We have lately noticed the growing ubiquity of a British government poster produced in 1939 at the beginning of World War II that advises the reader to “Keep Calm and Carry On.” The poster was intended to boost public morale in the face of the many risks of war,…
When we examine sources of risk and return in the market, we conclude, among other things, that there is no systematic return associated with geographic allocation. One of the practical results of this conclusion is that we always aim to be “geographically neutral” when assembling a global portfolio. …
We thought we’d celebrate this numerologically-significant Veteran’s Day with another edition of the Live Big Digest. While this is the day in which we all pause, reflect, and give thanks for the service and sacrifice of those in our armed forces, it also happens to…
I’m sure it doesn’t surprise you that I’m writing again to chat about the chaotic world in which we live, but before I get to that, I wanted to remind you that recorded version of our webinar “Economic Vomitility and Financial Planning as Dramamine” is…
On October 21 of last year, at 10:20am Pacific Time, millions of people participated in the Great California ShakeOut (www.shakeout.org), practicing the essential earthquake survival skills of “drop, cover, and hold on.” Researchers long ago established that those who practice an emergency response are more…
We thought we’d take a break from the scary market action of the past week and talk about EMT. And no, that doesn’t stand for Emergency Medical Technician, notwithstanding any heart palpitations you may be feeling. The EMT we’re going to discuss stands for Error Management…
We just wanted to touch base with a brief note on the S&P downgrade of US long-term debt and the ongoing volatility in the stock market. To begin with, we believe that the actual downgrade was a bit of grandstanding by a company desperately trying…
Yet again, the word of the day is double-dip, and not double-dip ice cream we needn’t add. Slower growth for the US economy during the first half of this year and debt worries in Europe seem to have driven investor anxiety over the top, causing many to…
We thought we’d offer a few observations now that Congress and the White House have managed to come to an agreement on raising the debt ceiling. As we suggested a week ago, a deal was indeed done, though not before the arrival of the eleventh hour. Among…
We thought we’d commemorate the 222nd anniversary of the storming of the Bastille with a Live Big® Digest. Among other things, Bastille Day can be a reminder that the more things change, the more they stay the same (or, as the French would say: Plus…