Archman Investor's Comments

Happy New Year! Get Ready for 2010

Fri, 01 Jan 2010 09:10:21 -0500

I would recommend everyone read the Dave Barry piece for a subtle yet 100% truthful look at our country and why if we do not change our cultural standards, our thinking, and morality, this country will no longer be here in less than 50 years.

compdivplan.com

After yesterday's recap of the best trading sessions of 2009, and with the market poised to finish a banner year: the five worst sessions.

Thu, 31 Dec 2009 15:13:35 -0500

Yes a banner year!!

Where average Americans can look back and say "Gee even after this banner year, if I am lucky, my portfolio is finally back to 1999 levels"

Yes a banner year, where The Fed and all its partner banks were responsible for 80% of the stock market moves on little or no volume. While the HAL9000 computers at GS and the Fembot traders mechanically moved stocks up each session with the Fed's money.

The only good news is, most average investors did not fall for it and alot of people thankfully will not be poleaxed when this market finally reverts to its long term mean.
That is when you buy big time again.

Extended Unemployment and the True Jobless Figure

Thu, 31 Dec 2009 15:07:10 -0500

<>

Exactly my friend. It is ok to agree with me. I know I sound like an obnoxious dick most of the time. Thats because I tell it like it is, and many many people in this country, who are either on the public payroll, ripping off the system, or are happy knowing that for the time being they are being taken care of by an indifferent taxpayer, do not want to see these "good times" end.

My kids are approaching 10 years old now. I know for a fact, they already "own" the majority of teenagers and young adults out there already simply because my kids are being taught the real ways of the world.
They are taught to think for themselves, to think ahead, to desire to be something more than mediocre, to aspire to be something more than a public servant on a taxpayer payroll or to understand that this illusion of "self importance" that has been brainwashed into the masses via I-Phones, Facebook, etc is just that, an illusion.
Most Americans don't even have a clue that if they all vanished tomorrow the people who really own the country and its net worth would not miss them save for the fact we would have no one to take advantage of and have pay for all the things we don't want to pay for in the first place.
Harsh perhaps? Yes.
Is it the ugly truth that no one wants to admit? Yes.

We are Rome, and just like Rome, the masses were so blind and dumbed down to care as their entire world fell apart right before their eyes, until it was to late to fix it.

A Lost Decade for U.S. Stocks

Thu, 31 Dec 2009 14:54:48 -0500

I just don't see it.
My portfolio (assuming that it does not crash in this last hour of trading) will have been up 280%, dividends reinvested, from Jan 01, 2000 thru to Dec. 31 2009.
The reason: Wall Street, the financial media, and all their "expert" guests are nothing more than salespeople who have a license to lie.

Investing for my future and family's future is a business to me, not a pastime, not a hobby, and not some gambling venue.

Best of luck to all and good luck in this coming decade.

compdivplan.com

More Good News for Continuing Jobless Claims

Thu, 31 Dec 2009 13:33:32 -0500

Oh golly gee yes.

"Only" 432,000 weekly claims down a whole 22K or so. I guess Mr. Calafia, who awakens each day with his bank accounts stuffed full of cash, and not a care in the world, can keep rationalizing each and every report.

Oh and by the way, the EUC (Emergency Unemployment Compensation) for the week ended Dec. 12 it surged by 191,669 to almost 4.5 million, another all time record.
Yes Calafia, there millions who have exhausted their regular claims and are now on Emergency rations, so to speak. But you would not know about that at all would you?

I love exposing Calafia douchebag for what he is: a wealthy elitist whose sole job is to rationalize every bit of data as good news, ignore all the underlying bad news, in order to get people excited about investing so they will throw their money in the casino so it benefit's his buddies on Wall Street.

That is how the game is played.

Moody's may boost the credit rating of (newly government-owned) GMAC by several notches after the next few weeks' reviews - though concerns about ResCap will likely keep the rating from rising to investment grade.

Thu, 31 Dec 2009 13:16:14 -0500

Absolutely. It borders on comical. The debt of the US itself should have been downgraded already but does anyone believe that these rating agencies can act independently? The government would think of a reason to raid these agencies and yell fraud if any one of the rating agencies even dared lower the US credit rating.
Moody's, Fitch, S & P, are all in the back pockets of those who are will to pay.

