This and That Some people here have commented that I am negative on SU and since I don't currently own it I shouldn't express my opinions. IMO to make good investment decisions one needs to evaluate the situation from all sides and then decide what to do. The broader your perspective the more likely you will make the right decision. All I try to do is give people things to think about - what you do is your decision not mine
I have said repeatedly that the decision on holding a stock depends significantly on your timeframe and tolerance to risk. I have never recommended that people sell SU. My consistent point is that there are better choices if one is considering a long term hold. If anything I have kicked myself for not following my own advice and taking advantage of the price inefficiency when the oil price was well below the 85 a barrel which is the social cost of Saudi oil....kudos to those that did
Integrity talked about private company investments and liquidity. This is why investments in such companies are usually restricted to what is called "Sophisticated Investors"....ie rich. In the case the private company that I own, I don't expect to see a liquidity event (IPO or sale) until about 5 years from now. So it is in some sense dead money until then. That said, I am prepared to wait since the risk reward is very compelling and I don't need the money in the meantime.
As I have mentioned many times, the business world is like an ecosystem and part of that ecosystem is Government policy both in a macro sense and a micro sense (ie company/sector specific). This is why I post about this. Failure to take this into account will negatively affect investment returns. It is not irrelevant.