by Natalie Pace.

New Hips for Active Americans.

Includes a Hip Resurfacing Stock Report Card.

2006 Tour de France winner Floyd Landis.

When you think about competitive advantage, you know you've got a winner when the actual product is named after the company. How many of us call our nose wipes, "Kleenex," tampons "Kotex," search "Google," and our soft drinks "Cokes?" (Sorry guys, don't mean to offend.)

Well, within the medical community, there is a new phenomenon where orthopedic surgeons are trained in "BHR" surgery. BHR is the acronym for the Birmingham Hip Resurfacing System, the hip resurfacing product of England's Smith and Nephew (SNN), which was approved for use in the U.S. by the FDA on May 9, 2006. By being the first company with an FDA-approved product, Smith and Nephew also had a mandate to train 336 American surgeons in BHR hip resurfacing techniques in 2006, and is continuing the effort in 2007. FDA approval on the 2^nd competitor in this product arena is not expected until the second half of 2007, giving Smith and Nephew over a full year's first mover advantage in the U.S. for this new product and procedure.

So, if hip resurfacing has only been in the U.S for only a year, is it risky? While there is risk with any product or surgery in the health arena, the hip resurfacing procedure is not as risky as you'd think. Even though many orthopedic surgeons in the U.S. are just learning the name, "hip resurfacing," surgeons in England have been using hip resurfacing implants for qualified patients, instead of the Total Hip Replacement, since 1995. In fact, with less than 500 U.S. orthopedic surgeons trained to date, many U.S. patients are opting to get the procedure done abroad, particularly in India, where the cost of the surgery, including R&R at a resort spa, can be less than the co-pays on many insurance plans in the U.S. (For more information, read the article, "It's Hip to Get a New Hip," featuring a Q&A with new hippy Gary Kobat, our resident life and fitness coach to the stars.)

According to Dr. Vijay Bose, one of the most respected hip resurfacing surgeons in the world, there are several distinct advantages of hip resurfacing over Total Hip Replacement, especially for the younger, more active patient. The device lasts longer, facilitates a very active lifestyle with smaller risk of injury than the Total Hip Replacement, and actually promotes improved bone quality. In an email interview, Dr. Bose said that the implant "does not damage the surrounding bone, like a conventional hip replacement, and the quality of bone actually improves with time after hip resurfacing."

To read more of my interview with Dr. Bose, read the "Get Hip! Like Tour de France winner Floyd Landis" article in this month's ezine. If you have questions for Dr. Bose, you can ask him LIVE in the Natalie Pace.com chat room on Wednesday, July 18^th, 2007. Get more information on the Calendar section at NataliePace.com.

The Birmingham Hip Resurfacing System has the longest clinical history of current resurfacing devices, with more experience and more medical support data worldwide than any other hip-resurfacing product. This track record is longer than nearly all currently available metal-on-metal total hips as well. The FDA approval was so clearly a win for Smith and Nephew in this huge, new arena of the U.S. active patient marketplace that Wright Medical Technology, Inc. tried to block the FDA approval of the BHR. That petition, from October 2005, was denied on May 9, 2006 - the same day of the BHR FDA approval.

That isn't to say that marketing share gains won't be rapid for some of these other companies, like Stryker, Zimmer, DePuy (owned by Johnson & Johnson), Biomet and even Wright Medical, once their hip resurfacing devices are approved. In fact, according to the 2006 annual report of Smith and Nephew, their presence in the general orthopedic marketplace is lower than most of the competition - at 11% (plenty of room for growth!). According to the report, "Principal global competitors in the orthopaedic reconstruction market and their estimated 2006 global shares, are Zimmer (29%), Stryker (20%), DePuy/Johnson & Johnson (22%) and Biomet (11%)."

However, there is that naming factor to consider - Google, Kleenex, Coke and BHR. The leading orthopedic surgeons in the US are trained in BHR implants for the hip resurfacing surgery, and these are the surgeons who will likely get employed to train their colleagues. For a list of surgeons who are trained in the U.S., go to the website SurfaceHippy.com.

The BHR is THE only product available in the U.S. currently for the "active, informed" hip resurfacing patient, and Smith and Nephew calculates that, in the US, patients aged 64 and under represent 40% of the primary hip and knee replacement market. This sector is expected to grow at twice the market rate.

Smith and Nephew has operations in 31 countries, and boasts of being:

• Global No 2 in trauma and clinical therapies
• Global No 1 in arthroscopy
• Global No 2 in advanced wound management
• Global No 6 in reconstruction

Because Smith and Nephew is the market leader in a new exploding consumer product and because Johnson and Johnson has an impressive growth rate with a decent P/E (and is the 2^nd choice of hip resurfacing surgeons globally), I have added both Smith and Nephew and Johnson and Johnson to the Hot News List this month. Many orthopedic surgeons worldwide are also using the DePuy ASR (Articular Surface Replacement) resurfacing product, including Canada, Europe, India and Australia, although it is still pending approval in the U.S. DePuy is owned by the mega-cap corporation Johnson and Johnson.

Click to take a look at the Hip Resurfacing Stock Report Card.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMER: Information has been obtained from sources believed to be reliable however NataliePace.com does not warrant its completeness or accuracy. Opinions constitute our judgment as of the date of this publication and are subject to change without notice. This material is not intended as an offer or solicitation for the purchase or sale of any financial instrument. Securities, financial instruments or strategies mentioned herein may not be suitable for all investors. Always discuss changes to your portfolio with your certified financial planner.

Get Hip! Like Tour de France winner Floyd Landis, and Still Compete.

by Natalie Pace.

Q&A with Orthopedic Surgeon, Dr. Vijay Bose.

Dr. Vijay Bose with Gary Kobat after surgery in Chennai, India.

Floyd Landis was 30. Mary Lou Retton was 39. Our own Gary Kobat, life and fitness coach to the stars, was 50. Each received the startling news that their hips were grinding bone on bone, and each turned to a new procedure called "hip resurfacing," for a chance at not just continuing to lead an active life, but for the hope of competing again. According to the Associated Press, Floyd Landis' new hip feels so good that if he'd been eligible to defend his 2006 title, he would have competed this year. (Landis is waiting to hear the ruling of The American Arbitration Association as to whether or not he'll get to keep his title as 2006 champ of the Tour de France.)

Given the degeneration of their hips, however, it's a win that Landis, Retton and Kobat can even enjoy an active lifestyle, much less compete, and it's thanks to a new, less invasive procedure, called hip resurfacing, that has become the popular choice for athletes and younger, healthier people, rather than the Total Hip Replacement. While hip resurfacing has been practiced internationally for over a decade, the procedure has only been approved by the FDA and available in the United States for the past year. And, even though it is available here, many Americans are still opting to get their surgery abroad, particularly in India, where surgeons have performed thousands of hip resurfacing procedures, compared to the one year of experience that most specialized American orthopedists have under their knife.

According to Gary Kobat, who received his new hip two months ago, cost is also a reason to consider India. Gary says, "The cost in L.A. was $55,000. London: $28,000. Belgium: $19,000 and India: $15,000. My medical insurance still had out of pocket of approximately $19,000. Whereas the entire trip to India, including spa recovery, was $15,000."

Of course, before you book your surgery and travel flight to India, you need to know who qualifies for the resurfacing procedure. How long does the hip last? Should you really compete after surgery, or are these athletes going to regret pushing their joints so hard in another five or ten years?

To learn more about the difference between Total Hip Replacement and Hip Resurfacing and the experience of the doctors in India over those in the U.S., we turned to one of the most respected hip resurfacing surgeons in the world - Dr. Vijay Bose, of the Asian Regional Center for Hip Resurfacing (ARCH) Clinic in Chennai, India. As you can see from the below chart, patients are traveling the globe to have Dr. Bose perform their hip resurfacing surgery.

Countries from which patients have traveled to ARCH for hip resurfacing surgeries.

Can you explain in layman's language the difference between hip resurfacing and total hip replacement?

Hip resurfacing is a technique invented specifically for younger patients with hip problems. Conventional Total Hip Replacement, while being a good option for an elderly person (above 70 years), is a poor choice for young patients, as it will fail too rapidly. The hip resurfacing operation is an alternative to hip replacement and has 3 crucial advantages.

Advantage #1: Lasts Longer
The first is that no plastic (polyethylene) is used, like in conventional hip replacement. Since an anatomical sized 'metal on metal' bearing is used, it lasts for a very long time, many times more than that of conventional hip replacement. Hip resurfacing is extremely popular in Europe, Australia and some parts of Asia. The anatomy and bio-mechanics after resurfacing mimic a normal hip very closely.

Advantage #2: Active Lifestyle
The second advantage is that, post operatively, patients are encouraged to be very active and must play some sport, do swimming etc. No activity is restricted, including sitting on the floor, crossing legs etc. In short, it behaves like a normal hip, enabling patients to return to their normal lifestyle. In contrast, after a hip replacement, one has to behave like an elderly person (for whom this has been designed) to be safe from dislocation and to prolong the life of the prosthesis.

There are also other advantages in Resurfacing like preservation of bone stock -- as no bone is removed in this operation -- unlike hip replacement where the head and neck of the thighbone is completely removed. Further it has been proven that bone stock actually increases after hip resurfacing, due to the restoration of normal biomechanics in the hip and proximal femur.

Advantage #3: Bone Quality Improves
The 3rd advantage is that the polyethylene 'wear particles' does not damage the surrounding bone, like in conventional hip replacement, and the quality of bone actually improves with time after hip resurfacing. This makes a revision solution (if at all needed) very straight forward surgery, unlike the very complicated revision scenario in a conventional Total Hip Replacement.

Is hip resurfacing a better option for all patients - including elderly, less active individuals?  Why or why not?

3 factors play a role in opting for hip resurfacing over a conventional hip replacement.  The factors are age, quality of bone stock and activity level. The interplay of these 3 factors has to be judged judiciously by the surgeon. Therefore there are no rigid cut -off values for any one criterion.

How long have you (and your Indian colleagues) been performing resurfacing surgeries compared to the US?  

