John Fund of the Wall Street Journal has an insightful profile of the Wisconsin governor, a former county executive in Milwaukee:
"It's unclear who will benefit as this debate drags on, but his own experience in Milwaukee County suggests that a lengthy debate clarifies issues for the public. "I would go on reality tours," he told me. "Critics would call them 'gloom-and-doom' tours, but in the end people came to agree with me on what needed to be done."
"His record bears that out. Milwaukee County is a Democratic bastion, having given John McCain only 31% of its votes in 2008. But Mr. Walker won with convincing majorities three times, winning 59% in his last re-election in 2008.
"I won because people will ultimately respond to the truth," he says. "There is an unseen reservoir of support out there for leaders who will do the right thing."
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704150604576166034245532792.html
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Life Keepers was created to do the right thing for investors by showing how to save large, serious amounts of money by cutting investment costs and keeping the difference.
Hidden in your mutual funds and other products are costs that appear as seemingly small percentages of the money you have invested.
When the truth comes out - something that we at Life Keepers translate into real dollars so you can see what the real dollar truth is about the costs you pay - investors are surprised to learn how much of their wealth is wasted by costs.
If there will emerge a "new social contract" for taxpayers, whose money pays for government worker salaries and benefits, then it makes sense that investors forge a new social contract for their investment costs.
We teach how to stop costs from wasting your personal wealth and keep that money in your accounts. "People will ultimately respond to the truth," says Governor Walker about his experience in politics at the county level.
Life Keepers is leading a quiet cost revolution for investors. You can take control over the investments you own, cut your costs deeply and permanently, and keep the difference. We explain how to measure that difference in actual dollars. Once you see what that means for you - both for today and tomorrow - you will realize how important it is to get to the truth about all the costs you pay.
Not only can you make a dramatically positive difference for you and your family, but together with others you can impact how Washington and Wall Street behaves by simply bypassing them and showing the nation your independence is not something to abuse and take for granted.
Saturday, February 26, 2011
Thursday, February 24, 2011
U.S. Leads in Nobels, Trails in Alleyway Sex
Caroline Baum, a columnist at Bloomberg.com, is a terrific writer with a very good sense of humor:
"Before you sell the house, auction the family heirlooms, gather up the kids and book passage on a boat to anywhere to escape the decline of the American Empire, take a deep breath. Things aren’t as bad as some would have you believe.
Perhaps you’ve read articles or seen statistics that claim the U.S. is among the worst of the worst when it comes to things like income inequality, life expectancy and student performance in math and science...
One widely cited statistic during the health-care debate was how much the U.S. spends compared with how little it gets in return. That return was measured by life expectancy, which at 78.1 years put the U.S. 50th among 223 nations.
Yikes! Like many statistics, the numbers don’t tell the whole story. Health and health care are two different animals. If you eat and drink too much and smoke, it reduces your life expectancy.
Once you suffer a heart attack or are diagnosed with cancer, your chances of survival are best in the U.S. Isn’t that why millionaires and monarchs seek treatment in the U.S.?
...As far as the number of people who have had sex in an alleyway, the U.S. was tied for a lowly 24th with such sexually progressive countries as Sweden and Finland...
For every number homegrown America-haters spit out to show our best days are behind us, there’s an offsetting statistic that points to our underlying strength. The solution isn’t a war of words or statistics. It’s the recognition that many of the characteristics that made the U.S. the envy of the world are still intact or begging to be resuscitated.
The naysayers don’t appreciate American exceptionalism and never will."
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-02-24/u-s-leads-in-nobels-trails-in-alleyway-sex-commentary-by-caroline-baum.html
"Before you sell the house, auction the family heirlooms, gather up the kids and book passage on a boat to anywhere to escape the decline of the American Empire, take a deep breath. Things aren’t as bad as some would have you believe.
Perhaps you’ve read articles or seen statistics that claim the U.S. is among the worst of the worst when it comes to things like income inequality, life expectancy and student performance in math and science...
One widely cited statistic during the health-care debate was how much the U.S. spends compared with how little it gets in return. That return was measured by life expectancy, which at 78.1 years put the U.S. 50th among 223 nations.
Yikes! Like many statistics, the numbers don’t tell the whole story. Health and health care are two different animals. If you eat and drink too much and smoke, it reduces your life expectancy.
Once you suffer a heart attack or are diagnosed with cancer, your chances of survival are best in the U.S. Isn’t that why millionaires and monarchs seek treatment in the U.S.?
...As far as the number of people who have had sex in an alleyway, the U.S. was tied for a lowly 24th with such sexually progressive countries as Sweden and Finland...
