Is your house in foreclosure?  Were you ripped off in the Madoff ponzi scheme?  Lose your job?  Is your credit card on life support?  Poor baby.  But, don’t blame the country’s financial woes, or the banking industry going AWOL with your retirement savings.  Who you gonna blame – blame your sex drive!

That’s right, your sex drive – both men and women – are to blame for financial woes, according to researchers at the University of Michigan.  They hypothesized that financial problems are a results of people overspending as a result of evolution.  People, they say, are more concerned about their success rate with the opposite sex.  “Financial consumption,” as the researchers called it, was the single most important factor that predicted how many partners men wanted within the next five years, or how many they’d had in the previous five years. 

Don’t you just love scientists who get paid to do research on this kind of stuff?

Conservatives Vs Risk-Takers

Back to the research.  The scientists found that just 25 percent of men with the most conservative approach to finances had about three sexual partners in the previous five years and wanted just one in the next five years.  I guess the conservative guys were really lowering their expectations.  But, the most liberal and risk-taking guys in terms of finances had almost double the number of sexual conquests in the previous years and wanted double as many in the coming years.

Keeping Up With the Jones

According to the researchers this all explains why everyone has such a strong drive “to keep up with the Joneses.”  Frankly, I’m confused.  Are they saying one group is trying to keep up with the Joneses financially, or are they saying one or the other group is just trying to get the Joneses between the sheets?

The researchers claim that the country faces financial difficulties because we overextend ourselves financially as a means of showing off our status.  I guess Bernie Madoff is sitting in prison right now thinking that’s exactly what he was trying to do.  How’s that working for you, Bernie?

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Reading gives you brain nutrients, just like eating food gives you body nutrients. (Hmm, how about soul nutrients?) It’s been my constant complaint that young people don’t read these day. As a consequence of not reading, you find that the only source of information they get will be from things from internet (talking about the facebook and youtube variety) and perhaps TV. Without this habit of reading, it’s hard to improve yourself beyond the beta version of the worldview that you had when you left formal schooling. If I have a kid, I’ll definitely try to put in this habit because I think it’s a very good determinant of success, especially so in formal schooling years. You’ll be surprised that most students do not even read their textbooks, preferring to have someone to tell them the information (like me) or just ask someone. Silly isn’t it?

I think reading will give you different sorts of mental models to apply to problems. Each ’subject’ like maths, psychology, economics, philosophy, science, accountings…all gives different ways of thinking about things. Recently, I found that fiction is very very satisfying too and I had been neglecting that for years (I never read fiction again after secondary school).

2. Reflection

By reflection, I mean to think about events or information that bombards us everyday. In terms of education, it’s to think about the worksheet you had just done and see why you got it wrong and if there are are places to improve on the answers. I remembered that I used to do a problem twice in different ways just to see which method is more efficient (it’s a geeky sort of amusement for me as well). For example, there is a geometry rule that angle in a semi-circle will form a right angle triangle. When I read about it, I refused to believe it. So, I really drew many circles and started proving to myself, empirically though, that each of these rules are true. It was years later on when I realised that the knowledge that you had isn’t yours until you had to fight for it.

I find that the reading good books makes reflection easier. If the information in the book leads to easy understanding, it leads to easy absorption and assimilation. Thereafter, it’s easier to link up previous ideas that you have inside you to build up the connections between your mental models.

3. Action
Thinking and not doing will not lead to anything. There’s a very interesting discussion in the cbox about the book title – Think and Grow rich. Of course thinking alone will not lead one to becoming richer, and most people would stop at the thinking phase. Getting down to do it is actually the last step.

Three simple steps to success, but it’s not easy to do it at all. The steps can be re-iterated to get the desired results, like 1 and 2 can be looped until a desired solution is formed, or 2 and 3 can be looped until the desired results is produced, but you can’t skip any of it.

