All over China, parents tell their children to stop complaining and to finish their quadratic equations and trigonometric functions because there are sixty-five million American kids going to bed with no math at all.- Michael Cunningham
Two weeks ago, my father and I set off for Omaha to hear the “Oracle of Omaha,” Warren Buffet and his partner Charlie Munger of Berkshire Hathaway. This is the annual shareholders meeting, but $5 will get you into the event, even if you’re not a shareholder.
Of course spending six plus hours on a Saturday with 35,000 people listening to questions regarding the econmy, investment strategy and corporate governance may not fit your bill for a delightful day. But between Warren and Charlie, their answers are intelligent, pithy at times, and most importantly for me, understandable.
Both are billionaires although Warren is the CEO of Berkshire and probably controls more billions than Charlie. Both have a strong belief in finding and buying companies with great managers who are free to run the company in a manner which they understand. Both Warren and Charlies take the long view. As long as the company is profitable and as long as the employees are not guided by a contract (as in union), Berkshire Hathaway will not sell the company.
I admire most their ability to proceed with their strategy even when others are clamoring around them that their strategy is outdated or wrong. That takes guts whether it’s thousands of dollars your investing or billions of dollars.
Cheers from Omaha,
Bryan Dear
