「男員工洗男廁 女員工洗女廁」被加法院判性別歧視

Isn't this a bit overdone? http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20080915.wGender16/BNStory/National/?page=rss&id=RTGAM.20080915.wGender16

Buy stocks now?

Buy American. I Am (By WARREN E. BUFFETT)
The financial world is a mess, both in the United States and abroad. Its problems, moreover, have been leaking into the general economy, and the leaks are now turning into a gusher. In the near term, unemployment will rise, business activity will falter and headlines will continue to be scary.

So ... I’ve been buying American stocks. This is my personal account I’m talking about, in which I previously owned nothing but United States government bonds. (This description leaves aside my Berkshire Hathaway holdings, which are all committed to philanthropy.) If prices keep looking attractive, my non-Berkshire net worth will soon be 100 percent in United States equities.

Why?

A simple rule dictates my buying: Be fearful when others are greedy, and be greedy when others are fearful. And most certainly, fear is now widespread, gripping even seasoned investors. To be sure, investors are right to be wary of highly leveraged entities or businesses in weak competitive positions. But fears regarding the long-term prosperity of the nation’s many sound companies make no sense. These businesses will indeed suffer earnings hiccups, as they always have. But most major companies will be setting new profit records 5, 10 and 20 years from now.

Let me be clear on one point: I can’t predict the short-term movements of the stock market. I haven’t the faintest idea as to whether stocks will be higher or lower a month — or a year — from now. What is likely, however, is that the market will move higher, perhaps substantially so, well before either sentiment or the economy turns up. So if you wait for the robins, spring will be over.

A little history here: During the Depression, the Dow hit its low, 41, on July 8, 1932. Economic conditions, though, kept deteriorating until Franklin D. Roosevelt took office in March 1933. By that time, the market had already advanced 30 percent. Or think back to the early days of World War II, when things were going badly for the United States in Europe and the Pacific. The market hit bottom in April 1942, well before Allied fortunes turned. Again, in the early 1980s, the time to buy stocks was when inflation raged and the economy was in the tank. In short, bad news is an investor’s best friend. It lets you buy a slice of America’s future at a marked-down price.

Over the long term, the stock market news will be good. In the 20th century, the United States endured two world wars and other traumatic and expensive military conflicts; the Depression; a dozen or so recessions and financial panics; oil shocks; a flu epidemic; and the resignation of a disgraced president. Yet the Dow rose from 66 to 11,497.

You might think it would have been impossible for an investor to lose money during a century marked by such an extraordinary gain. But some investors did. The hapless ones bought stocks only when they felt comfort in doing so and then proceeded to sell when the headlines made them queasy.

Today people who hold cash equivalents feel comfortable. They shouldn’t. They have opted for a terrible long-term asset, one that pays virtually nothing and is certain to depreciate in value. Indeed, the policies that government will follow in its efforts to alleviate the current crisis will probably prove inflationary and therefore accelerate declines in the real value of cash accounts.

Equities will almost certainly outperform cash over the next decade, probably by a substantial degree. Those investors who cling now to cash are betting they can efficiently time their move away from it later. In waiting for the comfort of good news, they are ignoring Wayne Gretzky’s advice: “I skate to where the puck is going to be, not to where it has been.”

I don’t like to opine on the stock market, and again I emphasize that I have no idea what the market will do in the short term. Nevertheless, I’ll follow the lead of a restaurant that opened in an empty bank building and then advertised: “Put your mouth where your money was.” Today my money and my mouth both say equities.

Any one interested in LA Philharmonic Concert?

I have a ticket for 30th Oct (second night). $380 only. Reasonable seat.

Maisky playing Dvorak's Romantic Piece Op.75 No.4

This piece by Dvorak was originally written for violin and piano, which has been adapted for cello and piano by Mischa Maisky. I recorded this during my recent trip to Tokyo when I visited Tower Records.

Tickets I bought for 2009 Hong Kong Arts Festival

Classical Music:
Chicago Symphony Orchestra: 2/6/09
Chicago Symphony Orchestra: 2/7/09
Northern Sinfonia & Chorus: 2/12/09
Northern Sinfonia & Chorus: 2/13/09
Zehetmair Quartet: 2/15/09
Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir: 2/26/09
Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin: 3/6/09
Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin: 3/7/09

Opera:
Latvian National Opera - Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk: 3/1/09

Theatre:
Metamorphosis: 2/20/09

How it all got started...

Here you go...

Concerts to attend in the next few months

29 Oct Los Angeles Philharmonic

30 Oct Los Angeles Philharmonic

01 Nov HKPO - Messian and Gorecki Symphony No.3

05 Nov Piano Recital by Leif ove Andsnes

28 Nov HKPO - Alpine Symphony

05 Dec HKPO - Mahler 9

08 Dec Home for Christmas - Anne Sofie von Otter

Second Child

My son is nearly 21 months old now. Many people asked us whether we would have a second child. We know it is good for our son to grow up in an environment where he could learn to take care of others and to share, but then my (selfish) feeling is that it is going to be challenging for me to raise another baby, both physically and financially. Lack of sleep and rest is the major reason for my hesitation. My son can basically sleep through the night now, after a battle of 20 months. Should I go and destroy this equilibrium again and let myself "suffer" for another 20 months?

Tokyo

My wife and I are taking our son to Tokyo soon. His sleeping schedule makes touring around the city a little complicated. He sleeps after lunch, for 1.5 to 2 hours. And he goes to bed at around 9pm. What can we do in Tokyo?

Blackberry

Blackberry is really a curse to me! In the past, I spent time at home only thinking about job related matters. Now, I have to respond to the emails. But it does not mean my productivity is higher - in fact, it is the opposite. I left some emails unanswered because I thought I have read them, but in fact, I just opened it and didn't really respond to it.

It occupies the time I could have gotten some rest - in a car, in airport express, at dinner, etc. And Blackberry's ad says it saves you time to enjoy life? You must be kidding!