Modern Trader False prophets Garrett Baldwin Illustrated by Mario Zucca This is a story about trust. About why many Americans have tuned out and lost hope in financial “experts.” It's about the insights, foresights, reckless predictions and lack of conviction from media outlets, Wall Street analysts and talking heads that monopolize today’s market dialogue. It’s also a story about the power of statistics; how one emerging trend can reverse a glaring problem brewing in America. Although markets roared back from the financial crisis, the mainstream Wall Street apparatus has failed to address one startling issue. America has a serious investing problem. Despite the six-year bull-run, 52% of Americans hold no investments in the market, according to Bankrate.com. CNN reports that stock-market participation has fallen from 65% in 2007 to 48% so far in 2015. The primary reason is a lack of capital. However, the next three would-be investor gripes in Bankrate’s March Market Pulse Survey are quite fixable. First is a lack of trust in the markets and experts responsible for providing actionable investment advice. Second is a fundamental lack of investment education. Third is an aversion to risk. The problem isn’t a lack of investment insight or access to financial tools. In a sea of noise—fueled by a non-stop 24-hour news cycle—it’s impossible for some to know where to start, whom to trust or how to get ahead. Experienced traders already know the fallibility of institutional research and the talking heads that dominate the airwaves. However, they might be surprised to know that some sources and pundits deemed highly credible—ones investors trust and trade off of—have underwhelming performance records, yet still maintain influence due to a staggering lack of accountability. Fortunately, these concerns are poised to abate as a new class of social curation and finance experts, financial technology entrepreneurs and data scientists redefine market conversation, and help investors obtain actionable insights from an emerging class of credible and accountable sources. These new voices—which we profile in the following pages—help to separate the signals from the noise. Whom to trust in a sea of market noise? http://www.thealphapages.com/content/false-prophets
I'm fully invested and have been since 2006. What's the problem? 52% do it like I do. Why do I care what the others do? They were no help at the bottom in 2009 when all they did was sell. I don't need greater fools to sell to because I never plan on selling. So the 52% club is just fine with me.
These "prophets" are not interested in informing you correctly. It's their bread. Is Cramer often right?