finance and investments

I continue to read daily on finance, investments, broad based global macro economics, and sector specific stuff. Here is a summary:

-Buy stocks, they only go up
-Sell stocks, they are overvalued and earnings are inflated, accounting is fraudulent
-Japan is going to have all sorts of problems
-The US is going to default
-The US will lead the world out of the economic doldrums
-Buy gold it is a hedge on inflation/deflation/systemic failure
-Don't buy gold, it has no yield or inherent value
-Buy commodities, the world will be starving soon because of taking various production offline
-Don't buy commodities, they are manipulated by the shadow empire
-Diversify to smooth out your risk
-Diversification is for idiots and fools
-Real estate is expecting a new wave of bankruptcy and defaults
-Now is the time to buy a new home!

There you go. You're ready to take on the world of high finance.

I just sent out our Q3 checks to the IRS and NCDOR. Here is a visual display.

automatic savings plans

Today's topic is automatic savings.  Besides paying off your debt - credit card, mortgage, and student loans being the top 3 forms - automating your saving is one of the easier ways to build a  bundle without having to stress about it.  At the moment, Bri and I have several going on:

10% extra to the mortgage (the invest it in the stock market argument has been debunked by...the stock market)

A few bucks to the Duke Energy Corp Direct Investment Plan (DRIP)

A few bucks to Vanguard Wellington fund (60/40 stock-bonds)

A few bucks to North Carolina's 529 plan

Every month, our dollars transfer automatically from our bank account to these above.  The monthly amount is relatively small, but a few years of this = hefty cash put away that we didn't have to think about.  

I am thinking about this today because while the economy and the stock market are both in the ***er at the moment, it isn't the end of the world just yet for most of us.  (Ponzi dupee's might be bagging groceries). 

The stress test results are supposed to be released next Monday (5.4), it should be interesting to see if there is a bunch of inside selling in the banking sector this week.

Looking forward to St Anthonys tomorrow, it is going to be warm but it's always good to see our Florida posse.