Lessons learned from a rough 2008.

1.Keep adequate cash on hand at all times.

• Were it not for us contributing to our FSA’s and maintaining a positive balance in our savings account, those trips to the hospital in 2008 would have hit us pretty hard.

2.Bubbles can go longer than fundamentally possible.

• Markets react in extremes in both directions and the very good news/very bad news tends to come out at the top/bottom. Just think of where oil was 6 months ago and

...

I decided to go all cash just prior to Christmas, mainly because the SC rally was pretty anemic at that point and I was going to be out or town for awhile. I felt it was better to be safe until the market returned to normal trading in January when a better read might be discerned about direction. Since the 2nd of January was technically still part of the holiday period, I interpreted its action as a part of holiday trading.

This week the holiday period is over and in two days we've...

Peter Schiff has been heralded lately as one of the few who called this financial mess we've found ourselves in. He's been calling for a collapse in the dollar and housing markets for years now and in case you didn't know, finally had one of those predictions ring true. I recently read his latest book, The Little Book of Bull Moves in Bear Markets, and I must say I enjoyed it. Sometimes, I don't think he gets the credit he deserves. For example, everyone was calling for a rebirth of the secular...

After Bear Sterns revealed that one of their hedge funds was in trouble and would be forced to close is probably the most significant point we can all relate in which the markets began to show signs of strain. I also remember hearing the experts and analysts, aka the ones who currently do or once did analyze the financial markets for a living, claim that the financials have always led us out of any bear market/recession so watching the banking indexes for signs of strength would be the surefire...

If the bears could have taken it down past 740, then why didn't it happen yesterday or today?

There are so many people who are still fighting the last war here. My cousin is buying a house here soon and he's going to get a $7500 tax rebate. Guys, this is like buying a house and not having to pay for closing costs. He's going to use that 'rebate' money to put a on a new roof, water heater and windows in the house (windows and water heaters also bring a tax rebate).

The...