One year!

Today marks the first anniversary of this blog. I started it on Labor Day weekend last year, at the insistence of my son-in-law who, being a blogger himself, walked me through the setup procedure. He also took the photo that I use as a banner. In fact, he gave me several to choose from. The shot I've been using for the past year was taken during some stormy weather, and I thought that was appropriate given the travails of the market. I'm thinking of switching to a more placid photo soon, to celebrate the exit from recession and the return to more normal market conditions—soon, but not just yet.

The blog has grown from nothing to a readership that now ranges from 700-1000 visitors each business day. It's accumulated 347,000 page views, about 1,000 per day on average. I've made 800 posts, and have been fortunate to receive thousands of thoughtful comments and questions but only a handful of distasteful comments.

My motives are several. I've wanted to provide a forum for supply-side ideas. My years of experience have convinced me that the supply-side framework works pretty well for analyzing the economy and financial markets, yet few people subscribe to it or fully understand it. I've wanted to give something back to the world in my own small way, and so I have eschewed advertising or subscriptions. I wanted a hobby, and I was lucky to find something that entertains me and also helps others. I needed to follow the market in order to manage my own portfolio, and the discipline of blogging has helped me focus on things much better. That's been extremely important this past year, since mistakes could have been extremely costly.

My political orientation is libertarian, and I will disparage any politician, regardless of party, who promotes policies which I find antithetical to free markets and individual liberty. I think every investor should pay great attention to politics, since good or bad policies can make a huge difference to the economy and the markets.

Finally, my thanks to the many loyal readers and commenters. If there is one thing that I miss in retirement, it is the ability to travel the country and interact with clients that in turn were in charge of managing huge sums of money. I have always learned a lot by having to answer tough questions, and I now receive those almost daily.