     So here is a bold prediction.  The black bag dudes that Jesse Ventura talks about in his new book, “63 Documents your Government doesn’t want you to read” will soon take matters into their own hands to stoke up our National fear.  They need a scared populace.  A cowed populace.  A populace that listens to what the talking heads on the television tell him to do as they read their corporate scripts. 

     We all know it’s going to happen.  Maybe in conjunction with some kind of Border scare.  The Mexican Narco Cartels will do anything for a quick buck so I would not be surprised if theres some sort of political theatre down there involving some “radicalized muslim mexican” group.  This is to ramp up the Homeland Security a few levels and to take a few more civil liberties from the populace.  This makes sense.  They try their oppression out just like sports teams have spring training.  That’s what the Republican National Convention served as for the National Guard.  The next level is what they are doing in New York where they hare clamping down on illegals by checking their papers aggressively.  They have displaced thousands of illegals into Philadelphia and other nearby cities crashing local day labor markets.  Which takes jobs from the struggling who then become politicized which pressure local governments who will soon pick up the ball and move them, the illegal work force, on to the next town. 

     Which means you should be looking at investing in local security companies who will be called on to help the over worked local law enforcement deal with this new threat.  Also handcuff makers, stun gun merchants,bullet proof vest makers and of course oil companies (who always are making record profits.)   For the individual there has never been a better time to learn to speak Spanish.  Jail guards who are bi-lingual will be paid an extra .25 cents an hour or more in their newly de-unionized work force. 

     Another language the go-getter should consider learning is Mandarin.  It’s always a good idea to learn the language of the people who own your Country’s debt. 

     Everyone should read Jessie Ventura’s new book.  It shows you that as far back as Kennedy the Pentagon was running the same false flag ops that oppressors throughout history have always used to keep the populace afraid of the Knight in the Castle on the other side of the mountain.  I’ll keep you safe from the Black Knight.  I love my peasants.  You are safe in my Keep! USA USA!

 “We’re Ready: This State is prominence Play! ”

The Ultramodern Guise of Wyoming’s Uranium Mining 

Part One of a Five – Sliver Series

Wyoming Chieftain Dave Freudenthal wholly likes the current uranium bull market, “I wish the price of yellowcake stays up, and things impress moving. ” Even so, the Wyoming democratic lion strongly endorses uranium mining grease his state. That would parent sense because Wyoming is the largest U. S. uranium root. In addition than 40 percent of the uranium resources fame the United States are located impact Wyoming, according to the savings and resource estimate published by the U. S. Energy Score Administration ( EIA ). Since hitting a bottom access late December 2000, the spot price of uranium has soared by higher than 500 percent, drawing near a large of $38. 50 / pound at the nib of February. The last tide uranium traded this sky-high, Head Ronald Reagan was into the second clock of his primeval phrase. 

Unlike some states, seat uranium mining is frowned upon, or banned, Wyoming welcomes the industry salt away unbolted arms. “We’ve always sort of been wealthy screen the uranium industry, ” Freudenthal told StockInterview. com. “The uranium industry is component of our history. It’s not something that is frightening or menacing to us. ” Freudenthal plainly sees nuclear energy because a likely solution for the energy action, “I don’t credit anybody has slab reservations that we itch to have greater maid capability domination energy. I regard, guidance the circles that disturbance about those equations, crackerjack is plainly a role for nuclear talent. ”

Freudenthal urged the important markets to act on the energy proceeding by turning to Wyoming and mining the abundant supply of uranium, “There’s got to speak for some undarkened signals to the capital markets that shot fix this area will yet emblematize rewarded. We certainly keep the resource. ” Since June 2004, publicly traded secondary uranium companies and speculators keep created a staking frenzy connections the state. Wyoming’s Office of State Lands and Investments reported developers are snapping up tens of thousands of acres of state leases. The itemizing room, location prospectors and developers study budding public kingdom for leasing purposes clout the Cheyenne office of the U. S. Bureau of Land Management ( BLM ), was filled to capacity during a recent visit by the StockInterview. com editorial company. 

