wadedokken's posterous http://wadedokken.posterous.com Most recent posts at wadedokken's posterous posterous.com Fri, 31 Dec 2010 22:40:12 -0800 Monetary fix http://wadedokken.posterous.com/monetary-fix http://wadedokken.posterous.com/monetary-fix I have been argu ing here for some time that the Great Reces sion of 2007-2009 was noth ing more than a pro nounced money demand shock that the Fed er al Reserve failed to fully off set. As a con se quence, nom i nal spend ing col lapsed and given sticky prices the real econ o my crashed too. This seems self evi dent to me and other so called quasi-monetarists (a term coined by Paul Krug man) like Scott Sum n er, Bill Woolsey, Nick Rowe and Josh Hen drick son. Some folks, how ev er, do not buy it. They dis agree that the fun da men tal prob lem was a money demand shock and by impli ca tion they dis agree that the Fed could have done any thing to off set it. This think ing can be vivid ly seen in the respons es to my Nation al Review arti cle where I make the case for QE2 with a money demand shock story. A more thought ful response to my argu ment comes from Brad DeLong who says rather than a nar row money demand shock being the under ly ing cause of the Great Reces sion, it was a broad er liq uid i ty demand shock. Thus, the demand for all high ly liq uid assets increased and derailed nom i nal spend ing. Though some of the quasi-monetarists may dis agree with him on the details, I think they would agree with DeLong in gen er al and might even call him a clos et quasi-monetarist. So what is the evi dence for DeLong's the o ry of a great liq uid i ty demand shock? I went to the flow of funds data and looked up the share of high ly liq uid assets as a per cent of total assets for the (1) house hold and non prof it sec tor, (2) the non farm non fi nan cial cor po rate busi ness sec tor, and (3) the non farm non cor po rate busi ness sec tor. For high ly liq uid assets I sum up for each sec tor cur ren cy and check able deposits, time sav ing deposits, money mar ket funds and trea sury secu ri ties. Pre sum ably, the share of high ly liq uid assets as a per cent of all assets for each sec tor spiked dur ing the cri sis if in fact there was a great liq uid i ty demand shock. Here is the fig ure for the house holds and non prof it sec tor: Click to enlarge Source This fig ure shows that the share of total assets for house holds and non prof its allo cat ed to high ly liq uid assets was declin ing since the 1980s. This down ward trend was dra mat i cal ly reversed begin ning around 2007 and is still ele vat ed. Next is the fig ure for the non farm non fi nan cial cor po rate busi ness sec tor: Click to enlarge

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Mon, 30 Aug 2010 19:30:11 -0700 Wade Dokken - LinkedIn http://wadedokken.posterous.com/wade-dokken-linkedin http://wadedokken.posterous.com/wade-dokken-linkedin

Wade Dokken’s Summary

Founder of WealthVest Marketing, an advanced financial marketing firm, specializing in high-quality fixed annuities, fixed-indexed annuities and life insurance products. WealthVest is unique in providing world-class marketing tools and an unsurpassed support system to its financial advisors – helping to make the best financial advisors even better. WealthVest gives advisors opportunities to work with the best carriers, products and services. WeathVest’s carriers include: Allianz, American Equity, ANICO, Aviva, Forethought, Life of the Southwest, Lincoln Financial Group, North American, Old Mutual, RBC and Reliance Standard. WealthVest marries highly-rated annuity products with a culture of networking, sharing, coaching and learning – to achieve powerful results.

WealthVest connects financial advisors to the best marketing coaches in the industry, including: Ron Carson, Carson Wealth Management, Peter Montoya, Tom Hamlin, Bill Good Marketing, and Dr. Ken Dycktwald. Marketing tools offered include: Marketing Partners, Advisor’s Products, Unlimited Fulfillment Services, Response Mail Express, Seminar Direct, CIS Marketing, Kramer Direct, Media Mastery, Ironstone Communications, and Wealth Tribes. WealthVest Marketing is headquartered in Bozeman, Montana, with offices in San Francisco, California.

Owner of PureWest Properties, the premier real estate firm for the luxury market in Southwestern Montana and the exclusive Christie’s Great Estates affiliate in the region. The PureWest team can provide both buyers and sellers with valuable insight and access to extensive market knowledge -- facilitating smooth, enjoyable, and focused real estate transactions within the Bozeman, Big Sky, Gallatin and Paradise Valley areas. Along with knowing where to find the best Montana properties, PureWest’s real estate professionals have unparalleled access to market statistics and trends, maximizing the negotiating power of both buyers and sellers.

Wade Dokken’s Specialties:

Marketing, Sales, Finance, Corporate Leadership, Financial Product Development, Organizational Development, Real Estate, Fixed Annuities, Fixed Indexed Annuities

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Mon, 30 Aug 2010 19:27:39 -0700 Digg - Capital Gains Part 1 of 3 by Wade Dokken http://wadedokken.posterous.com/digg-capital-gains-part-1-of-3-by-wade-dokken http://wadedokken.posterous.com/digg-capital-gains-part-1-of-3-by-wade-dokken
Check out this website I found at digg.com

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Mon, 30 Aug 2010 19:24:32 -0700 Stock Slump No Impediment to Reform, Says Skandia's Dokken http://wadedokken.posterous.com/stock-slump-no-impediment-to-reform-says-skan http://wadedokken.posterous.com/stock-slump-no-impediment-to-reform-says-skan

Stock Slump No Impediment to Reform, Says Skandia's Dokken

May 4, 2001

In an op-ed in Investor's Business Daily, Wade Dokken, president and chief executive of American Skandia and author of New Century, New Deal: How To Turn Your Wages Into Wealth Through Social Security Choice, argues that recent stock downturns shouldn't put the public or the politicians off the idea of Social Security privatization. Following are excerpts from Dokken's commentary. You can also click here to view Dokken's appearance at a Cato Institute book forum.

"Those who profess to be shocked to discover for the first time that the stock market can't go up 20% a year forever are only kidding themselves. But equally delusional are those who try to use these short-term fluctuations in the equity markets as justification for opposing President Bush's proposal to allow Americans to invest part of their Social Security taxes through personal accounts. And I say this as a lifelong Democrat."

"To begin with, people live longer than bear markets. Much longer. There have been 20 bear markets since 1900. The average break-even time (measured by how long it took someone who invested at the top to regain the value of a stock index portfolio) was three years. Under a personal accounts-based Social Security program, a person would begin investing in his or her early 20s, and on average would live another 50 years. At some point he or she would retire, but would not completely 'un-invest' by liquidating the account. Therefore, I submit that 50 years is the relevant holding period to use when analyzing Social Security accounts and assessing their risk.

"At my request, Wharton professor Jeremy Siegel calculated the best, worst and average annual equity returns for every 50-year period since 1802. His results are stunning: 13.1% is the best 50-year return on record, 5.0% is the worst and 8.1% is the average annual return on stocks over 50 years. Real after-inflation annual returns were 9.3% (best), 4.4% (worst) and 6.8% (average). To my mind, these figures are a powerful rejection of the critics' argument that a near-term decline in equity values means we shouldn't let Americans take greater ownership and control of their retirement destiny. Even Siegel's lowest 50-year annualized real return, 4.4%, is 300% to 400% greater than the atrocious rate of return today's young workers can expect to receive from Social Security if we fail to enact accounts-based reform.

"'What if you didn't have 50 years?', some will ask. Or what if you were retiring right in the middle of a market correction? Even under these circumstances, it is proper to take the longer view. Government statistics predict that a person retiring today could easily live another 15 to 30 years (which, of course, is part of the reason we need to reform Social Security in the first place). Siegel's research indicates this is plenty of time to weather a market setback. In the last 200 years, the average annual after-inflation return on stocks has been 6.7% for a 25-year holding period, 6.9% for a 15-year holding period and 7% for a 10-year holding period.

