By Howard Ruff
Publisher: Berkley Trade
Number Of Pages: 304
Publication Date: 2008-04-01
ISBN-10 / ASIN: 0425224325
ISBN-13 / EAN: 9780425224328
Product Description:
The devaluation of the American dollar, with the subsequent inflation, iseerily similar to the chaotic markets of the 1970s. The factors that createdthe stagflation and the gold and silver bull markets of the late seventiesand early eighties are back. As Yogi Berra said, "It's deja vu all overagain." Only this time, they're even more exaggerated-offeringonce-in-a-lifetime opportunities for middle-class Americans, if they lookbeyond the Wall Street stock-market propaganda. This book can help youpanic-proof your life and your finances, and reap huge profits withrelatively small investments in gold, silver, certain ETFs, mutual funds,and mining stocks.How to Prosper During the Coming Bad Years in the 21st Century is amust-have survival and moneymaking guide for people who want to profit fromthe rough economic seas that are upon us-and come through with their shareof treasure.
Summary: How to Prosper During the Coming Bad Years of 21st Century
Rating: 5
How to Prosper During the Coming Bad Years in the 21st Century This is new and helpful information.
Summary: Excellent!
Rating: 5
One of the best finance books I've read in years. I'm recommending that my family and friends read this -- this book is just too important to miss....
Summary: Howard Has Saved Me Some Money This Year
Rating: 5
I read Howard's free columns online at[..]and his recommendation of the Canadian CEF fund rescued my IRA from the crash, so I figured I'd try his book. A little rambling but lots of good information in here. Howard's a renaissance man and it shows in this book. Not just a "how to make money" book, but how to do well. As the crisis that Howard predicted years ago unfolds (and, to be fair, Michael Maloney Rich Dad's Advisors: Guide to Investing In Gold and Silver: Protect Your Financial Future, Peter Schiff Crash Proof: How to Profit From the Coming Economic Collapse (Lynn Sonberg Books), and others predicted), take this advice to heart.
Summary: Feels cobbled together
Rating: 3
This latest edition of Ruff's book is apparently a revised edition of his original book written in the 70s with some things deleted and some new information added on to bring the reader up to date as of the beginnings of the current sub-prime meltdown. My first comment is that it feels a bit cut and pasted. Some passages are repeated verbatim in different sections of the book, some are repeated not quite verbatim but close enough to count as repetitive. Based on this alone, a star has to be deleted. Otherwise, Ruff's message has not changed much in the intervening 30 years or so which some may argue proves it is "timeless" while others probably feel it's tired. The emphasis is on inflation which leads to some interesting plot turns. He is a huge supporter of gold and even more so, silver because of the rapid printing of fiat currencies. Despite the fact that deflation currently rules, as of this writing (February 2009), gold is near an all-time high and silver is up solidly in the past several months. So, his advice seems correct if not quite for the correct reasons. One unusual strategy he advocates in the book is to basically leverage up your home with a fixed rate mortgage and put the proceeds in a compounding money market fund. The logic again comes back to his belief that inflation will rule so that the yield on your money market fund will be climbing while your mortgage payments remain constant. Unfortunately for you if you followed this strategy, interest rates have gone down, so this strategy would have worked against you. It still may prove a smart move, but so far, big mistake. Finally he advocates a basic food storage program adequate for up to six months. He does take pains to explain that he is not expecting the end of the world when he endorses this idea, but he does expect disruptions. As he correctly states, there is no downside to this storage plan. If he's wrong, you eat the insurance (literally). If he's correct, you'll likely be very glad to have the basics around if you are unable to purchase food items easily or perhaps at all. In conclusion, if you have never been exposed to these sort of ideas, you should be and this book is not a bad place to start. If you are already familiar with the material, it doesn't break any new ground or go into tremendous detail on any subject. Others have pointed out the many plugs for his services which are a bit annoying but easy to ignore.
Summary: A good primer, but needs some touch ups.
Rating: 3
A good overall primer on the current financial mess as well as some worthwhile suggestions on how to prosper/prepare for what may be happening next. Some of it might seem paranoid, but others would say he's only prudent. It would be even better if he didn't take so much time trying to sell everybody on his newsletter, but it doesn't take away from the quality of the books message. However, some closer editing might serve the author well (especially considering that this is the second edition) specifically the part where he quotes Alexander Tytler. The quote he mentions roughly says: "Democracy only lasts as long as it takes for the people to realize they can vote themselves benefits from the public treasury." While it is a true statement, five minutes of Google searching can tell you the quote was never uttered nor written by Alexander Tytler. It was quoted by Reagan in a political speech (probably thrown in there by a careless speech writer) and has been unfortunately repeated in conservative circles as much as "May you live in interesting times" is repeated by intellectuals, pseudo and otherwise (that one was wrongly cited as a "Chinese curse" by RFK in a speech he made in South Africa in 1965). Nevertheless, this is a quick primer for anyone who hasn't been paying attention or wants a straightforward explanation to the train wreck we're all witnessing now.
Tidak ada komentar:
Posting Komentar