[justlurking]

"Wait until people start looking at the retirement accounts and savings after a couple of days when the stock market declines," Durbin said.

Durbin should look at the market today, the first day of the "shutdown".

[smoothsailing]

Yep, the markets were up today.

Dow+62.03

Nasdaq+46.50

S&P+13.45

[SAJ]

Hi, jl -- Speaking as a FReeper who trades the mkts daily for his bread and cheese, there is no mystery -- nor should their be any confusion -- about why the broad US indicies were higher today.

Simple sentence: mkts hate uncertainty FAR more than they dislike a goobermint shutdown. Considerable uncertainty was resolved just prior to midnight last night, thus, the broad indicies had a rally. Pretty easy to spot, really.

Now, I make no brief whatever that this (presumptively temporary) minor optimism will persist. I will say this, however; should the moron Boehner push the current idea of passing piecemeal CRs, 1 at a time, and sending them off to that piece of filth Reid, the mkts will -- beginning with the very first cave-in by Reid et al. -- take this action as a double resolution of uncertainty, and therefore react bullishly.

Should, contrarily, the moron Boehner demonstrate once again his spinelessness by attempting some sort of broad 'conciliation' with the turd Reid, mkts will react badly, at least initially. The general uncertainty in mkts will increase sharply the very minute that Boehner should undertake such an utterly stupid course. Then again, we should none of us be surprised if he should do, because, as noted, he is a moron.

Ultimately, my point here is this: you have generalised from one datum (always a mistake), and you do not appear to understand how mkts work when fundamental factors (you know, those things such as capital ratios, d/e ratios, and to a large extent earnings) become no longer the mkts' major driving force.

Good trading to you, and FReegards!