Hardesty Horizons is now in its 10th year of publication, which means there have been roughly 40 opportunities to face a blank palette and put words to paper. That large sigh of relief resulting from the completion of another communiqué, is quickly followed by the fear and trepidation of what to come up with next. Unlike the other entries which appear, The French Quarter is not a ”set” piece, nor was it ever intended as such… the raison d’etre—as the ”sales & marketing arm” of Hardesty Capital Management, so to speak—is nothing more than a ”shout out,” as the au courant phrase goes, an attempt to avoid being ”outta sight, outta mind.” And implicit therein, the goal might be to provoke or entertain, not leave indifferent (b/t/w, for those keeping count, the French tongue has been employed three times so far, justifying the byline…).

Over the years, there have been a few times where I’ve been unable to answer the bell due to random surgeries here and there, and a few times where I’ve unintentionally provoked management, with the only cut being made that of the cutting room floor. And now I’ve come to find out that by way of a recent e-mail announcing HCM’s ”NEW Blog!” that you may expect to see more regular appearances of the FQ… yikes! If that’s going to work, let’s review a few ground rules:

• As veteran readers know, the FQ does not advise on investments—if that day comes, run, don’t walk to the nearest exit. It has been my contention all along that when it comes to an issue as important as managing your money, it is better left in the hands of professionals, which I’m not… I think my colleagues are. Whatever ”investment advice” will be limited to the occasional reminder that for a successful outcome, besides investment performance, you should pay careful attention to your investment costs—as with any recipe, those ingredients may be quantified. But what makes the ”secret sauce” is the amount of service that is thrown in—you might want more than a ”dash.” Not surprisingly, I believe our firm is pretty good on all counts.
• We’ll try to keep the commentary lively, and in the interest of full disclosure I represent the ”conservative wing” of Hardesty Capital Management. If my opinions offend, please contact Jim Hardesty by way jim@hardestycap.com.
• As the resident conservative, I would take issue with the implication made elsewhere in this issue that the Roosevelt Administration led us out of the Depression—World War II did. For those interested, here are two good books on the subject: The Myth of Roosevelt by John T. Flynn; and The Forgotten Man by Amity Shlaes. Again, if I offend, jim@hardestycap.com.
• My father, a veteran of the aforementioned conflict always reminded me to ”have the courage of your convictions,”—thanks, Dad… again, jim@hardestycap.com.

Let’s get ready to rumble.
—The Frenchman