This is the “Dog Ate My Homework” edition

I’ve been burning the candle at both ends lately, what with my job winding down (amazingly, it winds up before it winds down, having to train my replacements), a big vacation planned for August (while I still have money, a car, and a house — hehe), and 2 kids that are growing up way too fast…

So, like any good student (of life), when the chips are down, you missed your assignment, you’re in danger of failing an exam –

You CHEAT

Actually, this week, I’m taking a pass. We’ve been talking about how to build wealth, how to brainstorm business ideas, and how to get started.

We’ll pick up on that next time around.

This week, I want to direct you to a post that one of my fellow Personal Finance bloggers, Lazy Man, wrote, entitled, “Wealth Creation: Is it a Myth?“

He postulates that wealth creation is a zero-sum game: Any time I make a dollar, somebody loses a dollar; thus, it’s a zero-sum game.

It’s an interesting concept. His post got a lot of people talking. Make sure you read the Comments for my take on the question, where I give the “functional” reason that wealth-creation is NOT a zero-sum game (Lazy Man mentioned it briefly in his post) — but absent banks, there may in fact be no wealth creation.

Check it out. Tell me what you think in the comments here.

Kids & Money

Welcome to the April 22, 2009 edition of Kids and Money.

mortgager presents Second Hand Endowment Policies posted at Endowment Policy, saying, “Read on how to act with second hand endowments easily during crisis.”

Talia presents Bitty Budget | backtobasics-talia.com posted at backtobasics-talia.com.

David presents Checking Accounts posted at Personal Finance Ology, saying, “Learn about the different types of checking accounts and how to keep more of your money!”

Nate Desmond presents Giveaway: Free TurboTax Online Premier Tax E-Filing posted at Debt-free Scholar.

Bank Champ presents Bank Promotions Are Taxed posted at Bank Champ.

John Russell presents 14 Auto Insurance Secrets posted at The Low Cost Auto Insurance Guru.

KCLau presents 5 Ways To Take Charge Of Our Finances posted at KCLau’s Money Tips, saying, “Are we doing the right things when it comes to managing our finances? Ask yourself five questions to know if you’re on the right track.”

Frank Vertin presents Just Buy Index Funds Directly posted at NO LOAD INDEX FUND, saying, “Buying an S&P 500 index fund through an investment counselor can substantially increase your initial purchasing costs and and drive up your annual management expense fees. Unfortunately, the vast majority of individual investors buy mutual funds and ETFs through brokers and investment advisers. Rarely do financial advisors recommend that you buy index funds with low fees. This is because low cost, no load mutual funds do not pay them as well as loaded, high fee mutual funds.”

Larry Russell presents Most Individual Investors Are Poor Personal Portfolio Managers | Personal Investment Management posted at THE SKILLED INVESTOR Blog, saying, “Young investors should learn early about investment efficiency, and they will then know more than most of their parents do about wise investing. Investors more easily understand investment costs that are directly measurable, such as fees deducted on investment statements. However, many investors ignore or are unaware of the opportunity costs of their sub-optimal investment behaviors. Opportunity costs are usually much more difficult to measure directly, but these investment costs can be even higher than more visible investment fees.”

Walter W. Fouse presents 7 Ways to Pick the Best Noload Mutual Funds and ETFs posted at Best No Load Funds, saying, “The vast body of investment research studies show that there really are better approaches to buying and owning mutual funds and ETFs. You do not need to frantically chase fund performance. Performance chasing simply does not work.”

Ben Jenkins presents Graduating From College posted at Self-Destruction in NYC.

Richard M. Rothschild presents The Top 14 Low Cost Taxable United States Bond Mutual Funds (Low Minimum Deposit) posted at Bond Market Index Funds, saying, “The top 14 low cost taxable US fixed income funds with a $10,000 or lower initial deposit. Low investment management fees are very important with fixed income funds. Simply put, if you pay higher bond mutual fund fees, then these bond management expenses tend just to be a deadweight loss to you. When you pay more in bond mutual fund fees, you are just wasting your money.”

Ralph Jean-Paul presents Building Self-Discipline posted at Potential 2 Success, saying, “The most disciplined business people are usually the most organized, efficient and successful. They are also the people that make the most money. Learn to build self-discipline in your personal and professional life and see the difference it will make.”

