The year 2021 was another challenging year with the pandemic raging on beyond what most optimistically believed with vaccines coming on the scene. Can 2022 be the year most thought 2021 was supposed to be? I can’t think of a more difficult time to predict what’s ahead with so many [...]
A few years ago, I wrote in this space about whether it made sense to buy US manufactured tools and products even at higher prices than imports. Time has marched on. I now wonder about our future as a viable independent nation. By way of example, let’s examine computers, especially [...]
Many of you know that each year I use this week to share a column with a Thanksgiving theme. It is my favorite American holiday since it originated in our land in the 1600s. In former years, it kicked off the official Christmas shopping season, but that has already begun. [...]
Regardless of how many times I see it, I am always astounded to find bread and milk shelves laid bare prior to a forecasted snowstorm. In the 40 something years I have lived in the metro, I cannot remember a single occasion when two days after inclement weather I was [...]
Last week I discussed the problem of holding bonds during a period of rising inflation. Not only does the older rate of income paid fall short of keeping up with the cost of buying goods and services, but the value of the bonds in your portfolio falls. The worst case [...]
The Federal Reserve Board Chairman Jerome Powell tells us that the present surge of inflation is transitory. But whatever its duration, it is wreaking havoc on the budgets of many American families. Just in terms of gasoline, a two wage-earning couple could easily be spending an additional $100-$150 per month [...]
As a baby boomer generation member, I can recall feeling an incredible sense of pressure as a young person in the 1960’s. There were so many of us with which to compete. Unlike now, there were more looking for work than there were positions. I thought I had to [...]
The stock market has been rocked this past week after Chinese property giant Evergrande announced they were on the brink of a total collapse and were likely to default on over 300 billion in debt. While this announcement has certainly impacted its shareholders and creditors, it is also having serious [...]
According to Jesus’ parable found in Matthew 25 about the three servants entrusted with the Master’s talents of precious metal, we are going to be rewarded by taking at least some risk in our financial lives. Why do I say that? You will recall that the Master entrusts 5 talents [...]
Something I learned back in algebra class was when faced with a problem, the fewer variables there are, the easier it is to solve. Businesses across our nation face a multitude of challenges right now. Supply chain failures, employment shortages and rising costs are just a few of the obstacles [...]
