Reviews of our favorite books and movies

I.O.U.S.A - the movie - "A Must See"

2009-10-26T13:00:00Z

"I will argue that the most serious threat to the United States is not someone hiding in a cave in Afghanistan or Pakistan, but our own fiscal irresponsibility."

I.O.U.S.A. is a documentary movie that begins with this quote from the David Walker, the former Comptroller General of the United States, our nation's chief accountant. It takes a very complex topic - our nation's financial health - and does an excellent job explaining four major deficits we face in America in very simple terms - even making it entertaining at times.

The Total Money Makeover - Dave Ramsey's guide to financial freedom

2009-09-07T20:50:28Z

I admit it--I was skeptical about this book. Before I picked it up, I thought, "this is just another radio show guy with a bunch of cookie cutter answers to complex financial questions."

I was totally wrong.

Dave Ramsey is a guy with a straightforward philosophy about money which I summarize in three points:

Wealth is good;
Debt is bad;
Financial freedom requires hard work and sacrifice.

Dave should know. He earned his street-cred in the early 1980's when his $4 million real estate empire collapsed under the weight of his own debt. He lost everything in the bankruptcy and decided it would never happen again. The result is a philosophy he calls Financial Peace and a process he calls The Total Money Makeover.

Fooled by Randomeness by Nassim Taleb

2009-08-20T01:55:00Z

Nassim Taleb has written one of the most insightful books I have ever read about the role of random events in our lives. As a long-time Wall Street trader, his frame of reference is heavily influenced by the markets. However, he is able to draw on examples from a number of areas to highlight the fact that chance and probability influence our decisions in many, perhaps most, aspects of our lives.