tyska

Wow lots of engineers, and here I farm with no degree. But I do have a son in 2nd year engineering so I can fit in a little. ;D

You have more nerve than I do at this time. While it is impressive the amount of shares insiders have bought, I just seem to have been burned too many times on O&G plays that have great holdings but they are always one step away from getting any value out of them. And I have foolishly averaged down on them, hands are getting bloody. :'(

I'd guess it's a more niche type of bulb and the big players probably haven't really focused on that format yet as cracking the regular bulb format will be a lot more rewarding, so most of what is available is probably terrible cheap crap (ie. ask a random Chinese manufacturer to slap the cheapest LEDs they can find in a bulb of that format and sell it without any heat dissipation or light quality testing). Just a guess though, I've never researched that type of bulb as I don't have any. Liberty, do you work in the LED area too? Because your assesment is bang on of the quality of most China manufacturers. BeerBaron I'm guessing that explains the LED flashlight that I got at Canadian Tire. Bought in Oct and will be taking back the one that replaced my first one. I guess I'll see how many times I can return it under the one year warranty. ::) 7 LED bulbs that start flickering and dieing one by one after about 10 hrs use.

LEDs are semiconductor devices, the cooler they get the better they run and longer they will last. When designing a light bulb the team's objective is to get the heat the LED produces out as fast as possible. Since heat goes from inside to the outside very fast the outside gets hot. Don't worry, LEDs bulbs will never become as hot as incandescent bulbs tough. BeerBaron Thanks BB I agree with SJ as far as my right to be wasteful if I chose. Nothing annoyed me more when our Gov. gave insurance discounts for certain fuel efficient vehicles. The rates should only be different if they are in less accidents or cheaper to repair. And the Hummer getting 8 mpg is actually subsidizing road repair and maintenance for the SmartCar, with gas being 40+% tax.

Sort of on the same lines, but not discussing personal freedoms. :) The last Consumers Report had a write up on LED bulbs. In the article they talked about how to compare the bulbs to incandescent as far as light output and the lighting they give off. In the article they say that to replace a 60 watt you should be looking for a bulb that puts out at least 800 lumen. Yet a lot of the bulbs have packaging leading you to believe it is a 65 watt replacement, only had an output of 650 lumen. I would have thought that is something they would have been all over for its misleading nature. On a personal note we replaced our cfl pot flood lights with led when, Saskpower had their instant rebate, and are very pleased with them. Instant on and a lot whiter light as opposed to the yellow the cfl's gave off. What I don't understand is how the metal housing on them gets so hot you are unable to touch, when they are only using 13 watts.

You know a thread has gone off the rails when Rob Ford is brought in. ;) Not really true. WEB is contributing to the obesity epidemic with his KO investment and as more studies come out and more people (as well as governments) recognize this, I think you will start seeing the first signs of evaporation in the coke moat in the coming decade. I'm not worried about the future of steak houses. Well, then he will be part of the cause of the greenhouse gas problem. I mean, come on, Prem, do something right! Kraven, I hate to be the one to break this to you... but you and Mrs. Kraven, and the little kravens are part of the greenhouse gas problem, especially after those bean burritos.... I think this is a good acquisition, finally. Although I never eat there - too pricey - the parking lots are always full. Did I say it was too pricey.... Kind of like Sees Candy. Hmmm. So is the problem Mexican food then? We don't eat it much. Maybe the problem is the hot air coming from Rob Ford?

Is Capitalism the problem, or the Corporatism that we appear to have grown now, the problem.

Liberty, I'm curious, what did you have as far as a bathroom setup in your hotelcloset. The room itself looks very nice albeit tiny. Any other amenities beyond bed and night tables.

"The company says three significant shareholders — Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd. (TSX:FFH), Victor Bertrand Sr. and Trimark Investments — have agreed to buy a total of $53.3 million in shares by exercising purchase warrants issued in 2010. Read more: http://www.montrealgazette.com/Major+Mega+Brands+investors+support+plan+chopping+outstanding+debt+level/8152785/story.html#ixzz2Of3HaDfK " I'll admit that I didn't see much value in MegaBrands when they got into it.

Seems to be only useful if one is a subscriber.

