We’ve entered the home stretch of 2009 and with it a new blog site. At the suggestion of a friend, I’ve moved the blog from blogspot to a page I run myself. For the most part, the site is the same, with the same links, and should function as you would expect. New, however, is a page titled “Reviews of Stuff,” which will – you guessed it — review stuff, and a link to an Amazon Store. I hope you’ll like the new site and of course I welcome your comments and feedback.
The fourth quarter of 2009 is here and as we look to year-end, a lot of exciting things are happening both here and abroad that are going to get us into 2010, out of the Depression, and hopefully move us into a recovery. I know, “technically” we are not even in a recession but ask people you know what they think of the economy and my guess is that they will respond with a resounding “It’s bad and getting worse.”
But enough gloom and doom, being negative never got anyone anything. So let’s talk some positives: the Red Sox made the playoffs and the Yankees won more then 100 games. Both are pieces of good news that can only lead to a great American League Championship Series. More important, Zombieland, starring the great Woody Harrelson, among others, was number one in the box office last week. And last but not least, Curb Your Enthusiasm is back and seems to be better then ever. So far, so good, for the entertainment portion of my fall. I need some good laughs in light of what I see going on with investors and fund managers.
The lack of lessons learned in the post Madoff/Credit Crisis/Financial Armageddon of 2008 is a case in point that has me quite distraught. Recently, a dear friend of mine was at an investment committee meeting for a college endowment in which he is involved. During the meeting, the committee’s consultant made it quite clear that they only had 120 minutes to discuss the portfolio and new allocations. The consultant went so far as to pull out a stopwatch out and announced every 15 minutes as the time ticked by.
One of the topics was allocations to alternative managers. While the consultant spoke, many members seemed to doze, and the chairman said that he didn’t need more information because he knew of a larger endowment that had placed five times as much with the manager and “if it was good for them, it was good for us.” The consultant told the committee that the allocation, while big to them, was too small for the manager to make a trip to talk to them, maybe they could schedule a call, but maybe not, and in light of the chairman’s feeling, it probably wasn’t necessary anyway.
Huh, is this thing on? Come on, this is a nightmare waiting to happen. Didn’t we learn anything from 2008, at least to ask questions and to demand answers of those we entrust with our money? What the heck, people, come on, get with it. This is your money; you have the right to ask questions, demand answers and if managers won’t provide them, tell them to take a walk.
This practice, by the way, does not apply only to institutional investors; it applies to every one of us regardless of assets. Ask questions and demand answers, — it is your money! Didn’t we learn anything from last year? We are better then this. I know it.
THINGS THAT DRIVE ME CRAZY
Last Thursday I had the opportunity to meet with an old colleague at Olive’s Restaurant at the W Hotel on Park Avenue South. I arrived a little bit early and asked for a table in my friend’s name, thinking that he had made a reservation. Well, the hostess looked at me with disdain when she said that there was no reservation. “I’ll see if I can seat you,” she replied.
It must have been a tough assignment, since the restaurant seemed to be more than 80 percent empty. She stuck me in what she would call a very crummy table, not a prime spot for sure. After ordering a cappuccino, I used my Blackberry to make a reservation on www.opentable.com. As the hostess passed, I motioned her over, and said, “Excuse me, I made a mistake. The reservation was under my name,” and she said, “Oh, I’m sorry. I put you at a wrong table!” She apologized a few more times and insisted I move, I stayed put and laughed. I think it’s pretty funny that people are concerned about where one sits for eggs and a cup of coffee in, of all places, Park Avenue South.
HEDGEANSWERS- 2009/2010
I am pleased to tell you that HedgeAnswers is back and better then ever. This year we’re doing a series of conference calls — rather than conferences — at hotels in various cities. The idea is to reach more people by providing a simple but elegant way to participate right from their desks. To learn more, go to www.hedgeanswers.com. The first call is November 17 and then the third Tuesday of every month thereafter. It is going to be great. I hope you can participate.