10/31/2011
We don't need no stinkin humans
I was watching another series with Robert Kiyosaki talking about education and how it's failing us. He is saying the same things as Ken Robinson, that education is designed to produce educators.
Education should be designed to produce thinkers and doers. Education should enable us to remain brave, note not become brave. The industrial age for North America is over and the information age is here.
You are going to have to get creative to earn income, be bold, as Kiyosaki says.
Sitting quietly in desks in rows for 12 years is not going to cut it. During our "formal" school years we need to find, nurture, and grow every skill, interest, talent, idea, thought, that our children can have.
Can this happen with a unionized work force regulated by governments?
Not so far.
10/26/2011
Apocalypse Now
WE WILL NOT SPEND LESS!
WE WILL BORROW MORE!
WE WOULD RATHER DIE THEN CHANGE!
Claudio Barbato (L), a member of the opposition FLI party, fights with Fabio Ranieri (R) from the Northern League in Parliament in Rome October 26, 2011. The Italian deputies exchanged blows in parliament on Wednesday as tensions over a tough economic reform programme came to a head.
By Aris Messinis, AFP/Getty Images
A protester from a rival group, left, beats communist union demonstrators in Athens. Hundreds of masked protesters threw gasoline bombs and stones into a crowd of Communist Party supporters as both sides staged protests against planned government economic cutbacks.
Protesters smashed windows and waved anarchist flags from the roof of the building housing the Conservative party headquarters as the fringe of a vast rally against university funding cuts turned violent.
WE WILL BORROW MORE!
WE WOULD RATHER DIE THEN CHANGE!
A protester from a rival group, left, beats communist union demonstrators in Athens. Hundreds of masked protesters threw gasoline bombs and stones into a crowd of Communist Party supporters as both sides staged protests against planned government economic cutbacks.
10/25/2011
Rich Dad, Poor Dad
Enjoyed Kiyosaki's first 3 books, after that it just got weird. Enough with the books already.
Other then his rather bizarre comments on the FED and mutual funds take 80% of your return (say what?) this is all good stuff.
Oh and I don't like his don't save message, which really isn't don't save, it's a convert your cash into assets regularly which I agree with. This is in essence saving.
His chosen assets to hold, income producing real estate, oil, gold, and silver all sound good to me.
Other then his rather bizarre comments on the FED and mutual funds take 80% of your return (say what?) this is all good stuff.
Oh and I don't like his don't save message, which really isn't don't save, it's a convert your cash into assets regularly which I agree with. This is in essence saving.
His chosen assets to hold, income producing real estate, oil, gold, and silver all sound good to me.
10/23/2011
10/20/2011
The Birth of the Speculator?
The time period featured here is most certainly not the birth of the speculator, but anyway he does interview some interesting people.
10/19/2011
10/18/2011
Work
I worked today, earned income, and will pay taxes.
I could have worked today, lost money, and beat my head on the desk.
I could have not worked today, gone to a Occupy Edmonton protest, and begged the government to steal money from others and give it to me.
But instead I will work again tomorrow, put my earned money at risk, and live with the consequences.
I could have worked today, lost money, and beat my head on the desk.
I could have not worked today, gone to a Occupy Edmonton protest, and begged the government to steal money from others and give it to me.
But instead I will work again tomorrow, put my earned money at risk, and live with the consequences.
Kelly McParland: I want to join the 1%
Kelly McParland Oct 18, 2011 – 12:48 PM ET | Last Updated: Oct 18, 2011 1:19 PM ET
"I’m thinking of joining the 1%.
I’m not sure they’ll have me, as there may be some financial issues. Most of them paid more in taxes last Wednesday than I made in salary last year, so if they’re going to be picky and stand-offish, I could be in for trouble. But I think I’ll give it a try.
I’ve been reading for a while now about how the 1% own everything and are greedy pigs. Supposedly it’s better to be part of the 99%, the downtrodden masses who are morally superior by dint of being … I don’t know, being downtrodden masses? I assume, since I’m not part of the 1% — yet — I must be part of the 99%, though I don’t feel downtrodden. Actually, I feel pretty good.
