Search found 7726 matches

by brucecohen
03 Oct 2008 22:35
Forum: Stocks, Bonds, ETFs, Funds, REITS and More
Topic: Manulife gtd retirement product
Replies: 51
Views: 22767

Happy Days wrote:Without getting into too much detail is Manulife's income plus good :?:
It's a very complex product that's impossible to discuss without getting into "too much detail."
by brucecohen
02 Oct 2008 18:25
Forum: Financial News, Policy and Economics
Topic: The 700 billion $ bailout plan -problems in implementation?
Replies: 199
Views: 12839

From McClatchy News: WASHINGTON — A tax break for NASCAR racetracks and other motor-sports facilities is among the "sweeteners" tucked inside a 450-page financial-services bailout bill to make the package more palatable to lawmakers. The Senate-passed bill includes an array of so-called "tax extenders." One extends for two years a tax policy that had been allowed to expire in December that lets motor-sports facilities be treated the same as amusement parks and other entertainment complexes for tax purposes. That allowed them to write off their capital investments over a seven-year period. The motor sports industry feared that without a specific legal clarification, motor sports facilities would be required to depreciate ...
by brucecohen
01 Oct 2008 19:58
Forum: Financial News, Policy and Economics
Topic: The 700 billion $ bailout plan -problems in implementation?
Replies: 199
Views: 12839

Oct. 1 (Bloomberg) -- Former U.S. Treasury Secretary Paul O'Neill said the $700 billion bank-rescue proposal under negotiation in Washington is ``crazy,'' with potentially ``awful'' consequences for the world's largest economy. ``Doesn't this seem like lunacy to you?'' said O'Neill, who was President George W. Bush's first Treasury chief, from 2001 to 2002, in a telephone interview today. ``The consequences of it are unbelievably bad in terms of public intrusion into the private sector.'' ... I see that O'Neill favors the guarantee I asked about the other day: O'Neill's objections mirror those of Republicans in the House of Representatives who rejected the plan in a Sept. 29 vote. The former Treasury chief said he's lobbying for an alterna...
by brucecohen
01 Oct 2008 13:29
Forum: Financial News, Policy and Economics
Topic: The 700 billion $ bailout plan -problems in implementation?
Replies: 199
Views: 12839

Dennis wrote: What's another $100B?....sigh

Are these people brain dead?
Aw, what does it matter....it's the grandkids' money...
...and the great-grandkids
...and the great-great-grandkids

:cry:
by brucecohen
30 Sep 2008 18:54
Forum: Financial News, Policy and Economics
Topic: The 700 billion $ bailout plan -problems in implementation?
Replies: 199
Views: 12839

BTW#2, Canada has had subprime home loans without incident since the passage of the National Housing Act in 1946. Unlike the deregulated US system, there are stringent conditions. Only approved lenders can originate loans, borrowers must meet GDS/TDS creditworthiness standards, lenders must verify the borrower-provided info, and -- significantly -- the borrower must buy default insurance. CMHC has been securitizing these mortgages since 1985 and the pools have thus survived several boom and bust cycles. J They are hi-ratio but they are not considered sub-prime. They meet the same qualificaitons (other than down payment/equity) as a prime borrower. We do have hi-ratio non prime borrowing as well as low ratio non prime borrowing in Canada bu...
by brucecohen
30 Sep 2008 15:46
Forum: Financial Planning and Building Portfolios
Topic: Can I ask some advice?
Replies: 21
Views: 1915

FWIW, CBC Radio in Toronto this morning ran a piece about how Saskatchewan and its employers are actively recruiting Ontarians because of a big labour shortage. They held a barbeque in TO last night and a job fair today.
by brucecohen
30 Sep 2008 12:26
Forum: Financial News, Policy and Economics
Topic: The 700 billion $ bailout plan -problems in implementation?
Replies: 199
Views: 12839

