Regulate The Regulators: Every scandal produces new levels of regulations and additional cadres of secret police who raise business costs in the name of compliance with "da law". Countless hours of non-productive time are mandated by broad-brush policies and procedural requirements that do little to protect the consumer --- in many cases they simply annoy the people they are supposed to assist.
Sure, there are countless trading tools and information collection/analysis mechanisms that can help you prepare for the wanton unpredictability of markets; and there are tons of opportunity signaling methods, screening techniques, hedging strategies and the like that you can experiment with.
Always, every time and without exception, the general media has predicted the end of the financial world, financial experts have pointed out the remarkable differences from the last correction, and investors everywhere have been encouraged to take their losses and sit on cash or gold until the smoke clears. Every time, the short sighted fear mongers have been wrong.
Call it foresight, or hindsight if you want to be argumentative, but a long-term view of the investment process eliminates the guesswork and points pretty clearly toward a trading mentality that keys on the very natural volatility of the hundreds of investment grade value stocks out there for your portfolio building attention.
IGVSI Eclipses 2007 All Time High --- above 2007 levels since mid-February 2011 --- now up 6.9%; ahead of DOW and S & P by roughly 19%. Market Cycle Investment Management Model Portfolios build upon 18% gain in 2010. S & P 500 and mighty DOW lag the IGVSI, need average of 14% more just to equal 2007 levels.
How much financial bloodshed is necessary before we realize that there is no safe and easy shortcut to investment success? When do we learn that most of our mistakes involve our very own greed, fear, and unrealistic expectations? How do we create a confidence inspiring stock selection universe?
The S & P 500 contains 165 more stocks than the IGVSI, but less than half are Investment Grade Value Stocks. Although it is more broad based, it is also more speculative, and has not done as well as the DJIA. Still 14.7% below the 2007 high, it would need to gain another 17.2% just to claw back to its 2007 level.
These ETFs have a basis in IGVSI quality equities, and could be excellent trading vehicles. Certainly, they can be expected to track the IGVSI and the more popular (but totally manipulated) DJIA and S & P 500 averages.
To most investors, the DJIA provides all of the information they think they need, and they worship it mindlessly, thinking that this time tattered average has mystical predictive and analytic powers far beyond the scope of any other market number. It's Wall Street's rendition of 'The Emperor's New Clothes'.
