If asked, “How much is a dollar worth?” there are probably a number of responses that immediately jump to mind. Perhaps some would go the mathematical route by saying, “four quarters,” “ten dimes,” “twenty nickels,” or “100 pennies.” Others may relate the value of a dollar to the price of things they buy frequently, responding, “about the price of a cup of coffee,” “a quarter of a gallon of gas,” or “about 6.8755 Chinese Yuan.”

Now think back a few years to what your answers would have been in 2004 or even 2000. With the Summer Olympic Games in Beijing upon us, let’s use the Olympics as a time marker. Clearly the first set of answers – “four quarters,” “ten dimes,” “twenty nickels,” or “100 pennies” – would remain the same. But what about the second, more qualitative set of answers?

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There is no doubt that the US places a heavy emphasis on the oil markets, both domestically and internationally, as both citizens and industry are heavily dependent upon its production and pricing to meet daily consumption needs. With oil prices hitting an all time high in 2008, economic speculation has been generated both supporting the continued price movement and suggesting that there will be a market correction within the year. Both positions are based upon recent current events and traditional investor behavior. To understand the pricing of oil and how it affects investor decisions, there are several important economic events and factors to become familiar with.

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2007 has probably been one of the greatest years for the commodity market where there has been exuberance across the globe. Gold has been one of the beneficiaries that has witnessed one of the most phenomenal and unprecedented increase in prices. Prices have been up by almost 80% in the last 2 years and approximately 35% during the year 2007.

Gold has generally been a counter-cyclical commodity. This is the reason why a general downturn in the economy is always accompanied by a rise in Gold prices. This time around, the increase was perpetrated by a rise in oil prices, and the weakening dollar. Liquidity also declined later in the year, decreasing investment demand and thereby pushing up prices further. Declining tensions amidst Iran and Syria also fueled the rally.

Other than serving as a perfect hedge against inflation, Gold has been a relatively risk free asset ensuring stable and consistent returns for its investors. Thus, in the wake of instable markets as well, the rise in demand for Gold as an investment tool has been on the rise.

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If you’re a fan of Wall Street Warriors or stay on top of the financial publishing scene, you’ve probably seen and heard Timothy Sykes’ name pretty frequently these days. Timothy’s recently released book, An American Hedge Fund: How I Made $2 Million as a Stock Operator and Created a Hedge Fund, details the true story of how he turned the $12,415 he received for his Bar Mitzvah into $1.65 million in just three years and all before he turned 26. Timothy sent 22Dollars.com a copy of his book (check out the fourth page to see our review!) and recently provided us with a behind-the-scenes look at the man, the myth and the market. Make sure to check out Timothy’s responses below and grab a copy of his book if you haven’t already!

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It’s nothing new for gas prices to make headlines. It seems like every day for the last few years the media has kept a very close watch on the daily fluctuations of fuel. And Americans across the country have been tracking prices at the pump and feeling the effects. While 22Dollars.com stresses taking control of your finances, the topic of gas prices instantly causes anxiety and controversy due to the fact that it’s one area of our budget over which we feel little control.

The impact of the increasing price of gasoline touches everyone - not only those who depend on a car for their daily transportation. In somewhat of a chain effect, everything from surcharges on airline tickets to higher prices for transported vegetables is impacted and we all feel the effects on our finances. But can this even reach our personal lives during the holiday season?

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Cleantech - the new buzz word which is cut across industries and geographies has always had a mystical presence in the minds of a neophyte.

So what is all the euphoria about cleantech?

As the Cleantech Indices simplify cleantech as “Clean is more than green”.

Clean technology, or “cleantech”, should not be confused with the terms environmental technology or green technology popularized in the 1970’s and 80’s.

Cleantech is new technology and related business models offering competitive returns for investors and customers while providing solutions to global challenges.

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Everyone nowadays is gung-ho about emerging markets. And why not? Emerging markets are currently the world's fastest growing economies. Hence, it is of not much surprise that more and more money has been finding its way into these markets. The largest markets for FII inflows are India and China. India for one has been a recipient of huge inflows owing to the fact that the Indian economy is one of the fastest growing economies of the world clocking a 9.3% GDP growth rate in 2006-2007. This growth has been witnessed since 1991, when the Indian Government decided to liberalize the economy.

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As science and technology continue to progress, many of the mysteries that have stumped humans for years are beginning to become unlocked. From smaller and faster computers to safer vehicles to a greater understanding of medicine, changes and new information are all around us. Humans are learning and doing more than ever before!

Typically medical research helps doctors better understand how to prevent and cure diseases, ranging from the common cold to cancer. As a result, you may be wondering why I’m even broaching this topic in this finance-focused forum. Well, believe it or not, recent genetic research may be able to help us better understand how we make our financial decisions.

