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Words and Phrases We Hope Not To See Or Hear In 2012
Via Peter Tchir of TF Market Advisors,
Rather than making some predictions, here is a list of words and phrases that were popular in 2011 that just annoy me. It would be nice if they become less popular in 2012, but I predict they will remain in use.
Bazooka
No self-respecting videogame would have a “bazooka” as the ultimate weapon. Bazookas just aren’t that powerful. Maybe Europe needs to search for a “nuclear” option, that at least sounds big enough to scare people. Or, just maybe, Europe needs a credible plan for debt sustainability rather than a “weapon”.
Unintended Consequences
No policy ever fails anymore, it just had “unintended consequences”. Unintended consequences sounds better than sloppy planning, but when a consequence is forseeable and likely, it is not unintended. Unwanted, yes, but unintended, no. If I punch someone in the face, and they punch me back and break my nose, that is not an unintended consequence. It is not the result I was looking for, but it is a completely logical outcome. We will never get to the point where decision makers admit that they made bad decisions or didn’t think things through carefully, but unintended consequences is not an excuse.
Black Swan
Not everything that is bad is a black swan. Black swans are things that no one thought could exist (based on some amount of analysis) that turn out to exist. The Fukushima plant was a disaster, but not a black swan. They just didn’t plan well enough for a likely possibility. It seems like small mistakes are covered up by being “unintended consequences” and big mistakes are covered up by saying they were “black swans”. Accountability would be much better.
Transitory
Transitory sounds much better than temporary. Maybe it is used because everyone knows what temporary means, but transitory is a little harder to nail down. The Fed in particular has embraced “transitory”. Anything that occurs that they don’t like is deemed as “transitory”. This is even better than talking about unintended consequences because it implies you have actually thought of everything and that the bad stuff will go away. Maybe that is why Ben really, really, really likes it. CPI was 3.4% over the last 12 months, that doesn’t exactly seem “transitory” to me.
Bipartisan
Bipartisan is a myth. In American politics it has come to mean that the other side decides to agree to your view, or that both sides get what they want. In no case does it imply a willingness on your part to change your stance materially.
Gold Bug
Why is someone who invests in gold, considered a “gold bug”. Why are shorts constantly reminded that being short a stock can cause you have unlimited losses? I know far more people who have lost 100% of their money being long, and no one who has lost an infinite amount of money being short. Maybe it is just a cute term, or maybe it is a way to disparage people who invest in anything other than stocks and bonds.
CDS and ISDA and Credit Events
Okay, I’m not bored with this one and hope it gets used more in the future, but am shocked how many people who have never read the ISDA Credit Derivative Definitions, have never traded a CDS, have strong opinions on the subject.
How January goes, the year goes
We are about to hit that time of the year, where everyone points out how the first day in January is important, or the first week, or the first month. The S&P 500 went up over 1% on January first last year to hit 1272. It ended the month at 1282. On the bright side, it looks like that “buy” signal worked as the S&P is going to finish the year positively, but anyone who bought at the end of January will have lost money. All these rules of thumb and “ideas” based on historical annoy me, but I am sure we will hear about how important the first trading day and week are again. It is kind of ironic that in 2010 almost the entire gain in the S&P was captured on the first day of the month. In 2011, the entire gain was captured in the first trading day of the year.
Summits
We are going to get even more summits this year, but we have done it to ourselves. Somehow we have decided that phones are insufficient and the only way to properly rally around a Grand Plan announcement is at a fancy summit.
Doomer
Somehow we changed what a “realist” is. Things that at one time would have been considered giddy with optimism are now “the norm”. Looking at facts and analyzing them and coming up with negative conclusions leads to being a labeled a cynic or even a “doomer”, yet those conclusions have turned out to be correct more often than not.
Dude, when was the last time you made it to the gym?
That is just depressing and mean, but may be more of a personal issue, than a market one.
Have a Happy New Year and a great 2012 and thanks for all your support and comments and helpful insights.
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Risk-on, risk-off, risk-on, risk.............
"Stocks are down...but off the lows of the day"
oh i so fucking hate that one.....i want to punch maria in her fat face every time i hear it !
"Having said that"...It's been a popularism for a few years...Now it means nothing...If it meant anything at all...
"A date certain".
Where the FUCK did that come from?
What's wrong with simply "by a specific date"?
Also, "vet" (as a verb) and "redact" --- from where the Hell did those two bizarre words suddenly appear? And did anyone else notice how instantly and widely the corporate-controlled media adopted them?
But the one that frosts my balls the worst: "Issue", meaning "problem". Even many ZHers make this mistake.