I have been performing hip resurfacing since May of 2000 in Chennai, India at the ARCH (Asian Regional Center for Hip Resurfacing) facility. Before that, I was in Birmingham, U.K. and have been involved in this procedure since 1995. The procedure has been available in the U.S for the general public for about 7-8 months, since the FDA approved the BHR prosthesis.

Editor's Note: The Birmingham Hip Resurfacing System is a product from Smith and Nephew, a company based out of London, England that is traded as an American Depository Receipt on the New York Stock Exchange, under the symbol SNN.

What is the prognosis for patients post-op in both procedures?   

The patient is usually made to walk full weight bearing the day after the hip resurfacing operation and is usually discharged from the hospital at about 5- 6 days from the operation. They can resume any work at 3 weeks from operation and sport is started 6 weeks from operation.

After a hip replacement, one has to behave like an elderly person to be safe from dislocation and to prolong the life of the prosthesis.

Which company do you use for the parts? I found a site listing over half a dozen medical parts manufacturers who have or are seeking approval for a hip resurfacing product.

I use the Smith & Nephew BHR for most patients. I also use the Depuy ASR for some patients.

Editor's Note: DePuy is owned by Johnson and Johnson (NYSE: JNJ).

Gary was only 50!  Mary Lou Retton is 39! Floyd Landis is 31!  Why are so many younger people needing hip surgery?   

There is no straight answer to this. Hip arthritis is pre-destined in 99% of patients except in those developing it after trauma. However one can bring the onset of hip arthritis forward by "abusing" the hip. However it is very controversial as to what constitutes abuse of the hip.

Is there any proactive health choice that someone can make earlier in life and perhaps avoid the need for surgery until they are advanced in age?  

The only thing would be a healthy life style with regard to diet, exercise and balance. However, it is again controversial as to what 'healthy' and balance implies in these issues. There are lots of dietary supplements, which claim to prevent or slow down the arthritis of the hip. However, there is no scientific data backing this claims.

What is your experience with regard to US doctors embracing or shunning the resurfacing procedure?

US doctors have been shunning the procedure for a decade. However, as this procedure has now gained global acceptance, they are embracing it with some reservations. The FDA approval for the BHR certainly helped in gaining acceptance for this procedure with the American orthopedic fraternity.

Don't miss our upcoming online worldwide chat with Dr. Bose, on July 18^th, 2007 at 7:30 a.m. PT. This is your chance to ask your questions LIVE, one-on-one and anonymously online. Go to the Calendar section of NataliePace.com for details!

Thank you, Dr. Bose.

For more information on Hip Resurfacing, you can visit the following websites.
http://www.hipresurfacing.com/
http://www.activejoints.com/resurfacing.html

To Contact Dr. Vijay Bose, go to his website at:
http://www.hipresurfacingindia.com/

It’s Hip to Get a New Hip!

And Gary Kobat should know. 6 weeks post surgery, and he's already back on the bike -- painfree. A reprint of our June 13^th online chat with Gary.

Gary at-work pacing World Champion Sara Chojnacki to a podium finish in Austin, Texas.

By way of introduction, Gary Kobat is a well-known, well-regarded life and fitness coach with about 2% body fat. He's a lean, beautiful physical specimen, and the diagnosis that his hip had degenerated was probably one of the biggest challenges I've ever watched him face.

Gary -- We, as a society are much more active than our parents. As a result, more and more hip replacements will be needed, and at much younger ages than the traditional 60-75 years old. I'm 50. Mary Lou Retton is 39.

Gary, can you describe the difference between the procedure that you had done in India and the procedures that other surgeons in the US were recommending? Why didn't you get the procedure done in the US?

The Federal Drug Administration approved hip resurfacing about 12 months ago in the USA. This has been done overseas for 10 years. As a result, the USA doctors had only a few experiences or cases. I didn't want to go to a doc who had done only 10-15 cases. I went to a doc who had done over 1000. The longer the USA docs do that procedure - hip resurfacing - the better they will get at it.

Gary, was there any difference in cost as well? I mean, traveling to India cannot be cheap. And you stayed at a very nice resort during your R&R...

The cost in LA was $55,000. London: $28,000. Belgium: $19,000 and India: $15,000. My insurance still had out of pocket of approximately $19,000. Whereas the entire trip to India, including spa recovery, was $15,000.

Also, can you give us an idea on the difference between hip resurfacing, which was just approved here in the US and the more traditional hip replacement that was the norm? We know you are not a doctor, and are sharing your experiences as an informed patient.

Arnold Schwarzenegger, the California governor, has had a hip replacement, as did Ronald Reagan and Barry Manilow. It's an awesome procedure that works for folks who are kind of active. BUT, if one is 55 or under and VERY active, hip resurfacing is best. It works with metal on metal, so it does not wear down and should not dislocate with major activity.

How active can you be after the surgery?

A hip replacement? I could not find one world-class doctor in the U.S. who approved running again. They told me to give it up. So I went overseas where they rebuild the hip to take on running again. With the hip resurfacing procedure, one can ease back into running, etc.

Being a health coach to the stars, what do you recommend a person start out with -- the tread mill? Jogging in the pool?

I recommend to start in the pool. Less impact. Rebuild those muscles. Ease back in. I'm 7 weeks post, and am just now running two minutes and walking two minutes on the treadmill and still do pool work. The doctors will all tell you not to run. If you have a bad hip, the pool is best. You can replace junk miles that you run with pool work or indoor cycling to build cardio and muscles. Spinning was my savior because it was nonimpact, lubed the hip as I rode, and I could clear my mind with O2 and endorphins, as my hip deteriorated and couldn't do the treadmill any more.

How do you know if you qualify for the hip resurfacing procedure?

If you have a bad hip, get an E-ray to tell you how bad, from a hip doctor. Most U.S. doctors will tell you to get a THR - total hip replacement - only because they don't do the hip resurfacing. So, you might look for a second opinion abroad, if you are young and active.

My mother has a bad hip. She does not even want to think about Total Hip Replacement. We are in Canada. She had a very successful knee replacement done by a doctor in Toronto, but that is all he does.

My relatives live in Prince Edward Island. I have met a ton of hippies - hip resurfacing patients -- from Canada. They are so happy that they did it. How old is Mom? She might be better for the THR, total hip replacement. Here's my learning. I have met soooo many people who are holding out, living with pain and NOT doing the procedure. I feel sorry for them. They need a little nudge. They will feel so much better after the surgery. No pain. Full movement. Yes, it's invasive, but weeks later, viola! Awesome-ness.

Gary, please feel free to share your doctor's name and how to contact him. Also, perhaps you can give some information on how to best research the option that is right?

You can Google "hip resurfacing," or go to Surfacehippy.com and you'll see all the happy campers who were also holding out, but talk about the fact that they finally did it. I went to Apollo Specialty Hospital in Chennai, India to Dr. Vijay Bose. You can Google it all and start the research. Use my name, Gary Kobat, to inquire to Dr. Bose.

I know my mother should go ahead with the procedure here in Canada. They have excellent doctors and are covered by the government health plan. It will only cost my mother her private room charge of $700 Canadian dollars.

Remember: I could have used insurance type procedures, but I paid cash in India, charge card actually, and just paid it off -- $15,000. A lot of patients from Canada use the government health plan in Canada. Check out the website. There are doctors in Toronto that also do hip resurfacing. I started by emailing my X-ray to Dr. Bose. He said I was a candidate. Mom can do the same thing to the Toronto doctors. And awesome that is only $700!

I have met sooo many people who put it off and are miserable. They get numb. Can't see the new wrinkles in their face because of the pain. But once the procedure is done, they are smiling away. After, of course, a few weeks of rehab. Ask NP. She sees me smiling all the time now!

Note from Natalie: Gary, it is truly amazing to see the difference. I expected (and dreaded) a much longer R&R period for you. It is inspiring to see that you came through the procedure like a breeze! You look great, and the only difference that I can see is that you are smiling all of the time.

Is there any downside to an older person doing the resurfacing rather than the THR? Doesn't it make sense that if it is better for an active person, it would be better for a person who is less active, but still wants to do things? Again, we know you are not a doctor. Just want to plumb your research.

As for THR or resurfacing - both work. The doc usually recommends from the X-ray and activity level. I'm a resurfacing advocate. I love and advocate hiking, cycling, pool, running, etc. But the THR is awesome for walking, dog walking, etc.

We all want to be healthy and fit, but sometimes our head gets in the way! Oh, I must do this first - job, book, work, etc. We have to start with it in your head that nothing is going to stop you from getting where you want to be. What tips on this do you have?

The three pillars to change that your mom/we need to do:

1) change our thinking
2) our eating, and
3) our moving

to get the best possible results for ourselves. The mind drives the body. Think it and so it is. Visualize it first and it will be created. So, yes, it starts in the mind, and all the painful hipsters out there, pre-surgery, need to shift to more positive thinking about this. It's the beginning of the rest of their lives. Kind of a rebirthing of the next phase of their life. Or, stay stuck in pain. I couldn't stay stuck any longer. It's called hitting or reaching threshold.

Do you have any health tips?

Start your day with a protein shake. Eat carbs mid-morning. Eat a bigger lunch. A small mid-day snack. Lite dinner. Nothing after 8:30 p.m. Five smaller meals that you can hold with five fingers on your hand. Use your hand as an eating tool. Nothing portion-wise bigger than the palm of your hand. Five fingers. Five meals.

Also, get moving. Walk every day if nothing else. Use a treadmill. Use the incline function 1-12% upping 1% every minute and then back down at approx. 3.5-4.0 mph.

Do you allow wine?

First: wine is like eating a bowl full of sugar. Sugar speeds the aging. We can get relaxed or antioxidants in a healthier way. So, I always ask one why they drink wine? What's the goal? Moderation if they have to. But in all realities, alcohol is a product of decay. Burns the liver and brain cells, etc. Most people do not want to hear that, but it's true. So, I always ask why they want to, and then recreate new ways of achieving the same goal while lessening the wine.

Glad you asked? Ha! But wine occasionally, not nightly in large quantities? Like I said, "Why?" There are healthier ways to get where you want to go.

My husband loves his glass of wine at the evening meal. He says it is good for the heart. Maybe he just wants to get relaxed.

