A community member named “Bad Move” yesterday posted the following words to a Bogleheads Forum thread titled What Are the Biggest Criticisms About the Boglehead Way?:
“My biggest criticism of the Boglehead way is that its biggest advocates of it (who I think are the same people invented the term “Boglehead”) are not trustworthy:
“1. They engage in extensive “hero worship” in which they try to convince others to blindly follow the advice of famous investors, investment authors, and investment advisors…most of which have a conflict of interest due to their financial connections (ie with the investment firms they recommend, the royalties they collect from the books they sell, the advisement fees they collect from clients, etc). This is a common strategy used to take advantage of weak minded individuals (for example, by crooked religious leaders).
“2. They insulate their teachings from factual criticism by appealing to higher standards (ie the future is distinct from the past), but then they go on to justify their more specific recommendations (the point where fees are collected, of course) with historical circumstances. This is another typical huckster strategy: tell a half truth and you can get people to believe whatever lies you choose to mix in.
“3. They furiously censor anyone who calls attention to the above, erasing all discussion of it without any trace or fanfare. They even somehow negotiate to have negative reviews of their books removed from independent sources. For example, if you try posting a negative review of one of their books on Amazon then you will see why their books are so highly rated….the negative reviews get deleted!
“I can’t say who these people are since naming names is against forum policy (or at least it’s supposed to be…it’s actually only enforced when these specific hucksters are caught with their hands in the honey pot), but if you stick around this forum long enough and keep careful watch then you will see for yourself who they are.
“The funny thing about it is that I actually agree with 95% of Boglehead ideals, but seeing the poor character of those who advocate it makes me truly fear that I’ve somehow been bamboozled.
“Caveat Emptor.”
The post remains open to view of other community members as of this morning. This is obviously to the credit of the “leaders” of the board. This is how we all begin moving forward together.
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