For every number homegrown America-haters spit out to show our best days are behind us, there’s an offsetting statistic that points to our underlying strength. The solution isn’t a war of words or statistics. It’s the recognition that many of the characteristics that made the U.S. the envy of the world are still intact or begging to be resuscitated.
The naysayers don’t appreciate American exceptionalism and never will."
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-02-24/u-s-leads-in-nobels-trails-in-alleyway-sex-commentary-by-caroline-baum.html
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
Public unions force taxpayers to fund Democrats, Michael Barone, washingtonexaminer.com
Michael Barone writes:
"Everyone has priorities. During the past week Barack Obama has found no time to condemn the attacks that Libyan dictator Moammar Gadhafi has launched on the Libyan people.
But he did find time to be interviewed by a Wisconsin television station and weigh in on the dispute between Republican Gov. Scott Walker and the state's public employee unions. Walker was staging "an assault on unions," he said, and added that "public employee unions make enormous contributions to our states and our citizens."
Enormous contributions, yes -- to the Democratic Party and the Obama campaign. Unions, most of whose members are public employees, gave Democrats some $400 million in the 2008 election cycle. The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, the biggest public employee union, gave Democrats $90 million in the 2010 cycle.
Follow the money, Washington reporters like to say. The money in this case comes from taxpayers, present and future, who are the source of every penny of dues paid to public employee unions, who in turn spend much of that money on politics, almost all of it for Democrats. In effect, public employee unions are a mechanism by which every taxpayer is forced to fund the Democratic Party."
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Are your investment costs funding other enterprises in addition to your retirement?
Of course they are. Follow the money. Costs waste your wealth. Cutting costs, and keeping more of your money, increases your wealth.
Follow our simple way to save seriously large amounts of money by cutting costs deeply and permanently. We know how investors waste money they don't even know they are wasting. We teach how to keep that money instead. Once you learn how to measure your costs in actual dollars, you will see what we mean.
"Everyone has priorities. During the past week Barack Obama has found no time to condemn the attacks that Libyan dictator Moammar Gadhafi has launched on the Libyan people.
But he did find time to be interviewed by a Wisconsin television station and weigh in on the dispute between Republican Gov. Scott Walker and the state's public employee unions. Walker was staging "an assault on unions," he said, and added that "public employee unions make enormous contributions to our states and our citizens."
Enormous contributions, yes -- to the Democratic Party and the Obama campaign. Unions, most of whose members are public employees, gave Democrats some $400 million in the 2008 election cycle. The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, the biggest public employee union, gave Democrats $90 million in the 2010 cycle.
Follow the money, Washington reporters like to say. The money in this case comes from taxpayers, present and future, who are the source of every penny of dues paid to public employee unions, who in turn spend much of that money on politics, almost all of it for Democrats. In effect, public employee unions are a mechanism by which every taxpayer is forced to fund the Democratic Party."
__________________________________________________
Are your investment costs funding other enterprises in addition to your retirement?
Of course they are. Follow the money. Costs waste your wealth. Cutting costs, and keeping more of your money, increases your wealth.
Follow our simple way to save seriously large amounts of money by cutting costs deeply and permanently. We know how investors waste money they don't even know they are wasting. We teach how to keep that money instead. Once you learn how to measure your costs in actual dollars, you will see what we mean.
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Forbes blogger Victoria Barret: Is Pure Journalism Unaffordable?
"Dan Frommer of Silicon Alley Insider is in Barcelona this week covering the Mobile World Conference. In a post about the event, he mentions this aside:
Disclaimer: Samsung was generous enough to sponsor our trip to Barcelona. So we’re feeling pretty warm and fuzzy about Samsung right now! That said, we will continue to strive for editorial accuracy and fairness, and we don’t think that our Mobile World Congress coverage will be different as a result.
Woah. Let’s be clear, here. Samsung is buying influence. If they didn’t think they were, why would they bother buying journalists’ airplane tickets and putting them up in hotels? (Frommer, I’m told, is not the only one being “sponsored”.) Then again, the likely alternative is that Frommer would be covering the event from his desk."
From a comment posted on the blog:
"This kind of thing is routine in the automotive industry, I’m afraid. Carmakers like to unveil their new models in gorgeous places with great roads (unlike Detroit’s) and pay journalists’ airfare and four-star hotel accommodations. At Forbes, we always pay our own way, as do many other mainstream news organizations, but sometimes we can’t afford to go. But freelancers and bloggers don’t have a travel budget and they are dependent on the car companies to pay their expenses. Of course, that results in favorable coverage. If they trashed a car in a review, they wouldn’t be invited back. It’s a sad state of affairs for journalism."
http://blogs.forbes.com/victoriabarret/2011/02/17/is-pure-journalism-unaffordable/
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Where else do you think this is practiced?
Conflicts of interest are everywhere in the investment world. As an investor, you need to consider how to bypass all conflicts of interest.