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Back in July we talked about an opportunity in Eastman Kodak (NYSE:EK) and today we are still bullish on the stock. Since our previous post, the stock continues to trade sideways but not with out direction. Some of you may have noticed the resistance around $28.50 - $29.00 but also take the series of higher lows over the past couple weeks. Despite the technical setup here and bullish nature of the stock over the last year, we see reason for concern fundamentally.

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As an entrepreneur myself (BlueEye Design Co.), I am always interested in hearing other success stories and business venture ideas that have been made into reality. The team at 22Dollars recently returned from a week long trip to Nassau, Paradise Island in the Bahamas. We wanted to take a moment to talk about our experience and the grand opening of The Cove Atlantis - the newest branch of the Atlantis megaplex resort that caters to the ultra wealthy. After all, what is the point of investing if you can not have fun with the money you make right? So this was our chance to get away from the north country and see the once in a lifetime event.

For those of you not familiar with the Atlantis resort, it is a legendary and lavish property on Paradise Island, near Nassau in the Bahamas and just a hop from Florida. The property dominates the island’s real estate and is a major contributor to the island’s economy, employing some 6,000 residents. Sol Kerzner (Kerzner International Chairman) built the celebrity magnet that boasts a Royal Tower bridge suite that will run you a cool $25,000 a night. Even if you do have the cash however, you will have to wait till the year 2011 when the next free available week for the suite is open.

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Globally it is becoming increasingly discommodious to raise capital through public fund raising (IPO's). The costs of going public are escalating year on year. Costs relating to meeting SEC requirements and of getting timely and proprietary research coverage is rising. The demand of IPO's has been volatile in 2006, with the backlog of IPO filings rising. High disclosure norms and postulations from public, government, and press is leading to high correlation of company results with markets, companies are impelled to amenably meet or beat quarterly revenue and earnings estimates. Furthermore, increasing scrutiny surrounding public companies and corporate governance is corroborating the cause of companies to stay private.

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Four months after the 416 point bloodbath in the Dow, caused by a huge sell off in the China market, the market correction seems obliterated with the S&P 500 at its highest level since September 2000. Fueled by the stock market boom, and the reduction in capital gains from 35% to 15% in 2001, companies have been declaring handsome dividends, which swelled to a record $418.5 billion last year, up 57% from $266.5 billion 2005. Markets have discounted another rate cut, which does not seem to be imminent now.

Yet, the volatility continues, due to the absence of a significant driver for the bulls in the light of profit diminution, inflation concerns, and announcement of China's economic growth accelerating to 11.1% in the 1st quarter, leading to fears of an overheating economy.

Such dubiety prompts us to inquire, "What would the ideal strategy be going forward?"

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It is our pleasure to introduce all our readers to our newest writer, Chandni Kripalani.

Chandni brings extensive experience in the private equity space. She hails from a background of mutual fund advisory, investment advisory and private equity transaction research. She has worked with asset management companies the likes of DSP Merrill Lynch Fund Managers and as a wealth manager at Citibank where she provided investment advisory to high net worth clients on mutual funds and life insurance.

We are very happy and excited to have her on board and look forward to learning from her expertise and experience in the field.

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I recently received an email from an individual (who will remain nameless) that wanted to know why it was they felt like they would never get ahead financially. A feeling of being stuck in the rat race of life, struggling to never get ahead in the end. My answer to his question was simple and it paralleled the ideologies expressed by Robert T. Kiyosaki in the book “Rich Dad, Poor Dad”. The answer is one that is not readily taught in our school systems. Before I give you the answer to why you aren’t rich yet, let me first ask you a couple questions and see if you can’t figure it out yourself.

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One of our recent posts discussed a researcher’s view on the differences between economic classes. The researcher stated that the upper, lower and middle classes live their lives based on the past, present and future, respectively. What this researcher was getting at is that there are a number of differences in classes aside from the job titles and bank statements typical of the group’s members.

We typically consider nationality, religious views and geographic location to be the main factors which determine a person’s culture. We consider ourselves to be “Americans” so we celebrate the traditional holidays and eat the customary foods. But what role does economic class play in our culture?

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One of the rights we as Americans take for granted is the right to view virtually any website we want on the Internet. This is not the case in Bahrain. Bahrain a borderless island in the Persian Gulf that is the smallest Arab country.

Recently the software program Google Earth has played a huge role in deciding how the elections in Bahrain played out. For many years the general Shi'ia population knew that the Sunni royal family owned enormous fortunes and lived egregiously beyond even the most far reaching dreams of the common Shi'ia population.