On Dec 31 12:59 PM dondon wrote:

> This just shows that the ratings agencies are no better today than
> they were in the lead up to the collapse of the MBS industry. GMAC
> is about to get another government handout of several billion dollars
> to stay solvent and Moody's thinks they deserve an upgrade. We are
> living in a crazy world.

Three lunchtime reads: 1) Stock market closes the books on a lost decade 2) What’s a bailed-out banker really worth? 3) 2009's best economic policy: stress tests

Thu, 31 Dec 2009 13:12:58 -0500

Lost decade?

What lost decade? Oh you mean if you follow the advice of asset gathers who only have one job: To convince you to be in the stock market, so when you lose all your money, they keep getting paid.

What lost decade? You mean following the "pros" on CNBC, like Cramer, Fast Money, Vince Farrell, et al and all the other multi-millionaires who are worth millions more since the decade started while average American's net worth is at 1999 levels.

What lost decade? If all goes well and at 4:00 Pm i look at my portfolio, I will have ended the decade with a 280% portfolio advance VS a zero advance in the S & P 500, a zero advance in the DOW and a zero advance in the Nasdaq. How the heck?

By "investing", ignoring the lying financial media and completely understanding how Wall Street works in conjunction with the government and all their phony statistics and experts. None of whom ever saw any of the past 2 financial crisis until it was to late.

Remember, Wall Street exists only to make themselves money, not to make average Americans any money.

Period.

compdivplan.com

Extended Unemployment and the True Jobless Figure

Thu, 31 Dec 2009 12:15:23 -0500

Everyone needs to wake up and understand the "plan" of that 10% that controls 90% of this country's net worth:

1) To make a very large portion of our country completely reliant on the government and powers that be. Why? It is very easy to control people when they rely on you for their very well being. Why do you think that WalMart is the country's largest employer? You have the majority of the population completely brainwashed in to believing: Gee, if i have an I-phone and a Facebook page and "look" important, then by God I must "be" important then. Guess what average Americans: Wrong! You are still just as broke, just as meaningless as you were before, no matter how many reality shows you get on. The only difference is you have been brainwashed into believing that you mean something.

2) This massive dependence on government by a very large portion of the population, will then be paid for by raping those who remain even harder and longer, until everyone submits to those who run the show.

As I have said before and will say again. Americans in the future only have 2 choices and 2 alone. You are either going to figure out how to be in that 10% that controls everything or you are going to be nothing more than a serf.

compdivplan.com

Kim Arthur Sees Potential for Robust Returns in 2010

Thu, 31 Dec 2009 08:14:45 -0500

<>
Minimum revenue growth, cost cutting, head count reductions and the US government supplying 80% of the economic stimulus does not translate into a long term trend.
<>
Yeah, but I bet you did fine, like most asset gatherers who still get paid boatloads of cash even as average Americans got poleaxed over the past decade.
<>
If you were a reversion to the mean enthusiast you would clearly see that on an S & P 500, 25 year continuation trend line chart, that the S & P at some point will once again revert to that mean, putting the S & P at about 750 as of today. I do not know when it happens, but when it does, average mom and pop Americans are once again going to lose 30%+ of their money.

Not a bad rest of the article save for this gem:

<>

In other words, Mr. B bailed out everyone who should have gone bankrupt and let true panic and cleansing do its work. We would be having a real recovery by this time next year, not a fake on solely supported by the Fed, Treasury and our government (which by the way is not sustainable).

From many, many people I hear from and speak to all over, there is a HUGE disconnect between the recovery Wall Street and the financial media see and the basic survival that average Americans are attempting to deal with right now.

compdivplan.com

Legg Mason's (LM) Bill Miller returned to near the top of fund manager rankings this year, and he's still betting on a robust U.S. rebound. "We positioned the fund for a recovery," Miller says. "Even when things were really bad last fall, it was pretty clear that there would be a cyclical bullish phase to the market."

Wed, 30 Dec 2009 09:34:44 -0500

Bill Miller is truly the biggest liar around.

Bill Miller is the typical example of what is wrong with mutual funds.

The man is worth a few hundred million while his fund is EXACTLY where it was in 1997. Bill Miller is like 99% of all other managers/ asset gatherers: the can only make money in bull markets and have no idea, none, how to protect their clients in bear markets. It is disgusting to see this man paraded around on TV, still be called "legendary" by the media. He may be "beaten" the S & P for 15 years, however, during the bad years from 2000-2003 his fund only "beat" the S & P by a percent or two. In others words he still lost almost just as much money as the indexes though be managed to bear them. Big friggin deal. That is not wealth creation.

