干货、段子、诗，和巴菲特学点儿英文
北京时间2018年2月24日，将年满88岁的巴菲特发表了第53封《巴菲特致股东信》(Warren Buffet's Letters to Berkshire Shareholders)，在信中他介绍旗下伯克希尔哈撒韦公司（Berkshire Hathaway）2017年的运营情况和投资心态。
对投资者来说，巴菲特每年的致股东信是宝贵的学习资料。对投资没兴趣也可以用它来学学英文。这封17页的信中有事实有原则，也有段子和诗，我们一起从中学点儿英文。
巴菲特致股东信原文链接：http://www.berkshirehathaway.com/letters/2017ltr.pdf
也可以下载附有我简单标记的pdf版本：https://pan.baidu.com/s/1miXMYJA 密码:6yrk
1. 真诚
我们可以从一篇文章的前三段来判断这篇文章的基本风格，读巴菲特的信，最大的感受是清楚直接，没有模棱两可，没有废话，读起来诚意满满。这种风格具体表现在用数字和事实描述，不用不必要的形容词和副词。
我们来看前四段：
To the Shareholders of Berkshire Hathaway Inc.:
Berkshire’s gain in net worth during 2017 was $65.3 billion, which increased the per-share book value of both our Class A and Class B stock by 23%. Over the last 53 years (that is, since present management took over), per-share book value has grown from $19 to $211,750, a rate of 19.1% compounded annually.
The format of that opening paragraph has been standard for 30 years. But 2017 was far from standard: A large portion of our gain did not come from anything we accomplished at Berkshire.
The $65 billion gain is nonetheless real — rest assured of that. But only $36 billion came from Berkshire’s operations. The remaining $29 billion was delivered to us in December when Congress rewrote the U.S. Tax Code. (Details of Berkshire’s tax-related gain appear on page K-32 and pages K-89 – K-90.)
After stating those fiscal facts, I would prefer to turn immediately to discussing Berkshire’s operations. But, in still another interruption, I must first tell you about a new accounting rule – a generally accepted accounting principle (GAAP)– that in future quarterly and annual reports will severely distort Berkshire’s net income figures and very often mislead commentators and investors.
先拿数据汇报fiscal facts，咱今年挣了多少钱，咋挣的，和往年比什么意味着什么。怕有些股东看不出什么名堂来，他做了两个"interruption"作出补充说明。
We will attempt to alleviate this problem by continuing our practice of publishing financial reports late on Friday, well after the markets close, or early on Saturday morning. That will allow you maximum time for analysis and give investment professionals the opportunity to deliver informed commentary before markets open on Monday. Nevertheless, I expect considerable confusion among shareholders for whom accounting is a foreign language.
解释过背景知识后他提出了解决方案，以及为什么要这么做。最后他说：Nevertheless, I expect considerable confusion among shareholders for whom accounting is a foreign language. 该说的我都说了，你们这些不懂财务的股东还听不懂的话我也理解。
这里我们可以学习"something is a foreign language"这个表达，表示“对某事一窍不通”。类似的表达还有"something is (all) Greek to someone"。
2. 幽默
《纽约时报》评价巴菲特的这封信时说：Mr. Buffett’s annual letter is combed over for its investment advice and folksy wisdom as well as a few corny jokes. 我们来感受一下corny jokes。
在寻找独立运营的公司收购时，巴菲特主要看中以下特质：长期的竞争力，高水平的管理，有形资产的良好回报，诱人的内在增长机会以及合理的价格。因此2017年他在并购上没什么大动作（drought of acquisitions)，对此他解释说：
Why the purchasing frenzy? In part, it’s because the CEO job self-selects for “can-do” types. If Wall Street analysts or board members urge that brand of CEO to consider possible acquisitions, it’s a bit like telling your ripening teenager to be sure to have a normal sex life.
Once a CEO hungers for a deal, he or she will never lack for forecasts that justify the purchase. Subordinates will be cheering, envisioning enlarged domains and the compensation levels that typically increase with corporate size. Investment bankers, smelling huge fees, will be applauding as well. (Don’t ask the barber whether you need a haircut.) If the historical performance of the target falls short of validating its acquisition, large “synergies” will be forecast. Spreadsheets never disappoint.
有些CEO们就像是正值青春期荷尔蒙分泌旺盛的年轻人一样急于证明自己，头脑一热，干柴烈火一点就着。而投机银行家们就像是理发店里的Tony老师们一样，不仅鼓励你剪发造型，还会劝你染烫做营养...
他说：别人越大胆，咱们就该越谨慎。The less the prudence with which others conduct their affairs, the greater the prudence with which we must conduct our own. 这样咱们才能睡个好觉，过个好年。
Our aversion to leverage has dampened our returns over the years. But Charlie and I sleep well. Both of us believe it is insane to risk what you have and need in order to obtain what you don’t need.
3. 读首诗
巴菲特说股跌如山倒，绿灯一下子变红灯也是可能的，谁也不知道啥时候咱们的股票会下跌，但是咱有钱没债啥也不用怕。说到这里他还动情地吟了首诺贝尔文学奖得主、英国诗人Kipling的《假如》：
In the next 53 years our shares (and others) will experience declines resembling those in the table. No one can tell you when these will happen. The light can at any time go from green to red without pausing at yellow.
When major declines occur, however, they offer extraordinary opportunities to those who are not handicapped by debt. That’s the time to heed these lines from Kipling’s If:
“If you can keep your head when all about you are losing theirs...
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting...
If you can think – and not make thoughts your aim...
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you...Yours is the Earth and everything that’s in it.”
这一段是《假如》的节选，译成中文大概是：
如果众人在失去理智却归咎与你时...
如果你能够等待，却不因此而厌烦...
如果你善于思索，又不只是想想而已...
如果在所有人怀疑猜忌你时...
那么你就可以拥有整个世界及其万物。
Kipling “如果你在每天清晨读一遍这首诗，你将成为高尚的人; 如果你在每晚读一遍这首诗，你将成为圣洁的人。” 推荐你也完整地读读这首诗:
4. 学4个表达
我们可以从文中学到很多简洁漂亮的表达，在此只享4个。
1. 企业的发动机: engine
Let’s now move on to operations, beginning with property-casualty (“p/c”) insurance, a business I do understand and the engine that for 51 years has powered Berkshire’s growth.
保险业是Berkshire财富帝国的“基石” “摇钱树”，在这里巴菲特形容它是“engine”，发动机，有了它整个企业才能跑起来。我们是不是就可以说淘宝是阿里巴巴的engine？
2. 不准确，离谱：off the mark
My guess at this time is that the insured losses arising from the hurricanes are $100 billion or so. That figure, however, could be far off the mark.
“不准确”除了用inaccurate外，还可以用off the mark。咱们想说“八九不离十”就可以是That's not off the mark.
3. 起起伏伏：surge and swoon
Stocks surge and swoon, seemingly untethered to any year-to-year buildup in their underlying value.
说到起伏咱们能想到up and down，在这里我们学到一个类似的表达surge and swoon，surge是波涛汹涌突飞猛进，swoon表示昏倒、低迷。
4. Berkshire, it should be emphasized, has not performed brilliantly since the 2012 substitution. But brilliance wasn’t needed: After all, Berkshire’s gain only had to beat that annual .88% bond bogey – hardly a Herculean achievement.
Hercules希腊神话中的大力神，它的形容词是Herculean，如果一件事非常难，要耗费很多力气和功夫，就可以称它为a Herculean task. 在这里hardly a Herculean achievement时说“这算不上是件难事”。