SouthernYankee

"You can pull thousands of such videos, while I can pull millions showing the opposite." -What do you mean by "showing the opposite"? Do you mean citizens conducting themselves in a peaceful, law-abiding fashion? If that is what you mean, then you are reinforcing the main point being made: LOCK UP THOSE WHO BREAK THE LAW, so those who do follow the law can pursue happiness! NYC started doing that in 1993, and then the rest of the country tried it as well, and we saw an amazing reduction in crime rates, and an amazing renaissance in large, urban cultural centers. That wasn't a coincidence. I guess it has to happen to more people personally before they will connect the dots like they did 30 years ago........which is why I will be moving out of NYC in the very near future. Those Democratic-voting-social-justice-warriors are going to get it good and harder without me helping to pay for it, at least with my state and local taxes.

Heh! Glad to see my suggestion still being ignored! And I already have a wife! ;D "Pretty sure nobody cares though." - to dwy000 - somebody started this thread, which means somebody cared. And my response to you is "GOOD LUCK TO YOU! Your choice.” Cheers!

THANK YOU for mentioning that Twitter feed - very funny! Cheers!

As someone who has been shot in the last year, but in the same time avoided this virus (I think, may go for the anti-body test to double-check), I still think the best response to the question of this thread is: Those who get the vaccine - GOOD LUCK TO YOU! Your choice. Those who don't get the vaccine - GOOD LUCK TO YOU! Your choice. Funny part about all the people responding - we ALL try to limit the taxes we pay! Cheers!

"Maybe we should avoid to politicize this thread and just stick to the topic of this poll and avoid an epidemic of sh1tposts." -Those who get the vaccine - GOOD LUCK TO YOU! Your choice. F R E E D O M ! 8)

"It’s seriously not that hard to understand what happened if you aren’t trying to play the gotcha game." -How about we agree on this: Those who get the vaccine - GOOD LUCK TO YOU! Your choice. Those who don't get the vaccine - GOOD LUCK TO YOU! Your choice. Sound ok? Cheers.

"It just won't take with them." -Seriously? Very silly statement. Fauci has flip-flopped more than a politician the last year, even more than he did in his previous 30+ years as a government hack. "The problem is that there is an inherent skepticism for science and statistics." -I think skepticism is the key to science, not the problem. As for statistics, as a US citizen, I see 50 states worth of data. Eventually, I will look to live in a state like Fl, SD, TX, etc, where there seems to be more of a balance between freedom and government "caring". I don't understand why those willing to take the vaccine have to say anything about those who won't. I know I don't opine on your decision to take it. I stated my reasons to not take the vaccine prior to this, so go back and check them out. Beyond that, take your "for the common good" claptrap and stick it. Cheers!

I saw an interview with Peter Buffett years ago, and I believe he also worked on Dances With Wolves and other shows dealing with Native American experiences in the earlier parts of United States history........pretty good stuff......and VERY different than his dad!

Good afternoon. My company has been open every day during these government-enforced shutdowns. Essential, we are! Out of about 20 workers, there have been 2 confirmed cases, 1 by antibody test, and 1 admitted to hospital. The one admitted to the hospital has had breathing issues for the last 20 years, and even though we took extra precautions at work, including telling him to stay home, with pay, he refused. He believes he got infected at home, from his daughter or son-in-law. There have been some other work-hours lost to sickness, but not confirmed that it was the Wuhan virus or one of the thousands of other ailments an individual can get, including those brought on by panic/stress. That said, I will not be getting the vaccine until everyone else has. My reasons: I am 50 and under, in relatively good shape, so not in a high-risk group. I know about 30-40 first-responders (cops, fire, EMT, doc, nurse). 3 of them willingly got the vaccine as soon as they could. The others declined, for various reasons. My wife is not in a rush to get it. I don't trust government, I don't trust Big Pharma, I don't trust chiropractors, I don't trust politicians. I do trust and know I will die, eventually, but hopefully not too soon. I also know that for the last year, I have been in and around hospitals at least 3 days a week, personally making deliveries to various departments and personnel, and see that this virus is serious, but it should not have changed, in such dramatic fashion, the everyday lives of the billions of people in the manner it has. Cheers!

"Both of those behaviours result in the sale of assets when the estate is settled. Not every kid is a loser, but if you have 4 or 5 of them, it's likely that at least a couple of them will be spendthrifts or married to a spendthrift." -For those of us who are not millionaires or billionaires, and who own businesses that provide a service to those who can afford that service, the more spendthrifts the merrier!