Am I missing something here, it seems like this is trying to be spun into something bigger than it is. Although I admit I am not aware of how it is all to be structured, as far shareholders of the banks. Wouldn't a person lose everything over the 100K CDIC guarantee here. Not sure what the limit is in the States. So I would think that anyone with large deposits would be thankful for only a 10% haircut in that instance. Or should it all just fall on the taxpayers like the US did.

Just seems to an outsider, that Greece has a much more of a systemic problem and Ireland more of a bubble problem.

On the surface this sounds a little unsettling for me. " (Reuters) - Greece's biggest lender National Bank (NBG) said on Wednesday that Canadian investment fund Fairfax Holdings was interested in taking part in the bank's recapitalisation." http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/03/13/nbg-fairfax-recapitalisation-idUSL6N0C5F0M20130313?feedType=RSS&feedName=marketsNews&rpc=43

But are they really so different. FFH has invested billions in the last couple of years, while holding the hedges. Alot of investment has been internal, expanding the insurance empire. With cash dividended to holdco, and subsiduary holding company cash they have been buying private businesses that are certainly going to suffer if another recession hits. It is looking more and more like a mini berk, excepting the hedges. Prem, like Buffett is always opportinistic. I expect they no longer have to take the value garbage such as fbk going forward. Buffett has been doing the same, using his operating cash flows as his hedge. Quite frankly, Buffett must have the best real time economic data available of any private investor on Earth. Berkshire is a microcosm of the worlds supply chain. One can not completely ignore a hedge that is costing them that much opportunity. But I notice the difference more in the tone of their letters. Maybe to someone who has followed them a lot more closely, that is just their overall different personality. But I have found a lot more of a sky is going to fall at anytime vibe off of Prem. As opposed to a, this problem too shall pass and there is a bright future, from Warren. Although when he does talk up his holdings there is a hint of P.T. Barnum to him.:>) I concede having a fool article agree with me may not be the most ringing endorsement here. :>) But he does have the first name so that may explain his thinking. http://www.fool.com/investing/value/2013/03/11/why-berkshire-and-fairfax-are-my-top-2-stocks.aspx "Playing off each other I like balance in my portfolio, and owning both Berkshire and Fairfax provides offsetting views of the market and the economy. The two stocks may not move in lockstep, but over time, I think both positions will continue to see strong gains." And I do have both of them in my portfolio, not enough though. Got too sidetracked by thinking the world still needs O&G.

But are they really so different. FFH has invested billions in the last couple of years, while holding the hedges. Alot of investment has been internal, expanding the insurance empire. With cash dividended to holdco, and subsiduary holding company cash they have been buying private businesses that are certainly going to suffer if another recession hits. It is looking more and more like a mini berk, excepting the hedges. Prem, like Buffett is always opportinistic. I expect they no longer have to take the value garbage such as fbk going forward. Buffett has been doing the same, using his operating cash flows as his hedge. Quite frankly, Buffett must have the best real time economic data available of any private investor on Earth. Berkshire is a microcosm of the worlds supply chain. One can not completely ignore a hedge that is costing them that much opportunity. But I notice the difference more in the tone of their letters. Maybe to someone who has followed them a lot more closely, that is just their overall different personality. But I have found a lot more of a sky is going to fall at anytime vibe off of Prem. As opposed to a, this problem too shall pass and there is a bright future, from Warren. Although when he does talk up his holdings there is a hint of P.T. Barnum to him.:>)

Seeing this is the Corner of Berkshire And Fairfax, funny how the two leaders it was named for, seem to be putting forward differing outlooks.

I was under the impression that one couldn't do all or nothing any more. Or is just on TSX stocks. I used to find it very useful on thinly traded stocks or to buy or sell a block with just one commission.

Makes this article kind of ironic. http://oilprice.com/Finance/investing-and-trading-reports/US-Citizens-are-Paying-for-Venezuelan-Socialism-with-High-Pump-Prices.html "Venezuelan Subsidies Here is the salt, Venezuela whose government under President Hugo Chávez subsidizes gasoline for their citizens, so Venezuelans pay in the neighborhood of 18 cents a gallon, and much of this gasoline comes from the US in the form of exports. For example, U.S. exports of gasoline to Venezuela climbed to a record high of 85,000 barrels a day in November of 2012, and total petroleum products are well over 200,000 barrels per day of refined products being imported from US refinery operators. No Incentives Ergo, the US has a tighter than otherwise refined products market due to increased exports to countries like Venezuela, so US citizens pay higher prices for the illusion of a tighter end products market, and Venezuelans who have no incentive to use fuel efficiently due to below market subsidies, demand more and more exports from the US, raising fuel costs on US consumers, while they pay ridiculously low consumption prices. "

I'm not so sure that is an accurate statement this time. Yes it raises all the ships in the index, as a lot of the money flowing in is going into ETFs and index funds. But it seems a lot of stocks that aren't in the index are being ignored in this rise.

