The latest way to get taken

Now, large investment firms don't even have to be smart. They can just make money by being first.

Thanks to an article in The New York Times, we now know that one of the ways Goldman Sachs has made so much money recently was not by being smart, or investing in companies that are leading our country out of the recession, but just by having fast computers.

"It is the hot new thing on Wall Street, a way for a handful of traders to master the stock market, peek at investors’ orders and, critics say, even subtly manipulate share prices."

"Powerful computers, some housed right next to the machines that drive marketplaces like the New York Stock Exchange, enable high-frequency traders to transmit millions of orders at lightning speed and, their detractors contend, reap billions at everyone else’s expense."

It's day trading taken to the extreme.

Thankfully, there are companies that take longer-range outlooks on investments. I just talked w/ Julie Gorte this morning. She's the Senior VP of Sustainable Investing at Pax World mutual funds. She told me that Pax looks for sustainable companies: ones that will provide long-term value for their investors by meeting certain environmental, social, and governance criteria.

And here in Portland, Oregon, we have Portfolio 21. They focus on investing in companies that meet stringent environmental criteria. Chairman Carsten Henningsen says, "we see environmental issues as being the biggest risk and the biggest opportunity."

Where's your retirment money?

Who are you supporting?