And now for something completely different...

The day has come that you have all been waiting for: I am currently working on my first REAL post (ie investment thesis). Expect results.

Please Allow Me to Introduce Myself...

The purpose of this blog is to get me off my ass and put together some cogent investment ideas using the tools I have acquired from my time studying finance/accounting/economics at university(which I currently may or may not attend), as well as from my extensive (but possibly non-existent) work experience. I also spend a lot of time reading stuffs from around the internets, and even more dangerously, I get ideas from what I read. And I want to share it all with you. In the interest of full disclosure, here is what you can expect from this little project of mine:

• Rational (or at least colourful) fundamental analysis of equities, or if I’m feeling particularly adventurous/insane (not outside the realm of possibility): corporate debt.There will not be any geographic or sector preference, but I am certain you will notice a pattern emerge as I reach a comfort level within a particular category. That being said, do not be surprised if one day (or more realistically, week) I focus on a Canadian consumer company, and the next, Icelandic biotech. DO be surprised, however, if I devote any significant attention to financial firms.
• A noticeable tilt towards value investing. Call it narcissism, call it perceptiveness, call it cynicism, call it what you will but there’s something about the way I think that leads me to believe that people, when observed in aggregate act idiotically and in contravention to utility-maximizing behaviour. What’s to say that this is not true about the equity markets? Warren Buffet once proclaimed himself to be "the world's best paid critic" because of his view was that markets were not as smart/insightful/folksy as he. I also hold the view that the markets that determine the prices of assets can be described as wonky, at best. That being said, I look for companies that trade at a discount to their "intrinsic" value. I do not rely on a specific metric because they tend to be misleading or manipulatable (I'm looking at you P/E) , and can lead one to miss an interesting story. That being said, I would be foolish to ignore them completely, because they are the closest thing we have to comparing apples with apples in the banana-strewn jungle that is the equities market.
• No political commentary. I will avoid politics like the plague that it is. That is as solid a promise as any that I can make. There will be no commentary on Obama, or Steven Harper, or Medvedutin or any of their policies UNLESS it directly relates to a particular company/sector that I am interested in. All too often across these internets, financial bloggers that I enjoy reading (about financial topics) descend into the morass that is world of political commentary and it completely removes any enjoyment/enlightenment that I derive from their work. This is often because a) they lack the depth of understanding to comment on the topic; or b) their commentary is so glaringly biased that they do nothing more than immediately alienate/enrage half of their readership; or even worse: c) both a) and b). So there will be no commentary on politicians; and the only commentary on policy (actual and proposed) will relate to a specific sector or company.
•  Egregious utilization of parentheses and asides, but proper usage of “your” vs “you’re”.

Because I am new to this whole “sharing” concept, I do encourage feedback. This, however, extends only to good feedback, such as constructive criticism, offers to lend financial assistance to deposed Nigerian princes, and/or free/interesting smut websites. If I make a mistake, kindly point it out, kindly being the operative word as this is a learning experience for all involved.