The Rummage Sale

The stock markets in the US have indeed risen since Obama's ascendancy, but not so much due to flight to quality, or flight to safety (there is little safety in a casino- with investors too often engaged in a crap shoot rather than an act of reason or faith), or any such jejune Ben Graham notions. Value investment seems quaint in the age of Madoff and Stanford. The decision to invest or continue to put dollars in stocks was not a reflection of confidence- certainly not an endorsement of Obama and his fiscal policy, but predicated because the yield on other safer investment vehicles was so low, with passbook accounts earning almost nothing, certificates of deposit paying little, Treasuries showing little demand as even China begins to back away, and corporate, municipal, and other bonds often yielding more but with accompanying risk that sometimes enters the category of junk bonds. Commodities, particularly the precious metals, gold and platinum, have simply soared so high that they have priced out many investors. They have of late offered great returns but in so doing have reached a per ounce price most investors can not or are not prepared to offer. And soon, the partying by resurgent Wall Street may end with Obama now pushing his financial overhaul bill, that Obama is out flacking for today, which may impose such an onerous regulatory regime that the kibosh will be put on future stock market recovery.