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Bread and Circuses
Tree Huggers are (Usually) Lousy Traders
It’s nothing new to compare today's Western Civilization to the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire. Writers have observed the parallels for years, and for good reason: currency depreciation, the deterioration of morality, the character of government, and more.
Yet from a socionomic point of view, the most interesting comparison may be the role of Bread and Circuses. If you’re a professional football fan, the opening of the 2009 season is a good example. Depending upon your level of interest, the circus that is the NFL provided you with a brief distraction from economic difficulty, or gave you complete escape from everything. If you’re not into football, maybe the MLB fall classic will give you some relief. Then there’s always hoops and hockey. The PBR (Professional Bull Riding) is pretty exciting, too.
Sports is only one example. There’ s also entertainment. Who can ignore the appeal of American Idol? Or you can insert your favorite TV show. Surely there’s a “never miss” program that gives you a dose of escapism from the problems of everyday life. C’mon. We’ve all got ‘em.
And there’s the bread. First-time homebuyer’s incentives. Cash for Clunkers. Social Security safety nets. Bailouts and more bailouts. And the entitlements, which may soon include medical. (Or does the health-care debate come under the category of “circus”?) The excitement of the gladiators -- and the cradle-to-grave care offered by the State -- looks more and more familiar.
We all care about the planet and third world poverty, but let’s face it: when you get right down to it, what you need to care about most is YOU and your family. It's about survival. You've come to this website most likely because you’re interested in the economy and the markets. You’re probably interested in investing and trading. And don't get me wrong, but tree huggers are usually lousy traders.
So what’s the point? The point is: we can help you understand the socionomic insight and the Elliott Wave Principle. That understanding -- combined with our research -- can make you a better investor/trader.
You may already know about Ralph Nelson Elliott. His work in the 1930s and 1940s identified recurring wave patterns in the stock market. He understood that patterns of collective human behavior are linked to the Fibonacci (or "golden") ratio, a mathematical property known for millennia by mathematicians, scientists, artists, architects and philosophers as one of nature's ubiquitous laws of form and progress.
The Elliott Wave Principle is based on universal laws that govern much of nature, from the attraction of sub-atomic particles to the structure of leaves to the orbit of the planets around the sun. These mathematical relationships and fractal geometry are also found in the electric synapses of your brain – the brain that joins with others to form the collective social mood which drives the motion of the markets that we analyze. Indeed, patterns define the progress and regress found in all of nature. The wave patterns in markets repeat in all time frames with self similarity -- from tick charts to millennia.
Our analysts are experts at counting these waves. Elliott Wave International has been in business for 30 years. Staffed by over 90 experienced professionals, we are the world’s largest market forecasting firm. Use our experience to help you in the markets you trade.
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