The Congressional Effect Fund? Yes. You read it correctly. There is a mutual fund called the Congressional Effect Fund.

When I first came across this fund, I said to myself, "Huh?" Is there really a fund that is in or out of the market based on whether Congress is in session or not. Yes. There most certainly is.

I'm not here to recommend or promote particular mutual funds or other investments, but over the past few weeks I have seen a few funds that follow interesting (or, maybe, entertaining) investment strategies. I'll let someone else decide if they are worthy investments.

In the meantime, read more about the Congressional Effect Fund. I'll highlight several more of these funds over the next couple of months.

While a mutual funds site (like this one) is about building wealth, developing a grasp of the tax code can help preserve some of the wealth that you accumulate. I suggest you take a look at the About.com Tax Planning site.

Whether you are a professional tax preparer or you file your own taxes, William Perez, the Guide to Tax Planning at About.com, can help you. His latest piece on year-end tax tips is a must read.

I read an interesting blog the other day that included a post comparing a hypothetical investment  with Madoff to an investment in large cap US stocks. 

The post was making the point that you could have invested up to $500,000 with Madoff 10 years ago, lost all of your money, received a settlement from SIPC for $500,000 and been better off than if you had invested in US large cap stocks -- and would have endured less stress along the way.

I couldn't quite get the moral of the story, or maybe I fundamentally disagree with making rearview mirror assumptions.  Maybe if I try to find the next Ponzi scheme, then I will do better than buying US stocks? Well, because the large cap US stocks performed poorly for the last 10 years, doesn't mean that investors did not earn a reasonable rate of return on their investments  (think international equities, bonds).

I think I will continue to invest in a diversified mix of equities (US, international, etc.) and bonds (municipals, TIPS, etc.) and forgo the search of the next big Ponzi scheme -- for  a host of reasons.

I have written a couple of pieces outlining the basics of Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities (TIPS), but Vanguard's research note takes it to another level.

If you want to learn more about the fine details of TIPS, I suggest you read their piece entitled "TIPS and the nature of inflation protection."

TIPS are generally seen as a hedge against inflation. It should be noted that there is plenty of negative press about the reliability of the CPI as an accurate measure of the cost of living (or increase in the cost of living). So, keep in mind, the "inflation protection" in TIPS is protecting against a rise in CPI and not the buyer's rate of inflation -- or increase in living expenses.  

More on TIPS from About.com:

A Primer on Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities

Pros and Cons of TIPS Mutual Funds