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Very Good Article on Howard Marks


Parsad

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Honestly, I had taken some time away from the board as it had digressed in my opinion, and I needed some time away, but coming back this posting regarding LVLT has really lit me up again, and is over the top in my opinion.

 

I view this board via RSS feed so I don't see authors, and I honestly feel like half the threads end up having completely irrelevant and "pumping" like posts linking every topic back to LVLT.... I don't know if it's 1 or 10 different posters, but it seems wacky and really unproductive.

 

Am I the only one who finds this strange and completely inappropriate on this board? I'm honestly asking because I feel like maybe I'm out to lunch and this is totally normal...

 

There is a level of discourse on certain names that exceeds acceptable limits (there is only so much you can say about a given company... we never even talked about FFH during the dark days as much as LVLT now).  I think LVLT is well out into the cult space on this board.

 

Or maybe I'm just coming from a different perspective.  I've been posting on this board (and predecessors) for I think 7 years... that does not give me special privileges or more weight to my opinions, but while there have been flare ups here before, I don't think I've ever seen behavior around a specific stock that I thought was so wholly inappropriate, so I hope this statement comes across in that light.

 

For those who continue to push LVLT into every thread on this board, please stop.  If you want to advocate for LVLT as an investment thesis with great data, or talk about trends in telco, you can do it under several threads with those topics.  Knowing that Howard Marks has a 0.37% position in LVLT seems... like irrelevant info to me.

 

Apologize if this isn't taken the right way... I am trying to highlight what I think should be a basic expectation of these kinds of message boards, but maybe I need to change now that the forum has grown.

 

Ben

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Honestly, I had taken some time away from the board as it had digressed in my opinion, and I needed some time away, but coming back this posting regarding LVLT has really lit me up again, and is over the top in my opinion.

 

I view this board via RSS feed so I don't see authors, and I honestly feel like half the threads end up having completely irrelevant and "pumping" like posts linking every topic back to LVLT.... I don't know if it's 1 or 10 different posters, but it seems wacky and really unproductive.

 

Am I the only one who finds this strange and completely inappropriate on this board? I'm honestly asking because I feel like maybe I'm out to lunch and this is totally normal...

 

There is a level of discourse on certain names that exceeds acceptable limits (there is only so much you can say about a given company... we never even talked about FFH during the dark days as much as LVLT now).  I think LVLT is well out into the cult space on this board.

 

Or maybe I'm just coming from a different perspective.  I've been posting on this board (and predecessors) for I think 7 years... that does not give me special privileges or more weight to my opinions, but while there have been flare ups here before, I don't think I've ever seen behavior around a specific stock that I thought was so wholly inappropriate, so I hope this statement comes across in that light.

 

For those who continue to push LVLT into every thread on this board, please stop.  If you want to advocate for LVLT as an investment thesis with great data, or talk about trends in telco, you can do it under several threads with those topics.  Knowing that Howard Marks has a 0.37% position in LVLT seems... like irrelevant info to me.

 

Apologize if this isn't taken the right way... I am trying to highlight what I think should be a basic expectation of these kinds of message boards, but maybe I need to change now that the forum has grown.

 

Ben

 

Ben, your comments are much appreciated by this long term poster.  Occasionally, a single poster may become obsessed with a particular company, and this may distort the perception of the quality of the posts in general.  I usually ignore the Level 3 thread, but this thread was originated by Sanjeev.  This fact, apparently, is not visible on your RSS feed.

 

 In this thread, however, I find it especially interesting that Marks has bought Level 3 because he is an astute investor, and Level 3 is in a business that has huge leverage, not only through their capital structure, but also by virtue of long lasting supply constraints if demand in their industry ever catches up to capacity.  The prospect of an intersection of the supply and demand curves in their industry has been a Chimera for many years, but you never know . . . .???

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Honestly, I had taken some time away from the board as it had digressed in my opinion, and I needed some time away, but coming back this posting regarding LVLT has really lit me up again, and is over the top in my opinion.

 

I view this board via RSS feed so I don't see authors, and I honestly feel like half the threads end up having completely irrelevant and "pumping" like posts linking every topic back to LVLT.... I don't know if it's 1 or 10 different posters, but it seems wacky and really unproductive.

 

Am I the only one who finds this strange and completely inappropriate on this board? I'm honestly asking because I feel like maybe I'm out to lunch and this is totally normal...

 

 

I have felt this way for a while. Thanks for posting. I feel like LVLT posts should stay in teh LVLT thread, I dont understand the need to make every thread on the board about level 3. Perhaps its a great investment, but one of 10,000 plus securities. Also its just 2-3 posters......

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Ben.  Although we've rarely interacted, I appreciate your board input and share your opinion.  I have removed this board from my RSS reader and only visit on rare occasions.  The quality of the CB&F board has degraded so significantly that I'm now focused on a high quality private board with some other folks that don't post as often here.  The ongoing analysis of FFH here is 2nd to none, but quality drops off rapidly on everything else.

 

-O

Honestly, I had taken some time away from the board as it had digressed in my opinion, and I needed some time away, but coming back this posting regarding LVLT has really lit me up again, and is over the top in my opinion.

