Danny Furman

Bullish sentiment, up from 19% in March to a current 38%, is still short of the August peak of 51%, and well off the 58% seen in 2007. Analysts say the levels suggest stocks still have room to run.

Expecting bullishness to get back to pre-crash levels sounds kinda empty-headed given asset prices and the economic climate. Maybe it's time to start selling now, but 45% sounds like a good number.

A redfaced Sen. Harry Reid comments on his erroneous "no" vote for the Obama healthcare reform: "I spent a very restless night last night trying to figure out how I could show some bipartisanship. And I think I was able to accomplish that for a few minutes today."

Like we needed more proof that political logic is otherwise known as dementia.

Telestone Technologies: The Hard-to-Dismiss Chinese Small Cap

I agree there's still room to run for TSTC, thanks mostly to network expansion into rural China.
Alphameister, it seems you've done much better than me with this one. My shares are all gone, sold half in the $5s and the rest in the $8s. China small caps are scary....

Artificial Life: 3M Deal Sets Developer on the Growth Path

DOH!!!!

Well, this is a great opportunity to start a position. If we fall much lower I'll be adding shares.

Why a Stronger Dollar Is Not a Problem

A strong dollar in this economy means more cost cutting/job elimination and greater disparity between the haves and have nots.... Really good for some, much worse for others.

Is Gushan Environmental Energy Bottoming?

100% agreed with the article and author's conclusions.
I'm done with Chinese energy companies. The PRC chooses who makes money and how much... GU is obviously not cared for by govt officials.

As Gross Says, The Fed Provides 'Return-Free' Risk

Fun read, thanks for the insight.

The Economics of Credit Card Debt

I hope you're not arguing that debt laden "idiots" get what they deserve. In a society with such educational deficiencies, shouldn't our hyper-controlling government prevent such financial rape of millions of people? The banks, media and government all feast on the weak like a hungry predator. I agree we need to get smarter, but that won't happen til government shrinks and people are given some power (to think).


On Dec 02 03:14 PM Alex Filonov wrote:

> High credit card interest is a tax on stupidity. Almost everybody,
> unless close to bankruptcy, can manage credit card debt multiple
> ways:
>
> transfer balances, old credit card bank gets nothing
> pay off high rate credit card when charging expenses on low rate
> card
> take a loan in different bank
>
> Yes, there are people who just get unlucky and can't pay their debts,
> it's a different story. But majority of card holders pays high interest
> rate just of sheer laziness and stupidity.

Why Did Housing Go into a Bubble?

I think "credit chasing goods" would be a more appropriate phrase, but excellent point nonetheless. Very well reasoned article, thanks to the author.


On Dec 06 01:31 PM John Wake wrote:

> A question for me was why did housing prices boom while the general
> inflation level did not?
>
> I think it gets down to the amount of money chasing a fixed amount
> of goods. For several reasons there was money available to buy homes
> that wasn't available to buy cars, stocks or anything else. You could
> get a home loan without having any income but you couldn't finance
> the purchase of a washing machine without having a job. That money
> had to go to housing, it couldn't go toward other purchases (except
> indirectly). So there was a lot of money chasing homes and housing
> prices skyrocketed.
>
> There were, of course, other factors but I think "money chasing goods"
> was the top factor.

Food Stocks Deserve to Be on Your Plate

Mark,
Thanks for the article. WINN and SVU look extremely cheap despite poor recent performance and massive debt, respectively. FDP and DOLE have been on my buy list lately, as have IPSU and CZZ. Any thoughts on DOLE or CZZ? I'm doing some major rebalancing on my "plate" and plan to fill much of it with food stocks.

OceanFreight: Why It's Now a Must Buy

OCNF isn't some super-cheap aberration in the sector: FREE is more attractive as a speculative play and NM/NMM offer real growth and high yields.

Food stamps, rebranded as "nutritional aid," now help feed one in four U.S. children, and one in eight adults - even as welfare rolls have stayed virtually flat.

Chris,
I agree with your general sentiment but probably wouldn't mind punching one or two of your food stamp buddies. People who worked on wall st or had good jobs before a year ago can get jobs if they want to. The problem is that their vanity stops them from working in fast food or wherever their work experience makes them an appealing candidate to hire. Someone who made 6 figures for years and now has nothing deserves zero sympathy/bailout/help...
They didn't lose their jobs, they gambled their lives away.

Coinstar: Standing Up to Continued Challenges from Hollywood

Excellent point about BBI leaving the picture. $1.50/day would increase rev by 50% and income by 100%++++


On Nov 19 06:08 PM bigbenchitown wrote:

> great article. REDBOX is the next amazon and google. This thing
> is spreading like wildfire and with BBI most likely to go bankrupt
> CSTR is bound to get even more users then it already has. I think
> this stock is so cheap for the potential it has. Think of the posibilities
> once BBI is gone. Eventually, CSTR can raise the rate to $2 or even
> 1.50 a night and double their profits. People don't think about
> these things. This company is the wave of the future. No need to
> lease expensive buildings and pay hourly employees when people can
> do it themselves with these low cost REDBOX's. LONG cstr!!!!

The Rich Are Getting Richer and the Poor Are Getting Richer Too

Like the author, you confuse the past and the present. Immigrants used to have abundant opportunities, so what? Just like many Asian immigrants teach at universities, many gamble their meager paychecks away on a weekly basis at casinos.


On Nov 29 01:53 PM yellowhoard wrote:

> I'm not saying that recent college grads are not having difficulty
> getting jobs. We're living in a depression. I get it.
>
> But, in general, over the last 250 years, millions of people have
> entered our economic system poor and have gone on to make fortunes.
>
>
> Look at the Asian community in your town. They arrive with NOTHING,
> speaking little English, and within a generation, they are middle
> class Americans or better.
>
> And, their children seem to flourish in the same schools that fail
> to produce qualified American graduates. Witness the names of the
> national spelling bee finalists for the last 20 years.
>
> Our problem is not for a lack of stuff, but for a lack of motivation.
>

How Come Good Macro Policies Are Political Losers?

All these recent ignorant permabull articles are great signals of a market top and the mania that accompanies one. The author pretends the economy is a one way train to the sky and wealth can be created when nothing is being innovated or produced. A correction in the stock market should have been followed by a correction in behavior, which is best achieved by punishing bad behavior. In saving failed institutions we have reaffirmed a flawed system, whereas the author suggests we simply "dodged a bullet."