5 Tips for Diversifying Your Portfolio

Energy Costs They Will They Skyrocket Thanks to Obama
The debate for 2011 is what will happen with Crude Oil, heating, oil, Gasoline, and Natural Gas prices? Will they increase or decrease? Google “Crude Oil and Natural Gas Spot Prices NYMEX” and you will get a mass of detail prices. Fuel prices are controlled by a Free Market and the numbers are surprising: Crude Oil North Sea Brent                      June, 2010  $68 bb ...

Prosperity In Motion
Our government’s refusal to allow the development of our Oil resources has left us on the verge of $5 per gallon Gasoline, with fuel shortages looming in the future. This will have a profound negative effect on our economy, because growth requires movement. The level of wealth we are accustomed to depends powerfully upon the ability to move goods and individuals over long distances at low cost. Obviously, dramatic increases in fuel costs would increase the cost of shipping. This means mor...

November pending home sales up 3.5 percent: source
WASHINGTON | Thu Dec 30, 2010 11:58am EST WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Contracts for Pending Sales of previously owned U.S. homes rose faster than expected in November, though sales remained below "normal" activity levels, a Real Estate trade group said on Thursday. The National Association of Realtors Pending Home Sales Index, based on contracts signed in November, rose 3.5 percent to 92.2 from a downwardly revised 89.1 in October. The index showed sales were 5 percent lower than the 97.0 reading ...

AP-GfK Poll: Baby boomers worried about Medicare (AP)
WASHINGTON – Anxious to receive their Medicare benefits after years of paying taxes into the system, Baby Boomers say they're willing to sacrifice to preserve the scope and level of coverage. The first boomers will be old enough to qualify for Medicare Jan. 1, and a new Associated Press-GfK poll finds them worried about the future of the giant Health Care program that has helped their parents and grandparents live longer, healthier lives in Retirement. By a ratio of 2-to-1, Baby Boomers ...

AP-GfK Poll: Baby boomers worried about Medicare
Realtor Lynn Barlow poses for a portrait in her home in Canton, Ga., in this photo taken Thursday, Dec. 9, 2010. Barlow believes she and her husband, who have paid into the Medicare program their whole working lives, and are entitled to collect benefits. At the same time, she's willing to make some sacrifices to preserve the level of services. Anxious to receive their Medicare benefits after years of paying taxes into the system, Baby Boomers say they're willing to sacrifice to preserve the sco...

AP-GfK Poll: Baby boomers worried about Medicare
WASHINGTON (AP) — Anxious to receive their Medicare benefits after years of paying taxes into the system, Baby Boomers say they’re willing to sacrifice to preserve the scope and level of coverage. The first boomers will be old enough to qualify for Medicare Jan. 1, and a new Associated Press-GfK poll finds them worried about the future of the giant Health Care program that has helped their parents and grandparents live longer, healthier lives in Retirement. By a ratio of 2-to-1, baby...

Baby boomers worry about medicare
The first boomers will be old enough to qualify for Medicare Jan. 1, and a new Associated Press-GfK poll finds them worried about the future of the giant Health Care program that has helped their parents and grandparents live longer, healthier lives in Retirement. By a ratio of 2-to-1, Baby Boomers say they fear they won’t be able to rely on Medicare throughout their own Retirement. Yet the poll found that boomers, and Americans of all ages, are willing to accept trade-offs if that helps k...

Sob story of the day, Cat Rock edition
Today’s WSJ features the sad, sad story of retired churchman Fred Osborn, who might have to sell his family home. It only has single-pane windows, making it expensive to heat in the winter. And even after renting it out in the summer, Osborn ends up losing money on the old place. On top of that, his son has moved in, along with his four kids. If it got sold, three generations of Osborns would be kicked out at once. “I want to enjoy Retirement now, but I really can’t afford to ...

