The Rehfeld Report

Everyone is complaining about utility bills, so I'm going to talk about doing something to lower them and fight climate change. It'll will cost you, but it will be worth it. Whatever money you spend will be paid back with savings on your utility bills. I'll start with some easier, less expensive projects first, then give you an overview of the big jobs - for future discussion. Easy jobs include weather stripping, switching to LED bulbs and installing low-flow fixtures.  A big, harder, more expensive job is swapping out your old appliances for new ones. I make some recommendations, hopefully to save you time and money. Finally, I'll preview some big projects, like insulation, heat pumps and solar panels.  

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Sometimes investing seems like a making a pack with the devil. You hate cigarettes, but you like investing for retirement in a passive broad market index fund because it is cheap, relatively safe and provides good returns over the long run even though one of its holdings is a tobacco company. You don't like fossil fuels, booze and defense contractors, but then again those companies are in the index too. What to do? I look all of the market for funds that exclude bad guys and find you can have your cake, good returns, and eat it too, without the lousy ingredients. Tune in to find out how.

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Broad market index stock funds are the only investment you need if you are investing for the long term. But which one? Should the fund follow the S&P 500 index, a total U.S. stock index or world index? Should it be an etf or a mutual fund? What expense ratio should you pay? Does the fund company matter? I talk about all of the above and recommend what you should do, but do do it, whether you invest in any of the funds I talk about or another one. I'll repeat, whatever one you pick, it's the only one you need.

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Our students are not getting the high school education in math and science they need and deserve. Students across the country are doing poorly in both subjects and are not even being exposed to the more challenging courses. As always, those students at the lower end of the economic ladder fare the worst of all. Tune in to hear what has been happening and what could be done to reverse the decline. 

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There has never been more fake food, also known as junk or ultra-processed food. Indeed, most of the so-called food Americans buy is fake, whether it is at the grocery store or the fast food outlet. That there more choices than ever before comes from fake food sellers trying to disguise how unhealthy their products are. This is often down by repackaging their goods as healthy choices, when they are not, and giving them an international flavor, without improving their nutritional value. Listen in.   

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The American Dream is about everyone having a terrific shot at being a terrific success no matter how modest their circumstances. Not only is it not true, it's  spinning into reverse. The closest we came was with the Baby Boomers and even they fell short. Now, their children are doing worse. Tune in to see how. Do so, is the first step in improving the lives of all Americans.  

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The battle to save the planet from climate disasters and homeowners from financial ruin for having to pay escalating utilities bills can be won if we know how best to fight it. One strategies is turn purple states blue, environmentally and politically. Our best bets are Arizona, Nevada, North Carolina, Georgia, Texas and Florida. Listen in and see why. 

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New York City schools are failing. They were bad when I worked in them years ago and are worse now. Student achievement on the rare standardized test they take have fallen even further than the miserable scores they racked up years ago. The schools, old then, are older. Few new ones are built and the infrastructure of existing buildings is terrible. What to do? The long and the short of it is to make our schools like schools in Finland. Turn in for a glimpse of our schools you don't want to see for yourself.  

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The stock market has hit a lot of highs recently and many people think it can't go on. Don't bet on it. Bet on stocks. There is a lot of money out there and more on the way just all too available to invest in stocks. The rich are getting richer. No surprise there and, if you are not one of them,  you can only do yourself a favor by, if you have some funds to spare, jump on their coattails. Even a boring 70/30 stock/bond index funds split will do you good. Need to know more? Listen in.

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Godfather, Don Trump, is at war with wind power. In August, he killed a bunch of projects meant for offshore sites to provide electricity to blue states, as part of his campaign to beef up gas, oil and coal and punish Democrats. The future is grim for wind power, but there may be some hope. Red states use wind power more than blue states. If Democrats can flip some midterm elections in their favor, it could be the beginning of a new windy day. Think Iowa.

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