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Thank you Alex and Larry.

Fallible

nisiprius wrote:Syllogism:

1) Index funds are for people who don’t know anything about investing.
2) Nobody knows nuttin'.
3) Ergo, index funds are for everybody.

Neat. I wonder how the guy would respond to this.

Bogleheads: Our mentor, Jack Bogle, wrote in Common Sense on Mutual Funds : " Stay the Course is the most important single piece of wisdom I can give you." Stay the Course are also the last three words in the last chapter of The Bogleheads' Guide to Investing. Vanguard concurs: Staying th...

To avoid “noise” you have to know what it is - not just a general definition of it, but what is “noise” for you . That means knowing yourself and what you need to know, what is most important to you financially and personally. Then you need a healthy skepticism to identify reputable media sources to...

It's all too typical but, hey, I see hope - he at least knew about index funds and that's a start.

Looking back on a long journalism career, I can come up with small victories but certainly nothing like making millions for my company or saving lives - and no Pulitzer or Peabody. Small victories were getting both sides of a story (harder than you might think), or breaking a story, or further devel...

I wasn't sure whether to revive this thread from March or begin a new topic, so decided to revive. I'm wondering what everyone thinks about NBR two months since announcement of its purchase by CNBC. I watched the last couple shows and mainly notice superficial stuff - a faster pace, attempts at more...

... The impact of some books, especially the classics, may be deep, subtle, and barely noticeable at first and not lead to any change in thinking or behavior for some time, and even then tracing that change to a certain book (s) can be tricky. Your work-specific books would be different, as you've ...

Interestingly, despite being an avid reader, and fan of books in general, both academic and fiction/entertainment, I honestly can't name any books that have changed my life. I grew up hearing so much about how reading the classics would deepen your emotional depth, teach you about people/relationsh...

Your responses helped me decide to go ahead and buy the Vanguard funds now instead of waiting for any sort of market correction. I found myself looking at a video on cnbc today with a "stock market expert" talking about how the market is ready for a reversal. My first thought was good for...

The Elements of Style helped me discover my love of simplicity in the written word, as Jack Bogle's The Little Book of Common Sense Investing did with investing. The best is simple. Elements of Style was essential for me to get through college. Good choice. With the advent of texting and social med...

The Elements of Style helped me discover my love of simplicity in the written word, as Jack Bogle's The Little Book of Common Sense Investing did with investing. The best is simple.

Thanks, Jack Bogle, for all you've done and continue to do for the small investor. You are our hero.

A recent forum topic included an excellent paper on financial literacy education that cited studies showing the following: "Youth who play a stock market game as part of a high school personal finance course increase their financial knowledge, but they are less thrifty than their peers (Mandell...

In the AARP Bulletin, a distillation of advice from Bodie, Pfau, and Bernstein: http://www.aarp.org/money/budgeting-saving/info-05-2013/safest-investment-path-for-retirement.html Keith Thank you for the link and couldn't agree more it's a great distillation from four of the very best. Especially li...

nisiprius wrote:

“Mutual funds are the propeller plane,” writes Mr. Scaramucci in his primer, “while hedge funds are the fighter jets.”

Paging Mr. Ferri... paging Mr. Ferri... Mr. Ferri please call the operator...

pkcrafter wrote:

Bought some VT this morning.

Oh, no, market drop tomorrow.

Paul

No prob...market will be back up Friday.

letsgobobby wrote What ages do we start? And at what age do we go from "pound the keys if you like" to "here's how to play a C chord?" An experienced teacher should look at your child, sit down at the piano with him/her, and they will be able to tell if your child is ready to st...

This may sound facetious but perhaps the "books" with the biggest influence on me were comic books! When I was very young I was having great difficulty with reading and therefore hated it -- until I found comic books. These were primarily the Walt Disney Duck comics: Donald Duck, Uncle Sc...

The Wizard wrote:Oh, and what's odd about the OP is, he/she says nothing about the split of that $200K between equities and non equities.
...

Yes, that's why I have asked if he/she has determined an asset allocation, and one based on risk tolerance and capacity.

Got $200k to invest. I told myself I'd put it all in Wednesday (tomorrow). But the market has gone up dramatically over the past few days, and now I'm spooked . Should I still do it? The "spooked" you mention is your risk tolerance staring you in the face, asking/telling you to get to kno...

Jason Zweig writing on financial literacy education in the WSJ. In a series of brilliant polemics meticulously backed up by empirical evidence, Loyola Law School professor Lauren Willis has argued that fin lit is a colossal waste of time and money for everyone except the companies that sponsor it. ...

Mel, thanks for the very good article. I know the relief the Ragers experienced on learning they are on the right track as I also have an advisor review my portfolio about every five years and, except for minor tweaks, am told I'm still okay. That is especially good to hear in retirement. Rick, tha...

Mel, thanks for the very good article. I know the relief the Ragers experienced on learning they are on the right track as I also have an advisor review my portfolio about every five years and, except for minor tweaks, am told I'm still okay. That is especially good to hear in retirement. Rick, than...

I wonder what Jonathan Clements has to say about investor education since he left the WSJ to run such a program at Citibank. Have any of his opinion pieces on the subject surfaced anywhere? Livesoft, I'm assuming you already surfed the 'net; I did, too, and found nothing on Clements and financial l...

I've become more and more of the opinion over the last few years that widespread financial literacy movements are a waste of energy. Those who want to learn will seek it out - we all wound up here, after all. Those who don't, won't. No amount of required financial literacy classes in high school/co...

