Originally Posted by Happy
CAn you show us any solid mutual fund has done that ?
Most of us who bought and sold and bought ... do not look for a "lifetime" commitment. IMHO, the "over history" stuff does not help an investor at all - it is all statistics and can be interpreted whichever way that suits the current need. (tell those who lost big money on the stock market bubble burst that "over the long haul, stock market beats everything blah blah blah" ...)
You were gambling, not investing. Investing is the art of picking companies that will increase in value due to a business model that has legs. AMR continues to lose money. Over the long haul, the stock will have ups and downs but in the long run, it is going nowhere unless they can raise fares or cut costs...neither is likely. Consider yourself lucky...the stock could have gone to zero and still could. Look at the rest of the industry. AA is no different. They don't have a differentiated product and entry into the category is easy.
By the way, investors that held quality stocks when the bubble burst are way ahead. Those that bet on tech with no earnings, well, you know the rest.