We teach you how to cut costs deeply and permanently and keep that money instead. We explain why you should own the best quality, lowest cost ETFs and keep them for life. We call them Life Keepers.
Disclaimer: Samsung was generous enough to sponsor our trip to Barcelona. So we’re feeling pretty warm and fuzzy about Samsung right now! That said, we will continue to strive for editorial accuracy and fairness, and we don’t think that our Mobile World Congress coverage will be different as a result.
Woah. Let’s be clear, here. Samsung is buying influence. If they didn’t think they were, why would they bother buying journalists’ airplane tickets and putting them up in hotels? (Frommer, I’m told, is not the only one being “sponsored”.) Then again, the likely alternative is that Frommer would be covering the event from his desk."
From a comment posted on the blog:
"This kind of thing is routine in the automotive industry, I’m afraid. Carmakers like to unveil their new models in gorgeous places with great roads (unlike Detroit’s) and pay journalists’ airfare and four-star hotel accommodations. At Forbes, we always pay our own way, as do many other mainstream news organizations, but sometimes we can’t afford to go. But freelancers and bloggers don’t have a travel budget and they are dependent on the car companies to pay their expenses. Of course, that results in favorable coverage. If they trashed a car in a review, they wouldn’t be invited back. It’s a sad state of affairs for journalism."
http://blogs.forbes.com/victoriabarret/2011/02/17/is-pure-journalism-unaffordable/
_______________________________________________________
Where else do you think this is practiced?
Conflicts of interest are everywhere in the investment world. As an investor, you need to consider how to bypass all conflicts of interest.
We teach you how to cut costs deeply and permanently and keep that money instead. We explain why you should own the best quality, lowest cost ETFs and keep them for life. We call them Life Keepers.
From Scientific American:
Financial Flimflam: Why Economic Experts' Predictions Fail
As Princeton University economist Burton G. Malkiel elaborated on the show, over the past decade “more than two thirds of actively managed funds were beaten by a simple low-cost indexed fund [for example, a mutual fund invested in a large number of stocks], and the active funds that win in one period aren’t the same ones who win in the next period.”....Equating managed fund directors to “snake-oil salesmen,” Malkiel said that Wall Street is selling Main Street on the belief that experts can consistently time the market and make accurate predictions of when to buy and sell. They can’t. No one can. Not even professional economists and not even for large-scale market indicators. As economics Nobel laureate Paul Samuelson long ago noted in a 1966 Newsweek column: “Commentators quote economic studies alleging that market downturns predicted four out of the last five recessions. That is an understatement. Wall Street indexes predicted nine out of the last five recessions!”
http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=financial-flimflam
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Guess what? You can more comfortably invest by ignoring the experts - including the people who advise you - and learn how to keep their costs instead. We show you how. It is simpler than anyone wants you to know because the cost savings are also larger than anyone wants you to know.
Contact us and book a seminar or speaking engagement. Save large, life changing amounts of money by controlling, and keeping, the costs you no longer have to pay.
Friday, February 18, 2011
Wisconsin: unions, costs, reform
Chicago Tribune:
"The Wisconsin state Senate has adjourned indefinitely awaiting the arrival of Democrats who skipped town on Thursday."
Wall Street Journal:
"For Americans who don't think the welfare state riots of France or Greece can happen here, we recommend a look at the union and Democratic Party spectacle now unfolding in Wisconsin."
Organizing for America
"...is mobilizing on the ground in Wisconsin to defend the rights of public employees from an attempt by the governor to take away their right to organize."
Walter Russell Mead:
"...the struggle in Madison this week is important. The United States must reform or decline; failure is not an option."
_______________________________________________________________
Guess what?
You can reform your investment costs and nobody can stop you.
_______________________________________________________________
"The Wisconsin state Senate has adjourned indefinitely awaiting the arrival of Democrats who skipped town on Thursday."
Wall Street Journal:
"For Americans who don't think the welfare state riots of France or Greece can happen here, we recommend a look at the union and Democratic Party spectacle now unfolding in Wisconsin."
Organizing for America
"...is mobilizing on the ground in Wisconsin to defend the rights of public employees from an attempt by the governor to take away their right to organize."
Walter Russell Mead:
"...the struggle in Madison this week is important. The United States must reform or decline; failure is not an option."
_______________________________________________________________
Guess what?
You can reform your investment costs and nobody can stop you.
_______________________________________________________________
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
Get Serious About Your Costs
How delightful to see Washington tackle great issues of the day:
Megan McArdle from the Atlantic.com:
"Time to Get Serious About the Deficit"
I don't need to tell you what I think of the budget: it's disastrous...
Unless politicians get serious about deficit reduction right now--not seven years in the future--they're going to tax-cut-and-spend us straight into the poorhouse.
