Thursday, January 15, 2009

Bandwagon of Gloom

Even as late as six months back, economic pundits & "experts" were assuring us this crisis was short lived and spotty. Washington assented that the fundamentals of our economy were sound, and all was right with America. Advice to buy stocks at such unprecedented lows ran like rapids over a waterfall. Every Wall Street rally was a sign the worst was over, -let's get back to spending & borrowing like before. But the bad reports kept coming & coming & coming.
Finally, even they had to face reality. This crisis is not your run-of-the-mill economic downturn. It is unprecedented on just about every front, and nearly everyone is directly or indirectly affected...and it's nowhere near the end.
What our government & vast majority of populace fail to comprehend is this is not solely a financial predicament. It is a state of America downfall. The demise of the Roman Empire would be our most likely comparison. As our economic status deteriorates, our political & social structures will follow suit. This is the edge of the precipice we're just beginning to look over. Whatever straw occurs which breaks the camel's back is right on the horizon.
What do we do? Easy to say, but hard for the mind & will to accept; Repent & Pray. Put Christ first in your life...then experience His transformation. The world won't change, but you will. Day by day you will be different. You won't suddenly become rich and all your problems vanish, but you will have the peace & strength from above. You will no longer be bound & enslaved to this world system; its woes no longer determine your life. The Holy Scriptures suddenly & powerfully become the lamp unto your feet and the light unto your path. You begin to see where you are, and where you're going. Your understanding of Almighty God, yourself, mankind, history, and the world begins to come into focus.
This crisis of our nation doesn't frighten me, I know who has my fate in His hands. I am concerned for those who do not know Yeshua the Messiah or Christ, they live in bondage & fear. Their faith in the world system, our government, our currency, their possessions, their job, everything is eroding around them, or soon to do so.

These are not the imaginings or ramblings of a Bible thumper or religious nut; in fact, I detest religion. It keeps one blinded to the Gospel of Christ, and enslaves one to another aspect of the world system. If Christ sets you free, then you are free indeed. No other liberation compares. Seek your freedom today. Seek Christ.
"All of you,
Seek the LORD while he may be found; all of you, call upon him while he is near." Is 55:6

______________NEWS__________________
What rally? Wall Street’s faint hope evaporates
Optimistic investors find this year is turning out a lot like the last one
The Associated Press
updated 7:41 p.m. ET, Wed., Jan. 14, 2009

NEW YORK - So you thought Wall Street might be out of the woods? Think again.

A surge of optimism that started a market rally late last year, mercifully quieting the stock market's stomach-churning volatility, has vanished as economic recovery recedes further onto the horizon.

On Wednesday, stocks took a dive reminiscent of the terrifying jumps and drops of last fall, with the Dow Jones industrials falling more than 300 points before closing down 248.

It was the Dow's biggest point drop since Dec. 1 and the first string of six straight down days since early October. The Dow is still 9 percent higher than its November low, but the bumpy decline feels all too familiar.

"It's a good instinct to start a New Year off with optimism," said Art Hogan, chief market analyst at Jefferies & Co. in Boston. "But unfortunately that tends to fade in the harsh light of reality."

So what happened?

Holiday sales turned out to have been worse than expected, the jobless rate exceeds 7 percent for the first time in 16 years, the global economy is eroding faster and corporations from Alcoa to Intel to Wal-Mart have disappointed investors.

Apple was the latest company out with bad news Wednesday, with CEO Steve Jobs saying he is taking a medical leave of absence.

"Right now we just don't have any evidence to show that that free fall is over," said Robert Dye, senior economist at PNC Financial Services Group in Pittsburgh.

For a time, it seemed like the worst might be over for stocks. After hitting a trough on Nov. 20, the major stock averages all rose by more than 20 percent within six weeks — the kind of rally that usually takes years.

The rally was driven in part by hopes for Washington's aggressive fiscal policies and the upcoming change in the White House. But lately bears rule Wall Street again as one corporate report after another spreads gloom.

Like others, Dye thinks the market could fall back toward the low point of November. That was when the Standard & Poor's 500 index reached its lowest close in 11 years, at 752, and the Dow reached its lowest in more than five years, at 7,552.

On Wednesday, the S&P closed at 843, the Dow at almost exactly 8,200.

Stock market recoveries usually precede economic recoveries by about six months. Translation: Investors don't expect the economy to turn around before the second half of this year.

"Wall Street wants instant gratification, but economic cycles take years and an economic cycle like this is going to be deeper, longer and uglier than any one we've ever faced," said Harry Rady, chief executive and portfolio manager for Rady Asset Management in San Diego.

Sam Stovall, chief investment strategist at S&P, puts it another way: Investors have put on their 3-D glasses, trying to figure out "the depth, the duration and the diffusion of this global economic slowdown."

And not having much luck.

For now, Hogan says stocks may trade in a much narrower range than they did during the white-knuckle days of October and November, when the Dow routinely rose or fell by 500 points or more in a day.

That range is perhaps 8,000 to 9,000 for the Dow, and 825 to 910 for the S&P, Hogan says. But more bleak news from corporations or Washington could still steer it lower.

For those looking for hopeful signs, consider these:

  • Only once since World War II have stocks bounced back 20 percent in a bear market without signaling the start of a new bull market, according to Stovall. That lends hope the surge could resume in the not-too-distant future.
  • A huge amount of money that was pulled out of stocks in last year's big sell-off remains on the sidelines and should re-energize the market at some point when investors see more encouraging signs, according to Liz Ann Sonders, chief investment strategist for San Francisco-based brokerage Charles Schwab Corp. At year's end $8.85 trillion sat in cash, money markets and savings accounts, an all-time high, she noted.
  • Other experts urge calm and suggest putting the recent slide in perspective.

    Robert Doll, global chief investment officer for the investment firm BlackRock, says the market's latest swing down is normal and was to be expected after a 20 percent rise and some bad data.

    "We're going to get more bad data and we should expect some more selling squalls," he said.

    Just keep those rose-colored glasses in your drawer for a while.

    Dye said stocks could fall again if Washington isn't quick to come up with planned spending to boost the economy after President-elect Barack Obama takes office next week.

    There is an expectation that we're going to have an $800 billion package in place very quickly, he said. "If that doesn't happen in a timely fashion that would be another negative for the markets."

    The harsh reality is America is drowning in her sin and wickedness. No recovery or healing will come.
    ______More_______
    'Pig sex' orgy set for inaugural week
    Homosexuals' plan Washington party


    U.S. warns drug war threatens Mexico 'collapse'


    Gas Crisis in Europe Continues


    Bank crisis deepens anew:

    Bank of America returns to the trough

    Microsoft considering 'significant' job cuts: WSJ

    1 comment:

    ShawneeIndian said...

    "And you shall remember the Lord your God, for it is He who gives you power to get wealth…" (Deuteronomy 8:18, NKJ). The Key to this verse is not Wealth, but HE Who Gives. Might look dark on the horizon but the Father is always working in the background, on our behalf. Might not be able to see it, but that is where trust and faith play apart in this relationship with our God. On last thing, is HOPE. You hear it all the time now, but Hope is: a confident expectation. So my HOPE is not in a new president, or plans to jump start the economy but in the Father who controls all things.

    Shawn