Links for Thought -- February 10th

Warren Buffett: Why Stocks Beat Gold and Bonds (CNN Money) -- Warren Buffett gives a preview from this year's shareholder letter and explains why the long-run returns from equities will exceed those of stocks and Gold. As always with Mr. Buffett, the reasoning is presented in a clear and simple manner and the timing is impeccable considering the Gold vs. everything else discussion in the media this past year.

Credit Suisse Global Investment Returns Yearbook 2012 (Credit Suisse)-- This is an outstanding presentation from Credit Suisse that covers 112 years of market history as it pertains to inflation vs. deflation, currency investing/hedging, and panic vs. euphoria sentiment in markets.  

@Google Presents Daniel Kahneman (YouTube) -- In this gem, one of the fathers of Behavioral Economics and author of Thinking, Fast and Slow (a must read) discusses how and why our brain succumbs to cognitive biases, and what we as humans can do to adequately recognize and adapt to this reality. He does so by distinguishing between System 1, our "automatic" thought mechanism in the brain, and System 2, our "deliberate" one.

The Housing Bottom is Here (Calculated Risk) -- Calculated Risk, a site which rose to prominence for its early and frequent calls of a bubble in housing, dating back to 2005, this past week declared that the bottom in housing will come at some point in 2012. This is a big call for a site that is known for sharp analysis. Further, it's notable that this call comes just a few months after the rent vs. ownership cost gap in housing reached equilibrium for the first time since the late 1990s.

Bernanke-Led Economy Proving Critics Clueless About Federal Reserve Policy (Bloomberg) -- Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke gets some props from Bloomberg for masterfully navigating a challenging economic landscape.  Those who have followed me before this blog was born know that I have been a proponent of Bernanke's and as such, I'm happy to see a mainstream publication take some shots at the wrongness of conventional wisdom as it pertains to Fed policy.