Money: What would Jim Cramer think?

Am not a financial analyst but I do try pick some stocks along with leaving a good portion to the "index ETFs" so I don't have to think too hard.

Currently, have long positions in these 4 companies:

Verizon (VZ) - Wireless is huge and will keep getting bigger. Of the 4 biggies in the USA (Verizon, ATT, T-Mobile, Sprint), I went with VZ because its a big Dow30 stock with solid dividends. I've been surprised at the run up in the price since I picked it up a while back so does that make this a growth stock?
Disclaimer: I use ATT Wireless because I signed up with them eons ago and am too lazy to change. Also, since I do travel to Europe occasionally, Verizon's CDMA phones probably don't work in GSM Europe. But many of my friends like their Verizon cell phones because of good coverage in a wide range of locations.

Whole Foods (WFM) - With the increasing health consciousness of Americans, WFM is positioned for growth. Also, I like CEO John Mackey's free market perspective. And finally, by all accounts, the company treats the employees well and they provide good responsible products.
Disclaimer:  I do shop at WFM as well as Trader Joes and Sprouts and Ralphs and I'm not vegan or vegetarian but am trying to be more health conscious about what I eat and also how its produced.

Time Warner Cable (TWC) - Its a risk I admit but I think their aggressive moves to lock up LA Lakers and LA Dodgers and LA Galaxy to form Time Warner Sports Channel will boost them.
Disclaimer: I am a subscriber to TWC because they are the only service where I live. So far I have been pleased with their cable TV and broadband internet.

Union Pacific (UNP) - Sometimes, you just got to buy the big dog in the industry. Of the US rail companies (UNP, CSX, NSC, KSU), UNP has the most total revenue. Rail isn't a glamourous business but they move a lot of goods and materials around the country.

Would these pass Cramer's critical eye?

News: Politics of coverage

Time now Wednesday 10:04AM PDT. Just checked ABCnews.com, NBCnews.com, CBSnews.com, CNN.com, Foxnews.com ...

Four of the five news sites have the Ohio kidnap story as the main story. I define main as big fonts with prominent photo at the top of the web page.

One news site has the Benghazi hearings as the main story.

The other four that have the Ohio story prominent do have "watch live" links.

What does this say about the editorial decisions at the major news sites?

Faith: Elder Ordination

Had the honor and duty to be ordained as an elder in the PCUSA last Sunday, April 7, 2013. I'll be serving as the clerk of our session (the governing council in our church). I was moved as it sank in that I was stepping into a stream that has been flowing for 2000+ years when Jesus inaugurated the church. As part of the ordination, the following questions are asked and answered:

a. Do you trust in Jesus Christ your Savior, acknowledge him Lord of all and Head of the Church, and through him believe in one God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit?

b. Do you accept the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments to be, by the Holy Spirit, the unique and authoritative witness to Jesus Christ in the Church universal, and God’s Word to you?

c. Do you sincerely receive and adopt the essential tenets of the Reformed faith as expressed in the confessions of our church as authentic and reliable expositions of what Scripture leads us to believe and do, and will you be instructed and led by those confessions as you lead the people of God?

d. Will you fulfill your office in obedience to Jesus Christ, under the authority of Scripture, and be continually guided by our confessions?

e. Will you be governed by our church’s polity, and will you abide by its discipline? Will you be a friend among your colleagues in ministry, working with them, subject to the ordering of God’s Word and Spirit?

f. Will you in your own life seek to follow the Lord Jesus Christ, love your neighbors, and work for the reconciliation of the world?

g. Do you promise to further the peace, unity, and purity of the church?

h. Will you seek to serve the people with energy, intelligence, imagination, and love?

i. Will you be a faithful elder, watching over the people, providing for their worship, nurture, and service?

j. Will you share in government and discipline, serving in governing bodies of the church, and in your ministry will you try to show the love and justice of Jesus Christ?

Faith: Rule of Benedict 5

#ruleofbenedict 5: humility begins with obedience

Faith: Rule of Benedict 4

#ruleofbenedict 4: good works come from loving God and othes above self, realizing time is short and trusting in God's mercy

Sports: Looking back on the 3 Final Four runs of UCLA under Howland

Three Final Fours (2006-2008) and Coach Howland was viewed as having a job for life at UCLA.

Well, things went downhill rapidly and by 2013, he was fired.

Those three great runs were of course fueled by talented players who have made for themselves a place in the NBA and by Coach Howland's emphasis on strong man-to-man defense. Of course, some fans second guessed that he didn't allow the team more freedom on offense which may or may not have kept them from the NCAA Championship.

The reality, looking back, is that the difference between victory and defeat is often very slim and UCLA and Howland's fortunes could have been much less.

Turn the clock back to 2006 and what basketball fan will every forget the epic collapse (if you are a Gonzaga fan) or comeback (if you are a UCLA fan) in the regional semi-finals? That first Final Four and Championship game appearance could easily have ended as a "mere" Sweet 16 finish.



In 2008, UCLA was down for almost the whole game against Texas A& M in the 2nd round. UCLA took the lead with hardly any time left. A&M had the final possession to tie the game and their guard drove to the basket but missed in what replays would later show was lots of contact where a foul could easily have been called. Perhaps, he would have missed one or two of the free throws or UCLA would have won in overtime but the game remains one of the more controversial "no calls" in NCAA Tournament history. Thus, the 2008 Final Four run with Kevin Love and Russell Westbrook and Aaron Afflalo could have ended ignominiously in the second round.



Am pretty surch Coach Howland will find a new place to coach and get a fresh start with a new fan base. And hopefully, Coach Alford will be able to grow further as a coach and bring UCLA back to competitiveness.

Fans had hoped for a bigger name coach but I think UCLA hasn't gotten a big name coach since Larry Brown.
Coaches since Brown:
Larry Farmer - prior assistant coach experience with the UCLA job being his first head coaching position
Walt Hazzard - UCLA job first head coach position
Jim Harrick - UCLA job was second head coach position after modest success at Pepperdine
Steve Lavin - UCLA job first head coach position with prior assistant coaching jobs
Ben Howland - successful head coach at Northern Arizona and Pittsburgh prior to leading UCLA
Steve Alford - some successes as head coach of Southwest Missouri State, Iowa and New Mexico before coming to UCLA.

Faith: Rule of Benedict 3

#ruleofbenedict 3: good decision making requires listening of and respect for all involved

Faith: Rule of Benedict 2

#ruleofbenedict 2: a leader knows they answer to God, seeks the well being of group, teaches by example, adapts to each person

Faith: Rule of Benedict 1

#ruleofbenedict 1: commit to a community that has expectations upon its members

Faith: The Rule of Saint Benedict for the Twitter Age?

 

Late last year, had the chance to interact with Greg Richardson at our church day retreat. Richardson who goes by the name "the Strategic Monk" is a lay oblate of the Benedictine order. There are Benedictine monks who reside in traditional monastic communities. However, one can adhere to "The Rule of St. Benedict," be associated with a particular monastic community but live out in a regular profession which is what he does, hence, he is a lay oblate.

The rule is the guide by which a particular community lives. For example, you can read about the Rule of St. Francis that guide the Franciscan friars or the Carmelite Rule of St. Albert. The Rule of Benedict has been translated into English and can be found in various printed editions and in many languages online. I found the edition pictured above in the library and am reading through it now. What I'll attempt to do is summarize the "rules" in Twitter sized bites. I wonder how St. Benedict would react to such an idea? In any case, I hope some of the ancient wisdom will be helpful for us 21st century folks!

To monitor the progress of this series of posts look here under the label rule of benedict or at my Twitter @a4theroad #ruleofbenedict