Munger_Disciple

Brian M made a huge mistake loading up on longer dated treasuries at BAC. So I don't think he belongs in that list. I think Abel is an excellent operating executive. I just don't know how he thinks about risk, capital allocation and avoiding left tail risks the future. I am relying on Warren & Charlie's judgment in this regard. It is like the scene in the Gladiator movie where senator Gracchus when introduced to Maximus by Lucilla says: "Marcus Aurelius trusted you. His daughter trusts you. I will trust you." I think Abel will work with Ajit, Todd & Ted on big issues and large acquisitions. I would also add that Ajit is the new Charlie; he is off the charts smart, no-nonsense, direct, doesn't sugarcoat the problems (for example at GEICO), to the point and crisp in his answers at the AGM. Very much reminds us of Charlie. Plus Ajit is the best risk manager on the planet; Greg will undoubtedly seek his counsel and benefit from his wisdom in making important decisions at Berkshire. So I would say to Abel: "Charlie Munger trusted you. Warren Buffett trusts you. I will trust you." https://www.google.com/search?q=gladiator+scene+gracchus+trusts+maximus&sca_esv=593843995&rlz=1C5CHFA_enUS1015US1015&ei=WkqLZdyzDaDKkPIPmfec-AU&ved=0ahUKEwjcyJy6iq6DAxUgJUQIHZk7B18Q4dUDCBA&uact=5&oq=gladiator+scene+gracchus+trusts+maximus&gs_lp=Egxnd3Mtd2l6LXNlcnAiJ2dsYWRpYXRvciBzY2VuZSBncmFjY2h1cyB0cnVzdHMgbWF4aW11czIFECEYoAEyBRAhGKABMgUQIRigATIFECEYnwUyBRAhGJ8FSMQiULcPWNUgcAF4AZABAJgBqQGgAYQLqgEEMTAuNLgBA8gBAPgBAcICChAAGEcY1gQYsAPCAgUQIRirAuIDBBgAIEGIBgGQBgg&sclient=gws-wiz-serp#fpstate=ive&vld=cid:fae2b5ee,vid:jQhMB8qzvX8,st:0

Merry Christmas to all! Special thanks to Sanjeev @Parsad for maintaining this wonderful site.

Wow, that's a big difference. Congrats!

I read somewhere that the 2024 premium increases do not appear to be that great for insurers and reinsurers so there is some fear that we are nearing the end of a hard market for renewals.

Clearly Buffett mis-judged the character of Haslams when he bought Pilot. Hopefully he will lean into more share buybacks (zero risk) and refrain from buying "family" controlled large businesses in the future. There probably aren't that many out there anyhow.

Yes thanks. @gfp clarified it for me on the general Berkshire board as well. It is also known as IRR or internal rate of return which is a more common terminology.

You are right as usual @gfp. I re-listened to this part of the podcast again and Charlie confirmed that he was talking about dollar weighted results. Here is the segment: John: [01:10:15] And when you say per dollar year, you mean dollar weighted results, basically? Charlie: [01:10:17] Yes. How much return -- for every dollar year, what was your return? And of course, that's a very different figure. I know of a case of a hedge fund where the proprietor made a lot of money, but per dollar year, the net return was zero. Because when he got a lot of money, he really made a lot of dumb mistakes. He made a lot of money when this one didn't matter much. And yet it looks like a wonderful record. But in fact, it was terrible. And why wouldn't that be a fair thing to require?

That's exactly what money weighted return does.

Assuming he is referring to money weighted returns, that was exactly what Charlie was urging US Congress to do. He said even Liz Warren & Bernie Sanders can agree with his suggestion.

From Investopedia: The money-weighted rate of return (MWRR) is a measure of the performance of an investment. The MWRR is calculated by finding the rate of return that will set the present values (PV) of all cash flows equal to the value of the initial investment. The MWRR is equivalent to the internal rate of return (IRR).

That's a good point.

I thought so too. That's basically what IRR is I think. His use of per dollar year threw me off since that is not a common term that's used to describe money weighted returns.

During Collison's interview, Charlie recommends evaluating investment managers using per dollar-year returns & to avoid using time weighted returns. Does anyone know what Munger meant?

During Collison's interview, Charlie recommends evaluating investment managers using per dollar-year returns & to avoid using time weighted returns. Does anyone know what Munger meant?

Article about Charie's philanthropy: https://www.wsj.com/us-news/education/charlie-munger-donations-blueprints-a539e390?mod=hp_lead_pos6

Who knows?

Thanks for the transcript. It seemed contrary to what Buffett used to say about his Berkshire stake in the past; that 100% of it would be distributed to charity within 10 years of his passing. If it is indeed the case that Buffett charities would keep operating for 100 more years, it may actually work out better for shareholders post Buffett given that there are now two Buffett children on the board.

I thought I heard Munger say in his last interview that Buffett (Charitable) Trusts are going to last 100 years. Can this be true? I thought Buffett's shares are going be donated to charity within 10 years of his passing but perhaps trusts will keep the stock and keep operating for 100 years?

The only thing I can think of is all the rates other than T-bills have gone down a lot recently and also today. So Mr. Market fears the potential loss of income for Berkshire on the cash hoard of $157B going forward. Also, the judge is set to rule today on the issue of concurrent trial related to the Haslam case. But I agree it is a bit strange.

Charlie changed my life. Of course his investing and business advice was great but for me most importantly he taught me & countless others how to live a worthy, productive life through his life as an example. And I try to emulate his example to the best of my ability (in most cases, in a poor way). There are so many lessons I learned from Charlie, but one that always stands out is: "When something is not worth doing at all, it is not worth doing well." In other words, don't clutter your mind and life with unimportant, unnecessary things, just focus your energies on the most important things in life. I also admired how Charlie prayed at the alter of rationality and approached every aspect of his life with it.

I love this quote from Charlie: I think life is a whole series of opportunity costs. You know, you got to marry the best person who is convenient to find who will have you. Investment is much the same sort of a process. I feel a sense of deep loss but then Charlie left us so much wisdom that he will forever be with us.

I love this Charlie quote on focus in life: "When something is not worth doing at all, it is not worth doing well." There will never be another one like him. True legend!

Very sad day. He was a father figure to me, and I already miss him.

Very sad day. I already miss him.

Very sad day. Charlie was a father figure to me. I had the joy of meeting him twice in person & he was just an amazing and a very wise human being. We will miss him.