Something's just not right-Disturbance in the Force

I've been quiet of late but something crossed my desk this morning that really got the hairs on the back of my neck twitching.

It caused me to have that......ooooooo, something's all wrong, there's a disturbance in the force.

Please know, this isn't intended to be a discussion about the stock market or financial markets or even the economy.

What came across my desk was a report from a financial service that reported that over the last 6 months, the investing public withdrew $17 Billion from the equities, (i.e. Stocks) market while at the same time they plowed $29 Billion into Bonds! All the while.....the equities indices like the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the Standard and Poors 500 have RISEN to new heights, breaking all time new highs with the DJIA now comfortably above 21,000 and last week I believe, it punched above 22,000.

At the same time, a buddy of mine who's a Financial Advisor with a large Wall Street investment company related at lunch that one of his pals, a small business owner, had $8 Million Dollars in his checking account. My buddy has been trying to get him to invest in stocks since 2013 and this guy steadfastly refuses to do so.

Then, to cap it all off, this morning we learn that prices on used cars are FALLING, reportedly down as much as 4% in the last quarter.

So why does this feel all "wrong"?

People aren't buying cars. People aren't buying real estate in the form of single family housing. People aren't investing in the equities markets, but rather, they're either buying over priced Bonds (which will decline in value when the Fed raises rates), or they're stashing huge sums into checking accounts when we all know checking accounts don't pay any interest whatsoever!

What could be the underlying cause of all this?

I'm considering the following as possible underlying problems.
1) Collectively, the US public is...........DEPRESSED!
2) The US public has lost so much confidence in the institutions of Government and the political system that they fear making a move in any direction.
3) The atmosphere of the widening political, cultural and "class" divide in the US is causing a "bunkering" mentality. People have hunkered down and are stocking up for whatever they fear most is about to befall them as the society starts to crumble into chaos?
4) North Korea? Really? Fear of Nuclear War? Somehow I doubt that, but......I offer it up any way.
5) Technology "Change Rate" shock? I mean, maybe people are thinking....why buy now when "it" be it a house, a car, whatever, will be obsolete by some technological advance to be rolled out 18 months from now! Or maybe the rate of change has had a shock effect that's got people somewhat like the proverbial Deer in the headlights?

I don't know, can't put my finger on it but something just doesn't "feel" right to me.

So.........you're comments? Possible causes? But most important, I'd like to know if fellow ATS'ers are feeling/seeing the same thing? What's up with this?

Haven't people been 'prepping' for this for decades?

Can't count the doomy threads over the years.

It's just trendy at this point.

a reply to: TonyS



Yeah, something is going to happen, only unlike you I think it just may be NKorea. I live on the West Coast, so its pretty scary to think about.

a reply to: TonyS

You say that people are withdrawing boo coo bucks from the the stock market and putting it in bonds.
Yet, you also point out that the stock market is booming to new heights.

So if people are pulling money OUT of the market as you say, just who is putting money INTO the market to make it boom in such a way.

a reply to: TerryMcGuire

Good question!

Where's the money that's rolling INTO the stocks coming from? The damned BANKS! The single biggest owner of Facebook stock is the Bank of Switzerland! The Fed has been pushing money into the Banks, no one is borrowing so they're investing in the equities markets.

The public, especially the US public, had lost faith and confidence in not only the political and financial institutions, they've lost faith in and confidence in virtually every aspect of their lives.

So, yes, a "bunker mentality" has largely replaced the confidence and enthusiasm that once drove our society.

We are seeing the worst parts of ourselves reflected in everything we do, even though we try to project that ugliness onto others, making ourselves victims of "their" greed, intolerance, fanaticism, and violence. Our self-victimization has thus sapped us of our confidence, our hope.

The strong and hopeful do not see themselves as victims.

Until we can acknowledge these flaws in our character, and begin to honestly work to correct them, we will continue to hide in our bunkers.

a reply to: kurthall

According to a report I saw on One America News, yea, Kimmie's got the bomb, but.....Kimmie doesn't have a guidance system AND he doesn't have a war head that will survive re-entry into the earth's atmosphere. To hit Kalifornia, he has to launch an ICBM into Space and then drop it back into the atmosphere to hit his target.

He's not there yet.

originally posted by: Bhadhidar
The public, especially the US public, had lost faith and confidence in not only the political and financial institutions, they've lost faith in and confidence in virtually every aspect of their lives.

So, yes, a "bunker mentality" has largely replaced the confidence and enthusiasm that once drove our society.

We are seeing the worst parts of ourselves reflected in everything we do, even though we try to project that ugliness onto others, making ourselves victims of "their" greed, intolerance, fanaticism, and violence. Our self-victimization has thus sapped us of our confidence, our hope.

The strong and hopeful do not see themselves as victims.

Until we can acknowledge these flaws in our character, and begin to honestly work to correct them, we will continue to hide in our bunkers.

That's an outstanding observation........I hadn't thought about it in quite that way. Unfortunately, people are really slow to see their own character flaws.

a reply to: Jefferton

Yes, there's always been the preppers and such but as I've seen it, that trend pretty much peaked around 2012. This has a different feel to it to me..........its more like an emotional deficit of some kind.

a reply to: TonyS

I don't know, can't put my finger on it but something just doesn't "feel" right to me.

same here, then my wife told me we're in Mercury retrograde. hmmmm

that they fear making a move in any direction

"all eyes straight ahead...steady as she goes"

astrostyle.com...

In astrology, Mercury rules communication, travel, and technology—so all of these areas go haywire for about three weeks. To top it off, Mercury retrograde also has what’s called a “shadow period” (which we explain in this post about Mercury’s shadow), so you may feel the retrograde a couple weeks before and after it actually happens.

a reply to: TonyS

Thats my suspicion as well. My greatest fear is the whole planets economy has been on borrowed time. We're long overdue for the big one...that will make the 30's depression look like a walk in the park.

and then there are the derivatives, that no one is talking about...

wiki

A: The derivatives market is, in a word, gigantic, often estimated at more that $1.2 quadrillion. Some market analysts estimate the derivatives market at more than 10 times the size of the total world gross domestic product, or GDP.May 27, 2015

a reply to: TheConstruKctionofLight

That's kinda creepy itself!

Talk to your neighbors. You'll likely find that there is more harmony than disharmony.

a reply to: TonyS

.its more like an emotional deficit of some kind.

Deflation? Japan still hasn't recovered

a few years ago I started looking into Kondratiev waves (supercycles) May have to really get up to speed. . Or I may take the lazy way out just invest in gold. hehe

Gold been kept artificially down for the last 20 years - it should be trading at around $20,000 p/ounce. They'll make a mistake sooner or later (Libor - Short sellers JP Morgan etc) and Gold will soar

a reply to: TonyS

I would like to buy a vowel please

a reply to: TonyS

Then if that is so, which I suspected, then that would suggest that the market is now in a bubble and that the whole banking industry is overly invested so that when this bubble bursts the whole banking system will pop with it. Right???

a reply to: projectvxn

Household debt is soaring - its only a matter of time before some crash comes along. Neighbours and friends will be important in the future. Unfortunately we cant own guns with as much ease in Aust.

a reply to: the2ofusr1

I think they're about 1/5 the price of a consonant. How much are you prepared to pay

a reply to: TheConstruKctionofLight

I have to check with a banker ...know any ?

a reply to: TerryMcGuire

Well they wouldnt have quietly pushed for Bail-ins a few years ago if they were weren't # scared