Great info!   "I just checked the Vanguard Wellesley Fund, and it had a drawdown of 28% from the peak in late 2007 until the trough in early 2009." where did you get that data from on Wellesley?  According to Morningstar and Vanguard, the max drawdown was 18.9%.  Does it make a difference...

Yes, I have listened to him an subscribed just recently to his newsletter. It did me absolutely no good and even some harm.  Actually lots of harm.  I read Prechter’s book Conquer the Crash published in 2002 where he forecasted the real estate bubble and the mortgage derivatives problems and default...

Removing the cash component of the permanent portfolio increased the 1981 loss from -3.9% to -11.5%.
  No thanks!

Stability with a decent smooth yearly return is the reason I invest in it.

If you remove the cash you have something but it is not THE Permanent Portfolio.

thank you Austen Heller for the post, and thank you Clive for playing Devil's Advocate.

In my mind these are valid concerns. I'm sitting on the sidelines holding the most unloved asset in the world right now:cash

Uncle Lou