Big Cajun Man presents Canadian Personal Finance Blog » Blog Archive » Advice for New Grads? posted at Canadian Personal Finance Blog, saying, “When your kids do finally graduate from college, make sure they keep this in mind.”

Mike Pastore presents Thinking of saving money for your childs college education? IRA or 529a plan? | Mikes Millions.com posted at Mikes Millions.com.

Jeff Rose presents 10 Questions About College Savings Plans posted at Jeff Rose.

jim presents Best Student Credit Cards posted at Blueprint for Financial Prosperity.

Buck Weber presents Search for Scholarships posted at THE BUCK LIST, saying, “It’s that time of the year again for high school seniors. Testing for the ACT & SAT, filling out the FAFSA, gathering and sending transcripts, college applications and letters of recommendation are all part of the annual hectic last few months of the high school experience.”

Barry presents Buying Groceries From Auctions posted at Associate Money.

Madison presents Summer Jobs for Kids – Ideas for Summer Jobs for Kids posted at Kids and Money.

Verna Morris presents Five Experts Agree: You Need a TIPS ETF In Your Retirement Portfolio posted at ETFdb.

One Family presents Swagbucks – A Frugal Take posted at One Family’s Blog, saying, “A review of SwagBucks, a search engine that promises rewards for doing searches.”

KCLau presents Learning to be Happy with Less posted at KCLau’s Money Tips, saying, “How u can be happy with less material things”

Jim DeSantis presents 3 Reasons That Can Cause Your Family Budget To Fail posted at Free Family Budgeting eBook from On Line Tribune, saying, “Money is the only tool you have to secure your future and the future of your family and to live a good life today. Unless you get spending under control and start treating your household like the goldmine it really is, you are destined to struggle financially for the rest of your life.”

Jeremy Ulmer presents How To Cold Call Effectively: What To Say First posted at Sales Coaching | Business Coaching | Life Coaching, saying, “never too early for kids to start learning some of these skills…to make money…”

Clair Schwan presents Money Management – Making and Retaining Wealth posted at Frugal Living Freedom, saying, “This article provides an overview of basic money management concepts with an eye toward accumulating wealth by being more responsible with it.”

FIRE Getters presents What is the Rule of 72? posted at FIRE Finance.

Get800today presents Why Not Use Toll Free at Home? posted at Get800today.com.

Patrick @ Cash Money Life presents How Much Life Insurance Do You Need? posted at Cash Money Life, saying, “This is a question everyone should ask themselves – particularly if they have a family that relies upon their income.”

Silicon Valley Blogger presents Zecco vs TradeKing: Which Online Stock Brokerage Account To Choose? posted at The Digerati Life, saying, “Help your kids invest early by opening their first account with a solid online broker.”

Finance Tips 101 presents Scholarships Come In All Shapes And Sizes posted at Finance Tips 101.

The Smarter Wallet presents Can Your Kid Develop A Gambling Problem? posted at The Smarter Wallet, saying, “Thanks!”

Summer Munyon presents How To Find The Bottom Of The Real Estate Market posted at Tallahassee Real Estate Blog, saying, “If you want to know the beginning of the next phase of the market turn, just keep an eye on the green line in the graph below. You can visit this graph (updated twice per week) at The Market Bulletin.”

hall monitor presents Two Colts Neck High School students accused of counterfeiting money posted at DetentionSlip.org, saying, “To be filed in the “What NOT to do” column.”

Deposit Accounts presents Keep More of Your Money: Tips for Better Banking posted at Deposit Accounts.

MatthewPaulson presents Money Management Principles for Children posted at Fine-Tuned Finances.

Madison presents Frugal Ideas for Prom Season posted at Kids and Money.

That concludes this edition. Submit your blog article to the next edition of Kids and Money using our carnival submission form. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.

Technorati tags: kids and money, blog carnival.

Earning

Tisha Tolar presents Work at Home Discipline: Find Some posted at Empowering Mom.

jim presents Ten Recession-Busting Money Tips for Young Professionals posted at Blueprint for Financial Prosperity.

Pinyo presents Where To Sell Used Books And Textbooks posted at Moolanomy.

Spending

Matthew Paulson presents 8 Money Saving Ideas for Family Fun Night posted at American Consumer News.