I’ve read a lot about Europe and the U.S., which are in a real mess, yet here in Canada we seem to have dodged one gigantic bullet. Last weekend, the roads in and out of Toronto were closed again (Rob Ford, what did I tell you about that?), so that 23,000 people could participate in a charity marathon. So if you wanted to join the 2,000 who were moaning and complaining about how awful everything is, you’d have to take the subway to bypass the 23,000 who had something better to do, like raise some money for the less fortunate.
Besides, I’ve done a little checking and discovered that the 1% aren’t that bad. It’s difficult to calculate exactly, because they run some pretty large operations, but if you took the 1% and deported them all to Jamaica (which I suspect would be glad to have them), you’d be risking a few million jobs. Because it appears (and this is a closely guarded secret, so don’t give it away) that the 1% actually pour huge amounts of money into the economy and employ a lot of people.
I know, I know, they’re parasites, right? They inherited their money, sit around in big houses doing nothing and are rude to their servants. They don’t deserve what they have. They’re flinty, self-absorbed, uncaring. They hate the homeless. They ignore charities. They’re not like us in the 99%. They’re carbuncles on the national nose.
It’s true that quite a few of the wealthiest Canadians got their money from relatives. Thomsons, Irvings, McCains, Richardsons, Westons … the usual families dominate, particularly at the top of the list. Oddly, in many cases the second and third generations haven’t succeeded in blowing the family wad yet (we won’t mention the Eaton boys here, it’s still a bit sensitive) and have actually expanded and added to the empire. Which is good, right? If you figure that bigger empires employ more people and finance more homes, taxes etc.
But there are quite a few who scraped together their billions all on their own. Chip Wilson, who created Lululemon and is not hard up for cash as a result. Mike Lazaridis and Jim Balsillie, who made so much out of Research in Motion that Balsillie was willing to blow millions of it moving a crappy hockey team from Phoenix to Hamilton. Daryl Katz, who also has a thing about hockey and made his money opening drug stores. Clay Riddell, founder of Paramount Resources and part-owner of the Calgary Flames (is this a trend or what?), Ron Joyce, who doesn’t even make the richest list but did all right with that coffee chain he ran — I forget the name now, they make donuts too, I think. Jim Pattison, who started out selling cars.
These are just the top names in the 1%, but they don’t seem like awful people. Actually, they seem to give an enormous amount of time and money to the community. It’s not like they came from privileged backgrounds, or were left half of Mayfair by some ancient relic of a relative. Ron Joyce started as a Hamilton cop. Daryl Katz went to Jasper Place High School in Edmonton. Balsillie is from Seaforth, Ontario, son of a technician; Lazaridis’s father Nick was a Turkish factory worker. Mostly they’re just smart, hard-working, inventive people.
You don’t even have to be a zillionaire to make it to the 1% in Canada. According to Statistics Canada, anyone with an income over $200,000 qualifies. That includes hospital executives, Bob Rae, university professors, college administrators, Steve Paikin, Toronto’s police chief, museum bosses, school superintendents, lots of middle-level managers across the country. Even some pundits. I’m betting that if you could get a look at their income tax files, you might find Mike Holmes or St. David Suzuki on that list. Ron MacLean and Don Cherry are definitely on it. There are probably a whole pile of bankers and financiers too. Not to mention hockey players — even the poorest player in the NHL makes at least double the entry level salary needed to make the 1%. But not all bankers are evil, most of them are just people who work in banks.
These aren’t plutocrats folks. They’re not evicting starving children from homeless shelters. If I can find an application I’m going to apply. It’s better than camping out in the park."
Kelly McParland National Post
"I’m thinking of joining the 1%.
I’m not sure they’ll have me, as there may be some financial issues. Most of them paid more in taxes last Wednesday than I made in salary last year, so if they’re going to be picky and stand-offish, I could be in for trouble. But I think I’ll give it a try.