The reality is: Mutual funds are the worlds worst investment vehicles because these "asset gathers" are not paid on performance. Bill Miller has no idea, none, where the US economy is headed and has been dead wrong more often than not. The only reason he has a platform for his nonsense is the constant pressuring from the trillion dollar mutual fund industry on the media to "promote" this clown as an expert.

Remember folks, please, these people are nothing more than asset gatherers whose SOLE JOB, is to keep telling you what you WANT to hear, not what you NEED to hear.

compdivplan.com

The quants at Credit Suisse identify 24 Buffett-esque stocks: AFAM, AMGN, APEI, ATRI, AZZ, BKE, BUCY, BYI, CHD, EME, ENSG, JNJ, JOSB, KNSY, LINC, NPK, PETS, POWL, ROST, SCL, TJX, TNDM, VAR, WMS.

Tue, 29 Dec 2009 17:40:02 -0500

Note to Credit Suisse quants:

Try recommending stocks when they are beaten down and no one wants them. The majority of these stocks are at all time highs, some up 200% off their springs lows. A few are even on a rocket trajectory.

What CS is really saying to the general public: We think you should buy these stocks. That way we can unload our "preferred" clients positions to you and you, mom and pop Americans, are left holding the bag.

That my friends is what this is all about and it is something I will continue to preach and hopefully teach people the truth about Wall Street.

compdivplan.com

Despite its woes (huge deficit; anemic economy; broken political system), Joel Kotkin says the U.S. is a great long-term bet. His reasoning: 1) Viable demographics. 2) Energy resources. 3) Agriculture. 4) Military prowess. 5) Entreprenurial hotbed. "If the U.S. stays true to its unique traditions, it will remain the world's best investment for decades to come."

Tue, 29 Dec 2009 13:20:12 -0500

1) Viable demographics? All we hear about is how there are not enough new "smart" workers out there to do the real jobs that America needs done, in addition to the massive underfunding of Social Security. Of course those left to toil at our nations biggest employer, WalMart can look forward to working the first 6 months of every year for the government before they see a single cent go in their own pockets.
2) If you read the author's article he states (thought this misleading SA lead in leaves out) that the US "combined" with Canada is the second region in the world. Take out Canada and we have 90 yrs worth of natural gas, plenty of clean burning coal (He He), and some oil in the ground. We still import the majority of our oil and there has been little or no attempt to convert the country to clean burning natural gas. You could of course count all the "hot air" put out by the media and our government as as energy source.
3) I agree with agriculture.
4) Military prowess works best when our leaders make decisions based on what's good for the country and its people not what select group of complaining Americans want. Our military is stretched so thin right now as it is. If we stopped wasting time in Afghanistan, nuked that entire desert wasteland, nuked the other desert wasteland called Iran, and told every islamic person the world the following: "For every one American that dies, America WILL strike back and kill 20,000 Islamic people". There you go, end of story. Now our military can start protecting out homeland and stop wasting time all over the world.
5) Being an entrepreneur is great all long as you don't get taxed to death and can readily employ your product without the constant threat of greedy lawyers suing you.

The original article ignores of course all the massive deficits, massive amount of the population sucking at the taxpayer teet rather than working for a living, but that will have to be addressed another day.

S&P Case-Shiller Home Price Index: 0% M/M vs. consensus of +0.3%. -7.3% Y/Y vs. -7.7% expected, -9.4% prior. "The turn-around in home prices seen in the Spring and Summer has faded with only seven of the 20 cities seeing month-to-month gains, although all 20 continue to show improvements on a year-over-year basis. All in all, this report should be described as flat."

Tue, 29 Dec 2009 09:19:31 -0500

<>

Yeah, go check out the MSM websites, etc. They are all flapping their arms up and down, yelling about how this is another sign that housing is just fine now. LOL.

Amazing isn't it? Our government controlled media keeps hyping and pumping all the way to the bank.

U.S. employers expect to hire more new workers in 2010 than they did in 2009, according to CareerBuilder.com's 2010 Job Forecast. Twenty percent of employers plan to add full-time positions next year, up from 14% in 2009, while just 9% plan to cut head count in 2010, down from 16%. While the job market appears to be on the mend, the firm said it doesn't expect a return to growth until at least Q2 2010.

