Search found 126 matches

by MWKXJ
Tue May 01, 2018 11:36 pm
Forum: Other Discussions
Topic: Trump as tragicomedy
Replies: 958
Views: 380203

Re: Trump as tragicomedy

Good point ... the list of candidates was spectacularly horrible. I knew when I found myself rooting for Ted Cruz, something was terribly wrong. What a shit show. We had a Bush, a Clinton, a Trump and a McAfee, all in one rotten campaign cycle. I hope to never hear any of those names again, in the ...
by MWKXJ
Sat Apr 14, 2018 1:37 pm
Forum: Other Discussions
Topic: Syria
Replies: 194
Views: 71340

Re: Syria

These multi generational, half-hearted, Vietnamesesque misadventures in the Middle East could serve to train the nation's competitors how best to fight the United State's military. The Thebans, meantime, singly, having many skirmishes with the Spartans in Boeotia, and fighting some battles, not grea...
by MWKXJ
Sat Apr 14, 2018 1:04 pm
Forum: Other Discussions
Topic: Figuring Out Religion
Replies: 4052
Views: 1386548

Re: Figuring Out Religion

And don't forget to refresh your understanding of the doctrine of the Trinity: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KQLfgaUoQCw Occasionally the old hymns say it best... [...] Now our heav'nly Aaron enters With his blood within the veil; Joshua now is come to Canaan, And the kings before Him quail. Now ...
by MWKXJ
Fri Dec 29, 2017 3:15 pm
Forum: Permanent Portfolio Discussion
Topic: 2017 PP Return Poll
Replies: 33
Views: 19113

Re: 2017 PP Return Poll

Approximate composition of my portfolio: 53% gold 35% Swiss francs 10% cash 2017 return: just about 10%. I'm curious about the portfolio, Tech: How are you buying your Swiss francs? ETF? How long have you kept this portfolio? Is this a recent thing? Sorry, haven't been keeping up here much in 2017....
by MWKXJ
Sat Nov 25, 2017 8:51 am
Forum: Other Discussions
Topic: Best place to cash in Bitcoin for USD?
Replies: 15
Views: 11309

Re: Best place to cash in Bitcoin for USD?

Best place to cash in Bitcoin for USD? Circle.com used to be the most hassle free, but I believe Coinbase bought them out and they no longer buy. If you have Gemini.com available in your state you may want to give them a try. If you do go with Coinbase, create a corresponding GDAX account and learn...
by MWKXJ
Tue Nov 07, 2017 9:52 pm
Forum: Other Discussions
Topic: Small towns
Replies: 19
Views: 10598

Re: Small towns

Contemplating a big life change in the next few years. Thinking about buying a decent sized piece of land (at least a few acres) in a small town somewhere with a population of around 500-10000. Currently live in a metropolitan area of around 2 million people. On the one hand having so much bustle a...
by MWKXJ
Wed Aug 16, 2017 10:35 am
Forum: Other Discussions
Topic: Charlottesville
Replies: 122
Views: 74424

Re: Charlottesville

I'm mostly talking about using all this as an excuse to tear down any Confederate statue or memorial, which I find to be very sad. Fine, racism is a bad idea. The North was just as racist. So why tear down these statues? Why is it sad to remove statues of traitors that defended the horrific practic...
by MWKXJ
Thu Aug 03, 2017 3:59 pm
Forum: Variable Portfolio Discussion
Topic: Portfolio Rebalace Notifier
Replies: 10
Views: 10173

Re: Portfolio Rebalace Notifier

I feel like I'm missing something here... why do we need to mess with Linux? I have my Google sheets with conditional formatting, so I know I need to rebalance if the cell turns red. I could add a script that would run daily/hourly/whatever and send me rebalancing alerts, but so far rebalancing has...
by MWKXJ
Thu Aug 03, 2017 3:26 pm
Forum: Variable Portfolio Discussion
Topic: Portfolio Rebalace Notifier
Replies: 10
Views: 10173