"In any event, there is no need for your portfolio to be comprised entirely of stocks. Bank certificates of deposit, bond funds, real estate investment trusts - some or all of these investment options, whose performance is not highly correlated to that of stocks, will be available to workers through their accounts. Diversification lowers risk and insures that losses in one investment may be partially offset by gains in another.

"Additionally, when you are investing for the long haul, a fall in stock prices represents a buying opportunity. If shares today are cheaper than they were a month ago, you can buy more shares for the same amount of money. Then when equity values rise, your profit is even greater. This technique, known as dollar-cost averaging, is actively pursued by many investors already, and is inherently undertaken by anyone with a 401(k) or similar retirement plan that automatically invests a certain amount each month.

"The bottom line, as Bush himself recently noted, is that 'the plan is not going to be (to) invest in the lottery mutual fund or (to) take it to the track and hope to hit it right. It's going to be in relatively safe investments.' History amply demonstrates that stocks are relatively safe, especially when held along with other investments. As someone who has helped people save and invest for the long haul for more than two decades, I can attest that it is an axiom of finance that the right investment method or vehicle is one that is in sync with an investor's time horizon. Building, and then enjoying, a retirement nest egg is an extended, half-century-long process. Therefore, no matter how the stock market performs during a given month - or year, or even decade - personal accounts are the best long-term solution for preserving and strengthening Social Security."

2002 Index | 2001 Index | 2000 Index | 1999 Index | 1998 Index

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Mon, 30 Aug 2010 19:22:20 -0700 Wade Dokken http://wadedokken.posterous.com/wade-dokken http://wadedokken.posterous.com/wade-dokken

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Mon, 30 Aug 2010 19:21:06 -0700 Dems Turn On Gore’s Social Security Plan - Article - National Review Online http://wadedokken.posterous.com/dems-turn-on-gores-social-security-plan-artic http://wadedokken.posterous.com/dems-turn-on-gores-social-security-plan-artic

Deroy Murdock

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October 5, 2000 2:00 P.M.

Dems Turn On Gore’s Social Security Plan
Party loyalists argue Gore sounds too much like Bush.

Few Democrats are more stalwart than Wade Dokken, CEO of American Skandia — a Connecticut-based mutual fund company with $40 billion in assets. Dokken calls himself “an FDR-Truman-Kennedy-Johnson-Humphrey-McGovern-Carter-Clinton Democrat.” A photo in his office shows him beside a beaming Hillary Rodham Clinton. Since 1998, Dokken says he has given at least $15,000 to Democratic campaign committees. “When I hear Newt Gingrich’s name, I boo,” he explains. “And then, when the appeal for money comes, I start writing my check.”

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But Dokken has just broken with his party. In his new book, New Century, New Deal, Dokken slams the Democrats on Social Security. He laments that the “party of the people” prevents Americans from investing their payroll taxes in privately owned retirement accounts. Dokken calls Social Security Choice “a golden opportunity to appeal to the dreams and aspirations of the New Investor Class.”  

The problem Dokken sees is that Gore would rather arouse his party base with anti-business rhetoric than sing Americans a song about hope.

“The liberal leadership and left-wing allies of my party have always preferred welfare over wealth creation and anti-Wall Street populism to New Investor Class pragmatism,” Dokken writes, “and the Vice President desperately wanted to energize his more liberal base.”

Dokken harshly attacks Gore’s Retirement Savings Plus plan. First, Gore would require Americans to pay their full Social Security taxes to the government, leaving many modest workers with nothing to invest. For those who could afford portfolios, Gore promises matching tax credits — in some cases, three federal dollars for every dollar a worker invests. This hefty, new entitlement would ignore Social Security’s long-term, financial pitfalls.

Second, Dokken considers the vice president’s current policy hypocritical given his earlier pronouncements. Gore today says he wants to help some Americans invest for retirement. But last May he called the stock market — what else? — “risky” and said, “You should not have to roll the dice with your basic retirement security.” Having denounced the casino, Gore now wants to buy Americans their chips. As Dokken observes: “Either the stock market is a terrible place to invest for the future, or it isn’t.”

George W. Bush’s plan is broader and bolder. Dokken calls it “by far superior.” Bush would free even the poorest Americans either to remain in Social Security or voluntarily to allocate two percent of their FICA taxes to personal retirement accounts they would invest in stocks and bonds. These funds would be their property, not Uncle Sam’s. They could bequeath these assets to their heirs, something unimaginable under today’s Social Security scheme. Bush’s plan, Dokken believes, will “shift our focus from poverty prevention to wealth creation and turn every worker into an owner.”

Dokken now joins other prominent Democrats who want Americans to have universal access to the capital markets. Sam Beard, former advisor to Robert F. Kennedy, Minnesota’s ex-congressman Tim Penny and Nebraska senator J. Robert Kerrey enthusiastically advocate personal retirement accounts funded with payroll taxes. New York senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan wrote in a May 30 New York Times column that he wants personal retirement accounts to help Americans build estates — “for doormen, as well as those living in the duplexes above.”

Even Senator Joseph Lieberman supported Social Security Choice, until he performed an Olympic-class back-flip and landed on Gore’s ticket.

“A remarkable wave of innovative thinking is advancing the concept of privatization,” he told the Copley News Service in 1998. He added that “individual control of part of the retirement/Social Security funds has to happen.” Lieberman’s Democratic Leadership Council discovered in a survey that year that 72 percent of “Democrats” favor investing payroll taxes in personal accounts.

Governor Bush repeatedly and passionately promoted his Social Security blueprint in the October 3 presidential debate. “I want younger workers to be able to manage some of their own money — some of their own payroll taxes,” Bush said, “to get a better rate of return on your own money.”

Bush must hammer that theme, on the hustings and in commercials. This issue will energize younger Americans like a double espresso. Remember, in 1998, motivated young voters transformed Jesse Ventura from a colorful lark into Minnesota’s governor.

In the October 11 debate, G.W. Bush should invite Al Gore to join Bush, Wade Dokken, Bob Kerrey and Pat Moynihan in a bipartisan appeal for Social Security Choice. If Gore refuses, Bush should ask the leader of the “party of the little guys” why he insists on keeping the little guys little.

Listen to the Audio Version

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Mon, 30 Aug 2010 19:20:08 -0700 Response: The Disadvantages of Fixed Index Annuities http://wadedokken.posterous.com/response-the-disadvantages-of-fixed-index-ann http://wadedokken.posterous.com/response-the-disadvantages-of-fixed-index-ann

Response: The Disadvantages of Fixed Index Annuities

August 3rd, 2010 

Article by Sheryl J. Moore

PDF for Setting It Straight with FinanceCove

ORIGINAL ARTICLE CAN BE FOUND AT: The Disadvantage of Fixed Index Annuities 

The following comment was submitted to the blog author at www.financecove.doodig.com.

I am an independent market research analyst who specializes exclusively in the indexed annuity (IA) and indexed life markets. I have tracked the companies, products, marketing, and sales of these products for over a decade. I used to provide similar services for fixed and variable products, but I believe so strongly in the value proposition of indexed products that I started my own company focusing on IAs exclusively. I do not endorse any company or financial product, and millions look to us for accurate, unbiased information on the insurance market. In fact, we are the firm that regulators look to, and work with, when needing assistance with these products.

