patrick.net

After the first time gazing into your own child’s genuinely innocent eyes you immediately realize that children are never “deserving” of any fate, regardless of the sins of their parents.

I hear you. This is another reason why I am afraid of having kids.

Randy,

I don't think Peter P or I were suggesting the kids (or even the husband) deserved what happened to them. Rather, that those kids should not have been born at all because the parents were not morally or financially ready to be responsible parents.

DinOR,

Well, we'll see what happens. Right now, my cousins and my boyfriends siblings are all shaping up to be DINKs or just plain single. There might not be any kids in our future, just a lot of free time for poker nights, foreign travel, and bread baking.

There might not be any kids in our future, just a lot of free time for poker nights, foreign travel, and bread baking.

It will be much worse. People in underdeveloped countries will continue to breed at neck-breaking pace while educated folks are disincentivized to have kids. The result is that the would will be completely occupied by cavemen. Humanity will de-evolve.

People in underdeveloped countries will continue to breed at neck-breaking pace

This is exactly why I refuse to give to any charity sending food to third world countries without sending condoms. Which means I don't give to any of those charities.

My solution:

1. Modify foreign aid strategy, move from a need-based paradigm to a merit-based paradigm.

2. Improve access to education in the third world. Education is way more important than food.

3. Import techology into the third world. This should vastly improve quality of life over time.

4. Discontinue all need-based welfare systems in the developed world.

This is exactly why I refuse to give to any charity sending food to third world countries without sending condoms.

I agree with you.

Peter P,

Do keep in mind that the bulk of my family is in Shanghai.

Sad but true, the individuals in my family who are most likely to breed are also the dumbest of the bunch.

Peter, gc at yahoo.com was a fake email address. Try now.

Sent.

DinOR,

1% is actually pretty low in terms of overall transactions expenses, mgmt. and service. Merrill is about 2% and most are in between. My guess is the rep probably feels you are well established in your field, know everybody that’s worth knowing and is at least attempting to leverage your referral base. Throw the guy/gal a few bones and see if s/he will negotiate down even a little further?

The truth is that I am under the minimum assets required for that cost level, but this is an old friend of mine who I agreed to let manage my money as a favor to him, since he is just starting out. He is taking over the brokerage from his father-in-law, who is retiring, so he doesn't really need the help, but I know how it is when you are starting out in a new career, so I figured I would help out. Before that, I did all my own research and traded via E*Trade.

I did refer a few wealthy people I know his way, but none has decided to send their business his way. If someone does bite, I guess I can ask for a lower rate, then.

Latest S&P Case-Shiller Home Price Index numbers are out. Charlotte is the only city not declining. Looks like Shiller is doing a victory lap in the press release. DinOR should be happy -- Seattle finally (barely) turned negative and Portland continues to decline.

“The annual declines in the composites are a good indicator of the dire state of the U.S. residential real estate market,” says Robert J. Shiller, Chief Economist at MacroMarkets LLC. “ The 10-City and 20-city Composites are both showing negative annual returns, a striking difference from the 15.1% and 14.7% returns they reported this time last year. The dismal growth in the 10-City composite is now at rates not seen since January 1994.”
The decline in the returns of the composites is led by Detroit and Boston, starting their year with annual declines of 6.9% and 5.6%, respectively. Seattle and Portland – having shown some resistance to the sharp downward trend - have reported their second consecutive flat or negative monthly returns. With Phoenix and Tampa now reporting negative annual returns, 11 of the 20 metro areas are now in year-over-year decline.