With the introduction of Google Earth to the Internet the public eye grew in Bahrain gained immediate access to the utterly fantastic lives of the Royals’. They Googled the royal compounds and this eye in the sky helped the general public see beyond huge walls to what was once hidden and secretly guarded. Needless to say, they were stunned by what they saw.

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Well, the big day has finally arrived. Whether you’re interested in football or not, it’s likely that you’ve factored tonight�s big game into your plans in one way or another. Millions of people are forecasted to watch tonight’s game, causing it to be one of the biggest television events of the year. Whenever you get that large of a captive audience together, it’s bound to bring about high stakes business transactions across the board.

Certainly the athletes that will be playing tonight are one group that has a lot riding on tonight’s game. Making it to the big game is likely a dream for most of them, and actually winning would be a highlight of their careers. Those playing in tonight’s game have the chance to realize one of their greatest goals and ensure the safety of their careers, or potentially make mistakes that will haunt them for the rest of their lives.

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�Tis the Season for making New Year�s resolutions! As we approach 2007, it is likely that many people are making lists and checking them twice, preparing for a fresh start in the new year and setting goals for the things they�d like to accomplish.

Typically it seems that the most common resolutions include pledges to work out more often, watch what we eat, get involved in volunteer work, take up a new hobby and spend more time with our families. Also high on many peoples� lists are financial goals for the coming year. After the extra spending of the holiday season, many of us may be looking for ways to make better decisions regarding our money.

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It is time to take a brief moment to pause from our blogging explorations to wish all of our readers a very Happy Holidays. Remember that is not how much money you make, but rather what you do with it that really matters. Money can not buy you TRUE happiness and now is the time of year to reflect on what is really important in life. I leave you with this quote from Mr. Charles Dickens.

I have always thought of Christmas time, when it has come round, as a good time; a kind, forgiving, charitable time; the only time I know of, in the long calendar of the year, when men and women seem by one consent to open their shut-up hearts freely, and to think of people below them as if they really were fellow passengers to the grave, and not another race of creatures bound on other journeys.

Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays and to all a goodnight.

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As 2006 comes to a close, we here at 22Dollars.com want to take this opportunity to thank all our readers for making the site what it is today. We have received countless emails from readers scattered near and far expressing their kind words with respect to the site. We hope you enjoy the site and continue to read and find different ways to save and make money in 2007.

As a token of our appreciation, we wanted to give something back to our readers. What we settled on this year for the 22Dollars Holiday Bonus gift was one of the most inspiring and influential books I have ever read on the differences in the way each social-economic class approaches business, money and life. The book is titled Rich Dad, Poor Dad written by Robert T. Kiyosaki and Sharon Lechter. A book about what the rich teach their kids about money that the poor and middle class do not. A BRAND NEW copy of Rich Dad, Poor Dad will be given away to one lucky reader of 22Dollars to be drawn at random this coming Friday (Dec. 22nd).

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INVESTools Inc. (OTCBB:INVS), my tool of choice for stock research and analysis, recently announced the relaunch of its Investor Toolbox Web site. As a long-time user of Investools, it was nice to see that they finally decided to redesign the Investor Toolbox from top to bottom. The new toolbox is supposed to be much more powerful, convenient and customizable. The transition will take approximately 45 days for all users to experience the new area.

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Has anyone else noticed the large number of negative campaign advertisements this year? With candidates for office increasingly using television as a medium for communicating their ideas, it seems as though every commercial break is filled with messages relating to the elections. More than ever it seems that these ads work to question the character of opponents and reach voters by instilling a sense of fear about what could happen should certain people be put into power. It seems as though we’re constantly being sent the message “don’t vote for this person because…” or “you’ll regret it if you vote for this person…”

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Welcome friends to the new 22. I just wanted to thank you for your patience while we have been very busy upgrading the entire site (as you can clearly see). As you will notice at the top, there are now tabs to provide easy navigation to the three new areas of the site. The new areas of the site include the credo, Club22 and the contact page.

CREDO: Our mission statement. Created because of the enormous feedback I received asking and I quote "What is 22Dollars and how do I join". I wanted it to be more than just a simple "about us" page - I wanted to capture why this site was created and why it is a great resource for our visitors to use daily now. It also serves as a reminder to our commitment to always be improving on the site and providing our readers with the best possible experience.

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Over the past couple days the team at 22Dollars.com has been very busy working and we apologize for the lack of recent posts. What have we been working on you ask? Well not financial analysis, but rather a total site-wide face-lift. Here are just some of the changes you can look forward to:

1.) Total site optimization with respect to coding, images, scripts and all other files to improve download times by over 400%!