StockInterview. com asked if the powerful high-reaching calm of staking exertion credit Wyoming by publicly traded companies, comparable now Strathmore Minerals ( TSX: STM; Other OTC: STHJF ), Energy Metals Organization ( TSX: EMC ), Kilgore Minerals ( TSX: KAU ), UR – Energy ( TSE: URE ) and Uranerz Energy ( OTC BB: URNZ ), was merely speculative, Freudenthal responded, “I deem we’re ended the sort of speculation of individuals running completed and selection materiality up. We’re down to no-nonsense players hard-won to generate stern decisions. ” Crack story for the major – mentioned uranium advancing companies: The Officer of Wyoming believes you tight line, and he’s understanding matter he encumbrance to console you! 

Freudenthal was rosy amassed companies would bring their projects to Wyoming, “These are not aglow investments. But you also don’t potency out and re – establish uranium production, if at the stump of the continuance, you don’t posses a buyer. ” Ruler Freudenthal is a positive listener and acts fast and decisively when diverse facts. For case, when StockInterview. com informed him that decommissioned Russian nuclear warheads just now powered about one access every twenty electric vivid bulbs connections the United States, and that the swords – for – plowshares arrangement might foot force 2013 ( limitation of HEU ), Freudenthal responded, “If that timing is correct, wherefore they should going on embody forging decisions to construct credit Wyoming. I pipe dream they make. ” 

A sizeable cipher of Canadian and European financiers buy skillful is a nuclear renaissance. Post does the Shepherd stand? “We’re ready, ” Freudenthal shot back. “They aloof need to outset bringing the projects and the filthy lucre ( into Wyoming ). I understand we own a express satisfying regulatory climate. I determine if they maneuver into the ‘in situ’ ( ISL ) mining, we’ve got some proof salt away that. ” And if the public companies bring their projects to Wyoming, how does Pilot Freudenthal stroke? “This state is Prerogative PLAY! ” he exuberantly announced. 

Asked to compare Wyoming cover Neoteric Mexico, once a top uranium – practical state, he responded, “This state, historically, is ethical much other easy harbour everything adding to. ” On the other hand, he reasonably deferred to Dissimilar Mexico’s own nuclear renaissance, seat rumors are flying of a unique nuclear skill plant and the expansion of uranium mining and nuclear weight that state, explaining, “New Mexico is closer to some larger energy consuming markets. They own fewer miles of transmission merchandise to conformation if they are reaction to gratify to California or Nevada. Bodily wouldn’t seem illogical if I were a private moneyman to view polished first. ”

What does the Boss have to announce to the topical flock of uranium progress companies, joining Cameco’s Function Resources connections mining Wyoming’s uranium? Slick are several companies, which obtain staked land, and are today source to variation their projects forward. Freudenthal advised, “They ought to takeoff allocating greater cash at a rate that the project sponsors are well-off. We’re ended the speculators. Humans recognize present ( uranium ) is here. Nobody wants to hit the market severely early. And they don’t longing to act for mortally dilatory. It’ll maneuver. I uncolored don’t comprehend when. But when sincere does, we’re prerogative a position to respond to incarnate. We’ve got the goods. We’ve got the hold up regulatory climate. ”

Would Dean Freudenthal invite or discourage a public utility importance condominium a nuclear dynamism plant notoriety Wyoming? “I don’t keep a holy mess protect one. The interrogation absolutely has always been, and most of what we are focused on, wash away, is receipt efficacy goods built. If we don’t have dynamism wares, we’re not working to amuse nuclear plants. We’re not bit to stimulate somber – fired plants. We’re not agility to carry object. Ours is an export state. Trained is not enough internal demand for electricity to make good the construction of a plant. ” Freudenthal enhanced Wyoming was “waiting to regard if the larger economy is ready for some nuclear capacity plants. ”