Although folks may not like this comment, there are well-respected posters on this forum that also present a conflict-of-interest. At least most of us know the situation right up front. Suppose RooseveltG's instructor was a big proponent of index funds, but still ran their own firm and still provid...

This winter I took a 9 hour finance course at our local university. The teacher was a relatively knowledgeable CFP, except for 1 major flaw. He failed to even mention indexing or index funds. During class he argued that there is no data to support indexing over active management and he could identi...

Jason Zweig writing on financial literacy education in the WSJ.... "Before we invest in the luxury of making people financially literate, shouldn’t we first take care of the vastly more urgent problem that millions of them can’t read, write or do basic math?" BobK[/quote] Very glad to see...

I was recently on a new forum that looks promising, but will badly need good moderators to keep its lively members on topic. Every time I saw a potential off-topic post, I thought, "They need a LadyGeek" (or any of the Bogleheads' great moderators). Congratulations and thanks, LadyGeek! Al...

... I think too many people let the idea of retirement become the fantasy that keeps them living lives that don't let them become what they always wanted to be and do what they really want to do. Distracting themselves with jobs they supposedly hate may even keep them from having to THINK about wha...

... you get more time and much more control over that time to be what you always wanted to be and do what you always wanted to do. That's the fantasy. ... Not a fantasy at all. But if it is, then that's what my retirement has been - and the retirements of many others I know and have read about, inc...

One heavily used Schwinn stationary bike I bought used in 1994.

You haven't said whether you enjoy travel or have done a lot of it to know the downsides. I loved to travel when I began my first career, but it can wear you down after many years. I chose a second career partly because there was less travel. How well you like your new job will also be an important ...

Finally and mercifully finished Saul Steinberg, A Biography by Deirdre Bair. The book started out with such promise when Bair said that a quote attributed to Steinberg, “I am a writer who draws,” was the “elusive key” that led to an understanding of his work. Although I learned hundreds of new detai...

I've never created a questionnaire, but if I did, I think I'd start with the BH principles and base the questions on each. Also, Vanguard has questionnaires on its site that could be helpful. I also wonder if we have Bogleheads who have created questionnaires. BH principles: 1 Develop a workable pla...

Allan Roth's review http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-505123_162-57581204/retirement-gamble-a-critical-review/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+AllanRoth+%28CBS+News+-+Allan+Roth+%29&utm_content=Google+Reader I do need to point out, Frontline, that you neglected to i...

I think the show might have been better as a series hitting some of the issues raised in more depth, to wit (a) decline in traditional pension schemes, (b) high fees, (c) insufficient savings rates, and finally (d) the effects of the serial-bubble economy we've had during most of these folks peak e...

I got 100% but you really don't need to know the right answers to most questions to be financially literate. The most important questions are not asked: asset allocation, diversification, low cost. I don't have to care whether bond prices go up or down, A, B, or C shares, whether hedge funds are re...

Got 90.3, but just guessed at the bankruptcy/common stock question and lucked out. (Bogleheads are honest.) Got selling short wrong. I thought it was relatively easy otherwise as I've taken other tests like these and not done as well.

We are all Contrarians after the fact..... Here is your chance to Prove it ! Everyone here hates Bonds currently....Interest rates have only one way to go and 'Bonds will get clobbered'.....I see the ultimate Contrarian Play right now as to go 'All in' with Bonds. Especially the 30 year Long Term B...

Close behind was the stuttering and "deer-in-the-headlights" look of the one guy when asked about "fiduciary responsibility" and the unbelievable statement by the Prudential lady that she'd never seen any studies that show indexing consistently outperforms. Hi Mel, If this was a...

Close behind was the stuttering and "deer-in-the-headlights" look of the one guy when asked about "fiduciary responsibility" and the unbelievable statement by the Prudential lady that she'd never seen any studies that show indexing consistently outperforms. Hi Mel, If this was a...

Here is good information from the wiki:
http://www.bogleheads.org/wiki/Managing_a_windfall

An excellent program. Reminds me how lucky I was 25 years ago when, after I'd read about high fund fees, low-cost indexing, and Jack Bogle, my company came up with a 401(k) that offered the Vanguard 500 Index fund. I couldn't get into it fast enough.

Let's see: With the 2% fee , at 8% return before fee, return over 50 years is 100*(1.06)^50 - 100 = 1742% Without the 2% fee , at 8% return, over 50 years the return is 100*(1.08)^50 - 100 = 4590%. (4590% - 1742%)/4590% ---> 62%, which is about 2/3. Yup, Jack is correct. :beer Yup. I had a similar ...

It's a complex situation full of emotion with possibly no good solution and certainly not a perfect one. But if you can identify that the main problem is that he's asking for too much money, well more than he needs, perhaps you can concentrate on that alone, thereby at least simplifying the matter. ...

Let's see: With the 2% fee , at 8% return before fee, return over 50 years is 100*(1.06)^50 - 100 = 1742% Without the 2% fee , at 8% return, over 50 years the return is 100*(1.08)^50 - 100 = 4590%. (4590% - 1742%)/4590% ---> 62%, which is about 2/3. Yup, Jack is correct. :beer Yup. I had a similar ...

I posted this comment on the moneywatch site, but should be here as well: Andrew Tsai was not a physicist, his resume: BS @ Wharton in Econ, then to Susquehanna & other Wall St. firms. (bottom of page 2 of the Institutional Investor article has this info). The physicist referred to in the openi...

Good morning, I thought there was going to be a meeting (in Woodbury?) during the first part of May. I haven't received an email indicating that it was taking place. Is there going to be one, and if so, where will it be held? I attended the meeting that was held in January in Edina and really enjoy...