2.) Transfer of the site over to the secure and extra speedy hosting of Media Temple's new (gs) Grid-Server platform.

3.) New tabbed browsing for navigation.

4.) Cleaner fonts for easier reading onscreen (I was a usability/human-computer interaction major in college so this kind of stuff is important to me!)

5.) The addition of 3 new pages: Contact, Credo and Club22...

6.) A new design that reflects the color you might think of when talking about making money... care to take a guess?

All in all, we are extremely excited and pleased with the how the transition is going thus far. We hope to launch the new site within the next month depending on several factors still up in the air. We hope that everyone will enjoy the new site and we look forward to hearing your feedback on it pending the official launch. Take care.

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Congratulations to all the bulls out there as the market barreled forward to another record high. For the second day in a row the DOW (index of 30 blue chip stocks) closed in the green and for the second day in a row the DOW set a new a record high that has stood since January 14, 2004. The DOW soared 123 points to 11,851 while the NASDAQ ended up 47. The two big catalysts for the current market momentum is the ever-shrinking cost of oil (and thus greater potential for big business to post satisfactory earnings numbers) and optimism that the Federal Reserve will lower interest rates in the coming months/years. This all in spite of many feeling that the economy is cooling down.

On the flip side, today's investors are smarter. Let me re-phrase that, today's investors are more cautious than they were nearly 7 years ago. Gone are the days where you could blindly throw your money into any .com or high-tech company and watch your money double and triple in a matter of weeks. The change in investor attitude is the reason why it has taken the Dow so long to come back and I feel that a steady, cautious growth like we have experienced is much more healthy to the economy and I look forward to what 2008 will bring. Congrats to the bulls again.

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On Monday, September 11, 2006, The NASDAQ Stock Market will observe a moment of silence from 10:29 to 10:30 a.m., ET, in remembrance of those who lost their lives on September 11, 2001.

We invite market participants and readers of 22Dollars to join NASDAQ in this silent remembrance. Since trading will not be halted during this time, NASDAQ requests that market participants use their best judgment and sensitivity in regards to trading during the moment of silence.

God bless all the innocent lost on this tragic day as we remember those heroes who risked their lives without hesitation to protect the very foundation this nation was built on. Our prayers are with you.

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Tata Motors (TTM: NYSE) describes itself as India's largest automobile company, with revenues of Rs. 24,000 crores (USD 5.5 billion) in 2005-06. It is the leader by far in commercial vehicles in each segment, and the second largest in the passenger vehicles market with winning products in the compact, midsize car and utility vehicle segments. The company is the world's fifth largest medium and heavy commercial vehicle manufacturer. What can all this mean to your portfolio? Let me show you.

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When Chad asked me to write a post for his blog, I wasn’t sure that I would have much to say that might interest his target audience. Not being a frequent (or at all knowledgeable) investor, I was not sure how I could shed some light on the topic of finance for a group of people that already knows more than I. That is, not until I looked at the bigger picture. We are at the one year anniversary of when Hurricane Katrina struck our country. The impact of this event is so significant that it has touched us all in some way shape or form, and unfortunately much of the context in which this event occurred revolves around simple dollars and cents – the very topic of this blog.

I say that Katrina struck our country instead of New Orleans specifically, because in truth while the hurricane’s initial geographic location was NOLA, its effects have reached every state, city and person in the nation. From the impact on friends and family to the new neighbors that may have fled to your town to the money that has been (and still needs to be) spent on rebuilding, each person is aware of the situation and has been impacted – even if they weren’t residents of the “Big Easy” a year ago.

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I wanted to share with you an article sent to me that might help you understand more about Israel, their history and why it's truely amazing that they continue to endure despite being under such heavy economic pressures.

Israel the 100th smallest country, with less than 1/1000th of the world's population, can lay claim to the following:

The cell phone was developed in Israel by Israelis working in the Israeli branch of Motorola, which has its largest development center in Israel.

Most of the Windows NT and XP operating systems were developed by Microsoft-Israel.

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Last time I checked my pocket reference guide to ethics, stealing, regardless of the denomination, was not all right and, if caught, would lead to some sort of penalty. Well I guess the higher-ups at Wal-Mart do not agree. The nation's largest employer is moving away from what it called a zero-tolerance policy on prosecuting shoplifters. They will now only prosecute thief’s caught taking merchandise worth $25 or more. In other words, as long as these thief’s are not too greedy, then it's almost worth taking the risk? Do I understand this right? You can find the original report here. On top of this, Wal-Mart has also set an age limit. Only those between the ages of 18 and 64 who steal at least $25 worth of goods will be prosecuted.