When government (Clinton's Democrats in the 90's) tells lending institutions to lend to unqualified applicants and these same lenders are allowed to pass the bad paper off to Fanny and Freddie, what did you think would happen? Due diligence? 1. The CRA requires banks that want to operate on an interstate basis to offer credit in all areas of their communities. It does not require them to make loans to unqualified applicants. 2. CRA enforcement was lax until 1995. All banks had to do was advertise. 3. If Cinton forcing the banks to lend is the cause of the problem, how do you explain that: -- More than 50% of subprime lending was done by organizations not subject to the CRA, according to the Federal Reserve -- Subprime lending did not take ...
by brucecohen
30 Sep 2008 11:46
Forum: Financial News, Policy and Economics
Topic: What does 1.2 trillion mean?
Replies: 16
Views: 1142

DanielCarrera: "One guy gives 50 bucks to another guy" and it would have been just as accurate. Sometimes things just seem simple. It's easy to do this reasoning - which could be right or wrong - for the guy person with $20K or $300K: But but in the long term.... But just for the sake of an example, say you are the HeadAdmin for a DB plan worth $6Billion that was funded at 98% level at last audit. At the '08 audit mid Feb '09 you're told the plan is now underfunded; at the 83% level. I bet this will take some of the $700B type of money to go back 'into compliance' WW That's why the big DB plans are increasingly doing private equity deals and buying infrastructure. They're reducing their exposure to the conventional market and its...
by brucecohen
30 Sep 2008 11:29
Forum: Financial News, Policy and Economics
Topic: The 700 billion $ bailout plan -problems in implementation?
Replies: 199
Views: 12839

If Pelosi was really for putting the citizens first; she would have kept her pie hole shut. As I posted in the Soapbox forum: So, let me see if I understand this. Twelve Republican congressmen spent the weekend giving due consideration on how to vote. They weighed the pros and cons. They read the input from their constituents. They spoke with their colleagues. Based on this due diligence, they decided that voting for the bailout – even if it meant holding their noses – was the right thing to do for their constituents and the country. So, all set to vote yea, they entered the House chamber and then got pissed off by a few of Pelosi’s admittedly inappropriate partisan jabs. And because they were pissed off -- and only because they were pisse...
by brucecohen
30 Sep 2008 09:57
Forum: Financial News, Policy and Economics
Topic: The 700 billion $ bailout plan -problems in implementation?
Replies: 199
Views: 12839

I don't understand: 1. Why Paulson didn't enlist the aid of Seidman and Cooke et al in formulating his plan. Surely, their involvement would have made it more saleable simply because they've been there before. 2. Why the issue of helping Main Street wasn't settled this way: Those in distress can apply to have the govt prepay part of their mortgage BUT the govt then gets an equivalent ownership stake in the house and will share in any profit when the property is sold. 3. Why Paulson and the WH didn't do a better job of selling the plan to the public. There was little effort -- hardly any effort -- made to explain that the $700B isn't a total cost -- that many, maybe most -- of the loans will be repaid and that the govt might even turn a prof...
by brucecohen
30 Sep 2008 08:59
Forum: Financial News, Policy and Economics
Topic: What does 1.2 trillion mean?
Replies: 16
Views: 1142

Benjamin Graham, the father of value investing, spoke of a character he called Mr. Market. Mr. Market, Graham said, is manic depressive and swings unpredictably between bouts of euphoria and depression. He continually shows up at your door and offers to buy your stocks -- at prices that vary with his moods.
by brucecohen
27 Sep 2008 09:56
Forum: Financial News, Policy and Economics
Topic: Financial journalism
Replies: 77
Views: 29290

[I might add that I suspect a lot of business/financial journalists use corporate & financial jargon, and not everyday words, because they don't want to appear dimwitted to the business world, or their peers]. Partly true. It's also because they're immersed in the biz world. As someone who's not a sports fan, I understand little of sports coverage aside from who won and who lost. {quote]I must say that my brain is reeling from trying to understand articles about the latest financial crisis...Business News Daily on the BBC is the only place I know where the journalists are speaking to ordinary people like me, not economists or corporate executives. Does anyone here have another source like this ?[/quote] I too enjoy BBC's Business News ...
by brucecohen
23 Sep 2008 21:33
Forum: Financial News, Policy and Economics
Topic: The bastards
Replies: 46
Views: 3025

