In my recent post on eyeglasses, I largely encouraged people to visit an ophthalmologist in order to diagnose an eye condition. This statement drew some ire from my optometrist readers, who correctly pointed out that optometrists are actually better trained at producing a correct eyeglass prescription for most people. I go to an ophthalmologist because my eye condition is… awkward. Anyway, props to both optometrists and ophthalmologists for keeping our eyes healthy! Here are some personal finance posts.

A Comeback for the S.&P. (If the Yardstick Is Dollars) I thought this was interesting. The S&P 500 has been doing really well lately (and thus so has my investment in the Vanguard 500), but if you compare it to a currency besides the dollar (like the euro or the pound or even gold), it’s not doing so hot. Of course, this comparison is quite complicated and has lots of reasonable explanations. (@ nytimes via trader mike)

ING Direct Closed Customer’s Account Due To Bad Credit Here’s the scoop: some guy got an Electric Orange checking account there and regularly lived in “overdraft mode” with the account, meaning he was regularly overdrafting and relying on ING’s overdraft line of credit as a regular part of his financial life. As a result, ING did a credit check (as they should, sensibly, if someone’s doing something that sets off warning bells) and decided to kill the account. Is it right or wrong? I’m not the one to make the call, but I can certainly understand both sides. (@ consumerism commentary)

Are Your Friends’ Investments Performing Better Than Yours? So what if they are? Short term gains in the stock market are fleeting, particularly when you’re just dancing around in various mutual funds. Stick with a fund you like for the long haul and you’ll do fine. (@ money smart life)

The Simple Dollar Retro: Six Yahoo! Finance Columnists Are Worth Reading; The Other Six… Aren’t I read the Yahoo! Finance columns regularly, and this basically sums up my views on the columnists.