The original policy went after anyone, regardless of age, who took at least $3 dollars worth of goods. If I was a person of mis-guided values, I would be licking my chops at this new policy and pushing my luck knowing the worst that can happen if I get caught stealing that nice $24 china set is NOTHING! Does Wal-Mart even have security in their stores? The last I checked the only person guarding the door was a nice lady in a wheel chair pushing 70 years of age. I just can't seem to grasp this new concept but I am sure Wal-Mart must have some logical explanation for it. Please inform me if you know what it is.

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If you were thinking what I was thinking this morning when CNBC first announced the news of Kenneth Lay's death, the autopsy later today showed that the Enron founder did in fact die of heart disease. Ken was 64 years of age and passed this morning a broken man. His recent guilty conviction could have led to decades of prison time - essentially a life sentence for someone a year away from qualifying for Medicare. Lay told jurors during his trial that he had lived out the American dream along with the American nightmare. Today I had a chance to ask some of my friends a question that I couldn't answer myself. I asked them would they rather be in Ken Lay's shoes today or the Ken Lay's shoes of yesterday? Alive or living out the American nightmare? It's a sad story no matter how you look at it and my heart still goes out to all those people who saw their life saving go down the drain because of the greed of someone already worth over $200 million dollars. Let's hope this serves as a reminder to those in higher power that what goes around comes around eventually. If you are still confused, then please refer back to my last article about donating to charity and helping out those less fortunate, those not worth $200 million dollars and those trying to make ends meet to support their family and children.

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Granted my donations might not be on the same level as Mr. Buffett’s, but nonetheless I take a sense of pride in giving back to charities that touch close to home and that I support deeply. The majority of my donations come in the form of participating in golf tournaments, private donations and the United Way Foundation. This year I will play in several golf tournaments that give back to the community and local charities. I also donate a portion of every paycheck to the United Way to help out on a more global scale. Two of the golf tournaments that I will be participating in this year include the Joseph D. Helmuth Foundation Tournament (Philadelphia, PA) and the Tim Milgate Charity Tournament (Rochester, NY).

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That markets have shown some wide ranges in volatility lately. This type of volatility suggests tremendous confusion amoung investors. Remember that one or two up days does not make a bottom, or a new trend, so be patient before you throw your money back into something. It is nice to the see the Dow closed up 105 point at 11,079 while the NASDAQ closed higher by 34 to finish the day at 2,141. Advancers beat out decliners by almost 3:1 on both the NYSE and NASDAQ. Again, this not something to get excited about and throw your money at.

Investing based on emotion is a huge mistake that many amateurs often times make. Before you get all excited and think that you are going to "miss" the bottom, take a moment to really look at the charts and see if this is indeed the bottom. If the market and other worldly fundamentals still are not in place, then be wary. A good friend of mine, David Gordon, once quoted "how low is low?". The point David was trying to make was to not let the markets sucker you in when the market leaders are really taking a hit. In this case oil, metals and cyclicals have really been hammered lately. Patience my friends - don't get sucker punched trying to guess "how low is low".

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I have recently taken a position in Google (Goog) because of the leader's recent pullback, followed by the firming of the stock price demonstrated by the pattern of higher lows over the last couple weeks. This potential triangle pattern could resolve into a bullish signal should the stock price break out to the upside in coming weeks. There has been plenty of talk about the next big service/product the company will release. Two recent Google service/product announcements included the testing of their Web buying system that they claim to be unlike PayPal's and the new government search site. Anyone who follows Google knows that they announce new and exciting services/products on a regular basis making it very tough for Microsoft and Yahoo to keep up and grow at such an astounding rate.

On top of this, the Technology/Computer Services sector is starting to see a steady flow of institutional money begin to pour back into it. Despite already having taken a position in Google, I would suggest waiting to see how the triangle pattern resolves before pulling the trigger.

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As I am sure you have all heard by now, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi was killed today in an air strike. Al-Zarqawi woke up this morning to a plethora of U.S. warplanes dropping 500-pound bombs on his isolated "safehouse". Upon the news of Zarqawi death, oil dropped a little bit as terror worries dimmed, but not by much. The markets have been in a free fall as of late and many are viewing this time as a good opportunity to get back in. I will continue to stay on the sidelines with much of my money until the markets gain a better footing. There are just too many bearish patterns still out there and I can't seem to find any good news for the markets on the horizon yet. My current favorite stock remains Sunoco (SUN), at least until the hurricane season ends.

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The last I posted, I talked about my new favorite pick - Sunoco (SUN). Since then the company has started to bounce nicely and I still believe it has another 5 - 10 points left to go. I wanted to mention some other reasons why I like this position right now. First is that gasoline inventories were just announced yesterday. Estimates were looking for an increase of 1.4 million barrels but fell short of that number receiving only 800,000 barrels.

