Comments on: The media won’t help you trade or understand the markets http://theessentialsoftrading.com/Blog/index.php/2008/11/07/the-media-wont-help-you-trade-or-understand-the-markets/ Information and resources for those looking to learn about trading and the markets Sat, 04 Feb 2012 14:17:59 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 By: John http://theessentialsoftrading.com/Blog/index.php/2008/11/07/the-media-wont-help-you-trade-or-understand-the-markets/#comment-13057 John Mon, 10 Nov 2008 14:22:31 +0000 http://www.theessentialsoftrading.com/Blog/?p=662#comment-13057 Kent - I love the Confucius quote. I feel sorry for those who cannot make time to read. Kent – I love the Confucius quote. I feel sorry for those who cannot make time to read.

]]> By: John http://theessentialsoftrading.com/Blog/index.php/2008/11/07/the-media-wont-help-you-trade-or-understand-the-markets/#comment-13056 John Mon, 10 Nov 2008 14:16:56 +0000 http://www.theessentialsoftrading.com/Blog/?p=662#comment-13056 Murf - Very philosophical. I can't go with you in terms of the blind thing, though the market definitely can only see what the participants see, meaning it's got blurry vision because some players see more and some less and some aren't looking in the same direction as others. That, though, is why the market sometimes does and sometimes doesn't react to short-term events (like those you mentioned) as might be expected - because the market is looking at something else or further down the road. Now, as for whether the market and its overall view is right or wrong, that's almost irrelevent. It's market movement (or lack thereof) which produces the opportunity to profit. For example, the markets might be forecasting an economic downturn. Whether or not that actually comes to pass doesn't matter because until the market reaches a point where the recession expectation runs its course the best trading opportunities will be to go along with the recession trade. That was the point I was trying to make - read what the market is telling you about what it thinks, not what someone tells you is/should be going on. Murf – Very philosophical. I can’t go with you in terms of the blind thing, though the market definitely can only see what the participants see, meaning it’s got blurry vision because some players see more and some less and some aren’t looking in the same direction as others. That, though, is why the market sometimes does and sometimes doesn’t react to short-term events (like those you mentioned) as might be expected – because the market is looking at something else or further down the road.

Now, as for whether the market and its overall view is right or wrong, that’s almost irrelevent. It’s market movement (or lack thereof) which produces the opportunity to profit. For example, the markets might be forecasting an economic downturn. Whether or not that actually comes to pass doesn’t matter because until the market reaches a point where the recession expectation runs its course the best trading opportunities will be to go along with the recession trade. That was the point I was trying to make – read what the market is telling you about what it thinks, not what someone tells you is/should be going on.

]]> By: Kent @ The Financial Philosopher http://theessentialsoftrading.com/Blog/index.php/2008/11/07/the-media-wont-help-you-trade-or-understand-the-markets/#comment-13046 Kent @ The Financial Philosopher Sun, 09 Nov 2008 02:11:58 +0000 http://www.theessentialsoftrading.com/Blog/?p=662#comment-13046 Outstanding post, as usual... I don't have cable TV; I don't subscribe to The Wall Street Journal; I read only classic books and a few blogs; and I feel my sense for markets and contentment for life is right where I want it. Any source of information that is in business primarily to sell advertising is "noise" and should be avoided. "I do not take a single newspaper, nor read one a month, and I feel myself infinitely the happier for it." ~ Thomas Jefferson "No matter how busy you may think you are, you must find time for reading, or surrender yourself to self-chosen ignorance." ~ Confucius Outstanding post, as usual…

I don’t have cable TV; I don’t subscribe to The Wall Street Journal; I read only classic books and a few blogs; and I feel my sense for markets and contentment for life is right where I want it.

Any source of information that is in business primarily to sell advertising is “noise” and should be avoided.

“I do not take a single newspaper, nor read one a month, and I feel myself infinitely the happier for it.” ~ Thomas Jefferson

“No matter how busy you may think you are, you must find time for reading, or surrender yourself to self-chosen ignorance.” ~ Confucius

]]> By: Murf (an alien) http://theessentialsoftrading.com/Blog/index.php/2008/11/07/the-media-wont-help-you-trade-or-understand-the-markets/#comment-13044 Murf (an alien) Sat, 08 Nov 2008 10:28:44 +0000 http://www.theessentialsoftrading.com/Blog/?p=662#comment-13044 "The markets don’t make meaningful moves on any single bit of information. They move based on the actions of market participants as they continue to develop their overall view of things." Fact is, their "overall view" is no more intelligent, and certainly no more based on fact, than the views of the common journalist. Most traders are trapped in a very narrow void, blind to the world around them. They carry huge prejudices, against workers and small business, against government and regulators, against everything that know nothing about. And yet many politicians have fallen prey to the almighty markets. For years now, they have vomited forth the brain dead mantra that "the markets know best". The markets are blind because those that play in them are blind. As blind as chickens with their heads removed. And today we have no greater proof of that than the behaviour of the markets -- auto sales plummet: the markets go up; central banks inject trillions: the markets go down; the madness goes on with neither sense nor reason. No one can understand the markets, because there's nothing to understand. Which is all the more reason to ignore them as a measure of the world. “The markets don’t make meaningful moves on any single bit of information. They move based on the actions of market participants as they continue to develop their overall view of things.” Fact is, their “overall view” is no more intelligent, and certainly no more based on fact, than the views of the common journalist. Most traders are trapped in a very narrow void, blind to the world around them. They carry huge prejudices, against workers and small business, against government and regulators, against everything that know nothing about.
And yet many politicians have fallen prey to the almighty markets. For years now, they have vomited forth the brain dead mantra that “the markets know best”.
The markets are blind because those that play in them are blind. As blind as chickens with their heads removed. And today we have no greater proof of that than the behaviour of the markets — auto sales plummet: the markets go up; central banks inject trillions: the markets go down; the madness goes on with neither sense nor reason.
No one can understand the markets, because there’s nothing to understand. Which is all the more reason to ignore them as a measure of the world.

]]> By: John http://theessentialsoftrading.com/Blog/index.php/2008/11/07/the-media-wont-help-you-trade-or-understand-the-markets/#comment-13040 John Fri, 07 Nov 2008 14:55:30 +0000 http://www.theessentialsoftrading.com/Blog/?p=662#comment-13040 a.b.c. - Nope. Obviously this blog is about education. I don't include market commentary or analysis of any kind here. As for my work, the main focus is identifying good trading opportunities. I don't try to explain why the market's moving. I just try to pick out the situations where the risk/reward situation suggests a good play in a specific direction. a.b.c. – Nope. Obviously this blog is about education. I don’t include market commentary or analysis of any kind here. As for my work, the main focus is identifying good trading opportunities. I don’t try to explain why the market’s moving. I just try to pick out the situations where the risk/reward situation suggests a good play in a specific direction.

]]> By: abusive by choice http://theessentialsoftrading.com/Blog/index.php/2008/11/07/the-media-wont-help-you-trade-or-understand-the-markets/#comment-13039 abusive by choice Fri, 07 Nov 2008 14:33:39 +0000 http://www.theessentialsoftrading.com/Blog/?p=662#comment-13039 Aren't you the media? Aren’t you the media?

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