Gary R. presents Traditional vs. Rustic Camp Sites posted at Camping Tips, saying, “An increasing number of campgrounds are offering visitors the choice of both traditional and rustic campsites.”

Madison presents Money Saving Tips for Kids on Valentine’s Day posted at Kids and Money.

Silicon Valley Blogger presents Lower Your Car Insurance Rates! How To Cut Insurance Premiums In Half posted at The Digerati Life, saying, “If you’ve got kids, driving safely and carefully is a must. And doing so will most likely lower your car insurance rates as well.” 

Barry presents Tug Of War Between Retailers And Frugal Consumers posted at Associate Money. 

Annette Berlin presents Printable Toys For Pre-Teens posted at Craft Stew, saying, “Older children get tired of toys fast. Rather than spending a small fortune to keep them constantly satisfied, let them create their own playthings from cardstock and a printer.” 

jim presents How to Strong Arm Your Way to a Better Deal posted at Blueprint for Financial Prosperity. 

Savings Toolbox presents Tips to Save On your Summer Getaway posted at Savings Toolbox.

Saving

Deposit Accounts presents Savings Accounts for Children posted at Deposit Accounts. 

Mr. Banker presents High Interest Money Market Accounts (MMA) posted at Best Interest Rate Banks. 

Brian McKay presents CD Rates posted at MonitorBankRates.com, saying, “Finding a decent rate on a certificate of deposit account these days isn’t an easy thing to do. CD rates have been coming down so fast recently the average 12 month CD rate is nearing just 2.00%.” 

Investing 

retirehappy presents Warren Buffett’s Metric Says BUY! posted at My Retirement Blog. 

The Shark Investor presents Strategies For Raising Funds: Borrow Your Way To Wealth posted at The Shark Investor, saying, “How and when to use loans for investing” 

Carrie presents Learning About Investing as a Child posted at Less is More. 

RJ presents The Case for Investing in Index Funds posted at Our Financial Planner, saying, “No matter the age and experience, index funds can be your greatest friend. Thank you for hosting.” 

Kelly Sonora presents 25 Forex-Related Twitter Accounts Worth Following posted at Best Forex Brokers. 

PicktheBrain presents The First Investment a Beginner Should Make posted at Beginner Investing. 

Money Management 

Len Penzo presents Using a Ledger to Teach Kids Money Management posted at Len Penzo . Com, saying, “Even kids as young as 6-years old can learn personal finance management skills via this simple bookkeeping plan.” 

Lisa Mitchell presents Teaching Your Children About Money posted at Let’s Talk Babies. 

Jacquelyn presents The Wise Parent & Child Money Guide posted at WParent.com – Wise Parenting Guide, saying, “Give your child an introduction to the subject of money by reading this article together. This will give your child a general idea about money.” 

Credit

Silicon Valley Blogger presents Best Cash Back Credit Cards: Your Rewards For Spending posted at The Digerati Life, saying, “Thank you!” 

jim presents Best Student Credit Cards posted at Blueprint for Financial Prosperity. 

Finance Tips 101 presents Drowning In Debt? Bad Credit Loans May Need To Be Considered! posted at Finance Tips 101. 

Finance Tips 101 presents The Pros And Cons Of Personal Loans posted at Finance Tips 101. 

Finance Tips 101 presents Answers About Home Equity Loans posted at Finance Tips 101.

DebtLite presents What Are the Root Causes of Debt? posted at Debt Advice. 

Astrid Lee presents Suze Orman posted at World Healing, saying, “Article on advice by Suze Orman, the popular TV adviser on personal finance and about how get out of debt. Article also contains video show where she talks about how to determine how much to give to charities…” 

Finance Tips 101 presents Cash Back, Award Points, and Gas Cards posted at Finance Tips 101. 

College

Madison presents Midwestern Disaster Area Tax Impacts posted at Tax Gab, saying, “Expanded college tax credits for those affected by the storms last year.” 

Finance Tips 101 presents Scholarship And Grant Information For Interested High School Graduates posted at Finance Tips 101. 

The Smarter Wallet presents Student Loan Programs To Pay For My College Tuition Costs posted at The Smarter Wallet, saying, “Thanks!” 

Madison presents Ohio 529 College Advantage $25 Sign Up Bonus posted at My Dollar Plan. 

