There was an informal survey of financial advisors on CNBC yesterday, showing an over-whelming 68% of us think the most important event this year will be the November election. I guess all those financial advisors watched the Republican Convention last week and are looking forward to the Democratic Convention this week . . . not me.
I plan to watch the exact amount of the Democratic Convention as I did the Republican Convention, which was zero, zilch, or none-at-all.
Nobody ever called any political convention a "no-spin zone." They are giant, glossy infomercials, with a complete anti-intellectual bias. Indeed, even face-to-face debates are mere contests in which candidate can remember the most applause lines, as pre-determined by focus groups. It is pre-packaged spontaneity.
All suffer from the conceit that David Brooks described in his excellent column last week, i.e., they talk as if they will govern without the existence of the other party. Why bother to listen to that? The possibility does not even exist. It would be an alternative reality.
Last week, I was fortunate to watch two old, classic Ava Gardner movies (Night of the Iguana and 55 Days at Peking) during the Convention coverage. Let's hope the Turner Classic Movies channel will be as good next week.
I am among the 19% of financial advisors who believe the most important event of the year will be the European financial crisis. While little has happened over the summer, as expected, the little that did happen was quite positive. There is reason to believe that this September and October could be the critical months, when we finally achieve some clarity, if not resolution. However, if we do get a clear resolution in the near future, I expect to get bullish again quickly.
My expectation about the November election is that it might alter the degree of gridlock but not end it. My expectation about the Fiscal Cliff is that the elected Congressional cowards, who care more about their re-election than their country, will once again vote to "kick the can down the road" by simply changing the effective date to the following year.
So next week, I'll be looking for the remote control again. Besides, what man wouldn't prefer looking at Ava Gardner instead of Romney or Obama?
I plan to watch the exact amount of the Democratic Convention as I did the Republican Convention, which was zero, zilch, or none-at-all.
Nobody ever called any political convention a "no-spin zone." They are giant, glossy infomercials, with a complete anti-intellectual bias. Indeed, even face-to-face debates are mere contests in which candidate can remember the most applause lines, as pre-determined by focus groups. It is pre-packaged spontaneity.
All suffer from the conceit that David Brooks described in his excellent column last week, i.e., they talk as if they will govern without the existence of the other party. Why bother to listen to that? The possibility does not even exist. It would be an alternative reality.
Last week, I was fortunate to watch two old, classic Ava Gardner movies (Night of the Iguana and 55 Days at Peking) during the Convention coverage. Let's hope the Turner Classic Movies channel will be as good next week.
I am among the 19% of financial advisors who believe the most important event of the year will be the European financial crisis. While little has happened over the summer, as expected, the little that did happen was quite positive. There is reason to believe that this September and October could be the critical months, when we finally achieve some clarity, if not resolution. However, if we do get a clear resolution in the near future, I expect to get bullish again quickly.
My expectation about the November election is that it might alter the degree of gridlock but not end it. My expectation about the Fiscal Cliff is that the elected Congressional cowards, who care more about their re-election than their country, will once again vote to "kick the can down the road" by simply changing the effective date to the following year.
So next week, I'll be looking for the remote control again. Besides, what man wouldn't prefer looking at Ava Gardner instead of Romney or Obama?
