Investment-management

At first I was a little hesitant on the price of the book but I was very happy when I received it. I was amazed at the 19 new articles on hedge funds written by well-known academics and professionals. I had never seen these articles before. Some articles are slightly quantitative in nature but the information in this book is extremely valuable. The list of contributors reads like a who's who of the hedge fund industry. When compared to other hedge fund readers this book really contributes to the hedge fund literature. Never before have I seen so many high quality papers in a hedge fund reader. I am convinced anyone interested in new research on hedge funds will find this book as the best reader presenting cutting edge work. Ideal for money managers, hedge fund managers, pension funds, endowment funds, insitutional investors, fund of hedge fund managers, lawyers and high net worth individuals. Congrats on a great reader. Can't wait for their next reader.

This book is useless. If you bought into Markman's scheme, you have been hurt...badly. Markman obliterated his investors (Markman Multi-funds) over the past 2 and 1/2 years and is merging all of his funds into one to bury his abysmal performance. This book is drivel and was written by Markman to market his money management business. Run, do not walk, away from this self-promoting fluff.

If I had a financial planner, I certainly wouldn't be using one after reading this book! I found something interesting on almost every page. It's a far cry from the dry advice offered by most books and articles on investing! Mr. Markman provides new insights into practical approaches to investing that avoids the pitfalls of traditional financial planners. He not only explains why the investment industry has led people astray, he has straightforward remedies. Plus, the book is never boring. I read it in a few hours. I'd recommend it for anyone who's dissatisfied with their investment results over the past few years.

This is a must read for anyone planning to live on their retirement investments in the future. For those of us in our 20's and 30's, it could mean the difference of millions! I found that my financial planner has advised me on mutual fund investments using all of the conventional wisdom this book critiques. Robert Markman challenges this conventional wisdom with a sound review of the facts, common sense, and humor. "Hazardous to Your Wealth" is a quick, thought-provoking read for any investor--no matter how large or small.

Don Young and Pat Scott have both worked all their lives in British manufacturing industry, and they have produced a startling analysis of the hardships that it is suffering.

They show in great detail how, "Finance markets ... are now causing more harm than good to the economy and society." Finance capital demands that firms focus only on maximizing shareholders' dividends, at whatever cost to their workers, customers or products. The authors describe how financiers and top management collaborate against the interests of industry and the wider society, and they connect the growing industrial and social destruction to "the age-old belief of the ruling class that money, land and property are more important than people."

In particular, finance capital promotes mergers. Who gains from these? Investment bankers, above all: "What a business - fees for putting Humpty on the wall, fees for pushing him off, fees for putting him back together again", as John Plender noted in the Financial Times. Who loses? Financiers claim that mergers increase production and profits, but most mergers slash jobs, productivity, profitability, investment and pension funds. The Economist noted that between 1992 and 2002 mergers in Britain destroyed £80 billion worth of manufacturing assets. Between 1995 and 2000, mergers in the USA destroyed more than $1 trillion in assets. As Keynes said, "When the capital development of a country becomes the by-product of the activities of a casino, the job is likely to be ill done."

As the authors write, "industry [is] more important than the vested interests of a privileged few" because industry is 'the only real source of economic independence'. Britain needs high-skill, high-investment, high productivity, R&D-intensive, knowledge-based industries. And, as the authors note, Britain already has 'a high-quality, skilled and potentially world-class workforce'.

But Britain's manufacturing sector is today only 23% of the economy. It is more than 60% in France and Germany, 52% in Japan, and 30% in the USA. The most dynamic sectors of industry are the physics- and chemistry-related industries, which need long-term R&D and investment. But only 10% of large British companies are in these knowledge-based industries, compared to 50% in Japan, France and Germany, and 30% in the USA. In the FTSE100 list of top firms, there are no British companies in the IT hardware, engineering and machinery, electrical engineering, and industrial manufacturing sectors.

