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The weekly Report & Event Summary Perspective is available through the link in the right hand column. This week’s Calendar has also been available since yesterday. And the continuing contradiction remains between fundamental influences that remain weaker than expected in some cases yet with technical trend activity which remains quite firm.
However, that is not such a huge surprise since the March S&P 500 future pulled off the ‘jailbreak’ above 1,474.50 last Friday (i.e. also a weekly Close) we had been discussing as a potential over the past several weeks. With a range of key technical indications (i.e. one of our classical ‘confluences’) pointing to next significant psychological and technical resistances not until 1,510 and 1,526, it is normal for the market to shrug off negative news until it gets closer to those levels.
After that, some of the problems which the equities are so happy to blithely ignore at present may come back to haunt the developed economies in spite of the generally upbeat psychology at present. And in our humble view, one manifestation of the sorts of problems that might well represent a real economic and market headwind came out of a less than obvious source: Secretary of State Clinton’s illness-delayed appearance before the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
It was obviously less of any sort of direct economic or market influence, and more so a clear indication of the utter inability of most folks in the US Congress, even the ostensibly very smart ones, to follow up on a line of reasoning. And there was one particularly interesting exchange and aftermath.
That was Mrs. Clinton’s emotional outburst in response to Senator Ron Johnson (one of those really smart folks in Congress) pointedly questioning her on the degree to which the Administration clung to its lame (and completely unsupported) claim that the Benghazi attack sprung spontaneously from a previously orderly demonstration. Just for the record (and edification of anyone who just came out of a several month coma), there was no evidence whatsoever of any demonstration at all prior to a very well-coordinated attack on the US facility.
That is in no way intended as a partisan criticism. As it is eminently clear that no additional critical information of any sort came out of this important hearing, there is plenty of failure on both sides that informs an even more depressing view than any failure to get to the truth behind the Administration’s disinformation policy how’s and why’s: neither side of the US political divide is capable of critical pursuit of information, as they are all much more interested in spouting sound bite fodder for their next set of election campaign ads… or so it seems.
Hillary's Hardline Hissy-fit
Mrs. Clinton’s fit of pique with Senator Johnson’s pointed discussion and inquiry is a wonderful case in point. As you hear her respond that it really doesn’t make a difference whether the attack sprung from a demonstration or “…guys out for a walk one night who decided they’d go kill some Americans…”, keep one thing in mind: Nobody ever asserted that latter was the case. And in taking that line, one of the Great Dissemblers (right along with husband Bill) of US and likely global politics won the day.
And for anyone who is unfamiliar with the term ‘dissemble’ it means, “To disguise or conceal behind a false appearance, or alternatively to make a false show.” Well, it seems we have a wonderful example of both here.
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