So much for turning the other cheek in Bethlehem this Christmas. The rules of human hierarchies seem to be prevalent in the church today.

Where to Invest in 2012?

There is the story that in 1929 before the crash that a certain Wall St banker, while getting his shoes shined, overheard two shoeshine boys talking about their stocks. This man went and sold every stock he had. He figured that when the shoeshine boys were buying and selling stocks it was time to get out.

A few days ago the Wall Street Journal carried an article about the sudden popularity of North Korean bonds that defaulted 30 years ago. People are buying the bonds with anticipation that a new day is coming in North Korea with the death of Kim Jong Il. I have to think about that.

Do the people buying those defaulted bonds know something the rest of us don't know. Are those bonds preferable to common stocks, corporate bonds, Treasury bills and real estate?

I have been a bear on 401Ks and 403Bs since they started. I knew it would be constant new money pouring into mutual funds dealing in ordinary investments. The same shares of stock would be bought and sold at ever higher prices until the day that more people wanted to sell than to buy. With baby boomers retiring and with no growth and low interest 71 million people will be cashing out.Who will buy their stocks?

I think of the words of Psalms 20 that some trust in chariots and some in horses. This little ditty tells it with graphics.

David Sneed

Discussions

I think that if I had to pick one thing that is most troubling to me it would be those who either will not or cannot be open to a discussion of something where the subject is in some form connected to them. Even just general discussions. Regretfully that includes many Christians. And more regretfully pastors often fall into the statement in the next paragraph.

Upton Sinclair once said "It is difficult to get a man to understand something when his salary is dependent upon not understanding it." Unfortunately this covers most people in authority at any level. And that includes people who make decisions affecting others.

Outside of where there is a money impact there are so many who take simple discussions, discussions that are not in any way critical, as personal attacks.

I thank God that I am open to a discussion of anything that pertains to me. I suppose a complaint that I have is that I do not get enough criticism. Throughout my career I have always told my clients never to bother me with what is good. Only call me when something is wrong so I can fix it.

Christians are not called to make monuments of past "goods" and to explain past "bads" but to make solutions for the problems we find each day. We are to fix circumstances and heal the wounded. Our God is a God of the second chance. We should do no less. Do more good than was done in the past. And move on from the bad.

End of comments.

David Sneed