Tue, 29 Dec 2009 08:04:25 -0500

<>

Gee. I would hope so, no?

These sort of headlines are comical at best. Lets hope that the type of jobs that are added are of a decent caliber, and are not adding to the working poor of the country's biggest employer, WalMart.

At best I expect to see job growth in the lowest common denominator jobs ie: hospitality, back breaking labor, slavery type positions, etc.
All the while the complacent public will accept these "jobs" as normal because their I-Phones and Facebook pages tell them it's o.k. to do so.

A lost decade, in charts.

Sun, 27 Dec 2009 12:33:27 -0500

I love the second chart.
Clearly shows the 2 bubbles in the stock market.
This, as we work on the current FED induced bubble number 3.

So obvious it is almost embarrassing.

Amazing isn't? It is so clear that prior to 1995 we had a gentle, upward stock market, while still manipulated was so regulated that the norm was 10% / year.

After 1995 and the abolishing of all regulations, the market has become nothing more than a series of bubbles and crashes, where Wall Street, the financial media and the mutual fund managers have been the only winners in this entire fiasco (Save of course for the select few who understand how Wall Street really works, He, He.)

For those who understand and do not desperately "need" stocks to keep going up, you will have plenty of opportunity to buy stocks again each and every time the S & P reverts to that 25 year continuation trend line and clearly shown on that second chart.

But alas, most people don't buy stocks when no one wants them. They buy them when CNBC tells them too.

Leapfrogging Germany to become the world's largest exporter is nice, but China's not about to rest on its laurels, its vice commerce minister says: We're a "big trading nation," but not yet a "powerful trading nation," Zhong Shan said today. "Obama has told China to import more and export less, to save less and spend more, but what is U.S. doing? It is trying to expand its own exports."

Sun, 27 Dec 2009 12:25:41 -0500

China should completely ignore the US and the "advice" they get from us. It didn't exactly work out so well for us anyway.

China should do what we in this country have failed to do:

1) Think more than 1 day ahead of ourselves and plan for a future.

2) Make sure their people understand that just because you make "look" important, it doesn't mean that you "are" important. (See I-Phones, Facebook, et al.)

3) Make sure that real regulation is always kept in place and for those that break the rules, or steal from others, wether in government or privately, their are real serious consequences.

4) Do not let the general population become so complacent or dumbed down that they are brainwashed into accepting norms (ie unemployment, social welfare, etc) that eventually lower the standard of living in the country.

5) Do not turn civil, government, etc, workers into a completely "entitled" class who are make promises that over time can't possibly be kept without bankrupting the rest of the population.

Book Review: 100 Minds That Made The Market

Thu, 24 Dec 2009 12:28:23 -0500

You have for to be kidding me!!
When I saw that "asset gathering, pump monkey" Ken Fisher has written ANOTHER book I almost feel out of my chair.
Ken Fisher is the "master" stock market marketer of all time.

He has become a billionaire solely on the back of gathering assets and promoting the "if you have $500,000 or more to invest you better call us for Ken Fishers outlook on the markets now".

Between the internet pop ups, sidebars, mass emails and endless stream of useless books that Ken Fisher writes (where he mostly "guesses" at where markets are going) it has reached the point of vomitous.

Ken Fisher do us all a favor: take your billions that you have gathered from unsuspecting folks, go buy and island somewhere if you don't already own one, and disappear.

Rasmussen poll: 29% say the economy's getting better, 47% say worse. "Overall, just 13% say they're spending more on gifts this year compared to a year ago; 66% are spending less. 10% did most or all of their shopping online, while 49% did none of it in that manner."

Thu, 24 Dec 2009 10:54:46 -0500

Well this is easy:
The 29% is broken down in the follow fashion:
10% is the top 10% that controls the other 90% of this country's net worth.
The next 10% is the massive civil servant, government, state, local union workforces that have been raping the taxpayers for years and who still have jobs and pensions due to the taxpayers being hold at gunpoint.
The last 9% are divided between self made/employed people like myself and others who manage to survive the crisis.

The other 71% of the country is made up of the country's largest employer: Walmart, and the rest of the population who are still 122% in debt to their income yet somehow believe that when they turn 60, they will magically be able to retire and live a comfortable life.

Dream a little dream America.

