CharlieThis is Charlie. This fellow's been making all the noise over here. Our combined ages are 159 for those who can't work with big numbers. In the subprime market encouraged by both lenders, intermediaries, and borrowers themselves, that resulted in a lot of people buying a lot of houses that they really didn't want to own or that they can't make payments on for once the normal payments were required. And the people, the institutions, in some cases, intermediaries are going to suffer in various degrees. But I don't see it, I think it's unlikely that that factor alone triggers anything of a massive nature in the general economy. A lot of what went on was a combination of sin and folly. And a lot of it happened because the accountants allowed the lending institutions to show profits on loans where nobody in his right mind would have showed any profit until the loan had matured into a better condition. The minute you pay a bunch of people high commissions to make loans to the undeserving poor or the overstretched rich, you can get loan losses that are staggering. And I don't see how the people did it and still shaved in the morning. Because looking back at them was a face that was evil and stupid. And every year, tens of trillions of dollars of derivatives are bought and sold. It just seems to be getting bigger and bigger and almost certainly improperly accounted for. Do you see anything imminent that could derail this ever-inflating bubble? We certainly don't know what will end it precisely. We don't know when it will end precisely. But we probably, at least I believe, that it will go on and increase to the point where at some point there'll be some very unpleasant things. happen in markets because of it. It sure, as God made little green apples, this is going to cause a lot of trouble in due course. As long as it keeps expanding and ballooning and so on and the convulsions are minor, it can just go on and on. But eventually, there will be a big, a big denouement.
QuestionerI am as a father of five daughters, perplexed and upset, that one or one or one or or more of these foundations is a big supporter of Planned Parenthood and abortion rights. It just doesn't seem to jive with the hero that I study, and I was hoping that you could speak to it.
WarrenYeah, well, I'll be glad to speak to it. I think it's a terrific organization. You know, men set the rules for a lot of years. And I think it's wonderful that a woman can make reproductive choices.
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QuestionerBut, you know, we've got a lot of people to disagree with me on that. I've got a lot of people to agree with me on it, and I hope you'll respect my opinion as I do yours. I'm curious about what you think is the best way to become a better investor.
WarrenI don't think there's anything like reading, and not just as limited to investing at all, but you just got to fill up your mind with various competing thoughts and sort them out as to what really makes sense over time. And then once you've done a lot of that, I think you have to jump in the water because investing on paper and investing with real money is like the difference between reading a romance novel and doing something else.
QuestionerI'm curious to know who are your present-day role models.
WarrenWell, I've had a number of them. And I'm not sure I want to name them because the ones you don't name, they might feel a little left out. I can just tell you that choosing your heroes is very important. I tell that to the students when they come, because you are going to gravitate toward the behavior of those around you. I tell people to be sure and associate with people that are better than you are. Marry up, you know, and hope you find somebody who doesn't mind marrying down. And it will do wonders for you. for you. It was a huge help to me, I can tell you that.
QuestionerWhat do you think are the best ways a 10-year-old can earn money?
WarrenSo whatever you can figure out that other people will pay you to do that they don't want to do themselves or that they're like done for them, I advise you to look around the neighborhood and talk to your parents, talk to your friends, see what other people have done that have been 10 or 11 or 12 years old that's worked for them. and copy it. If you make yourself a very reliable person and stay reliable all your life, faithfully doing whatever you engage to do, it will be very hard for you to fail at anything you want.