AP-GfK Poll: Baby boomers worried about Medicare
WASHINGTON—Anxious to receive their Medicare benefits after years of paying taxes into the system, Baby Boomers say they're willing to sacrifice to preserve the scope and level of coverage. The first boomers will be old enough to qualify for Medicare Jan. 1, and a new Associated Press-GfK poll finds them worried about the future of the giant Health Care program that has helped their parents and grandparents live longer, healthier lives in Retirement. By a ratio of 2-to-1, Baby Boomers say...

Many baby boomers fear outliving Medicare
WASHINGTON — The first Baby Boomers will be old enough to qualify for Medicare Jan. 1, and many fear the program’s obituary will be written before their own. A new Associated Press-GfK poll finds that by a ratio of 2-to-1, Baby Boomers believe they won’t be able to rely on the giant Health Insurance plan throughout their Retirement. The boomers took a running dive into adolescence and went on to redefine work and family, but getting old is making them nervous. In the poll, 43 ...

Why you should make your competitors your frenemies
Conventional wisdom in most companies is that "the competition is the enemy." It's the rallying cry to dig deeper, get more features out the door, issue Press Releases citing differences and attack the competition's weaknesses in sales presentations. I understand this instinct – it's tribal, like rooting for sports teams. And there are benefits to having something that galvanizes your team. But many startups take this too far, and I would actually encourage a dose of enemy and friend. You ...

Oil Breaches $91 a Barrel in Light Trading
Oil Prices on Tuesday reached the $91-a-barrel mark in light trading as strong demand and limited supply continues to push up prices toward the end of the year. Oil for February delivery increased 27 cents to $91.27 a barrel in New York Mercantile Exchange trading Tuesday. It had been trading at about $81 a barrel about a month ago. Sponsored Links The higher oil prices reflect tightened petroleum inventories and what may be a slight resurgence in the U.S. economy, which is increasing demand....

Gas Prices Could Top $5 a Gallon by 2012
Chicago - The former President of Shell Oil John Hofmeister predicts we'll be paying $5 a gallon by 2012 because of global demand. Other market analysts say it will happen in the next decade. At a BP station at Roosevelt and Wabash in Chicago Tuesday, gas was $3.58 per gallon for regular grade. Premium was $3.80, the highest prices since late 2008 when the Recession was at its worst. The Economy is improving, but Gas Prices could reach record highs by the end of the year. Nationally, the average...

Former shell executive raises the specter of $5 per gallon gas
Gas Prices became a major topic of discussion this week after the former president of Shell said that the United States could see gas prices as high as $5 per gallon in 2012. "When American Consumers are short or prices are so high — $5 a gallon for Gasoline, for example, by 2012 — that's going to set a new tone. It's going to be panic time on behalf of the politicians," John Hofmeister, who was president of the company from 2005 to 2009, told Platts Energy Week. Platts Energy Week aired t...

Former Shell CEO says gas headed for 5 bucks per gallon
The former head of the Shell Oil Company stated Monday that with the current market price for a barrel of oil nearing $92 and headed for over $100, the price for a gallon of gas in the U.S. could hit $5 per gallon in the not-too-distant future.  Others have estimated an even worse scenario. As speculators began to note that the future price of oil was headed through the roof due to increased competition from developing nations such as China and India, and as a result of Obama Administration...

Local Gas Prices Climb 8 Cents In Week
GREENVILLE, S.C. -- Gas Prices in the Greenville area have climbed 8 cents during the past week, according to GasBuddy.com. The website said that the average price for a gallon of Gasoline is at $2.86 as of Monday, but that price is below the national average of $3.03 per gallon -- up 4.3 cents over last week. Monday's prices were 44.2 cents higher than the same day last year and 26.2 cents higher than a month ago, the website reported. Nationally, GasBuddy.com said, the average price for a gall...

The Tesserae of the Carter Mosaic
Obama’s economic plan is beginning to emerge as something out of the Carter era, like the pieces of an ominous mosaic falling into place: Unemployment well over 9 percent, the beginning of Inflation with soaring food and Gas Prices, slow growth, failed Keynesian Deficits. All that seem to be missing are gas lines (and some industry experts are predicting $5 a gallon soon), high interest, and Inflation across the board. And we fear the latter is on the horizon, given the unprecedented rate ...