Re: Portfolio Rebalace Notifier

Below is a variation of the script which employs Swedroe's 5/25 rule to calculate rebalancing bands (assuming I understood the rule correctly): #!/usr/pkg/bin/ksh93 DEBUG=false STARTIN=/sdf/arpa/<PATHTOYOURHOMEDIR>/bin PORTFOLIO=$STARTIN/roth.portfolio SWEDROE_THRESHOLD=.2 SWEDROE_RELATIVE_UPPER_REB...
by MWKXJ
Wed Aug 02, 2017 7:57 pm
Forum: Variable Portfolio Discussion
Topic: Portfolio Rebalace Notifier
Replies: 10
Views: 10173

Portfolio Rebalace Notifier

For any who may be interested, below is a Rube Goldberg solution to the "problem" of receiving rebalance e-mail and text notifications. 1. Create a "MetaARPA" account at SDF.org . (go for it; it's useful for accessing elinks at work via Putty in any case). 2. Create a "~/bin" folder and change direc...
by MWKXJ
Wed Jul 26, 2017 8:03 pm
Forum: Other Discussions
Topic: Favorite Lesser-Known Movies & TV Series
Replies: 10
Views: 7966

Re: Favorite Lesser-Known Movies & TV Series

Inasmuch as classical music is lesser known by many people these days, there are any number of pieces that seem to have all the "plot" and action of movies and might bear a suggestion. IMHO, listening to the following would be a great way to while away the time when the weather's hot: Chopin Sonata ...
by MWKXJ
Sat Jul 08, 2017 1:32 pm
Forum: Other Discussions
Topic: Favorite Lesser-Known Movies & TV Series
Replies: 10
Views: 7966

Re: Favorite Lesser-Known Movies & TV Series

Of Human Bondage: A lame artist falls in love with a heartless trollop and a downward spiral ensues. 1934. Betty Davis and Leslie Howard. Harold and Maude: A death-obsessed young man falls in love with a life-affirming old woman. 1971. Ruth Gordon, Bud Cort, and Cat Stephens. Lonesome Dove: Ageing ...
by MWKXJ
Tue Jul 04, 2017 11:17 am
Forum: Other Discussions
Topic: Figuring Out Religion
Replies: 4052
Views: 1386548

Re: Figuring Out Religion

Prof. Craig Evans Debates Rabbi Tovia Singer: Is Jesus the Promised Jewish Messiah? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gGVochFzup4 Stand up routine aside, Singer presents Judaism as being 1) a caste based religion with an potential adoption for those willing to leave behind Jesus and adopt the mantle ...
by MWKXJ
Fri Jun 23, 2017 5:37 pm
Forum: Variable Portfolio Discussion
Topic: VIX better than Treasuries in June 2014?
Replies: 6
Views: 6197

Re: VIX better than Treasuries in June 2014?

Maybe if the "forget about" period is shorter than one day's market session. O0 Could you elaborate? The leveraged PP thread cataloged some of these "daily" ETFs and ETNs in use over long periods. While there wasn't a definitive explanation for the lack of observed decay, I believe it was thought t...
by MWKXJ
Fri Jun 23, 2017 2:34 pm
Forum: Variable Portfolio Discussion
Topic: VIX better than Treasuries in June 2014?
Replies: 6
Views: 6197

Re: VIX better than Treasuries in June 2014?

I found this interesting thread and I agree with the conclusions reached at that time: http://gyroscopicinvesting.com/forum/variable-portfolio-discussion/vix/ But now with the VIX hitting 7-year lows and US Treasuries still near all-time highs, is anyone considering at least a partial substitution ...
by MWKXJ
Thu Jun 22, 2017 5:02 pm
Forum: Other Discussions
Topic: Dems have no idea how to win in an age of Ttrump
Replies: 3
Views: 3923

Re: Dems have no idea how to win in an age of Ttrump

Until the Ds figure out that working class people matter, and matter more than climate change and transsexual bathroom rights... IMHO, Jim Webb could have undercut much of Trump's support with the military, and, his platform would have been a perfect opportunity for the Democrat party to reconnect ...
by MWKXJ
Wed Jun 21, 2017 12:41 pm
Forum: Other Discussions
Topic: H1-B Visa Abuse
Replies: 17
Views: 10469