SEC and Finra are reportedly investigating whether investment banks deliberately sold risky securities (CDOs) to clients, and then bet on the securities failing. Goldman (GS), one of the firms fingered, has already responded, saying, "The buyers of synthetic mortgage CDOs were large, sophisticated investors... They did not rely upon the issuing banks in making their investment decisions."

Thu, 24 Dec 2009 07:54:26 -0500

<< "The buyers of synthetic mortgage CDOs were large, sophisticated investors...>>

Yeah. They were so "sophisticated" that the instruments they bought blew up in their faces because they had no idea what they were buying nor understood the risks of what they were buying.

<"They did not rely upon the issuing banks in making their investment decisions.">

Good job Goldman. That is one way to rationalize things and offset the blame for the whole mess.

Unbelievable. And what's even worse? Goldman truly believes that anyone who reads their statement is going to believe them as if we are all stupid and living in another world.

After midday, stocks traded sideways as volume already took a holiday ahead of a short session tomorrow. The Dow squeaked into the positive and materials led sector performance. DJIA closes just over a point to the positive, +1.51 to 10,466.44; S&P 500 +0.2% (+2.57) to 1,120.59; Nasdaq +0.8% (+16.97) to 2,269.64. Crude +2.6% to $76.34. Gold +0.4% to $1,090.

Wed, 23 Dec 2009 16:28:00 -0500

Volume took a holiday?
Volume has been on holiday since the first day of the bottom in March.

The Goldman HAL9000 computers & the fembots that run the trading desks around the country are the only ones who have been moving the market up for months.

Rode the wave since then and will continue to watch as the media, and asset gathers do their best to convince mom and pop Americans that "now" is the time to buy stocks.

Doug Kass's 20 Surprises for 2010

Tue, 22 Dec 2009 17:38:24 -0500

#21 is a definite.

The ongoing plan to completely have the country owned by the top 1% is coming to fruition.
Just watch. When all the so called new jobs get created, most of them are going to be in the lowest quality, lowest paying category.

The simple fact of the matter is you either become one of the top 1% that controls everything or you are just a slave to them.

On Dec 22 02:59 AM ebworthen wrote:

> Well, sort of.
>
> Doug forgot these:
>
> 21. Massive tax increases are enacted and millions who voted in Obama
> can't believe it when they see their paychecks.
>
> 22. Tiger Woods commits suicide.
>
> 23. Crime sprees, protests, and riots erupt in formerly industrialized
> cities with unemployment of 20%, especially among the 16-26 age group.
>
>
> 24. Israel takes out several Iranian nuke production facilities,
> oil prices go over $100.
>
> 25. Jimmy Carter passes away, but his ghost comes back to ride Obama's
> shoulder and whisper in his ears "diplomacy" and "price controls"
> and "ignore Volker" (hat tip to Jimbo).

Trading eventually got lazier, but stocks held the impressive gains grabbed in the opening minutes, pushing the Dow into the black for December. DJIA closes +0.8% (+85.18) to 10,414.07; S&P 500 +1.1% (+11.58) to 1,114.05; Nasdaq +1.2% (+25.97) to 2,237.66. Crude -0.9% to $72.73. Gold -1.7% to $1,093.

Mon, 21 Dec 2009 16:16:04 -0500

Ah yes another "impressive" day in the market on the usual minimal volume. The robo's keep walking the market up on minimal volume while everything outside of Wall Street in this country continues to burn, just like Rome.

Reality is coming down the pike, it is just a question of when.

More signs of housing confidence, as lenders are easing down-payment standards for some applicants, who can borrow 95% of a home's value instead of 90%. Changes are happening on a market-by-market basis, but indicate some companies think the worst is over for price declines.

Sat, 19 Dec 2009 17:09:20 -0500

Niner:
I am not really sure of your hostility or what you mean by your comment.

Been where? Or you suggesting that "everyone" in this country is entitled to something, regardless of the outcome?

Hope your not a cop, teacher, fireman, town worker, railroad worker, or maybe MTA worker here in NY. That would explain the hostility.

On Dec 19 11:48 AM Niner wrote:

> My initial opinion is that the majority of you are ultra conservative
> assholes. But then I could be wrong.
>
> You guys just don't understand because you have never been there.