On top of this, hurricane season started yesterday. Most of the production lines in the gulf are very vulnerable still and still trying to make a recovery from the Katrina & Rita tag-team devastations. What is also interesting is that for a hurricane to disrupt supply, it does not need to be a category 3, 4 or 5. The government mandates all employees and personal working on the gulf oil rigs evacuate from the gulf until the storm passes. This is usually enough to disrupt supply for 3 days assuming no damage is actually done to the rig by the hurricane itself. The hurricane center's forecast is for 13-16 named storms this season, June 1 through Nov. 30. Eight to 10 are expected to become hurricanes, with winds of 74 mph or more. Of those, four to six could be major — Category 3 or higher, with winds of 111 mph or more. Hurricane Katrina, which caused $80 billion in damage and more than 1,570 deaths, was a Category 3 storm.

Oh and did I mention that our problems with Iran are not getting any better and I will be surprised to see this issue solved diplomatically. A strong EPS, PE Ratio and Price Pattern are three more reasons I like Sunoco here. The MAC and Full Stoch. have also turned north nicely and suggest the stock will continue to move higher.

Shares of pipelines (WMB, EP, KMI), services (HAL, BHI), refiners (VLO, SUN), ethanol producers (ADM, PEIX, MGPI, ANDE), E&P (APC, APA, CHK, DVN) have all traded higher lately and I believe this run will continue as institutional money starts making its way back into these sectors for a play on the hurricane season and other reasons mentioned above. As much as I hate to say it - I think gas is going to record highs this year. Hopefully the money I make off Sunoco will be enough to offset these costs.

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I apologize for the abbreviated post, but I will be headed out of town shortly until Monday. I did however just want to post quick about my next pick, that being Sunoco Inc (SUN). Last Friday SUN dipped as low as $63.62 before finishing back up to $66.57. This then happened again and once more after that. A possible indication that SUN has found a bottom.

The price of oil appears to have stabilized and SUN looks ready to make a major bounce.

SUN was as high as $88 during the past month. I wouldn't be surprised to see it rebound to at least $78 during the next month. News came out recently forecasting between 13-16 named storms this year including 8-10 hurricanes and 4-6 major hurricanes. We could see oil prices reach record highs very soon.

Look for an updated post and more on Sunoco soon!

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Jack Welch is the former CEO of General Electric (GE). His book, titled "Winning" has been a very popular read amongst top corporate execs and other high level business people. I have only recently had a chance to browse through some of Jack’s book and wanted to share a piece that I was particularly fond of and couldn't agree more with. The piece deals with the characteristics of employees’ top employees and the vibe they give off. Jack says he always looked for individuals who could exude positive energy while pushing and probing with a curiosity that borders on skepticism. This type of attitude is what really helps propel a business forward in a positive way.

Getting into further details, Jack often would look for Integrity, Intelligence, and Maturity in individuals. One of the most important things to understand here is that Jack was NOT talking about age. Individuals can be mature at any age and immature at any age. Do not stereotype young or old people regarding their maturity because of their age. Look for the 4 Es in a person, which are:

(1) ENERGY
(2) Ability to ENERGIZE others
(3) EDGE (courage)
(4) EXECUTE (accomplish goals)

and also one P, which is PASSION.

These are going to be your best employees. Real life examples of this include individuals like Katherine Binsack from Text100 Corp, Mike Rundle from 9Rules Network, Adam Chojnacki from McNeil Pharmaceuticals, and Joe Dolan of Nalod Associates. All of these individuals embody the above characteristics with a special emphasis on Passion. They love what they do and are driven to not only do more, but get others around them excited about what they do. Their creative minds give them the edge and courage needed to continue to excel in their fields while their past experiences and higher education give them the knowledge and realization needed to execute and accomplish their goals.

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The newest stock in my portfolio is Energy Conversion Devices (ENER) aka ECD Ovonics. ENER describes itself as the leader in the synthesis of new materials and the development of advanced production technology and innovative products. It has invented, pioneered and developed its proprietary, enabling technologies in the fields of energy and information leading to new products and production processes based on amorphous, disordered and related materials.

"The new reality of higher oil prices continues to bring increased attention and a sense of urgency to the alternative energy sector where ECD Ovonics has been a major international player. This has translated into record sales at United Solar Ovonic and the award of a contract to Cobasys by General Motors' Saturn VUE for Cobasys' advanced Ovonic NiMH battery solutions." Stanford R. Ovshinsky; President, Chief Scientist and Technologist of ECD Ovonics.