I am contacting you, as the author of a blog that was published at www.financecove.doodig.com, “The Disadvantages of Fixed Index Annuities.” This article had numerous inaccurate and misleading statements about indexed annuities in it. I am contacting you in response to these inaccuracies, to ensure that you and your readers have accurate, unbiased information on these products in the future.

Indexed annuities do not “mitigate the risks of fixed annuities.” Fixed annuities do not have any risks, so this statement is inaccurate.

In addition, you do not refer to purchasers of fixed or indexed annuities as “investors.” Only those who purchase variable annuities can be called “investors,” as these products place the purchaser’s principal and gains at risk due to market volatility. Stocks, bonds, and mutual funds are also investments. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is responsible for the regulation of such investment products. Fixed and indexed annuities, by contrast, are insurance products- similar to term life, universal life and whole life. Insurance products are regulated by the 50 state insurance commissioners of the United States. Insurance products do not put the client’s money at risk, they are “safe money products” which preserve principal and gains. Investments, by contrast, can put a client’s money at risk and are therefore appropriately classified as “risk money products;” they do not preserve principal.

You think that the limiting of interest on indexed annuities is a detriment when it is not. To ensure that you properly understand how indexed annuities are intended to work, I would like to provide a brief overview. Because indexed annuities are a “safe money place,” they should be compared against other safe money places. Products like stocks, bonds, mutual funds, and variable annuities are “risk money places,” where the client is subjected to both the highs and the lows of the market (also referred to as “investments”). It is inappropriate to compare any safe money place, such as an indexed annuity, to risk money places and it is most certainly not appropriate to compare safe money places to the market index itself. Indexed annuities are not intended to perform comparably to stocks, bonds, or the S&P 500 because they provide a minimum guarantee where investments do not. Indexed annuities are priced to return about 1% – 2% greater interest than traditional fixed annuities are crediting. In exchange for this greater potential, the indexed annuity has a slightly lesser minimum guarantee. So, if fixed annuities are earning 5% today, indexed annuities sold today should earn 6% – 7% over the life of the contract. Some years, the indexed annuity may return a double-digit gain and other years it may return zero interest. However, what is most likely to happen is something in between. Were the indexed interest NOT limited, the insurer could not afford to offer a minimum guarantee on the product, and THAT is a variable annuity- not an indexed annuity. On the other hand, the client is guaranteed to never receive less than zero interest (a proposition that millions of Americans are wishing they had during that period of 03/08 to 03/09) and will receive a return of no less than 117% worst-case scenario on the average indexed annuity. In addition, it is absolutely irresponsible to say that indexed annuity “offer market-type returns.” Please refrain from such statements in the future.

Furthermore, caps are not any more “limiting” than participation rates or spreads over a long period of time. Regardless of whether the interest is limited by a cap, participation rate, or spread- all indexed annuities are priced to return about 1% – 2% greater interest than fixed annuities and certificates of deposit (CDs) are crediting. Ultimately, the index used, the crediting method utilized, and the choice of a cap or participation rate are irrelevant. All indexed annuities are priced to return 1% – 2% greater interest than traditional annuities are earning today, over the life of the policy (regardless of index, crediting method, and pricing lever). Indexed interest on indexed annuities sold today could be as much as 8.7% or even more. All of these different features (index, crediting method, pricing lever) merely give the marketing organizations that distribute these products an opportunity to promote why their product is “different” or “better” than their competitors’ products, to the agent. They do not actually make any one product better than another. Yes, some designs will perform better than others in some years. However, over the life of the contract, they will be about even keel.

Although you are quick to point-out that indexed annuities are taxed at income tax rates, as opposed to capital gains rates, you fail to mention the many benefits of indexed annuities, which include (but are not limited to):

1.         No indexed annuity purchaser has lost a single dollar as a result of the market’s declines. Can you say the same for variable annuities? Stocks? Bonds? Mutual funds? NO.

2.         All indexed annuities return the premiums paid plus interest at the end of the annuity.

3.         Ability to defer taxes: you are not taxed on annuity, until you start withdrawing income.

4.         Reduce tax burden: accumulate your retirement funds now at a [35%] tax bracket, and take income at retirement within a [15%] tax bracket.

5.         Accumulate retirement income: annuities allow you to accumulate additional interest, above the premium you pay in. Plus, you accumulate interest on your interest, and interest on the money you would have paid in taxes. (Frequently referred to as “triple compounding.”)

6.         Provide a death benefit to heirs: all fixed and indexed annuities pay the full account value to the designated beneficiaries upon death.

7.         Access money when you need it: fixed annuities allow annual penalty-free withdrawals of the account value, typically at 10% of the annuity’s value (although some indexed annuities permit as much as 20% of the value to be taken without penalty). In addition, 9 out of 10 fixed and indexed annuities permit access to the annuity’s value without penalty, in the event of triggers such as nursing home confinement, terminal illness, disability, and even unemployment.

8.         Get a boost on your retirement: many fixed and indexed annuities provide an up-front premium bonus, which can provide an instant boost on your annuity’s value. This can increase the annuity’s value in addition to helping with the accumulation on the contract.

9.         Guaranteed lifetime income: an annuity is the ONLY product that can guarantee income that one cannot outlive.

Verifying how little research you have done on indexed annuities, there is no such thing as a “fund manager” in this market. Only mutual funds have “fund managers.” Please do some research on the products you write about in the future, prior to publishing your content.

Furthermore, there are no fees on indexed annuities. The only “cost” to the consumer is a commitment of time.

Indexed annuities do not have “significant” penalties. There are indexed annuities with surrender charges as short as three years and the average first-year penalty (which declines thereafter) on indexed annuities is a mere 10.61%. Every indexed annuity allows 10% of the annuity’s value to be withdrawn without penalties on an annual basis; some allow as much as 50% to be withdrawn in a single year! Plus, 9 out of 10 indexed annuities provide a waiver of the surrender charges, should the annuitant need access to their money in events such as nursing home confinement, terminal illness, disability, and even unemployment. Consider the fact that these products pay the full account value to the beneficiary upon death, and I think that you’ll see that consumers have tremendous ability to “get their money when they need it” with indexed annuities. Certainly, all annuities are considered long-term investments. However, indexed annuities are some of the most liquid retirement income products available today!

You should note that “annual reset” is not a crediting method. It is an indicator of when the next index measurement begins on most indexed annuities (annually).

While it is true that insurance companies reserve the right to change the caps, participation rates, and asset fees on indexed annuities in years two plus, it does not mean that insurance companies do. I can name numerous companies that have never reduced their renewal rates on their indexed annuities. However, this provision is no different than that of a fixed annuity, where the insurance company has the discretion to change the credited rates in years two plus. Not to mention the fact that variable annuities have the ability to increase fees if necessary in years two plus. All fixed and indexed annuities are subject to minimum rates, as approved by the state insurance divisions that approve the products for sale in their respective states. Insurance companies are smart to protect themselves by filing products that have the ability to change rates annually, in the event of a volatile market. I personally feel much more confident that the companies offering these products today will be able to make good on their claims-paying ability, considering such flexibility in the event of unforeseen circumstances.

It truly illuminates how little you know about the indexed annuity market when you talk about “high water mark” indexed crediting methods. There are only eight products left on the market that use this crediting method. In addition, this method does not necessarily result in the purchaser “not [receiving] the accrued interest during the period if the [indexed annuity] were surrendered before the term ends.”

I would advise that if you readers truly want to “weigh the disadvantages against the benefits” of indexed annuities, that they go to my website, and not yours. It appears that you do not know enough about these products to be writing about them. However, should you have a desire to write about these products in the future, I am more than happy to assist you in your understanding of these products or aid you in fact-checking. Please do not hesitate to contact us, should there be a need.

Thank you.