I'm actually headed to Jim Carry's now. A Canadian. He was kind enough to allow us to have the last half hour out of his training window. So I have to go. But yes, it's good for the heart, but real bad for the liver and sugar and etc. So what he wants for the heart we get through walking each day, and an antioxidant I recommend, and he'll be relaxed if he cranks up his workouts. Have a great day! Hope some of this helped. Thank you for allowing me to hang. Logging out now.

Thanks Gary. For all of you pre-hipsters who are still stooped over and grimacing in pain, Gary is a role model of how in less than six weeks, you can be fully functioning, on the road to full recovery and leading an active lifestyle, and best of all - without the pain.

DISCLAIMER: This chat was with a hip resurfacing patient, not a doctor. Nothing contained herein is intended to diagnose or treat any medical condition, or in any way act, speak or operate like a medical professional. There are listings of surgeons worldwide who specialize in hip resurfacing and Total Hip Replacement procedures on many of the websites.

For more information on hip replacements and hip resurfacing, read the article in this month's ezine, entitled, "Get Hip! Like Tour de France winner Floyd Landis, and Still Compete," a Q&A with Dr. Vijay Bose.

Checking up on Cramer:

Wonder how his picks are performing?

Recently, I received an email from one of my subscribers, asking, Dear Natalie: "What do you think of the Motley Fool newsletter and stock investing advice from pundits like Jim Cramer?"

Well. Uh. Entertaining?

In order to best answer that question, I randomly listened in on Mad Money on January 17, 2007, when Jim Cramer was doing a special on technology. His recurring message was, "Bail on technology during the January to August doldrums, but not on Cisco, Apple, Microsoft, Hewlett Packard and Google." I immediately disagreed that we were going to have a doldrums January to August. By my read of:

1. the economy,
2. historical trends in the markets,
3. the amount of cash in the corporations, particularly the Silicon Valley based corporations,
4. strong earnings, and
5. real estate rolling over (making stocks look more attractive)

I predicted, "Whereas three out of four years, January is the top-performing month, and it's a good time to consider selling out and taking some of your profits, this January may be the beginning of a great pre-election year rally, just as we saw in 2003, 1999, 1995 and 1991!"  (Check out the archived article "Buy High; Sell Higher? Why 2007 is Poised to be a Banner Year," from the February 2007 ezine.) Sure enough, over the next six months, the Dow Jones Industrial Average scored record highs, and the NASDAQ and S&P500 rose to six-year highs as well.

Jim Cramer went on to recommend a number of buys and sells during the show, and especially in the lightning round. Would you like to know how those companies performed? Out of 18 stocks, 11 lost money (in an up market!). The biggest losers included his #1 Growth Stock -- the New York Stock Exchange Euronet (NYX) -- which dropped -30%, and Altria (MO), his #1 Value Stock, which lost -22% of its value.   

The average loss to date on the companies Cramer recommended on January 17, 2007 was -7%, as of June 22, 2007, and that was during a period of 6-7% gains in the general marketplace! In other words, you would be doing MUCH better to just invest for the long term in an Exchange Traded Fund or an Index Fund than you would be doing right now if you had invested in Cramer's Picks on that day. If you'd like tips on Fool-Proof Ways to Get Rich and Stay Rich by investing in ETFs for the long term, read the article in this month's ezine, "(Don't Be) Famous and Bankrupt."

By comparison, of the 44 companies that I listed on my mid-month update in June 2007, 33 are performing well and only 11 are in negative territory. According to TipsTraders.com criteria and tracking, my annualized gains are still 30%, meaning that you should be earning on average 30% every year, if you are a subscriber and following the companies that I report on in the Hot News on Cool Stocks List. That kind of performance compounds into a cumulative 150% return over the past five years and millions much faster than even the rocket ship real estate has been over the same time period!

And here is where some stock newsletters can bedazzle you a little bit. I recently saw this ad for the Motley Fool Stock Advisor newsletter. "For the four-plus years since Stock Advisor was launched, Tom and David Gardner's recommendations have returned an average of 69% (compared with 32% for equal amounts in the S&P 500)." 69% sounds AMAZING!! But 69% over four years is equal to only 17.25% annualized. My 30% gains every year are 120% over four years, or 240% over eight years. If it doesn't say the word "annualized" then you have to divide the number by the number of years in order to see what the returns really are, and that number will be far less impressive than it seems, because the only reason people use the cumulative returns, instead of annualized, is as a marketing trick.

So, just to make sure that I wasn't catching Jim Cramer on a bad day, I checked out TipsTraders.com and The Hulbert Financial Digest - two of the independent ranking services that follow the picks of pundits. Of the Top Tipsters in 2006, neither Jim Cramer nor Motley Fool were mentioned. (Yes, I'm listed.) Some of Motley Fools newsletters are followed by Hulbert, but none have been around long enough to be the top performers in any category, as his service publishes results beginning over a 5-year period. Having said that, Motley Fool's "Hidden Gems" newsletter is at the top of Hulbert's list for one-year returns between May 2006 and May 2007, at 44.8% gains on the year, which is about 28% above the general marketplace. Impressive, but short-term. You really want to see those results over a period of term before you jump in.

Source: MoneyCentral.msn.com

The challenge with a lot of the "mass media" pundits is that the format of their service works against their ability to pick great stocks. No one can pick 20 stocks a day at random. It's really impossible to do the amount of due diligence necessary to make calls like that. Because of the popularity of the show, however, even if Jim is against the practice, his producers would want to keep the Lightning Round in. The format of both Motley Fool and TheStreet.com is to post new content every day, so you should know that the amount of research necessary to write an intelligent article with updated news and a deep understanding of all of the risks and performance potential on ONE COMPANY is being compromised. When ANY PUNDIT is long on opinions and short on recent news and data, you're entering into very risky territory. And the Mad Money Lightning Round is a lot of whooping and hollering and Stooge-like antics, with very little meat.

Daily content is really contrary to rich, investigative reporting. That is why I have made the choice to publish my featured companies MONTHLY and only update the Hot News list every two weeks, which is a standard timeframe for many stock newsletters that are outperforming the marketplace. I write my feature articles and news updates personally, as do my favorite stock pundits, like Paul Woods, Kelley Wright and David Fried, all of whom we feature in the NataliePace.com ezine.

Kelley Wright and David Fried are listed in Hulbert's Financial Digest this month with impressive performance over long periods of time. The Investment Quality Trends stock newsletter is #1 in risk-adjusted returns for the past 20 years, at an annualized gain of 12.8%, compared to the Wilshire 5000 performance of 11.1%. David Fried's Buyback Letter is #5 in performance for the last 10 years, at 15.6% gains annually, compared to the general marketplace return of 8.3% yearly over the same 10-year period. (Paul Woods is not tracked by Hulbert.) You can find these great stock pickers (each of whom also manages money) by going to their company websites - IQTrends.com, BuyBackLetter.com and OdysseyAdvisors.com, respectively. Paying a subscription for a top-performing stock newsletter is far more valuable than listening to free advice that loses money!

The educational content of Mad Money, when Cramer is not focusing on a particular stock, has some value to it, though I don't agree with all that Jim Cramer touts, especially when he starts telling companies, like Citigroup, how to run their business better. I read a few general educational articles on Motley Fool and I thought they were valuable as well. I also really enjoy reading the macro commentary of outstanding analysts, like Tobias Levkovich of Smith Barney, but the minute the Portfolio Strategist, Smith Barney's weekly newsletter, starts touting stocks to buy and sell, I stop reading. For more tips on investing mistakes to avoid, be sure to read my article in the Investor Edu section at NataliePace.com.

Remember the value of great reporting is hard to beat. 48% -- 25 out of 52 companies Ñ of the companies I featured between 2002 and 2005 DOUBLED, using my consumer-based, investigative reporting criteria, combined with the fundamental analysis presented in the Stock Report Cards.   Additionally, I called the 2003 pre-election year rally in January -- a year when NASDAQ ran up over 50%.

This year is looking great so far as well, although I'd recommend that you avoid traditional Blue Chips and weight (and diversify) toward mid and small cap value stocks. (For more information on why, check out the articles listed below.) Though the Dow Jones Industrial Average might outperform in the short term, simply because inexperienced investors will say, "put me in," without knowing where the money is going, the fundamentals of many of the legacy corporations listed in the Dow 30 are of concern. Brokers have many reasons, including commissions, for putting new investors into the Dow. Few of those reasons are because the Dow is really poised to outperform over time.

In short, sometimes the best choice you make is to turn off the television and delete the free newsletter trial. Isn't it great when spending less time and money pay off!

OTHER ARTICLES OF INTEREST:
39 of the S&P 500 companies that are most deeply in the red on pension plans. Vol. 3, iss. 3. (March 2006)
Faded Blue Chips. Vol. 3, iss. 8. (August 2006)
Wow! Dow! Or NASDAQ Now? A Contrast in Cash and Debt. By Natalie Pace. Including a Nasdaq vs. Dow Stock Report Card. Vol. 3, iss. 11 (November 2006)

Investing Over the Really, Really, Really Long Term.

by Paul Woods, President & CEO of Odyssey Advisors, LLC

How has the U.S. stock market fared since 1825?

We recently received the "Stocks, Bonds, Bills, and Inflation 2007 Yearbook" from Morningstar/Ibbotson Associates. Okay, our taste in reading material can be a bit dry. However, for professional investment advisors, this is the bible of historic returns in the stock and bond markets. Returns are shown by market sectors going back decades, and this provides the most reliable measure of which segments of the stock and bond markets have historically offered the most attractive combination of risk and returns. In addition, there's usually something new and this issue was no exception.

Looking WAY Back
Included in the recent edition were returns from 1825, which is about 100 years earlier than the previous starting point for stock market returns. The returns were calculated by taking closing monthly prices from newspapers and adding paid dividends to the change in prices. This series is large company stocks, although a large company in 1825 was a far different creature than a large company in 2007. Earlier returns should be taken with a few grains of salt as the data was somewhat spotty and probably has gaps until about 1926, when record keeping became more reliable. However, this is still a pretty good benchmark for actual returns in spite of the caveats.

