In the long run, we're all dead

Let me start by saying that like many Fools, I'm a big fan of playing the long game. Just like a certain much-quoted famous investor, my "ideal" holding period would be forever. There's nothing I'd like more than to sit by the pool sipping champagne and not even look at my portfolio while my stocks appreciate in value and the dividends continue to roll in.

But I think that Mr. Buffett is misunderstood by many people who think that holding forever is something of an obligation rather than an ideal. Sometimes the facts change, and as John Maynard Keynes is quoted as saying:

"When the facts change, I change my mind. What do you do, sir?"

Let's stick with Keynes, and his view that...