Conference nyoss1::market_investing

    Here's a risk that might be worth taking for some of the
    cash.
    
    Philip Morris stock is now around $60 per share and 
    yielding about 5.5%
    
    If you believe that the new Republican Congress will NOT
    act against the tobacco industry, then this is would be 
    a good place to go for both yield and growth. (IMHO)
    

    The notice that his bonds are being called should have contained
    explicit instructions. I'm not sure he needs to do anything these days.
    
    I don't know where the 3-4 year horizon came from. If he's that
    definite then buy a U.S. Treasury bond maturing the quarter he
    plans to redeem them. Since it's a short-term bond there is relatively
    little interest rate risk, and if he were REALLY worried about 
    purchasing power 3-4 years hence he could buy some gold stocks to
    balance his risk.
    
    U.S. Treasuries are non-callable, with some very few exceptions
    that would be reflected in the underlying price.
    
    .1 is a good idea but I would be very wary of stocks at this point,
    since Clinton might become Nixon II, with a repeat of the disastrous
    1973-1974 market drop. Youngsters can handle that risk, secure in
    the knowledge that the U.S. stock market can withstand any assault
    to the country or its citizens. Fathers-in-law don't have the time
    to recover from a temporary 50% drop in the market.
    
      John

    
    	May want to consider two closed-end bond funds now currently
    selling at a discount. I like the Kemper Int. Gov. which has an NAV of
    7.77, market price of 6.75, discounted 13% (you pay 87 cents for $1.00
    of assets) and returned 10% over the past year. Also Allmerica Secs (a
    Taxable bond fund with corporates) priced at 8.75 with an NAV of 10.76
    discounted 11.3% which earned 9.7% over the past year.
    	Both are traded on the NYSE, both have superior management, no
    derivaties exposure, and allow reinvestment of interest. 
    	If you believe interest rates will drop again over that 3-4 year
    time frame, these two are almost no-brainers.
    
    
    		the Greyhawk 
    

>    	If you believe interest rates will drop again over that 3-4 year
>   time frame, these two are almost no-brainers.
What would worry me about this scenario is that the "Borrow and Spend"
guys will control a significant portion of the government as a result
of the recent elections.  Looks like "voodoo economics" might be
coming back.  Increased demand for borrowed money means higher rates.

    
    	Voodoo economics is now dead. These guys are going to fall all over
    themselves cutting government spending. Remember, they only have a
    two-year lease, and the landlords are awake and watching.
    
    		the Greyhawk

I should probably have put this in Soapbox.

>   	Voodoo economics is now dead. These guys are going to fall all over
>   themselves cutting government spending. Remember, they only have a
>   two-year lease, and the landlords are awake and watching.

I hope that Voodoo economics is dead.  I hear the claims of budget
cutting, but I don't hear any specifics.  Wall street is anticipating
increased military spending judging from the rise in defense issues. 
Here come the $10000 toilets and the $500 hammers again.

When it gets down to the nitty gritty, no congressman wants cuts in
his/her back yard.  Two very large budget items are Social Security
and Medicare.  Any time anyone even hints of cutting these items the
other party immediately charges that they're out to cheat the elderly
out of their birthright.  If you can't cut these two items it'll be
difficult to make significant cuts in the budget.

I think they're all talk and no action.  Politicians benefit by being
able to spend government money in their district.  Their voters
benefit as well.  They only want to cut the wasteful spending in
someone else's district.  Of course there is no wasteful spending in
their own district.

Most of the politicians will say anything to get elected.  Very few
seem to act responsibly.  I suppose one could make a similar case
for the voters.  They're the ones that keep putting these boneheads in
office.

    
    	Agreed on politician's primary focus - but this election WAS
    different. Time will tell if they got the message. In the meantime
    Treasury bill nibbling could be very profitable.
    
    		the Greyhawk