Economic Insights – September 2015

As the S&P 500 tumbled from its peak in May, the pessimistic pundits eagerly anticipated a sequel to the "Panic of 2008." For the past six and one-half years, every time the market has gone down sharply for a day or two, or a piece of economic data turned negative, the decibels have risen. They have turned technical moves in stocks and seasonal patterns in data into fundamental reasons to run for the hills with guns, survival gear, and gold.

These fear-mongers are traders, not investors. Trading is short-term, involving tech.....