Don and Tom take on the latest crypto hype cycle, arguing that Bitcoin remains speculation—not a reliable store of wealth—and that putting crypto inside retirement accounts is especially dangerous. They discuss a new self-directed IRA crypto platform, the risks of private equity and alternative assets in retirement plans, and why “get rich quickly” pitches should set off alarm bells.

Then they answer two listener questions. First, Mark from Ohio asks how to prepare a retirement portfolio for a likely market downturn and how withdrawals and rebalancing should work once retirement begins. Later, Doug from Utah asks whether market-linked CDs make sense compared with Treasuries and whether the “no downside” promise is worth the tradeoffs. Don and Tom explain why they dislike market-linked CDs, how bank brokers get paid to sell them, and why simpler fixed-income tools often make more sense.

They wrap up with a warning about growing bank-related scam tactics and a publishing scam Don has been seeing aimed at authors.

0:05 – Intro: one-star Bitcoin review and why crypto losses are hard to ignore
1:16 – Bitcoin’s drop, crypto volatility, and retirement-account crypto pitches
2:42 – Self-directed IRAs, IRA Financial, and the “get rich quick” problem
5:27 – Why crypto, private equity, and alternative assets can be dangerous in retirement plans
6:58 – Why most people bought Bitcoin: speculation, not currency utility
10:29 – Hot money shifts: crypto, gold, semiconductors, and chasing momentum
12:20 – Don’s bottom line on crypto as speculation vs. wealth storage
13:16 – Listener question from Mark: preparing for a market downturn before retirement
15:32 – Is an 80/20-ish portfolio too aggressive with retirement four years away?
17:13 – Bonds vs. cash/CDs: what fixed income should do near retirement
18:56 – Withdrawal strategy during a downturn and how rebalancing fits in
20:46 – Listener question from Doug: market-linked CDs vs. Treasuries
23:47 – Why Don and Tom dislike market-linked CDs
26:42 – The danger of taking investment advice from a bank salesperson
29:18 – Building Treasury and CD ladders through a brokerage instead
31:23 – Banks training tellers to spot scam victims before money is lost
34:04 – Don’s author scam warning: fake book clubs and fake promotional offers

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Don and Tom take apart a clickbait Kiplinger piece touting the “five top buy-and-hold investments to manage market volatility,” arguing that the list is a random grab-bag of recent winners rather than a coherent portfolio. They explain why the suggested mix—VOO, VXUS, a healthcare sector ETF, Apple stock, and gold—does little to reduce volatility and instead layers on concentration risk, sector bets, and performance chasing. From there, they broaden the discussion into a more useful question: where should investors actually go for trustworthy information, how should listeners think about evaluating a financial advisor, and what really matters when judging portfolio design. The back half of the episode features a thoughtful call about investing a spendthrift trust for two sons over a 12-year horizon, plus a warning that advisor performance can’t be measured by returns alone without understanding risk, asset allocation, and the planning services being delivered.

0:05 Cold open, podcast intros, and Tom’s ever-growing aircraft museum
1:40 Don tees up a Kiplinger clickbait article on the “five top buy-and-hold investments” for market volatility
2:14 Why the article’s opening about political uncertainty and inflation could apply to almost any year
3:36 The one part they agree with: long-term wealth is built by disciplined exposure to quality assets, not reacting to headlines
4:53 The rise of numbered clickbait headlines and whether numbers in titles actually matter
5:53 Why “stability” and “stock picks” don’t belong in the same sentence
6:27 Kiplinger pick #1: VOO — fine as a broad U.S. stock fund, but hardly a volatility solution
7:06 Kiplinger pick #2: VXUS — the one recommendation they think mostly holds up
8:21 Kiplinger pick #3: XLV healthcare ETF — a sector bet masquerading as a defensive holding
9:33 Why a healthcare sector fund lags a total-world approach while adding unnecessary concentration
10:28 Kiplinger pick #4: Apple stock — and why adding a single stock you already own inside the S&P 500 makes little sense
10:59 The problem with betting on one company instead of owning the economy through broad diversification
12:20 Kiplinger pick #5: gold — and why recent gains don’t make it a volatility manager
12:48 Gold’s long-term history, lack of fundamentals, and why its recent performance actually illustrates volatility rather than reducing it
14:12 The bigger issue: how do you decide which financial publications or sources are worth trusting?
15:26 Why Vanguard and Dimensional research tend to be more reliable than headline-driven finance content
16:35 The real reason people click these articles: fear, underperformance anxiety, and the urge to “improve” a portfolio
17:23 Why the Kiplinger portfolio is missing the one thing you’d expect in a true volatility-management portfolio: bonds
18:51 Don and Tom’s plea to listeners: follow evidence-based advice rather than clickbait lists
19:30 Listener call from Brian in Bremerton about investing spendthrift trusts for his sons over a 12-year horizon
20:55 The challenge: balancing growth with the possibility of distributions for education, cars, weddings, or a house
23:08 Don’s suggested framework: keep a cash/fixed-income reserve for near-term needs and invest the rest aggressively for growth
24:48 Why a target-date fund may not be the best fit for this kind of trust structure
25:37 A practical allocation idea: roughly 80/20 with a global equity fund plus a broad bond fund
26:51 Brian explains that Roth IRA funding is already part of the family’s gifting and estate strategy
27:32 A listener from Seoul praises the show and begs them not to turn into a “humblebrag retirement call-in show”
29:49 Listener question: how do you measure whether your financial advisor is performing well?
30:42 Why advisor performance should not be judged by returns alone
32:11 The importance of understanding what services you’re actually paying for: planning, rebalancing, tax guidance, income strategy, and more
33:11 What to examine in a portfolio besides returns: risk level, asset allocation, and whether key asset classes are missing
34:11 Why even benchmark comparisons can be misleading if the portfolio isn’t properly diversified
35:18 The better question: is your advisor delivering the services and portfolio design you actually need?

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Can Tom beat the average American on a personal finance quiz?

Don puts Tom in the hot seat with eight questions drawn from a financial literacy quiz developed by researchers at Stanford University and TIAA. The topics range from earning, budgeting, inflation, investing, debt, insurance, and risk to evaluating investment advice. Along the way, there’s plenty of good-natured ribbing, a debate over compounding, and a reminder that even financial professionals can stumble on carefully worded questions.

Later, the guys answer listener questions about whether the small-cap value premium still exists despite the rise of private equity, and whether exotic portfolios like the “Golden Butterfly” really deserve their impressive back-tested reputations.

Plus, Tom gives an enthusiastic endorsement of Don’s Civil War novel, The Line Uncrossed.

00:18 – Tom faces an eight-question financial literacy quiz
03:49 – Inflation versus savings: the trickiest question
05:53 – Why diversification beats owning a single stock
07:11 – The power—and danger—of compound interest
08:50 – Insurance coverage young adults actually need
09:52 – Expected value and lottery math
11:10 – Appropriate investments for different ages
12:40 – Why compounding may be the most important concept in investing
13:39 – Which asset classes have historically produced the highest returns?
16:03 – Does the small-cap value premium still exist?
23:01 – Should investors trust the Golden Butterfly portfolio?
26:45 – Tom’s review of The Line Uncrossed
29:17 – Free meetings with Appella advisors
31:11 – Blue shirts, blue eyes, and wrapping up

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