I suppose you could try to make some amusing political drawings based on the economic downturn. ^^
Just a thought.

--
Please see my new account [link]

Thankfully, I've become rather educated about economics in the last year or so. It turns out (conveniently!) that the husband is something of a genius when it comes to such things! We have invested in the stock market and everything.

--
Alaka-bee-weeoop! Old school.

Blimey Oo That's lucky I hope your stocks are in safe businesses!
I'm really wishing I had something in the way of investments or savings like that, but I have very little surplus beyond what I need to live in order to invest. Based on the (rather undeniable) conclusions of the videos I don't feel incredibly confident in bank savings anymore.

(plus I know bugger all about stocks)

Well, if you do have any spare funds, right now is the perfect time to buy stock. For some reason, ninety nine percent of everybody is a fucking dumbass (excuse my french). They are like, "OMG THE MARKET IS CRASHING" so they sell. Thus, stock prices go down, and people continue selling because they're all panicking. Smart people, they buy at this point because the stock is undervalued. Buying anything you think is a stable business is a good idea right now, because of the fact that it's undervalued - ie, when the market rights itself, it'll go back to a more 'normal' price, and you'll make a profit.

And the best way to figure out if a company is stable? Well, legally you have access to all of their books. You can see where they've been spending their money, whether or not they've been getting lots of new business, how much of a profit they turned this year, how much of a profit they turned last year, etc etc. You can also see how much the stock is traditionally worth - a long-term view, if you will. So, using common sense, you can figure out whether or not you think this is a sensible, stable business which is going places, or a fly-by-night stupid business which is going to do you no good at all.

You can also pick clever stock by looking at the social environment around you. For example, these days people are more and more into green alternatives and recycling. Companies that promote these modern ideas are more likely to be successful in the next few years than companies that use more old-fashioned ideals, which are going out of fashion. The simple fact is, if consumers are buying the product, then the company is successful, which makes the price of the stock go up and your investment will reap benefits.

So, it's really not as complicated as it looks. Simply put, by buying one share you are buying one piece of a company. One say in what it does, and one money-making opportunity according to its profits. You buy stock in a company which is massively successful? Your share is worth more, because the company is worth more. That's all there is to it!

The sensible way to buy stock is to do so with long-term investment in mind. There are lot of people who think the only way to play the stockmarket is as a day trader - someone who checks their stock hourly and buys and sells all the time. This is silly, and high-risk. If you've got a lot of money to piss away, or you happen to be an oracle, go right ahead. Sensible people who have a stock portfolio as part of their retirement investments (as we do - it's about a 4th of our current retirement portfolio - the other 3/4 are in direct retirement fund (it's called a 401k here in America) and, hopefully next year, in property, another excellent investment to make at this time if you can afford it, since properly value has also slumped massively, and is cheap atm.) Picking up stock with a more long-term goal in mind is more sensible. You buy a couple hundred shares in a company you think has long-term viability for whatever reason, and over the next couple of years you watch it slowly grow. We're not talking big money here, but here's the kicker: in order to make a profit, all you have to do is beat interest rates. If you manage to beat interest rates, you're 'winning', because interest rates are the max you're gonna make in a savings account. So if you only manage to increase your stock worth by a mere 8% this year, you've done really fucking well because that beats investment by a LOT.

Another way of doing it is to take out a mutual fund. Which is kinda like a savings account, but the money you put into the fund is invested (by whoever owns the fund: probably a bank) in the stock market in sensible places. This is usually a very safe bet and makes good returns. Of course, you have to pay fees and there are certain participation rules... and historically mutual funds always underperform the general market, so your returns aren't as good as if you were investing yourself. But it's one (relatively safe) way to do it.

Mainly, a lot of it is common sense. The stock market seems like this big scary entity which only rich people bother with, but in actuality it's simple a way of the ordinary person investing their cash in sensible, intelligent ways. If you have half a brain (and I know you, you DO) you can invest safely and sensibly, and over a period of time make better returns than you ever will in savings accounts.

If you wanna read up more, you should try to look for books by Thomas Sowell. The husband (who seriously, genius in all this) swears by him. He got Sowell's second book (Economic Facts and Fallacies) for Christmas, and says that the author is brilliant, and if you really want to learn some stuff about economics, then you should read Sowell's first book first. (Not sure what it's called, sorry.)

Wow, went on a massive rant! I hope it was partially helpful. Also, if you've got any questions at all about finances, investments, economics, or anything... toss them at me. I've learned a ton in the last year, and if I don't know the answer, I can always ask the clever husband. :3

--
Alaka-bee-weeoop! Old school.

Basically, here's the thing. (I wanted to add this because I should have, and it makes it far more obvious how this all works.) Somebody has a pile of wood. Wood is traditionally worth a lot of money. The stock market crashes, and as a result this somebody offers to sell you this wood (which is ordinarily worth $2000) for $20. That's a bargain, because when you buy this wood for dirt cheap, you aren't gonna use it. You're gonna keep it. One day (probably in two or three years) that wood will be worth $2000 again, and you can sell it and make a killing.

This is pretty much how the stock market works. At the moment, there is a bunch of commodity (some of it ethereal - like software or services rendered) which is usually worth a lot more, because it is. It's worth more because people buy it a lot; essentially, what I'm saying is, currently money is for sale. It's like someone coming up to you with a BMW and saying, "I can't sell my car because the market crashed and nobody's buying!" and so selling it to you for $10. You know that BMW is worth a lot more than ten bucks.

Anyway. So... 'worth'... value... is always the result of the buyer. Value is determined by who is prepared to buy it. If nobody is prepared to pay more than a certain price, then that's what it is worth. Nothing to do with anything else: value is determined by the buyer - the market - alone.

Knowing that everything in the stock market - all objects of value - are currently valued at less than they should be because nobody's buying... that is what makes stock worth buying atm. Basically, free money. You know the market will right itself eventually, which means that wood or BMW you bought will, someday, be worth money again. Simple as that.

--
Alaka-bee-weeoop! Old school.

*you've done really fucking well because that beats INTEREST by a lot.

I'm a dumbass. Typos.

--
Alaka-bee-weeoop! Old school.

This is a really good crash course!
I rarely read stuff about economics since it's just to boring for me, but I know that this isn't a good time to invest on anything ^_^

--
Desafinado XD

You didn't read Pixieface's comments did you?