“A big reason so many people lost money in 2008 was that they built investment portfolios too dependent on rising markets.”  (MarketBeat)

“Financial models are indispensable. So is skepticism in their application.”  (FT.com)

“I am guessing that momentum as a factor is overplayed at present, and it might be wise to leave it to the side until the next wipeout.”  (Aleph Blog)

After entering the business a tad late, Northern Trust (NTRS) exits the ETF business.  (ChicagoTribune.com also IndexUniverse.com)

The Claymore/NYSE Arca Airline ETF (FAA) is a proxy for oil and the economy. (TheStreet.com)

Has the Baltic Dry Index has been a run lately.  Has it bottomed?  (Bespoke)

Individual investors are piling into gold.  (WSJ.com also InVivoAnalytics.com, Ticker Sense, ETF Trends)

Is Netflix (NFLX) a new technology superstar?  (BusinessWeek.com also Peridot Capitalist)

“The fact is that ultra-high quality corporate bonds only look attractive when compared to Treasuries and Agency bonds.”  (Accrued Interest)

Is distressed debt near a bottom?  (TheDeal.com)

Just how much is the Harvard endowment down?  (The Big Money)

Three simple, i.e. lazy, portfolios.  (Kiplingers.com)

Timberland and timber stocks are two very different things.  (Street Capitalist)

One the relationship between market volatility regimes and the relative performance of momentum and value strategies.  (CXO Advisory Group)

How do individual investors trade around earnings announcements?  (SSRN.com)

“I’m tired of behavioral finance.”  (Infectious Greed)

Add jumbo mortgages to the list of troubled mortgage assets.  (WSJ.com also Big Picture)

What makes a bank too big to fail?  (Market Movers)

The details are key in examining the stimulus bill.  (WSJ.com, Megan McArdle, EconomPic Data, Crossing Wall Street, Clusterstock)

The Fed has pretty done as much as it can.  (Economist’s View)

Have macroeconomists ignored fiscal policy to the detriment of the profession?  (Freakonomics)

Are you an liquidationist, inflationist or deflationist?  (Cassandra Does Tokyo)

“One of the themes of this crisis has been that whatever problems we have here in the U.S., countries with weaker borrowing power, currencies, social safety nets, and financial sectors face much bigger problems.”  (Baseline Scenario)

Is the Phillips Curve back in vogue?  (Real Time Economics)

Add CBS (CBS) to the list of firm starting a business and finance site.  (Silicon Alley Insider, Motley Fool)

A prominent blogger embraces Twitter. (BusinessJournalism.org)

This story on brain damage will put a damper on your Super Bowl enjoyment.  (NYTimes.com)

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