"A defender of their system almost." -Just like Buffett, Gates, and a lot of others. They will ignore the "unpleasant" truths for a buck, like most of us do throughout our lifetimes, at one stage or another.

"More Californians died of COVID-19 in January than any other month of the pandemic, data from The Times tracker show, with L.A. County continuing to bear the brunt of the virus' toll." -So, the state with some of the harshest measures to "defeat the virus" sees their largest death totals NOW, while at the same time ruining countless numbers of businesses and personal lives........something tells me the authorities in certain states need to take some "humility" pills.

"As uncouth as politics may be, our understanding of the world around us cannot exclude politics simply because we don't like listening to others speak their truths." -Very true. If you are a welder and/or other tradesperson in the midwest/plains states, or a restaurant worker in any state, you learned this in a big way with one stroke of the pen.

"Too bad Buffett isn't brave enough to speak out against it. " -My comment was about speaking out against the companies NOT ALLOWING BUYS.

"@Sanjeev: if this crosses no-politics line, please delete and let me know." -If "this crosses no-politics line", then at least we know who the fascist really is. In my opinion, not allowing the BUYs is the same as censorship of news items by Big Tech, and each time its all favorable in one direction. Shameful. Too bad Buffett isn't brave enough to speak out against it.

A $5 dividend was given out in November. I was wondering if anyone had any details about it. Thanks.

"I was wondering why BRK wasn't buying shares when GE, AXP, GS, WFC etc etc were at all time lows. It annoyed me that BRK wasted an amazing opportunity in 08-09." -As far as I saw, he was making deals that were MORE valuable than simply buying shares, with less risk as well. I could definitely be mistaken about that, but I don't think I am. The BAC transaction alone is a huge home-run!

When I looked at airbnb last year for the Berk weekend, I noticed that the rates were higher than they normally are for other weekends, just not as steep as the hotels. If he does mention them, I expect the rates to increase a little bit once again, since there is still a sizable difference. That said, I am all for the competition. I am kicking myself that I did not wait until after the Super Bowl to start fixing up my house. I could have gouged some college frat kids and let them trash the place, since it got gutted anyway. I'll file that under missed opportunities.

Zorrofan, Thanks for asking the question! Big help!

"Are we supposed to be shocked that someone at the government actually used a calculator and figured out how much these accounts were going to cost the government?" -These accounts will "cost" the government NOTHING.

To put it in a different way, Buffett's and Munger's income has grown faster than mine because I chose to sell DOW, GE, PFE, KFT, WFC when they were at their highs, but that was 2 YEARS AGO or so!!!! :'( They are all worth more today! My income would have been much higher if I had bought and held, instead of cashing in when I did. (I will note that most of the money went to needed improvements in properties owned by my wife and I, but in hindsight, yes the 20/20 type of hindsight, I could have taken a different approach and had the same work done, while holding on to a lot of those businesses.) OUCH! Live and Learn the hard way.

Good morning, In the past, I have gotten involved too much with issues which tend to be more of a political nature, as opposed to business/investing/financial matters. One of the things I alsways notice about these threads is that they are not as focused as the threads on a certain stock, or method of evaluating companies, or in general, making money. In all of the responses, I am still trying to figure out what the definition of "income equality" is. It is the same way with the term "fairness". It seems to me, from the responses, that the definitions of these terms (I am sure there are others as well) are exclusive to each individual, or groups of individuals, instead of universally agreed upon. How can a problem ever be solved, if the problem has not been defined? Note: I fall more into the category which believes "income equality" & "fairness" are newer names (and/or reasons) for income re-distribution by a coercive government.

I woke up this morning and FELT like a million bucks! Does that count? ;D Cheers!

I think (or maybe hope) the Republicans will look to raise the debt ceiling, but keep pressure on in regards to the budget stalemate, which is the real problem. Let's face facts: 1) Neither party is prepared to have a balanced budget, so the debt ceiling needs to be raised no matter what. 2) The Tea Party Republicans are the best thing to happen for those who care about our future liabilities. They are unsustainable on the present course. So-called centrist Republicans and Democrats have been passing the buck for the last 50- years. Cheers, and may you all pay $.50, or less, for something worth $1, or more! CAPITALISM ROCKS, or at the least, is better than any other system devised so far by mankind.

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2013-04-08/next-domino-australia-doubles-tax-retirement-savings Ericopoly, sorry to bring you the bad news, but it looks like the wonderful politicians in Australia have decided to change the rules Down Under. I hope it does not affect you if you move there. I wonder which type of politician is in power over there, a liberal/progressive or a conservative/Tea Party type?? I am sure they are doing it for the children!! LOL! :'(