OnlineCollege presents Choosing a College: A Simple Guide for Undergraduates posted at Universities and Colleges. 

Preparing for Baby

jim presents Preparing Financially for a Baby posted at Blueprint for Financial Prosperity. 

Concerning Kids presents Choosing The Right Pediatrician For Your Baby posted at Concerning Kids. 

Madison presents Our Family is Expanding… Financial Resources for Babies posted at My Dollar Plan. 

Pregnant Woman presents Identical Triplets – Three Bundles Of Joy posted at Pregnancy, saying, “Triplets occur in one of every eight thousand live births” 

The Stimulus 

The Smarter Wallet presents Will The Obama Economic Stimulus Check and 2009 Stimulus Plan Save The Economy? posted at The Smarter Wallet, saying, “How will your family be affected by the stimulus bill?” 

Brian McKay presents What’s in the Stimulus Bill for You? posted at MonitorBankRates.com, saying, “We have listed all the benefits for individuals in President Obama’s stimulus bill that was just passed.” 

Ella Moss presents New Economy, or Buy American, Stupid! « Zodiac Times posted at Zodiac Times, saying, “So, the new stimulus package is passed, hopes are up, markets are down, and recession deepens. Everyone is blaming the housing market, unscrupulous bankers and inept previous administration. But very few seem to understand the true roots of our woes, and how deep our economic problems go.” 

Miscellaneous 

KCLau presents Money Tips Group Writing Project posted at KCLau’s Money Tips, saying, “Calling out for contributors to an e-book about personal finance.” 

nickel presents Should You Pay Your Kids for Good Grades? posted at fivecentnickel.com. 

Money Tipper presents Bring Proof of Age When Flying With Young Children posted at Money Tipper. 

Concerning Kids presents Tips And Idea To Help Child Proof Your Home posted at Concerning Kids. 

Finance Tips 101 presents Alarming Identity Theft Statistics Are Cause For Concern posted at Finance Tips 101. 

Relax presents The happy way to spend money posted at The Wise Curve, saying, “we are happier when we spend money to gain experience than buying material goods” 

jim presents Total Cost of Owning A Dog posted at Blueprint for Financial Prosperity. 

Concerning Kids presents Helping Your Healthy Child Stay Fit For Life posted at Concerning Kids.

That concludes this edition. Submit your blog article to the next edition of Kids and Money using our carnival submission form.

Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.

Technorati tags: kids and money, blog carnival.

It’s all helped. A little.

Short of getting the whole house insulated (an expensive proposition for us as our house is very old and needs holes drilled from the outside in to inject the insulation, and then new paint to cover the patched holes) and installing a patio/awning on our west side, we’ve run out of ideas. Save for one (though I don’t think it will help us here since the air outside at night never cools much during a heat wave — a whole-house fan. The idea here is that you have an enormous fan installed in your ceiling, open all your windows in the evening, and have the fan suck in the cold air from outside and exhaust into your attic all the hot air from the house. Many people swear by them.

Summer Hacks: Save Money And Stay Cooler with a Whole-House Fan

Depending upon its size, a whole-house fan uses only 10% to 20% as much electricity as a central air conditioner. Also, it uses significantly less electricity than a window air conditioner, yet it keeps the entire house more comfortable, not just one room. Installing one generally provides a good payback on the investment.

So, if you’re inclined to install one, read the above article. On paper, it sounds like a great idea.

Having money, and, more importantly, knowing what to do with it, makes life easier. You can afford to go on vacations or to buy safe organic food for your babies. You can buy your wife a ring to commemorate your tenth anniversary, to show her you care.

You can afford private schools. Or tutors. Or a fuel efficient, safer car than your 1986 Camry beater.

But money is not the “Be all, end all.” There are many families who make less than you who are happier and can save more. They have a retirement fund. Their children will be able to attend a good college. They plan. They have different priorities.

Life sometimes hits you right between the eyes. Your mother could be stricken with cancer. Your child may get involved with drugs. Your wife could leave you. Remember this:

“No matter what horrible thing you’re going through, when it’s all over it only takes three seconds to sum it up. Remember that.”

This comes from one of my favorite non- personal finance blogs, dooce. There is light at the end of a tunnel. And it’s not a locomotive coming your way. Think about your issue. Make a plan. Execute the plan. Reflect on it. Refine it as you learn more and make progress.

