Wealth and Wisdom: Week of July 27, 2026
- 2 days ago
- 4 min read
August will be upon us this coming weekend, the days of back-to-school sales and preseason football, when summer seems to accelerate. And other than a few brief storms, the financial markets continue to cruise, with all three major equity indexes posting 6-7% gains over just the last three months and 9-11% year-to-date.
Artificial intelligence seems to be driving the markets of late, and as is typically the case, there are two sides to the story. On the positive, no one can question the incredible potential of this powerful technology. Of concern to investors is when – and how – that potential will ultimately be translated into actual profits. The companies vying for dominance in the AI frontier are all spending money hand over fist to create capacity with no clear timetable for seeing a return on investment.
In many ways, it does feel like the late 90s when the internet became a pervasive part of our lives. Investors became fascinated with any company with dotcom as part of its name, regardless of whether they were actually making money. Many of them never did, and the washout resulted in one of the deepest and longest bear markets in modern history.
History doesn’t always repeat itself, of course. But it can still make you nervous.
The PROMISE Act could compel the U.S. Senate to debate and vote on legislation aimed at restoring Social Security to solvency. (Reading time: 4 minutes)
New research shows that while tariffs can protect some U.S. industries – they wind up making America less competitive in the long run. (Reading time: 4 minutes)
All are viable options for helping your children save – but their benefits depend mostly on what the money will ultimately be used for. (Reading time: 4 minutes)
How secure would you really be if you had $5 million parked in risk-free Treasury bills? Probably a lot less than you think. (Reading time: 5 minutes)
Workable ideas for coming up with cash when you need it right away, ranked from best to worst. (Reading time: 7 minutes)
The 50/30/20 rule could give you some much needed discipline in how you manage your cash flow – while lowering your stress level. (Reading time: 6 minutes)
If you’ve been retired for a while, ask yourself these four questions from time to time to help make the rest of your life the best of your life. (Reading time: 4 minutes)
How to trim the fat and spare the muscle: focus first on your non-essential expenses. (Reading time: 6 minutes)
Learn the ground rules of required minimum distributions – then look for ways to make them less taxing. (Reading time: 8 minutes)
I’ve done most of these and can recommend them. And let’s add the St. Louis Fed’s award-winning Economy Museum to the list. (Reading time: 3 minutes)
Words to the Wise
“History never repeats itself. Man always does.”
– Voltaire
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