Compounding Unexciting Returns
Since 1925, the compound return on large company stocks in the U.S. has been 8.77% and it should be noted that, with the exception of the last few decades, dividends made up a major chunk of those returns. For an investor from my generation that's seen double digit returns since getting in this business, an 8.77% return isn't exactly a toe curler. However, the magical thing about compounding is that, if you keep at it long enough and don't jump in and out of the market, it's hard not make a jaw dropping amount of money. On average, every dollar invested in stocks in 1825 grew to $4,057,783.08 in 2006. No, I'm not kidding, as the above graph shows.

Breaking it Down
The above chart is on a logarithmic scale, which shows accelerations or slowdowns in rates of return.
From this, we've broken historic returns into the following segments:

From 1825 through 1841, the average annual return was 1.22%
From 1842 through 1941, the average annual return was 7.75%
From 1942 through 2006, the average annual return was 12.34%
From 1842 through 2006, the average annual return was 9.53%

For whatever reason, between 1825 and 1842, the stock market was a tough place to make money. Stocks began to earn their keep in 1842 and, 100 years later, the U.S. was in the middle of a war that would cement its position as an economic and military superpower. Double digit returns in stocks have been the norm ever since.

What's interesting is this goes against the rationale for investing in emerging markets. What passes for wisdom in some parts of the investment industry is the idea that investors will earn higher returns in emerging economies than they will in countries with more mature economies. Emerging is usually defined as a country that's poor with low economic output, but things are improving. America probably fit that profile in the early years, but stock market returns stayed in single digits until our economy got a lot bigger.

The Election Cycle
After the Great Depression, the Federal Reserve was given more tools to influence the U.S. economy with the goal of preventing another depression. Although the Fed is supposed to be independent, the Chairman is a political appointee, appointed by the President, with a term of 7 years. During my lifetime (60 years) the average Fed chairman has been appointed for multiple terms. In an amazing coincidence, economic growth starts getting better before elections and slows down afterward.

Every stock investor that's been at this for a while knows the result. It's easier to make money before elections than afterward, and the chances of losing money in the stock market seem to increase dramatically once a President starts a new term. To test this, I threw out the first 17 crappy years in stocks and picked 1842 as a starting point. This was almost 100 years before the creation of the Federal Reserve, was there still an election cycle in the stock market?

Returns in each year of the 4 year election cycle were averaged. The data wasn't sliced and diced to separate Democrat or Republican victories or periods when the incumbent or the new guy was elected, making it unnecessary for an investor to try to figure out who will win the next election. All you need to know is when the next election is being held.

For 164 years and 40 Presidential elections, the results are dramatic. Stocks average double digit returns in the years before elections, and single digit returns afterward. The chances of losing money go from about one year in five before elections to about one year in three afterward.

Not shown here is the size effect, which is significant in data going back to 1926. In a nutshell, smaller companies produce significantly higher returns than large ones. Keep in mind that what you're looking at here is the LEAST attractive part of the U.S. stock market over time. Even so, returns in the years before elections (such as 2007) produce average total returns of almost 16% and election years produce average total returns of almost 12%. The year after elections is when brakes are typically applied to the economy. In those years, returns are the lowest in the cycle, under 7% on average, while the chances of losing money rise to about three years in eight.

All Things Considered
In evaluating an investment in bonds or real estate, it's useful to know the long term return on stocks for comparison purposes. Returns in the stock market are clearly a function of the time period measured. However, since 1842, total annualized returns in equities have been about 9.5%. It's also clear that market timing is a bad idea as anytime an investor is out of stocks, the chances of making money are greater than the chances of losing money. However, allocating a greater portion of your investments to stocks before elections and cutting back afterwards is a strategy that's pretty hard to argue with.

Paul Woods is President and CEO of Odyssey Advisors LLC, an independent investment advisory firm specializing in equity and fixed income management for individuals, entrepreneurs, families, endowments, and non-profit institutions. He can be contacted at pwoods@odysseyadvisors.com

Information has been obtained from sources believed to be reliable however Odyssey Advisors LLC does not warrant its completeness or accuracy. Opinions constitute our judgment as of the date of this material and are subject to change without notice. This material is not intended as an offer or solicitation for the purchase or sale of any financial instrument. Securities, financial instruments or strategies mentioned herein may not be suitable for all investors.

Copyright © 2007 by Odyssey Advisors LLC

(Don’t Be) Famous and Bankrupt:

by Natalie Pace.

Learn the Fool-Proof Get Rich and STAY RICH Plan.

Kim Basinger declared bankruptcy after buying the town of Braselton, Georgia

Marion Jones, the superstar of the Sydney Olympics with a record five medals, has a current liquid asset value of $2,000, according to the Los Angeles Times. Where did the money go? According to Ms. Jones, "Bills, attorney bills, and a lot of different things to maintain the lifestyle." Mike Tyson squandered over $300 million and filed for bankruptcy in August of 2003 due to lavish spending and bad advice, according to his team. Even Donald Trump has been forced into bankruptcy on marquise properties, like the Plaza Hotel (on Nov. 2, 1992).

While most people are punch drunk on getting rich, the real trick is getting rich and STAYING rich, the smart way. The Donald might be back bigger than ever, but more than one of his businesses have cycled between periods of popularity and bankruptcy protection. As athletes, Ms. Jones and Mr. Tyson have already enjoyed their top-earning athletic years, and will have a more difficult time making millions again.

The good news is that the solutions for getting rich and staying rich are the same. Most people LOSE their millions through lavish spending and bad financial advice and most people NEVER MAKE THEIR millions through over-spending and financial ignorance. (You'll notice the big difference between the modest lifestyle of Warren Buffett - a perennial billionaire on the Forbes list -- and the lavish lifestyle of Donald Trump.) Bear with me here while I illustrate just how easy it is for a KID making $13,000 a year to become a millionaire, with good financial advice and moderated spending.

The below chart is calculated by TD AMERITRADE, based upon opening a stock account with just $2,000 and contributing only $1,300 per year (which would be 10% of $13,000 net income per year).

As you can see, an 18-year-old who tithes only 10% of her net income to her "Living the Rich Life Freedom Plan," will have over $4 million dollars in 50 years, at age 68 - and that is if she never gets a raise or increases her contributions! What about taxes, you ask? If the 18-year old sets up a qualified tax-free retirement account, then the capital gains and dividends are NOT taxed (until the portfolio is used as income).

Look how much faster a young professional, contributing $4,000 annually Ñ10% of a $40,000 net income -- to a qualified Individual Retirement Account (tax-free) can become a multi-millionaire.

So, the first rules of thumb for getting rich and STAYING RICH are to:

1. Tithe 10% of your net income to your Tax-Free Financial Freedom Plan - BEFORE YOU PAY BILLS OR SPEND LAVISHLY ON CARS, VACATIONS AND OTHER STATUS SYMBOLS.

When you're tithing 10% a year, you're diversifying your investing money across a range of time, which is a great, time-proven strategy. This is like "dollar cost averaging" across time periods -- a fantastic diversification model. You don't want to try and "market time," but conversely, you don't want to be making a HUGE investment of your entire nest when the market is at its highs. (It is ill-advised to take a huge lump sum out of another asset class and just dump it into stocks without considering whether the markets are at a high or not - regardless of how many charts your stock broker shows you.)

2. Contribute the maximum amount possible into a tax-free retirement account EVERY YEAR.
   
   Now, the above portfolios are based upon an aggressive "wealth-accumulation" strategy, which is heavy in the stock market and lighter in bonds, money markets and Treasury bills. As you get older, this kind of strategy is not appropriate because it is TOO risky. THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT TO PAY ATTENTION TO!! Many people are getting their pension plans bought out and handed cash, and too many of those have handed over the reins of their retirement plan to an over-aggressive broker who has had too much at risk given their age and retirement goals. Unfortunately, in a down market, that could mean that the person is unable to stop working, or worse might be in a position to lose their home.

For instance, it's okay for a 20-year-old to be all in on the stock market in 2000-2002 because during market down cycles, s/he still has another decade or two to make up for any losses. Since, historically, the stock markets return on average between 10-12% EVERY YEAR - even with the down cycles -- odds are high that, over time, equities perform better than any other asset, including real estate, gold, bonds, Treasury bills and inflation.

If you are 70 and you hit a down cycle, like the one we experienced in 2000-2002, and you have too much invested in stocks, you could be forced to postpone retirement. The NASDAQ lost more than 60% of its value between 2000 and 2002, so anyone seeking retirement or needing to withdraw more funds than expected due to health or another trauma would be in trouble, if they had too much invested in NASDAQ.

GET RICH AND STAY RICH TIP #3: Keep a % equal to your age SAFE
At age 20, you can have up to 80% of your financial freedom plan invested in the stock market to maximize gains. If you take a long view, then you don't have to worry about any annual downturns or recessions. The good years more than make up the difference! 20% should be safe and liquid - in bonds, Treasury bills and money markets.

77.27% Stocks
7.73% Bonds
15% Cash & Equivalents

By the age of 80, only 20% of your plan should be invested in stocks. You don't have additional time to wait for the up-cycles, and need safe, secure, steady yielding investments

.

These general guidelines can go up or down slightly based upon your risk tolerance and financial expertise, but do not be seduced into making a lavish exception at the urging of a broker or certified financial planner - especially one whose background and experience hasn't been screened thoroughly. Remember always that brokers are salespersons who are paid on commission.

Both of these charts have been generated online through the discount brokerages TD AMERITRADE and SCHWAB. You can start planning out your own RICH LIFE future in just five minutes WITHOUT even having to give your name or email address at these websites, so there is no excuse to delay! (See the end of the article for instructions on how to try out your own plan.)

GET RICH AND STAY RICH PLAN TIP #4: Buy bonds, not bond funds, for a more secure, yielding investment that should payback the principle at maturity.
You'll notice one VERY IMPORTANT, but often overlooked, detail in the Schwab and TD AMERITRADE charts - the name "bond funds." Here's the trick. You should NOT be invested 75% in bond funds, if you are retired. Why? Because bond funds are really stocks. They are traded on the stock market. In a bond fund, you are not buying a bond that comes to maturity and guarantees your principle. Additionally, you are paying higher fees on the bond fund than you will on bonds. The bond fund is a way to diversify, but it is not as secure an asset as the bond (which will pay yield and payback principle at maturity, provided the corporation or government issuing the bond doesn't go bankrupt). Think of bond funds as mutual funds (which are stocks) that invest in the bonds (instead of equity) of corporations (and governments).