Sheryl J. Moore

President and CEO

AnnuitySpecs.com

LifeSpecs.com

IndexedAnnuityNerd.com

Advantage Group Associates, Inc.

(515) 262-2623 office

(515) 313-5799 cell

(515) 266-4689 fax

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Mon, 30 Aug 2010 19:04:30 -0700 Defying Democrat Orthodoxy on Social Security | Deroy Murdock | Cato Institute: Daily Commentary http://wadedokken.posterous.com/defying-democrat-orthodoxy-on-social-security-0 http://wadedokken.posterous.com/defying-democrat-orthodoxy-on-social-security-0

Defying Democrat Orthodoxy on Social Security

by Deroy Murdock

Deroy Murdock is a policy adviser to the Cato Institute and a columnist with Scripps Howard News Service.

Added to cato.org on October 16, 2000

This article appeared on cato.org on October 16, 2000.

Few Democrats are more stalwart than Wade Dokken, CEO of American Skandia — a Connecticut-based mutual fund company with $40 billion in assets. Dokken calls himself "an FDR-Truman-Kennedy-Johnson-Humphrey-McGovern-Carter-Clinton Democrat." A photo in his office shows him beside a beaming Hillary Rodham Clinton. Since 1998, Dokken says he has given at least $15,000 to Democratic campaign committees. "When I hear Newt Gingrich's name, I boo," he explains. "And then, when the appeal for money comes, I start writing my check."

But Dokken has just broken with his party. In his new book, New Century, New Deal, Dokken slams the Democrats on Social Security. He laments that the "party of the people" prevents Americans from investing their payroll taxes in privately owned retirement accounts. Dokken calls Social Security Choice "a golden opportunity to appeal to the dreams and aspirations of the New Investor Class."

The problem Dokken sees is that Gore would rather arouse his party base with anti-business rhetoric than sing Americans a song about hope.

Deroy Murdock is a policy adviser to the Cato Institute and a columnist with Scripps Howard News Service.

"The liberal leadership and left-wing allies of my party have always preferred welfare over wealth creation and anti-Wall Street populism to New Investor Class pragmatism," Dokken writes, "and the Vice President desperately wanted to energize his more liberal base."

Dokken harshly attacks Gore's Retirement Savings Plus plan. First, Gore would require Americans to pay their full Social Security taxes to the government, leaving many modest workers with nothing to invest. For those who could afford portfolios, Gore promises matching tax credits — in some cases, three federal dollars for every dollar a worker invests. This hefty, new entitlement would ignore Social Security's long-term, financial pitfalls.

Second, Dokken considers the vice president's current policy hypocritical given his earlier pronouncements. Gore today says he wants to help some Americans invest for retirement. But last May he called the stock market — what else? — "risky" and said, "You should not have to roll the dice with your basic retirement security." Having denounced the casino, Gore now wants to buy Americans their chips. As Dokken observes: "Either the stock market is a terrible place to invest for the future, or it isn't."

George W. Bush's plan is broader and bolder. Dokken calls it "by far superior." Bush would free even the poorest Americans either to remain in Social Security or voluntarily to allocate two percent of their FICA taxes to personal retirement accounts they would invest in stocks and bonds. These funds would be their property, not Uncle Sam's. They could bequeath these assets to their heirs, something unimaginable under today's Social Security scheme. Bush's plan, Dokken believes, will "shift our focus from poverty prevention to wealth creation and turn every worker into an owner."

Dokken now joins other prominent Democrats who want Americans to have universal access to the capital markets. Sam Beard, former advisor to Robert F. Kennedy, Minnesota's ex-congressman Tim Penny and Nebraska senator J. Robert Kerrey enthusiastically advocate personal retirement accounts funded with payroll taxes. New York senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan wrote in a May 30 New York Times column that he wants personal retirement accounts to help Americans build estates — "for doormen, as well as those living in the duplexes above."

Even Senator Joseph Lieberman supported Social Security Choice, until he performed an Olympic-class back-flip and landed on Gore's ticket.

"A remarkable wave of innovative thinking is advancing the concept of privatization," he told the Copley News Service in 1998. He added that "individual control of part of the retirement/Social Security funds has to happen." Lieberman's Democratic Leadership Council discovered in a survey that year that 72 percent of "Democrats" favor investing payroll taxes in personal accounts.

Governor Bush repeatedly and passionately promoted his Social Security blueprint in the October 3 presidential debate. "I want younger workers to be able to manage some of their own money — some of their own payroll taxes," Bush said, "to get a better rate of return on your own money."

Bush must hammer that theme, on the hustings and in commercials. This issue will energize younger Americans like a double espresso. Remember, in 1998, motivated young voters transformed Jesse Ventura from a colorful lark into Minnesota's governor.

G.W. Bush should invite Al Gore to join Bush, Wade Dokken, Bob Kerrey and Pat Moynihan in a bipartisan appeal for Social Security Choice. If Gore refuses, Bush should ask the leader of the "party of the little guys" why he insists on keeping the little guys little.

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Mon, 30 Aug 2010 19:03:17 -0700 The New Private Pension by Wade Dokken | Wade Dokken, Tom Hamlin, Lincoln Collins, etc on Fixed Index Annuities Investments of the annuity | Wade Dokken | annuities,guaranteed withdrawal benefits,lifetime income,index annuities,guarantee of principal,imme http://wadedokken.posterous.com/the-new-private-pension-by-wade-dokken-wade-d http://wadedokken.posterous.com/the-new-private-pension-by-wade-dokken-wade-d
Media_httpwwwwealthve_akfqj

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Mon, 30 Aug 2010 19:02:16 -0700 Capital Gains Part 3 of 3 by Wade Dokken - IRS And Taxes - Zimbio http://wadedokken.posterous.com/capital-gains-part-3-of-3-by-wade-dokken-irs http://wadedokken.posterous.com/capital-gains-part-3-of-3-by-wade-dokken-irs

There are even people who believe they should hold on to their assets rather then sell them when the country is characterized by a high capital gains tax.

Harry Wallop Consumer Affairs Editor writes on the repercussions,

“The institute studied America, where the rate has changed substantially – both up and down – since the 1950s. It calculated that a tax increase of 10 percentage points led to a 21 per cent reduction in revenues. On another occasion an increase of 8 percentage points led to a 15 per cent fall in tax revenues. “

This statistic helps illuminate the fact that there is a fine line when it comes to capital gains rates. If the rate is to high, people will simply hold on to their assets and a substantial amount of revenue will not be collected.

A major concern in the current economic climate is that high capital gains taxes will erode business growth. Newt Gingrich and Emily Renwick Write in The American, “The capital gains tax is an unequivocal burden on the capital we need to grow, prosper, and compete in a 21st century global economy. Any American or business that sees an appreciation of the value of their income (capital) must pay up to 39.6 percent in additional taxes on this appreciation (depending on the length of the investment and the marginal tax rate of the individual or business). Considering inflation, the effective rate paid on investments is even higher. As we are coming out of the recession, the United States should do everything within its power to create a financial environment that allows businesses to rapidly grow and prosper.”

As Newt Gingrich points out the fact that we are in an economic recession and anything that hinders corporate flexibility and innovation will inevitably undermine the prospect of long-term growth.

Additionally capital gains taxes are viewed as an obstacle to retirement. Many seniors are relying on the value of their stocks in retirement savings plans.