The Company's portfolio of alternative energy solutions includes Ovonic thin-film amorphous solar cells, modules, panels and systems for generating solar electric power; Ovonic NiMH batteries; Ovonic hydride storage materials capable of storing hydrogen in the solid state for use as a feedstock for fuel cells or internal combustion engines or as an enhancement or replacement for any type of hydrocarbon fuel; and Ovonic fuel cell technology. ECD Ovonics' proprietary advanced information technologies include Ovonic phase-change electrical memory, Ovonic phase-change optical memory and the Ovonic Threshold Switch. ECD Ovonics designs and builds manufacturing machinery that incorporates its proprietary production processes, maintains ongoing research and development programs to continually improve its products and develops new applications for its technologies.

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If this were a stock, I would surely own a lot of it. I still cannot believe this is real. It seems like this is the ultimate solution to the gas crisis and I look forward to seeing how this technology progresses over the next 20 years. Do you think that in the future, filling up our tanks of gas will consist of merely turning on the faucet to get the 4 ounces of water needed to travel 100 miles? Again I ask, can this be real?

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Hi everyone. I am back from my much-needed vacation that included a private cruise in Paradise and a wedding in Philly, PA. Everyone had a great time and all would agree this was an "adventure" that I could write a book about. I won't get into details but lets just say we all had a great time. Well I am back now and wanted to let all my great readers know that I will be back up and posting again soon. On a side note I would like to congratulate Dan and Jodi and wish them all the best. It was great to finally reunite with many of my college friends who still remain my best friends. I have to go unpack now but will get back to everyone shortly! Thanks friends :-)

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I have had many requests from virtually all my colleagues to further explain what I look for in a stock in terms of technical fundamentals and chart patterns. I am far from an expert in this subject but I do not like seeing many of my friends fail to maximize profits (or worse, lose money) because they don't recognize proper stock injection points, the only time I will buy a stock.

I have thus decided to start a stock chart pattern recognition series. In this series I will show you basic stock patterns and how they certain patterns tend to resolve bullish while other patterns will resolve bearishly. Recognizing these before they happen can make you a considerable amount of money.

I will talk about chart patterns such as Double Top/Bottom, Head and Shoulders, Falling/Rising Wedge Triple Top/Bottom, Flag Pennant, Symmetrical, Ascending & Descending Triangles and Price Channels. Oh and did I mention my personal favorite - The Cup and Handle.

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I have so many great stock picks right now that it was hard to choose which one to post this week. After a long period of debating with myself, I decided to choose one that I thought was setting up nicely for a breakout come mid-April/early-May. That one stock was Teva Pharmaceutical Industries (TEVA).

Teva Pharmaceutical describes themselves as a global pharmaceutical company specializing in the development, production and marketing of generic and proprietary branded pharmaceuticals as well as active pharmaceutical ingredients. Teva is among the top 20 pharmaceutical companies and among the largest generic pharmaceutical companies in the world.

Teva's recent pullback has setup a great buying opportunity here.

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Are you lost in the market? Need some more good investing ideas but can't seem to find them? What you really need is a GPS Satellite system to help you navigate your way to the best opportunities. Ok, so maybe they don't make a GPS navigation system for the market, but they GPS satellite market is booming and setting up to grow even more.

The two stocks that are on my radar screen in this sector (Electronics/electronic equipment Widx .EEE) are NovAtel (NGPS) and Garmin (GRMN). Both of these companies are leaders in their sector and both of these companies have set up very well for another strong breakout.

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I returned home from a much-needed vacation to Cancun, Mexico late last night and to my joy found my portfolio up very handsomely. The big winner was Western Silver Corp (WTZ), a mining company that I recommended but 3-days before the big news. Western Silver Corp. shares skyrocketed 27.21% that day to finish at $21.60 per share, with above average volume trading.

On Friday, Western Silver and Glamis Gold Ltd. (GLG) announced an agreement whereby Glamis will acquire, through an agreed plan of arrangement, all outstanding shares of Western Silver for a total consideration of approximately $1.0 billion (USD). Under the plan of arrangement, each Western Silver shareholder will receive 0.688 of a Glamis common share and one share in a new exploration and development company ("ExploreCo") for each issued Western Silver share.

Congratulations to all my readers who cashed in on these huge gains.

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By the time you read this message I will have already left for my nice weeklong getaway to Cancun, Mexico. A great opportunity for me to relax and reflect on what is really important things in life - spending quality time with those you care most about. One of my favorite sayings comes from a professional investor and friend of mine, David. He quotes:

I discovered (finally!) that, despite the ephemeral fame and fortune success can usher in, making money is not the eschaton I had believed it to be. Life is about more than the amount of money we can amass; it is rather the quality and quantity of our relationships we share.

