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| Comment: From the Editor |
Silver Linings
Matt Purdue
08/01/2007
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But as I look over this month’s table of contents, I’m slightly
buoyant. By serendipity, our August issue seems filled with optimism. Light
summer reading it is not, but from start to finish we do parse various
opportunities to transform hazards into opportunities, even to one extreme
point. Our cover story, our annual examination of some of the best estate plans
in America that have come to our attention over the past 12 months, proves what
the tightest-knit families can accomplish if they confront the ultimate bugaboo
with intelligence and grit. In this article, our lead family provides Alaska’s
residents with more charitable largesse than any other. Their very carefully
devised plans to fund their foundation in perpetuity should serve as an
inspiration.
Another feature tackles the most complex topic we, our children
and their children will face: the apparently irrefutable effects of climate
change on our planet. Rather than decry the drowning polar bears, we present
some of the brightest minds in wealth management riffing on the investment
opportunities presented by this global trend. But before you start investing in
life-jacket companies, read what our experts have to say about injecting capital
into sectors that may help us weather this potential catastrophe.
Speaking of catastrophes, our Risk & Reward department
features an unusual investment just appearing on the horizon: the catastrophe
bond. Offered by insurance carriers, these securities enable investors to bet
that the natural disaster to which the bond is linked will not occur within a
given time frame. If the investor guesses right, he is handsomely rewarded. At
least in this case, there may be a real financial future in optimism.
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