$5 Gas by 2012? Ex-Shell Oil Exec Predicts
John Hofmeister, former president of Shell Oil, believes the $5 gas will be average in 2012 here in America. During a recent interview, Hofmeister, who left Shell Oil in 2008 and now heads Citizens for Affordable Energy, predicts that the price of a gallon of gas will be $5, if not more, by 2012. Last weekend, the taped interviewed was aired on Platts Energy Week television. Hofmeister blames global demand, tighter supplies and government inaction for a increases at the gas pump. Already, the p...

Gasoline Prices Are Spiking Way Out Of Season
Email Sent! You have successfully emailed the post. Doug Short is the CEO of Dshort.com. On our brief Christmas afternoon drive home from a family gathering in Clayton NC, we spotted a Wal-Mart service station sign for $3.019 regular gas. The post-Thanksgiving Holiday Season is not one I normally associate with high Gas Prices. As the chart below shows, the general pattern is for Gasoline prices to peak in the summer and decline after Labor Day. This year has run counter to the pattern by a si...

Guest Post: Former Shell Oil Chief Predicts $5 Gas by 2012
Former Shell Oil Chief Predicts $5 Gas by 2012 Though he’s no longer running one of the largest companies in the world, former President of Shell Oil John Hofmeister warns that the outlook for Gas Prices in the coming decade is not looking good: I’m predicting a worse outcome over the next two years, which takes us to 2012 with higher Gasoline prices, uncertainty as to the future of hydrocarbons, more Regulation on the hydrocarbon industry based upon who the administration is today...

Wary consumers
Americans opened their wallets to spend more this Holiday Season, but they still have lingering doubts about The Economy. Retail spending between Nov. 5 and Dec. 24 was up by 5.5 percent over a year ago. Other Economic Indicators point to improvements in 2011 with the pace of layoffs slowing, businesses investing more and the Stock Market at its highest point in two years. But trouble spots remain. The Conference Board, a business research group, says consumer confidence is dropping, falling f...

Israel confirms major gas find
Houston-based Noble Energy in cooperation with several Israeli partner companies said that the field, named Leviathan, whose existence was predicted months ago, has at least 16 Trillion cubic feet of gas at a likely market value of tens of billions of dollars and should turn Israel into an energy exporter. “If it acts correctly, levelheadedly and responsibly, Israel can enjoy not only the benefit of using the gas, but it can also turn into a gas supplier in the Mediterranean region,”...

Are gas prices headed toward $5 a gallon?
Economic agenda: Wednesday, Dec. 22, 2010 At some point in the last couple of years--we would place it sometime after Lehman Brothers went down but before the automakers were bailed out--Washington became the financial capital of the world. "Now that we're all used to pre-nups, it's time to start thinking about Divorce Insurance: Ever had that sinking feeling that the person your friend is marrying is perfectly awful? Of course not, because you love everyone. But should it happen, you now can g...

$5-a-gallon gas coming?
A former Shell Oil executive raised the possibility of $5-a-gallon Gasoline by 2012 yesteday. Meanwhile, Greenfaucet notes that Gas Prices went down by 9 percent during the George W. Bush presidency. For those of you who have driven long distances during the holidays, I'm sure you've notice that Gas Prices are heading up. They average about $3.30 a gallon on Chicago's North Shore. Drill here, drill now, pay less. ...

With Gas Prices Well Over $3 a Gallon In Some Parts of the Country, Where Are the 'Pain at the Pump' Stories?
What a difference a president makes. On November 5, 2007 Gas Prices topped $3 a gallon for the first time ever, the media had stories about how it was hitting people right in the wallet. We're not seeing too many of those stories today with prices well over $3, the price was $1.81 when Obama took office. Here's a few headlines of that same price during the Bush presidency ...