Smidiríní:

Some articles that caught my attention in the past week:

Barry Rithotz:  "On the Hunt for the Financial Free Lunch? Don't." {Via Washington Post}  In particular I liked these points.

"Of so many free lunches, this is the hard truth:

●You are not going to win the lottery.

●Hot stock tips are worthless (the only exceptions are those especially costly tips that will get you sent to federal prison).

●You are not going to buy an iPad from one of those deal sites for $3.

●No, you are not likely to buy in early to the next Apple or Netflix, and if you do, you are unlikely to hold it long enough.

●No, you are not going to make $10,000 gambling at fantasy sports.

●You (or your kid) are not going to be the next Michael Jordan or Adele.

●The odds are radically against you finding the mutual fund manager or stock broker who is going to make you fabulously rich.

●Indeed, the odds are against you stock picking, market timing or investing in a venture fund, private equity fund or hedge fund that, over the long haul, is going to outperform a simple index fund.

Liz Ann Sonders of Charles Schwab on Why diversification is essential for investors' financial and emotional well-being.  I like the diversification quilt in the article that shows the crazy-wild volatility this year.  {*Note that Charles Schwab is our firm's primary custodian.}

Bloomberg:  "The Incredible Shrinking Hedge-Fund Fee."  I've long thought paying somebody 2% on the assets plus 20% of the performance was nuts and it looks like maybe I'm not the only one that thinks this now.  {Note In disclosure I manage a small investment partnership that is family money and closed to outside investors.  Also note that the partnership does not charge a "2 and 20" fee.}