"Once you have ordinary intelligence, what you need is the...

"Once you have ordinary intelligence, what you need is the temperamement to control the urges that get other people into trouble in investing." Buffett, 1999.

- 1999!!, ten years ago those words cannot be true enough.

Think about this: from 1984-1987, Buffett did not buy a single new equity position for Berkshire Hathaway. Berkshire Hathaway was sitting on huge cash balances (accumulated from its businesses profits and dividends from existing stocks, just waiting to be allocated). In 1987 (yes, late 1987 that is), Berkshire Hathaway used that cash to buy over a billion dollars worth of TCCC (KO) - at that time 5% of the shares outstanding.

The ability to do such a thing goes against the grain of modern human action and element. Being in a good business over time even if you pay a little too much going in will bring great reward if your in it a long time. Good businesses withstand anything over time, regardless of what gets thrown at it.