Liberty

Here's what I don't understand: the 2010 edition apparently has 2000 pages. Why is 2011 edition 1250 pages? Is it just an error on Amazon or is the book actually shorter? Did content get cut, or is it simply a different font size? Anyone knows?

Exactly. As Munger said (or was it Buffett?), in investing there is no extra point for difficulty. Simple and obvious can work just fine.

Thanks for posting, it's an interesting read!

I don't really like o.co as a name/brand, but maybe I just need some time to get used to it...

You make an excellent point, omagh. A hard market won't benefit all insurers equally, and the ones to buy now are not only the cheapest but also those that will be able to profit most from a turning cycle. I've already picked those that I think will do well, but I'm curious to know what others here think are the best bets. Maybe this deserves its own thread.

I haven't actually lived through (well, I was alive, but not paying attention) an insurance cycle going from soft to hard. What does it usually look like, and how long does it take before the insurers that are disciplined can take advantage of the hard cycle?

That's terrible, but I can't help but wonder if it could turn into a good buying opportunity (especially for WEB, who has billions to invest) if it's a fixable problem and there's not too much permanent damage to the brand..

Same here. I expect to be a buyer of shares for quite a while, so the more depressive Mr Market is, the better. ;D

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-03-09/berkshire-takes-2-25-billion-in-dividends-from-burlington.html Not bad at all ;D

I know many of you read and print the PDFs - which is what I've been doing so far - but if you want an official hard copy, where do you get it from? I'm kind of new to this, so I'm not sure what the best way is. Should I register with my discount broker in some way? Do you contact investor relations directly at the companies and ask for the reports? Or do you use some other third party site? I found http://www.prars.com/index.php Which seems pretty great, but I haven't received anything from it yet. Maybe there's a better one (that ships to Canada)? Another question: Is there any easy way to get hard copies of reports from past years? Thanks.

bsilly and crip? I'm very curious to know more about these people or sites that you are comparing in usefulness to this board. Care to elaborate?

I would go with the best business because I try to only invest in quality businesses (if the companies that I invest in then go buy some deep value stuff, that's fine because they are better investors than I am). I only buy stuff I wouldn't mind owning for 10 years or more.

http://www.engadget.com/2011/03/07/western-digital-drops-4-3-billion-to-acquire-hitachi-gst-enter/

I stopped reading after a little bit because I was getting the impression that she was just re-writing Buffett's annual letter. :-\

Wow. Where I am things aren't nearly as inflated as Vancouver, but it's still relatively high and I'm in no hurry to buy (renting money from the bank vs. renting an apartment/condo/house is how I think of it...).

I'm actually betting that the Canadian RE bubble will burst (or at least significantly deflate) in the next few years by staying a renter instead of buying.

Thanks! That sounds interesting.

It's in the annual letter on fairfax.ca

Eggbriar, out of curiosity, can you describe the content a bit? Is it only a compilation of interviews? Were they done specifically for the book or gathered from various places? How many pages? Thanks!

Ha! I had noticed that! It makes you two sound in a good mood and enthusiastic, so that's not a bad thing ;D

Thank you so much! I truly appreciate it, as I love learning more about this fascinating company that is around 1/3 of my portfolio ;D

Another great excerpt:

I just thought that if it's not possible to get hard copies for people not at the assembly, maybe Fairfax could publish the PDF on their site. A hard copy would be better, but this would be second best.

I'm not done reading the annual letter yet, but after reading the part about the book above I became sad because I probably won't be at the shareholder's meeting :-[ Is there any way at all that we could organize it so that people who can't make it still get the book? If someone can pick a copy for me I'd have no problem paying for shipping (via paypal or I'll send a check). Or can anyone with contacts at FFH (Parsad?) ask if they will be sending copies of the books if we contact their investor relations or something like that? I really want to read it. Thanks! ;D

A_Hamilton, that's kind of what I said in the next paragraph that you didn't quote. I'm ok with FFH investing in messy stuff in its equity portfolio, and I'm not one of the people complaining about it because I know that they still have tons of quality stuff too, but for some reason, I'm a lot more nervous about them doing the same thing with wholly own subsidiaries. As for WEB, I'm pretty sure that Buffett had said that he'd now have billions more if he had never bought Berkshire Hathaway, so that might not be the best example for FFH :)