Parsad

I like Cnet better than alot of other technology media outlets. They have a couple of fair articles on the pros and cons of the two newly announced Microsoft products. Cheers! http://reviews.cnet.com/tablets/microsoft-surface-rt/4505-3126_7-35332494.html http://www.cnet.com/8301-17918_1-57456648-85/windows-phone-8-os-opens-up-to-multicore-processors-nfc/

I heard Nick Cage has an island in the Bahamas. Craig MacCaw is selling his off the coast of British Columbia. And of course Richard Branson owns Necker Island. But boy, oh boy, they have nothing on Oracle CEO, Larry Ellison...he's buying 98% of Lanai...Hawaii's 6th largest island! I believe he's going to build his dojo there and train an elite squad of ninja assassins to go after Ballmer! ;D Cheers! http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-06-21/oracle-ceo-ellison-bought-most-of-hawaiian-island-lana-i.html

Definitely one of Mark's better letters. Very good stuff! Cheers!

Berkshire subsidiary Lubrizol is buying skin care company Lipotec. Cheers! http://finance.yahoo.com/news/lubrizol-buying-skincare-products-company-111254083.html

Kiltacular, I agree with you. I was thoroughly impressed by the hardware and less so by the software. I think the whole tile thing is just more complicated and they are going with it just to be different, rather than actually useful and efficient. But software can always be updated and improved upon, whereas if they had gotten the hardware wrong, no one would have wanted to buy one at all. They aren't going to displace Apple, and probably not Android either, but it may add a few more years to their moat and that's all they are trying to do...keep the cashflows going until you hit it out of the park with something else. Who ever thought Microsoft was going to dominate the video game console market when Xbox came out? Personally for my work and daily use, an ipad or the ARM Surface wouldn't work for me, but the Intel Surface might work. So I'm looking forward to testing one out later this year and possibly buying one next year after the bugs are worked out. Cheers!

Article on Berkshire and Rescap. Cheers! http://seekingalpha.com/article/668131-how-to-bet-with-warren-buffett-on-a-u-s-housing-turnaround?source=yahoo

Some interesting insights into Phil Falcone's Harbinger and Michael Dell's family investment vehicle. The loan replaces the 24% annualized Jefferies loan. Cheers! http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-06-20/falcone-s-harbinger-capital-turns-to-dell-s-msd-for-loan.html

Not sure when it went back to normal, but the Berkshire site is working normal again. Cheers!

Some interesting comments by Hank Paulson. Cheers! http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-06-19/paulson-says-harm-to-u-s-from-europe-crisis-is-minimal.html

For the most part you are right of course Cardboard, but at the same time, remember there are certain investments we will not be able to buy and Fairfax can buy at very cheap prices...small private, quality insurers, private non-insurance companies, and even interesting deals in preferreds, debt, etc. that we would not be offered. Cheers!

Yeah, I'm at my niece's graduation ceremony and I keep checking to see what is happening...but nothing has shown up yet! Maybe Ballmer is taking a nap. Geez! Cheers!

The "Shark" took a beating. ;D Cheers! http://www.cnbc.com/id/47859685

Bank of America looks to be selling their overseas wealth management business to Julius Baer. Cheers! http://www.cnbc.com/id/47861131

Interesting article on the composition of moon dust brought back by the Apollo crew. Cheers! http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,2117143,00.html?hpt=hp_t2#ixzz1y94MVxVc

NY Times article on Stan Lipsey at the Buffalo News. Cheers! http://www.nytimes.com/2012/06/18/business/media/newspaper-work-with-warren-buffett-as-the-boss.html?_r=1&ref=business

Timeless quotes! Cheers!

I didn't think his views were off-basis one way or the other. You could argue the politics either way as far as the Fed pumping up the economy or not...we've never really been down this road in recent history, so you are going to have people on both sides. His comments about securities are about right, but he made it clear also that he no longer digs around for individual securities, so there may be opportunities that his screens aren't picking up. Basically, he thinks plenty of macroeconomic risks, along with unusually high profit margins, warrant caution. He's dealing with billions, not millions, so it's a different universe. Cheers!

Looks like the magic number was $1.2B. Cheers! http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-06-15/microsoft-said-to-agree-to-acquire-yammer-for-1-2-billion.html

Yeah, why's that frickin' guy even working there? Him and Sorkin arguing was a pain to listen to, as well as every time they interrupted Gerstner. Cheers!

Good stuff! It was the first increase in quarterly sales in years...and he goes and blows some of the company profits on a vacation. Cheers!

Let's just hope it's attractive, and not a plasticky, clunky box like Google's cell phone was when it tried to take on the iPhone. If you build it, build it right...that's what Jobs was great at...don't put out a product unless it is finished! Cheers!

Yeah, the battery would be an issue. But they could make the screen black, but when you flip to camera mode, it goes clear for the photograph. They have the technology to do that today, but hiding the battery and circuitry would be difficult around the rest of the phone. But they will do it one day! Heck, if you watch even the newer Star Trek's with Picard, their communicators were bigger than phones today, so technology has come a long way in a decade. Cheers!

Great post! And of course I agree. If you find stuff that is cheap, you should always buy regardless of what the headlines are blaring. We had lots of cash, but we've bought a few things in the last couple of weeks. We bought something trading near its net cash today and have orders out on something else below its net cash. Even if the world is apparently blowing up in some parts of the world, how can you not buy something at net cash when you are getting the business for free? You can't! Cheers!

Europe's second largest retailer is selling its stake in Greece. Cheers! http://www.cnbc.com/id/47826330

The standard answer is more sellers than buyers! ;D But more likely people moving from less risky investments to more risky investments. It'll go the other way next week if the news from the vote is bad. Cheers!