OICUAM2's Page

I like this site because I can get free financial advice. I used to pay to see a financial planner, but honestly, I have learned more and can get my questions answered just as fast by posting them on this site.

How many of you use financial planners? I know they are good for most people because they really show you the nee to start saving money and the way to do it. However, I am already saving money and I can generally manage my own investments since it is just a 401K that needs to rebalanced… Continue

The Republicans blocked Wall Street reform today.

Hopefully, the Democrats will be able to bring the reform bill back to the floor and get it passed at some point this summer.

We need a major reform package for Wall Street.

We need more transparency. We need to make it illegal for banks to take on way more risk they can afford to back. We need a consumer protection agency that will limit the predatory lending of the credit card companies.

I highly encourage you to watch the PBS Frontline program called The Warning.

It is about how a woman tried to warn people that unregulated derivative markets within the financial system was not a good thing.

However, many people within the government (especially Allen Greenspan) subscribed to the philosophy that there should be a separation between the government and the market. This is the laissez-faire ideology that holds that the market will regulate itself while creating the best outcomes… Continue

I enjoyed the interview with Bill and Melinda Gates on Meet The Press this morning.

It is nice to see someone who has done well in business turning his attention to charitable works.

I didn't realize that Warren Buffet had given so much of his money to the Gates Foundation.

One of the main things I took from the interview is that there is a place for everyone and all institutions to get involved in the process of making the world a better place. Gates was very supportive of capitalism, but he… Continue

Well, it was announced today that the United States lost close to a half million jobs last month. It was also announced that the national unemployment rate is now close to 9 and a half percent.

The reason I wanted to write something about this is because the numbers don't do justice to the reality. It wasn't just a half million jobs that were lost. It was millions of jobs being lost with millions fo jobs being gained that resulted in a net loss of a half million jobs.

For the millions of peopl… Continue