I’ve been reading for a while now about how the 1% own everything and are greedy pigs. Supposedly it’s better to be part of the 99%, the downtrodden masses who are morally superior by dint of being … I don’t know, being downtrodden masses? I assume, since I’m not part of the 1% — yet — I must be part of the 99%, though I don’t feel downtrodden. Actually, I feel pretty good.
I’ve read a lot about Europe and the U.S., which are in a real mess, yet here in Canada we seem to have dodged one gigantic bullet. Last weekend, the roads in and out of Toronto were closed again (Rob Ford, what did I tell you about that?), so that 23,000 people could participate in a charity marathon. So if you wanted to join the 2,000 who were moaning and complaining about how awful everything is, you’d have to take the subway to bypass the 23,000 who had something better to do, like raise some money for the less fortunate.
Besides, I’ve done a little checking and discovered that the 1% aren’t that bad. It’s difficult to calculate exactly, because they run some pretty large operations, but if you took the 1% and deported them all to Jamaica (which I suspect would be glad to have them), you’d be risking a few million jobs. Because it appears (and this is a closely guarded secret, so don’t give it away) that the 1% actually pour huge amounts of money into the economy and employ a lot of people.
I know, I know, they’re parasites, right? They inherited their money, sit around in big houses doing nothing and are rude to their servants. They don’t deserve what they have. They’re flinty, self-absorbed, uncaring. They hate the homeless. They ignore charities. They’re not like us in the 99%. They’re carbuncles on the national nose.
It’s true that quite a few of the wealthiest Canadians got their money from relatives. Thomsons, Irvings, McCains, Richardsons, Westons … the usual families dominate, particularly at the top of the list. Oddly, in many cases the second and third generations haven’t succeeded in blowing the family wad yet (we won’t mention the Eaton boys here, it’s still a bit sensitive) and have actually expanded and added to the empire. Which is good, right? If you figure that bigger empires employ more people and finance more homes, taxes etc.
But there are quite a few who scraped together their billions all on their own. Chip Wilson, who created Lululemon and is not hard up for cash as a result. Mike Lazaridis and Jim Balsillie, who made so much out of Research in Motion that Balsillie was willing to blow millions of it moving a crappy hockey team from Phoenix to Hamilton. Daryl Katz, who also has a thing about hockey and made his money opening drug stores. Clay Riddell, founder of Paramount Resources and part-owner of the Calgary Flames (is this a trend or what?), Ron Joyce, who doesn’t even make the richest list but did all right with that coffee chain he ran — I forget the name now, they make donuts too, I think. Jim Pattison, who started out selling cars.
These are just the top names in the 1%, but they don’t seem like awful people. Actually, they seem to give an enormous amount of time and money to the community. It’s not like they came from privileged backgrounds, or were left half of Mayfair by some ancient relic of a relative. Ron Joyce started as a Hamilton cop. Daryl Katz went to Jasper Place High School in Edmonton. Balsillie is from Seaforth, Ontario, son of a technician; Lazaridis’s father Nick was a Turkish factory worker. Mostly they’re just smart, hard-working, inventive people.
You don’t even have to be a zillionaire to make it to the 1% in Canada. According to Statistics Canada, anyone with an income over $200,000 qualifies. That includes hospital executives, Bob Rae, university professors, college administrators, Steve Paikin, Toronto’s police chief, museum bosses, school superintendents, lots of middle-level managers across the country. Even some pundits. I’m betting that if you could get a look at their income tax files, you might find Mike Holmes or St. David Suzuki on that list. Ron MacLean and Don Cherry are definitely on it. There are probably a whole pile of bankers and financiers too. Not to mention hockey players — even the poorest player in the NHL makes at least double the entry level salary needed to make the 1%. But not all bankers are evil, most of them are just people who work in banks.
These aren’t plutocrats folks. They’re not evicting starving children from homeless shelters. If I can find an application I’m going to apply. It’s better than camping out in the park."
Kelly McParland National Post
10/15/2011
Occupy This
"The problem with socialism is that eventually you run out of other people's money." Margaret Thatcher
10/14/2011
10/12/2011
Outliers
No signals the last two sessions. So plenty of video.
