
The Vanguard High Dividend Yield ETF, like a hapless bureaucrat caught in the sprawling web of financial markets, tracks an index more expansive than its rival’s, a sprawling landscape of American companies, each clinging to a forecast of above-average dividend yield. The mere thought of these stocks-their hands outstretched for the promise of higher returns-becomes a hollow echo in the wind. Its fee, a meager 0.06% as of October 31, 2025, stands in eerie contrast to NOBL’s 0.35%, an additional burden for those seeking returns but finding themselves entrapped by bureaucracy. Herein lies the dilemma: those with a mind for the immediate, for the costs that bind them, may find comfort in VYM’s less demanding toll. But is it comfort, or simply a continuation of the eternal chase for more? A pursuit unending, as both seek the same elusive dividend yield.