What of the future? Between 1989 and 1999, R&D spending by British manufacturing firms fell by 14.2%. Without industry, we would not have a real economy at all, only a jumble of temporary, privatised services, whose workers would be relatively unskilled, low-paid and low regulation, and their jobs would be low-tech, low-productivity and low-investment.

What then is the Blair government's industrial strategy? As the Budget showed, it has none. For example, how has it treated BAE Systems, one of Britain's last world-scale manufacturers? The government removed the proviso that BAE Systems should have majority British shareholding, then refused to back the firm, saying that it was 'not British'. (Actually the Blair government is 'not British', because it always acts against Britain's interests.) The threatened takeover by Boeing would lose us all control over this vital manufacturer.

The authors write that the current system has a "malign momentum ... if the current situation does not change, even greater damage will be inevitable." This is accurately describing capitalism's absolute decline, which is destroying British industry. They write that the economy has been "hijacked by the selfish interests of an isolated, self-serving system ... controlled by networks of people who have a massive interest in keeping things broadly as they are", " a system that bestows huge benefits on a tiny minority and damages the interests of the huge majority of participants." This accurately describes capitalism, which, as Keynes observed, "represents the most astounding belief that the most wickedest of men, doing the most wickedest of things, will be for the good of everyone."

The authors have given us an excellent analysis: what do they advise us to do about it? They would allow the capitalist class to carry on doing what it wants. "We would not seek to outlaw or prevent current investment practice. In a free economy, investors, market makers and speculators should be free to behave, within reason, as their inclinations dictate."

Yet as they admit, "The history of the financial markets and management shows that self-regulation just doesn't work." And they vividly depict the financiers' vitriolic response to the modest Higgs proposals for changes in corporate governance. What Marx called 'the furies of private interest' will also dismiss the authors' sensible proposals for reform.

The authors recognise that the Blair government has not 'the faintest intent of seriously intervening in the system'. None of the parliamentary parties, no section of the ruling class, will act to stop the destruction that the authors describe so well. The only way to achieve the authors' aims is for the British working class to take control of where we work, to take responsibility for running the whole show, to kick out 'the tiny minority ... who have a massive interest in keeping things broadly as they are'.

Hey JBL, it's the BIG SHOW. I'm very pissed off. I'm coming back to WWE, and when I return I'm taking my belt back. I WILL CHOKESLAM YOU ONTO THE ROOF OF YOUR STUPID LIMOSIUNE. I will buy your book and eat it. Beware JBL!!!

Paul Wight

This book is not about having money NOW. The title is misleading. The book is more focused on long term investment, with a minimum of 5 years in mind, I think. Be vigilant on the math and formulas because there's a part about PEG's that I think is wrong. I mean he has the formula right but then he does something against what he already said. It's a pretty quick read, I finished it in two days. The way he mixes in real life stories and ties them into finance is interesting at least. It's not a boring read thanks to that.

*The most important lesson I learned*: learn to live without your credit cards and buy everything cash. Bradshaw calls this "You can have when you have [cash]" If you don't have the cash to buy something, then don't buy it.(I learned a lot of lessons from this book, but this one really hit home) I wish I had this book a few years ago, before I sunk into debt. Heck, I wish I had it before I graduated from college. This book is critical to everyone who is financially ignorant. If you have no financial plan, no idea of how to budget, how much to save, how to invest in the stock market, this book is for you. The reader who suggested this book be given to HS students is on the money. The sooner you lay your financial foundation, the sooner prosperity will come to you and the farther away debt will stay. NO ONE WILL DO IT FOR YOU! Most Americans need to read this book- if you are reading my review, chances are YOU need this book. I had started reading "How to get out of Debt" and the "Wealthy Barber" and they are boring at best, poorly-written at worst. ("How to get out of debt" is a solid program, its just boring to read through)
This book should be the beginner's bible on financial health.
I found the book hilarious and entertaining but I am a wrestling fan and have the same sense of humor as the author, so you may not find the book as entertaining as I did. But it is a fun read compared to anything else out on the market! If you are in debt or don't know how to manage your money, buy it. Don't be cheap and don't procrastinate! Good luck and financial health to everyone who needs this book