I tend to agree. Buffet runs a private equity hedge fund pretty much. He buys 100% of a company and that is how you truly get rich. You buy the whole company and grow it over time and all those profits are yours to reinvest. Berhsire Hathaway is a publicly traded private equity fund. He takes all those extra millions and dumps them into stocks as a means to reinvest his corporate profits. The average retail can emulate him by simple investing in value and solid companies but his returns are not buy and hold of stock investments, his wealth comes from buying out an entire company and holding it for years while growing the retained earnings. Business ownership is the system he employs and smart reinvestment of profits.
Most people do not even know how to round numbers off for the least significant figure. They continually go off to one side of neutral.
Buying and holding McDonalds, Coca-Cola and Disney forever is only the stuff dreams are made of. It helps to have sweetheard deals such as convertibles in Salomon Brothers or Level 3. Sitting on boards, such as Washington Post doesn't hurt either. He's lost money before, US Air and Munsingwear come to mind (in additition to derviatives against the dollar). The true point missed, is he's a businessman. Numerous operating companies under the BRK umbrella. CASH COWS. I live 3 miles from the largest furniture store in the world. I also live precisely 3.5 miles from Buffett's house. My sister-in-law's sister-law is the accounting manager for one of his local operations. She's on the phone with him weekly. Point being that grandfatherly image is to some degree a facade. He's sharp as a tack, rather than a dinosaur.
Warren Buffet couldn't even hold my soiled undies when it comes to investing/trading/women. Eat my short, Buffett
Trying to copy Buffett is like trying to copy Tiger Woods. It's silly to think that the average person can replicate his discipline or his business acumen perfectly. But he's still got some great wisdom that the average person can use. His mindset is what's valuable. He could start tomorrow with $10 k and still be very very successful.
Where did I say anything else about any of his other trades? I simply stated he lost @ $900 M on the dollar play. Now, he may be right on this trade, but just too early. I am sure he did offset this loss with gains on another currency hedge and his other portfolio positions. H U B R I S Look it up
Warren, his time and place, stetching back into the past. Your time and place, mine too, stretching into the future. To todays getter, go and garner the rewards.