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Caution Rules
AFTER SECOND-QUARTER MUTUAL-FUND PERFORMANCE turned positive -- the first good showing since the economic crisis started -- financial planner Nancy Anderson expected a flood of inquiries about buying stocks. None came. "I was surprised," says Anderson, who works for Financial Finesse, which advises 401(k) clients like Aetna and General Motors. "I'm a certified financial planner. But calls about foreclosures and hardship withdrawals were up," as well as questions about budgeting and debt payment. So much for animal spirits.
She was surprised? I'm reminded of my last job. The General Manager was telling me that he just gave a "Coming to Jesus" speech to one team. He needed everyone on board. Anyone who didn't feel up to the task should tell him now and he'd put them on another team. Guess what? Nearly everyone wanted off of the team. Surprise! It seems that people grew tired of the heavy overtime and being continually told they were not doing a good job.
Gabriel Knight
The creation of such an ambitious engine came at a price, however, and the game which was originally due for release in Summer 1998 didn't ship until Fall 1999 after changes in the design team and the decision to undertake a major rearchitecture of the engine halfway through production.
Gabriel Knight: Sins of the Fathers
In its original form, the game was buggy, to the point where it could not be completed. Fixed in patches, it was still an annoyance that you would have to start all over again.
Oh the stories I could tell as an observer. For example, one day I was in the bathroom and the current lead engineer on the project (there were so many before it was over) looked to be in especially good spirits. I asked him how things were going. He said...
"Things are going great."
This surprised me immensely. I asked him how that could possibly be.
"I just quit!"
Real Estate Newsletter Articles this Week: Existing-Home Sales Increased to
4.15 million SAAR in November
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At the Calculated Risk Real Estate Newsletter this week:
[image: Existing Home Sales]*Click on graph for larger image.*
• NAR: Existing-Home Sales Increase...
11 hours ago
11 comments:
Mark,
LOL!
very funny tonight. I dont think I can tell you how much the fun here has lifted me up.
I appreciate your work, my man, time will come when we can maybe wake some up!
Thanks again.
OMG. You're a game developer!
GYSC,
Glad to hear it. :)
Stephen Clarke-Willson, Ph.D.,
OMG! You are too! Actually, I quit in 1999. In fact the day I quit another lead quit too.
Like rats from a sinking ship!
It was fun in the early days though. One of the products even won a Codie. I still have the trophy. :)
Mark,
I think I left a link to your blog a long time ago at Mr. Wilson's blog, I figured you two would have plenty to discuss!
Great jokes over at my site, thanks for the hilarious link.
Stag,
"I just quit!"
That's what keeps the debt pushers (Wall St. bankers) and eCONomists up late isn't it? What happens to the "free" market exponential debt credit system if more and more people just opt out of the consumer debt game? Imagine how difficult it will be to keep house prices from dropping when people no longer desire over-priced houses or the debt that is attached to them.
Similar to the Stockholm Syndrome, I think we've witnessed a Stock-Home syndrome over the few decades. People became dependent on their regulatory captors (debt pushers, brokers etc). The dependency started when wage gains trailed inflation. But what if the delusional dependency is broken? The stigma of bankruptcy and foreclosure sure seems to be waning.
What if credit is once again viewed as what it really is - DEBT?!?! Debt for productive investment is one thing, but debt for CONsumption is the road to ruin. The lunacy must end eventually.
One more thought. I'd say a "come to Jesus moment" where nobody comes is actually very big come to Jesus moment! lol! I just came to Jesus - "I just quit!"
mab,
"Similar to the Stockholm Syndrome, I think we've witnessed a Stock-Home syndrome over the few decades."
You should save that one. It's THE funniest economic pun I've seen since starting my blog!!
For those not quite in on it...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stockholm_syndrome
"Stockholm syndrome is a psychological response sometimes seen in abducted hostages, in which the hostage shows signs of loyalty to the hostage-taker, regardless of the danger or risk in which they have been placed."
Yes! That's exactly what it is!
"One theory to explain the Stockholm syndrome is cognitive dissonance. Specifically, people don't like being unhappy for long periods of time, but when people are kidnapped for a long period of time, they will be unhappy for that time, unless they come to love their captors."
Oh man. LOVE that debt! LOVE it!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cognitive_dissonance
"The anxiety that comes with the possibility of having made a bad decision can lead to rationalization, the tendency to create additional reasons or justifications to support one's choices. A person who just spent too much money on a new car might decide that the new vehicle is much less likely to break down than his or her old car. This belief may or may not be true, but it would likely reduce dissonance and make the person feel better. Dissonance can also lead to confirmation bias, the denial of disconfirming evidence, and other ego defense mechanisms."
It wasn't a Cash for Clunkers Program at all. It was a Cash for Cognitive Dissonance Program!
Holy cow. It all makes sense now.
Stag,
A bit more on Stock-Home syndrome and regulatory captors:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/comment/ambroseevans_pritchard/6211872/Debt-deflation-laboratory-of-the-Baltics.html
From the above link:
Professor Ülo Ennuste from Tallinn University says the private net wealth of Estonia's people has fallen below zero. I know of no other country in the world where this has occurred, though Latvia may be deeper in hock.
Just look at all the Estonian and Latvian wealth unlocked by the Swedish banks! It makes me think we still have room for more debt.
mab,
As seen in my most recent post, just look at the wealth unlocked by avoiding inflation protection!
"As long as you keep your fixed income holdings flexible, you should be able to respond to inflation by eventually buying bonds that provide higher income, while still earning more income today."
I am SO whacking my head on my desk today for not thinking of dropping my inflation protection.
I am saving a lot of money since I no longer have health insurance though. I should probably take a trip to Europe or something with all this extra cash flow. NOT!
Hey, maybe I should drop fire insurance on my house. That would generate some extra income for me too.
Wow. This wealth unlocking concept is very powerful.
'Anderson, who works for Financial Finesse, which advises 401(k) clients like Aetna and General Motors. "I'm a certified financial planner. But calls about foreclosures and hardship withdrawals were up," as well as questions about budgeting and debt payment.'
.
I remember reading this article and thinking it very strange.
Financial Finesse advises General Motors.
Didn't they, uh, just go bankrupt?
Didn't they just, uh, reduce their workforce?
They're surprised by hardship withdrawals?
What were Andersen and friends expecting? "Hello, I just lost my job. I'd like to increase my 401K contribution. Please put it in stocks."
.
'So much for animal spirits.'
I don't see how the adviser of GM 401Ks could be used as the economic barometer of Wall Street in 2009. At all. But the article got repeated a lot.
- jus me
jus me,
Great points!
In 2004, I often referred to Capital One Financial and General Motors as my economic barometers. Seriously. I'd look at those gauges and see what I thought was a storm coming. Others apparently saw nothing but blue sky. It probably had something to do with GM's CEO (Rick W.) saying they were on track to earn $10 per share by the end of the decade. Well, just 3 months left! ;)
I think my barometers in 2009 are toilet paper and oil prices. Scary! Worse, I think one of my gauges may be broken, but I'm not sure which one!
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