These words very much ring true to me and I believe this very strongly, but nonetheless I am going to be just north of one of the hottest markets in the world, Brazil. My favorite stock from this market comes in the form of the countries largest bank.

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This week the markets held their gains as we descend into the extended weekend (markets closed Monday). Oil and energy stocks rebounded after sliding a bit in previous weeks. Oil now sits at $60 per barrel. This was not however the sector that I went digging for opportunities in. Who wants to dig for oil, when you can dig for gold and silver?

For a while now the Gold and Silver markets have been hot and after a recent pull back, I think that these two markets could be set for another nice up-tick and I am going to share with you my two favorite stocks of this industry.

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Many restaurant chains are scheduled to report earnings this week and the ones that have reported already have been promising. I particularly think that P.F. Changs (PFCB) and Wendy's (WEN) have set up well here.

P.F. Changs, for those of you have never been or heard of, owns and operates two restaurant concepts in the Asian niche. P.F. Chang's China Bistro features a blend of high-quality, traditional Chinese cuisine and American hospitality in a sophisticated, contemporary bistro setting. Pei Wei Asian Diner offers a modest menu of freshly prepared Asian cuisine in a relaxed, warm environment offering attentive counter service and take-out flexibility. The company currently owns and operates 131 P.F. Chang's and 77 Pei Wei Asian Diner restaurants.

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I wrote an article a while back about Corning Glassworks (GLW). At the time the stock had set up nicely to make a good breakout from $19.50 to $25 and change. The stock has since pulled back nicely. I have not yet decided to jump back into this one but I do have it on my watch list again.

As LCD TV's continue to post strong sales in record numbers, Corning is well positioned to take advantage of this market. As one of the leading providers and developers of the glass used for the screens of these LCD TV's, the growth opportunity here is very strong and the stock is setting up again for a nice up tick.

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I am fuming tonight. Take this message as you will but tonight I witnessed why America is full of hatred and racism. Tonight we were suppose to honor one of the most prominent figures in our nations history but thanks to a few, the focus of the funeral quickly turned into a political spectacle with the far left wing democrats leading the way. What I witnessed today and what everyone else in this country witness today was a mockery of a sitting US President at the funeral celebrating the life of Coretta Scott King. Please discontinue reading this article if you want to continue wearing foot-long blinders to the real state of our nation and preserve your innocent view of the democratic way.

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How do you define diversification? Many investors would argue that in order to be considered diversified, you need to hold a minimum of five different stocks or two mutual funds in separate market sectors. Some would also argue that you need even more five stocks or funds to be truly diversified. About.com defines diversification as:

Diversification is the calculated spreading of your investments over a number of different asset classes. This cushions your portfolio if one part is down, since different asset classes (stocks, bonds, cash, etc.) seldom move in the same direction. In mutual funds, you achieve diversification by the fund owning 50 stocks, instead of a few.

I agree with everything here but feel that many investors commonly overlook one very important point when it comes to diversification. A point that could be providing them with a false sense of security and cost them a lot of money.

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The time has come to get the job done. First, let’s take a ride on the history train. In the late 70’s, when President Carter was in office, the Soviet Union was building up. The approach then was primarily diplomatic in nature. What did that accomplish? Nothing. The cold war got darker and the Soviets got stronger. In 1980 President Regan took office with a new vision and totally radically approach. He grew the military, grew our nuclear arsenal, developed new missiles and advanced military technology. The Soviets tried to keep up but fell short of our superior military technology and this would eventually lead to the collapse of the Soviet Union.

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As a former employee of Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) for nearly seven years, I have seen the company go through numerous acquisitions. This is common with a business of Johnson & Johnson's size as it serves as the quickest way for them to continue expanding. Currently Johnson & Johnson is in a bidding war with Boston Scientific (BSX) over the highly sought after, cardiovascular device business of Guidant (GDT) - but is this a war that Johnson & Johnson can't lose?

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Every once and a while you hear a politician or even the President mutter the phrase “flat tax”. If you’re like me, that phrase makes your heart jumps into your throat. Then a few days go by and that magical phrase is never mentioned again. It just comes and goes like a mid summer’s night love affair. For those of you who are a product of our fine public school system, a flat tax is a standard percentage on all wages that are earned and nothing else. Simple. Right. For some unknown reason we are taught either as kids, or though the left wing media, that people wealthy and successful are born with some special gene that products their success. Due to this unfair power they possess over us, they should be punished and forced to pay crazy high tax rates so their wealth can be re-distributed to the “less fortunate”.

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