I don't see any mention in that of "long-term performance" in your original statement. Try again. My original statement said: "The real issue is whether shareholders are paying for skill or luck and for enduring value as opposed to bandwagon gains." In your original statement you say (in essence) CEOs who are paid less produce more. I do? I stated: "In many cases, researchers established negative correlation between CEO compensation and corporate performance, especially among star CEOs." AFAIK, "many" does not mean "all." If you'd like to see the studies, they're easy to find on google. But, hey, why let facts get in the way of blind ideology? "long term performance" and "pai...
by brucecohen
23 Sep 2008 08:55
Forum: Financial News, Policy and Economics
Topic: The bastards
Replies: 46
Views: 3025

Darn Bruce. I guess the boards of all companies in america should read those numerous studies Many have and, as I described, are revamping senior executive comp to base it more on long-term performance. Some are doing that because it's good business. Some are doing that because they've been burned by high-flyers. Some are being forced to do that by big investors, mainly pension funds. Calpers -- the California state employees plan -- and Ontario Teachers Pension Plan have been particularly active in this area. The less you pay someone, the more they produce. It's just pure common sense. No, you're being silly. The issue is not to pay people less, but to pay people for delivering enduring value. Richard Fuld was paid $34.4 million last year...
by brucecohen
22 Sep 2008 22:21
Forum: Community Centre
Topic: Firefox
Replies: 562
Views: 14226

harry wrote:When you have an admintrator problem try going into control panel, user accounts and turn off user accounts control. Computer will have to restart. Do what you need to do and then go back to control panel turn on user account control. Do not run without it any longer then you have to.
I'm shown as administrator. I went into control panel etc to change that to user, but the system wouldn't let me. Said there has to be one administrator. Since I'm the only user, that means me. :?:
by brucecohen
22 Sep 2008 22:12
Forum: Community Centre
Topic: Firefox
Replies: 562
Views: 14226

harry wrote:In Vista, windows mail is now the old outllook. Did you try it.
I tried but it appeared to require a hotmail account, which I definitely do not want.
by brucecohen
22 Sep 2008 21:41
Forum: Financial News, Policy and Economics
Topic: The bastards
Replies: 46
Views: 3025

a) You have to pay people what they are worth, as determined by the market for their job skills and abilities, or you get people of lesser quality, with proportionate results. True at lower levels but numerous studies have found that pricing at the most senior corporate levels is very inefficient. In many cases, researchers established negative correlation between CEO compensation and corporate performance, especially among star CEOs. The real issue is whether shareholders are paying for skill or luck and for enduring value as opposed to bandwagon gains. Increasingly, companies are attaching thick performance-based strings such as bonusing on performance averaged over x years and requiring stock options to be held for y years until they ca...
by brucecohen
22 Sep 2008 20:58
Forum: Stocks, Bonds, ETFs, Funds, REITS and More
Topic: ASL Direct (anyone have any experiences?)
Replies: 108
Views: 32306

I think what Canada needs is the equivalent of Vanguard Group in the US, which is basically investor-owned and keeps their fees to a very tiny minimum. Their S&P 500 no-load fund (index fund, not ETF) has an MER of 0.18%. Because their business model is not devoted to making a profit for outside owners, they are consistently able to keep it cheap. It would be extremely difficult, if not impossible, for such a group to offer a better deal than already available on TD e-funds. Even if you outsource all administration, you still face high compliance costs and extraordinary spending on advertising for at least the first few years. Mutual funds are sold, not bought. FYI, Vanguard operates as a non-profit only in the US. All foreign subsidia...
by brucecohen
22 Sep 2008 18:10
Forum: Community Centre
Topic: Firefox
Replies: 562
Views: 14226

