Comments on: Harvard: Not So Smart After All

By: patfla

patfla — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 22:16:28 +0000

> Can you (unobtrusively of course) work *weltanschauung* into a post somewhere?

I think ‘Weltschmerz’ is more appropriate for the times.

By: sparrowsfall

sparrowsfall — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 20:54:44 +0000

As one who has invested wisely using the central tenets of modern portfolio theory–diversity, blah blah blah–I’ll just say that I would be delighted if my portfolio had only fallen by 22%.

Were these manager friends of yours?

By: Barry Ritholtz

Barry Ritholtz — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 16:57:47 +0000

Funny follow up to the Harvard endowment story…

—- Original Message From: RICHARD CZYZYNSKI (MORGAN STANLEY & CO.) At: 12/05 9:16:00
ISSUER: THE PRESIDENT AND FELLOWS OF HARVARD COLLEGE
TICKER: HARVRD
RATINGS: Aaa/AAA (STABLE/STABLE)
SIZE: $BENCHMARK
TYPE: 144A TAXABLE BONDS
MATURITY: 5-YEAR, 10-YEAR, 30-YEAR (JAN 15 MATURITIES)
UOP: REFINANCE TAXABLE COMMERCIAL PAPER, ELIGIBLE CORPORATE PURPOSES
MARKETING: E-REDS, NETROADSHOW
DENOMS: $100,000 X $1,000
BOOKS: MS* GS* JPM*

This notice shall not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy, nor shall there be any sale of the notes/debentures in any state or jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful. The notes/debentures will be offered to qualified institutional buyers in reliance on Rule 144A under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended. The notes/debentures have not been registered under the Securities Act or any state securities laws, and may not be offered or sold in the United States or to U.S. persons absent registration or an applicable exemption from the registration requirements.

By: dangermole

dangermole — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 16:55:48 +0000

Barry:

Not enough econobloggers use the word schadenfreude. It’s deeply pleasing. Can you (unobtrusively of course) work *weltanschauung* into a post somewhere?

By: dss

dss — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 16:09:12 +0000

texasradio: We need the same type of chart for this market. We can list the idiotic quotes of Kudlow, Cramer, Greenspan, Paulson, etc. for posterity. The only problem I see is that we have not seen the bottom yet, so there will be many more quotes to be added before this chapter in American economic history closes.

By: jonpublic

jonpublic — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 13:57:25 +0000

Ouch, $8 billion is greater than the entire University of Michigan endowment, which is the 3rd largest for a public institution. I think U of M is only off 12% for the year.

By: Barry Ritholtz

Barry Ritholtz — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 11:29:44 +0000

Lighten up Mary, its a goof.

By: flenerman

flenerman — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 10:01:22 +0000

constantnormal certainly doesn’t need me to defend him, Mr. R., but I would suggest that if YOU had done YOUR homework, you should have included the supporting evidence in your post. Post hoc ergo propter hoc? You’re capable of so much better than that.

By: texasradio

texasradio — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 03:42:56 +0000

Let’s laugh at Harvard some more:

http://www.gold-eagle.com/editorials_01/seymour062001.html

Note that HES is abbreviation for ‘Harvard Economic Society’.

By: jonbirge

jonbirge — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 03:28:08 +0000

patfla: i guess i stand corrected. i suppose there really is no difference between harvard and any other fund, just because it’s ultimately owned by one entity. (i will note that most of your examples are pools of assets owned by many people.) anyway, my point stands: it’s harder to invest $30B than $30k.

ben22: i don’t know why i’m defending these guys, because i generally think that most people in positions of authority are there by luck and not ability, but i still think it’s way too early to say harvard blew it. first, we’ll have to see what their total loss is from all of this. look at the big picture. if they lose 30% or so one year while they unwind, they can afford to because of all the other years they were up 20+%. second, just because you lose money doesn’t mean you screwed up. if you play poker you understand this. you can do everything right and sometimes the cards don’t fall. the possibility for a bad outcome is neccesary in order to expose yourself to a good one. looking at harvard’s endowment over the past decades, i’m still not convinced they made bad choices.

for all we know, they may have gone into some of their deals saying “this will be tough to get out of in a financial crisis, but we think it’s worth the risk given our expectations for profits before such an event happens.” gloating because they lost 20% is like making fun of tiger woods for losing a tournament.

anyway, not sure why i’m defending them. harvard can go to hell, for all i care. they certainly have produced some of the worlds leading douchebags and overrated crooks in high places. i truly believe that if harvard were to disappear, the united states would be better for it. harvard’s entire business is producing pieces of paper that exempt the lucky holder from ever having to actually deliver something of real value.