Federal indictments unsealed Tuesday in Boston and San Diego against 11 individuals outlined an extraordinary global scheme that siphoned 40 million customer credit and debit card numbers out of the networks of nine major U.S. retailers and placed them – for a price – in the hands of individuals around the world, who in turn used them to make purchases or withdraw cash from ATMs.

Sounds pretty serious.

Chertoff called the indictment a “milestone” in the evolving history of cybersecurity.

“It’s an opportunity, in fact an obligation at this point, for everybody involved in this scenario to take a careful look at the security systems in place,” Chertoff said in the San Jose offices of the U.S. Secret Service, which investigated the case.

 I’d have to agree with this. The crime ring incorporated “wardriving” (finding open networks to exploit) and then created an online database to buy and sell credit card numbers, among other things. This cooperative effort was lucrative, too:

At least one of Gonzalez’s co-conspirators enriched himself to the tune of $11 million, according to the indictment. Gonzalez himself allegedly profited by at least $1.7 million and purchased a 2006 BMW, computers, a Glock handgun and a condominium in Florida where he let a co-conspirator stay for free in exchange for help in the scheme, the indictment alleges.

 It’s the same old story: Find the weakest link and break it:

The fact that the alleged hacking took place at retail outlets – and not banks, for example – suggested that the suspects were targeting weaker links in the network, Dunkelberger said. In some cases, the indictment said, the network and credit card data were unsecured; in others the suspects were able to crack the encryption. 

 I’m truly glad that DHS caught the thieves. But here’s the punchline: The ring, and its concomittant crimes, occurred beginning in 2004! Four year later, we find this out?

My wife and I have established a system that consists of the following complex set of components:

• A box
• Dining room table (optional)

The box is on the dining room table near our front door. We place our car/house keys there and anything else we want to take with us. It’s impossible for us to go very far without our car keys, since we run almost all our errands with the car. So placing the keys in the same box as where we put all of the stuff we want to take with us helps us “remember” those things.

It’s not full-proof, of course. We could forget to put something in the box. However, we don’t run many errands and putting things in the box over the course of the week gives us time to remember those things that we really need to deal with.

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Prime Time Money tagged me with the challenge to “Find one step you can take to make your financial system better or more organized.”

Being the philosopher I am, I turn to Confucius,  who is rumored to have said (did I tell you I’m a skeptic, a cynic, and sarcastic?)

My single step was buying a little software program in the late 80s (I was still a kid! Really, I was) called Managing Your Money which led me to the inspiration and contributor to the software, Andrew Tobias. I found out that Tobias was a personal finance author (what are those? You mean there were experts before blogging?); one of his books was humorously called “The Only Investment Guide You’ll Ever Need.”

In this book, I can truly say that I learned at least 95 percent of what I know today about personal finance, investing, banking, and saving money. I also learned 100 percent of what I know about wine (which is still very little, by the way).

Tobias is an advocate of index fund investing, buying in bulk (he provides the ROI calculations, too), yet only investing money that you can truly afford to lose.

And he’s lost a lot! He’s lost his shirt in Broadway and off-Broadway plays, futures and options, commodities of all sorts, real estate, collectibles, and limited partnerships in oil and gas. You name it, he’s invested in it, and he’s lost money in it.

He goes through the various ways he’s lost money to illustrate the idea that you just cannot win in the investing game by going for broke and paying tons of fees. The experts in commodities, for example, will always clean your clock. These speculative “investments” are zero sum games: One guy wins, you lose.

Contrast this with the stock market, where one man’s gain isn’t necessarily another man’s loss. We can all win; or, in other words, a rising sea lifts all boats. The stock market, even though it’s sucky now (financial term for “underperforming”), is your best bet for long-term growth of your money.

I still follow Andrew Tobias. Though he talks a lot of politics on his site, the focus still is on financial planning, frugality, and investing. He’s funny, witty, and smart.

So that was my first step:

Finding somebody to follow.

Many choose “gurus” like Dave Ramsey, Jim Cramer, or Ric Edelman. I found Andrew Tobias. It’s been a great find!

Now, whom shall I tag?

brip blap

Frugal Dad

How to Make 7 Million in 7 Years™

Quest For Four Pillars

Generation X Finance

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