People who know I used to be an investment advisor do not ask me whether they should buy or sell. Most people want to know why the market is doing what it is doing. And they are right to ask that; if the cause is seen as temporary, they would probably hold. If the cause appears to be more fundamental or “secular,” they consider reducing exposure to falling stocks. Okay, so why is the market falling? The single biggest reason stocks are falling right now, is because China’s economy is stalling out. Some context first: China has been the fastest growing major economy in the world for years. Their contribution to global growth has eclipsed even the US for years now because even though their

Quentin Tarantino’s latest, The Hateful Eight, baffles me. I don’t understand how the same person who created compelling dialogue, inventive plots, and delightful characters in several other of his works, could have made this very expensive B movie. But then, as I consider this statement I realize that all his movies are simply B movies that graduate as part of some clever reconstruction. To his credit, he made some memorable films with his “mosaic” style. He assembled, arranged, and remanufactured the most potent, quirkiest, and fun (for him certainly) outtakes from B movies–often diverse genres of them at that–such that the resulting composition held together. But since Inglourious Basterds, which featured several exceptional acting segments, he has been mixing his plots with revisionist racial and

Brooklyn is exactly the kind of UK film that makes me swoon. The combination of drama, scenery, acting, and music always seems tempered against sensation–unlike so many US films. In UK films, as with Brooklyn, there’s usually the scope of history and some perspective to dwell upon, and the pace and tone are restrained and somber enough to remind you that past communication was done mostly through letters, and dockside goodbyes implied years (at least) of separation. In the early 1950s, a young Irish woman leaves for New York and lands in an Irish enclave in Brooklyn. The clothes, cars and conventions of the day are a thrill to see, but the real thrill is to watch a reserved girl become a more worldly and

David O. Russell doesn’t make bad movies. And lately he gets Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence (and Robert De Niro) to act in them. His most recent movie, Joy, is set in the early ‘90s and is based on real events. Many popular films this year were set in the past, some in the 1950s and ‘60s. My sense of this phenomenon is that through these films, we peer longingly behind us for evidence of a more authentic, more human reality. I mention movies set in the past because Joy takes three very contemporary themes and examines them in the form of a pioneering example twenty years ago: a single mother who thought and acted like a star entrepreneur. The three themes embedded in that

[Important: This post is for education and entertainment only. Investment decisions should be made on the basis of suitability and risk tolerance and with the help of a professional] Anyone who makes predictions about the stock market without admitting that they could be very wrong is either a liar or a fool. And anyone who listens to predictions about the stock market is hoping to get an easy solution to a very difficult problem; there is no such thing. I know a man who invested a year’s earnings (six figures) based on a conversation at Starbucks. My best guess is that he’s still down over 75% eight years later. Investing takes work and self-study (I don’t mean studying by yourself; I mean knowing yourself). Having

Star Wars: The Force Awakens is the latest in a series of seven Star Wars films. If you mention your interest in it, enough of the people you talk to who are not afraid to hurt your feelings will dismiss it as popular culture and unsophisticated pablum. I do not come from that group and while I can be snobby enough about other tastes, I waited in line for this one. Star Wars is not simply popular culture and part of a passing fad; it is a narrative ark that safeguards important modern myths and prepares several generations for a new era of humanity. The saga began nearly four decades ago: in social terms, a long time ago and a place that seems far, far

With new shootings in the news every week, and after months of headlines delivering the latest samples of hatespeech from presidential candidates, the concerned citizen should be asking “where did all the animosity, the anger, the hate come from?” –I have some ideas that could serve as a starting point for an answer–as well as a simple suggestion for those who wish to reduce the negative energy in their lives. The first idea is that since 1987, the FCC stopped enforcing the Fairness Doctrine, then eliminated it in 2011. This policy was designed to preserve “honest, equitable and balanced” use of the airwaves—which belong to the public. It seems no coincidence that within a few years, talk radio became increasingly provocative and outrageous. The TV

A very good film like Spotlight surpasses entertainment: like all good Art, it inspires, instructs, and even admonishes. It is a powerful predictive tool, too, if you view it in the context of the present condition of the US media. It helps when a film is closely based on real events, as Spotlight is. While I would have seen this film for the cast alone, the story and subject matter was very compelling. I do not refer to the specific story about the priests of the Catholic Church and the history of sex abuse—I have already processed that reality. But I AM interested in the story about a newspaper in Boston that broke a story that sent shock waves around the world: I am interested

(Disclaimer: The following piece is educational and entertainment only. It does not constitute advice of any kind. Investment advice should only be taken in the context of an individual (or household) examination of suitability and risk tolerance by a professional advisor.) If there is one strategy that is anathema to the vast majority of investment advisors, it is electing to reduce exposure to stock and bond investments and increase holdings of short-term CDs or “cash.” There are several reasons they hate this: They usually don’t get paid when you go into cash: advisors typically do not charge a fee on cash holdings. Their bosses don’t like this either. One of the commandments (there probably aren’t ten of them) of modern investment theory is that you

The indie film “Any Day Now” contains none of the ingredients that the big studio films seem to insist upon.  There is little sex, no violence or special effects, and a setting that focuses on  a few years in the lives of a handful of people. Yet the film redefines what it means to be a hero and inspires you to search for moments in your own life when you rode into battle hopelessly outnumbered, your heart at the vanguard.  For the great majority of viewers, the  heroes  of  Any Day Now make you despair that you would inevitably fall short of their example, but they also give you the formula in case you find yourself in a similar position: take a worthy cause, side