I read Gladwell's book Outliers and the discussion around the 10,000 hours required to achieve expert status is certainly important to traders.
I have been watching charts full time for about 5 years now. So with 52 weeks in a year minus about 10 holiday days that's roughly 250 days a year. At 5.5 hours per day that puts me around 6875 hours of screen time.
3125 more hours and I'll be an expert.
Hurray!!
If the 10,000 hours holds true for trading, and I see no reason why it wouldn't, then it does explain the large failure rate in this business.
Traders simply run out of capital before they get the 10,000 hours in.
Sim trade for 10 years?
No but capital preservation is certainly the most important aspect of this business.
I read Gladwell's book Outliers and the discussion around the 10,000 hours required to achieve expert status is certainly important to traders.
I have been watching charts full time for about 5 years now. So with 52 weeks in a year minus about 10 holiday days that's roughly 250 days a year. At 5.5 hours per day that puts me around 6875 hours of screen time.
3125 more hours and I'll be an expert.
Hurray!!
If the 10,000 hours holds true for trading, and I see no reason why it wouldn't, then it does explain the large failure rate in this business.
Traders simply run out of capital before they get the 10,000 hours in.
Sim trade for 10 years?
No but capital preservation is certainly the most important aspect of this business.
10/07/2011
I am Geniu............
I won't get all the moves. I won't get all the moves. I won't get all the moves. I won't get all the moves. I won't get all the moves. I won't get all the moves. I won't get all the moves. I won't get all the moves. I won't get all the moves. I won't get all the moves. I won't get all the moves. I won't get all the moves. I won't get all the moves. I won't get all the moves. I won't get all the moves. I won't get all the moves. I won't get all the moves. I won't get all the moves. I won't get all the moves. I won't get all the moves. I won't get all the moves. I won't get all the moves. I won't get all the moves. I won't get all the moves.
The Vault
I don't know whether I should laugh, cry, or build a bunker. If the gold's all there then show us, if it isn't..... don't ever open the doors.
10/05/2011
Gold
"It's not the price of gold and silver that's changing it's the value of the paper currencies that they're being valued in." John Embry
Is now the time to buy?
Is now the time to buy?
10/03/2011
The Art of Doing Nothing
While that is true you could also argue that a close second may be the fine art of doing nothing.
You could also argue that the fine art of doing nothing is part of risk management. But then I would have nothing to write about.
Why is the fine art of doing nothing so important?
Because we don't like to do nothing.
If you are married to a man that may be debatable, but when it come to trading we want to trade.
We are traders.
We trade.
We all know that there is no 100% trading system. No single indicator that is 100% accurate, nor any combination of indicators will have a 100% success rate.
In fact you may argue (and I am) that the more indicators or requirements to trade in your system the more time you will spend flat.
And the more time you spend flat means the more hindsight moves you will have missed.
Every trading requirement in your system should add something to your positive expectancy, but it won't be a 100% expectancy. So the more you add the greater the chance that one of those requirements will not be met and you will miss a nice move.
So.... what do we do?
What we do is curve fit, we go back and change parameters so that the moves we missed become moves we would have taken. This of course screws up hundreds or thousands of stats and we usually do not bother to look at all the failed moves our newly renovated system would have taken.
Make sure each single requirement is net positive to your system of course. Then be prepared to miss moves.
Prepare to be wrong. If you include missed moves with losing trades we are wrong quite often.
Are you prepared to be wrong?
Am I?
We don't like to be wrong, we like to be right. Being wrong makes us angry, or if you're a man it assaults our ego. Ohhhhhh we don't like that, we want to draw pistols at dawn.
We have to be prepared to be wrong. Wrong like a casino.
You will sit and watch price run without you. You have to. If you're not then you really don't have a system and you are just chasing price. Maybe that works for some. Not me.
So the question is can you just sit there and do nothing.
Sometimes I can, sometimes I can't.
Sometimes patience can also make you angry.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)