As 30-year bond veteran Meri Anne Beck-Woods says, "Unlike a bond, a bond fund never matures and the expense ratio is relatively high.  It is a lot easier to buy individual bonds and bond ETFs than ever before.  If you are retired, you may need more income than a stock dividend can provide.  Now 6% is available for 10-year agency bonds with some call protection, and 6% treasury bonds are available at a premium, which can be amortized over the life of the bond and taken as a tax write-off."

GET RICH AND STAY RICH PLAN TIP #5: Fill up the tank regularly, with biannual maintenance checks.
Selecting the plan that is right for you is like buying a car. You have to do some research to pick the most compatible ride, and then you simply gas up regularly and do a maintenance check annually or biannually, and you're good to go! As you can see from these easy-to-create charts, the brokerages have made it very easy for you to select a plan in five minutes that is almost right for you. Tweak it with the above five tips with about five minutes investment of your time. Then, it is just a matter of tithing 10% of your net income EVERY MONTH into your freedom plan, and readjusting the plan twice a year to account for your age, to take any profits or to make any other adjustments that look appropriate. (For instance, in 2000, when your NASDAQ equity had rocketed up over 200%, there's nothing wrong with taking those profits and rediversifying the money into an undervalued equity, like bonds, that might be poised to start performing.)

Gas up your portfolio monthly, with your 10% monthly tithe. Do maintenance checks twice a year. Take your profits in January, the top performing month, historically, of each year. Shop for the Back to School Stock Sales in September, the lowest performing month, historically, of each year. Rebalance your portfolio, based upon your age, and make sure that you have the appropriate amount safe, and a good diversification plan. (Don't have all of your stocks in just one company; don't have your entire portfolio in the stock market.)

GET RICH AND STAY RICH PLAN TIP #6: Bonds perform better as interest rates drop. When interest rates rise, the market value of the bond goes down, and can produce negative returns.
One last tip on bonds. Bonds are traded on the open market, and the value of the bond does wax and wane based upon the current interest rate climate. During 2002-2003, bonds were the top-performing asset class. Interest rates and stocks were in the toilet, and anyone holding a bond with a high-yield was in a position to sell it for a good premium! (High-yield bonds can return even higher premiums on the price paid.) A bond that goes to maturity is safe, but if you're 80, and into the last years of your life, you may not live to see the principle repaid. So, be aware that, in a market where interest rates are rising, the value of bonds you hold that were purchased at a lower interest rate will decrease. If there's not a real need to sell the bond, you can just ignore the market value of the bond and enjoy your yield.

GET RICH AND STAY RICH PLAN TIP #7: Stocks on Steroids Portfolio
To really maximize returns, especially if you love investing in stocks and are willing to educate yourself and become a sophisticated, informed investor, consider having a percentage of your portfolio designated as your STOCKS ON STEROIDS portfolio.

The percentage of your STOCKS ON STEROIDS portfolio will vary, based upon your experience and confidence in your own ability to pick great stocks and buy low, sell high for profit. A beginning investor might actively trade only 5% of their stock portfolio, whereas an experienced investor might actively trade half of their stock portfolio, provided they have the risk tolerance for it.

Consider how rapidly adding a few percentage points to the gains adds up.

If you did that same plan of $4,000 to start and $4,000 contributions into a tax-free retirement plan and used my stock picks, which are earning 30% annualized going into the 8th year, you'd be a millionaire in just 15 years (account value of: $1,155,824).

GET RICH AND STAY RICH PLAN TIP #8: Do your trading within your tax-free IRA, and use your non-qualified account as your long-term retirement plan.
Oddly, even though the qualified tax-free retirement plan feels like the stodgy place you put money in regularly but don't bother looking at, the tax-free IRA is the best place to do your trading because the capital gains and dividends are not be taxed! In a larger portfolio, say, $10 million, you will have tax considerations, but capital gains taxes right now are lower than normal, at 15% for long term capital gains and a capped rate for short term gains. (Always check with your certified financial planner for tax considerations; tax laws change frequently!)  

A $10 million dollar portfolio goes to half a BILLION in 15 years with my 30% gains ($511,858,930), however, considering an average tax rate of 28%, that same $10 million invested in NataliePace.com featured companies, which are earning 30% annualized gains, becomes $187,933,249 in 15 years.  That is still a great return, but reduced significantly because of the burden of the taxes.

Because capital gains and dividends are not taxed in a qualified retirement account, you can really maximize your trading gains by housing your trading portfolio under that umbrella and avoiding those taxes. There are cap limits, so you can't just transfer your millions into an IRA and trade tax-free. Consult your certified financial planner for creative, tax-sensitive planning. If you have the millions to invest, they should have some great ideas for the best structure for you.

Which leads to financial tip #9.

GET RICH AND STAY RICH PLAN TIP #9: Set up a foundation.
Once you get into multi-millionaire status, it actually pays to give back to your community. As you can see, if you have tax-free status within your foundation, the money that you earn and the gains that you make are going to increase significantly, simply by reducing your tax liability. If you're smart about it, this foundation will not only earn great gains, but also benefit the segment of society that you most want to improve (for Mike Milken it was cancer research; for Oprah it was education in Africa).

A foundation is also a great way to forge political alliances (important for anyone with money) and a free way to generate good press. The foundation will increase your net worth exponentially faster, if you are investing well and have a good executive director managing the funds! Establishing your own foundation is a way of contributing to a society that benefits everyone, whereas just buying a Rolls Royce for your favorite relatives can be a short-lived thrill that you might even get taxed on at the extraordinarily high Gift Tax Rate!

Wealth is not just money. Wealth is enjoying a happy, fulfilling life, surrounded by people you like in a beautiful, abundant world. So, just create it, baby!

In conclusion, we wish Ms. Jones well in her training and a return to success in her career, but clearly the better choice is to make sure that you STAY RICH once you get rich. If you know her, or any other athlete, lottery winner, celebrity or business owner (including "the Donald") who might fall into the lavish spending/bad financial advice category, be sure to forward them this article. Once they learn to put their money to work for them, they'll still enjoy all that champagne, caviar and high life - without having to spend time in bankruptcy court explaining where all of the money went when the attorney bills and tax bills arrive.

To create your own wealth plan chart, follow the below directions.
Go To NataliePace.com
Click on InvestorEdu
Click on Brokerages Online
Click on TDAMERITRADE
Click on the Flexible Planning Choices banner ad
Click on TRY AMERIVEST NOW (under the Self-Directed Amerivest column)
Go through 2 steps and plan your own Financial Freedom Plan!

Other articles of Interest:
The Secret of Investing: Hitch Your Wagon to a Star. by Natalie Pace.
Buy Your New Home in Fall, and Save Thousands of Dollars. By Natalie Pace.
Thrive. by Natalie Pace. Invest in the Rich Life, not Just Basic Needs. Includes a Freedom Blueprint Vision Sheet.
The Secret of Wealth. Double Your Fun. By Natalie Pace.

Disclaimer: Natalie Pace is not a broker and does not operate or act as such. She is an executive who reports on the financial markets. Always consult a certified financial planner to determine the best account based upon your needs. That's their job and expertise!

Montenegro – a Diamond in the Rough.

by Suanna Gurovich, managing partner, Montenegro Realty

Five years ago, I wrote and article about Montenegro in International Living Magazine called: "Montenegro: Jewel of the Adriatic." Since that time many of the predictions that I made have far exceeded my expectations. It is truly a very beautiful country, with people who are welcoming and generous. But like any new democracy, it certainly has it rough spots. I will give you my bird's eye view as a local business person, trying to start my business for developers.

The beach you are looking at is called Becici.  The government is looking for a large developer here. The area is as big as the city of Budva. This is the ancient city of Svete Stefan, or Saint Stevan.  The villagers in the 1600-1900s lived in the walled city as protection from the invading Turks.  There was a draw bridge, so they could go to their farms of Olive Trees and vegetables. Each stone cottage now is a hotel room.  There are no cars in the walled city, just walks with gorgeous flowering plants up to the ancient Serbian church on the top of the hill.  There is a casino, restaurant, hotel and shops inside now.  Princess Diana and Charles were here for their honeymoon.  A group from Singapore has leased it for 30 years and will have a 5 star hotel here.

Not Part of Serbia
The biggest problem Montenegro has now is to divest themselves of Serbia in the eyes of the public. They are now an independent country, but typical of Americans- we don't know that.

"Isn't it a dangerous country?" I am asked that constantly by AmericansÉnot by Europeans. It is perhaps America's worst problem in dealing with other nations - our lack of knowledge of their current or past history. Most Americans do not even know where Montenegro is. They will in the future. They have shed the cloak of Serbia, and like a Phoenix are rising from the ashes swiftly and with great expectations.

No License
First and foremost, the real estate industry really doesn't exist. There is no license for realtors, no trainers, and definitely no information. I have been a broker for 17 years in the Bay Area and in San Francisco. Starting a new real estate business in Montenegro was like stepping into the 1920's of our industry. My loyal cab driver Bruno, who picks me up in Dubrovnik when I come from America, has properties to sell. His barber is also selling property. My favorite restaurant in Podgorica is a center for exchanging new listings. And of course, few are exposed to the light of day. There is no law around the listing and selling of real estateÉexcept of course commissions and taxes. The government wants their taxes.

Taxes
Buyers pay taxes on the purchase of property in Montenegro. 2% is charged at the close of sale. If you are a developer, there are taxes for developing similar to what you would expect in America. You have the same problems with permits, and local bureaucracies that you have in America. My company offers a permit expeditor that helps developers with getting their permits placed in a timely manner. We have the same problems here in the States.

