BlackBox, no what you did was give out typically glib bullish advice and then offer yourself a universal out clause. Its the same spineless crap spun on CNBC and just about as worthless. Everybody needs money thats the whole point of investing. You show me a human being who endlessly puts money into the stock market and never has need to withdraw, for major expenses, I’d like to meet that person. He was either very lucky, or earned huge sums and lived way below his means.
We are in a bear market the rallies will be vicious though short. We will not exit the bear market until faith in the credit markets has been restored. Since the Fed has shown its hand, that being of chief enabler of the banks to hide the sausage, there is no way we are exiting it soon. Regardless of soon or not the end result is sharply lower equity markets.
For most people the absolute best advice, the only sane advice is get the fuck out now! If you are willing to take risk, bear markets can be very profitable. Lots of people did exactly what you say and adjusted for inflation lost a decade because of it. Returns on the S&P have been anemic since the top of the market in 99.
In bear markets return of capital trumps return on capital.