Curtis Dubay of the Heritage Foundation writes,

President Obama’s “Budget Blueprint” proposes to raise the tax rate on dividends and capital gains from 15 percent to 20 percent.[1] This tax hike would hit senior citizens particularly hard, as it would depress the value of stocks held in many types of retirement savings plans they rely on for income to supplement their Social Security benefits. These plans include 401(k)s, 403(b)s, IRAs, and self-directed state, local, and federal government employee retirement funds. As of December 31, 2008, these plans invested $4.4 trillion in stocks–just over of 54 percent of all their assets.[2]”  The perception is that an increase in capital gains taxes reduces the market value of stocks.

Retirement prospects have already been curtailed so much with the housing market and lackluster stock market. Taxing revenue used by senior citizens as a means to retire is only furthering the retirement crisis in the United States.

While these are all issues that are associated with incredibly high capital gains taxes, it is difficult to claim that the capital gains policy in the United States is unreasonable.

In the United Kingdom as recent as this May, the government was discussing raising the capital gains tax to 40%.  This created a huge scare with property owners however the government made concessions and the capital gains tax ended up being relatively modest. Kevin Brass of The Real Estate Channel writes on the concession, “ Instead the new budget calls for a relatively rational raise in the capital gains tax from 18 percent to 28 percent. And the rate will only affect higher tax brackets, not middle income earners.”

Harry Wallop Consumer Affairs Editor writes,

“If England had hiked the rate up to 40% it would have the highest tax rate in the developed world. Of the 30 leading countries that are members of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, not one has a rate higher than 30 per cent, if citizens have held on to their assets for at least three years.

The average rate is just 15 per cent, with many countries not levying the tax at all. “

A shift from 15 % to 20% is not that dramatic. Only time will tell if it will cause the perceived social harms that high capital gains taxes generally cause happen with the upcoming tax changes.

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Mon, 30 Aug 2010 19:01:08 -0700 Center for Innovation http://wadedokken.posterous.com/center-for-innovation http://wadedokken.posterous.com/center-for-innovation
 
 
image: Doug Burgum Doug Burgum is a senior vice president at Microsoft and president of the Microsoft Great Plains division. Microsoft Great Plains Business Solutions is a leading provider of business applications that help small and mid-sized companies become more agile in today's interconnected economy. Microsoft Great Plains Business Solutions was created through Microsoft's April 2001 acquisition of Great Plains.

Microsoft Great Plains has been recognized as a leader in providing e-business solutions that include financials, project accounting, distribution, electronic commerce, human resources and payroll, manufacturing, enterprise reporting, sales and marketing management, and customer service and support applications.

Doug earned top honors in the technology category of Ernst and Young's 1997 Minnesota and Dakotas "Entrepreneur of the Year" awards. He has been honored in Accounting Today magazine by being named to its "The Top 100 Most Influential People in Accounting" list for the past five years.

Doug Burgum
Great Plains Software
Year Inducted: 1989
 
 
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image: John Odegard John Odegard, Dean of the UND Center for Aerospace Sciences, and President of the non-profit UND Aerospace Foundation, is a native of Minot, ND. In 1968, Odegard pioneered UND’s aviation program with one other faculty member and a pair of aircraft financed by the University’s Alumni Foundation. Under his leadership, the college has grown to become one of the nation’s most widely respected aerospace education programs, and a leader in atmospheric research. Beginning with only 12 students, enrollment is now over 1,400. The Center’s flight training facility is the largest of its kind in North America. Odegard’s reputation for leadership has earned him industry respect and numerous rewards.
John Odegard
UND Aerospace
Year Inducted: 1989
 
 
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image: Norman Jones Norman Jones began his career at Metropolitan Federal in 1952 and was named President in 1967. At that time, Metropolitan’s assets were $57.5 million and its branches were limited to the Red River Valley. By 1990, it was one of the largest institutions of its kind with assets of $4.3 billion and a financial performance that ranked in the nation’s top ten. It was the first North Dakota company to be named to the Fortune 500 list. Jones was named Chairman of the Board in 1983 and led the company’s conversion from a mutual to a stock thrift. Among Metropolitan’s innovations were the acquisition of Edina Realty, Minnesota’s largest home seller, and the acquisition of seven insolvent thrifts. Metropolitan was acquired by the First Bank System in 1995, at which time Metropolitan had assets of over $8 billion.
Norman M. Jones
Metropolitan Federal
Year Inducted: 1990
 
 
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image: Bob Spolum Bob Spolum joined the Melroe Company in 1963 as Controller; sales at that time were $4 million. When he was named Executive Vice President in 1969, sales had increased to $25 million. Today, sales of the Bobcat® skid-steer loader total $500 million per year, outselling the nearest competitor two to one. All of the Bobcats sold worldwide are manufactured in Gwinner and Bismarck, North Dakota. Fortune magazine has twice named the Bobcat one of "America’s Top 100 Products." Today, Melroe is owned by Clark Equipment Co. and employs 1,500 people. Spolum retired as President and Chairman of the Board of Melroe in 1992.
Bob Spolum
Melroe Company
Year Inducted: 1991
 
 
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image: Gary Tharaldson’s Gary Tharaldson’s Fargo-based company, Tharaldson Enterprises, is the largest developer of new motels in the U.S. Today, his company owns and operates 225 motel properties in 21 states, including 13 in North Dakota. Carving out a market niche, Tharaldson’s motels fall into the "economy luxury" category and are located in mid-size university cities. Hotel and Resort Industry Magazine called him "the entrepreneurial and financial guru for the U.S. motel development and management industry." Room sales will exceed $190 million in 1996 with a 74% occupancy rate.

Gary Tharaldson
Tharaldson Enterprises
Year Inducted: 1992

 
 
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image: Gerry Groenewold Gerry Groenewold became Director of the UND Energy and Environmental Research Center in 1987. Under his leadership, the EERC has grown from $6 million in annual research contracts to over $21 million in 1996. EERC is the world’s largest low-rank coal research center and the leader in lignite coal and groundwater research. North Dakota’s largest research entity, with a staff of 260, EERC offers technical solutions to energy and environmental problems.
Gerry Groenewold
UND EERC
Year Inducted: 1992
 
 
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image: Judy Johnson Judy Johnson is President and CEO of Meyer Broadcasting of Bismarck, and under her leadership, Meyer Broadcasting has become a national industry leader in automated telecasting, using custom-designed computer applications. Meyer Broadcasting has long dominated the electronic media in western North Dakota and purchased KTHI-TV in 1995. As a partner in Pentor Communications, Johnson was the first American woman to own a business in post-Communist Poland. Pentor Communications is a media conglomerate in Warsaw employing 200 people.
Judy Johnson
Meyer Broadcasting
Year Inducted: 1993
 
 
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image: Barry Batcheller Barry Batcheller is the founding president of Phoenix International Corp. of Fargo, which has an international reputation for quality electronic design and manufacturing. Phoenix supplies electronic instrumentation, control systems, sensors, and other devices to more than a dozen North American manufacturers and five in Europe. Starting with three employees in 1987, Phoenix has grown to over 450 people. Sales have doubled every year since 1990. Batcheller holds 17 patents on control and instrumentation products and has authored numerous papers on the use of electronics in agriculture.

Barry Batcheller
Branic Industries
Year Inducted: 1994

 
 
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image: Darlene Jackson-Hanson Darlene Jackson-Hanson is the President and CEO of Fisher Flying Products and President, CEO, and Owner of Jackson Mfg. of Edgeley, North Dakota. Fisher Flying Products is North Dakota’s only light aircraft kit manufacturer and a leader nationally in the number of models available. Their R-80 Tiger Moth and the Dakota Hawk won "Best of Show" awards at Oshkosh ‘94, the international fly-in convention, and their bi-wing model, the "Classic," has won "Champion" awards for 1991, 1992, and 1993. The company is one of the largest in sales in competition with 60 other companies offering 500 models.
Darleen Jackson-Hanson
Fisher Flying Products
Year Inducted: 1994
 
 
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image: Steve Orr Steve Orr joined Lutheran Health Systems of Fargo in 1988 and serves as its Chairman, President, and CEO. Under his leadership, LHS has experienced the most successful period ever in its 60-year history. Net income increased from $800,000 in 1987 to $55.8 million in 1995. Orr’s commitment to the historical mission of LHS to serve rural areas has proven that rural health care is a vital and important part of America and serves to anchor the economic viability of rural communities. LHS owns, leases, and manages health care facilities in 70 communities across 17 states and employs 14,000 people.

