"It is my sincere belief that due diligence is akin to the fountain of youth. Search as you might, it will never be found."
I'd agree that you can never be 100% certain of a stock, however if you do your due dilligence correctly you can effectively assign probabilities to your stocks. For example, the probability of IBM going bankrupt is much less than the probability of DCLK going bankrupt. Therefore I don't believe that due diligence is akin to the fountain of youth, rather it is quite achievable.
"If anyone on this board believes that Lucent would have been considered a risky investment just a few short years ago, they are only kidding themselves."
Yes, of course you will have surprises even after your best due diligence efforts. However that's where diversification comes into play. You can minimize the risk you face in a specific company by diversifying appropriately.
At the end of the day, I believe that due diligence is the NUMBER ONE factor to consider when investing for the long-term. Short-term investing is a different game altogether. You don't have to perform any due diligence when you're in and out of a stock in a matter of hours.
"The tax penalty that should be added to all copmparisions of AIM vs. buy and hold."
Yes, this must be taken into account along with commissions. However we must also remember that even Buy and Holders must pay tax when they sell their shares. In Canada, for example, Buy and Holders simply defer their taxes (which is an advantage, but B&H does not eliminate taxes).
In addition, it depends on the type of account you're AIMing. Retirement accounts also allow tax to be deferred regardless of trading activity.
News 
Market Data 
Discover 
AI
