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Joseph L. Shaefer: I think I understand the economics and politics of China pretty well. I was a defense attaché in Myanmar (Burma) in the 1990s and watched as China supported the vilest form of dictatorship, one that enslaved its own people in forced Read more…
Joseph L. Shaefer: Patience is the virtue that makes average investors world-class investors, and impatience is what makes average investors lose money consistently. Read more…
Joseph L. Shaefer: If I am doing right by our clients, subscribers, and online readers, it is my responsibility to advise what in my opinion should be avoided, as well as that which should be considered. Read more…
Joseph L. Shaefer: In a recent article, “A Skål to Old King Coal,” I discussed the shortsightedness of many investors in abandoning fossil fuels in favor of technologies that may one day provide renewable (and cleaner) energy but, today, account for less than 10% of all energy generated for heating, cooling, Read more…
Joseph L. Shaefer: Are you an investor/speculator who likes to jump aboard a moving train because you believe it will pick up even more speed (and aren’t particularly concerned about when or whether it will crash?) Or are you, perhaps, more inclined to do what value investors do: peruse the railroad cars still Read more…
Joseph L. Shaefer: Wouldn’t it be nice if we didn’t need to rely upon those dreadful fossil fuels like coal, oil, and natural gas? If only we could be warmed in winter by the gentle rays of the sun and cooled in summer by harnessing that sun to power our air conditioners. If only we could employ the gentle breezes Read more…
Joseph L. Shaefer: “Most Americans in 2011 experienced a day-to-day inflation rate of 7.2% – more than two times the official estimate released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.” – AEIR Read more…
Joseph L. Shaefer: I made the case last month, as I had in October, November and December 2011, that the risk of a major correction, predicted by so many, was completely off-base. I noted that fears of Europe driving the world into another Great Recession were unfounded, that Greece, with the same Read more…
Joseph L. Shaefer: The first 10 years of this new millennium were dubbed “The Lost Decade” for investors. 2011 was no different, ending flat for the year. So are the troubles we see so difficult that Read more…
Joseph L. Shaefer: “Be fearful when others are greedy. Be greedy when others are fearful.” — Warren Buffett. Since Mr. Buffett has traditionally favored a US market orientation, he was thinking about the inevitable changes in investor behavior that create the market cycles we are all-too-familiar with Read more…
Joseph L. Shaefer: No fair cheating. You can choose only one… You may be surprised to find how many people answer they’d rather be rich — but their behavior clearly shows that being right is more important to them. I observed this strange phenomenon early in my financial industry career when one of my Read more…
Joseph L. Shaefer: Western European and US governments share something in common: the US government thought certain favored donors, er, “financial institutions,” were too big to fail. That’s nothing new. The government, or US taxpayers, have been bailing out Wall Street and the big money center Read more…
Joseph L. Shaefer: “History Doesn’t Repeat Itself, But It Rhymes” The above quote, attributed to Mark Twain, has been used and misused to explain many things that did or did not occur and did or did not unfold according to historical precedent. A current favorite is to point out the similarities noted, thus Read more…
Joseph Shaefer: I come from good peasant stock. My grandparents lost the farm in Kansas during the Depression and migrated to California, but as rural folk they kept chickens (and rabbits in pens) around the yard back in the days before a we-know-best California government would have fined them for keeping Read more…
Joseph L. Shaefer: Silver (NYSE:SLV) has plunged these past short weeks. No news there. But when I suggest you consider buying silver for 75 cents on the dollar, I am not referring merely to buying it when it is cheap. I suggest instead that you buy it at a discount – by writing put options. Read more…
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