Steve Orr
Lutheran Health Systems
Year Inducted: 1995

 
 
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image: Russ Brown Russ Brown joined the family business, AGSCO, in 1956. After three years at the Watertown, SD, branch, he returned to Grand Forks to become Sales Manager in 1961. He was named CEO and President in 1978, a position he held until 1995, when his son, Randy Brown, was named President. Russ continues as CEO, and his father, Larry, as Chairman of the Board. Under Russ’s leadership, AGSCO expanded tremendously and earned a national reputation as an innovator in the use of seed treatments, herbicides, insecticides, adjuvants, and chemical application equipment.

L. Russell Brown
AGSCO
Year Inducted: 1995

 
 
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image: Wes Rydell After purchasing the Grand Forks Chevrolet dealership from his father, Leonard, in 1976, Wes Rydell has expanded the Rydell organization to include nearly 30 automobile dealerships in seven states. The expansion of the organization has grown out of Wes's personal philosophy rather than the desire to simply "get bigger." Taking great pleasure in promoting the success of his employees, each and every dealer in the organization used to work for Wes, or is an employee of former employees who are now owners. In 1995, Wes established Cartiva, a planned network of used car dealerships, based on the concept of enhancing the image of the car business by taking better care of the customers. He believes giving the customer what they want, when they want it, is the key; profits and market share follow.

Wes Rydell
Rydell Chevrolet/Cartiva
Year Inducted: 1997
 
 
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image: Howard Dahl Continuing a family tradition of creativity and innovation, Howard Dahl founded Concord, Inc., a manufacturer of conservation tillage farm equipment, in 1977 in Fargo. In 1981, the first Concord Air Drill was manufactured. Surviving the severe economic downturn in the ag machinery market of the 1980's, Concord emerged as a leader in seeders for wheat and small grains. Concord was the first to manufacture an air drill with row-by-row packing and precision depth control, the first to put down fertilizer below the seed at the same time as planting, and the first to build a machine that changed seeding and fertilizing rates on the go. After the sale of Concord to Case Corp. in 1996, some of the retained technology was incorporated into Amity Technology, a leading manufacturer of sugar beet harvesting equipment and the manufacturer of the Concord Air Drill in Russia, the Ukraine, Kazakhstan, and China.
Howard A. Dahl
Oil Pioneer
Year Inducted: 1997
 
 
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image: Donald R. Mengedoth In 1986, when First Bank decided to divest 42 community banks in a five-state territory, Donald R. Mengedoth saw the potential of serving the smaller, mostly rural markets. Mengedoth led a group of investors who acquired 21 of the banks in Minnesota, North Dakota, and South Dakota. From its unique beginnings with 21 banks and $630 million in assets, Fargo-based Community First has grown under Mengedoth's leadership to become a $6 billion multibank holding company serving 154 communities in 11 states. It now employs 604 people in North Dakota alone. True to its community-based roots, Community First's expansion strategy has been to grow though acquiring financial institutions in small and median sized markets…markets that are typically under-served or overlooked by other major banking organizations.
Donald R. Mengedoth
Community First
Banksharers, Inc.
Year Inducted: 1998
 
 
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image: Richard J. Lee, Ph.D. A native of Berthold, North Dakota, and UND graduate in physics, Richard J. Lee, Ph.D. purchased an analysis and consulting company with six employees in Monroeville, Pennsylvania in 1985. Through his leadership, RJ Lee Group, Inc. now employs a staff of over 120 professionals at five nationwide locations, providing contract research, analytical services and applications development in various fields of materials analysis and problem solving on behalf of an international client base. In the late 1980's, company scientist and engineers developed an innovative personal electron microscope, which is now produced and sold by a new spin-off company, RJ Lee Instruments, Ltd. (now known as ASPEX®, LLC) located in Trafford, Pennsylvania.

R.J. Lee Ph.D.
RJ Lee Group, Inc.
Year Inducted: 1998
 
 
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image: Mark Stutrud Mark Stutrud launched Summit Brewing as a microbrewery in 1984 and built the first new brewery in the Twin Cities area in over 100 years when in 1995 he built his 58,000 square foot brewery with a capacity of 70,000 barrels per year. Summit Brewing became one of only 33 "regional" breweries producing more than 15,000 barrels in 1995. Summit brews - in the tradional British style - three beers year-around and four on a seasonal basis. Profitable since 1990, the company has enjoyed nearly a decade of double digit growth, ranging from 11% to 35%. Summit is one of the nation’s leading regional brewers of specialty beer, and is the premier specialty brewer in the Upper Midwest. Stutrud is a native of Wahpeton and is a graduate of UND as well as the Siebel Institute of Technology in Chicago.

Mark O. Stutrud
Summit Brewing Co.
Year Inducted: 2000
 
 
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image: Jack Dalrymple Jack Dalrymple, a Casselton, ND durum grower and influential state legislator saw a changing market for pasta and recognized that the quality of pasta the general public was demanding could only be achieved through complete control and integration of the grain procurement, milling and manufacturing processes. Dalrymple also recognized that this could best be achieved through a grower-owned cooperative structure, ensuring a steady supply of the right kind of durum wheat. In its first five years of operation, Dakota Growers became the third largest producer of pasta in North America, employing 500 people with processing capacity of 470,000 million pounds of pasta a year and sales in excess of $150 million.

Jack Dalrymple
Dakota Grower's
Pasta Co.
Year Inducted: 2000
 
 
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image: Tim Dodd Tim Dodd is the foremost authority on integrated pasta manufacturing. He was responsible for the design, construction and start-up of the Dakota Grower’s plant and has continually used innovations to refine the manufacturing process. A Kansas native, Dodd has developed three pasta plants considered leaders in the field. Dodd quadrupled sales of Dakota Grower’s pasta in four years, and built the company’s clientelle to include 30 supermarket chains and a number of restaurant chains. Dodd led the company to become the largest producer of non-branded pasta in the United States, and the third largest pasta producer in the industry.

Tim Dodd
Dakota Grower's
Pasta Co.
Year Inducted: 2000

 
 
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Patrick H. Sweeney has been the President of Weather Modification, Inc. of Fargo since 1992. Weather Modification, Inc. is a worldwide atmospheric research and cloud seeding company conducting business in Europe, the Middle East, Asia, South America and North America. Since the early 1960s, the company has been a worldwide leader in the field of cloud modification and atmospheric research. Currently, the company operates multiple weather radars and more than 25 high performance aircraft staffed by experienced pilots, meteorologists and radar technicians on its cloud seeding and research programs. In 1995, Sweeney formed WMI’s sister company, Fargo Jet Center, Inc., a full service aviation company located in Fargo. In 1999, Sweeney formed Ice Crystal Engineering, LLC, which is the largest producer of cloud seeding pyrotechnics in the world. In 2000, Sweeney was instrumental in the development of Fargo Air Medical LLC, a professional, on-demand, fixed-wing air ambulance service for North Dakota, Minnesota, and the Upper

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Mon, 30 Aug 2010 19:00:02 -0700 Retire Now. WealthVest Annuities Blog by Wade Dokken http://wadedokken.posterous.com/retire-now-wealthvest-annuities-blog-by-wade http://wadedokken.posterous.com/retire-now-wealthvest-annuities-blog-by-wade
Check out this website I found at blogtopsites.com

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Mon, 30 Aug 2010 18:59:13 -0700 Wade Dokken Annuity Coaching live in Las Vegas annuities FIA Video http://wadedokken.posterous.com/wade-dokken-annuity-coaching-live-in-las-vega http://wadedokken.posterous.com/wade-dokken-annuity-coaching-live-in-las-vega

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Mon, 30 Aug 2010 18:58:41 -0700 New century, new deal: how to turn ... - Google Books http://wadedokken.posterous.com/new-century-new-deal-how-to-turn-google-books http://wadedokken.posterous.com/new-century-new-deal-how-to-turn-google-books
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The book is dated, but we still have not addressed the issue.