No Information
Our real estate industry in America is the best in the world! I am sure of that. I have looked at property all over Europe, and it truly is difficult. In America we have a Multiple Listing System. It is easy to get information about current and past transactions. A good agent can tell you what properties were selling for by square foot, by room and by area. There is information that can help any investor make a wise decision before buying.

The only way to get information in Montenegro is by asking someone what their property sold for. We know they aren't going to tell the truth, if they tell you anything at all. You can get information from the government if you are a developer, and I found the economist who works for the government to be very well educated and extremely helpful. So much has to be done with just asking lots of questions and getting information little by little. My hope is that eventually, when the banking system is more sophisticated, they will help to start a system of information flowing for the average investor.

The other problem is title. There is no title company in Montenegro. The past is riddled with bodies of developers who purchased land and after building found there was an owner somewhere. We have an attorney who will check all records and verify the land for the investor.

Positive Future
In spite of everything I have told you above, I have very high hopes for this small country. Its geographic placement near Italy on the Adriatic Sea, and its topography of gorgeous craggy mountains and crystal blue sea, make it a no-brainer. You can literally drive from the sea to the highest Mountains in the Balkans, through the "Grand Canyon of Europe," within two hours!

The largest investors in Montenegro today are the Brits, followed very closely by the Irish. I was very surprised at that revelation. Russians have built a huge hotel near Budva called Hotel Splendid and it is gorgeous. Peter Mauk from Canada is building a yacht resort in Tivat for over 2.1 billion Euros. It will be exclusive to the very rich, and similar to the resort in Monte Carlo. In fact Montenegro is being called the "New Monte Carlo". Rumors are that a group from New York and Europe are building a huge resort in Ulcinj, the most beautiful beach in Montenegro. Svete Stefan has been leased for 30 years by a large resort company from Singapore and Best Western has built a new hotel in the capital city of Podgorica.

The European Union has financed new highways, bridges, tunnels, water systems, sewer systems, and electrical systems. Montenegrins have high hopes of joining the union within the next eight years. The major highway that the EU built in Montenegro joins the Adriatic Highway that begins in central Europe, and continues through Croatia, Montenegro, Greece and Turkey. Cruise lines will be stopping in Kotor this summer. Montenegro is 30 miles south of Croatia. Croatia is the newest tourist attraction and is booming. My question is why wouldn't Montenegro with the same beaches be booming also? The properties in Montenegro are one third the price of the properties in Croatia. The value is there.

The pressure of doing the right thing for Montenegro is great for the government. The EU is watching. There is still corruption. There is still greed. But there does seem to be a light at the end of the tunnel. My prediction is that this small country will develop into a major tourist spot within the next ten years.

Hvala, hope to hear from you soon!
Suanna Gurovich
Montenegro Realty
650-689-5144  San Francisco
650-689-5145 fax
381-67-648-846  Budva, Montenegro

Suanna did her undergraduate work at the University of Arizona and Long Beach State University.  She became a stock broker with Merrill Lynch and attended their investment college at Princeton, New Jersey. She also did a semester at the Universite per Stragneri in Florence, Italy.  She has been an investment Broker in San Francisco for 17 years.

Peace = Prosperity.

by Natalie Pace.

Experts reveal ways to reduce violence and promote prosperity - in our classrooms, in our homes and around the globe.

Even though it is easy to see that violence ruins cities and destroys lives, there is a myth out there that people prosper from war. It is in fact quite the opposite. Peace promotes prosperity. Education is an investment in economic advancement. Unemployment correlates strongly with violence, so one of the best things you can do to reduce violence in any community is to create jobs. Building schools and hospitals is a better way to make friends than to put a gun in their face.

There are many measurable strategies that have been quantitatively proven to work in reducing violence and promoting economic advancement, unity and better lives for everyone. Please view the attached slide show, where experts such as Reverend Michael Bernard Beckwith, Dr. Gary Becker (Nobel Laureate winning economist), Dr. Tricia Jones and more, reveal the best strategies to promote peace and prosperity -- both internationally and domestically in our homes. Also, learn what Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice recently did to ensure that peaceful people in the Gaza Strip are provided aid.

Other Articles of Interest in the NataliePace.com article series on Peace and Prosperity:
Peace = Prosperity. Q&A with Nobel Laureate Dr. Gary Becker. By Natalie Pace.
The Economics of Disaster Management. By Dr. Gary S. Becker.
Stars Shine on Marianne Williamson's Peace Plan. by Natalie Pace. NataliePace.com archived ezine, vol. 4, issue 3.
Steven Tyler, Joaquin Phoenix, Amy Smart, Deepak Chopra, Reverend Michael Bernard Beck, Frances Fisher, Denise Brown and Marianne Williamson entertain, inspire and educate Marianne's Peace Alliance conference attendees to become citizen lobbyists on behalf of House Bill number 808, calling for a U.S. Department of Peace!
Spiritual Gurus Weigh in on The Department of Peace Bill. By Natalie Pace. NataliePace.com archived ezine, vol. 4, issue 3.
China's Evolution Toward Freedom. A candid interview with one of the most respected CEOs in mainland China, Dr. Charles Zhang, Chairman and CEO, Sohu.com. By Natalie Pace. NataliePace.com archived ezine, Vol. 4, iss. 1.
Gap's Inc(RED)ible Campaign to Empower Africa. By Natalie Pace. Featuring (PRODUCT) RED.

 

Op-Ed: Biofuel:

by Sunita Narain

Good idea, Bad practice.

Now that the reality of climate change has been accepted even by its strongest skeptics, there is a rush to find answers. The latest buzz is to substitute the use of greenhouse gas-emitting fossil fuels with biofuelsÑfuel processed from plants. Unfortunately, the way we are going about implementing this "good" idea could mean we are headed from the frying pan to the fire.

There are two kinds of biofuel: ethanol, processed from sugarcane or corn, and biodiesel, made from biomass. Climate-savvy Europe gave the first push to biofuel, mandating they should contribute 6 per cent of fuels used in vehicles by 2010 and 10 per cent by 2020. The bulk of biodiesel comes from domestically grown rapeseed. But to meet its growing needs, it is looking at importing soybean-based fuel from Brazil and Argentina, and palm oil from Indonesia and Malaysia.

US president George Bush has this year called on his country to produce 132 billion liters of biofuel by 2017, to cut dependence on foreign fuel. The US's favorite biofuel is ethanol, which it produces from corn starch. Brazil, the world's largest ethanol producer, mostly uses sugarcane. It is estimated that ethanol plants will burn up to half of the US's domestic corn supplies in the coming few years. In addition, its biofuel industry is looking to make fuel out of soy and other crops to feed the automobile industry's growing hunger.

Already, the repercussions of this switch are beginning to show. Late last year, Mexico saw its tortilla wars, as people found the price of their stapleÑcornÑhad doubled. The hike was a result of the crop's new market as a source of vehicle fuel and the control over the crop and its uses by corporate USA. In this case, one company, Archer Daniels Midlands, has dominant interests in the corn and wheat market and is the largest ethanol processor in the region. In addition, it has a financial stake in a Mexican company that makes tortillas and refines wheat. In other words, the company benefits when corn price increases and consumers switch to wheat. Or when the switch takes place from food to fuel, they benefit. Similarly, Cargill, the agribusiness multinational, is now the big name in the biofuel market. In this scenario, prices of other food commoditiesÑwheat, soy, palm oilÑare rising as well, in turn, impacting the poorest consumers globally. The projections are that food prices will increase between 20-40 per cent in the next 10 years or so because of this switchover.

The problem is compounded by the fact that this "switch" will do little to avert climate change. It is clear that all the biofuel in the world will be a blip on the total consumption of fossil fuel. In the US, for instance, it is agreed that if the entire corn crop is used for ethanol, it can only replace 12 per cent of current gasolineÑpetrolÑused in the country. A recent paper in the us journal Foreign Affairs estimates that filling a 95-litre fuel tank with pure ethanol will require about 200 kg of corn, which has enough calories to feed a person for a year.

If we factor in the fuel inputs that go into converting biomass to energyÑfrom diesel to run tractors, natural gas to make fertilizers, fuel to run refineriesÑbiofuel is not an energy-efficient option. It is estimated that roughly 20 per cent of corn-made ethanol is Ônew' energy. This does not account for the water it will take to grow this new crop. There is also evidence that rainforests will be cut to expand the cultivation of soy, sugarcane and palm oil, which in turn will exacerbate climate change.

Don't get me wrong: I am in favor of biofuel. But the question we need to ask is how to use it to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Currently, though we are only interested in maximizing corporate profits; we believe rather naively that social objectives are being met.

Firstly, let us be clear that biofuels cannot substitute fossil fuels; but they can make a difference if we begin to limit the consumption of the latter. If this is the case, governments should not provide subsidies to grow crops for biofuel, as is being done in the US and Europe, but spend to limit their fuel consumption by reducing the sheer numbers of vehicles on their roads. If this is done, biofuels, which are renewable and emit less greenhouse gases, will make a difference. Otherwise, we are only fooling ourselves.

Secondly, the question is where will the biofuels be used? Let us be clear that the opportunity for a massive biofuel revolution is not in the rich world's cities, to run vehiclesÑbut in the grid-unconnected world of Indian or African villages. It is here that there is a scarcity of energyÑelectricity to power homes, fuel to cook, to run generator sets to pump water and to run vehicles. It is also here that the use of fossil fuels will grow because there is no alternative.

Instead of bringing fossil fuel long distances to feed this market, this part of the world can leapfrog to a new energy futureÑfrom no fuel to the most advanced fuel. The biofuel can come from non-edible tree cropsÑjatropha in India, for exampleÑgrown on wasteland, which will also employ people.

This fuel market will demand a different business model. It cannot be conducted on the basis of the so-called free market model, which is based on economies of scale and, therefore, demands consolidation and leads to uncompetitive practices. In today's model, a company will grow the crops, extract the oil, transport it first to refineries and then back to consumers.

The new generation biofuel business needs a model of distributed growth in which we have millions of growers and millions of distributors and millions of users. Remember, climate change is not a technological fix but a political challenge. Biofuel is part of a new future.

This article was reprinted by permission of Ms Sunita Narain. Ms. Narain is currently the Director of the Centre for Science and Environment, New Delhi and also the editor of the magazine Down to Earth.

