Very, very busy week for me personally -- which is good in this economy. Next week promises to be as well. And I'm looking forward to some quality down time this weekend. But who cares about my non-blogging life when the market continues in Bear territory? Not many, to be sure. Hopefully a few more will find this week's installment of Five for the Weekend more interesting. ;-)
- I speculated earlier this week that CBS may be reducing its dividend. I was right the very next day. But not because I'm smart. More like because of dumb luck. I respect Les Moonves and I don't believe he'd do this unless it was necessary. The credit agencies are applauding the action. I liked the idea of an "old media" company not being appreciated by the market, with Moonves and me and other shareholders getting the last laugh. That may yet prove true for Moonves and shareholders in the future. But not for me as I've taken a bath on CBS.
- Fairfax Financial (FFH/NYSE) continues being among the precious few bright spots in my portfolio. 2008 is reportedly the best year in the company's history. To help mark the occasion, Chairman and CEO Prem Watsa gave a must-read interview (and a fairly short one as well) to the National Post.
- A new Barron's goes online tomorrow, but I don't want to let Tom Donlan's excellent editorial in this week's issue go unmentioned. Donlan argues that economics isn't "hard science" but an ongoing philosophical debate. And points out the wide range of economists winning the Nobel Prize. Spot on editorial. Regular readers of Controlled Greed know I believe Donlan is the finest editorial writer in America. Even if someone doesn't agree with him often, I hope we can all agree that he's a unique voice -- especially with the over-used and very-tired Left/Right arguments consuming most media.
- James Altucher's latest column in the Financial Times deals with networking. Not the social media type of stuff you hear so much about these days. But old-fashioned face-to-face contact. Jim writes that he normally isn't very social or enjoys meeting new people. Same here -- I like people generally but am on the quiet side and have the bad habit of listening too much when meeting someone because I don't know them and want to hear what they have to say. The result is I can often wind up saying very little. Oh well. Back to Jim, he follows Howard Lindzon around one day and attended eight meetings.
- The Zimbabwe Stock Exchange is re-opening after three months with its listings denominated in US dollars instead of its own virtually worthless currency. Here's a Bloomberg report. And for more of the latest goings-on in the former Rhodesia, Africa Confidential uncovers the fragile state of the country's so-called coalition government.
Have a great couple of days. See you next week if not before.
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