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Mon, 30 Aug 2010 18:57:29 -0700 Wade Dokken Blogs http://wadedokken.posterous.com/wade-dokken-blogs http://wadedokken.posterous.com/wade-dokken-blogs
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Pure West Blogs

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Mon, 30 Aug 2010 18:56:24 -0700 Wade Dokken Full Length Monex Presentation by WealthVest Marketing Investments and Annuities Video http://wadedokken.posterous.com/wade-dokken-full-length-monex-presentation-by http://wadedokken.posterous.com/wade-dokken-full-length-monex-presentation-by

Wade Dokken Monex Meeting

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Mon, 30 Aug 2010 18:54:58 -0700 Wade Dokken Part 1 of 2 Las Vegas presentation at the Pallazo Hotel for The Gold Standard Event http://wadedokken.posterous.com/wade-dokken-part-1-of-2-las-vegas-presentatio http://wadedokken.posterous.com/wade-dokken-part-1-of-2-las-vegas-presentatio

WealthVest Marketing's opening meeting

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Mon, 30 Aug 2010 18:53:34 -0700 Wade Into Social Security Privatization: A TCS Interview - TCS Daily http://wadedokken.posterous.com/wade-into-social-security-privatization-a-tcs http://wadedokken.posterous.com/wade-into-social-security-privatization-a-tcs

Wade Into Social Security Privatization: A TCS Interview

By Wade Dokken - December 3, 2001 12:00 AM

Editor's Note: "By creating private accounts, you'd create private assets and private assets could be passed onto another generation as capital. And I think that would change the lives of millions of people," says Wade Dokken.

And Wade would know. A former advisor to Hillary Clinton, he is the President and Chief Executive Officer American Skandia, Inc. a financial services companies in the country, with more than $30 billion in client assets under management.

Wade recently sat down with TCS host James Glassman to discuss the coming social security crisis and what to do about it. As the Presidential Commission on Social Security Reform gets ready to present its recommendations this month, Wade's views are especially important.

TCS: Wade Dokken, you have written a book about Social Security, what 's the title?

Wade Dokken: "New Century, New Deal, How to Turn Your Wages into Wealth through Social Security Choice."

TCS: You know, so many people who write about this subject are policy wonks like me. How did you get involved in it?

Wade Dokken: Well, that's a great question. I have always loved public policy but this was more motivated by a series of things, I would say three or four things. One is my love of public policy, my access to information about how out of line our Social Security system is and what we can do about it, and the fact that I, like a lot of people, am a parent and I have three boys for whom I know the Social Security system is not going to deliver.

TCS: Now, what would you like to see as far as reform for Social Security is concerned, just briefly.

Wade Dokken: Well, the most important thing we need to do is we need to have a funded versus an un-funded system. We need to be honest about putting aside money now for the retirement of people at a future date. Today we're not doing that.

Once we've established a funded system, I believe we need to invest it in what I call a modern way, so that those assets that are set aside are being invested as any modern portfolio manager would invest assets, whether that's like the state of California or the state of New Jersey or anybody's 401K.

TCS: When you say a "funded system," I think this is worth spending some time on. How does the current Social Security system work and how is it similar or not similar to a conventional pension plan?

Wade Dokken: Well it's not similar to any other pension plan because the law of the land of the United States is that you can't have pension plans like Social Security. Social Security does not have any assets set aside for anybody's retirement. It's a pay-as-you-go system. You and I as under 62 or under 65-year-old taxpayers pay money in, and people who are now receiving Social Security receive that money within 30 days. It's a conduit system. What we pay in, somebody else receives. Therefore it is dependent upon, when I retire, another generation of people to be doing the same thing.

The problem is -- and it is the crisis question -- the demographics of this nation have changed profoundly in two ways. One, longevity has increased tremendously so we have an ever-increasing percentage of our population that is over age 62, 65. And all those subgroups are the largest growing groups of our population.

The second part is our birth rates are way down. So not only are we living longer but the replacement population is smaller. When Social Security was created we had 43 people supporting every retired person. Today we have 3.1 and in a very short matter of years we'll have two people supporting every retired person. It won't work.

TCS: And so your solution is to allow individuals to invest part of what they now pay in payroll taxes in private accounts in stocks and bonds, is that correct?

Wade Dokken: That's correct. That's the third part. I said number one: a funded system. Number two: invest in a modern way. And the third conclusion, I believe, is to allow people to at least have the option of having their money invested in private accounts.

TCS: And exactly how would that work? Would people be free to put their money just about anywhere, the way they do now with 401Ks? The 401K plan, of course, is limited by the offerings of the employer. But there are hundreds, probably thousands of choices, is that the way this would work?

Wade Dokken: I doubt it. It's not what I would recommend. Social Security is the foundation retirement plan for all Americans. And as such, if that money is squandered in any way, you would have a social crisis. So I think what would happen is there would be some significant limitations.

I believe a recommendation would be to let people invest in bank CDs which are guaranteed and are very safe and have a rate of return that is far in excess of Social Security's rate of return today.

It is also possible that you allow people to stay invested in a Social Security system and that all the money is held in a pooled account and managed like any other state pension system.

A third option is to allow people to have a limited number of choices and those choices would probably be automatic portfolios that have a combination of stocks, bonds, and cash so the risk would be very low.

TCS: Now when you said your second option, which is pooled accounts, are you saying that you think that it would be a good idea if, let's say, government employees or a government-run board were to make investment decisions for Americans? That is what, I guess, Alan Greenspan has been alarmed about, the notion of the government itself becoming a large shareholder in American corporations.

Wade Dokken: I think it's a possible outcome, but it's not one that I support. The reason I don't support it is I believe the politicization of it would be too great. For example, if the government owned the stocks, who would vote the shares of those stocks? I think that's a problem. I think quickly it would be politicized another way, in which the government would set up laws that we can't invest in certain types of stocks.

So it's not a proposal that I personally support, but I think it is a proposal that is supported by almost half the people in Congress.

TCS: But you don't think, in general, that people should have a wide range of choices. Another model might be the thrift savings plan, which is kind of the federal equivalent of a 401K plan.

Wade Dokken: I think that's a very good model. It has five choices. It's a great model because there are limited choices, they're indexed funds, and there are very low fees.

Currently there is a way to save for college education which is known by a lot of people, it's called a 529 plan, and what occurs in 529 plans is, you get those five choices. But there are combinations of stocks and bonds already established. So, for instance, as you're younger, you'll have a higher percent in stocks. And as you get older and you have less time to take risk, [the plan] would automatically [move savings] to a lower [risk of investment]. And I think some kind of structure like that would ultimately be the best thing to do.

TCS: Now let me get this straight. Is a reform of this nature intended to save Social Security in a financial sense? Or is it to provide Americans with a way to own their own retirement plan and have more money when they retire?

