Bitcoin, Beanie Babies and Gold

Apologies to those amongst the readership who still have an affinity to Beanie Babies and the phenomenon that was. This current Bitcoin circus has been likened to the little stuffed dolls of yore . . . and not necessarily in a positive light. Bitcoin is essentially a digital currency created out of thin air a few years back by noted computer hacker Satoshi Nakamoto. This fictitious asset is freely traded on the web while being virtually unregulated, and has been best known as a preferred method for buying illegal drugs online.

Recently Bitcoin has taken a massive hit to its trade/accepted value after an initial meteoric rise in popularity.

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Is Now the Time for the Stock Markets ?

Now’s the time? Really? Amazing how many so-called experts are confidently saying that now is the time to once again move into equities. Their crystal balls must have broken a while back—that or they never actually worked. When exactly wasn’t the time? October 9, 2007. That’s when the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at an all-time high of 14,164 points. But most investors at that point were living in a state of euphoria, enjoying what seemed like an ever-rising market. If someone advised to avoid equities at that time, they were in the minority.

When was the time? March 9, 2009, when the Dow Jones Industrial Average

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Federal Budget Status Check

U.S. Federal Government finances improving…for now.

While much work remains to shore up the long-term financial health of our country, the recent government revenue and spending direction is improving on the whole.  If allowed to continue, these recent trends would balance our federal budget within 7 years or so. 

The following link to Scott Grannis’ blog provides some further information and data which many Americans may find surprising.

http://scottgrannis.blogspot.com/2013/02/federal-budget-continues-to-improve.html

To be clear, there are sizeable issues standing in the way of maintaining these trends.  However, for

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Fiscal Cliff: The Tax Story

Fiscal Cliff: The Tax Story…Spending Cuts Yet to Come?

The "Fiscal Cliff, Part 1" seems to have been averted through a last-, last-, very-last-minute compromise bill which has already received so much attention that we hesitate to write even one more word about it. However, since we feel a very high sense of responsibility to provide relevant information to those who trust us for investment and financial counsel, here are some comments on the ramifications of the "American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012," as passed by the Senate and House.

First, some very good news with regard to estate and gift tax laws. The lifetime personal exemption

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Mythbusters: Gold is an Inflation Hedge

During a weak global economy and uncertain financial markets, many investors tout the benefits of holding gold. Some proponents claim that gold deserves a significant weighting in most investors’ portfolios. Gold’s often-cited portfolio benefits include a strong long-term return, a hedge against inflation, and safe haven during turbulent times.

But does the evidence support these claims? Last week we saw that the evidence does not support the argument that gold provides superior long-term investment returns.  This week, in part two of three, we will look at historical returns for the answer to the myth that “Gold serves

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Mythbusters:Gold is a Fool-Proof Long-Term Investment

During a weak global economy and uncertain financial markets, many investors tout the benefits of holding gold. Some proponents claim that gold deserves a significant weighting in most investors’ portfolios. Gold’s often-cited portfolio benefits include a strong long-term return, a hedge against inflation, and safe haven during turbulent times.

But does the evidence build a case for holding gold as a separate asset class? This is the first in a series of three blogs in which we examine three myths about gold by looking at historical returns for our answers.

Gold’s Long-Term Performance
Investors who think of gold as

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