Two senescence ago, his administration created the Wyoming Infrastructure Authority to obligation on obtaining virtue goods constructed. That may helping hand empty the bug stalling the launch of Wyoming’s front nuclear reactor, being vigorous because exploiting the state’s most cherished renewable energy source, wind. “We’ve got five or six areas that are cosmos – class wind resources. We retain persons who demand to shape the turbines, but they keep got to have access to the power grid. And I think the same is true in terms of whether it is a nuclear power plant, a coal – fired plant or this new combined – cycle plant, where you can convert coal to gas. Ultimately, the marketplace will decide which way they’re going to go. But, no matter which one they do, I know my chances of getting it in Wyoming are greater if I have figured out our power line routes. ”

Freudenthal is popular, can think on his cowboy – boot clad feet, and can be decisive. And he is working on the power line routes, not just dreaming about what could be done. “We have some hopeful things, ” he explained. “We have been working with California on the Frontier Line. ” And what is the Frontier Line? U. S. Secretary of Energy announced in a press release a year ago, “This proposal exhibits the boldness and innovation the West is traditionally known for, as well as the multi – state cooperation and big – picture thinking required to make regional markets thrive. ” Secretary Bodman praised Governors Schwarzenegger, Freudenthal, Guinn and Huntsman, saying, “… the ‘Frontier Line’ project will begin the process of ensuring reliable electricity for some of our fastest growing Western States. ”

Being an export state, Wyoming has done well during the recent boom in commodities, enjoying the rising royalties from the production of oil, natural gas, coal and uranium. This past year, the state built up a surplus of nearly $2 billion. How does Freudenthal plan to spend this money? “We’re putting a chunk into college scholarships, a chunk into infrastructure and a chunk into human capital investments. ” And next year, Freudenthal will have more such chunks to spend as high energy prices continue to demand the extraction of those abundant resources Wyoming generously offers the rest of the United States. 

As a side note, Wyoming is a “red state, ” but with a very popular governor who is ironically a Democrat. While we did not discuss Freudenthal’s political ambitions, Wyoming’s previous leading political personality has been serving as Vice – President of the United States through most of this decade. Memo to Hillary Rodham Clinton: Don’t overlook Dave Freudenthal if you want to woo the vast number of red states between the east coast and the left coast. This governor could help get your old room back at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.

What is the current economical system?

One would jump to conclusion, saying it is Capitalism. But is capitalism in France equal to capitalism in U.S. or Britain? All of them have the same essence of course, profit, but they differ in nuances which are enough to completely change the experience a human person has while living in one of those systems. Also different rules seem to apply in different situations. These differences become even greater in countries which have only recently adopted capitalism after the fall of the Berlin Wall and the participation of these countries in world economy is enough for them to have some impact on it. There are authors and many voices in these transitional countries which claim that theirs is a corrupt, wild capitalism. That opinion is generally accepted in my country (Croatia) which has adopted capitalism in 1991 after cutting ties with the former Yugoslavia and rejecting the model of “self-management” socialism. The global economy has had a very beneficial effect from converting these countries to capitalism and the introduction of foreign capital in these transitional countries has brought a lot of profit for many companies in the two decades after the wall fell.

Now with less and less profit opportunities in these countries the global economy is avidly seeking the platform for new expansion and places like Iraq, Afghanistan and soon Libya are the most often mentions in expansion of venture capital. The short supply of new places for capital growth and the economic crisis have led to some serious thought in rethinking the system we live in and which we grapple to understand. 

The old discussion of government interventionism is as futile as is obsolete. On one hand we have seen some drastic interventionism by the Obama administration and on the other hand there is no chance that in any place that interventionism is going to come without a cost. 

The conclusion is that neither can capitalism be pinned down to an exact formula or can it be discussed generally without defining the exact location in which this “capitalism” is being discussed.

Unfortunately most of the people in the western world which rethink capitalism do it because of some strong conviction which usually goes together with politically radical stances. The rest which are not radical come mostly from marginal bases of thought. There has been however some mentions from the leading financial institutions that there is space for rethinking the current system but these mentions were also on the margins of news and have been very timid because of the fear of the effect on investors. 

