My very techie son just got a 3D printer. It is hand made. I watched him use it. Awesome!

My husband and I visited the Czech Republic, last year, while on a Danube cruise. It is a beautiful area. We had no trouble navigating around on our own, knowing only English. The Old World charm rivals Western Europe, IMHO. And, the cost of living is much lower than the US and W. Europe. I'd love t...

Mountaineer, I agree with you 100%. And, Roe vs. Wade was/is a tragedy.

No problem, Rick. I could just have easily been too obtuse

Thanks to all for your answers to my question. I will look at the link provided. It sounds like it is an interesting discussion.

I have the same question and, with all due respect to Rick, don't quite understand the answer. Is one to look at the total of each asset or the amount gained or lost in each asset? For example, my gold asset gained to the point that the gains were more than 35% of the portfolio, but the total dollar...

Personally, I'd rather save "too much" than not enough. When you are young, it's tempting to be the grasshopper, not the ant, but we all know how that story ended!

@AGM: Yes, you are right re RMDs. I should proofread, better. And, yes, pay tax now to avoid it later or later to avoid it now? Decisions, decisions.  :o I feel sorry for those who don't realize that they are courting disaster if they SPEND all their RMDs every year. Guess we boomers need to store u...

Never fear.

Taxes on the RMDs of boomers should start to flood the coffers when they reach 75.5 years old beginning in 2016...

Couple that with a 55% death/estate tax, including tax on the surviving spouse, on estates valued at over one million...

I really wonder what the fuss is all about 

Hmmm...I've just waded through 15 pages of this thread looking for a discussion of 2012 PP performance. After all, that's what the title of this thread suggests. So, if you are not going to discuss 2012 performance, perhaps you should retitle the thread. JMHO.

I just had the shank of an antique platinum, diamond, and sapphire ring replaced. The jeweler considered platinum to be worth more than gold or silver.

Please excuse my ignorance, but I just looked up ZGLD on my app, and there are eight different ZGLD ETFs listed: ZGLDUS.SW ZGLDF.PK ZGLDGB.SW ZGLDHC.SW ZGLDEU.SW ZGLDHG.SW ZGLD.SW ZGLDHE.SW I assume they are gold holdings in various countries (US, France, Great Britain, etc). So, @craiger, which one...

Well, they say it's not polite to ask a lady her age, especially an "old f---" like me! So far, I am the most ancient one of the group. Dare I say it? 65 and still going strong, like the Energizer bunny. I am using the PP to supply the COLA's that my teacher retirement has decided not to f...

I'm probably showing my ignorance here, but I thought a Trust could be set up to avoid the Estate tax. And, I thought that one could employ a stretch IRA to pass on to the younger generation any IRA funds that are more than one needed.

I was thinking that RMD's would be taxed once and then taxed again with the Estate Tax. Sorry, I did not mean to switch the issue.

What people seem to gloss over is that in five years Boomers will start taking mandatory distributions in the form of RMDs. This will be taxed as ordinary income. Maybe I'm not seeing something here?

I am looking forward to a trip to Thailand in February. We'll be seeing Ankor Wat and Ayutthaya as part of our journey. Do you have any recommendations for other places to visit? We always try to get to all of the UNESCO World Heritage sites when we go on our trips. But, some of the best places are ...

USAA charged me 1.5% to trade early out of my zero coupon bond. That was in addition to the lower value of the bond. It turned out to be worth it, since I turned around and started my PP allocation. Still, it left a bad taste in my mouth. For the other zero, I waited til it matured, with no charge a...

It took me about a year. I was looking for a "safe"'way to reinvest a maturing zero coupon bond I had purchased in early 1990's. I started out by looking at the Bogelheads forum and stumbled upon the PP. Intrigued, I read the entire PP thread and then, everything I could get my hands on th...

It seems to me there are pros and cons to each. We were advised to pay off our house several years ago. My husband did not want to tie up so much cash in one investment. It turns out that the same advisor has changed her opinion. Personally, I think my husband called it right. We put still have 1/3 ...

Seriously? Are they anywhere close to the same thing, or is that why you think they said the minimum purchase price was $30000?

I think most of us would agree that Fidelity and Vanguard are great places to park your portfolio. Some would advise USAA, as well. Recently, they lowered their rates to be more in line with Fidelity and Vanguard. It probably goes without saying that one should not listen to their "advisors&quo...

Hmmmmm...

Reverse mortgage, anyone?

I wonder that myself, since I am one of the "older"'boomers. I think most people, including me, really don't want to be a burden on our families. And, who's to say that even family members would have our best interests at heart? Throw children from former marriages into the mix and you hav...

Yes, some deaths are more miserable than others. I hope I die peacefully in my sleep, preferably in my own home. My father had a miserable death at home. But the hospice staff were wonderful and they made him as comfortable as possible. LTC insurance pays only for nursing home and, possibly assisted...