The Number One Blue Chip Stock Newsletter for the Past 20 Years!

by Kelley Wright, Managing Editor, Investment Quality Trends stock newsletter.

INVESTMENT OUTLOOK
Mid-June 2007

There is tremendous pressure in the advisory community to acquiesce to the "this time it's different" paradigm. Even longtime market observers that have been rock-solid disciplinarians are showing cracks in their resolve. What this portends for the short-term, if anything, remains to be seen. That being said, I can't shake the feeling that this development is a negative indicator.

In the Mid-May issue I reported that the Utilities sector, as defined by the Dow Jones Utility Average, had breached its historic area of Overvalue and historically this did not bode well for the future. I brought this to your attention because the Utilities are a critical component in the overall market rise as they have been one of the primary leaders.

Whether my remarks were fortuitous or not I leave to your good sensibilities to determine. In any event, the sector did suffer a sharp decline of almost 9 ý% from the May 22 high of 537.12 to an intraday low of 485 on June 8. As I write the DJUA sits at 488, five points below its Overvalued area of 493. Unless the index breaches the May high of 537.12 we have to consider that a top in the Utilities is in place. If this proves to be the case it will be interesting to see if the Utilities continue to lead, to the downside.

A last note about the Utilities; I referenced Pinnacle West Capital (PNW) in the Mid-May issue as the only utility in our universe of Select Blue Chips that was relatively close to Undervalue at 5% into its Rising Trend. To illustrate the comments above we have provided a chart on PNW in this issue as an illustration. A picture, in this case, speaks louder than words.

Copyright © Value Trend Analysis.

Long-time subscribers know that our approach to investing rests on the twin pillars of quality and value. While the quality component is required to know what to buy, it is the value component that is most critical in that it tells us when to buy. Charles Henry Dow taught us that value is determined in the end by the return to the investor. The return to the investor then is established at the buy. This is to say if you buy a stock right; the return will take care of itself.

I remind subscribers about this tidbit of wisdom because it is central to our goal of building capital and income to meet our cash needs. Juxtapose that to what I read recently in another publication I receive gratis in the spirit of collegiality. The quote is as follows: "Ultimately, it comes down to valuation. Interest rates are low relative to the earnings yields of stocks (the earnings per share for the most recent 12 months divided by market price per share. Earnings yield is the inverse of the priceearnings ratio. Basically, it's the amount of earnings you buy for every dollar worth of stock). That provides plenty of incentive to borrow in the bond market and use the proceeds to buy shares. We are seeing favorable valuation manifest itself in the high levels of leveraged buyouts and in share buybacks. Bank lending standards remain lax, except, belatedly, in the subprime mortgage market. The good times can last as long as interest rates remain low and earnings remain at current overall levels."

I would change the word "ultimately" to "always." Successful investing is always about values. As for earnings yield, I would classify that as a myth. In the absence of dividends, shares are worthless. The value of an investor's holdings is determined by the income he stands to receive from them. No income, no value. Theoretically an investor can always sell his holdings to other investors and realize capital gains (or losses). But capital gains can be driven by earnings hype and are not guaranteed. When faced with little or no dividends, market participants, particularly Wall Street firms, can't live with a zero valuation of securities. This results in substituting future dividends, the outcome of capital accumulation and re-investment, for present ones. Behold your myth. All things being equal, we'll leave the myths to others and take our dividends in cash.

- Kelley Wright/ kelley@iqtrends.com

THE TIMELY TEN
Every stock in the Undervalued and Rising Trend categories is considered part of our model portfolio for performance tracking purposes. To mirror that performance would require holding one hundred stocks as of the First-June issue; clearly too many positions to be practical.

Whether you are looking to build a portfolio from scratch, are partially invested and looking to add new positions, or fully invested and in need of some affirmation and hand holding, The Timely Ten presents our top ten recommendations as of each issue. Short of utilizing the personal investment management services of our sister company, this is as close to real time as you can get.

The Timely Ten consists of Undervalued stocks that generally have a S&P Dividend & Earnings Quality rating of A- or better, a "G" designation for exemplary long-term dividend growth, a P/E ratio of 15 or less, a payout ratio of 50% or less (75% for Utilities), debt of 50% or less (75% for Utilities), and technical characteristics on the daily and weekly charts that suggests the potential for imminent capital appreciation. This issue's selections are:

REGULATORY REMINDER
Please keep in mind that as an investment newsletter, we are legally bound to only answer questions of a general nature and are unable to provide specific buy/sell recommendations or specific advice on an individual basis. For those interested in obtaining more information on individual management services in accordance with our approach, we have a sister company named I.Q. Trends Private Client Asset Management which is a Registered Investment Adviser. Among the offerings provided by I.Q. Trends Private Client are individual portfolio consultations and active account management. For more information, please call Mr. Michael Minney at (858) 427-1071.

Disclosure documents are located at: http://www.iqtrends.com/pc/

CRITERIA FOR SELECT BLUE CHIPS
When does a common stock become a "Select Blue Chip?" According to our method a stock will deserve such a designation after it has met at least 5 of the 6 following qualifications and may remain with 4 criteria:

1. Dividend increases five times in the last twelve years.
2. S&P Quality ranking in the "A" category.
3. At least 5,000,000 shares outstanding.
4. At least 80 institutional investors.
5. At least 25 years of uninterrupted dividends.
6. Earnings improved in at least seven of the last 12 years.

In the statistical columns, "Blue Chip Criteria" identifies the number of the above qualifications that each stock fulfills. A "G" denotes a remarkable 10% annual dividend growth over the past 12 years. The I.Q. Trends register of Select Blue Chips is an elite representation of the highest quality and most prosperous corporations in the country.

"Values,when applied to stocks,are determined in the end by the return to the investor,and nothing is more certain than that the investor establishes the price of stocks."ÑCharles H.Dow

FOOTNOTE LEGEND
U - UNDERVALUED buying area: Dividend yield is historically high and price is attractively low. Bargain buys.
O - OVERVALUED selling area: Dividend yield is historically low and price is unattractively high. A sale should be considered in this area.
R - RISING TRENDS: Stocks have moved at least 10% from Undervalue and should be held until price is at or near Overvalue.
D - DECLINING TRENDS: Stocks have moved down at least 10% from Overvalue and should be avoided until price is at or near Undervalue.

Kelley Wright is currently outperforming all of his peers, by bringing in
the top risk-adjusted returns on Wall Street for the past 20 years, with his
stock newsletter, IQTrends.com, at 12.8% annualized gains, according to
Hulbertÿs Financial Digest. To subscribe, go to IQTrends.com.

Sizzling Hot Summer Stocks!

by Natalie Pace.

Includes my Hot News on Cool Stocks list, and one lovely company that doubled in share price between April and July!

48% of the companies featured in my stock newsletter between 2002 and 2005 -- 25 out of 52 companies -- DOUBLED from the time we listed them in our feature article to the time when I took the company off of the Hot News on Cool Stocks list. (See the chart in the article, "25 of our Companies Have Doubled," from volume 4, issue 4, the April 2007 ezine, for a listing of companies.)

Additionally, the market performance of the companies that are featured in my Hot News on Cool Stocks list are still keeping me at the top of over 830 A-list pundits on TipsTraders.com in annualized gains! According to the Tipstraders tracking data, all of the companies featured in the NataliePace.com Hot News list are pulling down 30% gains on average every year. The Hot New list below features 35 companies earning great gains, versus just five that are headed in the opposite direction.

Housing News:
The National Association of Home Builders reported last week that builder confidence has fallen to the lowest level in 16 years, and weakness in homebuilders continues. "As we look to our third quarter and the remainder of 2007, we continue to see weak, and perhaps deteriorating, market conditions," Lennar's President and Chief Executive Stuart Miller said. Bank of America analyst Daniel Oppenheim believes that inventory estimates are understated. In a note to investors, he stated, "We think rising cancellations over the past few months are leading to understated inventory levels, as canceled homes are not added back to inventory in Census stats." You'll note that KB Home and Toll Brothers, which have been on our Cooling Off List since May 2005, are still losing market share.

Stock Market:
Volatility is the name of the game, going forward this year, according to respected analyst Tobias Levkovich, the Chief Analyst for Smith Barney. In the 6.21.07 issue Smith Barney's Portfolio Strategist, Mr. Levkovich wrote, "When it comes to various sectors and groups affected by volatility, it seems obvious that the IT sector is poised for renewed investor interest, as is the Pharma & Biotech group. We remain overweight the IT sector, but we advise a market weight position on the Pharma & Biotech industry group."

That is partially why I was so thrilled to see Genentech trading for a bargain today, on 6.26.07! Genentech is a great biotech that is trading at a two-year low.

There is a shakeup going on in technology right now, so take a very close look at News Corp., Yahoo and Google in particular this month. I'll be reporting more in depth on this sector in the July mid-month update, just days before Google releases earnings. This is probably going to be one of the most valuable mid-month updates in years, so don't miss it. As part of that evaluation, we're doing an online survey to see what your favorite social networking site is. Please take the survey, and encourage your friends to as well. You can click on any survey that appears on the home page to access all three surveys this month.

And of course, WorldWater & Power is our rock star! We listed this solar energy company -- that is trading off the boards with a $30 million backlog of orders -- at 56 cents in April. It is has more doubled in just three months to $1.32, largely because of the press the company received when the CEO was selected to go on a "green" tour with Governor Schwarzenegger to Canada.

The Federal Reserve Board:
The Feds are meeting on June 27 and 28, 2007, after we take this ezine to press. So, please go to the calendar section of NataliePace.com if you'd like to access a link over to the Federal Reserve home page. You should be able to read a copy of the press release there.

Stock Market Overview:
As you can see below, the stock market over the last year and a half has been a wonderful place to be. If you were invested, chances are you are earning wonderful gains.

General Stock Market Performance

Good-Bye Summer Doldrums:
I know you're sick of this section, but I'm going to keep publishing it, in case we have some Johnny-Come-Latelys who are clueless as to why this year has been such a great ride!

