This is it. With bittersweet emotions, we have come to the final edition of Notes from the Investment Underground. Although without the burdens of daily writing chores I will be free to pursue some exciting trading endeavors, I will most certainly miss having a captive audience for my research and opinions.

Today is a huge day for this country. Not only did the GOP take back a pivotal seat, but the markets are reacting fiercely and appropriately to a horde of economic data. The possibilities from here are unlimited.

It’s a huge day in the nation’s history. As with a couple of other great revolutions, America’s latest smack to the face of an overpowering government comes from Massachusetts.

The world remains shocked over the tragic events unfolding in Haiti. While every life saved is worth celebrating, for every success story, there are tens, if not hundreds, of tales with horrific endings. A country that many thought could get no poorer was dealt a knockout blow.

Some stories just have to be repeated. Like the one from Sweden that tells of a collapsing floor during a Weight Watchers weigh-in. As twenty or so dieters filled the room to measure the fruits of their effort, the floor beneath them rumbled then failed.

Priceless irony.

There is a time for making money and there is a time for giving money. Now is the time to reach into your heart and help your global neighbors.

As rumors of a death toll in Haiti that could stretch into the hundreds of thousands slowly become reality, we need to spend a moment or two wondering why we do what we do.

What’s worse than having Wall Street kingpins like Bernanke and Geithner in charge of America’s economic future? China taking the reins, that’s what.

While Washington’s all-powerful ego may have our leaders believe they still control our fiscal fate, they lost that power long ago. Now, the Fed and the Treasury may dictate who gets what, but China decides how much and when.

Baltimore — The radio is a fantastic mirror of the economy. Advertisements, radio personalities and even the tunes themselves, do a fine job of illustrating the highs and lows of a region’s fiscal situation.

Baltimore — It is too late to debate. A debt-fueled crash is imminent.

I made a promise to my wife late last fall. Once the holidays were over and she was well on her way to recovery after a recent surgery, we would hit the local furniture stores and redecorate our living room.

Baltimore — I admit that I probably spend more time discussing the realm of politics than I should in a contrarian investing newsletter. But in my defense, politics play a larger role in our personal wealth now than they ever have before.

But while I so stubbornly poke holes in the political machine in Washington, I must avoid being hypocritical. If I shame our legislators for disregarding the democratic keystone principals of checks and balances, I must be careful to avoid the same pitfalls.