It is nonetheless becoming clear that this way of doing business can’t go on forever first of all because there is a limit to growth; and capitalism depends on growth, second because governments can’t force companies to act in a responsible manner to the society and nature. 

The question of private property is indisputable. But there is a question of putting caps on it. If there is no limit on property the world could find itself in a position of being so much in the hands of one person or corporation that all our checks and balances which we have today would be unable to protect us from being used as “slave” labor or becoming dependant on the quirks of some body which has only internal control and does not report to nobody. I am not trying to intimidate you. This is a far off possibility which can hardly happen in our lifetimes but if it is a possibility for our children we must think it over. The same principle is behind anti-monopoly acts which most countries have. 

Since most of the “revolutionary” new ideas come from either politically or otherwise radical people, most of them are unreal, unfeasible, unfair or plain stupid. The new paradigm if it comes would entail a very deep analysis of what is and what can be done and that is a job that no person can do alone not even in a lifetime. Sure a person could think of a simple yet powerful idea but the world and the economy isn’t simple and such ideas no matter how good they sound always contain a hidden catch simply because not even great organisations can grasp the totality of the world economy nonetheless individuals. 

I am not talking about taking down capitalism here. I am talking about trying to make it work a bit better for everybody who plays the game. Its about efficiency and economics. and that’s what capitalism is also about, or rather it should be. 

Almost all ideas which come from outside the high financial elite are unreal, and yet their proponents are usually very emotional about it. There is a profound lack of understanding global economy in most of these ideas and on the other hand people which have a good understanding rarely think about changing the system and that is because they know that there is no system. There is only a set of non-specific rules and the rest is a vicious and merciless market in which only the fittest survive specially in these dark ages of global recession.

There we come across one of the probably best descriptions of capitalism. It is the rule of the market. But the problem in that is that not all things are left to choice. We can’t really choose not to use oil, can we? Of course there is a great drive to develop electric cars but this system is still not available enough to be concurrent to oil. There are several such commodities which we, as consumers cannot really choose about so the market system has a sort of a flaw in it. We are left to choose some brands out of others but there is little about the way of life we can choose if we are not prepared to take, in some cases, very drastic changes to our lives which can also bring insecurity and risk. 

The other big problem is that people without capital can hardly start their businesses and the situation in the market is such that loans are hard to get and start ups often go down because its simply very hard to stay up in this climate. 

In capitalism, everyone with the drive or an idea should be able to start-up a business but that is far from reality. The ones which have succeeded in doing so without any capital of their own are the lucky few which have had a concurrence of various circumstances and there has been more to it than just starting up a business. Of course there has been some ideas which have been very clever and as such brought instant wealth but looking it this way there are far to many of those who have tried to make an average business with an average product and they have been unfortunate to claim that everyone can succeed in capitalism with a good idea. We can’t all invent the new facebook or google, can’t we? It should be easier to start-up a normal business with normal products. The main cause for perpetuating the crisis (not causing it in the first place) is the level of obstacles entrepreneurs have in starting up. If it would be easier to start a normal, responsible business with a solid idea which has potential and foreseen customers, the effects of the crisis would be less disastrous to many who have lost everything in the last couple of years. We can’t just simply shrug it off and say, “listen, those people didn’t manage well in the market so they deserve to be homeless and hungry”, because its simply not true. The loss came as a phenomena. A lot of people lost everything and a lot of doors got closed. You can’t just scribe it off to laziness and lack of effort. What happened was that there was an economic catastrophe just like a tornado or an earthquake. Causes of both are irrelevant, what is relevant is that people got hurt by it and that governments (all of them, not just the U.S.) should have tried to do something better to prevent it because it is their job to protect the people that are paying them. And of course that effort should have been in a rational and scientific way which builds upon the existing set of norms rather than destroying them or wishing for a miracle.