This year has been a blast in the markets (so far), and is we have been predicting when we first reported on the pre-election year trend, back in December of last year! Typically, the summer is dull at best, and can be downright disappointing, as you can see from the following chart of returns. August is when most Wall Street professionals take their vacation, trading volume tapers off and thus, with less demand, you typically see flat performance over the summer, with July and August trading off gains and losses.

Following are average monthly returns from March 1971 through October 2003, which were provided by Odyssey Advisors.

By month, average returns were as followsÉ

Source: Odyssey Advisors

In pre-election years, however, the markets have, historically, taken a different track. In 2003, while there was still a sideways trend in August and September, the overall track for the year was strong gains - especially in the NASDAQ.

The trend line for 1999, another pre-election year, looked very similar. Also, note how strong the Santa Rally trend is in both years, with 10-50% gains in the last four months of the year.

We are in a pre-election year and enjoying a stock market rally this summer. Despite the concern over the real estate market and subprime mortgage lenders, which the bears consider Wall Street doomsday omens, the general feeling about Wall Street is that people want to be invested! Should be a delightful year. Enjoy! Educate yourself! Invest wisely! Read the other articles in the July ezine. There is a lot of GREAT information to help you maximize your earning and gains.

EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITES AND INFORMATION:

1. Interest Rates: In a Pause Pattern. The Federal Open Market Committee has paused seven times in a row now (in May, March and January 2007, December, October, September and August 2006), after raising interest rates 17 consecutive times prior. The federal funds rate remains at 5-Å%. The meeting on June 27-28, 2007, occurred after this ezine went to print. For an update or to review the press release, go directly to FederalReserve.gov.
   
   
2. Interested in reading the Minutes of the May FOMC meeting for yourself? You can. It is available online. Click on FOMC, or go to FederalReserve.gov, to read! According to the FOMC, "Core inflation remains somewhat elevated. Although inflation pressures seem likely to moderate over time, the high level of resource utilization has the potential to sustain those pressures." The tentative FOMC meeting schedule for the 2007 calendar is: June 27-28 (Wednesday-Thursday), August 7 (Tuesday), September 18 (Tuesday), October 30-31 (Tuesday-Wednesday), December 11 (Tuesday), January 29-30, 2008 (Tuesday-Wednesday). The fact that the Federal Open Market Committee has decided to increase the number of 2-day sessions from two to four is an indicator that there is double the concern over managing the economy in the coming months.
   
   
3. Pundits are positing that the Feds may be preparing to cut rates before the end of the year. That move usually serves to stimulate the markets, which is one of the reasons that I expect 2007 to be an up year for most of the marketplace. There is one BIG exception, however. Many Blue Chips with exceptionally large pension and Other Post Employment Benefits (like health care) burdens are still very overvalued when you consider the amount of debt that they are carrying and the tough time that they are having being competitive in industries where there are other companies that do not have to support a large pool of non-workers. While it will be tempting to watch those stocks increase in value, I'd recommend staying in companies that are leading our future, rather than those that are stuck in the past. And never overpay for anything - NEVER PAY RETAIL!
   
   
4. Calendar Section: Conferences, Online Chats and more: Check out the Calendar section of NataliePace.com regularly. There are many wonderful opportunities to chat one-on-one with millionaire money managers, economists, respected money gurus and CEOs! Please enter the chat room now to make sure that you know how to do it and that you don't have any firewall issues preventing you from accessing the room. (You'll need your passwords.) This month, I'll be in the chat room on July 11^th to discuss how to maximize your subscription and access the Hot News on Cool Stocks list. There is a special chat with Dr. Vijay Bose on July 18^th. Learn about the great new alternative to Total Hip Replacements, called Hip Resurfacing. This procedure has been done in England and India since 1995, and means that active adults, like Floyd Landis, can still compete with no pain!

Bottom Line: NataliePace.com is providing you with news and important information, but you need to consult your financial planner to determine your best strategy for using the information. Your investments and portfolio should take into account your age, your retirement goals, your risk tolerance and portfolio diversification. The stock portion of your portfolio is a higher risk classification, where you ideally seek to gain higher returns. As the NASD said in a recent investor alert, don't bet the farm on the stock market.

NataliePace.com is NOT a brokerage and doesn't operate or act like one. We are an online media service with a mission of providing the news and information you need to make better choices in business, investing and personal prosperity. Always consult a trusted financial professional before buying or selling any security.

Full disclosure: I have listed the companies that I own under the column "NP OWNS?"

Hot News on Cool Stocks List

Highlighted Companies (Hot List):
Genentech (DNA)
Johnson & Johnson (JNJ)
Satcon (SATC)
Siruis Satellite Radio (SIRI)
Smith and Nephew (SNN)
U.S. Gold (UXG)
WisdomTree (WSDT)
Yahoo (YHOO)

Recently Deleted from the Hot News list:
Intuit

Hot Stocks List
Investors who "never pay retail," note that highlighted stocks are trading at their 52-week lows or near the price featured in NataliePace.com's article. This may be a good buying opportunity. The companies that are listed below which are not highlighted may not be in a good buying range, but they appear to be poised to continue performing well (if you have already purchased them or if you are willing to come in at a higher price). There are never any guarantees in life, and all stocks are risk-based investments. Consult your certified financial planner before making any changes to your investment strategy.

Sony (NYSE: SNE) and Sunoco (NYSE: SUN) both had great runs for the list! LifeCell (NASDAQ: LIFC) posted over 180% gains before being moved to the Cooling Off list. Bioteq Environmental (TSE: BQE) had 144% gains. Rio Tinto was removed on 11.15.2006 with 145% gains. Las Vegas Sands was removed on January 5, 2007 with 139% gains, Agilent on 2.1.07 with flat performance, and RELM Wireless was taken off with 3% gains on 2.1.07. Blockbuster ran up 82.5% in gains, which we cashed in on February 12, 2007.

Recently Deleted from the Hot News list:

Stocks to Watch
Great Companies. The companies that are listed are worthy of watching and might be worth buying in on opportunity (i.e. at a better price), if you believe the news on future potential. There are never any guarantees in life, and all stocks are risk-based investments. Consult your certified financial planner before making any changes to your investment strategy.

Recent Additions:
LifeCell added 7.1.07

Cooling Off Stocks List:

Highlighted Companies (Cooling Off List):
General Motors (GM)

Recently Deleted from the Cooling Off list:
LifeCell (LIFC) on 7.1.07

Cooling Off Stocks (that may be Poised for a Decline in Share Price). Note: The companies listed in bold have recently been added to this cooling off list and/or may be currently poised for a decline in value. Investors who have them in their portfolio should read the recent news and consider whether it is time to sell and take profits, dump losses, short the position and/or simply weather the storms, while keeping the company in their long-term portfolio. At any rate, always consult your certified financial partner before making adjustments to your portfolio. (Again, note, that the stocks on this chart are expected to go DOWN in price.)

The following companies were taken off of the Cooling Off list effective 10.16.06. Verisign (+15%). IMClone (-11%). Yahoo (-28%). LifeCell was removed on 7.2.07 with -4.5% overall performance. (The cooling off list anticipates that a company will lose share price value.)

Please note: NataliePace.com does not act or operate like a broker. We are a media and information center. This article is intended to educate and inform individual investors, and, thus, to give investors a competitive edge in their personal decision-making. The publicly traded companies mentioned in this article are not intended to be buy or sell recommendations. ALWAYS do your research and/or consult an experienced, reputable financial professional before buying or selling any security, and consider your long-term goals and strategies.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMER: Information has been obtained from sources believed to be reliable however NataliePace.com does not warrant its completeness or accuracy. Opinions constitute our judgment as of the date of this publication and are subject to change without notice. This material is not intended as an offer or solicitation for the purchase or sale of any financial instrument. Securities, financial instruments or strategies mentioned herein may not be suitable for all investors.

NataliePace.com Calendar:

It's a month of schooling and wizardry - quite odd for July wouldn't you say? Harry Potter's new film and book are released and NataliePace.com subscribers learn about the hip new hip resurfacing procedure that allows active adults, like Floyd Landis, to compete post op.

The NataliePace.com Calendar section features conferences, retreats, educational opportunities, cultural events, galas and online chats with executives and VIPs. Stay plugged in! Visit our calendar section often.

See below for just a few of the amazing educational and networking opportunities that world-class organizations are offering for you. To access links to the event website and registration, go to the Calendar section at NataliePace.com.

Saturday, June 30th, 2007
The Edge of the World Theater Festival 2007
12:00PM (6/30/07) through 12:00AM (7/1/07) PT

A raw empty theater space - Twelve hours - 20 Theater pieces by some of LA's most groundbreaking artists. Live DJs & cool libations.The Regent Theater, 448 S. Main, Los Angeles. Check the Edgefest website for more details.

Wednesday, July 11th, 2007
Online Cyber Chat with Natalie Pace
8:45AM through 9:30AM PT

Learn how to access the Hot Stocks list twice a month and maximize your subscription. Ask Natalie all of your questions about how best to maneuver the site and capitalize on the amazing information we've been publishing going into our fifth year. Most recently, WorldWater & Power popped in share price from just 57 cents at our feature in April to $1.12 on June 22, 2007.

Friday, July 13th, 2007
Film release: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Harry forms Dumbledore's Army and teaches his friends how to battle the Dark Arts.

Wednesday, July 18th, 2007
Hip Resurfacing Chat with Dr. Vijay Bose!
7:30AM through 8:30AM PT

Dr. Vijay Bose is one of the most experienced surgeons in the world with regard to the newly approved hip resurfacing procedure, which can keep an active adult enjoying sports and pain-free! Find out more from the Doc!

Saturday, July 21st, 2007
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

The final book in the popular book series will be released on July 21, 2007. Plan on waiting in line for this, or you can pre-order on your favorite online shopping site.

Monday, July 30th, 2007
Global Full Moon Meditation
10:00PM through 11:00PM ET

On each full moon, people worldwide meditate at the same time, to promote greater health within and greater peace throughout the world. Meditate for 5 minutes or quiet your mind and focus on peace for the full hour.

NOTICE: NataliePace.com is NOT a stock brokerage service, and does not operate or act as one.