An "issue" is merely a subject of discussion, and does NOT necessarily indicate a "problem"!
be nice. she's the money honey. i'll bet her nether regions scent like vodka ala penne. or something posh.
the girls just trying to make an honest living in a boys world.
"This is not going to end well." What economy ever did.
In these tough/challenging economic times...
"signs of recovery" - show me a fking bigfoot mfcker. there is no recovery until they stop talking about it.
"job creators"
+ another 400K pink slips on that one.
And 'six sigma certified black belt" as a hiring qualification...for a shitty job that pays $50K.
"It is what it is"
How about we change it to "It isn't what it isn't."
balanced approach
boots on the ground
enhanced interrogation
nation building
...bringing freedom and democracy to...
who is left that's NOT a democracy? iran has elections. that's the most interesting thought i've seen here in months. never occured to me. i guess the next step is not the right kind of democracys?
From our Blago...
"I've got this thing and it's fucking golden"
"I'm not just giving it up for fucking nothing"
"we'll lose our FFL if we sell it to you like that".
"You mad, bro?"
please let this one die.. please..
1. _____BITCHEZ!!!
2. Throw up in my mouth
3. Meh.
Barrack Obama
Safehaven
When referencing US, UK and Japan.
"Gold is no longer a safe haven...."
"You know, the American people are smart"
It's an election year, so sadly, we're going to hear this a lot.
Roubini
Krugman
How about "growth"?
I didn't come here to bailout fatcat bankers
President threatens veto of bill to return to gold backed currency.
My apology to the bulls, but Iwant to hear "Bidless Market". We need a real good washout and start over.
sustainability
he'll get away with it (Corzine)
I feel that this or that will happen/not happen ........ (don't feel, think!)
"bitchez"
nah, thanks to ZHers this will always be my favorite word...happy new year!!! BITCHEZ!!!
Unexpected, Through no fault of my own, Unexpected, Unlucky, Fairness, Greedy, Living Wage, Fair Shot, Could of been worse.
Stocks limp to the finish line.
The use of the word "Zeitgeist" can't end fast enough.
Schadenfreude - could use a rest also. how about some brotherly love? the greeks work with that :)
"Comprehensive plan"
"Return to your home, Citizen!"
How about the President speaking every day?
BTFD Late American Depressionisim
SLIDESHOW:
Go [Next] Fuck [Next] Yourself [Next]
How about the snobby, Wall Street, in-the-know use of the word "spend"? As in, "capital spend", when it should be "capital spending". Or that commodity dumbass who says "I'm long of...." and "I'm short of...". Very annoying!
"pork-barrel politics" has been a cliche for 120 years now.
The war on-
terror
drugs
climate change
poverty
other nations nuclear programs
brown people
dictatorships
cyber crimes
domestic terrorists
extremists
economic instability
common criminals-(just ask New Orleans leg. Austin Badon, he says we need the military to take down civilian criminal offenders)
carbon dioxide
cattle rustlers (suspected)
natural food distributors
the Amish
Gibson guitars
Ron Paul
small farmers who don't purchase their seeds from Monsanto
water (remember the EU declared that h2o does not hydrate, and threatened any company who sells bottled water and makes that claim on their labels with fines and/or imprisonment)
natural herbal remedies, supplements and cures
small businesses (via the federal govt freezing them out of contracts, which a certain amount of funds are legally supposed to be reserved for, but are now going exclusively to multi- national conglomerates)
the American middle class
American sovereignty ( see security agreement with Canada, and our border with Mexico)
the constitution (Obama called it "some old piece of paper" and his neocon friends seem to agree)
the Family (passports were changed from "mother" and "father" to parent A and parent B, also a dozen or so organizations that advocate for preserving traditional nuclear family values were labeled as extremist entities by the SPLC, for doing nothing more than advocating for the idea that a family should be a mother, father and children living together)
freedom of speech
freedom of association
freedom of the press
freedom to exchange information and ideas on the internet
individuality of any kind (everybody is grouped, libtard, teabagger, the 1%, the 99%, employed, unemployed and so on..the worst is the red vs blue which dominates American popular culture, so many still haven't figured out that there is no difference)
gender (just look at the chemicals, the social engineering, all the synthetic hormones that are in everything you wear, eat, drink and touch just google BPA read the medical studies, it's everywhere, and it's turning us into one androgynous species)
humanity
the Amish?
yeah, the feds launched armed raids on several Amish farms this summer/fall for allegedly selling whole, raw milk across state lines.
armed swat raids on the Amish because you know...there just so damn dangerous right? you never know when one might charge you with a pitchfork or try to ram your APC with his horse and carriage, so if your raiding one of their strongholds for doing something they have been doing for hundreds of years now, you damn sure better bring the guns.
welcome to America, land of the free...armed raids
Well done Marcus! +10
Survey
"printing press"
"hyperinflation"
"helicopter"
"...to the moon"
"back that truck up"
"death to the dollar"
...and everything else that's PM bullish and UST/USD bearish. Most on this site just got 2011 wrong. My strategy for 2012 is pay more attention to the overwhelming single sided sentiment on this site and do the opposite.
