I don’t want to have every post I write be about the subprime fallout and real estate…? fascinating though it may be.? So, in the interests of changing subjects, here is an old joke…

A guy who goes to his financial planner and says, “I want the best possible returns and I’m willing to take whatever risks are necessary.”

The financial planner says, “Great! I have just the ticket for you if you have the risk tolerance. The risks are high that you could lose everything, but it has the best possible return of anything you could put your money into. If it pays off, you would have a 3 billion percent return on the initial investment on average.? In some cases the numbers are much higher. ? This investment is the only place you’ll be able to find a 3 billion percent return with a holding period of less than a day…”

The customer is salivating at the mouth, waiting to hear the answer…

The answer: Take all your savings and buy lottery tickets for the next big jackpot drawing!? If you really don’t care about the risks (of losing 100% of the money “invested”), it does provide the best possible return compared to the $1 you pay for the winning ticket!