Invest in Main Street, Not Wall Street

Before I begin, please allow me to preface my opinion with the fact that I have no finance credentials. I am absolutely the last person's opinion for which you should take financial advice. However, with that being said, I am going to pretend I would sell any historically over-valued, non-inflationary indexed equities that I possessed. Ever since the S&P broke 1100 on October 19, the market has tried to continue its unprecedented, euphoric seven month, sixty-seven percent rise from the seemingly bottomless depths at 659 on March 6, to no avail.

Yes. It almost busted 1124 eleven days ago on December 4, but when taken in perspective with its see-sawing lateral diatribe since November 9, it was unimpressive. Even that day, there were ultimately more skeptics in the end, and the day closed down almost fourteen points at 1110. Hasn't been much of a horse race since. And... with the Producer Price Index numbers released today, looks like the last nag the crowd wanted to see, Double Digit Inflation ridden by Fed Chair Ben Bernanke with what appears to be green bills flying from his pockets, has hit the home stretch. None of the regular racing crowd was surprised. Only the spectators in the stands stood and booed as they realized their bets were on the wrong horse.

The problem now is, what do I do with this imaginary money I made from the sell of my fictitious stock? Now I realize, there are many attractive investment opportunities in a world with non-stop, five-day trading sprees held around the globe. Emerging markets, currency exchange fluctuations, sovereign credit ratings lowered, it's just crazy out there. Simple investment strategies may no longer work. The old rules are no longer valid. The rigors of considering all the dynamics of a global economy are staggering to the most scholarly, and needless to say, mind-boggling for the rest of us. Worse, even if I could understand it all, I couldn't control or predict which nation's central banks would raise or lower interest rates, print money like there's no tomorrow, or suck cash from the system with a super Hoover. It's a crap shoot at best. And the old axiom, "Buy and Hold" could cost your life savings. How could we have ever been so naive? Give a man my money and tell him to look after us? Excuse me, please. I know we don't deserve it, but please have pity on the "blind".

Anyway, back to the top of the market issue. I could go on and on about all the technical's, but that's all they are, anyway. If a Wall Street analyst can be right just slightly more than half the time, they're considered wizards, I think my two-year old granddaughter could probably compete with the random 50-50 odds of up or down. Still, when I see a five-week top, something inside my gut tells me to watch out, never mind the knot-headed phoenix of last March ricocheting off the ceiling.

You know what speaks to me even louder than that, though? Look around. Small businesses are tip-toeing in the tidewaters up to their necks, hanging on, hoping celestial bodies will save them. Yet, I fear the earth has not turned enough. Time cannot be rushed. The tide will turn only when it should. Consumers have no means to support the same appetites of years past. Could there be a silver-lining? Is this an opportunity to rebuild our economy on production, rather than consumption? Imagine that? We must live boldly; stand up for future generations. Let it not be said our greatest legacy is the squandering of our children's future. Instead of investing in Wall Street, follow Warren Buffet's lead and invest directly into America. Invest in yourself, your family, neighbors and friends. Grow your neighborhood, community and nation from within, the old-fashioned way. There are no quick fixes. No matter the best of intentions, President Obama and our nation's politcal leaders cannot cure our economic ills alone. We must do it together.

However, there is one task best left to our elected representatives. Our nation's current financial crisis, is proof positive what occurs when the regulatory powers of our government are usurped by the bank lobbyists. Less than ten years after the Gramm-Leach Bliley Act repealed the Glass-Steagall Act of 1933, which was enacted to avoid a repeat of the historic Wall Street meltdown on Black Friday, our economy is knocked to its very knees. The largest economy in the history of the world derailed by greed. Global tremors are still felt almost two years later. Duhhhhh... am I the only one scratching my head? Is Wall Street just for Wall Street? Just remember, Houdini is dead. The billions of dollars paid to Wall Street bankers was not conjured from thin air. It came from the blood, sweat, and tears of every individual working for a publicly-traded company, invested their hard-earned money in one, or has bought and paid for a product or service from one of them.

Corporate America is like the federal government. It's not their money. It's ours. So what do we do? First thing, demand Washington regain control of the financing sector. Your money should work for all Americans. We help ourselves by investing in our community. Secondly, form lending co-ops, invest in your neighborhood's vacant homes, start the business you've always wanted. Take your money out of the market and invest it where you can actually see it work. That's what I'm doing with my Monopoly money. I can only imagine the satisfaction to come. So don't worry; of course, there will be pain. We have feasted far too long to not pay the price of at least, mild indigestion for our gluttony. However, if we each take control of our own destiny and accept responsiblity for the well-being of our lives, there is nothing Americans cannot overcome. As only one nation can truly claim, WE "are" the world.