 

I view this board via RSS feed so I don't see authors, and I honestly feel like half the threads end up having completely irrelevant and "pumping" like posts linking every topic back to LVLT.... I don't know if it's 1 or 10 different posters, but it seems wacky and really unproductive.

 

Am I the only one who finds this strange and completely inappropriate on this board? I'm honestly asking because I feel like maybe I'm out to lunch and this is totally normal...

...

Ben

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Am I the only one who finds this strange and completely inappropriate on this board? I'm honestly asking because I feel like maybe I'm out to lunch and this is totally normal...

 

You're not alone Ben.  The LVLT infection had been well contained in the LVLT thread, but now it has spread.  A handful of borderline spammers has chosen to post LVLT nonsense anywhere there is the even the slightest tangential link.  It decreases the value of the discussion, but it's a tough nut to crack as politely asking them to stop doesn't seem to work and banning seems overly harsh.  An ignore poster function has been discussed and rejected by the board host, so we're stuck with a nuisance.  On the bright side, it's less disruptive than the trolls on the TMF BRK board.

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I admire the passion of some of LVLT longs (i don't have a position in LVLT). Maybe a better forum for them would be "Front & Center of LVLT".

 

For those who complain, you come with an intellectual begging bowl and complain what is being offered. you don't have to take everything that is being offered. And it is not as bad you make it.

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For those who complain, you come with an intellectual begging bowl and complain what is being offered. you don't have to take everything that is being offered. And it is not as bad you make it.

 

well said. i really dont find it hard to scan the contents of a thread & quickly decide what interests me or what doesnt. all boards are like that to some degree or other. the occassional pearls are what makes it worth while.

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Ben.  Although we've rarely interacted, I appreciate your board input and share your opinion.  I have removed this board from my RSS reader and only visit on rare occasions.  The quality of the CB&F board has degraded so significantly that I'm now focused on a high quality private board with some other folks that don't post as often here.  The ongoing analysis of FFH here is 2nd to none, but quality drops off rapidly on everything else.

 

Hi Omagh,

 

That's too bad.  The board usually goes through some upheaval every couple of years with new members joining and others leaving.  We are in that transitory period over the last few months, and I suspect as usual the board will continue to function. 

 

We've had many great posters leave, and we've had many great ones come on board.  The internet is a vast source of knowledge, and different aspects of it will appeal to different people.  As always, the board is here to serve the users, and the doors remain open for those that have left. 

 

It couldn't be as bad as you say, since Prem reads it every day!  ;D  Cheers!

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I agree with you with regard to the board but whats your take on the LVLT issue.

 

I don't think there would be a LVLT issue, if you didn't have a couple of hard-core LVLT shareholders posting on LVLT all the time.  When Prem, Longleaf and Berkshire bought LVLT debt a few years ago, I didn't hear anyone complaining then, as it was discussed quite a bit.  People never complain if they like the idea...only once they become annoyed and aren't enamored by it.

 

While LVLT discussion should probaby be kept to the LVLT thread, the current post by Ben Graham was actually related to Howard Marks.  So if you ban that, do you ban any other holdings that Mark's owns and someone else posts about? 

 

As I mentioned, users have the ability to ignore a post.  Those that receive RSS Feed, choose to do so because they don't want to visit the board.  But there is no filter on RSS Feed, thus you get all the posts you aren't interested in.  Again, it's a choice.  I can't ban one group because they like LVLT, yet allow others to post endlessly on another subject...FBK comes to mind...even the MSFT post is getting pretty damn long too.

 

As long as people are courteous and it is somewhat related, I'm not going to censor people.  It takes all kinds, and this board is as much a jumble of personalities as anywhere else.  Cheers!

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  First, thanks for the Howard Marks link. I enjoyed. I'm a fairly new poster but have been reading for a while. I think the two or three guys who are obviously big fans of LVLT should be able to rant all they want on the "Investment" board on the LVLT thread. I went back a while and found they have been at it quite a while.Almost like a mutual support group. If we don't want to read, then we can ignore. I've posted a few times on that and what I've noticed is if you disagree or try to show a different side you'll be shouted down or ignored. However as long as they stay on that one thread then that's fine with me.

   

    Also, I got some very good ideas when I first started reading here. It has seemed that some of the people who I thought were really interesting and provided some real thoughtful insights have either stopped posting or really scaled back. Lately there seems to be less of that and more arguing and sniping. My two cents for what it's worth.

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Thanks everyone.  I appreciate everyone's point of view to sanity check my own.

 

Ben G, just wanted to know that I don't recall ever reading any of your posts (as I said, I use RSS For the board, so I don't see the authors) and I certainly did not mean to call you out as an offender specifically, just that your post was indicative of something that had been bothering me.

 

Point taken from others as well about having thick skin about these pretty small things, and just skipping over the 'offending' posts.  Understand we all have different desires here, and I don't mean to impose my own order or anything.  As always, I appreciate Sanj's little creation here even if I pick at it from time to time.

 

Thanks guys,

 

Ben - thought I should note, long LVLT (very small position)... so it is not for my lack of interest that I raised this issue.

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