The Economist posted a not-so-interesting graph relating a year’s stock market returns to it’s Chinese Zodiac sign. I would imagine that a random number generator making up returns for clusters of numbers of years since 1900 and ranking the outcomes would produce a similar outcome... but let’s play devil’s advocate and see if there is something to be said from these numbers.

You've got an IRA, right? This site has been preaching the tax benefits of both traditional and Roth IRAs since the beginning... and we aren't going to stop now. So hopefully you've been diligently saving in your IRA, with the hope that some day you'll have a couple million dollars in there (or at least a good amount of funds you can tap in retirement).

Mitt Romney, it was revealed in financial disclosure documents, has an Individual Retirement Account worth somewhere between $20.7 and $101.6 million dollars. Note that IRAs have a small limit when compared to 401(k)s and other employer retirement accounts, so this came as somewhat of a shock to people with IRAs. How did Mr. Romney achieve such an impressive sum in his retirement account?

Can you ever forgive us for blacking out the site Wednesday? You can? Okay... then hopefully you'll forgive a bit more ranting on the issue in this edition of the Weekender (most of it way below the fold.)

That didn't take long, did it?

I gave you this rambling post on college major salaries a few months back. Today I present to you a fresh perspective from the National Association of Colleges and Employers (pdf). It breaks down the categories a little bit differently, but now that we've got some hard 2011 data you know the DQYDJians demand a graph!

Welcome to the Weekender, the highlight of everyone's week! (And isn't that what really disappoints you during the week- the fact that DQYDJ is so far away from posting another Weekender?)

The late William F. Buckley, founder of the conservative-leaning political magazine National Review had a very famous quote when it came to the Republican primaries: vote for the most conservative candidate who can win. Add to that little piece of advice this oft-repeated maxim: "Democrats fall in love. Republicans fall in line." (popularized by Bill Clinton). Toss those two together and what do you get? New Hampshire Primary results... at least according to the exit polls! Let's dig in...

The issue of the declining savings rate in America has been mentioned as one of the ways in which the younger generations are falling behind economically. The credit crisis caused massive deleveraging in America which increased the savings rate, but most of it was due to consumers reducing debts and liabilities as opposed to building assets. There could be many causes of this, but to name one: in times of uncertainty, consumer tend to brace themselves for a more hazy future by building net worth as quickly as possible. A decrease in stock prices and home prices eliminated much of the buildup of household assets which needed to be counteracted by an increase in savings. Also, credit standards have tightened, which has further compounded the problem and increased the deleveraging among American households.

We apologize in advance if this discussion is too concentrated on minutiae and definitions, but we'd like to clarify an issue (with the help of our readers!).

Let's just throw it out here: "How do you define savings?". It's a serious question, and you're going to get two articles with serious answers... one from yours truly and another from Cameron, our resident Economist. Let me lead with my definition: 'savings' , in my mind, is any money set aside from current earnings that is easily accessible, liquid, fungible, and have a reasonable chance for maintenance of principal and appreciation.

Okay folks, let's hit the links under the watchful eye of the squirrel...

Ahh, New Year, new resolutions, and new stocks for stock-picking competitions. We are a web site ostensibly about Personal Finance and investing, so I'd be remiss if I didn't enter a few contest this year. I already discussed my picks for the Money Pros Stock Picking Competition, but this time I'm entering a 4-stock contest run by Nelson at Financial Uproar. As always, just because I picked stocks here doesn't mean I'm telling you to buy them - so do your own due diligence!