Re: H1-B Visa Abuse

While I'm against H1-B abuse, I still get solicited to apply for programming jobs even though I'm not even looking. Same here, though DBA work in my case. The decision to leave was not based on lack of opportunity or offers, but rather, the poisonous culture of IT (H1-B wage undercutting was a larg...
by MWKXJ
Wed Jun 21, 2017 12:07 pm
Forum: Other Discussions
Topic: H1-B Visa Abuse
Replies: 17
Views: 10469

Re: H1-B Visa Abuse

Also, what do you mean by "pressure?" Pressure to quit? Move? Take pay cuts? Could you elaborate on that? If you're genuinely curious: One cost of living increase and no pay raise in eleven years for everyone in our shop (other than senior management), regardless of performance reviews. Frozen spec...
by MWKXJ
Wed Jun 21, 2017 7:51 am
Forum: Other Discussions
Topic: H1-B Visa Abuse
Replies: 17
Views: 10469

Re: H1-B Visa Abuse

Please write to your Members of Congress to ask for H1-B visa program reforms, to prevent Americans workers from being replaced with low-wage indentured servants on H1-B visas. It's not just in tech, it's in almost every industry. It's here in the Texas oilfield, where the unemployment is rampant, ...
by MWKXJ
Sat Jun 17, 2017 2:14 pm
Forum: Variable Portfolio Discussion
Topic: Windfall Advice
Replies: 16
Views: 13225

Re: Windfall Advice

This is a very important question. If the money is coming from a tax-deferred retirement account, you may be able to roll some or all of it into a new tax-deferred account and let it continue to grow without paying taxes. Took a while for the details to come in, but much of the money *is* in tax de...
by MWKXJ
Tue Jun 13, 2017 7:50 am
Forum: Variable Portfolio Discussion
Topic: Windfall Advice
Replies: 16
Views: 13225

Re: Windfall Advice

Thanks for the advice, all. Seems I was overthinking things. Having worked decades for every dollar now in my savings, it seems somehow wrong to receive this much free and clear ...like the Feds or state are poised to give it an imminent haircut. Guess I wouldn't be invested in the PP if I didn't ha...
by MWKXJ
Mon Jun 12, 2017 11:29 am
Forum: Variable Portfolio Discussion
Topic: Windfall Advice
Replies: 16
Views: 13225

Windfall Advice

My wife came into a 200k windfall and we'd like advice on how to invest it in a tax efficient manner. The money is inheritance from a recently deceased grandmother and will presumably be held in a taxable account. We're considering opening a brokerage account, however, we're not experienced in manag...
by MWKXJ
Tue May 23, 2017 9:21 am
Forum: Other Discussions
Topic: Bitcoin Costs More than Gold?
Replies: 108
Views: 70081

Re: Bitcoin Costs More than Gold?

Bought 32 for $20 when Bitcoin was approximately .60 cents a piece (2011?). Sold the lot for around $700 or $900 (can't recall). Dollar-cost-averaged back in when the price was around $350 and now have $17,000 in unrealized gain. It'll be tempting to pay off what's left on the mortgage should Bitcoi...
by MWKXJ
Thu May 04, 2017 3:21 pm
Forum: Variable Portfolio Discussion
Topic: Preferred Stock - Asset Class for ZIRP-Prosperity?
Replies: 0
Views: 2851

Preferred Stock - Asset Class for ZIRP-Prosperity?

Curious if any here have looked into using preferred stock for the fifth-leg of a Golden Butterfly. The following chart details the price of preferred stock in relation to historic interest rate changes: http://www.globalfinancialdata.com/gfdblog/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/Preferred-Stocks1.png As e...
by MWKXJ
Wed Apr 12, 2017 7:01 pm
Forum: Other Discussions
Topic: Figuring Out Religion
Replies: 4052
Views: 1386548

Re: Figuring Out Religion

That there is more to the universe than that which arrives through one's nose or eyes or touch is a proven scientific fact that I readily accept. The next step is realizing that there are things one will never know. Ever. For example, even if humanity sent a probe to the furthest regions of the uni...