Parsad

Hi Racemize, I highly recommend that you stay at a hotel in the downtown core...in particular, not too far (within a short taxi ride) from the Fairmont Royal York or Roy Thomson Hall. Plenty to do downtown, and lots of restaurants, bars, etc. There is a good airport shuttle that runs regularly from the airport to seven main hotels downtown, and is less than half the price of a cab. Although if you come with your family or a friend, then a cab is a good alternative. I'm sure others will be able to give you more tips. Cheers!

Did we expect anything less? 100 bucks says that one of the remaining firms doesn't get the case dropped against them, and is used as the scapegoat by the courts. Cheers!

That sort of describes my sentiments. Moore, last I checked, after the financial crisis, Chanos multi-year returns were zero. Al. Well, actually Chanos provides a very important service of negative correlation to his institutional clients as I was told many years ago when I questioned his numbers. ;D It's worth it for those institutions to pay him "2 & 20" for near zero returns over 15-20 years! Plus how else could he get a beautiful escort like Ashley Dupree to call him "Uncle Jim", when he was putting her up at his Hampton home for buddy Elliott Spitzer. Cheers!

Yes, I do the same thing with Christmas lights, but I think it may say two different things: Either more confidence, or more people are staying home for the holidays instead of travelling. Definitely more lights this year than the last three. Cheers!

the obsession with tangible book is transitory. someday US Trust Merrill Lynch will be valued at ~ 2 x TB. Someday the deposit gathering system will be worth more than tangible book. So this obsession with tangible book is really a ZH/CW "phenomenon" that will someday not matter. It's a function of confidence. My point exactly...well said! The main concern should always be is the business' operations improving? Are the legal liabilities being crystalized and given an exact number? Are loan losses increasing or decreasing? Does the business have enough liquidity? Cheers!

I am curious--what has tangible book done over the last 5 or 10 years? Is there a table somewhere listing that? Is the trend still down? If I worried about trends, then I would never have bought Berkshire B's 12 years ago at $1,400, Fairfax 8 years ago at less than $125, Steak'n Shake 3 years ago at a post-split $80, or Bank of America today at $5.35. Instead, I would have bought Nortel at $110, Sears at $130, Research In Motion at $60, and Salesforce.com at $135. I like my picks instead! ;D Cheers!

I don't think it's about moving the needle in large increments. They are looking for businesses that they understand, want a permanent home, are at a fair price, and will give them the possibility of larger returns than what other asset classes will over the longer term. National Indemnity wasn't terribly large when acquired by Berkshire and look at it today under Ajit Jain's guidance? You never know what something can become with the right person at the helm, and a long-term view taken by the owner. Cheers!

Record numbers for online retailers as well. As the excess housing inventory decreases, at some point, you could see signifcant growth...probably at least a couple of years away. I suspect with housing prices probably dropping another 5% or so in the next 8-12 months, that will probably be the bottom. Cheers!

Prem's working on buying businesses from Toronto out! ;D Cheers!

As expected, tickets are selling briskly...faster than last year! We've sold almost 25 in less than two days, and they are all the buffet tickets. Cheers!

Buying at $5.40 vs $5 makes me feel a bit foolish, but if I am right and many here, this $0.40 will look trivial in not that long. And that's the perspective you need to have. You are buying it less than 40% of tangible book, let alone book. If it gets anywhere near tangible book, then you've made a 150% gain. I suspect it should trade at tangible book sometime next year. Cheers!

Looking real good! Cheers! http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-12-22/north-american-rail-freight-carloads-for-dec-17-table-.html?cmpid=yhoo

Well you also bought Fairfax below $100, so it could go either way! ;D Cheers!

Hi Plan, Not crying victory. Just noting that borrowing is increasing, and deposits aren't stagnating. Confidence is a big part of the game, and if corporations and consumers start to become confident, they will borrow and banks will lend. Cheers!

Article on how corporations are borrowing again. Cheers! http://www.cnbc.com/id/45740898

Hi Everyone, Everything is set for our 2012 Fairfax Financial Shareholder's Dinner. Details are below: 2012 Fairfax Financial Shareholder's Dinner April 25th, 2012 Fairmont Royal York Imperial Room 100 Front Street West Toronto, Ontario (416)368-2511 All proceeds, including profits from tickets sales, corporate sponsorships, advertising, auctions and donations, go to "The Crohn's & Colitis Foundation of Canada" in memory of JoAnn Butler, who was Prem Watsa's assistant for many years! Buffet Dinner Tickets $100 (130 available) Rear of Room Single Seat Tickets $50 (48 available) Cash Bar Buy tickets at www.cornerofberkshireandfairfax.ca (top of right hand column) Reception: 6:00-7:00pm Dinner: 7:00pm-8:30pm Speakers and Q&A: Approximately 8:30pm on Buffet Menu Bakery Fresh Assorted Rolls & Butter, Grissini Bread Sticks Italian Farm House Minestrone with Basil Pesto and Parmesan Cheese Baby Ruccola Leaves, Vine Ripe Tomatoes, Bocconcini and Pesto Vinaigrette Caesar Salad with Sundried Tomatoes, Foccacio Croutons and Grana Padano Grilled Zucchini, Red Green & Yellow Bell Peppers, Eggplant, Antipasto Platter with Olives Genovese Basil Rosemary Roasted Chicken with Fennel, Peppers and San Marzano Tomato Sauce Herb Marinated Red Snapper, Pickled Mushroom, Blood Orange and Truffle Emulsion Lemon and Thyme Roasted New Potatoes Wild Mushroom Tortellini tossed with Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Calamata Olives Sundried Tomatoes and Grilled Artichokes Chocolate, Riccota and Vanilla Cannolis, Tiramisu Coffee Cups, Chocolate Espresso Drizzle Fresh Cantaloupe with Blueberries Fresh Brewed 100% Columbian Rainforest Alliance Coffee, Decaffeinated Coffee Fairmont Blended Black, Green and Herbal Teas For more information, corporate sponsors, advertising, and all donations, please contact Sanjeev Parsad at [email protected]. Thanks for your support, and we'll see you all there! Cheers!