Not a single bear in Barron's 2010 survey. (via Roger Nusbaum, whose 2010 S&P target is 1,000)

Sat, 19 Dec 2009 17:05:46 -0500

Amazing isn't it?

When the world is ending and the S & P 500 was below 700, all the pros yell: sell sell sell, and the financial media says its the end of the world.

Now the market is up 60% from the "bottom" and its buy buy buy till the cows come home.

If only mom and pop America could learn the real truth.

compdivplan.com

More signs of housing confidence, as lenders are easing down-payment standards for some applicants, who can borrow 95% of a home's value instead of 90%. Changes are happening on a market-by-market basis, but indicate some companies think the worst is over for price declines.

Sat, 19 Dec 2009 08:20:15 -0500

Michael:
I agree. The average American should be "forced" to put down no less than 20% of the down payment and be able to fully document all income and assets.

It is the same joke, and it is done to make a select few wealthy in the short term while hurting the country in the long term. The really sad part of it is: most Americans just do not give a damn. As long as they have their reality TV shows, their I-Phones and all their apps, they sleep soundly at night.

There will clearly be winners and losers in the coming decades with most Americans on the losing end sitting around and wondering out loud where everything went wrong. It just boils down to stupid, lazy people.

The FDIC celebrates the last business-as-usual Friday of the year by announcing a total of seven bank failures, bringing the year's total to a nice round 140. Banks were closed in California (2), Texas, Georgia, Michigan, Florida, Alabama and Illinois. Total assets of the seven banks were $14.4B. Estimated cost to FDIC: $1.8B.

Sat, 19 Dec 2009 08:02:09 -0500

Kick the can down the road, doo dah, doo dah.

That will probably win song of the year.

USA still thick in denial on all fronts. All debts have been magically pushed down the road, all bank balance sheets are considered improving or healthy thanks to mark to market being abolished.
Amazing.

Hovnanian (HOV): FQ4 EPS of -$3.21 misses by $1.81. Revenue of $437M (-39%) vs. $454M. Shares -9% AH. (PR)

Wed, 16 Dec 2009 16:48:32 -0500

Misses by $1.81. Oh wait, and revenue falls another 39%.
But don't worry, housing is getting better.

Yeah. Wonder why the FED refuses to raise rates as well.

Dubai Supreme Fiscal Committee Chairman: "We are here today to reassure investors, financial and trade creditors, employees, and our citizens that our government will act at all times in accordance with market principles and internationally accepted business practices. Dubai is, and will continue to be, a strong and vibrant global financial center. Our best days are yet to come."

Mon, 14 Dec 2009 06:24:31 -0500

Translation:

Just like the US and other countries around the world, we will step in and bail out those who are completely irresponsible at the expense of those who are either to afraid or to stupid to stand up to such recklessness.
We will worry about the consequences of our actions at a later date, where those involved at the present time, will in the future, be safely living on their own private island, away from all the misery and heartache certain to be shouldered by the average citizen.

California cut pay by 18% today for lawmakers and elected officials for the first time since establishing a full-time legislature more than 40 years ago. The cuts reach from top to bottom, though Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger hasn't taken a salary since taking office.

Mon, 07 Dec 2009 17:26:25 -0500

If anything this should be a "warning" of things to come especially in New York where i live.

All forms of state government, police unions, teacher unions, civil servants, town workers, et al had better have a plan in place to deal with the coming problems.

There seems to be this consensus among the entitlement worker crowd that "benefits will never be cut, or my pension will always be there for me" because the taxpayer will just keep on a payin'.

Guess what, when there is no more gold to be dug and the taxpayers have been squeezed to the point that they can't be squeezed anymore, all bets are off.

A lot of people are going to be shocked when "guaranteed" pensions are no longer guaranteed. Or when health insurance deducted from paychecks goes from 10% to 50%.

Glad I learned this all from being self employed for many years. Being self made and self reliant atleast prepares you and you are not completely at the mercy of others.

An early look ahead at what you should be doing with your money in 2010, through questions and answers with a panel of six investment advisers.

Sat, 05 Dec 2009 16:57:35 -0500

I had read this article during my usual hard copy reading of the WSJ every morning.

Conclusion: They are all just the usual pack of "salespeople" who have no idea how to protect a person's money during bear markets.

Ignore this article and the views in it. Once you understand how to manage your own money, how Wall Street and the financial media really work, you will always make more money managing your investments yourself.

compdivplan.com