How to describe 2011? Many famous quotes come to mind. First, Charles Dickens, with, “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.” Also the Grateful Dead, with, “What a Long Strange Trip It’s Been.” I think they both work. The only thing I am certain about regarding 2011 is that I –…
Some of you may be wondering why we have not pontificated on all the market movement of late. But the more things change, the more they stay the same: Since we last communicated, markets rallied strongly and are once again retreating. The latest market rally was sparked by better-than-expected economic news and the appearance of…
“Perception is greater than reality.” I hate that saying – I’m a reality guy. I once tried to start a counter movement to political correctness called “actual correctness,” but I didn’t get very far. It seems people actually are not that interested in what is actually correct. People are interested in having what they want…
On November 11, 1918, in the French town of Compiegne, the Allies and Germany negotiated cessation of hostilities on the Western Front effective at 11:00 a.m. Paris Time. At the eleventh hour on the eleventh day of the eleventh month, the War to End All Wars was over. Armistice Day, celebrated throughout the western world,…
What happened to the European debt crisis that caused so much market turmoil in August and September? What happened to the slow U.S. economy and mountain of government debt that caused the U.S. credit rating to be downgraded by Standard and Poor’s? To my knowledge nothing has happened to fix these situations, but don’t tell…
