I get a lot of great feedback from my readers. I get other email as well. Here is another installment of replies to emails that I usually ignore (see previous installments here and here ). Dear Melanie, Thank you for your offer to pay me so you can spam my readers with forex trading ads. It turns out that I don’t keep a list of my readers’ email addresses. Also, I don’t hate them. But if both of these things change, I’ll let you know. Sincerely, Michael -------------------- Dear Vijay, Thank you for your email offering to sell me your penny-stock domain name as well as all three of your follow-up queries. In the careful study of my web site that you mention, you no doubt saw the synergy between my writing and pushing penny stocks. It’s baffling that I made no offer for your domain. I have no explanation. Sincerely, Michael -------------------- Dear Julia, Thank you for yet another chance to join your forex affiliate program. I know that retail investor...

I happened across an ad claiming that “Penny stocks are the secret to buying happiness during a recession.” I couldn’t resist having a look. The link took me to an “advertorial” by SmarterLifestyles entitled “The Advantages of Buying Penny Stocks.” (I prefer not to give the link, but determined readers can search.) The article contains a number of misconceptions about penny stocks. “Penny stocks offer an incredible upside for potential investors.” They also offer incredible downside. That’s the nature of highly volatile investments. “Low prices allow novices to explore the markets, without risking an extensive amount of money.” Nonsense. You can just as easily buy one share of a $100 stock as 100 shares of a $1 stock. Either way you’re investing $100. I don’t recommend either investment because the commission (likely $5 or $10 or more) is too pricey for such a small investment. “If the stock were to dip in price, the investor will not have lost excessive amounts of money.” M...