Introduction

What is this blog about?

I have been an investor for my own account for almost 15 years, managed money for others, published numerous studies on specific industries, and spent time as a buy-side investment analyst.  In all that time, I have never had the luxury of writing about what I thought was interesting and noteworthy.  Professional demands always meant that I wrote at the direction of others, often producing valuable but fist-eatingly and excruciatingly dull material that was served up to someone who would read it and move on to the next umpteen pieces of the day.  Worse, there was little to no interaction on the subject matter with my readers.  With this blog, I aim to change all of that.

First, my topics will primarily be on the subjects of investing, specific investments and personal finance.  That said, it is likely that I will diverge into “life & everything” from time to time.  I will also happily consider topics of interest from readers, so feel free to suggest topics that interest you in the comments section of the blog.

Second, in writing (hopefully) well thought out pieces for this blog, I am also eager to interact with my readers.  If there is something you don’t agree with or I have flat out gotten it wrong, tell me.  If you have more to say than I on a specific topic, please do tell!  I hope to learn at least as much from my readers as they do from anything I write.

Third, this is intended to be something fun to do and interesting/amusing to read.  I hope not to make the tone too serious.  If anyone suspects I have too large a stick up my rear end, don’t be shy about saying so.

Finally, a caveat and disclaimer: while I will write about investing and specific investments from time to time, nothing I write should be construed as a specific recommendation or investment advice.  Do your own due diligence, consult your investment and/or tax advisor and be careful.  I may in fact be an idiot or a fool and you should never rely on anything I write when making an investment decision.