John T. Reed’s news blog

A Facebook reader sent me this about putting money in foreign bank accounts.. Offshore out of reach would seem the only safe option. During hyperinflation I would think the US would use the FBAR to demand repatriation of overseas accounts and impose draconian penalties for failure to do so. I suspect they'd have similar compliance as they did with executive order 6102..And here is my answer: There is no precedent for demanding repatriation of overseas accounts. And the main purpose of overseas account is so you can BE overseas or abroad in places like Canada where you do not have to...

Dear Mr.Reed, For my Freshman-Junior summers of high school, I spent a week each attending various military camps of my own volition. My parents, particularly my mother, were strongly against me pursuing a military career. However, I am very thankful that they permitted me to attend the camps to generate a more informed decision for myself. It helped that because of academic achievement, the three camps were all expense paid and the government foot the bill for my attendance. I spent a week at Annapolis my freshman summer for a STEM education camp and absolutely loved it. It seemed immaculate...

My wife is lately getting a lot of inquiries about guns. . I have a lot of readers who are infantry vets and therefore more knowledgeable than I but I see little from such experienced guys. I was a communications officer in the Army. Like all West Point cadets I had lots of infantry and other types of training there and ranger school was infantry. So I will take a stab at it. . 1. Your home defense guns should be unified so they all use the same ammo. 2. Home defense would likely be short range which is generally...

Mr. Reed, congratulations on deciding to write a new book, especially one that challenges your previously-held beliefs. I would recommend that you name your book Movin’ On Up. However, I take issue with your newfound book's premise, namely for the following reasons: 1. Transaction costs: Loan fees, RE broker commissions, and closing costs. That would be at least a 7% loss every time one sells and buys. That’s an aggregate 35% loss over one’s lifetime if there are 5 transactions, using your every 7 years for 40 years strategy.  1.a. This can be ameliorated by using a lower-commission brokerage such as Redfin, becoming an RE salesman/broker yourself (which might be worthwhile if this...