TGIF

Another Friday commences after a long week of market swings. Not much has been given up from the big rip up this week, which is interesting as two days of relatively "bad" news brought no intense selling. Since the US jobs number is so often revised substantially, it's hard to conceive that it will be definitive - weakness is expected. As posted in yesterday's comments, the job data is quite erratic as different signs from ADP, Challenger-Grey and the unemployment claims obviates one from educing a defintive trend from the data.

I'm sticking with my "touch & go" economic trajectory ... Battleship Ben is on my side, firing salvos at the bears. About 15 years ago I saw Air Force planes practicing the "touch & go" at the Air Force base in Anchorage, Alaska, in winter. The actual moment of the "touch" is quite exciting. So it is for the economy, too.

Blabberg had that old fool, Soros, on this morning. Ugh ! You can be sure I'll never kiss the butt of some rich, powerful guy just because he once was, or is, rich & successful, no matter what endeavor brought forth his wealth. The words must make sense. So I turned Blabberg off and switched to Babblevision. Perchance I should just hit "mute" ?

I'd be looking hard for a few more good stocks, but my time is taken up with doing my taxes ... ugh ! I do the forms myself using spreadsheets that I've created over the years. Mostly the time is used in making sure that I miss nothing. I use Quicken, so actually getting the annual expenses and income data is rather easy. Still, I file several Schedule C's, am subject to AMT and need many other schedules and worksheets to do the forms correctly and minimize my tax. I slowly plod over the preparation for days :-((

Words of the Day - a trio for comparison

"Converse" - adjective and noun [$ ?]
Converse means (adjective) opposite, contrary, reversed; (noun) 1. a statement formed by another by the transposition of certain words; 2. something that is opposite or contrary.
Sentence: The extreme converse opinion of Bunkerman's "tough & go" economic trajectory is Soros' nouveau Great Depression outlook. Time will tell which, if either, is correct.

"Obverse" - noun and adjective [$10]
Obverse means (noun) 1. the more conspicuous of two possible alternatives, cases or sides: the obverse of this issue; 2. the side of a coin, medal or badge that bears to principal stamp or design: the George Washington silouette is on the obverse of a quarter; (adjective) serving as a counterpoint; 2. facing or turned toward the observer (the obverse side of a statue).
Sentence: (noun) The obverse of the 1 ounce gold American Eagle coin is a classic Lady Liberty holding a torch and olive branch. The reverse contains the two eagles, one flying and the other in the nest.

"Contrapuntal" - adjective (Musical) [$10]
Contrapuntal means of or in counterpoint.
Sentence: Babblevision's standard presentation of an issue with an advocate and then a contrapuntal opponent is so stale and time-wasting; Bunkerman derogates those debates as the "dueling politicians", or "dueling analysts", or "dueling money managers", as approproate.