Does one include TV shows that are purchased on dvd. As we have no live TV connection in our home, we tend to purchase, mostly older, shows that we are interested in. Especially when we find them in the bargain bins, watching Carol Burnett shows right now, although we have purchased the recent Sherlock series from BBC.

Seriously? Can you provide any substantive evidence of your claim? I can't provide any proof of that, but it certainly appears that way from the things they say and support. I tend to agree more with republicans than democrats when it comes to taxes and social programs, but the racism, homophobia, hatred of foreigners/immigrants, war mongering (although Obama seems to be trying to outdo them in this regard), religious intolerance (for any religion other than extreme Jesus worship), really gets to me. I have nothing to go on except what I hear Republicans I know saying and their presidential candidates, etc. Democrats are a bunch of utopian socialists with an unrealistic view of what problems government is capable of solving, but in general they are decent people not likely to look at you funny or treat you differently because you're white and your adopted son is black, or you're a gay male who is walking hand in hand down the street with the love of your life, or you're a Muslim, or you don't speak English. Etc, etc, etc, etc, etc,........ You can't provide any proof so you go on to state your opinion as fact. Amazing how labeling those who don't agree with you as intolerant just highlights your intolerance. Maybe they look at you funny and treat you differently not because your white and your adopted son is black, but because your an "____", (keeping it family friendly), and you would still be one even if your adopted son was white. Easier to blame things on appearances than your own character. I admit that it is my opionion based on what I see and people I've talked with. I'm not sure I wrote anything that wasn't "family friendly", sort of adds to my observational data. Shows how useless your observational data is, when there is no implication whatsoever in my post that suggested you wrote anything that wasn't family friendly. Just you applying your bias's toward those that disagree with you.

Seriously? Can you provide any substantive evidence of your claim? I can't provide any proof of that, but it certainly appears that way from the things they say and support. I tend to agree more with republicans than democrats when it comes to taxes and social programs, but the racism, homophobia, hatred of foreigners/immigrants, war mongering (although Obama seems to be trying to outdo them in this regard), religious intolerance (for any religion other than extreme Jesus worship), really gets to me. I have nothing to go on except what I hear Republicans I know saying and their presidential candidates, etc. Democrats are a bunch of utopian socialists with an unrealistic view of what problems government is capable of solving, but in general they are decent people not likely to look at you funny or treat you differently because you're white and your adopted son is black, or you're a gay male who is walking hand in hand down the street with the love of your life, or you're a Muslim, or you don't speak English. Etc, etc, etc, etc, etc,........ You can't provide any proof so you go on to state your opinion as fact. Amazing how labeling those who don't agree with you as intolerant just highlights your intolerance. Maybe they look at you funny and treat you differently not because your white and your adopted son is black, but because your an "____", (keeping it family friendly), and you would still be one even if your adopted son was white. Easier to blame things on appearances than your own character.

I can't believe that one would consider this a benign crime although it is considered that way when the politicians do it. I guess it's okay how the securities commission looks the other way on the rest of the things going on with wall street. It's all benign anyway. If this is so harmful, want to tell me who was exactly harmed by Rajaratnam trading on info that Goldman was about to get an investment from Buffett? Then once you've identified the victimized party, explain to me how that deserves ten years in prison. Liberty explained what I was thinking very well. It's about confidence that the rules are being followed and the game isn't rigged. While I'll agree what he was doing is pretty small in terms of what is eroding confidence in the whole system now. None the less, not going after the big things doesn't excuse the small things, hopefully a starting point.

I can't believe that one would consider this a benign crime although it is considered that way when the politicians do it. I guess it's okay how the securities commission looks the other way on the rest of the things going on with wall street. It's all benign anyway.

So if one is the largest on record and one is the smallest on record, would not most logical people say it is all evened out. Also I would think that when your records are 33 years and since 1971, using the headline smallest and largest since records is really sensationalism considering the time frame in overall history. But hey, why look at things rationally.