Weird Times: Good time to put the house in order

Crazy times. I’ll call yesterday my own Black Tuesday. I got the phone call from the broker of a close family member that they had some Bonds with Lehman Brothers. Not a massive amount of money, but enough that it certainly hurt, when the realization came that the money was either gone forever, or at best, worth maybe twenty cents on the dollar. And that is if Lehman is purchased.

So that, along with two sick dogs, made it a tough day.

When you overhear that bleached Suze Orman say, “Yes, this is as bad as The Great Depression”, it sorta makes you perk up. Was that an over-the-top statement? I don’t know.

So my advice is, in these weird times:

1. First off, don’t go out and read Cormac McCarthy’s “The Road”. Or don’t go rent Mad Max, or Children Of Men. Or, fill in the blank with whatever other movie/book related to End Times.

2. Secondly, more important, get your house in order. Review your accounts. Meet with your broker. (I’m sure they’re not doing anything else right now, right?) And more than anything, don’t expect that they’re out there, covering your ass and watching out for you. Even if they are a professional. Take the reins. Maybe I’m an idiot, but I never made the connection that Lehman Brothers would be DIRECTLY CONNECTED to my family member. When I think Lehman Brothers, I think foreign countries; I think giant corporations; I think shopping centers; I think 30-story buildings. I don’t think that they’re DIRECTLY connected to somebody’s retirement money.

This broker, when I got him on the phone, expressed actual SURPRISE that Lehman Brothers was having issues. “Gosh, it all came down late Friday; it was too late to do anything, Mark. We’re really sorry about all this”. As if he hadn’t been reading Page A1 of the NY Times for the past month, that clearly mentioned Lehman as “the next one that could fall”. Yes, I guess in the end, it is MY fault that I didn’t call there and make damn sure that he had nothing even remotely close invested with Lehman, but it almost seemed like a personal insult to do so. (As if someone called me and ask if I had my data backed up). Well, no more; after that guy gets out of therapy, he’s going to be kept on a very short leash from now on.

I advise everyone reading this to watch your own broker too. Just because they’ve got on a suit and tie doesn’t mean their watching over your business. Don’t be bashful about asking very specific questions about what funds you’re actually in.

One article today, in the Times.

Another good article.