To be sure, if we are thinking in terms of technology with all the new gadgets that we have at our fingertips we have certainly made some quantum leaps. I find it amazing that laptops, for example, far exceed the capabilities of traditional desktop computers of ten years ago. Throwing in wireless capability now I sometimes feel that my laptop is becoming a personal appendage. It is not uncommon to find me sitting at the breakfast table checking on emails or early investment market indications, then putting it in my carrying case to the office to “boot up” along with several other desktop computers to help manage the day’s activities, and finally, in the later evening, generally sitting in the family room, I will be doing the same things on the laptop that I started the day with. So productivity and efficiency have certainly made big gains.
In matters of healthcare, of course we have seen advances in new drug therapies and high tech medical device equipment that is either used for diagnosis or treatment. However, we have not made the major breakthroughs for treatment in many of the forms of cancer, nor neurological disabilities of Multiple Sclerosis or Parkinson’s disease. Rapid advances here cannot come fast enough.
So let me get to the real point now of this article. As I mentioned above, much of my time is spent on the computer reviewing investment market activity. As I find so much of the financial news lately evolving around whether the Dow Jones will stay above the 10,000 level, or break below it, the issue is clearly the index continues to represent a milestone that draws attention. Well at one time it really did represent a milestone, but the problem is that point in time was March of 1999. Yes, you read correctly. It was actually more than a decade ago that we first hit the mark.
My mind wanders back in time watching the financial news network on that day and the euphoria on the floor of the stock exchange. It was kind of like a New Years Eve celebration. In fact, it was an achievement marked by a virtually continuous annual rise in the Dow index that had started in the late 1980’s at a level approximating 2000. If my memory serves me correctly, the news at that time (March ’99) already began forecasting how long it would be until we hit Dow 20,000!
So we did make it to the all time high of 14,165 back in October 2007. It wasn’t easy getting there with the events of the early part of the decade, but we overcame that to hit that mark, only to fall back with the financial crisis of the past few years. So now we ponder whether we can hold a 10,000 level so that we can say that we have gone no where in the last eleven years! So do you still believe in buy and hold as an investment strategy? By the way, we also went nowhere in the S& P over the last ten years.
But now for the good news! We are not even close to being caught up in the all time malaise of the investment market. After the market peaked above 1000 in 1929 it did not regain that level until 1954…25 years later. So I want to believe that record will stand and for us better market days will be coming!
