It’s Not As Much Fun To Be Bullish

Mark Dow wrote a little market forecast some months ago in August. His opening paragraph is a keeper, on why it’s not as much fun to be bullish.

“It’s not as fun to be bullish. Bears are smart. Bulls are wide-eyed optimists. Bears have data. Bulls tell stories. Bears make money when everyone else is in pain. Bulls make money when everyone else already claims to be a genius. In short, many of us get more satisfaction being bearish because the psychic payoff is greater: we calibrate our own self esteem not by our victories in absolute terms, but in our victories relative to others.”

I have to admit, I’m always a bit bullish but I’m more of the foolish optimist.