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When people think of making investments they usually think of money. A lot of times when a person has little or no money they feel there is no way to get ahead. In some aspects that is true, but it is also possible to invest in yourself. What do I mean by investing in yourself? Well there are a few ways for a person to improve themselves as a person without much money. One example of this is exercise. You don’t have to have money to exercise. This is something that you can do in the comfort of your home, or in your neighborhood. Not only does exercising regularly helps you look and feel better, it gives you more confidence in yourself. I took up running back in 2006, and I feel it is one of the best investments I’ve made personally in myself. Another way you can invest in yourself is reading. Reading is an activity that keeps the mind fresh and sharp. Most public libraries don’t charge a fee for a library card. Going to the library and reading is one of the best ways to learn. In turn this is another investment you are making in yourself. Its easy to get discouraged and down about the tough times going on in todays society. Don’t let the game play you, play the game. Find ways to keep your head above the water and better yourself. Remember there is always more than one way to solve a problem.

What is an environmental disclosure statement?

In its very basic form, an environmental disclosure statement is a statement provided by a company that outlines the impact and potential risks that company may have on the environment.

An environmental disclosure is required of all publicly traded companies in Canada. To help companies with the task the Canadian government has made available a environmental disclosure guideline pamphlet to help companies prepare the document.

The environmental disclosure statement is a work in progress which means new rules are added periodically, to meet the needs of continuous disclosure obligations.

What does an environmental disclosure statement mean to the investor?

As the world becomes more aware of environmental issues, things like greenhouse gas emissions and concepts such as carbon footprints, start to impact our investment decisions.

Potential investors want to know what impact the environment could have on their investment. To this end, investors have been pushing for greater transparency on issues concerning environmental matters.

Investors have noticed that climate change and sustainability issues have a direct result on their bottom line. As a result investors are now considering a companies environmental impact and long term sustainability goals before making a decision.

What does an environmental disclosure statement mean to a company?

Companies are now forced to give more consideration to their direct impact on the environment. With investment dollars linked directly to environmental concerns it is in a companies best interest to disclose the impact and potential risks their business may have on the environment. As well as disclosing the negative environmental issues a company has the opportunity to disclose exactly what they are doing to lessen this impact.

Businesses need to understand greenhouse gas emissions, energy usage and the risks to their reputation should they pollute the environment. It is also in a companies best interest to take steps to reduce their impact on the environment.

Full environmental disclosure is another issue companies need to deal with. Investors won’t want to invest money in a company that withholds information concerning potential risks to the environment.

What does an environmental disclosure statement meant to the world?

By forcing companies to disclose all matters concerning the environment, we are forcing them to consider their impact on the Earth.

By making investors aware of global environmental issues we are encouraging them to choose companies that support clean air initiatives and take into consideration the social and environmental impact of their business.

As investors we have the combined power to force companies to make a positive environmental difference through their businesses. By reading environmental disclosure statements, we the investor, can make informed decisions about whether or not a company is doing enough to ‘clean-up’ their business.

For a business sustainability is the ultimate goal. In order to have sustainability they will need investors. To attract investors companies will need to show that they are making every effort to minimize their impact on the environment.

Even as online brokerage started in India since around 2005, the choice of stock brokers was limited and hence many investors went with Icicidirect. The main reason for this is that they likely had their savings bank account with ICICI Bank as it is the largest private bank in the country and also the second largest of all banks.

The good things about ICICI Direct demat/brokerage accounts are few. One is that your savings account is linked as a trading account for your demat account. Hence you can seamlessly move your money from bank (icicibank.com) to demat in ICICIdirect.com and buy or sell shares. You can trade on both the Indian stock exchanges Bombay (BSE) and New Delhi (NSE). You can also invest in Initial Public Offers (IPO), Mutual Funds, Govt bonds, Post office savings schemes etc. from one account. Not every broker offers this kind of all-in-one service. Many investors find ICICI Direct’s stock research reports to be good and useful.

Now there are many bad things with ICICIdirect brokerage service. First of all it is very difficult open a new account unless you are already an ICICI Bank customer with a savings or privilege account. Even if you were it would still take a lot of time to let the account be opened, to get confirmation of opening to getting the online login password and username details to login and use the account at icicidirect.com website. It can take two or three months for this alone.

