Usually, the word "late" carries a negative connotation. But not in the phrase "late edition." So the fact that this ought to have been posted a week ago is a good thing, right?
Speaking of positive and negative connotations, two frugal bloggers raised a similar confusing question on August 28th. Dawn at Frugal for Life posted 
When Frugality Crosses Over to Stealing and Serena at Queercents asked When Does Frugality Constitute Stealing?
Before I read these posts I thought the answer to Serena’s question was "When you’re really good at it." Because a truly great bargain is a steal. Isn’t it?
Alas, both these bloggers meant "steal" in a pejorative sense, which confused me. Apparently, they want to complicate the frugal lifestyle with an unnecessary set of new rules. For example, it’s no good using coupons if you stole the newspaper you cut them out of. Also, under this new regime, smuggling snacks into the movie theatre and then fishing used refill cups out of the trash to get free soda is frowned upon. What’s next? Are you going to tell me I shouldn’t have my friends hold open the fire exit so I can sneak in without a ticket?
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I have a debit card. I think. It’s the ATM card my bank gave me. It’s got the MasterCard symbol on it, so I think that means I can use it to buy stuff. Of course, this is just a theory. In the ten years it’s been in my wallet I’ve never thought to test it out. Why would I?
I am going to admit right here that I am pretty obviously missing something when it comes to debit cards. Debit card transactions now outnumber credit card transactions. This mystifies me. I can think of only three reasons to carry a debit card rather than a credit card.
1) You are considered a poor credit risk and cannot get a credit card.
2) You can get a credit card but will not because of ethical or religious objections.
3) You find it too difficult to overcome the temptation to borrow more than you should if you carry a credit card, so carry a debit card that will limit your spending to cash you actually have.
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It’s not exactly grabbing headlines, but our nation’s regulatory watchdogs are on the scent of yet another scourge from which investors need to be protected: leveraged ETFs. Apparently, these things are like snakes in the grass, just waiting to spring at poor innocents who wander by.
Several brokerages have taken steps to discourage their clients from buying
leveraged ETFs and in some cases prohibit it altogether. The folks at Motley Fool have been waving people off them. The association of state securities regulators named leveraged ETFs as one of their Top 10 Investor Traps, along with Ponzi schemes and currency and gold bullion scams.
And just last week, FINRA, the financial industry’s self-regulation body, announced changes to the margin requirements for buying leveraged ETFs that go a long way towards destroying their usefulness. A FINRA spokesman called leveraged ETFs ”very complicated, with a high element of risk."
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Wednesday’s WSJ had a piece on Rethinking Stocks’ Starring Role. It’s about time.
Don’t get me wrong, stocks are an important asset class, maybe even the most important one. But they are just that, a large category of reasonable 
things a reasonable person might invest in, but not the only such category. Yet for generations, received wisdom has made it the center of individuals’ investing plans, the main course in the wealth accumulation dinner.
Why? ‘Cuz the stock market went up so darn much over the last fifty years or so. (Er, uh, recent events not included. Let’s say 1957 to 2007.) I know fifty years sounds like a really long time. Long enough that you might consider it to be approximately forever. If the stock market has gone up a certain percentage on average over that long a time a person is sorely tempted to think of that as the basic nature of the beast.
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A few days ago there was an encouraging little post on The Wallet about how we’re spending more on life’s smaller luxuries in the face of the Great Recession. I call it encouraging because I think it is the direction most people should go in their spending, more on the small stuff, less on the big things, 
and I like reading positive articles about how consumers are doing this. Not that I really think this is going on.
My theory, admittedly not based on much science, is that we’re happier if we spend more on the smaller things we like than on the big things. A great big house may indeed add joy to our lives, but not as much as the equivalent in nights out on the town. (Or rounds of golf, or manicures or whatever floats your boat.)
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When Frugality Crosses Over to Stealing and Serena at Queercents asked When Does Frugality Constitute Stealing?
Frugal Friday | Frank Curmudgeon | 
September 11, 2009 3:00 pm | 
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