At what point then is the approach of danger to be expected? I answer, if it ever reach us, it must spring up amongst us. It cannot come from abroad. If destruction be our lot, we must ourselves be its author and finisher. As a nation of freemen, we must live through all time, or die by suicide."
Abraham Lincoln,Lyceum Address, 27 January 1838
“Through pride we are ever deceiving ourselves. But deep down below the surface of the average conscience a still, small voice says to us, something is out of tune.”
Carl Gustav Jung
“Pride gets no pleasure out of having something, only out of having more of it than the next man. It is the comparison that makes you proud: the pleasure of being above the rest.
As long as you are proud you cannot know God. A proud man is always looking down on things and people; and, of course, as long as you are looking down, you cannot see something that is above you.”
C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity
Stocks went on a tear higher today in celebration of the lousing housing numbers this morning.
And because they can.
Gold and silver made a rally attempt, and managed to hang on to some of it into the close, silver a little moreso than gold.
A huge tranche of gold showed up in Hong Kong.
Funny how a big smackdown in the paper price and a scraping out of the ETFs manages to show up there, given a little time.
The Dollar finished lower. All a part of the lousy economic news being good for the bankers, moneyed interests, and their bubbles.
Tough times ahead.
In fit of emotion people are going to do very dumb and willful things that hurt more than themselves, although eventually they will be falling away in numbers that may be alarming.
"There have always been plagues and wars, yet they always take us by surprise. Stupidity has a knack of getting in the way, which we would see if not wrapped up in ourselves. In this our townsfolk were like everybody else— they did not believe in plagues."
Albert Camus, The Plague
The bulls are smelling new highs in stocks, almost within their grasp.
If they fail to make those new highs, things may get interesting, quickly.
They may get a few tries at it, but don't miss.
The underpinnings of the equity markets is speculative froth.
Have a pleasant evening.
