the country of China in the past decade and the strides being taken there toward economic dominance.
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Review for 2011 Quarter 4
It's a Wonderful Life
Happy New Year! As I write this letter, we've wrapped up another holiday season and I am reminded by the classic Christmas movie It's a Wonderful Life of the many blessings we all have as Americans. I'm sure you all know the story about George Bailey, who was ready to give up due to a series of financial crises.
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Review for 2011 Quarter 3
Moneyball
In September 2011, "Moneyball" premiered in movie theaters around the country. Having read the book by Michael Lewis back in 2004 and being a big baseball fan, I was quite interested in seeing the movie...and it did not disappoint! Brad Pitt plays the role of Billy Beane, the General Manager of the Oakland A's , who utilized carefully interpreted player statistics, rather than conventional baseball scouting methods, to build a team that won over 100 games in two consecutive seasons (2001-2002) despite having the lowest player payroll in the Major Leagues.
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Review for 2011 Quarter 2
Headlines
I wonder how many of us simply read the headlines of our favorite periodical or website and don’t dig very deep into the story behind them. Reading headlines alone can provide incredibly conflicting information. Since we live in a fast-paced society that leaves little time for in-depth reading... we want information fast and we want it now! While predictions on the markets, economies and politics can make for interesting cocktail party conversation, making meaningful investment decisions based on reading headlines is not good practice. Read full review
Review for 2011 Quarter 1
Stormy Events
The stormy events of the first quarter highlight how unpredictable investment markets really are. If you were to tell investors prior to the quarter that there would be revolutions in the Middle East, an earthquake and nuclear disaster in Japan, and political demonstrations around the U.S., how many would speculate that the U.S. stock market would be up 6-9%? Read full review
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