Of all the belief systems of Wall Street, few can claim the devoted following of the Efficient Market Hypothesis, the idea that stock prices adhere to the same laws of supply-and-demand that govern retail products. Once coined the theoretical "Parthenon" of economics, this notion has consistently endured the test of time ----- until now.

An investment letter that called the Crash of 2008 said that this would be a bad year — and it now says it will get worse.

War is a serious side effect from protests and anger. The remainder of this article is not about American citizens literally going to war against the US government. Although anything is possible in a severe bear market, I don’t think that is a realistic point-of-view.

The following article is adapted from a special report on "Popular Culture and the Stock Market" published by Robert Prechter, founder and CEO of the technical analysis and research firm Elliott Wave International. Although originally published in 1985, "Popular Culture and the Stock Market" is so timeless and relevant that USA Today covered its insights in a recent Nov. 2009 article.