If you think there's single-sided sentiment on this site, you're probably not smart enough to work that strategy.
Stick with long Treasury bonds. If your premise is correct, that's gotta pay off BIG.
I will. Thanks
http://finviz.com/futures_performance.ashx?v=17
Can I say a bad word about PM's or a good word for the USD/UST's without getting smashed? You know it wasn't long ago until I started reading bearish articles about China on this site. It was all about growth, stability, conservatism and how they were eating our lunch. For a while I thought ZH was another classic American/China joint venture.....50% Chinese authority owned of course.
If you're a trader, and it sounds like you are, you're probably getting smashed not because your opinion differs, but because most commenters here are not traders and don't care much about the one day or one month performance record.
Treasuries vs. gold, 2011.
That isn't a matter of opinion. So you can shave a gain from Netflix or Groupon? God bless. A lot of us work for a living.
twitter
(prime example - http://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/2011/12/30/kelly-clarkson-loses-som... )
Rehypothecation
When some MFer gets you hopelessly lost in the UK.
He can't win (re. Ron Paul)
He's a liberal (Dickhead Morris on Ron Paul)
He's weak on the military (re. Ron Paul who desires 'wars' be declared by congress, that nut.....)
ad nauseum....
Dickhead Morris
How about
Food Riots in America in 2012
Bitchezzzzzz
How about:
Risk off-risk on
&
bubble
&
"Stocks were up/down today on... (whatever the last f-king headline the statement creator read/saw)
Damn, I forgot to mail Ben his Christmas gift and card this year- a Clapper interface for the PPT HFT box.
buy one, get one free
due to...it is as a result of media asswipes. A train is due to arrive. The stock market crash is as a RESULT OF. You fill in the rest.
I am confident...
In talks with...
insider information...
congress is working on...
bipartisen...
lastly..a new app. .....250,000 isn't that enough?
bipartisan--as if that's a good thing? I'm with Christopher Hitchens. I'd rather have them at each others throats than in agreement on how best to screw the middle class.
Kick the can down the road. Kick the next person who says that in the nuts.
Going forward, I call bullshit on this post, going forward.
our polling data shows that .............
Cramer anything
Krugman anything
preemptive retaliation
Well done Peter Tchir.
bazooka wtf? these international regulator fogeys need a refresher course in pop culture. bazooka -> RPG.
tylers - i love you. i really do. but please - if you haven't been to the gym, don't bother with a resolution. big is beautiful - more to love. be proud! it cost a lot of time and money to accumulate all that. they would be jealous in somalia. means you CAN afford to eat - and big time. and think about the future. those stents and interventions. SOMEBODY has to keep the health care system busy. really. us regular gym guys don't need you guys in there turning on tv's and poking around machines that you have no idea what they do, when we need to use them. besides - unpacked isn't any further motivation for us - leave that to you wives.
:)
my contribution
Occupy _________ !
Tea Party
The Powers that Be
Fair Share
Tax the rich
Keynesian
Banker
Undocumented immigrants (how about using invaders, infiltrators, job stealers, or something else that reflects the actual harm they bring?)
If illegal aliens are "undocumented immigrants", then a backstreet drug dealer is an "undocumented pharmacist".
Conspiracy Theorist
Somehow anyone who questions the MSM's burying or blacking out of important news, the 'official' stories coming out of Washington when making a case for new taxes, bail outs or war, the real beneficiaries of central planning, market manipulation to serve political ends, ext. leads to being called a 'conspiracy theorist', instead, of just well informed, free, or awake.
Luckily, this is changing every day.
Somebody should popularize hats that look like tinfoil. People should proudly literally wear what they are being derided for figuratively wearing.
Close enough for the moment: http://www.cafepress.com/+other_hat_made_of_tin_foil_cap,318035242?cmp=p...
We will not hear about "unintended consequences" but we will start to realize "unintended consequences" in 2012 which have thus far been avoided with innovations in can kicking technology
Consider the Transitorality of this post.
Then kiss it goodbye.
...and as we enter the final shhhhtretch...
- M. Bartiromo @ 3:01 pm every f'kin day
I'd like to add "Robust" to the list. Way over used!
"______ is cheap right now."