Wade Dokken: Well, I would argue that it's both. Social Security is a bankrupt system. At one point, we can model that it will be $27 trillion in deficit in about 30 years. So there's no financial scenario except for a growth rate for the U.S. economy sustained over decades that we've never achieved that will bail it out.

Having said that, one of the things that is important to realize is that the kind of implicit rate of return for Social Security today, for people under 50, is approximately zero. And it gets negative as you get younger. Compare that to the worst 50-year period for the stock market, which is plus 4 percent.

So we can save Social Security and at the same time create an income stream for people retiring which is greater than Social Security.

TCS: Now some people say this is not a good time to bring up the idea of reform that involves any kind of stock market investing. Isn't it risky for Americans to have their retirement dollars tied up in the stock market?

Wade Dokken: Well the risky scheme would be to do nothing. I can guarantee you that people will lose money on Social Security if we do nothing. So if guaranteed loss of your investment principle is safety, then we have the safest system we can create.

Having said that, there's no level of analysis that does not tell you that owning a basket of stocks and bonds over a long period of time is going to produce superior returns. And the risk is focusing on the very short period of time, or the risk is having an insufficiently diversified portfolio, both of which would be solved by using indexed funds and having long-term, pooled accounts.

TCS: So the point is that over a long period of time, if you have a diversified account, the riskiness of stocks is....

Wade Dokken: Negligible.

TCS: Certainly no greater than bonds, as many economists have found.

Wade Dokken: Well bonds are riskier than stocks. Risk is two things. Risk is short-term volatility [and] bonds can have short-term volatility just like stocks can. But risk is also opportunity foregone. And when you look at the average rate of return for a basket of stocks over a 50-year period, it is nearly seven percent after inflation. It's almost nine, ten percent before inflation. And Social Security is, today, for the entire population, at 1.7 percent. And for the younger population it's a negative number. It's difficult for me to see the risk in diversified equity portfolios.

TCS: Now your own firm, American Skandia, is in the annuity business. I think people would be wondering whether your book might be self-interested. Are there ways that you can gain as a result of this reform?

Wade Dokken: Well it depends on what the reform is. My reform has been careful on that. I'm thrilled if the outcome is 100 percent of the assets go into the thrift savings plan, in which companies like American Skandia do not participate.

I do believe that the economy -- and therefore all of our boats -- will rise if Americans are actually converting Social Security to a savings program. The pool of investment capital available will almost, undoubtedly, mean that we'll have sustained, longer, and higher growth rates.

TCS: Just as a last question since we focus on technology on our website, Tech Central Station. What would be the effect on technology companies as a result of a reform like this?

Wade Dokken: I'm not a futurist, but I would give you one small example. There's no predicted reform that will not focus on the administrative costs of the accounts. And the only way to solve the administrative costs will be to have everybody able to avoid talking to people on the telephone but build their access to accounts and model things right on the Internet.

But this is a powerful application, because if you now have 280 million people, all with the same need to access data on the Internet that involves their money, I think what will flow from that will be a much greater sophistication in Internet banking, Internet investing, and Internet shopping.

TCS: As well as providing capital for Internet companies.

Wade Dokken: As well as providing capital for them, yes.

TCS: Wade, some people might be surprised to find out your party affiliation and that you've been fairly active politically. Tell us just about your politics?

Wade Dokken: Well, I'm standing in my office looking at a picture of myself and a picture of Senator Hillary Clinton, so you can get some ideas on it. I'm a Democrat and I'm a liberal. I'm a socially tolerant liberal and a fiscal conservative, and I see nothing that I've said which is in conflict with that.

If you create pools of capital where the guy today -- who might be a laborer or anybody today who might be of the underclass -- could have a pool of capital of $250,000 or $500,000 of their own wealth, I think that's the greatest social program you could create.

TCS: I mean in a sense, of course, wealthier Americans already have pension plans that are oriented around stocks and bonds, and less well-off people don't have those things and really don't own their own retirement accounts, is that correct?

Wade Dokken: That is correct. And in fact, what people forget is the class of people most damaged by Social Security today: single, black men. And the reason is that they often are poor, and poverty creates lower mortality rates, and lower mortality rates mean that which they paid in they don't ultimately receive. By creating private accounts, you'd create private assets and private assets could be passed onto another generation as capital. And I think that would change the lives of millions of people.

TCS: Well, thank you, Wade Dokken, this was a good note to end on.

Wade Dokken: It was my pleasure, thank you.

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Mon, 30 Aug 2010 18:52:03 -0700 Wade Dokken Named President and CEO of AmericanSkandia. | Company Activities & Management > Board & Management Changes from AllBusiness.com http://wadedokken.posterous.com/wade-dokken-named-president-and-ceo-of-americ-0 http://wadedokken.posterous.com/wade-dokken-named-president-and-ceo-of-americ-0

Business and Financial Editors

SHELTON, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 31, 2000

Skandia Insurance Company Ltd. announced today that Wade Dokken has been promoted to president and CEO of the company's American subsidiary, succeeding Jan R. Carendi, founder of American Skandia, Inc. and its subsidiaries, who is stepping down after 13 years as president and CEO. Jan R. Carendi will remain as chairman of the board during a transitional period.

Jan R. Carendi comments: "After nearly 30 years at Skandia, including the start-up and leadership of American Skandia during its first 13 years, I take great satisfaction in the fact that we have achieved a leading position in the U.S. and global long-term savings markets. At this time, it feels appropriate to hand over the CEOship to Wade Dokken, who has been my deputy CEO for the past two years. I will be dedicating all my energy to developing new markets and long-term solutions for Skandia in a changing world."

Wade Dokken, chief operating officer and deputy CEO of American Skandia, also serves on the Executive Management Board of Skandia since March 2000. Dokken, 40, began his career in financial services as a Minneapolis-based broker for Paine Webber. He joined American Skandia in 1989. A native of North Dakota, he attended the University of North Dakota and was a candidate for the North Dakota State Legislature in 1984.

In the first quarter of 2000, American Skandia ranked as the number one distributor of variable annuities in the U.S. The company is also a preeminent distributor of mutual funds, qualified plans and variable life insurance products. The company has $34.8 billion in client assets under management and realized 1999 sales of $10.1 billion (first quarter 2000 sales totaled $4.3 billion). More than 1,200 employees work at the company's Shelton, Connecticut headquarters.

Skandia announced last week that its first-quarter operating profit more than doubled, powered significantly by U.S. sales of variable annuities, which rose 93 percent, and mutual funds, which nearly tripled. Skandia's stock (ticker SDIA SS), which represents approximately 8 percent of the Stockholm stock exchange's General Index, has risen some 75 percent since January 1, 2000. Skandia, with a market capitalization of USD $23.2 billion, saw its operating profit rise 161 percent to SEK 5.9 billion (USD $713.6 million) in 1999. It is now the no. 2 issuer of variable annuities in the world according to Tillinghast Towers Perrin.

Further information on American Skandia can be found by visiting the company's award-winning web site at www.americanskandia.com Variable insurance products are issued by American Skandia Life Assurance Corporation. Mutual funds are issued by American Skandia Advisor Funds. All products are distributed by American Skandia Marketing, Incorporated, Shelton, CT.

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Mon, 30 Aug 2010 18:51:02 -0700 Wade Dokken Named President and CEO of AmericanSkandia. | Company Activities & Management > Board & Management Changes from AllBusiness.com http://wadedokken.posterous.com/wade-dokken-named-president-and-ceo-of-americ http://wadedokken.posterous.com/wade-dokken-named-president-and-ceo-of-americ
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