“Trade what you see; not what you think.” – The Old Fool, Richard McCranie, trader extraordinaire.
WSJ OPINION
“It was going to happen sooner or later: American service members would be seriously hurt as Iran-backed militias conduct lethal target practice against U.S. bases in the Middle East. When will President Biden do his duty as Commander in Chief and protect Americans deployed abroad?” – WSJ Opinion at...
https://www.wsj.com/articles/u-s-troops-injured-iraq-iran-houthis-strike-biden-administration-4773fa27
my cmt: My son-in-law is in Iraq at one of the airbases. His base is under regular missile attack and he is frequently required to terminate calls with his family to retreat to a bunker, as he did Christmas day.
“Fortunately, we know how to re-establish deterrence. We’ve been here before.
On April 14, 1988, the USS Samuel B. Roberts was hit by an Iranian mine while escorting Kuwaiti oil tankers in the Persian Gulf. The explosion lifted the ship out of the water, ripped a 30-foot hole below the waterline, destroyed a 15-foot section of the keel, and seriously injured 10 sailors... Four days later, at the direction of President Reagan, the U.S. Navy, in combined surface-ship and air attacks, engaged the Iranian Navy in a daylong battle named Praying Mantis... Praying Mantis remains a case study in strengthening deterrence. Our victory kept Iran’s navy at bay for more than two decades and helped change the course of the Iran-Iraq War, which had upended the region for eight bloody years. Iran never laid mines in the Gulf again.” - William J. Luti, retired U.S. Navy captain and an adjunct fellow at the Hudson Institute. Commentary at...
https://www.wsj.com/articles/how-we-deterred-iran-in-the-gulf-last-time-reagan-navy-operation-praying-mantis-580b3c95
“What a rare gift the U.S. Supreme Court has been given. In a single verdict, it can now re-establish its ethical bona fides while adhering to the originalist principles of its conservative members. It can do it by affirming Mr. Trump’s disqualification to hold elected office under Section 3 of the 14th Amendment.
Given the voluminous set of facts already in the public domain about Mr. Trump’s actions relating to Jan. 6, punting or further delaying this critical decision on procedural grounds, such as due process, would be a travesty of justice and a lost opportunity. Through one verdict, the court and its conservative majority can re-establish itself as the true, apolitical arbiter of law and justice. In no small measure, the conservative court could restore the confidence and respect in our system of laws and rules that we all hold so dear.” - Irwin Studen, WSJ letter to the Editor.
My cmt: As previously noted, the Colorado trial included a week of testimony, so it would seem that there was sufficient “due process.” We also note that the Constitution does not require a conviction to determine eleigibility to run for office.
“According to an October Gallup poll, only 32 percent of Americans say they trust the media a “great deal” or a “fair amount” to report the news in a full, fair and accurate way. And 39 percent of respondents said they don’t trust the media to be fair or accurate... Part of the problem is that most mainstream news media outlets are partisan, with few labeled as center or objective, according to AllSides. The only way these outlets hold onto their remaining audiences is by keeping them in a constant state of outrage, addicted to the feeling of righteous indignation in an echo chamber of their partisan beliefs. But many people don’t want to live in perpetual outrage or be filled with constant anxiety, worrying that the country (and the world) are doomed... For audiences, instead of consuming far-left and far-right partisan media, they could read and watch more centrist news. They will possibly be more angered at first as their echo chambers are challenged, but realizing that there is more than one side to a story will eventually decrease their rage and make them more informed." Commentary at...
Opinion: Are we finally getting sick of the media outrage machine? The numbers don’t lie. (msn.com)
-Wednesday the S&P 500 rose about 0.1% to 4782.
-VIX dipped about 4% to 12.43.
-The yield on the 10-year Treasury slipped to 3.787%.
-Drop from Top: 0.3%. 25.4% max (on a closing basis).
-Trading Days since All-Time Top: 498-days. (The top was 3 January 2022.)
The S&P 500 is 10% ABOVE its 200-dMA and 6.6% ABOVE its 50-dMA.
*I won’t call the correction over until the S&P 500 makes a new-high; however, evidence suggests the major bear-market bottom of the 25% decline was in the 3600 area and we called a buy on 4 October 2022.
XLK – Technology ETF (holding since the October 2022 lows).
XLY - Consumer Discretionary ETF. (Holding since the October 2022 lows - I bought more XLY 8/21/23.)
BA – Added 12/6/2023.
Similar to yesterday: The Overbought / Oversold Index is overbought. This is a breadth indicator that makes very short-term calls. RSI is overbought, too. Bollinger are stretched, but not yet signaling a top. Even if we do see top indication, it is not likely to be more than a 3-5% pullback.
I remain bullish.
TODAY’S RANKING OF 15 ETFs (Ranked Daily)
ETF ranking follows:
The top ranked ETF receives 100%. The rest are then ranked based on their momentum relative to the leading ETF.
*For additional background on the ETF ranking system see NTSM Page at…
http://navigatethestockmarket.blogspot.com/p/exchange-traded-funds-etf-ranking.html
DOW 30 momentum ranking follows:
The top ranked Stock receives 100%. The rest are then ranked based on their momentum relative to the leading Stock.
For more details, see NTSM Page at…
https://navigatethestockmarket.blogspot.com/p/a-system-for-trading-dow-30-stocks-my_8.html
