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There was one story today: crude closed below $50/bbl.  In case all
those speculators in the oil pit weren't aware of what their drive to
game the energy market and manipulate profits out of their trading, was
doing to the economy and markets as a whole, they ought to look at
today's stock market.

I'm sorry to disagree with the dogma that a completely free market will
always be fair and equitable--tell it to the Thais and Indonesians.  You
DO remember the foreign exchange crisis of '98, don't you?  You should,
it cost us a 15% correction in the S&P!  We saw what happened here
because of inadequate market controls in the Crash of '87, and now have
curbs on the stock market.  (Not to mention the Crash of '29 which led
to the creation of the SEC.)  Free markets can be manipulated.  Free
markets can be gamed.  Because the game can be, sometimes is, rigged,
that's not entirely your own responsibility.  When you get tapped out,
you can't get back into the game.  Hence, Number One Rule: Don't lose
big!  That is the reason you have to have strong rules to protect your
investing "poke".  And I suppose this fact is also relevant to the recent
bankruptcy "reforms".  If you go bust you can't play the game, you can't
make any of it back.  You need rules, but the game needs rules too!

Prices closed up enough to be significant and volume was up +16% above
average.  I call that an "Accumulation" day.  This market needs some
good news to break it out of its funk, and perhaps the end of
speculation in the energy markets could help it.

 Price    Vola-    Momen-   Volume   Oscil-   Summ.
 Change   tility   tum               lator    Index
 -__+     -__+     -__+     -__+     -__+     -__+

 __>_     __>_     _|__     _>__     __>_     _<__     04/25
 _>__     __>_     _|__     _>__     __>_     _<__     04/26
 __|_     __|_     _|__     __>_     __|_     _|__     04/27
 _|__     __|_     _|__     __>_     _|__     _|__     04/28
 ___|     __>_     _|__     __>_     __<_     _|__     04/29

Timing Signals:  I don't use or recommend timing signals, but they're
fun to watch.  If I did though, well, I might use something like this.
(Be warned!!  It tends to whipsaw around signal points!)

Last Signal: SELL       Date:  04/08/05 S&P:    1181
Winner or Loser:  loser                 By:     -10

See my market tracking charts for '03-'04 and my investment strategy
study at my website(s):
http://www.xprt.net/~pgrogers/Pers.html
http://www.geocities.com/paulgrogers/Pers.html



Paul Rogers, paulgrogers{at}yahoo.com                       -o)
http://www.angelfire.com/or/paulrogers                   /\\
Rogers' Second Law: Everything you do communicates.     _\_V

... Know how to boil a frog?   Heard about global warming?
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