Alternative Energy: Why You Can’t Ignore “Green” Investing

by David Fessler, Advisory Panelist

Louis Basenese is one of the smartest investment analysts I know, and a good friend of mine to boot. And most of the time I agree with his research - and his conclusions.

Just not this time.

You see, this past Tuesday, his Investment U article caught my attention. In case you missed it, it was written about green energy. In it, Louis makes an argument for a “green energy super-bubble” that could burst in as little as two or three years, leaving unwary alternative energy investors in the lurch.

In his article, he cites four conditions that exist that make alternative energy ripe for a bubble. Those conditions may indeed be forming, but in and of themselves won’t cause a “speculative bubble.” In this case, there’s definitely more to the story.

The Defense of Alternative Energy &

Fresh Water: California Drought Reveals the “New Oil” by David Fessler, Advisory Panelist, The Oxford Club

A few weeks ago, during a particularly bad cold snap, we had a pipe freeze underneath our 200-year-old farmhouse, causing us to go without water for a few days. I eventually managed to unfreeze the pipe, but there was no question it was disruptive for a busy household of four.

Here in the United States, we don’t realize how much we take our fresh water supply for granted, until it’s suddenly cut off. We’re used to turning on the faucet and there it is.

But for the folks in California, 2009 is shaping up to be a big fresh water disaster in the making. Last Thursday, state water officials reported that the snow pack in the Sierra Nevada Mountains is only 61% of what is considered normal for this time of year.

An with only

by David Fessler, Advisory Panelist, Investment U Friday, December 12, 2008: Issue #900

When I started driving, gasoline still contained lead and regular was selling for 29 cents a gallon. My father remembers 10 cents a gallon.

While it’s highly unlikely we’ll ever see those prices again, you could see gasoline below $1 a gallon, and it just might hit $0.75 a gallon. It might not be in time for Christmas, but the Easter Bunny might leave it in your Easter Basket.

That’s not just wishful thinking on my part: The International Energy Agency’s (IEA) most recent monthly forecast (released just yesterday) indicates year-over-year global oil demand will shrink in 2008 for the first time in the last 25 years.

Why? Developed nations are skidding into recession and emerging nations have hit the brake pedal on economic growth. And when the United