Hi Everyone, Everything is set for our 2012 Fairfax Financial Shareholder's Dinner. Details are below: 2012 Fairfax Financial Shareholder's Dinner April 25th, 2012 Fairmont Royal York Imperial Room 100 Front Street West Toronto, Ontario (416)368-2511 All proceeds, including profits from tickets sales, corporate sponsorships, advertising, auctions and donations, go to "The Crohn's & Colitis Foundation of Canada" in memory of JoAnn Butler, who was Prem Watsa's assistant for many years! Buffet Dinner Tickets $100 (130 available) Rear of Room Single Seat Tickets $50 (48 available) Cash Bar Buy tickets at www.cornerofberkshireandfairfax.ca (top of right hand column) Reception: 6:00-7:00pm Dinner: 7:00pm-8:30pm Speakers and Q&A: Approximately 8:30pm on Buffet Menu Bakery Fresh Assorted Rolls & Butter, Grissini Bread Sticks Italian Farm House Minestrone with Basil Pesto and Parmesan Cheese Baby Ruccola Leaves, Vine Ripe Tomatoes, Bocconcini and Pesto Vinaigrette Caesar Salad with Sundried Tomatoes, Foccacio Croutons and Grana Padano Grilled Zucchini, Red Green & Yellow Bell Peppers, Eggplant, Antipasto Platter with Olives Genovese Basil Rosemary Roasted Chicken with Fennel, Peppers and San Marzano Tomato Sauce Herb Marinated Red Snapper, Pickled Mushroom, Blood Orange and Truffle Emulsion Lemon and Thyme Roasted New Potatoes Wild Mushroom Tortellini tossed with Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Calamata Olives Sundried Tomatoes and Grilled Artichokes Chocolate, Riccota and Vanilla Cannolis, Tiramisu Coffee Cups, Chocolate Espresso Drizzle Fresh Cantaloupe with Blueberries Fresh Brewed 100% Columbian Rainforest Alliance Coffee, Decaffeinated Coffee Fairmont Blended Black, Green and Herbal Teas For more information, corporate sponsors, advertising, and all donations, please contact Sanjeev Parsad at [email protected]. Thanks for your support, and we'll see you all there! Cheers!

Here is an article from yesterday's Globe & Mail, with some background information on the Fibrek/Resolute bid, as well as comments Prem gave to the interviewer yesterday. Cheers! http://www.theglobeandmail.com/globe-investor/investment-ideas/streetwise/hostile-takeover-bid-puts-fibrek-on-the-defensive/article2277573/

Terrific, little interview I read on the weekend in The Seattle Times with Costco CEO Jim Sinegal...one of the great retailers in U.S. corporate history. Cheers! http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2017040471_sinegal18.html

Record numbers this holiday season. Cheers! http://money.msn.com/business-news/article.aspx?feed=AP&data-ipsquote-timestamp=20111220&id=14638279

Article on philanthropist Charles Feeney. I just liked the last line of the article. Cheers! http://finance.yahoo.com/news/meet-charles-feeney-cornells-350-million-donor-161507712.html

He could easily take out much smaller targets, yet he chases after something more than twice his size, and not in any sort of vulnerable position. It was a significant miscalculation, and anyone could have told him that it was probably not worth the cost and effort. Cheers!

Might be a good thing James. The new owners know that this thing is a cash cow, and that cash flows redirected elsewhere is probably a better bet. We were waiting for it to go below $5 last week...should have bought more instead of waiting! ;D Cheers!

I thought for the next week, if you see anything that gets you into the spirit of the season...in particular people helping people...feel free to post it on this thread. This one caught my eye, and I thought people might like to read it. http://news.yahoo.com/anonymous-donors-pay-off-kmart-layaway-accounts-221000605.html Also, if there is anything you do within your household or work, please feel free to share. We do a toy drive for the Lower Mainland Christmas Bureau, and a food drive for the Vancouver Food Bank. My family and I also donate to a couple of charities during the season. We all spend plenty of time during the rest of the year trying to make money on this message board, so I thought we could also discuss any ways we give back to the community or world around us, or even give ideas to those that want to contribute but may not exactly know how. Cheers!

That employment position that was advertised recently at Berkshire headquarters is apparently for an assistant to Todd Combs. Cheers! http://www.omaha.com/article/20111211/MONEY/712119932