Anyone tried OpenOffice?? Free download right now from Java. Looking for pros or cons. My Woordperfect suit is getting old and tooo cheap to buy Microsoft office. I just started using OpenOffice and so far it looks good. The word processing and spreadsheet programs are almost just like Word and Excel in MS Office 2000, which my new Vista system won't run properly. I asked one of my clients if they ever receive OpenOffice files and have faced an compatibility issues. Their IT guy told me I'll be OK as long as I save the files for them as Word/Excel files. My one big gap is an e-mail manager. I was using Outlook, which was part of Office 2000. I've switched to Thunderbird and find it lacks quite a few of the Outlook features I found useful. ...
by brucecohen
20 Sep 2008 09:06
Forum: Community Centre
Topic: Windows Vista
Replies: 263
Views: 7421

I hate how it often activates an icon or link just because I paused for a fraction of a second while moving the cursor over it -- without clicking. Most of these new features are configurable and you just have to figure out how to (re)set them to your liking; I remember having similar issues with the new laptop and having to change the "tapping" setting so that a button doesn't activate by simply pausing over it. As always, Google is your friend. Yes, I've been working on that. It pisses me off that the computer industry in general, and MS in particular, is so intent on continually making things more difficult. Last night's big breakthrough was discovering a "Windows Classic" setting that imposes Windows fonts which wor...
by brucecohen
19 Sep 2008 22:45
Forum: Community Centre
Topic: Windows Vista
Replies: 263
Views: 7421

I've now had it running for a few days and can't stand it. One by one I'm having to replace my peripherals because Vista doesn't support them. It wouldn't run Outlook 2000 and I refuse to pay MS $600+ for a current version of Office so I'll be using OpenOffice for word processing, spreadsheeting, PowerPoint presentations plus Thunderbird for e-mail. Too many useless doo-dads for my taste. I hate how it often activates an icon or link just because I paused for a fraction of a second while moving the cursor over it -- without clicking. And I'm really tied of continually being asked if I really want to do what I just told it to do. Fortunately a $45 KVM switch enables me to toggle my full-sized keyboard, mouse and monitor between the new Vista...
by brucecohen
19 Sep 2008 08:28
Forum: Under the Mattress: Protecting Your Money
Topic: TFSA Account Offerings & Questions
Replies: 945
Views: 137559

queerasmoi wrote: I wonder if they're waiting for post-election to be sure the TFSA will exist at all?
Possibly. More likely everyone is waiting for market leaders like TDWH to go first. With only $5,000 on the table, offering a TFSA is a pretty much a. money loser for an investment dealer. So the decision to play can only be justified on strategic grounds. It's conceivable that the TFSA spectrum might be confined to deposit-taking institutions and mutual funds.
by brucecohen
17 Sep 2008 19:15
Forum: Financial News, Policy and Economics
Topic: Million Dollar Round Table
Replies: 27
Views: 2611

Happy Days wrote:Is the million dollar round table for life insurance agents for ones who have sold at least $1 million of life insurance or is it generated $1 million of life insurance commission in a single year. Is there a higher honour in the industry.

:?:
Go here and click the Membership tab.

The Top of the Table is the higher honour.
by brucecohen
16 Sep 2008 23:00
Forum: Property: Owning, Renting, Managing, Investing and Mortgaging
Topic: cancel my buying a house
Replies: 15
Views: 2187

You could be sued for the difference between what you agreed to pay and what the house actually sells for. Or, instead of the expense of a full-blown lawsuit, the vendors could simply sue you in small claims court for the small claims limit -- $10,000 in Ontario, I believe.
by brucecohen
16 Sep 2008 21:31
Forum: Financial News, Policy and Economics
Topic: Heavy redemptions-fund structural probs-redemption freezes
Replies: 16
Views: 2159

Happy Days wrote:Which mutual funds could freeze redemptions in this environment?
Any mutual fund can freeze redemptions whenever it feels the need if that authority is cited in its prospectus, and every prospectus I've ever seen contains that provision. That said, I can think of only one time when a mutual fund -- not a labour-sponsored venture capital fund -- has frozen redemptions. In the late '80s or very early '90s at least one real estate fund did that when the real estate market collapsed. I don't remember how long the freeze lasted, but I don't think it was long.