I don't know when I first learned about Chinese water torture, but I must have been eight or nine. I don't remember what brought it up, I just remember it. What brought this to my mind was a rare hour or two I afforded myself as my family cooked a special Father's Day brunch for me. For the first time in too long a time (last Father's Day?), I plopped myself on the couch and watched an episode of one of my favorite TV shows "The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr." In it, an evil Chinese gang gave one of the regular players the old Chinese water torture.

If you don't know, Chinese water torture involves water continuously dripped on the forehead of a restrained person. It's supposed to make one go mad.

When fi360's Blaine Aikin told me competitive forces were driving us to a universal fiduciary standard – with or without regulators' consent (see "Exclusive Interview with fi360's Blaine Aikin: Competitive Forces Favor Fiduciary Standard," FiduciaryNews.com, June 20, 2013) – I was reminded of ol' Pete (sans pistol) sitting in that abandoned mineshaft watching the water drip, drip, drip on his head.

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Christopher Carosa

Chris Carosa has been writing a weekly article and monthly column for BenefitsPRO online and BenefitsPRO Magazine since 2011 and is a nationally recognized award-winning writer, researcher and speaker. He’s written seven books, including From Cradle to Retire: The Child IRA; Hey! What’s My Number? – How to Increase the Odds You Will Retire in Comfort; A Pizza The Action: Everything I Ever Learned About Business I Learned By Working in a Pizza Stand at the Erie County Fair; and the widely acclaimed 401(k) Fiduciary Solutions. Carosa is also Chief Contributing Editor of the authoritative trade journal FiduciaryNews.com and publisher of the Mendon-Honeoye Falls-Lima Sentinel, a weekly community newspaper he founded in 1989. Currently serving as President of the National Society of Newspaper Columnists and with more than 1,000 articles published in various publications, he appears regularly in the national media. A “parallel” entrepreneur, he actively runs a handful of businesses, including a small boutique investment adviser, providing hands-on experience for his writing. A trained astrophysicist, he also holds an MBA and has been designated a Certified Trust and Financial Advisor. Share your thoughts and story ideas with him through Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/christophercarosa/)and Twitter (https://twitter.com/ChrisCarosa).