And it does not come cheap. It costs 750 rupees to open an account with them and an annual recurring charge of 450 rupees. It is not free for life like some other brokers give. Above all this the brokerage charges are highest of any Indian broker that I have known of. It is at 0.75% per (delivery) trade, compare with 0.3% to 0.2% charges of others. Add service tax, securities transaction tax on this and it goes to 2.2% for a full blown in and out trade (for the same buy and sell price). Above this for small investors who sell a share or two (of shares like IFCI @ 75 rupees), there is a minimum limit of 28 rupees if the 0.75% is not more than 28 rupees.

Give up on Intraday when you go with ICICIdirect. The trading website is slow when you need it most (during peak trading hours in the day). The orders go through multiple pages of entry and confirmation which each page loading taking long time by which the shares would have danced up and down to make your order no longer valid. The site crashes on significant event days like the stocks all going up only and down only days. I can tell you that you will have a very bitter experience when you face all this. You can’t even expect a good service from its customer service.

But there is one other good thing with ICICI direct demat/trading service. That is you can buy or sell any share (even less popular low liquid less volume shares that go up and down like hell – penny stocks). Other brokers don’t allow that when you see a chance to make profit but allow when you are likely to make losses.

All this boils down to two things. ICICIdirect is good for the beginner traders who just want to start out with little slow investments. It is not at all for the active traders. Believe me, you will have a terrible time from the first day. It is also good for the advanced traders who can profitably trade penny stocks and already have experience of using other better stock brokers. Good luck with your trading or investing in Indian stock market.

Oh I forgot mention the most important one for non-resident-Indians, ICICIDirect lets you open an account for NRIs too which makes it an important one for them. It also lets corporates (or institutional investors).

Bill Gates is super wealthy but his once high-flying application company continues to be inside the doldrums since mid-2002 right after falling from the $35 level. The issue with Microsoft (MSFT) continues to be its failure to develop both its revenues and earnings at the superlative rates the provider after enjoyed. 

Any business the dimension of Microsoft, with a market-cap of $242 billion, will uncover growth an issue considering of its size. But this just isn’t to say the stock is dead. Far from it, Microsoft remains a viable long-term application firm and is money rich with $34 billion or $3.28 per share in cash. This provides the inventory lots of monetary flexibility to develop or purchase development technologies. Microsoft just announced it would spend $1.1 billion in R&D at its MSN Internet unit within the FY07. And according to the Wall Street Journal, Microsoft is exploring the possibility of taking a stake in Internet media service Yahoo (YHOO) to take on Internet advertising behemoth Google (GOOG).

But with an estimated five-year earnings growth rate of a pitiful 12%, the business has its work cut out for it. Trading at 16.30x its estimated FY07 EPS of $1.44, the inventory isn’t expensive but appears to be priced not as a development inventory. 

Its PEG on the surface of 1.51 is not cheap, but if you discount within the money of $3.28 per share, the estimated PEG falls to around 1,0, a decent valuation. Also, if Microsoft can improve on its estimated 12% growth rate, the PEG would decline further.

The fact is Microsoft at the current price deserves a look. If you want to play the stock but don’t want to shell out the $2,347 for a 100-share block, you may want to take a look at the long-term options, also known as LEAPS. For instance, the in-the-money January 2008 $22.50 Microsoft Call LEAPS not set to expire until January 18, 2008 currently costs $380 a contract (100 shares). 

This means you risk a total of $380 for the chance to participate in the potential upside of 100 shares of Microsoft over the next 20 months. The breakeven price is $26.30. If Microsoft breaks $26.30, you would begin to make money on your LEAPS. Conversely, if Microsoft fails to do anything, your maximum risk is $380 on the initial option play. 

Warning: The aforementioned example is for illustrative purposes only and not to be construed as an actual option strategy. Due to the higher risk inherent in selections, I recommend you speak with an investment professional before deciding to employ any strategy involving choices.