Mailbag

The next few years are going to be devastating for most people all around the world. We’re heading toward a new version of 1929. How ironic it will be if, in the future, people ask about the Great Depression of ’29 and then have to ask, “which one – 1929 or 2029?”

Distressed-bond veteran Marty Fridson shares that you can reduce the risk of winding up on the wrong side of a trade by stepping back from the financial minutiae and the technical charts. Start by making certain the company is in a reasonably stable competitive environment.

In today’s Daily Journal, Porter further explains the details of the portfolio he assembled called “Better Than Berkshire,” which mimics the holdings of Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway, but uses publicly traded companies as replacement for what Berkshire holds.

Today we’re turning over the entire issue to readers. Over the last few weeks, Porter has written about a few topics that have generated more feedback than usual – on distressed investing, Trump’s economic policies, and more… Plus, some fishing photos.

Patrick didn’t set out to revolutionize an industry. He just wanted to build houses. During the roaring housing mania of 2005, the business he was building was a tiny fish swimming in a giant pond. He was trying to find empty lots to build new homes on. But land was scarce, and expensive. His competitors were multi-billion-dollar corporations, and they were scooping up property like marbles on the sidewalk.