I recently wrote a Guest Blog Entry for the “Money and Such” blog entitled Passive Investing Is a Strategy for Extremists.
Juicy Excerpt: The word “passive” sounds neutral. It sounds moderate. I don’t think the investing philosophy is that at all. The investing philosophy argues for taking no action whatsoever when the risk of holding stocks increases dramatically.
This is the blog entry that was viewed by the owner of the “Lazy Man and Money” blog as “too hot to handle.”
John Walter Russell says
This is too hot to handle?
Have fun.
John Walter Russell
Rob says
I suppose you have to put yourself in the shoes of someone who has been advocating Passive Investing for years now or at least not warning people of its dangers.
Rob
John Walter Russell says
They had an excuse. They didn’t have the tools. Or, so they thought.
But now, after a meltdown, they don’t look around for better ideas? That is negligence.
Have fun.
John Walter Russell
Rob says
after a meltdown, they don’t look around for better ideas?
One of the things that shows that Passive Investing is a 100 percent emotional strategy is that there is no way to disprove it.
If stocks went down another 50 percent, the same arguments that are used today to “defend” it would still apply. There is no way that the “logic” used to defend this “idea” will ever not apply. The only thing that can ever bring about change is for the Passive approach to cause even more pain and thereby motivate those who have not entirely given up use of their common sense to speak up a bit more firmly.
Something that cannot be disproven is not science. It is the opposite of science.
We all should of course be looking for better ideas. But we need to work up the courage to call the nonsense by its proper name to get to a point where better ideas can be heard. Right now 80 percent of all the efforts put forward by those in the investing field goes to “defending” an idea that can not be defended in civil and reasoned discussion.
It’s not a good situation. But there’s some truly wonderful stuff on the other side of the big wall.
Rob
Evidence Based Investing says
I liked this comment that Rob Bennett made on the “Money and Such” blog.
When I put forward this sort of argument, people often respond by pointing to the benefits of rebalancing. Rebalancing does help. I certainly do not say different.
Rob says
Thanks for saying so, Evidence.
I think it helps when someone from “your side” (Evidence advocates Passive Investing) can say something like that. It of course also helps when someone from “my side” can say something like the message pointed to by Evidence.
I look forward to the day when there is only one side. We should all be on the side that favors Learning Together by sharing our sincere views with others in a spirit of mutual respect and affection. None of us knows it all. We all need to be exposed to those with different viewpoints. We all need to try to keep our minds open to new ways of looking at things.
You and I have different views on investing, Evidence. Yet I think of you as a friend because you sometimes take time out of your day to help me develop an ability to look at things from a different perspective. I hope that you feel the same about my efforts or that you are at least beginning to feel more that way than you once did.
Thanks for enhancing our discussions here by putting in the pitch for rebalancing, friend.
Rob