CTOKOS Blog

Most players think that they need pocket aces, pocket kings,
pocket queens, and pocket jacks to make all their money in limit
poker. When if fact the hands that I love and make the most
money from are suited connectors like QJs or small pairs. Yes I
know preflop these hands are dominated by the hands listed
above. But, there are a few reasons why the suited connectors
and small pairs are big money makers.

Suited connectors with big cards:

1. Its a hand with many possibilities. You have chances of a
flush, straight, two pair, trips, top pair with a decent kicker
with hands like QJs.

2. Plus its an hand to easily get away from with a flop of rags
and no flush opportunities.

3. The premium hands are harder to get away from and well most
of the time people play them too aggressive post flop when there
is a good chance they are beat.

4. The suited connectors are great multi-way action hands where
you EV increases with each play in the pot.

Small pairs:

1. Once again these hands are easy to get away from. Too many
players overvalue small pairs but you shouldn’t as a Poker Noise
member.

2. Look to hit your trips and be aggressive when you do hit your
set.

3. If you miss the flop then its an easy fold.

4. The premium hands have really no room for improvement. Only
two cards can improve them and give you a set. The difference is
the small pairs you can fold much easier than pocket aces, etc.
Aces you will go with to the river as you should but its hard to
tell when you are beat.

So when you get mad that you aren’t picking up some premium
hands then just remember that suited connectors and small pairs
can turn into a profitable session.

In today’s volatile and confusing stock markets everyone is searching for a guru who knows which way the market is going and when. Ask any economist and he will have an answer. Ask 2 economists and you will have 2 answers. Ask 3 economists - ad infinitum.

At the Federal Reserve Board we have Mr. Greenspan and all his economist Governors talking at each other about how to best micromanage the U.S. economy. Notice I said talking at and not talking with. Each one of them thinks he has the Holy Grail and knows exactly what to do. It has not occurred to any of them that doing nothing might be the best for everyone.

On April 27 there was an important economic statistic released. The Employment Cost Index gain was 1.4% which was more than expected by the investment community. This was considered to be negative for the stock market because the Fed is considered to be “anti-prosperity”. This number shows more people are being paid more money. Mr. G. thinks this is inflationary. It is a theory he has dreamed up. Going back in history there is no actual correlation showing wage increases cause inflation. This is one of his own pet theories.

When you consider the fact that worker productivity has increased 4 times more than wages have risen it means more to the bottom line profits of corporations. The logic here is very simple. The companies are making more money even though they are paying higher wages and therefore do not have to raise prices on their merchandise. Maybe this is too simple for an economist. If I could make up a really complex formula I might be able to get his attention. Probably not.

This is just one statistic and I know Mr. G. and his money puppets look at hundreds of statistics, but please do not lay inflation on the justifiable wage increases of the workingman.

The base cause of inflation is too much money chasing too few goods. Today we have so much so much competition (goods) it is extremely difficult for almost any company to raise prices. Since profits are increasing 4 times faster than wages most companies will shave profits before they raise prices to their consumers because they do not want to lose their market share.

Large corporations usually have debt. In almost all cases this was money borrowed for plant and equipment. When interest rates rise there is nowhere to offset this cost as there is with wage productivity. This is a cost that ultimately must be passed along. As long as the company has room at the bottom line it can do so. Right now money is expensive, not tight. The Fed wants to slow the economy and it can do it this way because companies will cut back their borrowing for expansion. The economy will slow, but if they keep on doing it they stop everything and that means recession. Their thinking is backwards.

If you want advice on the stock market do not ask an economist.

Al Thomas’ book, “If It Doesn’t Go Up, Don’t Buy
It!” has helped thousands of people make money
and keep their profits with his simple 2-step
method. Read the first chapter at
http://www.mutualfundmagic.com
and discover why he’s the man that Wall Street
does not want you to know.

Copyright 2005

al@mutualfundstrategy.com; 1-888-345-7870

Taking Care of Inner Health 1.

Inner health is a very important subject because 95% of life
threatening diseases starts inside our bodies where we can’t see
what is happening. By ignoring symptoms we often allow the
problem to increase until treatment becomes difficult or, in the
worst cases, impossible. It is also true that one hour of
prevention is far better than one year of treatment. In this
article we will look at the main source of “body fuel” - the
food that we eat and, more importantly, how we eat it. But
before going into that subject there are other things we should
not be doing:

1. No smoking. 2. No drinking alcohol to excess. 3. No taking of
unprescribed drugs.

This article is written on the assumption that you abide by the
three rules above.

What we eat is the starting point. There is no point in eating
foods that are saturated in fat as your basic diet and
complaining that you are overweight and/or feel unwell. Of
course you do because this is self-inflicted by inadequate diet.
A good diet requires daily intake of the five major food groups
that we have covered extensively in previous articles.

Small meals taken regularly (even six meals each day) are better
for you than long periods without food followed by a heavy meal.

Large, rich, meals late at night should be avoided, especially
for older people. A cooked meal at midday is digested better
than a late night meal.

You should drink at least one and a half quarts (1.5 liters) of
fluid each day; much more if the weather is hot. If you become
ill you should double your fluid intake. Water is best.

Improving your diet is not as difficult as most people claim.
In most instances it is simply a case of adjusting the balance
of what we eat. Here are a few tips:

Eat more fiber in the form of fruit, vegetables and whole grain
bread. In addition add two tablespoons of coarse bran to your
breakfast cereal. This provides bulk, or roughage, that your
digestive system depends upon to function properly.

Cut down on fat, normally taken in fast foods and fries etc. Eat
more lean meat, fish. Grill rather than fry foods where possible.

Eat less sugar (This means no soda’s because the average can of
soda contains an equivalent of 20+ Tablespoons of sugar
equivalent) Do not drink beer with meals because beer stops your
body from breaking down fats. Water is the best drink followed
by low calorie drinks and unsweetened fruit juices.

Walk for at least half an hour each day. Park your car at the
furthest parking space from the supermarket; the exercise will
increase your lifespan. If possible use stairs rather than
escalators. All of these small things, together with your
balanced diet, will increase your health and lifespan.

This article is copyright © David McCarthy and may be reproduced
in its entirety without addition.