American companies that are developing breakthrough technologies should get a big boost from President Trump’s tax and trade policies. To use one of our president’s favorite words, the investment possibilities will be… tremendous. In a recent meeting with the technology sector’s top leaders, Trump proclaimed: “I’m here to help you… Read More

While I was having dinner at her house over the MLK holiday weekend, my sainted mother started to fret about likely cutbacks this year to Social Security. My mom is a professional hand-wringer, but her anxiety isn’t always misplaced. In the case of Social Security, she’s right to worry.Social Security… Read More

When the advertising professionals of the pre-digital age roamed the halls of Madison Avenue, the technological tools for businesses to connect with customers were a tiny fraction of what’s available today.As depicted by the hard-drinking, chain-smoking character Don Draper in the TV show Mad Men, these ad execs used Nielsen… Read More

Nobel Laureate Bob Dylan, the man credited with first giving marijuana to The Beatles, sang back in the 1960s: “The times they are a-changin’.” That’s sure true when it comes to pot.During my rebellious teenage years in the Nixon Era, if you had told me that marijuana would become legal… Read More

As it approaches its eighth year, the aging bull market is in danger of sputtering to a halt. And our readers seem to know it.Yesterday, I found this simple question in my email inbox: “Where is a safe place?” — Barbara D.Barbara, the ever-rising market appears to be running on… Read More

In a famous Monty Python sketch, a customer who bought a “Norwegian Blue” parrot brings the clearly dead bird back to the pet shop for a refund. The shopkeeper argues that the parrot isn’t dead… it’s merely “resting.”As the post-election rally fades, is the aging bull market on its death… Read More

As part of a long-term investment strategy, real estate can serve as a portfolio diversifier and inflation hedge. But if you make poor decisions, real estate can put you in a very deep financial hole that lasts for years.Case in point: This past weekend, I found myself watching on Netflix… Read More

Cue Frank Sinatra: “Regrets, I’ve had a few…”I periodically ask readers to share their biggest investment regrets. I got this email last night:“I met my wife of 25 years in 1989. Not long after we met, sometime in 1990 or thereabouts, she asked me where she should invest her $2,000… Read More

Shocking the norms of political discourse is customary for Donald Trump and he did so again on Wednesday, when he publicly sided with WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange against America’s own intelligence community. Contrary to the findings of the NSA, CIA and FBI, Trump endorsed the activist’s claim that Russia didn’t… Read More

The death last week of Star Wars actress Carrie Fisher at the relatively young age of 60 was a deeply sad event that brought back four decades of memories. It also reminded me of the mind-boggling money mistake committed by her co-star Harrison Ford. I’ll get to that in a… Read More