SwedishValue

Thanks, interesting and useful!

Very nice read. I read all pieces straight and I am looking forward for the last part of the series!

I'm glad to hear that you are well, for my own very selfish reasons - I really enjoy your posts. I was hit by a car in a similar fashion a little more than two weeks ago when driving my race bike. I am very happy to generally be in one piece (my shoulder popped and is still far from well) and I am especially happy that I was wearing a helmet, without which I would have had more severe injuries.

Ted/Todd (probably Ted) upped their stake significantly last quarter at levels similar or higher than present levels. I'm starting to look into the company as I have come to realize the nice and financially fattening aspect of coattailing people I admire for their capital allocation skills.

Quick and nice read. If you have read the Berkshire letters you will notice that this book is probably one that Buffett read quite early in his career.

One of my better friend's father is one of the best kidney doctors in Sweden. I talked to him about companies providing dialysis and he suggests that "the more, the better" a dialysis treatment is. He suggested the trend of recent years that increased amount of treatment for dialysis patients is very likely to continue as we grow richer, as it leads to a noticable improvement in the well-being of the patients. Sure, you shouldn't ask the barber whether you need a haircut, but I find that this thesis goes well with my basic knowledge in medicine. I looked through a couple of 10-Ks for DVA, and I cannot say I understand the investment thesis at the current price (although I would rather bet on the ability of Ted than myself).

Well, after a point it's just not worth the hassle. If my only asset was a house without a mortgage I would feel safer if I refinanced out for 30 years and invested in Berkshire.

If I owned my home. 25 yo living in a rental.

Big thanks. Had a hard time finding all the videos myself. I think his take on interest rates and long-term bonds is especially insightful. How I wish I had the ability to use money for 30 years with a cost of 100 bp above the government yield...

http://www.foxbusiness.com/business-leaders/2013/05/02/warren-buffett-on-economy-berkshire-succession-plan/ I never heard him speak about the utility of silver vs gold before. Was interesting to hear the short comment about it looking like silver demand was gonna outrun supply for a while - "until the nature of the photograph business changed, as Kodak found out" (paraphrasing).

It's a good read, as always. I wish this fellow wrote more but he chooses his words wisely.

Thanks for the video! If it is possible I would also like to get hold of the other videos mentioned by claphands22. Those videos have been gems of true wisdom to me, and I always keep looking for more.

Thanks, I am very curious as of what the shipping book will teach me!

[amazonsearch]The Clash of Cultures: Investment vs. Speculation[/amazonsearch] This book by John C. Bogle had my high expectations after seeing Buffett recommend it alongside The Outsiders in his last letter to shareholders. My short summary of the book would be that it is of no to little use to the intelligent value investor, whereas it should be of some to considerable use to the normal stock market investor. Positive: The emphasis Bogle has on cost and the effects of compounding costs. Negative: Pseudo-scientific and long dwellings on Beta as a sound measure of risk. I will not recommend this book to anyone I consider smart with investments.

I always find the ideas of Soros interesting and well argued. The argument he brings forth in this article was very far from my own interpretation of best practice, but I would now consider the merits of an orderly disintegration (Germany leaving) to be an option to have on the table.

Flawed thinking, my bad, thank you. Didn't consider the creation of a deferred tax liability.

Eric, assuming that a company redistributes 1$ through share buybacks, the share price would rise with the equivalent of 1$ all else being equal. Capital gains tax will therefore not be avoided. I'm no expert on US tax kaw though, so please inform me if my assumptions are faulty. Also to OP, as you probably know Buffett has an excellent passage on share buybacks vs dividends in this year's annual letter.

This is the first and will probably be the last book that I have read and recommended to people before Buffett recommends it in his letter. I read the book from cover to cover, it's the best investing book I read during the last 12 months. There really is a huge difference between the return a manager can give his shareholders through opportunisitc capital allocation, rather than just being a good manager. I think it's fascinating that not more management from where I live (Sweden) make use of opportunistic buybacks of own stock.