Dana Milbank from the Washingtonpost.com:
"In his new budget, Obama kicks the can one more time"
Our leaders are so good at kicking the can that it's almost uncanny.
"The way we've dealt with it for most of the last decade," White House budget director Jack Lew said Monday afternoon as he laid out President Obama's new budget, "is simply to put the expense on our national credit card and to kick the can down the road. Well, this budget says we can't do that anymore."
In case you didn't notice, that was a canned line...
Yuval Levin at Nationalreview.com:
"The Budget"
The president appears to have decided to spend the next two years pretending there is no problem to solve, and therefore that Republican proposals to rein in spending are just mean-spirited cuts offered up for kicks.
This is, above all, an appalling failure of leadership....
______________________________________________________________________
Dear Investors: don't commit an appalling failure of leadership. You can cut your costs deeply, permanently, confidently, and easily. You get to keep the cost savings. But you need to take charge and take control over your investments.
We can guide you very successfully. We've saved a lot of people a lot of money. Except we put those savings in real dollars you can contrast and compare.
Megan McArdle from the Atlantic.com:
"Time to Get Serious About the Deficit"
I don't need to tell you what I think of the budget: it's disastrous...
Unless politicians get serious about deficit reduction right now--not seven years in the future--they're going to tax-cut-and-spend us straight into the poorhouse.
Dana Milbank from the Washingtonpost.com:
"In his new budget, Obama kicks the can one more time"
Our leaders are so good at kicking the can that it's almost uncanny.
"The way we've dealt with it for most of the last decade," White House budget director Jack Lew said Monday afternoon as he laid out President Obama's new budget, "is simply to put the expense on our national credit card and to kick the can down the road. Well, this budget says we can't do that anymore."
In case you didn't notice, that was a canned line...
Yuval Levin at Nationalreview.com:
"The Budget"
The president appears to have decided to spend the next two years pretending there is no problem to solve, and therefore that Republican proposals to rein in spending are just mean-spirited cuts offered up for kicks.
This is, above all, an appalling failure of leadership....
______________________________________________________________________
Dear Investors: don't commit an appalling failure of leadership. You can cut your costs deeply, permanently, confidently, and easily. You get to keep the cost savings. But you need to take charge and take control over your investments.
We can guide you very successfully. We've saved a lot of people a lot of money. Except we put those savings in real dollars you can contrast and compare.
Sunday, February 13, 2011
"Toyota: The Media Owe You an Apology" from Businessweek online.
Writer Ed Wallace takes the media to task for hyping a story about Toyota's supposed acceleration problems and how the media neglected to report the real causes behind runaway Lexus and Toyota vehicles, namely, driver error.
What gets neglected in the financial media is the truth behind investment costs. The issue isn't investor error; rather, it's how the real impact of costs is neglected. Don't allow sensational stories to sidetrack you.
Costs waste wealth. That is a simple and true fact.
Investors can become wealthier simply by cutting and keep their costs.
Discover how to bypass the media for your information. Learn to focus on the key element that you should never neglect: the actual dollar amounts you lose to costs every year. We show investors a better way to invest.
We explain how to measure in real dollars the amounts you can save by cutting and keeping your costs. It is easier than anyone in the industry, or the media, wants you to know. You don't need them. Maybe that's sad for them, but certainly it will be very good for you.
No apologies needed: simply invest with the lowest cost ETFs you can keep for life and save a fortune on costs.
What gets neglected in the financial media is the truth behind investment costs. The issue isn't investor error; rather, it's how the real impact of costs is neglected. Don't allow sensational stories to sidetrack you.
Costs waste wealth. That is a simple and true fact.
Investors can become wealthier simply by cutting and keep their costs.
Discover how to bypass the media for your information. Learn to focus on the key element that you should never neglect: the actual dollar amounts you lose to costs every year. We show investors a better way to invest.
We explain how to measure in real dollars the amounts you can save by cutting and keeping your costs. It is easier than anyone in the industry, or the media, wants you to know. You don't need them. Maybe that's sad for them, but certainly it will be very good for you.
No apologies needed: simply invest with the lowest cost ETFs you can keep for life and save a fortune on costs.
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
How much money can you save on costs?
It amazes us how most investors don't know how much wealth they lose to costs.
Let's fix that!
Find out if you can save $10,000 or $50,000 or $100,000 or more over time. Find out if you can save hundreds, thousands, or tens of thousands of dollars in the first year!
We help people like you save a fortune on costs.
Let's fix that!
Find out if you can save $10,000 or $50,000 or $100,000 or more over time. Find out if you can save hundreds, thousands, or tens of thousands of dollars in the first year!
We help people like you save a fortune on costs.
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
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